Chapter 53: The Prince Returns, Thunderous Rage
The windblown sand from the border still clung to his dark battle robe. Xiao Jin reined in the reins, and the steed beneath him reared to its full height, neighing. The capital's gate tower lay before him, yet he felt no trace of triumphant joy. The secret report sent back by the secret guards before his departure was like a thorn in his heart: Prime Minister Shen intended to give Yun Zhi to Batu, the enemy envoy, and Lin Wanru had already led men to the outskirts of the capital to capture her.
"Your Highness, why don't you go back to your mansion and rest for a while? You haven't slept for three days and three nights." The captain of the guards advised in a low voice, looking at the red bloodshot in Xiao Jin's eyes, full of worry.
"What palace are you going back to?" Xiao Jin's voice was as cold as ice. He whipped his horse whip violently, "Go to the palace! Now!"
How could he rest? No matter how much he hated Yun Zhi, she was still part of his Prince Duan's mansion. He humiliated and controlled her, but he would never allow anyone else to touch her! How dare Prime Minister Shen set his sights on her, and even wanted to give her to that barbarian Batu? He was simply courting death!
The clatter of horse hooves hurried across the bluestone pavement, kicking up a cloud of dust. Seeing it was Xiao Jin, the guards outside the palace quickly let him pass. He headed straight for the Hall of Supreme Harmony. As he reached the entrance, he heard Prime Minister Shen's gentle yet undeniable authority: "...Emissary Batu has agreed to suspend the hostilities. Simply by sending the convicted slave Yun Zhi over, the two countries can reach a truce. This is a move that takes the greater good into consideration. Your Majesty, I beg for your approval."
"Consider the overall situation?" Xiao Jin kicked open the palace door, his voice filled with rage, "Prime Minister Shen, what you mean by considering the overall situation is giving my people to the barbarians?!"
The palace instantly fell silent. The emperor sat on the dragon throne, his face pale. He was clearly persuaded by Prime Minister Shen, yet he was wary of Xiao Jin's military power. The court officials all lowered their heads, no one daring to speak—one of them was a prince with a large military force, the other was a prime minister with omnipotent power; no one could afford to offend them.
Prime Minister Shen turned around and saw Xiao Jin's angry expression, but he still smiled gently. "Your Highness has returned? The border war has been tough. But Your Highness is wrong. Yun Zhi is the daughter of a criminal minister, not Your Highness's. Giving her to the envoy will not only maintain peace between the two countries, but also demonstrate the sincerity of our Daqi. Why not?"
"Why not?" Xiao Jin approached step by step, his black battle robe sweeping across the ground with a fierce momentum. "Chen Jingzhi, dare you say again that she is not my person? I don't care whether she is the daughter of a guilty minister or not. As long as she is in Prince Duan's Mansion, it is not your turn to make decisions, old fox!"
"Your Highness, please calm down." Prime Minister Shen bowed slightly, but his tone remained unyielding. "I am doing this for the sake of the country. Although the border is temporarily peaceful now, if the envoy becomes enraged and starts another war, it will be the people who will suffer, and it will be the country of Daqi that will suffer! Your Highness holds the power of the army. Do you think you will abandon the lives of the people of the world for the sake of a criminal slave?"
"For a criminal slave?" Xiao Jin sneered, his eyes filled with mockery. "Prime Minister Shen, don't think I don't know what you're up to! You want to use Batu to get rid of Yun Zhi, and then pin the blame on me, making me bear the stigma of 'disregarding the greater good for women,' right?"
The smile on Prime Minister Shen's face faded a little, but he remained calm: "Your Highness, you are worrying too much. I am only acting in the interests of the country. Moreover, the Yun family colluded with the enemy and the evidence is irrefutable. As the daughter of a guilty minister, Yun Zhi should be punished. Being able to serve the envoy is already her good fortune. It is better than being beheaded in public."
"Is the evidence irrefutable?" Xiao Jin clenched his fists, his knuckles turning white. He recalled Yun Zhi's search for something in the darkroom of the study, the pleading look in her eyes as she held the child. A lingering suspicion welled up in his heart—could there really be something fishy about the Yun family case?
But this doubt was quickly suppressed by anger. He looked at Prime Minister Shen, his voice full of threats: "I don't care about any evidence, nor do I care about the overall situation! Yun Zhi is my person, no one can touch her! Prime Minister Shen, if you dare to have any ideas about her again, I don't mind making your Shen family taste the taste of treason!"
"Your Highness, are you threatening me?" Prime Minister Shen's expression finally changed, but he still refused to give in. "As Prime Minister, I assist Your Majesty and take the overall situation into consideration. What is there to fear? Your Highness, on the other hand, is threatening important officials of the court for a criminal slave. If this gets out, I'm afraid it will chill the hearts of the people!"
He turned to look at the emperor on the dragon throne and bowed, saying, "Your Majesty, I implore you to issue an order to send Yun Zhi to the envoy to maintain peace between the two countries! If the prince insists on stopping us, you will be disregarding the lives of the people on the border and the safety of the Great Qi Empire. Your Majesty, please punish me!"
The emperor, caught in the middle, turned even paler. He looked at Xiao Jin, who was filled with anger, and then at the court officials standing behind Prime Minister Shen (most of whom were from the Shen family). His lips trembled, but he couldn't utter a complete sentence: "This...this...Xiao Jin, you...you should also be considerate of me and the people..."
"Your Majesty!" Xiao Jin knelt abruptly, his voice filled with resentment. "It's not that I don't care about the people! It's just that Batu is incredibly greedy. If I give Yun Zhi away today, he'll want even more tomorrow! If I keep giving in, he'll only push his advantage. In the future, the people will suffer!"
"Your Highness, what you said makes sense, but..." The emperor sighed, his eyes evading, "But Prime Minister Shen said that the envoy is only willing to accept Yun Zhi... If he doesn't send her, he will order an attack on the city tomorrow..."
Xiao Jin watched the emperor's cowardly expression and the subtle smile on Prime Minister Shen's lips, his anger growing even stronger, yet he felt helpless. He knew that Prime Minister Shen had already calculated the emperor's cowardice, the courtiers' fawning, and that he had just returned from the border, his troops still under rest, and would not dare to easily antagonize the court.
"Prime Minister Shen," Xiao Jin stood up, his eyes filled with cold murderous intent, "Can you guarantee that Batu will truly cease hostilities if Yun Zhi is sent? Can you guarantee that he won't make any other demands?"
"I can't guarantee it, but I can guarantee that if Yun Zhi isn't sent, war will break out immediately," Prime Minister Shen said firmly, "Whether Your Highness wants to take a gamble or consider the overall situation is entirely up to Your Highness."
Xiao Jin looked at Prime Minister Shen, then at the Emperor on the Dragon Throne, then at the courtiers in the hall, bowing their heads in silence. He felt as if a huge rock had weighed down his heart, making it hard to breathe. He hated Prime Minister Shen's cunning, the Emperor's cowardice, and even more, himself—hated that he held military power, yet was bound by the words "national interests"; hated that he hated Yun Zhi, yet upon hearing that she was to be given to Batu, he felt such intense anger and resentment.
He recalled Yun Zhi's miscarriage, her words, "Xiao Jin, I remember the pain of today," and the dead silence and determination in her eyes. If she were truly sent to Batu, given her temperament, she would surely fight to the death. Then, what awaited her would be torture worse than death.
"Okay," Xiao Jin said slowly after a long moment, his voice hoarse as if it had been rubbed by sandpaper. "This king agrees, but I have one condition—Yun Zhi must be sent there personally by this king. No one, including Batu, can touch her until she's sent to the embassy!"
Prime Minister Shen didn't expect Xiao Jin to propose such a condition. He was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Okay. As long as Your Highness is willing to consider the overall situation, I have no objection." But he sneered in his heart - as long as Yun Zhi was sent to Batu, then even if Xiao Jin wanted to protect her, he would not be able to.
Xiao Jin didn't look at him again, turning and striding out of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. The sunlight outside the hall was blinding, but it couldn't penetrate the gloom in his heart. He jumped on his horse and ordered the chief guard, "Go to the outskirts of the capital and find Yun Zhi! If she's alive, we must see her. If she's dead, we must see her body!"
The captain of the guards quickly agreed. The sound of horse hooves echoed again, galloping towards the outskirts of Beijing. Xiao Jin sat on horseback, the wind blowing his battle robe, but it couldn't blow away the irritation and doubts in his heart - Yun Zhi, you better be fine. If you are really hurt by Batu, I will make him, and those who plotted against you, pay the price!
In a dilapidated temple outside Beijing, Yun Zhi hid in a corner, listening to the sound of the search and arrest gradually fade away. Xie Heng and Liu Zhong stood by her side, their faces solemn.
"Miss, it seems that Prime Minister Shen is determined to send you to Batu," Liu Zhong lowered his voice, his tone worried, "What should we do now? We definitely can't stay in the capital. How about we flee to the border and find Zhao Feng first?"
Yun Zhi shook her head, her eyes full of determination: "No. I can't just run away like this. Prime Minister Shen wants to give me away as a gift, but I won't let him succeed. Besides, I have to find out how much hidden truth there is in my father's case."
She looked at Xie Heng and said firmly, "Brother Xie, Uncle Liu, you go to the border to find Zhao Feng first, I'll stay here. I'll try to get into the embassy, maybe I can find evidence of Prime Minister Shen and Batu colluding."
"No! It's too dangerous!" Xie Heng objected immediately. "Batu is violent and lustful. The embassy is heavily guarded. If you go in, you'll be walking into a tiger's mouth!"
"I know it's dangerous, but this is our only chance," Yun Zhi said calmly, yet with unquestionable determination. "As long as we can get the evidence, even the risk is worth it."
At this moment, a burst of hurried horse hooves came from outside the dilapidated temple, accompanied by the guards' shouts: "The prince has ordered to search this dilapidated temple immediately!"
Yun Zhi's expression suddenly changed—it was Xiao Jin! He was back!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
