28. Dismissal
Yun Zhihe thought for a moment.
Eunuch Li's words that day were truly hurtful, and it was not unreasonable for Qin Zhi to be so withdrawn.
However, whether a man abides by the moral code or not is not something Yun Zhihe can judge.
She believes that she is clear-headed and is not bothered by others, let alone pointing fingers at others.
She considered her words carefully, "If we go by what's written in 'Men's Rules,' Your Highness's actions are certainly unethical for men."
Qin Zhi's face turned pale for a moment.
Thanks to Qin Zhi's three hundred times of copying "Men's Rules", Yun Zhihe now has a deep understanding of this book.
Qin Zhi pursed his lips and lowered his eyes without looking at her.
How about it?
Was he going to be a well-behaved young man waiting to be pampered by women? Was he really meant to be that dull and weak?
But, if I marry her...it should be like that.
"but……"
Qin Zhi raised his eyes to look at her, slightly surprised by her change of attitude.
"But Your Highness should still follow your heart..." Yun Zhihe narrowed his eyes. "Your Highness's behavior didn't bother anyone else, it just caused a few pedantic scholars to criticize you for breaking the rules."
She stroked the pen, and her fingertips became even whiter than jade.
"Virtue is not prescribed by the law."
Yun Zhihe paused, perhaps seeing Qin Zhi's genuine disappointment, and then gave an example: "The Empress Dowager Sui Yi of the previous dynasty manipulated the young emperor and, as Empress Dowager, wielded state power..."
"Although this example may sound outrageous, no one at the time reprimanded him for violating the Three Obediences and Four Virtues... Empress Dowager Suiyi's keeping of a female concubine was, according to the 'Men's Precepts', a violation of male virtue. But aside from the criticisms of later scholars, how could anyone at the time have shown any disrespect towards him?"
"Your Highness believes that his behavior is outrageous. Even if some people criticize him harshly, how could they have the courage to hand him over to the authorities?"
"Whether or not you uphold male virtue is a matter for your Highness to judge within his own heart. Why should you care about what others say?"
"If you want to follow the Three Obediences and Four Virtues, then go ahead and learn to follow them. If you don't want to, no one can stop you."
"In life, one should live freely and unrestrainedly... Ordinary men don't have the right to choose like Your Highness."
Yun Zhihe looked into Qin Zhi's eyes and smiled at him gently. The tiny and bright starlight was clear in her eyes. She smiled lightly, and there was a stream of light in her eyes.
Qin Zhi paused, his eyes moistened. He spoke in a hoarse voice, "You scholars only know how to speak in such flowery language."
There was a hint of crying in his voice.
Even I feel embarrassed.
It was clear that when he was young and learning to ride a horse, he was thrown to the ground by the horse, but he did not shed a single tear.
He simply mounted the horse again and tamed the wild horse with gritted teeth. At that time, his hair was flying and he was smiling happily with his teeth showing.
He was the proud and unbridled Second Prince, and he shouldn't have cried so delicately in front of a woman.
But, I have to ask her to feed me medicine and comfort me when I am heartbroken...
“…Your Highness?”
Yun Zhihe looked at his falling tears in a daze, and handed him a handkerchief helplessly.
Qin Zhi pursed his lips, forcing the tears not to fall, and asked in a hoarse voice.
"But you...but..."
He wanted to ask, do you like me?
The desire in his heart entangled his thoughts, and he just wanted to... snuggle up in her arms tenderly.
What about a hug?
When she held him in her arms, he would entwine his fingertips around her hair, making circles and then unraveling them, and then he would call her nickname in a hoarse voice...Jinniang.
Then...what will happen to his Jinniang?
She would look at him lovingly, then gently kiss the corner of his lips, praising his beautiful pine green eyes that were different from ordinary people, leaving her heart pounding.
He wants to marry her.
Marrying him as a husband, even if he is strong and willful, I still want to be a pampered little husband.
He stammered and couldn't say anything, his ears slowly turned red, and he was so angry and discouraged that he no longer looked at her.
The voice is soft and hoarse.
His usually deep pine green eyes now lit up.
"You are, however, attracted to a man like me...?"
Like a test.
"Um?"
The Second Prince must be using her as a reference...? After all, the woman he likes doesn't like him right now.
I am also curious about who the person that Eunuch Li said the second prince loves is.
Yun Zhihe thought about it seriously.
Her type?
She hadn't thought about it carefully and wasn't very clear about it.
Cui Mingyu always described to her the ecstasy of making love in bed, but at the moment... she had no interest in it, and was probably indifferent. If Cui Mingyu hadn't stopped her, she would have found a doctor to see if she was okay.
The Second Prince is this type...
He is unrestrained and uninhibited, with a haughty smile on his face whenever he looks up, dressed in fine clothes and riding a horse, he is free and unrestrained.
Even she envied such freedom.
"I... admire you very much."
After thinking for a moment, I came to this conclusion.
People like Qin Zhi are rare in this world. They are not bound by external things. Just one look at him makes you marvel at his freedom.
"I admire you."
The voice was soft and mellow, with a hint of smile.
Qin Zhi paused, his pine green eyes widened, his heart suddenly began to beat, his throat trembled a little, and the tips of his ears seemed to be glaringly red.
After a long while, he finally spoke in a hoarse voice, his last words trembling, "This...this prince, understands."
Then he stood up suddenly, no longer looking into Yun Zhihe's eyes. He stumbled away, passing Azhi. Azhi was still wondering why he was walking so fast with his head down. Under Chunya's puzzled gaze, he suddenly shrank back into the carriage.
"Second Prince—"
He covered his heart with his hands, his fingertips curled up, as if his breathing was uneven, and he sobbed hoarsely.
"Spring, spring buds..."
Chunya was startled and pulled open the curtain to look at him. She saw Qin Zhi curled up on the ground, holding his chest and crying with his head down.
His face flushed and he sobbed and muttered to himself.
"I, I like her so much..."
He seemed unable to suppress his surging emotions, and tears could not help but flow down, as if all the tears he had suppressed for the past ten years came out, making it difficult for him to breathe.
"Chun Ya, I really... like her so much..."
The Queen Mother's words echoed in my ears, "My son is born like a phoenix, and he only wants to be pampered."
He would look down on the delicate young men, draw his bow and shoot arrows, hitting the elk and making blood splatter, then watch them scream in fear and shrink into a ball with a chuckle.
His hair would flutter in the wind, revealing the upturned corners of his lips, but when she looked at him, he would smile calmly, like a proud eagle.
When she saw the young masters giving her embroidery as gifts, she lowered her eyes in a teasing and indifferent manner. But at night, she secretly became irritated because she could not embroider beautiful embroidery, causing her fingertips to bleed, and her brows were furrowed even in her dreams.
He deceived himself and only liked her a little.
Because she is beautiful and has a good personality... Just like that, this woman deserves his love.
Then, when she approached, he would scare her with an arrow in a fierce manner, with a cold look on his face, so that she could not see his love.
Then I couldn't help but feel my heart palpitating and couldn't help but want to get closer.
He deceived himself and only liked it a little.
But now, Qin Zhi can no longer deceive.
"Wow...what should I do...I really like her so much..."
He cried helplessly.
Chunya was also crying and laughing, hugging the second prince, and the master and servant huddled together and cried bitterly.
…
The work of amending the law is coming to an end.
Prime Minister Wen took on most of the pressure. Even Queen Mother Cheng put pressure on him to be more cautious. She was not very afraid. She just raised her eyebrows and looked at Yun Zhihe, sighing softly.
He murmured, his face becoming even more haggard, "It's almost there."
His men proceeded with drastic measures.
The status of untouchables was merged into the status of slaves, and several laws also particularly protected the right to life. After all, population is the main productive force, and once the matter is brought up, we cannot ignore it.
Yes - if a slave or servant commits a serious crime such as theft, he should not be punished privately. Instead, he should report it to the authorities and file it on record before being executed.
——If innocent servants are killed indiscriminately, they will be convicted of the crime of killing innocent citizens.
…
Yun Zhihe became more and more delighted as she read. She flipped through the draft again and again, and scenes of her visits to those slaves and brothel masters flashed through her mind like a kaleidoscope.
This included her day and night visits and investigations, Prime Minister Wen's debates with scholars, and the assistance of other people in the investigation.
Feudalism needs to develop by stepping on people. If it cannot shake the times, it will shake the lives of the people that the times step on.
This is the law presented to the emperor. Xuanyuan should pass the law immediately and announce it to the world. When the news came, the ladies who revised the law were very happy.
Among them were some as young as Yun Zhihe, who was full of frivolity. She immediately jumped up for joy, unable to suppress her happiness, and laughed so loudly that her name will be recorded in history.
There are also old ladies with gray hair but clear eyes. When they hold a pen, their strong character and determination to speak up for the people are revealed. They stand up tremblingly, shedding tears, and there is a breath of pine and bamboo air.
Those who visited and investigated knew the sufferings of the lowly class better than the dignitaries in Beijing.
Several months passed, and the sharp winter winds turned into sprouts emerging from the melting ice and snow.
They watched as unidentified bodies fell into mass graves and became wandering ghosts. Their flesh and blood could not even register them as “human beings”; they were just natural beings.
They watched the men in brothels drifting in oppression. The brothels in the capital were full of decadence and extravagance, but the filthy brothels below were hells that gnawed at blood, bones and desires.
They watched the barefoot laborers tremblingly straighten up, their numb expressions adding a touch of luxurious brightness to the indulgence of the powerful.
In the past few months, some of them visited the countryside, some visited wealthy families, and some went into remote mountains, only to return in tears.
Yun Zhihe laughed, it was rare for him to laugh so happily.
Thinking of the lives lost in the Song Mansion, and then thinking of the unknown bodies wandering all over the world.
Prime Minister Wen was pleased to see this. He lowered his eyes and then raised them again. There was a rare smile in his eyes, and he showed a sense of fearlessness.
Then the imperial edict came.
"By the providence of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims—"
The servants in the palace had shrill voices.
They all knelt down, thinking it was a reward from the palace.
"Prime Minister Wen Youzhi has failed in moral conduct and abused his power. He has used the law as an excuse to pursue self-interest and has neglected his duties. He has deeply betrayed my grace. Considering his meritorious service in enforcing the law, I will only dismiss him from his post and depose him from his position..."
"I hereby order—"
Following the palace attendant's long, sharp voice, Yun Zhihe widened her eyes, as if in disbelief. She raised her head to read the imperial edict.
Prime Minister Wen had a calm expression, showing his determination and calmness to face injustice.
She took the imperial edict and kowtowed to express her gratitude.
The voice was firm.
"Common people, accept the order—"
The author has something to say:
The second prince didn't cry because he was rejected. He thought he was being affirmed, but he cried because he liked Japanese anime so much.
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