Unlike Honghui, who felt the intense love of his parents after a long time, Yinzhen suffered the harsh punishment of love from his older brother.
After having close contact with the disaster victims, Yinzhen was deeply moved. He told Prince Zhi about the so-called rebel leader he had learned about: "Brother, there is a reason for this. Should we first adopt a policy of appeasement?"
"What do you want to do?" Prince Zhi was surprised by Yinzhen's active participation. He thought his younger brother was just simple-minded, but he didn't expect him to be so shrewd.
"Why not retrieve the woman's body from the river first, give her a dignified burial, and then offer her amnesty?" Yinzhi thought about this all the way, and this was the best solution he could come up with.
Prince Zhi thought his younger brother was foolishly naive. He patted Yinzhen on the shoulder and said, "The world is so big, and there are many injustices. If everyone were like this traitor Qin, what dignity would the imperial power have?"
“The bodies can be retrieved, but not for burial,” Prince Zhi said meaningfully. “Why don’t you take charge of this matter, tenth brother? I need to make contact with the local army so that we can send troops to encircle and suppress them at any time.”
Yinzhi didn't understand what the Prince Zhi meant by the purpose of the corpse at first. He ordered the best swimmers in his team to go into the water and, after finding cat and dog bones, actually pulled out a bloated corpse.
The body had been lying quietly in the water for a long time. Apart from the bright red clothes on her body, it was almost impossible to recognize her appearance. The only things that could be seen were that she had a small frame and her age matched.
"Tenth Prince, shall we go back and report to Prince Zhi?" Yin's attendant took out a water pouch and let him drink some water to suppress the urge to vomit.
Yin was about to agree when his gaze suddenly fell on the exposed fingers of the corpse. The five fingers attached to the palm were bent at an impossible angle, as if they had been forcibly broken off.
Do drowned people also show such marks?
Yin thought for a moment: "Go and invite a coroner."
"The attendant should be," Yin added, "but do not disturb Prince Zhi."
It took half a day for the coroner to arrive. Yin was standing not far from the corpse, covering his nose, clearly overwhelmed by the stench of decay.
After all, working in the yamen, the coroner, though thin, looked well-fed. Yin pointed to the female corpse lying on the ground, and the coroner understood and examined it for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn.
"Reporting to Tenth Master, this... young lady died of suffocation. She was assaulted by multiple people before her death, and her body has many injuries from blows and impacts." The coroner first described the physical characteristics of the female corpse, and then subtly stated her cause of death.
Yin's expression turned cold. Although he was also a womanizer, he always believed in mutual consent and never forced anyone. After that young master Rong tricked him before his death, he lost interest in the people of the brothel.
It's unbelievable that in Shandong, a province plagued by disasters, we still see this kind of behavior where people resort to killing when coercion fails.
In other words, this "bride" was not only chosen as a sacrifice, but was also actually enjoyed by those corrupt and incompetent officials. It was truly... A layer of anger rose in Yin's heart. He felt that he was not even this angry when he was framed.
This child is so young, how could they dare to do that!
Yinzhi took off his outer robe to cover the corpse's appearance. His attendant carefully lifted the body onto the carriage, and the group returned to the government office.
Seeing that Yinzhen had completed the task, Prince Zhi nodded in satisfaction: "In that case, everything is ready."
******
The next day, Prince Zhi led several thousand troops straight to the rebels' stronghold. Instead of rushing in to capture the bandit leader, he brought out a coffin.
A loud-voiced striker spoke at the top of his lungs, his voice clearly audible for miles around.
"Listen up, you traitors! Surrender obediently, and you might at least have a proper burial. Otherwise, this young lady from the Qin family will be torn apart by chariots, and she will not rest in peace after death!"
"Brother!" Yinzhen was shocked to hear this. He immediately stepped forward on his horse. "What crime has the Qin family girl committed that you would desecrate her corpse like this?"
The prevailing funeral belief is that the dead should be buried in the earth for peace, as people believe that only an intact body can contain a person's soul. Since one's body and hair are gifts from one's parents, even cutting one's hair during life is discouraged, let alone destroying the corpse after death.
"What crime has she committed? Her only crime is having a traitorous brother." Prince Zhi's voice was cold and unmoved. "Anyone who pleads for the rebels shall be considered an accomplice to the rebels and shall be executed!"
From the besieged village, a young man dressed in a cloth shirt and shorts emerged. He was thin, and the clothes seemed to hang loosely on his bones.
His body was tanned dark, but his eyes shone brightly with rage. He looked at the mangled corpse in the coffin and a hint of pity appeared on his face.
"These corrupt officials treat human life like dirt! Doesn't the court care? Why should we support such a monarch who selects and protects such incompetent officials?" The man spoke quickly, his voice filled with a burning rage.
Prince Zhi drew his spear and pointed it at him: "None of this is a reason for your insubordination. Surrender and you will not be killed!"
"We, the Qin family, will die standing, never live on our knees." The man's face was resolute. He looked like he couldn't even kill a chicken, yet he dared to charge at the commander-in-chief alone.
To accept it would naturally mean death by being pierced by a thousand arrows.
Upon discovering their leader's death, the village descended into chaos, with people scattering and fleeing. Some were killed, others captured, all by the soldiers brought by the Prince of Zhi. The ease with which they fled raised questions about how such a fighting force could rival the imperial army.
“Your Highness, although they are a rabble, young Qin is well-versed in military strategy. If it weren’t for the body of young Qin’s sister, who was out of his mind today, it’s hard to say what might have happened. He might have already disappeared among the common people.” This was said by the commander who had suffered a loss before.
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