Chapter 277 Born Noble, Stubbornly Unrepentant
Upon hearing the name Yan Zhao, the hall erupted in an uproar.
Only Li Jing remained unfazed, sitting there silently.
His eyes were closed, and it was impossible to tell what he was thinking at that moment.
"Heading east, we were met by Yang Zhongyi, the Vice Minister of Revenue, who had been arranged beforehand. The mission of the two carts of armor was now complete."
Li Jing is very smart.
He didn't need the two carts of armor to actually be transported to the palace; he only needed Xiao Chen, the loyal General of the Imperial Guard in the capital, to see clearly what was inside.
He didn't need irrefutable evidence; just a single glance was enough to confirm the smuggling of armor, and then, with the power of witness testimony, he could firmly pin this crime on Li Mu's head.
In fact, Li Jing could have arrived at the imperial palace earlier, before dawn, and presented the memorial impeaching Li Mu.
The reason for the delay of several hours was that he did not expect Li Mu, who was always timid and afraid of trouble and would try to minimize or eliminate problems.
The First Prince, who is usually indecisive and suffers from decision-making difficulties, reacted extremely quickly in this matter and rushed to the palace at full speed.
In order to prevent him from ruining his plans, Li Jing put on a show of brotherly affection in front of Li Mu.
"Father is in a bad mood right now, so even if the Crown Prince goes to see him, he probably won't respond at all."
At that time, Li Jing stopped Li Mu three miles away from the imperial palace.
Seeing Li Mu, who was traveling under the stars and moon, covered in dust and with anxiety written all over his face, he quickly handed him water and told him to take a rest.
“If you were to come to pay your respects now and accidentally offend the Emperor, things would likely become even more complicated.” Li Jing said, his hands behind his back, seemingly pacing anxiously.
After a long while, he seemed to have thought of something and comforted Li Mu, saying, "Brother, why don't you wait here first? I'll go to the palace to inform them."
He paused for a moment, then said, "If Father Emperor calms down, or realizes that he has misunderstood my elder brother, he will surely summon him to the palace to explain things clearly."
At that time, Li Mu had no choice.
He could only accept Li Jing's kindness and then wait quietly in the camp outside the palace.
He didn't know that Li Jing had lied to him.
"The Second Prince, accompanied by several so-called witnesses, submitted the memorial accusing the prince of treason at the crack of dawn."
In the main hall, Li Jin chuckled: "Then Crown Prince Li Mu was waiting three kilometers away, while the then Crown Princess Cen, six months pregnant, was escorted away from the capital with difficulty by a maid named Fan Yin."
That day, Li Mu, who stayed from sunrise to nightfall, had no idea that behind him, in the capital of Great Wei, the members of the Eastern Palace, who had not yet been convicted and had not received an imperial edict, had already entered the Great Wei's prison before Li Yi even spoke.
It wasn't until he was locked in a prison cart and shackled that Li Mu realized he had been drawn into a battle for the throne.
"In the palace, Su Wanying was coerced by Consort Shu and tearfully gave a false testimony of deceiving the emperor," Li Jin said calmly. "Furthermore, with Yan Zhao and Xiao Chen as witnesses to the smuggling of armor, the treason was almost a certainty."
He turned to look at Li Jing, his words carrying a hidden meaning: "But do you gentlemen think this matter ends here?"
Li Jin's voice rose a few decibels: "This is only the beginning of his blood-stained hands!"
"Li Jing, who gave you the audacity to ambush and kill the deposed crown prince who was being exiled to the frontier?"
Li Jin gritted his teeth, his emotions suppressed for six years finally breaking free of his composure. In an instant, a raging storm erupted, howling like a tiger or wolf as he charged toward Li Jing.
Seeing that he had finally become truly angry, Li Jing, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly smiled contemptuously.
He calmly and deliberately straightened his clothes, starting from his neck and carefully adjusting the waistband.
Only then did she raise her eyes to look at Li Jin, watching his dazzling figure under the palace lanterns, and slowly stand up.
Li Jing stepped forward, a cold smile curving his lips: "Li Jin, history is written by the victors. I have lost, and I concede defeat. I am at your mercy."
After saying that, he narrowed his eyes slightly and changed his tone: "But if you want me to apologize to Li Mu and admit my mistake..."
He clenched his teeth, his gaze sharp as a knife: "Dream on."
As everyone watched, Crown Prince Li Jing spoke, while personally removing the small crown that stood high on his head and throwing it on the ground.
He stared at Li Jin's face, took two steps forward without fear, raised his hand and poked his chest, and said coldly, "No matter who it is, from the moment they put on this crown, from the moment they put on this robe, and from the moment they move into the Eastern Palace, they should be prepared to face death."
"The resolve to face death!?" Li Jin's voice rose considerably as he sneered, "You really know how to pat yourself on the back!"
In front of his ministers, Li Jin unhesitatingly tore off his hypocritical mask.
"Don't you have any idea what kind of people you've killed?"
He stood with his hands behind his back, exuding a murderous aura.
"The palace maids in the Crown Prince's residence, the cooks, the servants in the woodshed, and the entire Cen family..." Li Jin questioned, "I'm asking you, why did they die?"
Li Jing didn't take it seriously: "From the moment they chose Li Mu, they should have been prepared to die."
"Fine!" These words made Li Jin's nostrils twitch slightly, and his eyes turned extremely cold. "Well done, choosing Li Mu."
"Ha!" He looked coldly at Li Jing, who was standing in front of him, and said, "What about those officials who were merely responsible for escorting them? Why should they die?"
Before Li Jing could answer, he continued, "Why should the entire family of Liu Quan, the Minister of Works, who overstepped their authority to forge two cartloads of armor for you, die?"
"Why should Lin Zhongyi and his family, who risked their lives to transport the armor for you, die?"
"Why did Yang Qingyun and his family, who devoted themselves to erasing your traces, have to die?"
"So you chose Li Mu? Then let me ask you! You who chose Li Jing, why would you take your entire family's lives and go to the Yellow Springs with Li Mu when you achieve fame and success?!"
The people inside the hall were so shocked that their eyes widened. Some of the young women, who had never seen such a scene before, covered their mouths in fear, trembling all over, and dared not cry out.
"Li Jing! You're really something!" In the center of the hall, Li Jin stared coldly at him, his eyes filled with hatred and disgust. "You've put on a far more exciting show of undermining someone's foundation and betraying them after they've served their purpose than any theatrical troupe!"
“Killing these people isn’t enough. You also want to make sure that Chen Wen, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, loses face in front of me because of a slip of the tongue. You’re going to make sure he dies a gruesome death on his way back to his hometown.”
"Seeing the Six Doors penetrating deeper and deeper into the core, you feared Yan Zhao's betrayal and even attempted an assassination under the palace gates." Li Jin took a deep breath. "That's not enough!"
He raised his hand and pointed at Li Jing's forehead: "Three catties of Gorgon, are you going to use the blood and corpses of all the civil and military officials and their descendants to pave the way for you?!"
"Shouldn't they be!" Li Jin had barely finished speaking when the Crown Prince roared in anger.
The already restless officials were stunned and stood there dumbfounded.
He met Li Jin's disgusted gaze with a fierce look, pointed at Li Jin's chest, and poked it twice: "We are different from them!"
"You are a prince, and so am I. We are royalty, born noble, chosen by heaven!" He laughed wickedly and arrogantly. "And these people are nothing but ants. There are countless people in the Great Wei! When they die, another batch will take their place!"
He pointed around: "Them! Them! And them!"
"They were subjects to begin with, and to die for the country and its people is their glory! It's a blessing bestowed upon them by the brilliance of their ancestors!" Li Jing's eyes flashed with murderous intent as he stared intently at Prince Jing's face. "What do their lives amount to!"
In a flash, Li Jing pulled out a dagger hidden in his bosom, raised it with a ferocious expression, and stabbed it fiercely into Li Jin's chest.
"Since you want to be with them so much, I'll take you there!"
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