Chapter 291 Deserves to be Executed
As the hour of You approaches, the sky turns gloomy early, as if a cold rain is brewing.
The autumn wind blew into the clothes, making people feel cold all over.
In the Prime Minister's Mansion, Ni Kun slowly walked to the bronze mirror, carefully smoothed his sleeves, and straightened his clothes.
He smiled and said, "Little girl, thanks to you, I have lived for another half a month and eaten more meals. Now I will go and take your place!"
After he finished speaking, no one around responded.
The house was empty inside and out; all the servants and guards had been dismissed long ago.
Only the rhinoceros horn tree in front of the window was listening quietly. The branches that were about to bloom were humming in the autumn wind, as if responding with tears.
Ni Kun walked out of the house and closed the door.
Walk out of the yard and continue to close the gate.
They walked out one by one, closing all the doors tightly until there was no way to retreat behind them.
He did not take a carriage as usual. Indeed, the coachman had received his salary and retired, and there was no one to drive for him.
He walked slowly towards the palace with his hands in his pockets.
This was the first time he measured the distance on foot on this road he had walked back and forth more than 5,000 times.
When passing a small intersection, Ni Kun saw that the little beggar who often begged at the intersection was not there, so he waited for a while.
Soon, the little beggar came and swept the dirt on the ground with his feet as usual, then sat down on the ground and placed a straw bowl and a large pile of reed leaves in front of him.
Unlike other beggars who just lay on the ground begging for food all day, the little beggar would pluck a basket of fresh reeds every day and deftly weave various little rabbits, little tigers, fruit baskets...
Anyone who donates money or food can receive a small item that emits the fragrance of reeds.
Ni Kun often saw this little beggar when he went to and from court.
He untied his purse and put all the silver into the little beggar's straw bowl.
The total amount is five taels, two qian and one wen.
The little beggar was very frightened as it was the first time he received so much silver. He quickly stood up and saluted Ni Kun.
"Thank you, sir, for your charity."
Ni Kun sighed with satisfaction and said with a smile:
"Thank you so much. My little wish has finally come true."
For a long time, in order to firmly establish the image of a treacherous minister, Ni Kun never dared to reveal the slightest sign of being "good".
Countless times when he passed by the little beggar, he refrained from giving him alms.
Now that his wish had been fulfilled, Ni Kun felt relaxed and prepared to leave.
The little beggar was a little anxious:
"Sir, could you please wait a moment? I just arrived and haven't had time to weave the reeds yet. If you're not in a hurry, I can weave a birthday god for you. It will only take a cup of tea!"
Ni Kun looked at his official uniform, which was completely exposed. There were no pockets to hold anything. He smiled and said:
"I appreciate your kindness, but it's not necessary."
After saying that, Ni Kun turned around and left, leaving the little beggar calling out behind him, "Sir! I'll wait for you here! Take it when you come back!" He just smiled and waved his hands.
Looking at Ni Kun's carefree figure walking away, the little beggar couldn't help laughing and murmured:
"Look at this gentleman's demeanor, he looks like he's about to become an immortal!"
The little beggar sat back on the ground, picked out the largest and most beautiful leaves from the pile of reed leaves, and began to carefully weave the birthday god.
After passing through the palace gate, Ni Kun headed towards the East Palace.
Many officials who wanted to attend the banquet had already arrived and were waiting in the side hall.
Everyone looked at Ni Kun with scrutiny.
In this test of rescuing the emperor on Mount Li Road, there were loyal people, treacherous people, and even villains like Ni Kun who never showed up from the beginning to the end and just stood by and watched.
Having been the villain who supported the Yu family for so many years, Ni Kun had long been accustomed to this kind of gaze, and therefore keenly noticed a different look in it.
He looked up and saw that it was indeed Yun Wang.
Yun Wang now holds the position of Imperial Censor. He is highly regarded by all the civil and military officials in the court for his vast knowledge, integrity, diligence, and commitment to the country.
Ni Kun felt relieved to hand over the position of prime minister, second only to the emperor, to Yun Wang.
He smiled at the crowd where Yun Wang was and walked towards the East Palace alone.
After waiting for a while, Nan Lijun came out wearing a bright yellow dress shining with gold.
The dress is gorgeous and precious. Compared with the dragon robe and skirt worn by the empress when the emperor and empress ruled the world together, the only difference is that the four-clawed dragon is changed to a five-clawed dragon.
Ni Kun knelt down and saluted, while Nan Lijun, supported by Zhi Luo, walked slowly towards the high seat.
Suddenly, a muffled thunder was heard, just enough to drown out Nan Lijun's powerful "No need to be polite".
There was no way, Nan Lijun could only clear his throat a little awkwardly and said "No need to be so polite" again.
Ni Kun thanked him, and the first sentence he said surprised Nan Lijun:
"Your Highness, I am guilty. Your Highness was trapped on the Lishan Road. I tricked General Yunchen into entering the palace to obtain the military order, intending to commit treason. Please sentence me to death."
Ni Kun spoke so seriously that all the false accusations that Nan Lijun had prepared in advance were useless.
This is the first time you have seen someone frame you, and it was a treacherous minister who found his conscience and voluntarily surrendered himself?
Nan Lijun was a little confused and said:
"How about asking Yun Chen to come and ask, maybe there's a misunderstanding?"
Ni Kun stood with his hands tucked into his sleeves and said with a smile, "That's not necessary."
Both of them felt that there was no need to pretend to be polite anymore.
Isn’t what we are looking for the result of “Ni Kun’s death”?
Seeing Ni Kun suddenly become so easy to talk to, Nan Lijun suspected that there was something fishy going on. He calmed down and asked:
"Anything else?"
"Yes," Ni Kun said, "This old minister requests that Your Highness grant the death penalty to Earl Song Lu, Minister of the Central Secretariat Wang Lian, and President of the Academy Sima Yao."
Nan Lijun was stunned: "What crime have they committed?"
Ni Kun said, "Your Highness was trapped on Mount Li Road. All the loyal civil and military officials headed for Mount Li Road. Aside from General Yun Chen, who was tricked into entering the palace by me, only these three stood by and watched, not going to Mount Li Road to rescue him. Their sinister intentions are obvious."
Earl Song Lu, over sixty years old, suffered from knee pain. He lived with his wife and five daughters, no sons. When news reached him of his father's distress, Song Lu's fifth daughter, Song Qiaoqiao, volunteered to take her father's place, riding a horse to Mount Li. Song Lu, however, refused to go, demonstrating his profound disrespect.
Wang Lian, the Shangqing of the Secretariat, had been an official for twenty years, but he had no private property or savings. He was so poor that he didn't even have a guard at home. When the incident happened, he couldn't even get a horse. The whole city was under martial law, and there was nowhere to buy a horse. He could only walk to Mount Li, running and crying all the way, and missed the time to rescue the emperor. He really deserved to die!
Not to mention Sima Yao, the head scholar. He had an only eight-year-old son at home, but he ordered his young son to rush to Mount Li, while he himself was at home writing an outline of national history. He even said to others, "The Eastern Palace is in danger! The imperial court is in danger! The Southern Kingdom is in danger! If the Southern Kingdom collapses, history will be recorded forever! There is still hope for future generations to restore the country!" Such desperate words were truly misleading!
Your Highness, these three people deserve death for their crimes!"
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