"Your Majesty, Zhang Wen of Northern Liang, together with the powerful clans of Shuofeng, have submitted an impeachnt against Song Shi'an."
"Tomorrow, morning court."
.........
The corridor leading to Taiyuan Hall.
The Prince of Jin and the Prince of Zhongping received bows and greetings from the passing officials.
The two n walked slowly, their expressions quite grave.
"Second Brother, today's court session is ant to push Song Shi'an forward." Wei Yiyuan said in a low voice.
Although the Court of Judicial Review maintained high security, Sanming's arrival had been too conspicuous, and among the hundred officials within the Court of Judicial Review, certain individuals belonged to the Jin Prince faction.
Similarly, there were also mbers of the Wu Prince faction.
Therefore, the princes obtained intelligence about the 'joint impeachnt by powerful clans' almost imdiately.
"Of course." The Prince of Jin walked while saying expressionlessly.
"Then what do we do?" Wei Yiyuan asked.
"Watch how the officials move." The Prince of Jin said, "Have Hua Zheng follow along accordingly."
Hua Zheng was Empress Hua's nephew, which made him the Prince of Jin's cousin.
Although he was also the Prince of Wu's cousin, the Prince of Jin had grown up with him from childhood, they were close in age with deep bonds, so Hua Zheng had long been labeled as part of the Jin Prince faction.
"But that Song Shi'an wants to be Father Emperor's blade... going along with the officials, won't that anger His Majesty?" Though Wei Yiyuan was usually cunning, at a mont like this, he lost so of his edge and could discuss things properly with the Prince of Jin.
"Wusheng is what angers Father Emperor."
The Prince of Jin said gravely.
"True..."
Wei Yiyuan could now finally understand so of the Prince of Jin's thinking.
Doing less ans fewer mistakes.
Otherwise, would he act like Wusheng, making reckless blunders?
"But what if that Song Shi'an actually wins?" Wei Yiyuan asked again.
"All the officials are impeaching him, and we're going along with them—so what? Does he dare harbor resentnt toward us?" The Prince of Jin spoke with great confidence.
If one person insulted Song Shi'an, he would certainly hold a grudge.
If many people cursed him, he would distance himself from them.
But if everyone cursed him, wouldn't that an the problem lay with him?
Even if he returned victorious, facing universal enmity, he would have no choice but to set aside past grievances and actively seek reconciliation.
Otherwise, he'd have difficulty maintaining his position at court.
Even if the Prince of Jin's people joined in the criticism now, when the Prince of Jin extended an olive branch later, Song Shi'an would still have to accept it.
"Understood." Wei Yiyuan nodded to the Prince of Jin.
The two continued walking forward.
Behind them were the Prince of Wu, Zhao Yi, and Ye Changqing.
"Your Highness, today we shouldn't say a single word." Zhao Yi said.
"Mm." The Prince of Wu nodded, his expression serious with a slight frown, "I didn't expect our previous support for Wusheng would beco our burden instead."
Now, Song Shi'an was the most sensitive topic.
No one had anticipated he would incite Wei Wusheng to seize power.
So the Prince of Wu, who had exhausted his family's resources to support the army back then, had in so sense beco complicit in 'aiding the enemy,' providing energy to the rebel forces.
Therefore, the popular support he'd accumulated had beco his most troubleso dark history.
At this mont, saying nothing was the only way to avoid giving others ammunition against him.
After all, he was the second in line to succession—this matter wouldn't affect him too severely.
It was normal; no one could have divine foresight.
The Prince of Wu was clear-headed.
Therefore, he wouldn't bla these two n in the slightest.
"What if we're questioned?" The Prince of Wu asked.
Ye Changqing remained silent.
After considering, Zhao Yi spoke: "Then follow what the officials say, or rather, however His Highness the Prince of Jin speaks, Your Highness should speak the sa way."
"Good." The Prince of Wu nodded, then looked at Ye Changqing beside him. Seeing him constantly silent, as if still blaming himself for the previous matter, he gently patted his back, "Let's go."
The Prince of Wu and the Wu Prince faction also walked forward.
At the back of the officials' procession, Song Jing's footsteps grew heavier with each step.
Colleagues who had been close before now kept their distance from him.
He stood alone, opening up a blank area around himself.
As if everyone was his opposite pole, repelled and bounced away, unable to approach.
Cui Ting stopped, turned back, looked at him, sowhat anxiously waved his hand, lowered his voice and called out: "Aji, co on!"
Song Jing shook his head, his face somber as death, standing still.
With no choice, Cui Ting could only leave.
As the last person in this long corridor, abandoned by everyone, Song Jing raised his head and looked at this path he'd spent twenty years climbing, for a long, long ti.
Then, he walked alone with dignity.
.........
Upon the throne sat the old Emperor.
Though he was only in his early sixties, ten years younger than Minister Sun, due to years of constant military campaigns, his vitality was actually inferior to this seventy-year-old man, completely lacking that kind of ruddy 'dragon-horse spirit.'
Below on the steps, the officials had long since beco clearly divided.
Either leaning toward the ritorious nobility, or toward the Jiangnan gentry.
There were also those who leaned neither way.
Ouyang Ke, the Minister of the Secretariat, effectively the chief of civil officials, favored by the Emperor, had the qualifications not to choose sides.
Song Jing, Magistrate of Sheng'an, a position of modest rank but considerable importance, could not choose sides.
It was precisely because of Song Jing's neutral position that both the nobility and gentry breathed easier—such a major headache, fortunately not one of ours.
"Read the impeachnt morial." The Emperor said peacefully.
Then, Eunuch Xi read out this work from the Liang Prefecture aristocratic families, not missing a single word.
As if their own money had been stolen, most of the gentry officials beca enraged.
And because their troops had actually been seized, many of the nobles also grew angry.
Throughout, only Song Jing stood calmly at the very back.
"Song Shi'an, this is military rebellion!" Minister Sun directly slapped on the accusation, "Does he think our Great Yu's soldiers belong to him? Without orders, to arbitrarily mobilize them like this!"
Only he dared speak this way.
After he finished, the officials erupted.
"Exactly, even if it's to defend the city, such actions will only disrupt General Xiao Qun's plans. If Shuofeng loses, the consequences would be unthinkable!"
"He's dragged all of Liang Prefecture into danger, just for his own wealth and honor."
"Not only that, he's cultivating his own faction, building private military power."
"Though seizing the powerful clans' wealth is trivial, defending the city only requires grain—money is aningless in warti. He's enriching himself through national calamity. This is a parasite of the state!"
"Such monstrous cris must be severely punished."
"Before the Qi bandits besiege the city, we must imdiately send troops in to execute Song Shi'an and reclaim control of the army."
All who spoke held essentially the sa attitude.
At this mont, Hua Zheng, one of the Nine Ministers who oversaw all the nation's horses as Grand Coachman, also stepped forward at the Prince of Zhongping's hint and morialized: "Though the current situation remains uncertain, Minister Sun's point about unauthorized troop movents without orders does exist."
After these words, Sun Yan glanced at him. Though without any smile, his expression clearly distinguished itself from his earlier fury.
Approved jpg.
Hua Zheng's sudden statent, especially singling out Minister Sun, caused both the Emperor and the Prince of Wu to simultaneously press down the corners of their mouths.
"Since Song Shi'an instigated His Highness to mobilize military authority." Military officer Chen Kefu slowly turned his head to look at Song Jing, "Lord Song, were you aware of this?"
The officials turned back in unison.
Except for Cui Ting who closed his eyes, his face grave.
Song Jing said nothing, only slowly walked to the center.
He removed the official cap from his head, holding it with both hands.
After kneeling on one knee, the other knee followed.
Placing the cap steadily before him, then prostrating himself, at the very center of Taiyuan Hall, he kowtowed once to the Emperor.
After standing, he turned and walked out of the hall.
The mont he left, two Jinyiwei guards followed on his left and right.
The Song clan had fallen.
Minister Sun smiled inwardly.
"Song Jing should be held hostage to force Song Shi'an to leave the city and surrender." Soon, soone suggested.
"Yes, this battle cannot be casually lost."
"We must quickly deliver Shuofeng into General Xiao Qun's hands."
Everyone voiced agreent.
Just then, Ye Changqing, Secretary of the Bureau of Receptions, suddenly spoke without much confidence: "This impeachnt morial was delivered to Sheng'an by a servant... is it authentic?"
This single sentence made the Prince of Wu and Zhao Yi's eyes suddenly widen, looking at him in shock and alarm.
The Prince of Jin also froze, not expecting soone from the Wu Prince faction to say such a thing.
The Prince of Zhongping couldn't help but smile secretly in delight.
He'd long known this Ye Changqing was unrestrained and unbridled—as expected, he could create great trouble for the Prince of Wu.
"Authentic or not?" Seeing this, soone imdiately attacked: "This is morning court today—how can such groundless speculation be brought before the throne!"
This statent made the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review tense up.
Because he wasn't certain whether it was groundless either, but both Sun Heng and Ji Ming said to present it to His Majesty, so he had no choice.
Song Shi'an, you must be a traitor!
"That's not what I ant."
Ye Changqing's rank wasn't high, just senior fourth rank, and his position wasn't important—he could barely enter the court—so facing those first and second rank officials, naturally he lacked confidence: "I'm only saying, whether we need to verify it further..."
"Langya City has been completely emptied—what more verification is needed? If this wasn't instigated by Song Shi'an, could His Highness have decided to do it himself?"
At this sharp question, Ye Changqing fell silent.
Stop talking!
Zhao Yi glared at him, wanting him to shut up.
"Though soone may have instigated this matter, the Sixth Prince also bears fault." At this mont, the Emperor said, "What do all ministers think—how should this son of mine be dealt with?"
At these words, everyone knelt down, including the princes.
The aged Duke of Li also slowly knelt.
"Those who speak are blaless, all for Great Yu's realm." The Emperor sighed, "Rise, dear ministers, and tell what should be done now."
The officials then rose.
"Minister Sun, you speak." The Emperor called on him.
Sun Yan made a show of difficulty, then spoke: "The Sixth Prince's desire to defend Your Majesty's territory cos from good intentions, only he listened to slander and thus did such a thing."
"What if his good intentions did bad things?" The Emperor asked again.
This ti, he looked at the others.
Military officer Chen Kefu said: "At this mont, resisting Qi is paramount. After dealing with Song Shi'an, we should give the Sixth Prince an opportunity to achieve rit."
These words brought no change to the Emperor's expression: "Do all ministers think this way?"
In response, most civil officials and a small portion of nobles bowed: "In reply to Your Majesty, yes."
Among the few civil officials who didn't react or go along, there was also Ye Changqing.
He seed to see the Emperor's eyes also glance at him.
Finally, the Emperor decided: "Then send three golden plaques to the Sixth Prince, ordering him to hand over military authority to General Xiao Qun."
.........
Outside Taiyuan Hall, everyone was discussing.
Only the three from the Wu Prince faction said nothing, walking quickly.
After leaving the corridor and reaching sowhere outside the palace complex, Zhao Yi imdiately grabbed Ye Changqing's collar and angrily said: "What was the aning of your extra words in the hall!"
The Prince of Wu was also quite angry, but he didn't curse. Instead, he gripped his jade belt with both hands, pacing left and right, occasionally glancing at Ye Changqing.
"..." Ye Changqing remained silent, his face still showing traces of lingering fear.
"So you do know fear?" Zhao Yi wanted to punch him, "Then why did you say such things just now, contradicting everyone? In the future, who will still lean toward us?"
Such words, even if spoken by soone without party or group, would be ostracized.
Moreover, he represented the Prince of Wu's position.
Looking at the two of them, Ye Changqing said quietly: "Song Shi'an moved the Langya troops, affecting all of Liang Prefecture. Even if forced, His Majesty will send reinforcents. As long as they can hold until winter, the Sixth Prince still has a chance to win..."
"What if he wins? Right now, everyone except you hates Song Shi'an!" Zhao Yi said through gritted teeth, "If your father hadn't gone to Yi Prefecture to oversee agriculture, seeing you like this, he'd beat you to death. You passed bangyan, yet you can't see the prevailing trend."
"No, that's not right."
Finally, Ye Changqing couldn't bear it. He pushed away Zhao Yi's hand, then looked at the Prince of Wu, also sowhat agitated: "The golden plaques won't recall His Highness, nor will they kill Song Shi'an. There's no other prevailing trend—it all depends on whether Song Shi'an can win."
"What are you saying? If that were really the case, why would His Majesty brand Song Shi'an a traitor now and kick out Song Jing?" Zhao Yi questioned.
The Prince of Wu looked at Ye Changqing, watching how he would answer.
"The officials kicked him out, not His Majesty!" Ye Changqing said emotionally.
Zhao Yi said loudly: "Lower your voice!"
"Do you an that if Song Shi'an successfully defends the city and returns, His Majesty will still value him?" The Prince of Wu asked.
"At first I wasn't certain, only speculating about His Majesty's thoughts, but seeing what happened later, I completely understood."
Gripping the Prince of Wu's arm and looking at him intently, Ye Changqing lowered his voice but said forcefully: "Never mind all the officials—just now, seventy percent of them were bullying His Majesty!"
This statent stunned the two n.
The Prince of Wu also seed to detect a hint of the Emperor's displeasure.
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Zhao Yi retorted, "How were they bullying? Who would even dare bully His Majesty?"
"When His Majesty said the Sixth Prince was at fault and asked how to deal with him, did you see how the officials reacted?" Ye Changqing said, "Not a single person was willing to excuse the Sixth Prince."
"Didn't His Majesty himself say that those who speak are blaless..."
Before Zhao Yi finished, the Prince of Wu pressed down his hand, interrupting: "Indeed, no one made excuses."
"His Majesty said those who speak are blaless, so people can really say anything? His Majesty said the Sixth Prince was at fault—he can say it. How can others admit it? Even more so, how can they actually suggest how to deal with him?" Ye Changqing asked back.
First rule of the workplace: when a leader says there's free speech and you can freely offer opinions, you'd better not actually offer opinions.
"His Majesty wanted to temper Zhao Xiang, but didn't expect Zhao Xiang to fight such a disastrous defeat. His Majesty sent the Sixth Prince to defend the city, but didn't expect such a huge incident to occur." Ye Changqing said this much, then didn't continue.
But what ca after was self-evident.
The Emperor makes mistakes too. Though no one can punish him, there will still be so sentint in the court.
"So what's your thinking?" The Prince of Wu asked Ye Changqing.
"No matter what, His Majesty will invest fully in this battle. Song Shi'an only needs to hold the city." Ye Changqing said.
"If he holds the city, can that really offset all his cris?" Zhao Yi wasn't certain.
"Idiot! What cris would remain? If he doesn't hold it, he'll just be a corpse!"
Raising his finger and forcefully pointing at the ground: "If he holds it, he'll inevitably step to the forefront!"
Reviews
All reviews (0)