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墨書 Inktalez
Sang Qingxiao had yet to express one point clearly. Sang Yumei had undoubtedly put in considerable effort in gathering the court officials for this matter, but even so, it could not change the fact that she had fallen into the mundane world. In ancient times, for prominent families like the Sang Family, even if only a few members remained, the ingrained rules still persisted. What Sang Yumei did was indeed out of necessity, yet it still tarnished the family's reputation.
From now on, it was highly likely that she would not appear in public again. That left only Sang Yuxin. She was Chi Chen'an's mother—bold, capable, and determined—backed by the Duke of Chi's Residence, possessing both status and influence. She was indeed a suitable candidate.
Or perhaps there were other members of the Sang Family that I was unaware of? I had only just begun to grasp the capabilities of Sang Bai Jue, but this raised a significant question. If he was so capable, how could so many members of the exiled Sang Family have perished? Had they all been arranged to die in hiding? If so, why hadn’t he arranged for me to die as well? Enduring those bitter vegetable dumplings daily nearly choked me to death!
Gentle felt dizzy from listening and chuckled, "Miss Sang, I'm just a little eunuch who has been trapped in the palace for too long; how would I know about these matters? When you meet your master later, you can ask him directly."
Sang Qingxiao maintained a serious expression and waved her hand. "Little Shunzi, you may kneel and rest." It had been a while since she had heard that title, causing Gentle to pause momentarily.
"What? Are you waiting for me to reward you with a red silk?"
Understanding this was Sang Qingxiao's jest, Gentle took it lightly and adopted a servant's demeanor from the Inner Palace. Sang Qingxiao quickly stepped aside, and Gentle's smile deepened as he offered some comforting words before turning to leave.
Negotiations with Prince Chen's former subordinates initially did not go smoothly. I wondered what leverage Sang Bai Jue had over them; once steadfast allies crumbled at an astonishing rate, going from disdainful to eager within just half a month. After gathering evidence and allowing a few days to pass, Prince Chen's former subordinates chose a grand court assembly day to seek justice for Prince Chen.
To prevent Xuande Emperor from dropping the ball, they even took the initiative to inform him in advance. Had they truly found their opportunity? Xuande Emperor was surprised at first but then laughed sarcastically; he had never seen them put in such effort for court matters!
Cai Zhuo busily comforted, knowing that after this incident, they would understand the Emperor's broad-mindedness and would surely be devoted to serving Great Jing wholeheartedly.
The Xuande Emperor snorted coldly, hoping that would be the case.
During the court assembly, the Xuande Emperor noticed many more officials than usual, all dressed formally and looking spirited. His anger flared again; Riri had taken various leaves of absence, yet today they all showed up. Would they rather serve a dead man as their master than face him?
The ministers knelt, and after a long time without being called to rise, some dared to sneak a glance. The Xuande Emperor was sitting there feigning sleep. One bold official signaled to Cai Zhuo, who kept his eyes fixed ahead, pretending not to see.
It had to be said that these people had truly gone too far. They knew the Xuande Emperor disliked such behavior, yet they wouldn’t even pretend otherwise. They deserved their punishment of kneeling—small punishment for a big lesson; let them endure it!
Look at the Two Lords; clearly implicated, yet their kneeling posture was more proper than anyone else's. They should learn from this.
After an hour of kneeling, the former subordinates of Prince Chen had significantly diminished their arrogance in seeking justice for their master. Only then did the Xuande Emperor open his eyes, enjoying their trembling from discomfort.
He let them stew for a while longer before signaling Cai Zhuo to proceed with the formalities.
"All ministers present, if you have matters to discuss, speak now; if not, you may leave."
"Your Majesty, I have something to report."
Qin Taifang, of Uncle Emperor rank and the younger emperor of Emperor Jingwen, was granted the character "Min," becoming Min Wang. He was only two years older than Prince Chen and had been raised by Emperor Jingwen alongside him. Their relationship was extremely close; despite being uncle and nephew, they were as brothers.
When Prince Chen encountered trouble, he made quite a scene; when the Sang family faced issues, he retaliated fiercely—he was at the forefront of the vanguard.
Sang Qingxiao naturally knew his name and understood he had been misled, so he raised his hand and chose not to cause trouble for him.
Seeing that the Xuande Emperor did not respond, he persistently called out again, "Your Majesty, I have something to report!"
His voice was loud enough to annoy the Xuande Emperor, who frowned in irritation. "Min Uncle Emperor, since I ascended to the throne, I believe I've only seen you three times. You wouldn't even grace my family banquets with your presence. Today you are quite loud."
"In response to Your Majesty," Qin Taifang replied earnestly, "I am foolish; my royal brother always told me that to live long, one must avoid controversies and steer clear of political affairs. I am merely following Emperor Jingwen's teachings."
"Today you seem unafraid of trouble."
Suddenly Qin Taifang burst into tears. "My royal brother appeared in my dreams and said he died with regrets! How can I focus solely on my own longevity while ignoring my brother's sorrow?"
He invoked Emperor Jingwen again! And yet he felt powerless to resist!
The Xuande Emperor felt his anger rising once more but faced with an elderly man crying out loud, he could neither hit nor scold him; instead, he had to play along and let him finish this act quickly.
"Proceed with your report."
Your Majesty! My nephew, my brother, died unjustly!
In just this brief moment, Qin Taifang cried out three times, lamenting in a way that seemed endless. The Xuande Emperor felt a twinge of regret for having punished them with kneeling earlier. The morning meal had already been consumed, and lunch was approaching; he felt a bit hungry. His health was deteriorating, and he could hardly bear the hunger.
"Uncle, if you cannot speak, let someone else do it!" Min Wang urged.
Qin Taifang sniffled, trying to compose himself. "Your Majesty, I seek your forgiveness. I am simply too heartbroken. I have come today to accuse the Chongjing Emperor of patricide and fratricide; he is unworthy of his position."
Hmm.
Qin Taifang shot an unhappy glance at the Xuande Emperor, feeling that his response was too dismissive.
The Xuande Emperor felt helpless as well. What else could he say besides "Hmm"? How could he, the current Monarch, deal with the actions of the previous Monarch? There was no record of such a thing in history; he had no desire to be the first to do so!
Qin Taifang pressed on. "To seize the throne, the Chongjing Emperor colluded with the chief eunuch by Emperor Jingwen's side, fabricating a false imperial edict for Prince Chen. The edict claimed that Emperor Jingwen was near death and wished to see Prince Chen one last time. Prince Chen, without suspecting any deceit, decided to rush back immediately."
On his return journey, the Chongjing Emperor set up numerous obstacles and used Prince Chen's filial piety against him with a forged map, leading him into a valley.
The valley was already rigged with deadly traps; in an instant, thousands of men were buried under the landslide at the Bottom of the Valley.
Heaven saw this injustice and sent down divine seeds that wafted with fragrance, lamenting for Prince Chen!
Prince Chen! Our Prince Chen! How could he meet his end through such despicable schemes? The actions of the Chongjing Emperor were utterly infuriating; killing Prince Chen did not satisfy his vile heart. He even committed patricide while Emperor Jingwen lay ill.
Your Majesty, such a villain is unworthy of his position. I implore you to issue an edict to strip him of his title and expel him from the Royal Tomb!
And then bury Prince Chen there instead, right?
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