The Tao brothers were also reporting in excruciating detail.
As soon as the situation was under control and Rong Juan had been taken away from the diplomatic mission, the brothers rushed to the General’s Manor.
Upon hearing the news, Xie Yanzhou judged it the victim’s mistake.
The Wurong people were strong and physically larger. Being stabbed to death by someone too weak to truss a chicken wasn’t his fault; could it be the killer’s fault?
“Withdraw our people. Inform the hall attendant that the original plan is cancelled.”
Someone from the mission was supposed to die anyway. Deteriorating relations would force the Emperor to make up his mind.
When he heard Rong Juan had a message for him, Xie Yanzhou nodded slightly: “He finally used the favor in the right place.”
Instead of exchanging it for money to repair the latrine.
Tao Yong hesitated, looking strange.
Rong Juan indeed had a request, but it wasn’t for Xie Yanzhou to bail him out. Instead, he asked Tao Yong to convey a baffling message.
After he finished speaking with a puzzled look, he saw Xie Yanzhou’s previously expressionless face change dramatically.
After a long while, there seemed to be a smile in his eyes: “Everyone says one of Rong Chenglin’s sons is a waste, and the other resembles his father. But now it seems the one who truly inherited his intelligence is the waste in everyone’s mouth.”
Given the current Emperor’s weakness and incompetence, even killing someone in public might still leave room for reconciliation.
So they had to prepare for the worst. Using rumors they had received earlier, they needed to force the Empress to pick a side first.
And what Rong Juan wanted to do was eighty percent similar to this plan.
Tao Yong misinterpreted his meaning. Hearing Rong Chenglin mentioned, he assumed it was derogatory.
He lowered his head: “General, the Wurong mission was too bullying, openly…”
“I have my own arrangements.”
Knowing the Emperor would summon him to the palace soon, Xie Yanzhou didn’t want to say more. He only instructed Tao Yong: “Tell Xue Ren not to forget to continue drugging Rong Hengsong.”
“…”
There were no secrets in the capital.
In just a short while, the news of Rong Juan killing someone had spread through every street and alley. Now, almost the entire city, from commoners to nobles, was discussing the murder of the envoy.
Unlike the previous time when Rong Juan was wrongly imprisoned, and everyone watched the drama, this time, they almost entirely stood on Rong Juan’s side.
“The Wurong envoy insulted Great Liang with the excuse of taking back their people. He deserved to die!” A scholar said indignantly.
Scholars often gathered in literary halls. The general consensus was that with so many officials present, not a single one daring to scold the mission was a mistake in itself.
Otherwise, things wouldn’t have escalated to this point.
Scholars had reservations and expressed themselves implicitly.
The commoners were already raising a clamor.
Lord Rong had just entered officialdom, was poisoned by his stepmother with a rare toxin, and despite being extremely weak, managed to kill a Wurong person with his own hands. Clearly, he was angry to the extreme.
Everyone praised his courage.
On the other side, Hou Shen had rushed back to the Ministry of Rites from the scene, standing there still in shock.
Thinking of how Rong Juan had mentioned getting off work several times, Hou Shen beat his chest and stamped his feet in remorse.
Lord Kong happened to walk out of the office.
Hou Shen hurried up to him, his face anxious. “My Lord!”
Under Lord Kong’s questioning, he briefly recounted the events at the scene.
“I didn’t expect it. I really didn’t expect Rong Hengsong to… What should we do now?”
Lord Kong was essentially the head of the Ministry of Rites.
Hou Shen could only ask him for advice: “My Lord, please think of a way.”
Great Liang couldn’t possibly make someone pay with their life for killing a Wurong person.
Lord Kong’s face turned from green to white, but he didn’t immediately reprimand him. He pondered for a moment, so long that Hou Shen thought he had no solution.
Then, the usually prudent Lord Kong paced back and forth, his expression softening slightly. “Prepare the carriage!”
Outside the door, the junior clerks prepared the carriage at top speed.
The horses almost galloped to the palace gate. A large number of officials were waiting near the Hall of Proclaimed Governance, engaged in anxious discussion.
Naturally, their voices couldn’t be uniform.
Some were denouncing, others rebutting.
The entrance to the hall was as chaotic as a noisy market.
Lord Kong scanned the area and accurately found Grand Tutor Su.
He was about to go over when he saw Grand Tutor Su talking to someone.
When the obstructing figures dispersed, he realized the Chief Superintendent was there at some point.
The two seemed to have reached some consensus, nodding successively.
…
While outside was a mess, Rong Juan had just been handed over to the Superintendent Bureau, ready to welcome a comfortable life.
The Superintendent Bureau’s prison was filled with the lingering smell of blood year-round. Just standing outside gave one a sense of never seeing daylight again.
The jailer, with a face like a coffin, stood there waiting for the handover.
Once the prisoner transfer was complete, the jailer ordered his subordinates: “Strip him of that official uniform!”
In the confinement room, the jailer brought a screen. Inside was a basin of hot water, and a brand new, clean prison uniform hung on the screen.
Besides blood plasma, the official uniform was stained with minced meat accidentally sliced off when drawing the sword. Rong Juan looked disgusted and quickly changed into the new clothes.
The prison cell environment was actually quite nice.
This time, Rong Juan was assigned a deluxe cell near the main gate. It had a window, wasn’t damp or cold, and was even a bit stuffy. A specially made ice bucket was placed at the foot of the bed for natural cooling.
The bed wasn’t a straw mat; it was comfortable to lie on.
It was just that the environment was a bit depressing.
Rong Juan: “Can I have two bouquets of fresh flowers? The air isn’t very good.”
The jailer ruthlessly locked the cell door and scolded, “This isn’t a garden for sightseeing.”
Fifteen minutes later, there were no fresh flowers, but a palm-sized incense burner appeared at the door. It was already lit, emitting a faint, continuous fragrance, stunning the prisoner in the opposite cell.
Once the jailer left, the prisoner clung to the iron bars and asked, “Little brother, how did you do that?”
The Superintendent Bureau’s prison had held many nobles, and who didn’t lose a layer of skin upon arrival?
Enjoying the VIP service, Rong Juan selflessly shared his success story: “Just kill a barbarian in the Diplomatic Hall.”
That sword thrust pierced the Wurong’s heart and also pierced right into the hearts of the Liang people.
The prisoner in the next cell nearly popped his eyes out.
Refusing to chat too much, Rong Juan lay limply on the bed board. He didn’t want to move at all right now. The web of his thumb was chafed and burning from using the sword.
Usually, at this time, it would be the start of the afternoon shift.
“Going to work isn’t as comfortable as going to jail.” Rong Juan happily prepared for a nap.
The System wanted a nap too.
[Wait, will I be moving house when I wake up?]
It resided in Rong Juan’s brain. If he got beheaded, it would face the “joy” of relocation.
Rong Juan didn’t answer, already dozing off.
The System hurriedly shook his brain.
[Little Rong, what did you mean by asking that martial artist to take a message back to the General’s Manor, saying to use the marriage Wurong wants as a sowing-discord strategy?]
[Wake up! One failed mission takes ten to make up for.]
If things went wrong, they might be working indefinitely.
Seeing he couldn’t rest without explaining, Rong Juan said listlessly, “The dead Wurong envoy isn’t important, and I’m not important. The final verdict depends entirely on the Emperor’s attitude toward Wurong.”
If he sought peace, the sentence would be heavy. Conversely, if he let it go lightly, he might even praise him.
And the key to settling the matter was making the Emperor feel the wind had stopped, the rain had ceased, and he was capable again.
“With the South and North Wurong tribes unified, Great Liang can also find an ally.”
[Ally?]
The System ran its AI briefly.
[Only the Baixu tribe along the coast is nearby, but they’ve been waiting to reap the benefits of the conflict.]
“As long as Wurong thinks there’s an alliance.” Rong Juan showed patience when talking to the System, a disadvantaged group that couldn’t even use idioms correctly.
His tone was peaceful: “Didn’t the envoy clamor that their King wants to marry the Princess? The Emperor will definitely consider it, knowing this.”
Ironically, this was the only certain point in the whole affair.
“At this time, if someone reminds him that he can marry the Princess to Baixu instead, what will happen?”
The System’s AI lagged.
A moment later, it generated a result:
[The Emperor loves playing power games, weak externally but tough internally. There is an 80% probability this result will tempt him.]
[And Wurong will likely worry that Baixu has already befriended Great Liang. Since the tribes are thousands of miles away from the coast, they can’t immediately verify anything.]
Rong Juan lazily rolled over, turning his back to the sunlight piercing through the iron window.
“As long as the Emperor chooses to do this, he must adopt a fearless attitude and won’t punish me heavily.”
Talking too much forced Rong Juan to sit up and cough softly: “If there’s an accident, I’ll use you to create some feudal superstition.”
The System had been enjoying blessings with Rong Juan for so long that it had almost forgotten it was best at playing tricks.
It suddenly felt a bit regretful: [If only the mission this time was to record data on the Princess sent for marriage.]
They could finish work very quickly.
“Can’t marry.”
The Princess’s marriage was a pie in the sky; the Emperor would only draw it, not throw it out immediately.
“This Majesty is timid enough.” Rong Juan said lightly: “He keeps a hand in everything and won’t do things to the extreme immediately.”
This tug-of-war was actually a protection for the Princess at this stage.
When Rong Juan finally coughed until he felt a bit better, the jailer brought food.
Six dishes and one soup, smelling delicious. The cellmate next door cried with craving.
Rong Juan prepared to drink some soup to suppress the cough: “After this, suspension is inevitable. Cough cough… Suspension for thousands of years, cough, cheers.”
The System reminded: [Drugged.]
“?”
[This bowl is drugged.] Drugged with the same Qi-replenishing antidote as in the General’s Manor.
Rong Juan opened his mouth.
No, I’m in prison, why is Xie Yanzhou still chasing me with medicine?!
…
Imperial Palace.
The Emperor was called the True Dragon Son of Heaven. Whether he was a True Dragon was unclear, but his changing face like the weather was real.
Hearing the envoy was killed, the Emperor wished he could cut Rong Juan, the culprit, into a thousand pieces.
Before summoning the heavy ministers, he had already thrown a tantrum in his concubine’s palace.
From the high steps, he looked down at the officials summoned urgently.
Seeing Rong Chenglin, his anger rose a few notches.
The hall was silent.
The Emperor’s voice was cold to the extreme: “Are you all mute? Prime Minister Rong, what a good son you raised!”
Rong Chenglin stepped out, maintaining his usual calm, but officials in his faction, familiar with him, sensed that the Prime Minister was driven mad by his rebellious son.
However, he said neither humbly nor arrogantly: “Your Majesty, my unfilial son has committed a grave crime and must be regretting it deeply now. I beg Your Majesty to let this humble official visit him to prevent him from doing anything foolish again.”
Several officials around exchanged glances. Looking at the crane on the Right Prime Minister’s scarlet robe again, it seemed covered in a gloomy sheen.
Immersed in officialdom for years, none were fools.
Under the guise of a loving father, the subtext hinted at letting his own son commit suicide in prison out of fear of punishment, giving the Wurong people an explanation. Thus, the Gold Medal of Immunity from Death wouldn’t count as the Emperor breaking his promise.
Prime Minister Rong was ruthless enough.
Lord Kong, abandoning his usual peacemaker style in the Ministry of Rites, stood up at this moment. First, he cited the example of a previous dynasty punishing a diplomatic mission that committed crimes in the capital, a deed praised by later generations.
Then he said: “Your Majesty, Wurong just suffered a defeat yet dares to arrogantly bring up Tongyuan City again. We must not encourage their arrogance; otherwise, how will history books write about and view Your Majesty?”
He accurately poked the Emperor’s hypocritical and reputation-loving spot.
The Emperor looked grave. He was about to agree to the Prime Minister’s suggestion, but now he hesitated.
He successively questioned several other officials.
After everyone expressed their opinions, many officials stole glances at Xie Yanzhou, wondering why the Emperor skipped General Xie alone.
The Emperor didn’t want to hear Xie Yanzhou’s speech; he knew what the other party would say.
Another reason was that, facing Xie Yanzhou, he always felt a faint guilt. Back then, he deliberately delayed military opportunities, indirectly causing his father’s severe injury and death.
This child was too like his father, like a sharp blade with unconcealable sharpness.
Even in just a few years, Xie Yanzhou had grown to be more outstanding than his father. Adding more military merit to him wouldn’t be a good thing.
Remembering a subject mentioning Wurong’s desire for a marriage alliance, the Emperor’s anger subsided slightly, and he began to calculate on his own.
Fortunately, Zhaohua’s marriage arrangement didn’t work out. Since he couldn’t use his daughter to keep Xie Yanzhou in the capital, he could find her a place more beneficial to Great Liang.
The officials waited and waited, but unexpectedly, Xie Yanzhou never stepped forward proactively throughout the process. Instead, Grand Tutor Su, who had nearly become in-laws with the Right Prime Minister, stood up.
“Your Majesty, if there is to be a marriage alliance, it would be better to establish diplomatic relations with the Baixu Kingdom.”
The Emperor’s finger, rubbing the jade thumb ring, paused.
The Baixu Kingdom was situated along the coast and excelled at naval warfare. While Great Liang and Wurong were constantly at war these years, they had been eyeing covetously.
Liang was a great power. Proactively offering a marriage alliance with a dowry, Baixu would definitely not refuse.
Rong Chenglin immediately said: “Your Majesty, this move easily angers Wurong…”
The Chief Superintendent interrupted lightly: “Your Majesty, this subject also agrees. We can settle the marriage first. To prevent the Princess from being too homesick, make Baixu promise to build a small palace. Then the official wedding ceremony can be held.”
The Emperor, who still had some hesitation, suddenly smiled.
He heard the implication and felt it was a better idea the more he thought about it.
As long as the marriage wasn’t truly fulfilled, Wurong would definitely fight to marry the Princess repeatedly. Would Baixu be happy about that?
In this way, Wurong would inevitably fall out with Baixu.
“What my beloved subject says is very true. This way, Zhaohua can also stay by my side for a while longer.”
Knowing the Emperor had made a decision and wouldn’t change it easily, Rong Chenglin didn’t seek unpleasantness proactively and stood coldly to the side.
A murder case turned into a political game, and Rong Juan was perfectly marginalized in this process.
Regarding his punishment, everyone actually knew in their hearts. Since the decision was to pressure Wurong and establish authority, the Emperor wouldn’t punish him too severely.
In the evening, the Emperor was embracing beauties in the Moon Viewing Pavilion, enjoying himself to relieve his mood.
Just as he was reciting poetry to the moon, a palace servant reported the Empress had arrived.
The Emperor didn’t care, a trace of impatience flashing across his brow.
Soon, the Empress entered. She was still dressed elaborately and gorgeously at night. She sat carefully beside the Emperor, waiting for the song and dance to end before saying softly: “Your Majesty, this concubine has already persuaded Zhaohua.”
The Empress loved her daughter like life itself. The Emperor thought she had come to cry and make a scene. Now he finally looked at her directly: “You are willing to part with Zhaohua?”
The Empress nodded: ” The Lord of Baixu is only a few years older than Zhaohua. Besides, she isn’t marrying immediately. Sharing Your Majesty’s worries is what she should do.”
The Emperor was overjoyed and hugged the Empress.
Of course, she couldn’t get married right away. Making Wurong and Baixu fall out was secondary. Even if Wurong’s strength increased significantly after uniting, Zhaohua could still be promised to Wurong later.
Seemingly sensing his behavior was too obvious, he coughed lightly: “I will prepare the most generous dowry for Zhaohua.”
The Empress felt cold and disgusted inside.
The Emperor’s attitude extinguished her last shred of hope. Thinking of the message from the Chief Superintendent, she completely made up her mind.
The Empress leaned on the Emperor’s shoulder: “How does Your Majesty plan to deal with the young man who stabbed the envoy to death?”
“Dismissing him from office will suffice.”
The Empress spoke softly: “Sigh, barbarians hold grudges. I’m afraid they will remember this matter forever. Just like their failure to marry the Princess, they will definitely express dissatisfaction repeatedly.”
The speaker had “no intention,” but the listener took note.
The Emperor let go of his arm, rolled his eyes, and finally laughed: “What is there to fear? I’ve thought it through. I won’t dismiss him; I’ll promote him.”
Saying he wasn’t afraid, he actually calculated that this way, Wurong’s hatred would be concentrated on this young man and wouldn’t be forgotten for three to five years.
Like Zhaohua’s marriage, it was too early to discard him now.
In case of emergency, they were all pawns that could be thrown out to extinguish the barbarians’ anger.
With these backup plans on left and right, he could rest easy for a long time.
“By the way, the child from Prime Minister Rong’s family is weak…” He can’t die just yet.
Thinking of this, the Emperor waved his big hand: “Someone, issue an edict! Rong Hengsong promoted our national prestige. He will enjoy special treatment in the future. Let the imperial physicians treat him privately, and use medicine according to the standards of dukes and ministers.”
A moment later, under the Empress’s subtle prompting, the Emperor felt it wasn’t enough and drafted another edict.
No matter when or where, the Imperial Edict must be delivered.
The next day, Rong Juan was staying well in the prison when the familiar long-white-browed eunuch arrived with an edict: “Congratulations, Lord Rong.”
Congratulations for what?
Before Rong Juan could react, the eunuch stood still and read the edict directly:
“You, Vice Director of the Ministry of Rites, Rong Hengsong, have courage and know shame.”
What a familiar essay opening!
Rong Juan’s hair stood on end, and he wanted to interrupt the eunuch several times.
“…Unconventional and breathtaking. Specially promoting you to Director of the Ministry of Rites.”
Director of the Ministry of Rites, Proper Fifth Rank, mid-level official, a proper management position.
Rong Juan was also breathless, nearly spitting blood. For the first time, he was somewhat urgent: “Eunuch, why did His Majesty…”
Knowing he had a pile of questions, the long-white-browed eunuch handed over the edict with both hands: “My Lord need not ask too much; just be grateful.”
“…”
Grateful my [beep]!
Author’s Note:
Unofficial History:
When the Emperor is a hidden dragon in the abyss, promotion is like riding a rocket.
PS: The word “rocket” existed in ancient times. There are other reasons for the Emperor promoting him. Well, after all, perpetrators always have many reasons.
And the victim Rong Juan: I was just breathing, and the official position came.