nucmednet Chapter 393 Persuading the Emperor
Chapter 393 Persuading the Emperor
Arun knelt on the ground, looking utterly haggard: "Only this servant remains... The Prince is gone, Asong is gone, they are all... gone..."
The evidence collected by Prince Ning was a handwritten letter written in blood, with dozens of handprints at the end. They accused the officials of Yanyu Ferry of their misdeeds, of levying exorbitant taxes on grain transport, and of slaughtering them all.
Many of those who affixed their seals had already been slaughtered, while some local merchants were barely surviving. But they did not sit idly by and await their fate; they were willing to affix their seals to the blood-written letter in a desperate attempt to fight to the death.
The second sister's hands trembled as she held the blood-written letter, tears silently streaming down her face.
She said, "I must send this letter written in blood to the palace."
However, it was too late and the city gates were closed, so she could not return to the city and had to wait until tomorrow.
But she wasn't willing to wait even a moment longer.
"I will take you to the palace to pay your respects."
Feng Ziheng felt that this was the craziest thing he had ever done in his life. He actually went along with these two children's antics without informing His Majesty beforehand.
But he was not only a strategist and close advisor to the emperor, he was also one of the protectors of the people.
With Feng Ziheng present, the journey into the palace proceeded without hindrance. Upon arriving at the main hall of the Zichen Palace, the Emperor was disturbed in the middle of the night, his anger still lingering.
"Your Majesty, today's events are related to the incident involving Prince Ning. I dare not delay and can only bring Zizhou and Miss Si into the palace."
The Emperor looked at the three men's attire and asked, "Are you planning to escape in the middle of the night like this?"
Feng Zizhou racked his brains, trying to come up with something to evade the question.
But in front of His Majesty, Feng Ziheng would only choose what to say, never to lie.
He said, "It was my younger brother who was ignorant and persuaded the second young lady of the Si family to go with him to Yanyu Ferry to investigate the disappearance of Prince Ning."
"Yanyu Ferry? The Prince of Ning had his accident at Yanyu Ferry?"
Feng Ziheng then revealed the true purpose of Prince Ning's trip in detail, and knelt down to plead guilty: "Your Majesty, I am guilty. I knew nothing about these things. If I hadn't noticed something was wrong with Feng Zizhou tonight and gone to investigate, I would probably still be in the dark!"
The Emperor sneered: "You are innocent. They are the ones who are at fault. One or two of them are making such big moves in private. Do they even respect me, the Son of Heaven?"
Although the second sister was kneeling, her tone was firm and earnest as she said, "Your Majesty, I believe that Prince Ning did not intend to hide anything from you. He simply wanted to find out the truth so that Your Majesty could understand it at a glance when he presented it to you."
"Is it to make it clear to me at a glance, or are you afraid that I will find out and try to cover it up?"
The second sister dared not respond to this.
A eunuch entered carrying a teacup and whispered, "Your Majesty, Consort Wan has suddenly suffered a headache..."
The Emperor laughed in exasperation: "When did Consort Wan suddenly develop a headache?"
The eunuch, holding a teacup, trembled as he said, "Just... just now..."
"Go back." The Emperor glared at him, but his tone softened slightly as he said to the three kneeling men, "Get up, get up, stop kneeling, you annoy me!"
The three of them got up, and Feng Ziheng recounted the events that had occurred at Yanyu Ferry from beginning to end. His second sister filled in any gaps in his understanding.
"They illegally levy taxes on grain transport and increase overall taxes. How dare they!"
The second sister continued, "According to the news sent back by His Highness Prince Ning, the impact of the unauthorized collection of grain tribute is too great. Many local people have even had to sell their children in order to collect enough grain tribute. Moreover, I'm afraid this is not only the case in Yanyu Ferry, but also in other parts of the Great Zhou. I should probably investigate the grain transport in various places."
"Someone, bring Kuang Tiansong here!" the Emperor said, his gaze fixed on his second sister. "Zizhou, escort your cousin back to the manor. Ziheng, you stay here for now."
After Feng Zizhou and his second sister left, the Emperor asked, "Is the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner Zhou a man of the Crown Prince?"
"Your Majesty, all people under heaven are your subjects."
The Emperor sneered, "Ziheng, when you're alone with me, there's no need for such flattering words. Tell me, why are you associating with them?"
No matter how intense the power struggles at court were, they were not a big deal to the emperor and posed no threat to him. What he needed was to manage the entire Great Zhou Dynasty and to balance the relationships between the various factions in the court.
However, his capable ministers must be like him.
For example, Kuang Tiansong, and Feng Ziheng.
Feng Ziheng's actions today are a choice to stand on the opposite side of the Crown Prince.
He shouldn't stand on either the opposite side or the same side.
This is what angered the emperor.
"Your Majesty, I feel sorry for my younger brother," Feng Ziheng said, kneeling. "No, it's not just that I feel sorry for my younger brother."
He raised his head: "Your Majesty, I was persuaded by Miss Si. Miss Si told me that if no one stands up, only the common people will suffer. She is not afraid to be a speck of dust, but she is afraid that no one will be willing to raise that dust. Your Majesty, if they are the dust, then I can only be the one who raises the dust."
The emperor squinted at him but said nothing.
Feng Ziheng gave a bitter smile: "Your Majesty, I have not lived a pure life. I am always thinking about how to maneuver and balance the relationships between powerful families. Even though I am the person Your Majesty trusts the most, I still have to think about how to weigh things. But now I realize that the people I think about the least are the people I should think about the most."
"Prince Ning remained fearless in the face of danger because he had devoted all his passion to the common people!"
"In fact, all the women of the Si family are exceptionally talented. The eldest daughter of the Si family retired gracefully at the height of her career, and although she devoted herself to business, the more she did so, the more she won the hearts of the people. The second daughter of the Si family is a prodigy among women, bold yet meticulous, and she cares deeply for the common people. They all have a sincere heart, while I... have long forgotten what that heart is like."
A moment of silence fell over the main hall.
After a long silence, the emperor said, "It is I who have failed to do a good job."
The next day, news spread throughout the capital that the excessive tax burden on the Yanyu Ferry had led to a rebellion by merchants and commoners.
The Emperor appointed Kuang Tiansong as Imperial Commissioner to personally oversee the case. He also summoned Governor-General Zhou of the Grand Canal to return to the capital to await further orders.
The Crown Prince entered the palace that very day, removed his hat, and pleaded guilty: "Father, it was my oversight that I chose such a parasite as the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner."
The Emperor asked calmly, "You were merely negligent?"
The Crown Prince said, "It is all my fault."
The Emperor stared at the Crown Prince for a long time, then waved his hand and said, "The wedding is coming soon, so you can focus on preparing for it."
This is to allow the Crown Prince to temporarily refrain from handling political affairs.
After finishing all this, the Emperor wearily entered the hot spring in the Zichen Palace. The water was already prepared, and the younger sister personally poured milk and flower petals into the water, helped the Emperor change his clothes, and massaged his swollen forehead.
"Your Majesty has worked too hard."
The Emperor looked up at her and saw that her eyes were red, clearly indicating that she had been crying.
He reached out and touched her face: "Go back to visit your family."
"No." The younger sister's eyes reddened even more. She hugged the emperor's neck. "These are turbulent times. If I go back now, Your Majesty will only be in a more difficult situation. I... I don't want to put you in a difficult position."