359 Punishment
The only thing that Yin Lixing had done in his life that was out of line was to marry Wen Ruqin, the Imperial Secretary of the Hanlin Academy at that time, the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, the Grand Secretary of the East Pavilion, and the daughter of Wen Zhicheng, the second-in-charge of the cabinet.
For this woman, he was willing to travel to Youzhou and never step foot into the capital again even though he was pampered since he was young.
Before this, he had never suspected him.
As news of the You Prefecture’s success came every year, the name of King You, Yin Lixing, spread throughout the world. He suspected that his image as a playboy in the past was all an act.
Once the seed of doubt was planted, it would sprout in the heart and grow stronger day by day.
In the end, the Di clan invaded the north wantonly. The invincible King You, Yin Lixing, was defeated badly. He even lost several cities, and the court officials all went up to him, wanting King You to enter the capital to be interrogated.
It was done. It was the last straw.
The court officials below were arguing and becoming more and more intense.
The emperor felt suffocated and frustrated. Anger rushed to his head. He waved his hand, and there was a series of bangs.
He swept everything on the dragon table to the ground.
“Your Majesty, please forgive…” The court officials in the hall knelt on the ground.
The hall was silent.
After throwing a tantrum, the emperor was also a little weak. His eyes darkened, and he kept panting heavily. However, he was inhaling more and exhaling less.
At this moment, a eunuch rushed into the hall. His legs went weak and he knelt on the ground with a thud. “Your Majesty, His Highness, King Ping, has fainted outside the palace gate because he was seriously injured after a long journey.”
The emperor took a deep breath. “King Ping is here for an audience. The imperial physician will see him.”
The hall was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
The eunuch beside the king brought over a golden plate with a green-gold pill the size of a longan on it.
The emperor took the pill and stuffed it into his mouth.
The chief eunuch quickly handed him another cup of tea.
The emperor took the teacup and swallowed the pill with the tea.
As soon as the pill entered his stomach, the emperor’s greenish-gray face regained its rosy color at a visible speed, and the sides of his cheeks were abnormally red.
The emperor propped his elbows on his hands and closed his eyes.
After an unknown period of time, two trembling eunuchs carried King Ping, who was lying on a stretcher, into the hall. Liang Jingye followed them.
Liang Jingye knelt on the ground with a thud. “Greetings, Your Majesty. Long live the Emperor.”
The emperor, who had closed his eyes to take a nap, finally opened them. He saw that the heir, Liang Jingye, was dressed in white. Then, he looked at the unconscious Liang Xiao, who was lying on the stretcher. He had also taken off his python robe. His chest was already dyed red with blood.
It seemed that it was not a lie that his injuries were serious.
The emperor glanced at the imperial physician, who was kneeling at the side and not even daring to breathe loudly. “How’s King Ping’s health?”
Naturally, the imperial physician knew what the emperor wanted to hear. He hurriedly said, “Your Majesty, His Highness’s injuries are critical. If he can recuperate well, he can recover in two to three months. However, before His Highness is exhausted, so his new injuries haven’t recovered yet. Furthermore, he has old and new injuries. Numerous injuries arose at the same time. It’s a very dangerous state and I’m afraid his life is in danger.”
The emperor looked down at the half-dead King Ping and ordered, “Wake him up.”
The imperial physician hurriedly took out a porcelain bottle from the medicine box and poured out a brownish-black pill. He fed it to King Ping. This was the Ten Rescue Pill, a secret medicine that was specially used to nourish and prolong one’s life. Then, he ruthlessly pinched King Ping.
After a while, King Ping slowly woke up.
When he realized that he was in the golden hall, he ignored his injuries and struggled to get up from the stretcher. He knelt on the ground. “I’m Liang Xiao, the King of Ping in Zhenliang Prefecture. Greetings, Your Majesty. Long live our emperor.”
The emperor rested his forehead on one hand. “King Ping, you entered the capital without an edict. Your entire family should be executed. Do you know your crime?”
Liang Xiao fell to the ground and lay on his stomach without moving. However, his voice trembled as he said, “I know my mistake, but although I might die, I don’t regret it. Last year, the Southern Barbarians invaded the southern border wantonly. It was my fault for not guarding it well, causing the Southern Barbarians to kill the citizens of our Great Zhou, rob our Great Zhou of our money and food, and damage our Great Zhou’s prestige and the face of our emperor. I knew that I was guilty, so I requested a decree several times to ask Your Majesty to punish me. However, I didn’t expect that in the blink of an eye, Your Majesty still hasn’t reacted. I was in Liangzhou in a panic and entered the capital privately. I only wanted to meet Your Majesty to prove my loyalty.”
His words were heartfelt and sincere.
Upon hearing his words, the court officials simultaneously recalled that more than three years ago, it was also because King You had suffered a defeat when he was finally summoned to the capital to be punished with treason. His son had died, his wife and daughter had died, and his entire family had turned to ashes.
Now, the situation in Liangzhou was very similar to that in Youzhou.
The Imperial Court had never punished them. If it were anyone else, they would also be in fear and trepidation, worried that the Imperial Court was holding back some big move.
King Liang was terrified that he would end up like King You. He could only take a gamble and drag his seriously injured body into the capital with his heir to show his loyalty to the emperor.
Immediately, someone shook his head and sighed.
After three years, King You’s rebellion had finally shocked the vassal kings. All of them were in fear and trepidation, as if they were walking on thin ice, afraid that they would anger him.
If the court officials could think of it, how could the emperor not? He turned to look at Xia Yansheng, the Cabinet Grand Secretary. “Is that true?”
Xia Yansheng cupped his hands and replied, “From last year to today, King Ping has been asking the Emperor to punish him 6 times. However, the year end is approaching, and the imperial examination is imminent. The Imperial Court has recruited talents, which is the foundation of a prosperous country. It’s urgent and cannot be underestimated. After the cabinet’s discussion, this matter will be discussed later.”
Last year, in addition to King Ping’s defeat, the Marquis of Changxing had also won a battle.
As the saying went, there were punishments and rewards. If he King Ping won a battle, shouldn’t he be rewarded too?
He had been suppressing this because he planned to wait until after the imperial examination. After Yu Zongshen took over as the Minister of Revenue, he would report it to the emperor and reward him.
This way, they could also keep the Marquis of Weining’s faction in check.
The emperor nodded in agreement.
Liang Xiao said with a trembling voice, “I’m loyal to His Majesty. The sun and moon can be my witness. I came to the capital this time to…”
The sound of wheels came from inside the room.
Yu Youyao subconsciously looked at the door and saw her cousin turning his wheelchair into the house.
Zhou Linghuai glanced at Xia Tao indifferently and said calmly, “You can leave!”
Young Master Zhou’s glance made Xia Tao hold her breath and her mind go blank. By the time she reacted, she was already outside the door and had even thoughtfully closed it.
“Cousin, do you know why King Ping entered the capital?” After being shocked, Yu Youyao calmed down. After all, she had known about this for a long time, so she had a feeling that he was finally here.
...
She was shocked but not surprised.
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