Chapter 1330 - 14: Sparring
Shen Junshan kicked hard, startling the prison guard who was dozing off during his night shift.
As a prison guard, the greatest fear is a prison break. The sudden commotion in the cell scared the guard into hastily bringing a lantern to see what had happened.
Seeing the cell door kicked apart, with Shen Junshan lying on the wooden bed, the guard’s mouth twitched.
Was he dissatisfied with the size of the bed and wanted to sleep on his own?
With such a beautiful companion by his side, he wants a separate room; is the Second Young Master of Jibei Marquis Mansion a gentleman or just not quite right in the head?
The guard leaned more towards the latter possibility.
The guard had a big issue with Shen Junshan kicking apart the cell, because it meant they had to repair it.
But Shen Junshan is the Second Young Master of Jibei Marquis Mansion, someone who dares to even hit the Second Young Master of Duke Chong’s Mansion and the Sixth Prince. Kicking apart a cell was nothing?
If he killed the head guard, the Ministry of Justice wouldn’t dare report it upwards.
The guard retreated, yawning.
All slept peacefully through the night.
The next day, when the hour arrived, Shen Junshan woke up.
Bored out of his mind, he practiced horse stance within the cell.
Todays court session was particularly lively.
Since Shen Junshan had beaten up the Sixth Prince, many officials impeached Marquis Jibei for poor parenting.
Failing to educate is a father’s fault.
Marquis Jibei pled guilty to the Emperor, requesting the Emperor to severely punish him.
Before the Emperor could speak, Duke Zhen stepped out to defend Marquis Jibei.
Marquis Jibei had been on the battlefield for many years, away from the Capital City, and thus had neglected to discipline his son—it’s unfair to blame him for not managing both family and state affairs.
Moreover, Marquis Jibei had three sons, and the talent and character of the Eldest and Third Young Masters Shen are universally acknowledged.
To judge Marquis Jibei’s parenting based solely on one son’s troublemaking would be too harsh.
Duke Zhen stated that no one can deny the merits of Marquis Jibei’s contributions to the court, and no one dared to refute. They could only fixate on the matter of Shen Junshan beating the Sixth Prince.
Even daring to hit a Sixth Prince, this showed utter disregard for the Royal Family!
However, Shen Junshan’s actions had also saved the life of the Third Prince, so to say he disregards the Royal Family would be inaccurate.
The court was in an uproar over how to punish Shen Junshan, exhausting the Emperor’s patience.
The Crown Prince was gravely ill, the Emperor hadn’t had a good night’s sleep for several days and was more worn out each day.
With all the arguing, the Emperor had a headache and dismissed court early.
The Third Prince had long heard about Shen Junshan hitting the Sixth Prince.
As a Prince who had also been beaten by Shen Junshan, the Third Prince felt some comfort but mostly anger.
Shen Junshan hitting the Sixth Prince was accidental, hitting him was deliberate.
The first punch could be said to be ignorance, but despite knowing he was the Sixth Prince, following up with another punch, the Third Prince hadn’t forgotten that.
Little Fu said, "Since the Third Prince wants to win over Jibei Marquis Mansion, and Second Young Master Shen saved you, helping to plead for him will surely earn Jibei Marquis Mansion’s gratitude."
The Third Prince glanced at Little Fu and said, "Help in pleading is a must, but not now."
Let Shen Junshan stay a few more days in the Ministry of Justice’s prison, that will just ease the anger of getting hit twice.
Furthermore, Shen Junshan was imprisoned because of the Sixth Prince and the Second Young Master of Duke Chong’s Mansion; staying another day in that dark and damp cell would deepen his hatred towards them.
The more deeply enmity with the Sixth Prince grew, the more assured he would be to stand by his side.
Little Fu thought the Third Prince’s arrangement was quite good, as he was still recovering and couldn’t leave the palace quarters.
Hmm.
The Third Prince’s plan seemed perfect, but he unintentionally let a favor slip through his fingers.
Shangguan Tong, the Second Young Master of Duke Chong’s Mansion, and the Sixth Prince were at odds with Shen Junshan, but Shangguan Ji, the Heir of Duke Chong, was not.
As the Heir of Duke Chong, he didn’t want Duke Chong’s Mansion and Jibei Marquis Mansion to become enemies, especially since he was at Drunken Immortal Pavilion at the time and knew how the Sixth Prince caught that punch.
The tactics of ramming into someone’s fist, using power to oppress others, and sending someone to the Ministry of Justice’s prison, he didn’t see favorably.
Nevertheless, he was aware of Shen Junshan saving the Third Prince, even though the Sixth Prince, being his cousin, was still viewed less favorably. He believed the Third Prince was more suitable for the role of Crown Prince.
The Third Prince would surely plead for Shen Junshan.
Shangguan Ji waited for three days, and there was no sign of any action from the Third Prince.
Shangguan Ji had to suspect that the Third Prince was afraid to offend the Sixth Prince, so he didn’t help plead for Shen Junshan.
Shangguan Ji entered the palace to report to the Emperor about forming the Flying Tiger Army, and along the way, explained the situation of Shen Junshan hitting the Sixth Prince.
He was the cousin of the Sixth Prince, which made his plea for Shen Junshan believable to the Emperor.
"Since it was accidental, and he’s been in prison for three days, release him," the Emperor waved his hand and said.
The moment the news spread, the Third Prince was filled with regret.