Chapter 79: Guards, Seize the Regent King
Xu Xingchen narrowed the search, and Xiao Yang immediately sent people to investigate.
The Empress Dowager’s expression turned ugly. It was hard to tell if it was because the Regent King was about to be exonerated or for some other reason.
"Xiao Jin, you’re being utterly ridiculous! Xu Xingchen is only seventeen. What could he possibly know about investigating a case? This is clearly a conspiracy between you two to find a scapegoat for Rong Yin."
Her eyes were filled with condemnation. "You are the Emperor. How can you be so unable to distinguish right from wrong?"
"I cannot stand by and watch you act so recklessly—to coddle a tiger that will only bring disaster, to let the real murderer go free, and to destroy the Xiao Family’s century-old legacy."
Her gaze was sharp, her objective clear. "Men! Seize Rong Yin and throw him into the Heavenly Prison!"
No matter what, she was determined to get Rong Yin into the Heavenly Prison today.
Two guards stepped forward to seize the Regent King. Qing Yu looked to his master, awaiting his command.
Rong Yin didn’t move. It seemed he wouldn’t need to take action in today’s confrontation.
Just as he expected, the Emperor shot them a look, his gaze imperious and intimidating. "You dare make a move before me? Have you thought this through?"
The two men froze, not daring to move.
They may have been the Empress Dowager’s men, but they weren’t stupid enough to offend the Emperor. They knew very well who ruled the realm now.
Seeing this, the Empress Dowager’s face went pale with fury. The Emperor would truly dare to kill her men.
Xu Xingchen personally led a search party, following the direction of the footprints. They soon had their answer. In a dry well in the rear palace, they found a blood-stained night robe.
When the bloody robe was brought back, Zhao Qiuchi’s face was deathly pale, his eyes filled with despair.
He could already see how this would end.
This time, it was Xiao Yang who gave the order. "Men! Seize Zhao Qiuchi and throw him into the Heavenly Prison!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
The Imperial Guards immediately stepped forward and apprehended him.
Xiao Yang looked at the Empress Dowager. "Mother, you don’t look well. You should hurry back and rest. There’s no need to trouble yourself with the affairs of the palace."
The Empress Dowager gripped her sleeves tightly. Time and again, she had watched power slip through her fingers.
No matter how she struggled, she could not change the fact that she was losing her authority.
Her daughter was truly something else!
She had done everything for the Emperor’s sake, trying to eliminate powerful ministers, yet the Emperor trampled on her dignity time and time again.
Her gaze swept over the Regent King before landing back on the Little Emperor. "Xiao Jin, you are headstrong and a poor judge of character. Eventually, you will find you’ve been coddling a tiger that will bring you nothing but disaster."
’Still trying to sow discord, even now.’
Rong Yin immediately swept the hem of his robes aside and knelt on one knee. "I, Rong Yin, vow to follow Your Majesty for my entire life. I will serve you to the death, never betray you, and die ten thousand times without regret."
Rong Yin had just made this vow in front of so many people. If he ever dared to rebel in the future, his name would be cursed for generations.
Was Xiao Yang moved? ’Not in the slightest.’
’This goddamn idiot forces me to study, blocks me every time I try to give away the throne, and now the bastard is even lusting after my body!’
’He’s so shameless!’
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. Xiao Yang sneered. "Speaking of which, I did forget one thing."
"Men! Seize the Regent King and escort him to the Heavenly Prison as well!"
Everyone: "?"
They thought they must have misheard. The reversal was completely unexpected.
All eyes turned to the Regent King, waiting to see if he would immediately go back on his word.
He’d just sworn his undying loyalty, only to be thrown in prison by the Emperor. ’He’ll surely resist, won’t he?’
Two Imperial Guards stepped forward. Though Xiao Lv had no idea what the Little Emperor was plotting, he was unconditionally on her side. Fearing the Regent King would resist and that the other guards would hesitate to use deadly force, he took a step forward, ready to personally help apprehend the Regent King if necessary.
However, the scene everyone had imagined—of the Regent King resisting in shock and rebelling on the spot—never materialized.
Rong Yin slowly rose to his feet, his deep gaze fixed on the Little Emperor. His expression was complex and unreadable, but it held no anger. He simply asked, "Your Majesty, may I ask what crime I have committed?"
Xiao Yang pointed at Jiang Shuhuai on the floor. "If I hadn’t stopped you, you would have been the one who killed him! If you hadn’t made a move in public and given them an opening, would any of this have happened today?"
"Now get yourself to the Heavenly Prison and reflect on what you’ve done!"
’I sound so domineering,’ Xiao Yang thought. ’It wasn’t easy! After all this time, I’ve finally caught the Regent King in the wrong. I can finally stand a little taller.’
Rong Yin stared at her face, which was all the more vibrant for her anger, and couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle.
"Heh."
Then, he clasped his hands in a salute. "I... will obey."
In the eyes of the crowd: The Regent King had let out a cold sneer, his eyes filled with malice. But with everyone watching, he had no choice but to swallow his anger and indignation.
Rong Yin’s thoughts: ’Her Majesty is angry about my actions, but she wasn’t disgusted when I revealed my heart. Her Majesty doesn’t hate me!!!’
Who could have predicted it? The Emperor, who had just been determined to protect the Regent King, had now personally ordered him to the Heavenly Prison. And the Regent King, who had seemed on the verge of defiance, had calmly agreed.
The Empress Dowager and her faction: Their objective had been achieved, but it felt like they’d been forced to eat a mouthful of mud.
It was an indescribable and deeply unpleasant feeling.
Rong Yin and Zhao Qiuchi were taken away together. Xu Xingchen, who was in charge of interrogating Zhao Qiuchi, went with them.
Xiao Yang took a long look at Jiang Shuhuai’s corpse. "I did not strike the blow, but he still died because of me..."
She had been too naive. She had only wanted to find someone to solve her immediate problems, never imagining it would bring a fatal disaster upon him in just a few days, sending an innocent man to his grave.
’Forget it. I’ll never bring up the matter of male favorites again.’
Finally, Xiao Yang turned to the Jiang Family. "Young Master Jiang came to the palace to perform, only to meet with this tragedy. I am deeply grieved. Once the matter is thoroughly investigated, I will ensure the murderer is brought to justice and pays with their life."
"I hereby bestow upon Jiang Shuhuai the status of a freeman. Instruct the Ministry of Rites to bury him with the honors befitting a seventh-rank official."
It is said that no amount of compensation is of any use to the dead.
But he was already gone, and such compensation was all she could offer.
Musicians and actors were considered of a lowly class in this era. They were barred from serving as court officials, fundamentally cutting off any path to social advancement.
The status of a freeman and the funeral rites of an official... this could be the very opportunity a great family needed to rise.
As for why these honors weren’t bestowed upon Jiang Shuhuai’s parents or brothers, it was to incentivize them to have a child adopted into Jiang Shuhuai’s line to inherit this glory.
Whoever inherited the glory that Jiang Shuhuai had bought with his life should, at the very least, always remember him.
Xiao Yang departed, leaving Xiao Lv to handle the aftermath. For now, the matter had come to a close.
To the uninformed, it was merely a criminal case. But the old veterans of the court saw something deeper.
The Regent King and the Empress Dowager had clashed again, and once again, they had lost to the Little Emperor.
The Empress Dowager would not be making a comeback. The Regent King had knelt in fealty. The Little Emperor’s power was growing, and she was becoming a true sovereign who held the reins of power.
The Empress Dowager stared fixedly in the direction the Emperor had gone. This was not the outcome she wanted. She refused to accept it.
An old serving woman stepped forward and whispered, "Your Highness, regardless, the Regent King is in prison now. We can take things one step at a time."
True. Regardless of how it happened, the Regent King was in prison. In a way, her goal had been achieved.
Although she couldn’t directly interfere with the Heavenly Prison, she could still ensure that Rong Yin, who walked in, would be carried out.
First, she would kill Rong Yin, then deal with Prince Jing. Once she had clipped Xiao Jin’s wings, the Imperial Power would finally fall back into her hands.