Chapter 379

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Protagonist:

Song Miao

Dawn had just broken; Lu Wang was bleary-eyed, barely half-awake, when he suddenly heard such words and could not quite react in time, asking, "What?"

The visitor's face was pale: "The Empress Dowager... the Empress Dowager received a dream-visitation last night; the Late Emperor said the imperial mausoleum is terribly cold and lonely, with no one to keep him company and chat, so he came to sigh. The Empress Dowager woke, and first thing in the morning, she ran off to the Tai Miao to weep and worship the Late Emperor..."

Lu Wang knitted his brows; a sense of foreboding had already risen in his heart.

The man continued: "Her Majesty the Empress Dowager said that since the Late Emperor came to visit in a dream, she cannot ignore it; she ought to go guard the imperial mausoleum and accompany the Late Emperor."

"The Empress went to stop her, saying the imperial mausoleum is far, the Empress Dowager is advanced in years, and it is unseemly for her to travel so hard; at this time it should be the younger generation who fulfills filial duty — better that she, as the daughter-in-law, go. The two of them, for some reason, started talking and talking, then grappled into a ball, weeping until they nearly fainted..."

"When the Emperor got the news and came out to persuade them, first he said he would arrange sacrifices today, then he said why not let him make a trip himself and personally go to the imperial mausoleum to pay respects..."

Lu Wang cut him off, asking: "No court suspension today? The Emperor's illness is cured?"

"Don't know if the illness is cured or not, but there was no court suspension today. The morning court had just dispersed; officials happened to be passing Jingling Gong, and everyone tried to dissuade them, saying a great many words. Outside it spread in a chaotic mess; this lowly one heard talk of 'ruler', 'should be dignified', 'great strength', 'heavy' — as if saying being Emperor is critical, one cannot run about casually — persuading him to just worship at the Tai Miao and be done with it..."

"The Empress Dowager refused, saying that would appear terribly negligent. Then some official proposed, saying siblings are the closest kin, and the Empress Dowager is of advanced age, a woman's yin constitution, unsuitable to guard the mausoleum year-round; the Imperial Astronomical Bureau also said the Empress Dowager's and Empress's birth characters are incompatible with guarding the mausoleum."

"After much calculation, there is still one person whose birth characters match — precisely you, Wangye, requesting you to..."

Hearing the two words "siblings", Lu Wang abruptly sat bolt upright; hearing the next sentence, he cried out in alarm: "Request me to do what??"

"Because it was said that you, Wangye, and the Late Emperor are true siblings, born of the same womb, raised by the same mother, always on good terms; better to request you to help go pay respects, keep the Late Emperor company at the imperial mausoleum for a year or two, then go to your fief..."

"They also said you have many sons and daughters; staying in the Capital would invite many rumors. Recently idle people have been babbling and dragging your name into things, frightening you until wind-evil entered your body. The Empress Dowager bestowed a meal; you were momentarily overcome with emotion, deeply moved, and even fainted!"

Lu Wang's ears buzzed.

He was furious to the extreme, yet instead calmed down, asking: "Who said these words?"

"This lowly one could only hear idle rumors from random people outside; anything more could not be found out..."

Lu Wang was already anxious; he had risen, slipped on his shoes, and was dressing. Hearing this sentence, he could not help but kick out with his foot.

Only a "clang" was heard, followed by a miserable shriek — the attendant half-crouching on the ground was kicked sprawling backward.

The man had originally been holding a basin; the basin flew upward from below, the half-basin of hot water it carried slammed heavily upward, striking him squarely on the chin. He rolled on the ground in agony.

Lu Wang had a habitually violent temperament; the servants in the room had long since seen it all and thought nothing of it, only rejoicing that the closest one was not themselves.

The man was quickly dragged away.

Lu Wang had kicked the basin, but his anger had not dissipated; he remained irritable, unable to sit or stand still.

He dispatched people to investigate the news on one hand, and sent people to summon his staff on the other.

Yesterday because the Empress Dowager suddenly bestowed a meal, Lu Wang "fainted"; the whole household tossed about until midnight. Now the hour was too early; everyone was still asleep. By the time they were urged and trickled into the study, they had not yet figured out what had happened when the scout returned.

Compared to the previous report, the information gathered this time was far more detailed.

"It is said that at the morning court, a Censorate official after another presented memorials, impeaching Wangye for dozens of crimes..."

The scout spoke, holding up the manuscript he had copied out, about to present it upward.

Lu Wang did not reach for it; just looking at the characters packed dense on the page, he felt his temples throb, his head aching fiercely.

He rebuked: "Can't you read?! You still want this King to read it himself??"

The scout cried bitterly in his heart, but had to force himself calm and read it through in a low voice.

Over many years, Lu Wang had not eaten idle rice; he had done many things, and had been impeached no few times.

This time, besides dragging out all the old accusations to scold him again, they had newly collected and compiled more.

The Censorate truly deserves its reputation — all are jinshi graduates, each with splendid literary talent, and they stress parallelism and structure in their writing. As the memorial contents were read one by one, even though the scout tried to keep his voice low, it still carried a rhythmic cadence, sonorous and forceful.

"Consorting with bandits, interfering with public trade..."

"Seizing people's fields, encroaching on official roads..."

"... Keeping henchmen, running rampant in the countryside, establishing private prisons..."

"... Bullying men and dominating women, harboring evil and indulging violence..."

"... Coercing false contracts, embezzling state taxes..."

"Curtailing favor in the court and market, peeping into the forbidden palace, secretly bribing civil and military officials..."

"The Censorate says, if His Majesty does not dispose of this, they will stage a sit-in protest..."

Lu Wang's face was ugly; he hurriedly pressed: "How did His Majesty reply?"

"The Emperor accepted the memorials, and said nothing else... only outside everywhere people are discussing, and the talk is ugly..."

Hearing that the Emperor had not spoken, Lu Wang's heart relaxed slightly.

In the past it was also withheld without action; drag it out, and perhaps the matter would pass.

But before he could catch his breath, people came rushing back one after another from outside.

Everyone was in a panic.

"Wangye, it's bad! Outside, who knows how, it suddenly spread everywhere; everyone says Wangye feigned illness to avoid guarding the imperial mausoleum, to avoid paying filial duty to the ancestors..."

"Don't know who's twisting things, but they also say yesterday Wangye deliberately knocked over the medicine the Empress Dowager bestowed, feigning madness and playing the fool, to avoid going to his fief!"

"... Someone copied those Censorate essays and took them out, reading them aloud at street corners for passersby to hear, and asking everywhere whether the crimes listed are true or false..."

Everyone in the room grew tense hearing this development.

"How did this affair spread so fast this time?"

"After all it's Jingling Gong, originally outside the palace, everyone watching..."

Jingling Gong lies outside the Imperial Palace gates; it was originally used to enshrine the spirit tablets of Da Wei's successive emperors. Though Imperial Guards stand watch, it faces the street.

Moreover, even if the incident occurred inside the palace, Da Wei's Imperial Palace originally occupies no great area, and the palace walls are not high. If street vendors' cries are just a bit louder, they can be heard clearly inside; how much more so with the Empress Dowager and Empress both weeping loudly for the Late Emperor, and countless ministers coming to persuade them.

Such commotion naturally makes it very easy for idle people to observe.

But there were also those who disagreed, retorting: "No matter how many people saw it, it wouldn't spread this fast; what time is it now? I'm afraid someone is fanning the flames behind the scenes!"

As the words fell, not a single answer came from inside the room; instead, everyone lowered their heads.

Who doesn't understand this reasoning?

It's just that everyone is nervous and dares not mention it.

After a long while, someone finally said in a low voice: "Your Highness, this time the Censorate is making quite a fierce clamor, and the situation outside isn't too good either. If it were ordinary times it would be fine, but with the Empress Dowager... I'm afraid it's still best to be cautious."

Lu Wang looked at the many charges copied back, and also at those student essays from yesterday; although on the surface he appeared not to care at all, how could his heart not be tense.

He feared he would truly be dispatched to guard the imperial mausoleum; after discussing with his retainers for half a day, he reported sick that very day, only saying he had suffered a shock and felt unwell, and lay down again.

Fearing the Imperial Palace would send eunuchs and medical officers again, which would be hard to send away, he also specially instructed that his illness was not serious and quiet recuperation would suffice, thinking he could use this as an excuse to avoid the limelight.

Who knew the message had just been sent into the palace when word came back from inside.

The Empress Dowager and the Emperor soothed him with gentle words, and did not mention anything about accompanying the guard at the imperial mausoleum; they only bestowed some superior medicinal materials, and also summoned all the sons in the manor into the palace, except for the eldest son and the second son.

Lu Wang was somewhat baffled.

He had a full eight sons, but the ones most valued were only the eldest son and the second son; if the palace wanted to take hostages, they should have seized these two, not the others.

The manor inevitably sent out people to investigate.

However, this time after investigating for half a day, they only said the people had entered Chui Gong Dian and had not come out; at noon and in the evening, the Empress Dowager bestowed meals, calm and peaceful, not looking like anything bad was happening.

Until the sky gradually darkened, they finally managed to learn some news.

After learning from the crowd what had happened, Lu Wang was instantly stunned and asked: "What does 'substitute guarding of the mausoleum' mean?"

"The Empress Dowager said she wants to select one from among the young masters to replace Your Highness in guarding the late Emperor's mausoleum, asking which of them is willing."

For a moment, Lu Wang actually breathed a sigh of relief.

Only by staying in the Capital is there a possibility.

Otherwise, even if there is some opportunity, whether it's a fief or the imperial mausoleum, the distance is too far; by the time one hears the news and returns to the Capital, how could it be in time.

In any case he has many offspring; although all are his own flesh and blood, the affection isn't very deep; let alone sacrificing one, even sacrificing two or three wouldn't matter; it counts as helping to avert disaster; in any case, those adopted later would be grandchildren.

He thought for a moment, always feeling this might not be a bad thing; his tone even softened by three parts as he asked: "Which one was chosen in the end?"

"Still waiting for the palace to issue an edict..."

By the time the palace gates closed, a group of people finally returned to the manor, almost coming to report to Lu Wang in high spirits.

"The sons volunteered to go guard the imperial mausoleum!"

"The Empress Dowager first said only two or three people were needed; seeing us all scrambling to go, the Emperor also helped plead, and she finally relented — all of us can go!"

Lu Wang was dumbfounded.

Who ever scrambles to go guard a mausoleum?

But it turned out Yang the Empress Dowager agreed that those who went to guard the imperial mausoleum today would in the future be granted fields and residences near their fiefs, and also given noble titles.

Although the titles cannot be inherited, Lu Wang has many branches, and he has always favored the eldest son and the second son; the other offspring received very few benefits.

The Wang Fu has not divided the household; the Wang Fei worships Buddha and cultivates the Dao year-round, ignoring idle affairs; the household is managed by the eldest daughter-in-law; each branch has a fixed monthly allowance, not insufficient to spend, but still tight.

Watching their father throw money around outside, today befriending this one, tomorrow associating with that one, wine pools and meat forests; everyone knows that even if there is a future, it definitely won't reach them; on the contrary, because their father refuses to go to his fief, many things cannot be obtained.

Now they only need to guard the imperial mausoleum for a few years, and when they come out they will have wealth — their own; and noble titles — their own; and even gain a reputation for loyalty and filial piety — also their own; only a fool would refuse!

In no more than two days, the rumors outside about Lu Wang peeping into the forbidden palace and intending to usurp the throne not only did not stop, but grew even more intense; at the same time, Lu Wang Fu was emptied by more than half.

Originally thinking those who left were the unfavored sons, but they took their families and servants from the courtyards; a few even took their own birth mothers — when asked, Lu Wang didn't think much of it; they were old and fading, normally hard to see even on festivals, so naturally he didn't take it to heart.

After the people had mostly left, he suddenly felt something was not right.

Before he could figure out the reason, the manor received another piece of news.

— Wu Yuanwai was summoned and detained by the government office, because someone reported he privately hid military equipment and prohibited clothing, and also said he associated with bandits and trafficked people.

The government searched the premises and all evidence was present; thus the entire household, top to bottom, was seized at once.

There were a few acquaintances in the Capital Prefecture Office; learning of this, because the matter was bad, they hurriedly and secretly came to report the news.

Lu Wang listened and his face looked ugly.

Associating with bandits and trafficking people could still be cleared up; but that so-called private hiding of military equipment and prohibited clothing, one careless moment could implicate himself.

A trusted retainer of many years also quietly asked: "Your Highness, the Wu family's military equipment — could it be that batch from before? Wasn't it already instructed to him to clean it all up completely?"

Lu Wang couldn't be sure either.

But he was of imperial birth, so naturally knew this was not the time for soft-heartedness; he only ordered: "Send someone in to ask, see whether those prohibited clothing and military equipment are real or fake."

"Regardless of true or false, it's hard to explain; I'm afraid it will climb and bite onto me..." He didn't hesitate even a bit, "Taking advantage that it hasn't blown up yet, dispose of the people first, to avoid long nights and many dreams."

The retainer accepted the order, but hesitated for a moment, unable to help asking: "Your Highness, then... the wet nurse?"

After all, she raised him; Lu Wang hesitated for a good long while.

But the more he thought, the more uneasy he felt.

Precisely because she raised him, in recent years she still managed many things in the manor; one fears the subordinates might not have noticed some matters, but she might have secretly seen them and remembered them.

"She is old..." Lu Wang sighed, "Let her keep a whole corpse."

Hearing this sentence, the retainer's back instantly broke out in cold sweat.

Sending a message into the prison is not difficult; even bribing a jailer to report a death from illness is not difficult; as long as there is money, let alone a ghost pushing a millstone, a millstone pushing a ghost can be done.

But after all, she nursed the Prince and served for decades as an old wet nurse; the matter wasn't even clarified yet, and one sentence ended a life; leaving a whole corpse seems like giving great face.

This person even remembers clearly: when the late Emperor fell critically ill, the Prince single-mindedly wanted to ascend; he specially had the wet nurse's son go to the fief to get a batch of heavy crossbows and armor back.

The wet nurse met such an end; if in the future it's oneself...

His scalp tingling with cold, he left Lu Wang Fu.

And in the Capital Prefecture Office's prison, after being interrogated for a day, Wu Yuanwai, finally released back into the pitch-black room, also felt his whole body ice-cold.

The prison had just served a meal — only a single dry hard steamed cake, nothing else beside it.

?? Due to recurring illness, I've been seeing a doctor recently, and I'm better now; it's been delayed too long, I really have no face to say sorry, but besides sorry I don't know what else to say.

I know some friends, out of concern, will suggest stopping updates for a while, waiting until fully recovered before slowly writing again, but according to my experience, once updates stop, it's highly likely to be a long hiatus, so afterward I'll try to write a little every day; the update word count can't be guaranteed, and the reading experience will be very poor, so everyone, save up and read it all at the final chapter.

Blessings to everyone for good health.