Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 378 Deep Affection

As Li Zhaogang walked into Chenghui Hall, he heard angry rebukes coming from inside.

The Grand Princess sat upright at the head of the table, her white hair neatly combed and adorned with a nine-phoenix hairpin, her posture ramrod straight.

The Crown Prince's Junior Chamberlain, Jia Sheng, stood trembling beside him, bowing and smiling obsequiously, repeatedly trying to appease the Princess by saying, "Please calm down, Your Highness," without daring to utter a single word of rebuttal.

The Grand Princess was not grateful.

The golden mace she gripped tightly in her hand was about three feet long, shaped like a short staff, and entirely gilded. The mace was engraved with a coiled dragon, and the rubies inlaid in the dragon's eyes gleamed with a cold, eerie light.

This shows the special favor that Emperor Taizu bestowed upon his own elder sister.

It symbolizes the supreme honor and privileges of the royal family.

The holder of this item has the power to admonish his unworthy descendants; even the emperor would have to show him some leniency upon seeing it.

Back then, the Grand Princess once used this weapon to severely reprimand an arrogant and domineering prince in court, which shocked the court and the public. The Junior Chamberlain Jia Sheng was sweating profusely and dared not make a move.

"What brings you here, my imperial aunt?" Li Zhao asked as he slowly entered the hall.

Jia Sheng wanted to step forward to pay his respects, but Li Zhao stopped him with a look.

"The Crown Prince has unjustly imprisoned the Prime Minister and allowed this vixen to wreak havoc on the court... If I don't speak up for justice, you'll ruin the entire Liang Dynasty..."

“Xiao Song’s crimes are irrefutable, and it is only natural for him to be detained and interrogated.”

Li Zhao's gaze calmly swept over the chilling golden mace, finally settling on the Grand Princess's face, a barely perceptible cold smile curling at the corner of his lips.

"As for my Crown Princess, it is not for others to comment."

"Crown Prince!" the Grand Princess shouted sharply, her eyes bloodshot. "Xiao Song is a high-ranking official of the court. Even if he is at fault, it should be His Majesty's decision. You have privately imprisoned and tortured him. What kind of regent are you? And Xue, a vixen of unknown origin, you actually want to make her the Crown Princess. Where do you put the dignity of the royal family? Where do you put the fate of the Great Liang? Where do you put the ancestors of the Li family?"

"I will handle the important matters of the nation myself, and I dare not trouble my great-aunt with such concerns."

Li Zhao's tone was icy as he glanced at the sun. "It's getting late. If the Grand Princess has nothing else to do, please return to your residence. Do not make a scene here and trouble your father."

"You! What a regent prince—" The Grand Princess trembled with rage, raising her golden mace sharply and pointing it directly at Li Zhao's face.

"You disrespect your elders, despise the law, and refuse to listen to advice... then don't blame me for being impolite."

She raised the golden mace high, saying, "This is a golden mace bestowed by the founding emperor. It can be used to strike down tyrannical rulers and treacherous officials. Today, I will use it to cleanse the Li imperial family of its corruption."

Everyone around was stunned.

This golden mace symbolizes the authority of the late emperor, and even the crown prince cannot easily disobey it.

Li Zhao's face darkened: "Grandmother, let's stop here."

“The Crown Prince has gone too far.” The Grand Princess’s white hair trembled slightly, and her anger burned even brighter. “The late Emperor’s last words are here—wield the golden mace to rectify the court. If I cannot seek justice for my son, then I will seek justice for His Majesty… to get rid of this vixen who is causing chaos in the Eastern Palace.”

The Grand Princess launched her attack directly, her intentions clear.

"Your Highness, please hand over the demoness Xue immediately, or don't blame me for being ruthless with my golden mace."

The guards were deathly pale, their hands gripping the hilts of their swords, veins bulging, yet none dared to move an inch.

The late Emperor Taizu's instructions and the authority of his golden mace weighed heavily on everyone's heart like invisible shackles.

There was deathly silence in the hall.

All eyes were on Li Zhao.

“Grand Aunt, please forgive me for not being able to comply.” Li Zhao looked at the mace tip so close to his face, and at the obsession in the Grand Princess’s eyes, and calmly replied, “There are no vixens in the Eastern Palace. Xue Liu is my betrothed, the future Crown Princess. She is pure and innocent, and cannot be defiled in the slightest. If you, Grand Aunt, insult her, you are insulting me, and you are insulting the Li family!”

The Grand Princess's expression softened slightly, and a hint of resignation flashed in her eyes.

"Does Your Highness still remember what I said to you when I was holding you in the Imperial Garden watching the koi fish the year you were first made the Crown Prince by the late Emperor?"

Li Zhao nodded. "I remember. My great-aunt said that royal descendants bear the weight of the nation on their shoulders and should prioritize the country and its people... They must endure what ordinary people cannot endure, and make decisions that ordinary people cannot make, and never be swayed by emotions..."

The Grand Princess's eyes reddened slightly, and her voice softened.

"You still remember such a small matter." She slowly walked up to Li Zhao and said earnestly, "Your Highness, for the sake of our past relationship, please heed my advice: release Xiao Song and abandon that Xue woman... There are many beautiful women in this world; whatever woman you desire, your great-aunt can decide for you..."

To be fair, the Grand Princess is different from people like Xiao Song. She protects the Xiao family, but she isn't entirely disregard for the bigger picture. Among the imperial family, she is even one of the few who has shown any compassion for Li Zhao…

But under imperial power, there is no kinship.

Li Zhao's mind is as clear as a mirror.

"I am an unfilial grandson and I am afraid that I will disappoint my great-aunt's good intentions."

The Grand Princess's face darkened. "Does the Crown Prince truly intend to remain obstinate? Aren't you afraid that I will use my golden mace to punish you for disobedience?"

Li Zhao stood tall with an open and honest gaze.

"If my great-aunt insists on this, I am willing to take this blow for my fiancée, only asking that my great-aunt not further tarnish her reputation..."

The Grand Princess was so angry that she trembled all over, and the golden mace in her hand creaked loudly.

"Good! What a profound sentiment! Does the Crown Prince know that this strike is a blow to the face of the royal family? How will you face Emperor Taizu and Emperor Taizong in the afterlife?"

"My actions are worthy of heaven and earth and my ancestors." Li Zhao lowered his eyes slightly, with a resolute calm, slowly raised his hand, untied the jade belt at his waist, and casually threw it onto the cold ground.

Then, he took off the bright yellow robe that symbolized the prince's honor with both hands, revealing the plain white undergarment underneath.

"If you want to punish someone, do it to your grandson."

The python robe fell to the ground.

Li Zhao stood upright in the middle of the magnificent palace, staring into the Grand Princess's shocked eyes, and spoke each word clearly.

"Grandmother, please make a move."

The Grand Princess's hand holding the golden mace trembled violently. She looked at the young Crown Prince standing proudly before her, dressed only in his undergarments, and gritted her teeth.

"Today I will awaken you, you foolish crown prince who has been blinded by beauty..."

She suddenly raised the heavy golden mace in her hand and slammed it down hard on Li Zhao's back...

"Your Highness—"

The guards cried out in surprise, but Li Zhao neither dodged nor avoided them.

The golden mace struck Li Zhao squarely in the back.

The Grand Princess was both angry and anxious, panting heavily.

"Your Highness, would you rather suffer this physical pain than protect this witch?"

“Grandmother, within the Eastern Palace, no one is a monster, and no one will be tolerated to harm me…”

"You're utterly hopeless..." the Grand Princess roared, her second mace about to fall...

"stop--"

A clear, melodious female voice suddenly rang out at the entrance of Chenghui Hall.

Xue Sui practically rushed into Chenghui Palace.

Ruyi and Xiaozhao stood guard on either side of her, their faces even paler than the plain white cloaks they had hastily donned. They had walked too fast, their foreheads were covered in a fine layer of cold sweat, and they were breathing unevenly, but their eyes were exceptionally firm.

“Your Highness, the Grand Princess,” Xue Sui began, “you wield the Emperor Taizu’s golden mace, constantly proclaiming yourself to act on behalf of Heaven, but what kind of order are you upholding? And what kind of evil are you eliminating?”

The Grand Princess's anger intensified upon seeing her.

"You witch have come at just the right time. You have bewitched the court and seduced the crown prince. Such a scourge deserves to be punished by everyone..."

Xue Sui's lips curled up. "May I ask Your Highness, what is the fundamental principle of morality? Is it the relationship between ruler and subject? The relationship between father and son? Or..." Her voice rose, carrying a piercing power, "When the founding emperor bestowed the golden mace, he personally instructed that the one who wields the mace should prioritize the country and its people, and not use it to vent personal grievances or settle personal scores?"

The Grand Princess was slightly taken aback.

Such secrets are only recorded in the Imperial Clan Court's archives. How did she know them?

She glared at Li Zhao, even more annoyed by his lack of discretion.

"You little brat, how dare you discuss the late Emperor Taizu's teachings?"

Xue Sui met her icy gaze, "You stormed into the Eastern Palace with your mace, without asking any questions, forcing the Crown Prince, interfering in state affairs... May I ask, what is on your mind, the country and its people? Or...?"

She paused again before uttering words that struck at the heart of the matter.

"For your son who is imprisoned for his crimes, and for that group of treacherous officials from the Xiao family who intend to overthrow the court? I would like to ask you, where do you place His Majesty's safety, and where do you place the laws of Liang?"

"You...you..." The Grand Princess was so angry that she trembled all over. She pointed her golden mace at Xue Sui, but she was so shocked and guilty that she kept shaking.

She was born with the heart of a mother, but her eyes were blinded by familial affection.

Privately, I also didn't want the Li family's empire to be in turmoil.

Xue Sui raised an eyebrow slightly and looked at her, saying, "Xiao Song formed cliques for personal gain, Xiao Qing'er poisoned His Majesty, and Xiao Yan even amassed military power and plotted rebellion... Such heinous crimes, according to the Great Liang Law, warrant the execution of nine generations of their family..."

"You're talking nonsense!" the Grand Princess shouted sternly.

"I am not speaking nonsense." Xue Sui looked calmly at the Grand Princess. "Even if the founding emperor were alive, he would not have spared him. Your Highness, ask yourself, are your actions worthy of the earnest trust the founding emperor placed in you when he bestowed the mace?"

Every word was powerful and resounding.

Every sentence is heart-breaking.

The Grand Princess's face turned deathly pale, and she clutched her chest, as if she were about to pass out at any moment.

“The Xiao family is a family of loyal and righteous men, and they would never do such a treasonous thing.”

"A family of loyal martyrs?" Xue Sui calmly took out a piece of paper from his sleeve. "This is an urgent report from the Western Frontier. It just arrived by the post station... Your Highness's good grandson, Lord Xiao Yan, the military governor of Longxi, has raised an army of 100,000 at Shaquan Fort, and is marching in three directions towards the capital..."

The Grand Princess took it, her face gradually turning pale.

She took two steps back and murmured, "Impossible...impossible..."

“Nothing is impossible,” Li Zhao continued. “The Xiao family is ambitious and has long since stopped caring about the Liang dynasty. Now, they have poisoned His Majesty first and then launched a rebellion. What else can Your Highness, the Grand Princess, say…”

The Grand Princess trembled as she gripped the golden mace in her hand.

"No, my son wouldn't do that. You vixen, you forged documents and framed an honest man..."

Xue Sui looked at her with sympathy, her tone frank, "Whether it is true or not, the Grand Princess will know once she waits patiently. This kind of thing cannot be hidden. Within three days, the whole capital will be in the news... Then, Your Highness can come and question me. If I have uttered a single falsehood, I am willing to be torn to pieces..."

The Grand Princess's body went limp, her eyes fixed on her, as if she had lost her last support and was about to collapse.

"Someone come here," Li Zhao said to the guards. "Respectfully escort the Grand Princess back to her residence. Take good care of her and make sure she is not disturbed again."

Several palace maids stepped forward to help her up, but the Grand Princess refused.

"I can walk by myself!"

Staggering and distraught, she was helped out of Chenghui Palace step by step by her own maid.

The tense atmosphere inside the hall suddenly eased.

As Li Zhao watched their retreating figures, the coldness in his eyes slowly dissipated.

He turned to look at Xue Sui and saw that her face was pale. He frowned and asked, "Who let you out?"

"I'm worried about Your Highness," Xue Sui said softly.

Li Zhao's heart softened completely.

Ignoring the servants around him, he held her hand tightly.

"This little matter is no problem for me." He paused, then lowered his voice, "Is the urgent report from the Western Frontier true or false?"

Xue Sui's eyes flashed slightly as he leaned close to Jinshu's ear and whispered, "Jinshu just received the news; she's 90% certain."

Li Zhao frowned, pondered for a moment, and looked at her slender figure, "Xiao Yan won't be able to reach the capital anytime soon. Your health is important. I'll take you back first, and then we'll go and host a welcome-back dinner for him..."

Xue Sui scolded him playfully, her gaze falling on his snow-white undergarment.

"You took a hit and you're pretending nothing happened?"

"One blow is nothing. Even if I take ten more, I can withstand it."

"You're so stubborn."

"Okay, okay, I'll listen to you. Let's go back. I need Ping An to apply the medicine for me." Li Zhao's voice softened, and he put his arm around her without giving her a chance to argue, like a clingy and spoiled young man.

Xue Sui smiled helplessly and let him lead her to the bedchamber.

The sunlight shone on the two of them, warm and gentle.

She suddenly felt a sense of peace, a feeling of security she had never experienced before.

Even as Xiao Yan's army approached, with him by her side, she felt no panic whatsoever...

　Li Zhao: His ability to protect his wife is beyond question...

　　Xue Sui: So what if you get beaten? It's not like anyone can't do that…

　　Li Zhao: I get beaten up pretty coolly.

　　Reader: Should we reward this guy?
　　(End of this chapter)