Jinting Han people

With Liu Xian bringing the deposed emperor out of Jinyong City, it means that the goal of this campaign to support the emperor has been basically achieved.

However, this does not signify the end of the campaign to support the emperor. As Liu Song said, for the entire realm, the downfall of Sun Xiu and the King of Zhao merely solved one problem, while the successful garrisoning of Luoyang by local military forces actually created more pressing issues.

The most pressing issue is how to deal with these court officials, especially those Zhao King's cronies who followed Sun Xiu in the rebellion.

The sheer number of officials and the complexity of factions involved in this coup d'état by the King of Zhao far exceeded any previous coup in Luoyang. Especially regarding the deposition of the crown prince, almost every faction in Luoyang was implicated, from the highest princes and dukes to the lowest-ranking soldiers in the imperial guards. Even the initiator of the uprising, the leader of the loyalist alliance, Sima Jiong, the King of Qi, had an unclear and ambiguous relationship with the matter. Don't forget, the edict appointing him to govern Xuchang was signed by Sun Xiu.

Not to mention, the General of the Western Expedition who claims to be part of the loyalist army has actually changed his mind and joined at the last minute.

In this situation, deciding who should be held accountable, who should be severely punished, who should be lightly punished, and who should not even be investigated is a completely muddled and unclear matter.

Regarding this matter, Lu Zhi advised the two princes: "This is a matter of great importance. We should first eliminate the ringleader. As for the rest, we can discuss them in detail after we welcome His Highness Prince Qi."

He made this proposal at the grand court assembly, and it was immediately met with a response. Sima Tong, the Prince of Liang, who had been appointed Grand Chancellor by Sima Lun, submitted a memorial stating: "The Prince of Zhao and his son have committed heinous crimes, framed the Crown Prince, secretly assassinated Huainan, and plotted against the imperial regalia. Even if there were any justifications in the Eight Deliberations, they are still unforgivable! They should be executed to appease the world!"

The other officials echoed this sentiment, agreeing with the decision. Before Sima Yi and Sima Ying could express their opinions, even the emperor, who was usually silent on the throne, unusually declared, "The King of Zhao is a treacherous man and truly deserves to die!"

He then added, "Api should be killed for snapping my finger!"

The "Api" mentioned by the emperor was Sima Wei, the Prince of Yiyang. Sima Wei served as a Gentleman-in-Attendance during the Yuankang era, and was responsible for caring for the emperor, thus establishing a friendly relationship. Later, when the Zhao Prince's faction gained power, he flattered and fawned upon Sima Lun. Upon Sima Lun's ascension to the throne, Sima Wei openly led the imperial guards into the palace, demanding the Imperial Seal of the State from the emperor. When the emperor refused, Sima Wei forcibly pried open the emperor's fingers and snatched the seal. Unexpectedly, this former friend and relative incurred the emperor's wrath, who then ordered Sima Wei's execution.

The crowd naturally had no objections, and the imperial edict was passed that very day, imprisoning Prince Zhao Sima Lun and his sons Sima Fu, Sima Qian, and Sima Xu, along with Prince Yiyang Sima Wei and his two sons, in the imperial prison. Then, the Minister Yuan Chang was dispatched to the prison with an imperial edict, and he was given bitter wine made of gold dust, which he was ordered to drink and commit suicide.

Faced with death, these imperial relatives behaved in a truly appalling manner. Sima Lun covered his face with his sleeve and wept like a child, repeatedly saying to everyone, "Sun Xiu has ruined me! Sun Xiu has ruined me!" The four Sima brothers started arguing, shifting blame among themselves, saying, "If you weren't so incompetent, how could the traitors have reached this point?" Sima Wei, on the other hand, kowtowed repeatedly to Yuan Chang, his forehead bleeding from the repeated blows, pleading, "Please tell His Majesty that I was coerced by the traitor Zhao, and I had absolutely no intention of harming His Majesty!"

But no matter how they behaved, the result was the same. Those who were willing to drink saved the guards some trouble; those who were unwilling had to have the guards help them to make it look respectable.

Two quarters of an hour later, several coffins were carried out of the imperial prison, buried in a random pit dug in the west of the city, and were never found afterward. This was also Lu Zhi's intention; these people were, after all, royalty, and letting them disappear quietly from people's sight was considered a political gesture that showed consideration for human feelings.

With the King of Zhao dead, the next step was to deal with his cronies.

Those Zhao King's cronies captured in various battles, such as officers Shi Yi, Xu Chao, Sun Qi, Sima Ya, and Mo Yuan, had blood feuds with the righteous army and should naturally be executed in accordance with the law.

However, after discussion, the advisors of the Chengdu Prince's Mansion and the Changshan Prince's Mansion felt that this matter should be postponed for the time being.

This wasn't due to any kind of kindness; there were two main reasons: first, some imperial guards in the south were still fighting under the banner of the King of Zhao, and were locked in a stalemate with Sima Jiong; second, the real culprit, Sun Xiu, had still not been brought to justice.

Before these two issues are resolved, killing only these people would make the two kings appear to be acting too hastily in order to demonstrate their power. This would not only easily cause discord with the King of Qi, but also give the impression of disregarding the overall situation, making it difficult to rebuild public support.

Therefore, the rebel army had only two things to do next: first, to head south and join forces with Qi King Sima Jiong to wipe out the remaining Zhao King's followers; and second, to capture Sun Xiu and bring him to justice.

The capture of Sun Xiu is of paramount importance. As the mastermind behind this rebellion, the court has already pre-determined his punishment and prepared the instruments of torture. Once Sun Xiu is captured, he will be publicly torn apart by five horses. Furthermore, the court will emulate the treatment of Wang Mang's body during the Xuan Han dynasty, boiling his head in lacquer and storing it in the armory, while crushing the rest of his limbs and scattering the ashes!

To demonstrate the court's sincerity, the rebel army made arrangements to take over checkpoints throughout the capital region and offered the highest rewards: anyone who could reveal information about Sun Xiu would be rewarded with 100 taels of gold, and anyone who could capture Sun Xiu alive would be rewarded with 1,000 taels of gold. Even if someone was a follower of Sun Xiu beforehand, the rebel army would consider pardoning them if they could repent and hand them over to the court.

The reward had an immediate effect. On the third day after the death of the King of Zhao, someone brought Sun Xiu, bound hand and foot, to the Huanyuan Pass. The next day, Sun Xiu was escorted to Luoyang and imprisoned in the imperial prison.

When Liu Xian heard the news of Sun Xiu's capture, he was preparing to march south. This was an arrangement agreed upon by the two princes: the Prince of Changshan had many military experts, so he would be responsible for the remaining suppression of the bandits, while the Prince of Chengdu had many political experts, so he would be responsible for maintaining stability in the capital region. Therefore, Liu Xian was appointed as the commander-in-chief to march south to support the Henan rebels, leading 10,000 cavalry, and planned to set off soon.

But upon receiving news of Sun Xiu's arrest, and recalling his past grievances with Sun Xiu, Liu Xian could not suppress his curiosity. He put down his work and asked the messenger, "Sun Xiu has been arrested? Do you know how he was captured?"

The envoy said, "Just as the court expected, it was his cronies who defected and brought him here bound."

It turned out that after the Battle of Yanshi, Sun Xiu planned to cross Xiong'er Mountain to the south and go directly to Meng Guan in Wancheng. Accompanying him were more than a hundred imperial guards and more than a hundred believers. However, after entering the mountains, the group did not know the way and did not carry much food. For several days, they were just wandering around in circles, subsisting on wild rabbits and fruits.

Sun Xiu and his followers were alright, but the imperial guards accompanying him were all from well-off families in the capital region. They had never experienced such hardship before. They also remembered how they had been tricked by Sun Xiu and ended up in such a predicament. They were all filled with resentment. They had no other choice but to follow Sun Xiu south.

After a difficult journey, the group finally emerged from the mountains and reached Linyang Village in Goushi. The imperial guards were astonished to see Sun Xiu's reward list prominently displayed. Unable to contain themselves any longer, General Wang Yu of the Left Guard immediately instigated an internal conflict. The ordinary believers were no match for him and were swiftly killed. Sun Xiu attempted to escape again, but he was exhausted and thirsty, unable to run any further. He was ultimately captured alive and forced to return north.

After learning the whole story, Liu Xian felt a deep sense of sorrow. He thought: No matter how much Sun Xiu boasted and claimed to be so great, in the end, this villain who destroyed the authority of the central government was nothing more than an ordinary person with a silver tongue, and he could not change anything.

He then asked the messenger, "When will Sun Xiu be executed?"

The messenger said, "At noon tomorrow, Chief Secretary Lu said that you can wait until you have witnessed the execution before you set off."

Liu Xian laughed, "Very well, the death of this treacherous villain will surely boost morale." After the envoy left, Liu Xian intended to continue with his chores, but a sudden premonition arose in his heart that he should go and see Sun Xiu. After all, this was the most formidable opponent he had encountered in the past ten years, and Sun Xiu would completely disappear after noon tomorrow. But there were still some mysteries surrounding Sun Xiu, and perhaps some answers within him could serve as lessons for him.

With that thought in mind, Liu Xian considered it briefly before riding away from the military camp and heading to the Imperial Prison of the Court of Justice.

This wasn't Liu Xian's first time in the imperial prison; in fact, he was quite familiar with it. The prison was now under the complete control of the Chengdu Prince's Mansion. Hearing that Liu Xian wanted to see Sun Xiu, they naturally let him pass, since the feud between the two was common knowledge, and Liu Xian would never let Sun Xiu go.

Then Liu Xian saw Sun Xiu. Sun Xiu was imprisoned in the most foul-smelling cell, his hands shackled with wooden cangues and his feet bound with iron chains. His hair was disheveled and his clothes were tattered. Probably due to being tortured by the jailers, his nose and eyes were swollen and bruised, and his arms and legs were covered with wounds. The sharp-eyed Liu Xian even saw some maggots, which were wriggling slightly in these bright red wounds.

But Sun Xiu's ugly face, which resembled both a rat and a monkey, was still all smiles. In fact, when he saw Liu Xian, his smile became even more radiant.

Before Liu Xian could speak, he said, "Oh, oh, Liu Xian, I knew you would come to see me."

Perhaps because of the pain, Sun Xiu's voice was hoarse, but there was still an undisguised mischievousness in it.

What a stubborn man! Liu Xian thought to himself. No matter how many evils Sun Xiu had committed, in this respect, he was indeed a remarkable person. Regardless of how much Liu Xian had previously despised Sun Xiu, he had never harbored hatred for him, nor was he the type to kick someone when they were down. Therefore, at this moment, he could respond to Sun Xiu with a calm smile and ask, "Oh? How did you know?"

“I’ve said it before: we’re very similar. When I look at you, it’s like looking at another version of myself.”

"Really? That joke isn't funny."

"Hahaha, this is no joke." Sun Xiu seemed amused by his own words, laughing for a moment, but his expression gradually became serious. He said, "But you should understand what I mean. I'm not talking about superficial things like looks, family background, or education. Of course, Liu Xian, I admit, you are better than me in these things."

“I’m talking about hatred. I can tell at a glance that you, like me, hate this world to the core, don’t you?”

Liu Xian neither admitted nor denied it; he simply gazed at Sun Xiu quietly and asked, "Why do you hate this world?"

“Because this world is too foolish, everything in this world is fake, isn’t it?” Sun Xiu said matter-of-factly.

Why would you think that?

"Why can't I think that way?" Sun Xiu looked at Liu Xian strangely, then suddenly realized, "Oh dear, I get it! You want to be a self-righteous judge to judge my life, don't you?"

"No, perhaps I'm just a history enthusiast. Faced with someone destined to be infamous for eternity, I'm curious about what kind of life he went through to get to where he is today."

"Haha, you're quite good at saying nice things." Sun Xiu's face became more amiable as she said, "Well, it's alright to tell you."

He started by asking a question: "Do you think maternal love is great?"

This was a very pointed question. Before Liu Xian could answer, he spoke first: "According to the Classic of Filial Piety, our bodies, hair, and skin are given to us by our parents, and our mothers have to endure ten months of pregnancy and the pain of childbirth. Therefore, in terms of kindness, there is no greater kindness than that of a mother who gives us life. Thus, there is no greater love than maternal love."

"That's right." Liu Xian nodded slightly.

“But my mother abandoned me after I was born,” Sun Xiu stated calmly.

"..." Liu Xian remained silent for a moment before asking, "What is the reason?"

"Haha, of course it's because of my ugly face! According to my clan, when I was born, my mother saw my ugly face and was so frightened that she almost threw me away. She suspected that she had done something wrong, and that this was divine punishment sent down upon her. She was filled with anxiety and fear. Then, ten days after my birth, she became frightened and went mad. Once, when she went out and was crossing a mountain pass, she lost her footing and fell to her death."

"..."

"It's a very unreasonable reason, isn't it? Haha, so you can probably guess that my father also hates me because of this, although he has never told me. But I know that he suspects that I am not his biological son, that I am the child of my mother and someone else, a dog with no blood relation to him whatsoever."

"So when I was very young, whenever I saw my father's eyes, I knew that he hated me. He wished he could skin me alive, strangle me to death at home, and then find a place where no one could see me to destroy the evidence. It was as if in doing so, he would have completed a great revenge and had no regrets in life."

"But alas, my father, he could only think this way, but could not do it. He was a man of some renown in Langya and Linyi, and had even served as the county magistrate. He couldn't let people say that I was someone else's bastard child, and he certainly couldn't kill me, as that would be tantamount to admitting such a thing, and would also make people accuse him of being morally corrupt. He could only pretend that nothing had happened, as if I were invisible."

"Therefore, although I am my father's only son, I have neither a father nor a mother. Of course, I also have no love or care from my people."

"Haha, Liu Xian, do you think this kind of life is pathetic? But I don't think so. I only felt a sense of reality, which made me sober."

In the shadows of prison, Sun Xiu recounted his past, a look of nostalgia gradually appearing on his face. (End of Chapter)