Da Ming: I told you to die for your cause, why are you actually going to die?

Chapter 153 Three Soul-Searching Questions, Fatal Fate [Bonus Chapter 3 for Alliance Leader Dingyuan]

The somber atmosphere of Yingtian Prefecture had not yet spread to Shaanxi.

As one of the princes implicated by Fu Youwen and his three associates, Prince Zhu Shuang of Qin was still living a life of debauchery.

Especially after returning from the funeral in Yingtian Prefecture, he became even more dissolute and unrestrained, showing no trace of the demeanor of a prince.

I don't know if it was because Old Zhu's blow to him was too great, or if he simply let his true nature out of control.

At this moment, he was watching with great interest as his subordinates used torture on a servant who had committed a minor offense.

"Ah! Your Highness, spare me! Ah—!"

"My lord, please spare my life!"

Hearing the servant's dying pleas for mercy, Zhu Shuang leaned against the soft couch, seemingly oblivious.

As he drank fine wine, he enjoyed the sight of a beautiful and graceful concubine peeling grapes for him and feeding him the glistening flesh with her slender fingers.

"Mmm~ It's so sweet~"

Zhu Shuang squinted contentedly, enjoying the beauty's service.

He was tall and inherited some of Old Zhu's physical features, but his eyes and brows showed a hint of arrogance and a flamboyant air tainted by wine and women.

As a prince enfeoffed in Xi'an, he was a local tyrant in his own fiefdom, always acting recklessly and earning a rather bad reputation.

At this moment, a trusted eunuch walked in silently and quickly, knelt down, and presented a secret letter with both hands: "Your Highness, an urgent report from Yingtian Prefecture."

Zhu Shuang waved his hand casually, and the executioners immediately stopped. His favorite concubine, Wang, also tactfully stepped aside.

He took the secret letter, tore off the sealing wax, unfolded the letter, and began to read.

At first, his expression carried a hint of amusement and schadenfreude.

"Oh? Zhang Biao, that madman, really messed things up? Li Jinglong and Guo Ying, those two good-for-nothings, also fell? Haha, this is interesting."

The contents of this letter are not the latest news from Yingtian Prefecture, but they do illustrate the tense situation there.

Zhu Shuang, however, was not nervous at all. He even sneered, thinking that the people in Yingtian Prefecture were getting worse and worse, and that they had been turned upside down by a death row inmate.

But as he looked at it, his brows gradually furrowed.

"Fu Youwen and Ru Chang are looking for an iron box? And it might be related to... my brother's death?"

He sat up straight, his arrogant expression fading, replaced by a hint of surprise and barely perceptible guilt.

"My lord, what's wrong?"

The favored concubine, Lady Wang, observed the situation carefully, asked softly, and then thoughtfully handed over a cup of warm wine.

Zhu Shuang took the wine cup, drank it all in one gulp, clutched the secret letter in his hand, and said in a gruff voice, "It's nothing, just some trouble in the capital, a few clowns causing a ruckus."

He tried to appear indifferent, but the irritation between his brows was undeniable.

Wang was an extremely intelligent woman; otherwise, she wouldn't have stood out among the many beauties in Zhu Shuang's harem.

Her eyes sparkled as she softly said, "Although I am ignorant of court politics, I have heard of the censor named Zhang Biao. It is said that he is a wicked man who can stir up trouble."

"Hmph!" Zhu Shuang scoffed disdainfully, "What kind of bullshit monster is he? It's just that he's not in Xi'an! Otherwise, see how I deal with him."

As he spoke, a flash of violence and cruelty crossed his eyes. He then turned to the subordinate who had stopped the execution and shouted, "Do you want to die?! Who told you to stop?!"

Upon hearing this, the executioner trembled and hurriedly apologized to Zhu Shuang, saying, "Your Highness, please forgive us! Your Highness, please forgive us!"

Before he could finish speaking, he raised his hand, picked up the instrument of torture, and began to cruelly torture the servant.

"what--!"

Upon hearing the servant's screams, the anger on Zhu Shuang's face gradually faded, replaced by a perverse enjoyment.

But as he 'enjoyed' the screams, he spoke calmly:
"That madman Zhang Biao implicated Li Jinglong and Guo Yingpan, sending them to prison. Now his five lackeys are involved with some iron box... which is related to the deceased crown prince..."

"This is probably no small matter."

Upon hearing this, Madam Wang's mind raced. While carefully observing Zhu Shuang's expression, she analyzed the situation for him:
“Minister Fu Youwen and the others have some kind of relationship with Your Highness.”

"They're so anxious to find that thing, they're probably panicked. What if there's something inappropriate in that iron box, and someone who shouldn't see it sees it... wouldn't that... implicate Your Highness?"

These words, seemingly out of concern, actually struck at Zhu Shuang's most sensitive spots.

Zhu Shuang's face darkened completely.

"Implications against me?"

Zhu Shuang snorted, his tone fierce but his heart filled with fear: "I act with integrity and uprightness, what is there to be afraid of!?"

Despite saying that, his shifty eyes and slightly rapid breathing betrayed his inner panic.

After all, it's their own business, and they know the truth.

Seeing this, Wang knew the time was almost right, so she snuggled closer and said softly:
“Your Highness is naturally not afraid. However, there are always villains who plot against you in this world. Especially now that chaos is rampant in the capital, the princes... are probably being watched.”

"I am worried that someone might take this opportunity to make a big fuss so that they can profit from it."

Her words subtly shifted Zhu Shuang's personal unease to the broader level of power struggles among the vassal kings.

Zhu Shuang was suddenly taken aback.

Yes! He wasn't the only vassal king!
The fourth brother held considerable military power in Beiping, and the third brother was no pushover in Taiyuan either!

And there's also the fifth prince, Zhou Wang...

Which of them was completely clean in their fiefdom? Which one didn't use connections in the capital to get things done?

What if this isn't just targeting him? What if someone is trying to muddy the waters and drag all the vassal kings into it?
Especially the fourth prince, who has made outstanding military achievements and has always been valued by his father, doesn't he have any thoughts about this?

Perhaps he was involved in that incident as well.
Thinking of this, Zhu Shuang suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

He couldn't withstand his father's wrath alone, but if he could bring his other brothers into the fray, the situation would be different.

The law does not punish the masses; surely the emperor cannot kill all his sons?

"you're right!"

Zhu Shuang suddenly stood up and paced back and forth in the luxuriously carpeted hall: "We can't just sit here and wait to die! We have to find out what's going on! We can't scare ourselves like this!"

At this point, he stopped and sternly ordered his trusted eunuch, "Immediately send your most capable man on horseback to Taiyuan! To see the Prince of Jin!"

"Tell him about the situation in Beijing, especially about Tiehe and Fu Youwen! Ask the third brother if he's heard anything, and what his opinion is on the matter."

Zhu Shuang's mind started working at a rare rapid pace:

"Remember, be polite. Say that I, your second brother, am filled with fear and dread that a villain might frame us, the vassal kings, and I would like to ask my third brother for advice on how we should deal with this."

"Yes, Your Highness! This servant will take care of it immediately!"

The eunuch quickly kowtowed and hurriedly left.

Zhu Shuang breathed a slight sigh of relief and sat back down on the couch, but the worry between his brows did not disappear.

Wang leaned closer again, gently massaging his temples, and said softly:
"Your Highness, please rest assured. Prince Jin is a wise man and will understand the implications. Perhaps this is a good opportunity for you and Prince Jin to deepen your brotherly bond."

Zhu Shuang grasped her hand and sighed, "I hope so. I hope the winds of the capital don't blow over to Xi'an." Although he was irritable and incompetent, he vaguely sensed that a huge storm was brewing in Yingtian Prefecture.

This storm will likely change the fate of all the feudal lords.

For the first time, he felt a sense of panic, as if the situation was beyond his control.

……

On the other side, the Huagai Hall.

Old Zhu looked at the thick dossier and transcripts of confessions presented by Jiang Huan. Although his anger was rising, he did not immediately explode. Instead, he patiently and carefully read through each page.

The more you look at him, the calmer his expression becomes, as calm as a bottomless, icy pool.

Only the occasional sharp contraction of his pupils and the slightly bulging veins on the back of his hands revealed the terrifying turmoil churning within him.

The enormous amount of corruption and the vast network of cliques were all within his expectations, even giving him a chilling sense of "I knew it."

After all, when Zhu Biao went to Shaanxi for inspection, ostensibly to determine whether it was suitable to move the capital, he was actually investigating corruption in Shaanxi and matters concerning Zhu Shuang and Zhu Gang forming cliques for personal gain.

But when his gaze swept over the fragments about the Shaanxi project, the allocation of military equipment, Wang Fu, a former official of the Eastern Palace, and the huge sum of money and regional connections found after his death, his breath caught in his throat for a moment.

He didn't ask if it was true, because Jiang Huan must have done a preliminary verification before daring to report it.

He didn't ask whether he could be convicted, because none of these materials alone could be used to directly convict someone.

Of course, he wouldn't need solid evidence if it were someone else, but since it concerns his son, the situation is different.

After all, he was an emperor who had fought his way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood and had controlled the empire for thirty years.

He was all too familiar with the dark corners of power operations, and he knew all too well how meticulous calculations and malicious intentions often lay hidden behind these seemingly unrelated 'coincidences'.

His sons...his two good sons...the King of Qin, the King of Jin...

For power, for that position, would they resort to such subtle and insidious methods to harm their elder brother, the crown prince of the empire?!

He still can't be sure.

A bone-chilling cold and a surge of rage nearly overwhelmed his reason.

But he forcibly suppressed it.

Just like how they dealt with Hu Weiyong back then.

The more sensational the case, the more patient we must be, and the more thoroughly we must investigate. We must wait until all the evildoers have surfaced before sweeping them away with overwhelming force.

He currently has no direct evidence that his sons were involved in the plot to murder the crown prince.

Fu Youwen and his associates' accusations were more a way to shirk responsibility out of fear.

Those 'coincidences' can be explained in many ways.

He cannot act against his own son, especially a powerful prince, based solely on suspicion.

That would shake the foundations of the nation.

But his heart had grown completely cold and was filled with the thorns of doubt.

He gently closed the file, raised his eyes, and looked at Jiang Huan with unfathomable eyes: "All officials involved in corruption and factionalism, regardless of rank, shall be severely punished in accordance with the Great Proclamation if the evidence is conclusive. There will be no leniency."

His voice was steady, yet carried the air of final judgment.

This means yet another large-scale bloodbath.

"As for the rest..."

Old Zhu paused, his tone becoming extremely subtle: "Continue to investigate the matters concerning the vassal kings and the death of Wang Fu, a former member of the Eastern Palace, secretly and carefully."

"Remember! Do not alert anyone, especially those from the princely residence."

“Every matter and every person must be thoroughly investigated and brought to light, with solid evidence.”

"Yes! I understand!"

Jiang Huan felt a chill run down his spine, knowing that the emperor intended to investigate thoroughly, but also to maintain absolute control over the scope of the investigation.

Just then, Jiang Huan suddenly remembered something else and reported the incident that Zhu Yunwen and his sister had encountered a startled ox that day and had been rescued by Zhu Gaoxu in an objective manner.

After hearing this, a slight crack appeared on Old Zhu's calm face.

Zhu Gaoxu? The brave and reckless second son of the Prince of Yan?

He 'just happened' to be there? And he even subdued the mad bull with his bare hands?
All the suspicions were completely triggered at this moment!

Fu Youwen's case involves a vassal king, and coincidentally, at this critical juncture, the Prince of Yan's son "saves" the Crown Prince's children?
Is this a gesture of goodwill? A bid to win someone over? Or... something else entirely?
What do they want to get from Yun-hu and her brother? Or what are they trying to cover up?
Does the fourth brother know about this? Did he give this instruction?

In an instant, countless guesses and doubts flashed through Lao Zhu's mind.

His tenderness for his son seemed so fragile in the face of immense power and suspicion.

He would never allow any vassal king to have any contact with or use of Zhu Biao's descendants under his nose.

"Jiang Huan!"

Old Zhu's voice was unreadable, yet it sent a chill down Jiang Huan's spine.

"The minister is here."

"Go to the Prince of Yan's residence immediately."

Old Zhu slowly gave his instructions, carefully choosing his words: "Ask the heir apparent, Zhu Gaochi, three questions for us."

"First, ask him why his second brother, Zhu Gaoxu, happened to be near Yuntong and his entourage today. Let him, as the eldest brother, give us a detailed explanation."

"Secondly, ask him what his Yan Prince’s Mansion thinks about the recent turmoil in the court, the corruption and factionalism of Fu Youwen and others, and even their accusations against court officials and their remarks about the princes. Let him speak."

"third!"

Old Zhu's gaze became extremely profound: "Tell him that Yun Tong, Ming Yue, and Ming Yu were frightened, and we feel very sorry for them. Ask him how he thinks we should reward his 'heroic' second brother?"

These three soul-searching questions concern three things: one about his whereabouts and motives, one about his political stance, and one about his attitude towards Zhu Biao's lineage.

What appears to be ordinary is actually a series of questions that contain hidden meanings and directly target the core of the Prince of Yan's mansion.

The slightest carelessness could lead to death.

"My lord! I obey the order!"

Jiang Huan took a deep breath, knowing that this was another precarious task.

He bowed and stepped back, then hurried toward the Prince of Yan's residence.

Inside the Hall of Literary Glory, Old Zhu sat alone on the dragon throne, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the thick dossier, a storm brewing in his eyes.

"Boss...look...after you left, look what this country, this family, has become..."

Let's see how many more monsters and demons will try to jump out...

(End of this chapter)