Chapter 348
Chapter 348
Grand Censor Zhang Chong stepped forward and rebuked Lin Bingchong in a furious voice.
“What audacity! How dare you slander the innocence of a royal princess without any evidence. Your Majesty, you must arrest this man and investigate him thoroughly to find out who is behind him and why he is concocting such a conspiracy.”
Palace Censor Lin Bingchong said.
“This servant has evidence. That day, Shen Lang and the Third Princess Ning Yan spent an entire night at Grandmaster Yun Mengze’s residence, and Shen Lang’s clothes were disheveled when he left. Later, when Shen Lang was imprisoned in the Court of Judicial Review, Princess Ning Yan privately led soldiers to attack the court. An act tantamount to rebellion, does this not prove they had an illicit affair? If we do not punish Shen Lang, how can the dignity of the royal family be upheld? If we do not punish Princess Ning Yan, what will become of the laws of the state? Even royalty must be punished like the common people for their crimes. Her Highness the Princess attacked the Court of Judicial Review; should she not be severely punished?”
The moment he finished, a chill ran down the spines of all the officials present; even the master strategist Wang Shengchu felt his blood run cold. This Palace Censor was part of the Censorate. Everyone had been pretending not to know about Princess Ning Yan and Yun Mengze attacking the Court of Judicial Review, acting as if nothing had happened, yet he had brought it to light.
‘What are you trying to do? Do you have a death wish? How can someone not fear death? What in the world is going on?’
Throughout this, Su Nan remained bowed before the throne, silent, as if it had nothing to do with him. A strange quiet fell over the entire court. No one would respond to the censor’s words. Many had witnessed Ning Yan leading soldiers to attack the court. While she could not be punished, no one could say she had done the right thing. Moreover, now that someone had risked their life to expose it, even the king could not avoid it and had to investigate. If necessary, Princess Ning Yan would have to be punished, perhaps by demoting her title to that of a commandery princess or confining her to the Office of the Imperial Clan.
Just then, Zhang Chong suddenly spoke.
“Your Majesty, this servant was imprisoned in the Court of Judicial Review at the time and saw everything clearly. On the day of the incident, Princess Ning Yan heard a rumor that someone was going to break into the court to abduct Shen Lang. Enraged, she led her household servants to guard the court and help maintain order. The claim that Her Highness attacked the court is utter nonsense.”
The king asked him.
“Is that true?”
Zhang Chong replied.
“This servant can be a witness, as can Grandmaster Yun Mengze and the many warriors of the Blackwater Terrace.”
“Then who, according to the rumors, was going to break into the court and carry out this abduction?”
“I heard it was the great bandit, Gao Douhuan.”
And so, another crime was pinned on Gao Douhuan, who was thousands of miles away. He had recently threatened Yan Weiyi, a Chiliarch of the Blackwater Terrace, and now the crime of raiding the Court of Judicial Review had been added to his name. The claim that Ning Yan had helped maintain order was just a few words, but it gave her a respectable way out.
The king asked in a furious tone.
“Ning Yan, you are a member of the royal family, a princess, yet you privately raised soldiers in the capital. Regardless of your intentions, you have undoubtedly committed a crime. Where is the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan?”
At that, another of the State of Yue’s royal uncles, Ning Yu, stepped forward. He was the Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan and rarely attended court, almost as if he were in hiding.
“Arrest the Third Princess Ning Yan, confine her to the Office of the Imperial Clan, and have her reflect on her misdeeds.”
“Yes.”
Then, the king turned to Lin Bingchong and asked coldly.
“Palace Censor Lin Bingchong, are you satisfied now?”
His words were laced with clear killing intent. In the king’s mind, the Palace Censor was as good as dead. Of course, he wouldn’t die today. The king couldn’t punish a minister simply for speaking his mind. Besides, a Palace Censor’s duty was to impeach everyone. But it would be easy enough to find some fault with him and have him killed.
Palace Censor Lin Bingchong said.
“There is also the matter of Shen Lang defiling the Third Princess’s honor. This concerns the dignity of our State of Yue’s royal family. I implore Your Majesty to investigate it thoroughly.”
“Grand Minister of the Imperial Clan, investigate that matter as well.”
“Yes.”
‘Su Nan, I will wait and see who else will step forward to shield you.’
With that, the commotion over the Palace Censor’s impeachment of Shen Lang concluded. All that remained was to impeach Su Nan. Grand Censor Wang Shengchu composed himself, preparing to tear Su Nan to shreds. But just then, an urgent voice cried out from outside.
“Your Majesty, an urgent military situation has arisen!”
A scout, holding a military report, rushed into the great hall. Three feathers were attached to the report—a sign of extreme urgency that no one was to obstruct. The scout entered the hall, knelt, and kowtowed.
“Your Majesty, thirty thousand troops from the State of Wu are marching south and have approached Shangye City.”
Shangye City was originally territory belonging to the State of Wu. During the war between Wu and Yue, Bian Wu had defected to Yue, leading to Wu’s great defeat and the cession of nine commanderies’ worth of territory to Yue. Shangye City was among them. Although it was under the jurisdiction of Tianbei Province, it was very close to Yue. What did it mean for thirty thousand Wu troops to be marching south now? Was it a threat to Yue? A declaration of war? Or were they planning to seize Shangye City outright?
Grand Eunuch Lü Zhun quickly examined the report and found no issues; it was written in the hand of the Marquis of Zhenbei, Nangong Ao. Nangong Ao was Su Nan’s mortal enemy and would never ally with him, nor would he ever lie about a major military matter. After reading Nangong Ao’s report, the king’s mind went numb.
‘What is the King of Wu trying to do? It’s true their morale is high after the recent battle on the border. But isn’t the State of Wu still weak? Was twenty years enough time? Didn’t you lose nine commanderies’ worth of land? And now you can’t wait to signal the start of a war?’
The king’s hands trembled slightly as he looked at Su Nan.
‘Could all of this be unrelated to Su Nan? I truly hope it is. If he is involved, then a fearsome situation will unfold.’
The king was inwardly shocked and furious.
‘Can I not touch Su Nan? The war with the State of Nan’ou has reached a tense stalemate, and now the State of Wu to the north is leading its troops south. The bandit-like State of Qiang is also stirring, ready to make a move. In that case, the domestic situation cannot be allowed to become more unstable. Neither Tianxi Province nor Zhenyuan City can be thrown into turmoil. This means that, for the time being, I cannot touch Su Nan.’
The king clenched his fists so tightly that his nails dug into his palms, drawing blood. In that moment, he felt an unparalleled sense of humiliation. But it was nothing new. What king hadn’t experienced such humiliation? In his day, hadn’t the King of Wu endured shame for the sake of a greater cause, even serving as my own charioteer?
The king took several deep breaths to keep his voice from trembling. Then he laughed loudly and said.
“Hahahaha! That wet-behind-the-ears King of Wu couldn’t wait and has bared his feeble fangs at me! Our State of Yue is powerful; even though the war with Nan’ou is not over, the Army of the North alone will be more than enough to handle Wu. But since they have come, we must prepare to welcome them. If the King of Wu wants war, then war it shall be. Su Nan, you are the Vice Commissioner of the Privy Council. Tell me, how should we deal with them?”
Su Nan sneered inwardly.
‘Ning Yuanxian, do you think it’s that simple? I will show you what a cataclysm that startles even the heavens looks like. I will show you what it means to be besieged on all sides, what a grand scheme truly is. This time, not only will our Su Clan rise from the ashes like a phoenix, but we will also wipe out the entire Jin Clan.’
Su Nan stepped forward and said in a trembling voice.
“There is no one more enlightened than Your Majesty. I implore you to make the decision at your sole discretion.”
***
King Arugan of Qiang’s forty-ninth birthday banquet.
The Qiang royal palace was decorated in splendor, and the surrounding nations had all sent numerous rare treasures. The King of Qiang was overjoyed. Not only Su Jianting, but also envoys from various Western Regions nations, the State of Nan’ou, the Four Barbarian Tribes, and even the State of Chu had come to the State of Qiang as honored guests to celebrate the king’s birthday. It was the first time an envoy from Chu had openly appeared at the King of Qiang’s banquet.
“Now that smallpox has been completely eradicated from our State of Qiang, it is time for us to slaughter our enemies. Invade the State of Yue? No problem! This time, I will not only invade Tianxi Province, but I will also seize several of Yue’s commanderies and slaughter thousands, even tens of thousands, to make Ning Yuanxian feel my wrath. He dared to demand a letter of apology from me and killed our Qiang warriors.”
Su Jianting said.
“Your Majesty, please do not forget the small matter of killing Shen Lang.”
The King of Qiang said in a cold voice.
“I won’t forget. I will make the King of Yue sever Shen Lang’s head and present it to me as a gift. If he does not meet my demands, I will not withdraw my troops and will continue to plunder and slaughter within the State of Yue. This time, I will demand that Yue offer up more gold and slaves, including Shen Lang’s head.”
Shen Lang had “saved” the King of Qiang and even rescued countless Qiang people, but in the king’s eyes, this was as good as a crime.
‘I, Arugan, only repay vengeance, never kindness. You managed to escape from the State of Qiang with your life before. But now that smallpox has been quelled, it is time for you to die, Shen Lang.’
However, the several poison beads Shen Lang had implanted in the King of Qiang’s body had almost completely corroded. With just a little force, the shells of the beads would shatter, and the potent cyanide within would dissolve into his bloodstream. In a matter of seconds, the brave and mighty King of Qiang would die a miserable death.
Ning Yuanxian’s vanity was at least of a certain class, almost a cute form of self-importance. In contrast, King Arugan’s vanity was direct and crude, making him seem even more vulgar than Shen Lang. To entertain the envoys from various nations, he had filled the entire great hall with all sorts of rare treasures, as if he had moved his entire treasury. The three-meter-tall mirror and the one-meter-tall jade luminous statue that Shen Lang had gifted him were treasures he particularly loved to show off. Of course, it was only for show; he felt not a shred of gratitude toward Shen Lang for such gifts.
‘You should consider it an honor to have the opportunity to give me a gift, and you should consider it an honor for me to take your things.’
That was King Arugan’s life motto.