Chapter 129

Chapter 129

From the day he suspected his father intended to replace the Crown Prince, Qin Hong had been waiting for the Emperor to speak. This wait tormented him day and night, making him increasingly afraid to meet his father's gaze. He yearned for the Emperor to issue the decree, yet dreaded seeing the disappointment in his father's eyes. When headaches struck, Qin Hong often impulsively considered approaching his father to resign, but ultimately lacked the courage to face him, abandoning the idea. Consequently, he grew to despise himself even more, lacking the resolve to either bear the burden or cast it off.

But this was all his fault; he should not have implicated a Founding Meritorious Official like Yang Zhimin.

Kneeling on the ground, Qin Hong could not stem his tears. Yet, after confessing his crime, his heart unexpectedly found peace. He could finally shed the guilt that had plagued him for years—guilt stemming from helping his elder sister promote officials, a burden he had carried until this very moment. He finally had a legitimate reason to resign without forcing his father to bear the ignominy of an unprovoked deposition.

While the Crown Prince's heart found calm, Fang Ji, the Director of the Ministry of Revenue, positioned in the middle-to-lower ranks of civil officials, felt a chilling dread when the Crown Prince uttered his name. Was he truly the incompetent, corrupt, and treacherous official whose actions had incited the Emperor's thunderous wrath and imperiled even Founding Meritorious Officials like Yang Zhimin?

After the chill came a sudden weakness in his legs. Fang Ji knelt and crawled out from the ranks of civil officials, stopping in the center of the hall. His entire upper body prostrated, trembling uncontrollably. He longed to defend himself but feared that further words would only worsen his predicament—for he had indeed embezzled, and he had indeed given silver to Princess Yongkang. Perhaps Princess Yongkang had even shared some with the Crown Prince, leading to the Crown Prince's confession?

Even if the Censorate had uncovered nothing, with the Crown Prince's confession, how could he possibly argue? The more he pondered, the more violently he trembled. Fang Ji lacked even the strength to confess his own crime.

The ministers instantly understood: Fang Ji was truly corrupt. And as for the Crown Prince... All civil and military officials turned their gaze to the Crown Prince and Yang Zhimin, kneeling at the very front.

In the profound silence, Emperor Xingwu settled onto the dragon throne, fixing his gaze on the prostrate Fang Ji. He spoke coldly, "Fang Ji, setting aside the amount of silver you've embezzled over the years, I ask you only this: how did you become the Director of the Ministry of Revenue back then?"

Fang Ji, still desperately seeking a way out, dared not answer immediately. Qin Hong interjected urgently, "Father, it was I—"

Emperor Xingwu snapped, "Silence! I did not ask you!"

Qin Hong’s heart, once calm as still waters, was again thrown into turmoil. He had braced himself for deposition. Since he was to be deposed anyway, he would rather shoulder all the blame himself than implicate his elder sister!

"Father—"

"Fang Ji, are you deaf?!"

Father and son spoke almost simultaneously, but Emperor Xingwu’s booming, angry voice completely drowned out Qin Hong’s feeble plea.

No official could withstand the interrogation of this founding emperor. Fang Ji, still struggling desperately, felt as if struck by lightning. His mind went blank, and he could only confess instinctively: "Your subject... your subject heard that the Grand Princess and the Crown Prince were deeply devoted siblings, so I tried giving the Grand Princess three thousand taels of silver. Later..."

Qin Hong was so consumed with worry for his elder sister that his tears ceased.

Emperor Xingwu’s tone, however, grew much calmer. He continued Fang Ji’s account: "Later, how much more did you offer the Grand Princess?"

Fang Ji had no escape. He could only answer whatever the Emperor asked, his face pressed to the ground: "At the end of each year, your subject would send the Grand Princess a thousand taels as an annual tribute. I’ve done this for seven years in total."

The ministers whispered amongst themselves for a moment. Then, someone, perhaps the first to notice Emperor Xingwu’s grim expression, fell silent.

How could Emperor Xingwu’s expression not be grim?

Whether it was the Crown Prince or the Grand Princess, they were both his own flesh and blood. Even if they were not as cherished as his youngest daughter, Emperor Xingwu had merely given his youngest daughter more care—he had never intentionally treated his eldest son and daughter harshly or neglected them. For his eldest son, Emperor Xingwu had initially harbored great hopes. After his son developed headaches, he even refrained from speaking harshly to him. Even when his son consistently failed to live up to expectations, he was still willing to grant him another chance, specifically arranging for him to serve as regent. It was only after confirming that his son was truly unfit to be the Crown Prince of Great Qi that he finally abandoned all hope.

As for his eldest daughter, she loved gold, silver, and jewels. Emperor Xingwu granted her an estate and emoluments equivalent to those of his sons. True, when his daughter expressed a desire to enter court, Emperor Xingwu had severely reprimanded her for her lack of talent. She had likely been deeply hurt. But he had long known that she accepted bribes outside court to secure official positions for others. He had long known that she had even foolishly helped commoners evade land taxes. Yet, he had turned a blind eye. If the Crown Prince had been competent, Emperor Xingwu would never have openly punished his daughter. He would merely have called both siblings before him before his death and given them a stern lecture...

Emperor Xingwu lifted his head, gazing at the intricately carved beams and painted ceilings above the hall for a moment to compose himself. Maintaining this posture, he commanded, "Someone, summon Princess Yongkang to the palace."

"Father!" Qin Hong cried out in supplication. "Father, if you must punish someone, punish me! This matter is entirely my fault—my foolishness, my failure to explain things clearly to my elder sister, my repeated mistakes that led her astray! I've wasted over twenty years studying the classics, neither able to ease your burdens nor fulfill my duty to guide my siblings. All the faults are mine alone. I beg you to forgive my elder sister. I am willing to resign as Crown Prince!"

At these words, all civil and military officials were stunned, then immediately knelt, imploring the Emperor to quell his anger and not to speak lightly of deposition.

Qin Ren had already been uneasy, with his elder brother and sister successively implicated in this corruption case. When his elder brother pleaded for their sister, Qin Ren had knelt beside him, ready to add his own plea after his brother finished. But his brother's final words, offering to resign as Crown Prince, instantly reminded Qin Ren of his wife's earlier worries—that his brother suspected the Emperor might replace him with Qin Ren due to his sister's talent and virtue!

Qin Ren had no desire to be Crown Prince; he lacked the capability. To prove his lack of ambition, he was the first to object to his elder brother's wish to resign!

"Father, elder brother is simply beside himself with worry that you will punish our sister! He spoke rashly in his distress. You must not take it seriously! I also beg you to show mercy and forgive our sister this once!"

Embezzlement was wrong, but she was their elder sister! Back then, Yuan Zhaoxiong had also embezzled, but the Emperor had declared that as long as Yuan Zhaoxiong returned the ill-gotten silver, he would not be held accountable. Fu Daonian had even colluded with the enemy and deceived the Emperor, yet because no major disaster had occurred, the Emperor had only confiscated his property and stripped him of his title, later even reinstating Fu Kui as an official. Since the Emperor was so compassionate and just, there was no reason for him to punish their sister so severely.

Prince Xian had been in court for nearly three years, but today marked the first time he had spoken so loudly and at such length.

Yan Xizheng and others also joined in pleading for the Crown Prince and the Grand Princess.

Only Qin Hong remained resolute in his desire to resign, but each time he tried to speak, Qin Ren firmly covered his mouth. A few years ago, Qin Hong could have easily pushed his younger brother away, but his health had declined significantly in the past two years. Now, with Qin Ren determined to keep him firmly in the position of Crown Prince, Qin Hong truly could not break free—or perhaps he simply could not bring himself to engage in undignified wrestling with his third brother in the court.

Emperor Xingwu watched his third son’s antics expressionlessly. After a long while, he looked at his eldest son and asked, "Are you using the position of Crown Prince to threaten me?"

The word "threat" sent a chill down the spines of both Qin Hong and Qin Ren. Qin Hong, shocked and anxious, cried out, "I never meant that, Father! Please see reason!"

Emperor Xingwu said, "Then cease speaking of resignation. Today, I will only pass judgment on the crime of you and your sister selling official positions."

Qin Hong immediately dared not mention resigning as Crown Prince again.

Emperor Xingwu ordered all civil and military officials not involved in the case to rise. As for his third son, if he wished to remain kneeling, let him kneel.

Emperor Xingwu continued presiding over the court session. Only when Yongkang’s figure appeared outside the hall, and after he had finished discussing a matter of state affairs, did he allow Yongkang to enter.

Yongkang had been "invited" by the Imperial Guard. No matter how she had tried to extract information from them on the way, the guards had revealed nothing. Upon entering the hall, the first person she recognized was her younger brother kneeling at the front, followed by her third brother Qin Ren, and the Minister of Personnel Yang Zhimin. As for the official kneeling prostrate on the ground whose face she could not discern, Yongkang paid him no mind.

"Father, what is happening? Why are the Crown Prince and third brother being made to kneel?"

Stopping in her tracks, Yongkang first addressed her father on the dragon throne.

Emperor Xingwu ordered the Imperial Censor-in-Chief Nie Ao to take the memorial from Yang Zhimin’s hands and read it aloud to his eldest daughter and the entire court.

What Nie Ao read were the details of Fang Ji’s embezzlement over the years.

Yongkang’s face shifted through various emotions, and her hands, hidden in her wide sleeves, trembled uncontrollably.

Emperor Xingwu looked directly at his eldest daughter and said, "Before you arrived, Fang Ji confessed to bribing you with a total of ten thousand taels of silver over the years. The Crown Prince also admitted that he pulled strings at the Ministry of Personnel on your behalf to help Fang Ji get promoted. Yongkang, do you confess?"

Upon hearing this, Yongkang truly wanted to kick her foolish younger brother in the back. Why did he have to be so honest? Even if she had accepted the silver, her brother’s hints to Yang Zhimin to recommend Fang Ji had not been put in writing. As long as her brother did not confess and Yang Zhimin cooperated, she could claim that she had accepted Fang Ji’s silver but had not done anything for him—never mentioning Fang Ji to her brother. Yang Zhimin had recommended Fang Ji purely based on his qualifications. From beginning to end, only Fang Ji was guilty of the subsequent embezzlement. As for why Fang Ji had continued to offer her silver over the years, that was simply because Fang Ji was foolish!

Yongkang attempted to defend herself, claiming that she had never asked the Crown Prince to intervene on Fang Ji’s behalf. The Crown Prince had taken the blame out of brotherly devotion.

Emperor Xingwu was so angered by his daughter’s self-righteousness that he laughed. He had only exposed Fang Ji out of fatherly compassion, yet his daughter remained stubbornly unrepentant.

"Crown Prince, I ask you one last time: did Yongkang ask you to help her intervene at the Ministry of Personnel? Did she share the bribes with you?"

Qin Hong knew his father’s temper better than his sister did, and he knew the consequences of lying to the Emperor even better.

He grabbed his sister’s hand and made her kneel with him. Then he kowtowed and repeated his confession, asking Yang Zhimin to corroborate.

Yang Zhimin naturally would not deceive the Emperor.

Yongkang finally panicked. But she understood where priorities lay: she could accept punishment, but her brother must not be harmed!

Therefore, Yongkang confessed how she had used their sisterly bond to pressure her brother into helping her. She had kept Fang Ji’s bribes a secret from her brother all along—not daring to let her principled brother know even a single tael. How could she have shared the bribes with him?

"Father, it was my greed that led me astray! I was bewitched and broke the law. The Crown Prince was entirely coerced by me! He couldn’t even refuse Imperial Uncle when he asked for horses—how could he bear to refuse his own sister? You and all the ministers know this! I beg you to see clearly—punish me alone! Do not blame the Crown Prince!"

Yongkang crawled on her knees to her brother’s side, kneeling upright. She pushed her brother behind her with one hand, tears in her eyes but with unwavering determination as she looked at her father.

Qin Hong’s vision blurred with tears once more.

Emperor Xingwu looked at this pair of siblings, at Yang Zhimin kneeling beside them, and after a long moment said, "My eldest daughter is greedy for wealth. My Crown Prince prioritizes personal ties over duty. The Minister of Personnel, whom I have relied on for half my life, has also proven foolish."

"In the eighteen years since I founded this dynasty, today I am most disappointed."