Chapter 247: Chapter 123 The Fall of the Yan Clan!_1
The prison carriage belonging to the Third Prince was draped in a black cloth. This was unusual, as it wasn’t windy or rainy, and basking in the sun during the winter days in Yan State was typically a great pleasure. Nevertheless, the black cloth had been purposely added.
The agents from the Spy Bureau surrounded the prison carriage, radiating an aura that warned everyone to keep their distance. The citizens of the capital generally looked down their noses at others; they might not fear the city’s government servants, or even the capital’s Imperial Guard—as many of those were local youths—but they wouldn’t dare brazenly ask the agents of the Spy Bureau who was being transported in that prison carriage.
The common folk could only watch the spectacle, often confused by the commotion. As for the specifics, they were left to their own imaginations.
In an afternoon teahouse, one person claimed that Lord Jingnan had gone to the Second Prince’s residence to reprimand him, warning him that if he ever hoped to become Crown Prince, he needed to study more and engage in self-reflection. This was a conjecture born of political naivety.
Someone else suggested that a prince had offended Lord Jingnan, who then demanded the offending prince kneel and serve him tea to appease his anger. This seemed somewhat more plausible.
There was also a rumor that Lord Jingnan had not only reprimanded that prince but had also ordered one of his ruthless subordinates to break all five of the prince’s limbs. When asked about the fifth limb, the storyteller pointed downwards.
The other tea drinkers promptly doused him with their tea. Spreading rumors required some basis in reality, didn’t it? Did he think everyone else was a fool to believe such a wild tale?
「At the window on the second floor of the Quande Building,」
The Sixth Prince held a cup of high-grade Shaoxing wine in his left hand, gently sniffing its aroma.
The prison carriage carrying the Third Prince passed along the street below. It was heading towards a royal garden outside the city, where there was a lake. In the middle of the lake was an island, and on that island stood a pavilion.
This was the Heart of the Lake Pavilion, a place used exclusively by the Yan Imperial Family to exile criminals of the Ji surname. Ordinary people were not qualified to reside there.
Since the founding of Great Yan, six princes had already been confined there. Now, the seventh was on his way.
"Oh, really?" the Sixth Prince remarked with some surprise after hearing Master Zhang’s report.
"It’s absolutely true, Your Highness," Master Zhang replied. "This servant was also deeply shocked upon hearing the news. That Lord Jingnan, that Zheng Fan... how could they truly dare..."
"I understand Zheng Fan," the Sixth Prince said. "He must have been forced by circumstances; he had no choice but to act."
"That may be true, but..." Master Zhang began.
"But when he acted, he must have felt incredibly satisfied," the Sixth Prince added.
"..." Master Zhang remained silent.
"Your Highness," Master Zhang then said, "weren’t you quite optimistic about Zheng Fan? Now that he has done such a thing, Lord Jingnan might be able to protect him for a time, but can he protect him for a lifetime? He crippled a prince, and not just crippled him, but shattered all five of his limbs! A dignified member of the Imperial Clan, a son of His Majesty the Emperor! Crippled, just like that! How will His Majesty react? How will all the members of the Ji Imperial Clan react?"
"In this servant’s opinion, if it were truly unavoidable, it would have been better to directly..." Master Zhang made a cutting gesture with his hand and continued, "Now, the Third Prince is still alive. Though he is a cripple, as long as he remains in the Heart of the Lake Pavilion, anyone—be it the Emperor or other princes—who remembers him will likely also think of that Zheng Fan."
"What about the matter I asked you to investigate? Has it been looked into?" the Sixth Prince said, changing the subject.
"Oh, to answer Your Highness, it has," Master Zhang responded. "The servant missing from Qi Simiao’s residence was indeed abducted by Li Yinglian’s people."
"Then tonight, there might be an extra nameless corpse floating by the shores of Tiancheng Lake," the Sixth Prince mused, taking a sip of his high-grade Shaoxing wine.
"Your Highness, did you foresee this long ago?" Master Zhang asked.
"Not at all," the Sixth Prince replied. "I am no immortal. But honestly, my third brother and those bookworms... they’ve read so many books their brains have turned to mush. Qi Simiao willingly acted as a sacrificial spy for my third brother. But with all those letters sent and arrangements made, how could he possibly have hidden it all from my Second Prince’s eyes and ears?"
"So, you’re saying the Second Prince knew all along that Qi Simiao was working for the Third Prince behind his back?"
"Not just my Second Prince," the Sixth Prince elaborated. "Although his matriarchal clan is the Tian Clan, ever since the Earl of North Border entered the capital, the Tian Clan has been continuously planning for the enfeoffment of both the Southern Marquis and Lord North as Princes.
"And the Empress in the palace," he continued, "ever since ascending to her position as mistress of the rear palace, has been living with even greater caution and conscientiousness. What she was meant to have, she has already obtained. Be it the Phoenix Crown on her own head or her son’s position as Crown Prince, both are very secure.
"My Second Prince has two forms of support: one is the Tian Clan, and the other is the Empress in the palace. If these two great mountains remain unmoved, my Second Prince can achieve absolutely nothing. He couldn’t possibly be so presumptuous as to lead the capital’s Imperial Guard in a direct rebellion to ’cleanse the sovereign’s side’ and ask our Father Emperor to ascend as Emperor Emeritus, could he?"
"My, Your Highness, be careful with your words, be careful!" Master Zhang exclaimed.
"I know my limits," the Sixth Prince said. "The assassination attempt outside Yin City also involved people from Jin State’s Intelligence Agency. Let’s put it this way: even if my Second Prince had personally arranged this, neither the Tian Clan nor the Empress would have ever allowed him to do so. The Empress desires stability and to live her days in peace. The Tian Clan wants to use this confrontation between the North Border Army and the Imperial Court to elevate Tian Wujing to the position of Prince Jingnan. Causing such a major incident would, on the contrary, be like putting Lord Jingnan on the fire to roast—it would be overdoing things. The Tian Clan wouldn’t act this way. Nor would the Empress do this to her own younger brother, who is also her greatest pillar of support in the Outer Court."
"But they still did it, so..."