roccoschili Chapter 129 Only a mere servant girl died.
Chapter 129 Only a mere servant girl died.
The area inside and outside Xiting Palace was already under strict martial law.
Not to mention the palace maids and eunuchs on duty in the palace, not even a fly could fly out freely, not even the masters of the palace.
The favored Consort Shu and the Seventh Prince were also firmly trapped within these palace walls, unable to leave even a step.
The guards, clad in armor, stood solemnly on both sides of the palace road, their expressionless faces sending shivers down the spines of the palace servants.
A young eunuch, his voice trembling with sobs, approached Consort Sun: "Your Majesty, what can we do now? Once the Empress arrives, and that Lord Ma arrives, everything will be over."
"Your Majesty, if all else fails... please plead with His Majesty, plead with the Empress..."
The words were on the tip of my tongue.
He ultimately didn't dare to say the words, "Hand over His Highness."
In this Xiting Palace, who doesn't know that the Tenth Prince Zhu Qiang is Consort Sun's lifeblood?
Anyone who dares to lay a finger on this vital organ would be liable for damages even if they had ten lives.
Therefore, the remaining words turned into deathly silence.
Inside the hall, a heavy silence fell over everyone.
That's enough.
Consort Sun suddenly raised her eyes, her voice carrying a forced composure.
She hugged Zhu Qiang, whose face was pale, even tighter. "Once my sister arrives, I will take care of everything. Qiang will be alright. My sister has always been the kindest to me."
Zhu Qiang nestled in his mother's arms, crying until his tears had dried up. He opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.
until now.
He then truly experienced the taste of fear.
Unfortunately, it's too late.
He killed someone in the palace, right at the crucial moment when he was about to be granted a noble title.
Zhu Qiang's mistake was like walking on a knife's edge.
Anyone with a brain knows that His Majesty and the Empress will not let this go easily; this matter is bound to be a major scandal.
The atmosphere at Xiting Palace was so heavy it seemed like it could be squeezed dry.
Dark clouds hung low in the distance, pressing heavily on the palace walls, devoid of any of the sharpness of "armor gleaming in the sun like golden scales," instead exuding a suffocating sense of impending storm.
Outside the thick palace walls, the sound of orderly footsteps grew clearer and clearer as they approached.
"Someone's coming. Someone's coming, Your Majesty."
With a sharp cry from the young eunuch, the faces of everyone in the hall turned even paler.
They stared intently at the direction of the palace gate, their hearts pounding in their throats. No one knew what fate awaited them with this newcomer.
"What's there to be afraid of?"
Consort Sun gave a cold shout, straightening her back and displaying the full majesty of a concubine in the harem. "I am His Majesty's concubine. Today, I refuse to believe that anyone can act presumptuously in Xiting Palace. A-Qiang is His Majesty's own flesh and blood, a prince and a grandson of the dragon. Could Mao Xiang's Imperial Guards possibly do anything to a prince?"
These words, however, did nothing to calm the hearts of everyone in the hall, and even Zhu Qiang in her arms continued to tremble.
Everyone in the palace knew that in the harem and even the entire Ming Dynasty, only three people truly held power.
His Majesty Zhu Yuanzhang, Empress Ma Xiuying, and Crown Prince Zhu Biao.
This matter has likely already alarmed these three.
His Majesty has already issued an edict, entrusting the Empress with full authority to handle the matter, without needing to inform the Imperial Court.
This means that the power of life and death in this matter is entirely in Ma Xiuying's hands.
Fortunately, Consort Sun had a very good relationship with Ma Xiuying, which gave the matter some room for maneuver.
If it were any other concubine, they would probably have collapsed to the ground in fear, and would have had no confidence to bargain.
"Open the palace gates."
A cold, stern voice suddenly rang out from outside the palace gates.
This voice was neither Ma Xiuying's gentleness nor Mao Xiang's ruthlessness, but rather carried a youthful composure, yet it brooked no argument.
It's Ma Wenxiang.
Everyone in the hall gasped in surprise.
In just a short while, a series of loud "boom boom boom" sounds rang out, and the palace gates of Xiting Palace, which had been tightly closed, were forcibly smashed open by the guards.
Seeing the wide-open palace gates and the figures standing solemnly outside, Consort Sun's expression suddenly changed, her fingernails digging deep into her palms until blood seeped out.
impossible.
It is absolutely impossible.
How could her sister, who had always treated her so kindly, be so cruel?
Consort Sun murmured to herself, desperately trying to reassure herself: "My sister's plan is just a temporary measure. Once this storm passes, A-Qiang will be alright..."
But this self-deceiving thought shattered completely the moment Yun Qi strode into the hall with the imperial edict in hand.
"By the mandate of Heaven, the Emperor decrees..."
Yun Qi's voice rang out clearly, carrying the unique majesty of an imperial edict, resounding throughout the entire Xiting Palace.
"Now there is a prince in the palace, Zhu Qiang, who has injured someone to death. Although he is a child and his mistake was unintentional, he may be spared the death penalty, but he cannot escape punishment."
Upon hearing this, Consort Sun's tense nerves suddenly relaxed, and she let out a long sigh of relief.
The palace maids and eunuchs inside the hall also breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as you're not dead, there's still a chance to live.
But the slight relief that had just appeared on their faces was completely extinguished by Yun Qi's next words.
"But his crimes are indeed serious."
"Even as a member of the royal family, he cannot be treated lightly. With the investiture ceremony imminent, a special decree is hereby issued: Zhu Qiang's future title of prince is revoked. After he comes of age and undergoes his coming-of-age ceremony, he will be expelled from the palace and demoted to a commoner, and from then on, he will no longer be included in the royal family genealogy."
"So be it."
As Yun Qi's voice faded, the entire Xiting Palace fell into a deathly silence.
Immediately following was a chorus of gasps for air.
The eunuchs and palace maids stared wide-eyed, their faces filled with disbelief, as if they were dreaming.
The Empress... is she really going to strip the Tenth Prince of his princely status?
If a prince breaks the law, he shall be punished the same as a commoner.
That's what I meant.
They'd heard it countless times, but never imagined it would actually happen before their eyes. "How could this be...how is this possible? The Tenth Prince has really been deposed? Am I still half asleep?"
"Heh, even if you sleep until you die, the fact that the Tenth Prince has been deposed has nothing to do with you."
"In the end, it was because the Tenth Prince went too far and angered the Empress that he ended up like this."
"well……"
Someone couldn't help but sigh, looking at Consort Sun and her son with complicated emotions. "The imperial family has been reduced to commoners overnight. Even with the Crown Prince and the other princes looking after them, they'll only ever be wealthy old men at best."
"Without the title of king, one truly becomes an ordinary person without power or influence..."
"Who says otherwise? It's a pity, of all people to offend, he had to provoke Her Majesty's wrath. And the one who handled this matter wasn't Her Majesty herself, but that Lord Mao... The Tenth Prince is really unlucky, it just so happens that the Second Prince has changed his temperament now. If it were in the past, perhaps Her Majesty could have let him off the hook, and there would still be a sliver of hope..."
These whispers, though soft in tone, pierced the heart of Consort Sun.
She abruptly raised her head, looking at Ma Wenxiang as he slowly walked into the hall. She could no longer maintain her composure, her voice trembling with a hint of pleading and questioning: "Your Majesty, please don't be so cruel. It's just the death of a mere servant girl... Why go to such lengths?"