Climbing to the Top: A Reborn Queen's Journey-Chapter 652: Marching to Death (Part 1)

The next day at the morning assembly, the courtiers offered various counsel, comforting the Commandery Princess, who appeared sorrowful.

Recently, Jiang Shaohua had not displayed any severe measures, nor had she frequently promoted her own people, treating the courtiers with gentle and mild methods. The atmosphere in the assembly visibly relaxed day by day.

Though aware that this was the Commandery Princess’s way of winning hearts, the courtiers still felt much more at ease. At least, the Commandery Princess was willing to use them. They naturally had to perform well before the new sovereign. Government affairs had been running smoothly and efficiently this past month.

The sudden passing of the Commandery Princess’s father-in-law due to illness was not a significant matter for the courtiers. After all, Lu Xuan had never been to the Capital City. The death of an unknown person with no weight in the officialdom elicited no sorrow from the courtiers.

If it weren’t for the Commandery Princess, such a minor issue wouldn’t even be worth mentioning in the assembly.

Under the courtiers’ comfort, Jiang Shaohua managed to pull herself together and expressed her gratitude to them. As for the assembly discussions, they naturally had to proceed as usual.

State affairs are critical, and since the sky hasn’t fallen, what needs to be done must be done.

After the assembly, the courtiers returned to their offices. Only Vice Minister Yang stayed in the palace.

The families of Prince Dongping, Prince Huaiyang, and Prince Wu’an were detained in the Heavenly Prison in the palace. Vice Minister Yang had been interrogating this case and gathering evidence over the past month.

The case was nearly concluded. It had been delayed without a formal resolution to wait for the Commandery Princess to ascend the throne and deal with the vassal kings in the identity of the new Emperor.

As an official under the Commandery Princess, Yang Zheng was also involved in interrogating and investigating the treason case. Today, he went to the Heavenly Prison again with Vice Minister Yang.

"Uncle," Yang Zheng whispered, "The evidence against Prince Dongping and his son is conclusive; they will definitely face extermination and family destruction. But how should Prince Wu’an and Prince Huaiyang be dealt with?"

The confessions of the rebel Wu Wei and Si Wu were as follows. They were death warriors planted by Prince Wu’an beside Prince Huaiyang, directed by Prince Wu’an to assassinate Prince Ping, framing Prince Huaiyang.

According to this confession, Prince Huaiyang is innocent, and Prince Wu’an should be held accountable.

However, besides the confessions of these two, there is no other concrete evidence. Therefore, there is much to consider regarding how to handle this case.

Vice Minister Yang glanced over mildly, "I will thoroughly examine the case and present the dossier to the Commandery Princess. As for how to handle the vassal kings, that will be a matter for after the Commandery Princess’s ascension."

Yang Zheng nodded in understanding.

Executing them all, eliminating the problem once and for all, is the harshest yet most prudent approach, though it is also prone to criticism. The death of Prince Dongping and his son is unquestionable, but how to deal with Prince Wu’an and Prince Huaiyang requires careful consideration of the pros and cons.

The fate of hundreds of lives associated with the three prince mansions is not something a mere Vice Minister of Justice can decide. It must be left to Jiang Shaohua’s decision.

The Commandery Princess’s thoughts are deep and unfathomable, and both Vice Minister Yang and Yang Zheng are unsure of which option she will choose.

Vice Minister Yang routinely interrogated Prince Dongping’s family first.

The heir of Prince Dongping, caught in the endless wait for death, was entirely despondent, refusing to respond regardless of the questions.

In contrast, Prince Dongping was much calmer, answering all questions, and repeatedly confirmed, "The formal coronation ceremony is the day after tomorrow?"

Vice Minister Yang slightly nodded, "Indeed."

Prince Dongping unexpectedly laughed heartily, "Good! Good! Jiang Song is dead, Jiang Yi is also dead, that fool Prince Ping is not up to the task, and we are all imprisoned. It’s only right for Jiang Shaohua to sit upon the Dragon Throne!"

"It’s a pity that I’ll head to my death in a few days and won’t be able to witness Jiang Shaohua conduct state affairs.

Within his words, there was an unexpected note of genuine regret.

Vice Minister Yang couldn’t help but twitch a corner of his mouth.

Yang Zheng couldn’t hold back and spoke, "Prince Dongping, you conspired against the Emperor, a grave sin. How can you laugh about it!"

Prince Dongping, bound hand and foot, sat awkwardly and embarrassedly on the chair, yet he still bore the imposing demeanor of a vassal king, "Jiang Song was weak in character, easily trusting others, mediocre in means, and was easily murdered; that was his inability. The throne belongs to the capable: I merely lacked a bit of fortune."

"What grave sin! It’s merely the victor being crowned king and the defeated accused as rebels! If Jiang Shaohua hadn’t stormed into the palace in time, Jiang Yi would have long slain those in his way. The throne was between him and me then."

Yang Zheng sneered, "There’s no ’if’ in this world. Our Commandery Princess arrived just in time, executed the rebels, righted chaos, and gained the support of the courtiers. The Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager both support our Commandery Princess’s ascension."

Prince Dongping laughed heartily once more, "I too have accepted it. Even if I were to close my eyes forever now, I have no regrets."

Even in such dire straits, he possessed such a mindset; truly, Prince Dongping was a genuine hero.

Vice Minister Yang couldn’t help but feel a slight admiration and waved his hand to have Prince Dongping and his son sent back to prison.

The interrogation of Prince Huaiyang and Prince Wu’an presented a different scene.

Prince Huaiyang had grown considerably thinner, his eyes sunken, persistently pleading with Vice Minister Yang, "I am innocent and have never committed any act of treason. Please, Vice Minister Yang, speak a good word for me before the new Emperor."

Prince Wu’an, detained for a month, had also lost weight, but his temper grew increasingly irritable, spewing a string of filthy curses. First cursing Grand Empress Dowager Zheng, then Empress Dowager Li, followed by accusing Prince Dongping and the deceased heir of Prince Gaoliang of excessive ambition, and finally condemning Prince Huaiyang.

He cursed an entire circle without daring to utter a word against Jiang Shaohua.

In fact, in the beginning, he had cursed her as well. Yang Zheng, angered by this, had ’encouraged’ him during interrogations. Although there were no visible wounds, Prince Wu’an had suffered considerably and thus became more restrained.

After a busy afternoon, Vice Minister Yang presented three dossiers.

Jiang Shaohua didn’t hurry to look at the dossiers and said warmly, "These days must have been hard on Vice Minister Yang."

Vice Minister Yang respectfully responded, "As Vice Minister of Justice, it’s my duty to alleviate the Commandery Princess’s concerns."

Jiang Shaohua praised Vice Minister Yang for being astute and capable, to which Vice Minister Yang humbly replied, then asked for leave.

After Vice Minister Yang left, Jiang Shaohua summoned Yang Zheng, "What did the three vassal kings say during today’s interrogations?"

Yang Zheng, with an excellent memory, recounted almost every word without omission and added indignantly, "There’s nothing to debate regarding the execution of Prince Dongping and his son. In my opinion, we also can’t let Prince Huaiyang and Prince Wu’an go."

"Prince Wu’an is narrow-minded and holds grudges deeply. If released back to his vassal territory, he would have a ninety percent chance of rebelling."

"As for Prince Huaiyang, we definitely cannot release him. He has been in prison for so long, yet never once has he spoken ill of the Grand Empress Dowager or shown any grudges against the Commandery Princess. The more this is the case, the more we must be wary."

Such words are something the cunning old fox Vice Minister Yang would never say.

Yang Zheng, as an official under the Nanyang Prince Mansion, considered himself a confidant of the Commandery Princess and asserted his stance with fervor.

Jiang Shaohua remained noncommittal, "You may withdraw for now. I must carefully examine the dossiers."