Chapter 174: Ye Chutang, A Harmonious Wife

The Old Prince and the Empress Dowager immediately knelt before the Emperor to play their parts.

“Your Majesty, Zhou’er only spoke in anger. The Chen Wang Mansion has no heart of rebellion, nor any collusion with the ‘Ghost Thief.’ We beg you to continue investigating those weapons and the tributes!”

The Emperor ignored them and turned to Qi Yanzhou. “Are you still the head of your household?”

In other words: if you’ve asked to be exiled, can you still command your own family?

Qi Yanzhou nodded firmly. “My decision is the decision of the Chen Wang Mansion. If anyone refuses to share my fate, they may take a letter of dismissal or a bond of separation and leave—honor and disgrace no longer link us.”

Madame Su, one of his concubines and an informant for the Emperor, dared not speak up. She had wanted him to write a formal letter dismissing her, but the Emperor’s icy glare silenced her.

Seeing that none would abandon the family, Qi Yanzhou repeated, “Your servant requests exile.”

The Emperor’s heart leapt with delight, though he kept a solemn tone. “If your conscience is clear, why request exile?”

“Because Your Majesty does not trust the Qi family and has long wished to strip us of our titles and destroy us utterly!”

Those words laid bare the Emperor’s ugly ambition. He may have thought it, but he would never admit it out loud.

“Nonsense! If I lacked magnanimity, I would never have entrusted you with military command!”

Qi Yanzhou, now openly at odds with the Emperor, said without restraint, “Thank you for trusting me to lead the smallest force against the fiercest bandits in the most desperate battles.”

The Emperor was momentarily speechless.

“I trust your ability, which is why I gave you such responsibility.”

Qi Yanzhou looked across at the assembled ministers and taunted, “Your Majesty, ask them—is that not true?”

Any clear-eyed observer could see the court’s rotten intrigue and the Emperor’s desire to eliminate the Qi family.

The Minister of Justice, though an imperial appointee, quickly answered, “True!”

Many ministers joined in. “True!”

Qi Yanzhou, long disillusioned with flattery, nodded and turned back to the Emperor.

“Your Majesty, I request exile so that you need no longer fear my house raising arms against the throne, nor must we constantly dread making a mistake that brings ruin on our entire family.”

Whether Qi Yanzhou spoke sincerely or not, the Emperor liked the sound of it. Exile suited his purposes better than house arrest.

“I never thought the Chen Wang Princess would misunderstand me so deeply. Since your resolve is firm, I will not dissuade you.”

He then proclaimed to the court: “From this moment, the Chen Wang is stripped of his title. His ancestral gold-and-jade ming-si token and the imperial sword are recalled. All family property is forfeit and they will be exiled on an auspicious day. However, the investigation into the weapons and tributes will continue, and I will give the public a full accounting.”

All of this was little more than window dressing—the Emperor had no intention of clearing their name.

Qi Yanzhou bowed deeply. “I thank Your Majesty for your generosity.”

“Until the edict of exile is issued, no one of the Qi family may leave the courtyard.” The Emperor then addressed the Minister of Justice. “Minister Kang, oversee the confiscation of their property.”

“I obey, Your Majesty.”

To the Grand Eunuch: “You assist from the side.”

“At once, Your Majesty.”

And to the Imperial Guard commander: “Guard every member of the Qi family carefully.”

Upon hearing this, Qi Yanzhou interjected, “Your Majesty, I petitioned for exile myself, not as a criminal. Please spare the innocent servants of the Chen Wang Mansion.”

For the Emperor, that was a simple matter. “Everyone of the Chen Wang household will be thoroughly examined. If they are found spotless, I will not trouble them further.”

Then he turned to Ye Chutang. “Miss Ye, you have never been entered onto the Chen family register and are not their clan’s wife. You may leave.”

Every eye in the court fell on Ye Chutang, but none were surprised. They all knew the charge of treason had been staged by the Emperor and Minister Ye together.

Everyone expected her to renounce Qi Yanzhou without hesitation. Instead, she said:

“I undertook the Three Letters and Six Rites with A‑Zhou, we bowed before Heaven and Earth and became husband and wife. Even if I’m not yet on the family register, I am still of the Qi family.”

Apart from those three who knew the truth, everyone was stunned.

“The Emperor has already spoken. Why won’t Miss Ye accept it?”

“Why would anyone choose shared exile? Don’t they know it means suffering—and often death—on the road?”

“They say Qi Yanzhou was framed, and yet she insists on following him into exile—madness!”

Their murmurs grew as disbelieving officials gossiped among themselves.

Emperor Xuancheng’s face darkened. “Ye Chutang, are you certain you wish to follow the Qi family into exile?”

Ye Chutang heard the hidden threat—that if she accepted the poisoned well of cure, she would have to become the Emperor’s consort. She calmly replied:

“Your Majesty, I have a private matter to bring to your attention.”

The Emperor led her to a pavilion in the garden. The Chen Wang Mansion was now under full Imperial Guard control, but the secluded pavilion was left undisturbed for their private conversation. On the stone table lay a jade tea set.

The Emperor swept the tea set to the ground with a single palm. “Ye Chutang, you want to die. Why insist on exile? Has your fondness for Qi Yanzhou led you astray?”

Facing the Emperor’s wrath, Ye Chutang remained steady.

“Your Majesty overestimates me. Even if I wished to help Qi Yanzhou, I could never obtain those letters exposing Minister Ye’s collusion nor the special cloth for the dragon robe.”

“You might not have the means—but you could warn Qi Yanzhou of my plan, and he could turn the tables with the ‘Ghost Thief.’”

She kicked aside the shattered tea ware and sat on a stone bench. “Please sit, Your Majesty, and allow me to explain fully.”

The Emperor eyed her warily, then took the seat opposite. “Speak.”

Before she began, Ye Chutang asked:

“Your Majesty, what do you think the Ghost Thief’s purpose is in the capital?”

Without hesitation, he answered, “To steal treasure.”

“No,” she said, “to destroy the realm.”

At that, the Emperor’s face turned so dark it seemed to shed ink. “Explain.”

“Your Majesty fears the loss of revenue more than all else: without silver you cannot buy grain or pay troops, and the morale of soldiers sapped, defeat surely follows.”

Hearing this, the Emperor’s eyes widened in realization. “Ah! So that is the Ghost Thief’s plan. I underestimated him.”

Ye Chutang smiled inwardly, then asked:

“Why do you suppose Qi Yanzhou requested exile?”

The Emperor considered briefly. “Because he fears I will use the weapons incident to imprison his family and destroy them completely.”

He worried that if the Qi remained in the capital, they might turn against him. By exiling themselves, they at least left the city.

Ye Chutang nodded. “Therefore, the Ghost Thief and Qi Yanzhou are not in league. The treason charge does the Qi no harm. No one honestly seeks exile for pleasure—do you agree?”

The Emperor assented. Qi Yanzhou thought no sane person would destroy their own family’s reputation by choosing exile.

“Continue.”

“I surmise the Ghost Thief attacked the Chen Wang Mansion partly out of vengeance against Qi Yanzhou, but mainly to dig a trap for Your Majesty. If you punish the Qi for treason, the Ghost Thief will reveal evidence of their innocence, and you will be remembered as a tyrant.”

The Emperor’s blood ran cold as he grasped her meaning.

“Such vicious intention!”

“It’s cunning indeed. If you act rashly, you become the ‘Despotic Sovereign.’ But if you wait for the true evidence, no one can fault you. And on the long road of exile or at the frontier, opportunities for you to deal with the Qi family abound.”

Ye Chutang had revealed her entire purpose: to prevent the Qi from ever carrying a false treason charge. If they were truly innocent, they would endure exile more easily than imprisonment, and most of their suffering would be spared.

To be continued…