Chapter 124: The Qin Family’s Exile

The Emperor has passed away?!

 Lu Desheng couldn’t help but stand up, looking towards the direction of the palace, and said with a touch of sadness, “Your Majesty, have a safe journey. Go back to the heavens and be your true immortal.”

This night, he didn’t sleep either. It should be said that almost all the officials and nobles in the capital didn’t sleep. Everyone didn’t expect that early in the morning, they would receive not only the morning light but also the news of Emperor Kang Cheng’s passing.

Xie Zhan looked towards the direction of the imperial city with joy. Last night, Emperor Kang Cheng had ordered so many officials to accompany him in death, and he guessed that his time was near. With his departure, the dark cloud hanging over him had finally dispersed. Xie Zhan would lead the Xie family into a new era.

As the funeral bell tolled, and the Imperial Guards disbanded, Zhao Wenkuan of the Zhao family also heaved a sigh of relief. From last night until morning, no one in the Zhao family had slept. It was clear that they had narrowly escaped a disaster.

Who knew how anxious he had been when the Xie family was in trouble! Was his daughter’s precognitive dream no longer effective? She clearly said that the Xie family would be fine from beginning to end.

Later, when he learned which officials were to accompany the Emperor in death, he was very grateful that after being demoted by  Lu Desheng, he realized that he was not favored by Emperor Kang Cheng and had behaved much more modestly, not trying to attract the Emperor’s attention. It was probably because of this that Emperor Kang Cheng had not thought of him. He had managed to cling onto his old life.

After the tolling of the funeral bell ceased, the officials came to their senses. It seemed that the Emperor had not yet chosen an heir? So the officials changed into their court attire and hurried to the palace.

 Lu Desheng also changed into new court attire, intending to bid a final farewell to Emperor Kang Cheng.

At various city gates and street corners, the Imperial Guards were in the process of withdrawing.

“Go back and change into clean clothes before coming to the office,” Lin Ran instructed.

Sheng Huai’an looked at him puzzled. Weren’t they done with their tasks? “Commander, the brothers have been busy all night. Can’t we take a break during the day?” If they hadn’t finished their tasks, they could continue, but there was no need for him to go back to change clothes and then return.

“Do what you’re told, no need for so much chatter,” Lin Ran said impatiently, holding a secret decree in his hand.

Alright, he’s the commander, he calls the shots!

Sheng Huai’an returned home and happened to run into his foolish younger brother.

“There’s a strong smell of blood!” Sheng Huai’an kept backing away, looking disgusted.

“Is there?” He hadn’t noticed.

“Brother, how many people did you kill last night?” Sheng Huai’an asked curiously.

“You wouldn’t want to know,” he said as he walked towards his courtyard, with Sheng Huai’an following.

As he entered his bedroom, the foolish younger brother tried to follow, but he was locked out by Sheng Huai’an.

Boredly waiting outside, Sheng Huai’an soon saw his brother come out in clean clothes and head outside. “Brother, are you going out?”

“Yes.”

Sheng Huai’an looked at him admiringly. “Brother, you’re amazing. Working day and night, even the village donkeys aren’t as hardworking as you.”

Sheng Huai’an gave him a smack on the forehead. “The winds and waves in Chang’an City are strong recently. Stay at home and don’t go out.” Foolish brother.

When Sheng Huai’an arrived, Lin Ran had already changed into a clean standard commander’s uniform and was waiting. The Minister of Revenue, Wu Yuchun, was standing beside him.

“Chapter 124: The Qin Family’s Exile (2/3)”

“Let’s go to the Qin family!” Lin Ran said. They changed into clean clothes as a sign of respect for the loyalty and sacrifice of the Qin family.

Sheng Huai’an: He knew it.

Qin Family

Shortly after the funeral bell tolled, Qin San’s wife, Nie Yunniang, safely gave birth to a daughter. The Qin family was filled with mixed emotions of joy and sorrow.

At that moment, the gatekeeper came to report that the Imperial Guards had arrived.

The Qin family members exchanged glances. What had to happen would happen. They had speculated before that after their patriarch, Qin Yue, had shouldered such a great responsibility for the Qin family, they should not lose any more family members. With this underlying speculation, they were not afraid.

When Lin Ran and his men arrived at the Qin family, they found the Qin family welcoming them with open doors.

Qin Heng, along with Qin Sanlang and Qin Sheng, greeted everyone at the door. “Commander Lin, Deputy Commander Sheng, please come in.”

Lin Ran nodded and said no more.

In the main courtyard of the Qin family, all the members of the Qin family were standing there.

Raising the imperial decree in his hand, Lin Ran said, “Imperial Decree of the late Emperor! Madam Qin, Qin Heir, and all others, kneel and receive it!”

The Qin family members knelt down in unison.

“By the grace of the Emperor, the decree states: Qin Yue, the Marquis of Pingxi, as the Great General of the Northern Border, had the responsibility to safeguard the peace of the border. However, due to his failure to fulfill his duties, he did not notice the movements of the Qiang and Hu elite forces, resulting in the death of the Crown Prince at the hands of the Qiang and Hu people, causing a loss to the foundation of the country and turmoil in the dynasty. This crime is extremely grave!

Considering the past merits of the Qin family, his title as Marquis of Pingxi and Great General of the Northern Border is retained. His wife, children, and female relatives are spared from death penalty. All official positions held by male members of the Qin family are revoked, and all imperial appointments on female members are revoked. The Qin family is exiled to Pingzhou, all household assets are to be confiscated and handed over to the national treasury, and the entire family is to be imprisoned in the Great Prison, with orders to depart on a chosen date. So be it!”

Lu Songli listened calmly. The Qin family indeed could not escape the fate of exile, and the destination of exile was as she had expected, the northeast.

The northwest had always been where the Qin family’s stationed troops were located. Who knew how many relatives and old comrades they had there? Who knew how many people had benefited from the Qin family’s kindness. Emperor Kang Cheng would not exile the Qin family to the northwest.

The southeast and southwest each had their own issues, such as the humid climate and the presence of miasma and witchcraft, which would make it very difficult for northerners to adapt and could even result in casualties.

The Qin family was a military family. Currently, the situation in the Four Realms was not stable. Emperor Kang Cheng still had plans to use the Qin family, so naturally, he did not want the Qin family to be wiped out. The journey of exile was already difficult, and if they arrived at the place of exile with a host of problems to overcome, it would be contradictory to his original intentions.

Therefore, Emperor Kang Cheng’s choice of Pingzhou in the northeast as the Qin family’s place of exile was easily understandable.

Furthermore, Pingzhou was to the east of Youzhou, facing the sea to the south, with Lelang County to the east and Goguryeo to the northeast. To the northwest was a large area of Xianbei territory, with a very small territory controlling the mouth of Youzhou, which could help contain Pingzhou.

Emperor Kang Cheng was also guarding against the Qin family.

After Lin Ran finished announcing the imperial decree, Wu Yuchun was eager on the side, ready to take over all of the Qin family’s assets.

Qin Heng politely asked, “Commander Lin, may we tidy ourselves up?”

Lin Ran replied, “You may, but you only have two quarters of an hour.”

“Thank you.”

“Chapter 124: The Qin Family’s Exile (3/3)”

“No belongings can be taken!” Wu Yuchun, the Minister of Revenue, emphasized from the side.

“Don’t worry.”

“Wu, you can go ahead and take charge of the warehouse.” Lin Ran said this and glanced at Qin Heng.

Qin Heng understood and had the steward bring the keys to the warehouse.

Lu Songli grabbed Qin Sheng and ran into their courtyard.

Back in the bedroom, Lu Songli quickly removed all the hairpins from her head and inserted three wooden hairpins, then took off the jade bracelets and gold bangles from her hands. After some thought, she wore only a wooden bracelet on her left hand.

These were all prepared in advance, specially made by craftsmen from out of town. The moment they were done, she sent the father and son far away from Chang’an City.

Then she began to change her clothes. The inner garments were mainly for comfort and warmth, chosen from her prepared selection of inconspicuous clothes. She put on a slightly worn overcoat on top, and held a headscarf to wrap around her head.

They would soon be taken to the Great Prison, so proper warm clothing was essential. She felt that the clothes on them, given the stingy nature of Minister Wu, would not be allowed to be worn further, and he might even check to see if they had taken any items from the mansion.

After getting herself ready, she pulled Qin Sheng over and helped him change into the clothes she had brought, warm and inconspicuous.

Lu Songli was very quick in her movements, and Qin Sheng hadn’t even had time to react before she had removed his clothes. He dressed himself for the rest.

Finally, she removed the jade crown from his head and quickly inserted a wooden hairpin to secure his hair. At the same time, she also placed a wooden bracelet on his wrist.

Qin Sheng was puzzled.

“Wear it, don’t lose it.” As long as they claimed that they both wore the same wooden bracelet as a token of their love, others wouldn’t be too suspicious.

As the time was up, Lu Songli and Qin Sheng had to hurry back to the main courtyard. She instructed Qin Sheng to bring a wicker basket. Inside were some children’s clothes that looked slightly worn but were very warm.