Chapter 106

The year was ending, and with the capital in turmoil, the emperor decided not to hold the usual grand New Year banquet.

Ji Yanming was busy handling everything, while Tao Sheng had some free time.

One day, Su Jia visited Luo Xin to give her a New Year gift and met Tao Sheng. They chatted about the New Year and Ji Yanming’s busy schedule. “It’s hard to be this busy during the New Year,” Su Jia said.

Luo Xin shook her head: “It’s always like this. When the emperor is angry, it affects millions of lives.”

Tao Sheng remained silent, holding a teacup. She knew earlier than anyone that Ji Yanming had been tasked with dealing with Prince Rui.

The emperor had many capable officials, but Ji Yanming was chosen for this job. It was a signal—the emperor would no longer give King Rui any chances.

_

Later, Ji Yanming arrived at Prince Rui’s Mansion. It was quiet, unlike the usual busy atmosphere.

Prince Rui was confined to his study, heavily guarded. His family and servants were also isolated in a back courtyard.

Ji Yanming, led by a young general, passed through the courtyard, which had been turned into a Taoist temple.

It seemed King Rui had been so eager to become king that he had resorted to using metaphysical powers.

Normally, when someone reaches Prince Rui’s age, other royals would make something similar at home, often to refine elixirs to seek immortality. But Prince Rui wasn’t interested in that right now.

In the study room where Prince Rui was locked up, the floor was messy, with broken cups, plates, and food. It looked like more than one meal had been destroyed.

When Prince Rui saw Ji Yanming, he charged at him as if to attack, but he had not eaten or drunk for many days. He fell to the floor in a heap as soon as he moved.

He glared at Ji Yanming, eyes bloodshot, wanting to hurt him: “How dare you do this to me?”

“Why not?” Ji Yanming replied coldly.

Prince Rui sneered, “When I get the chance to turn things around, I’ll make your life worse than death.”

“Of course,” Ji Yanming replied, “I personally found out all the evidence against you. You will never have a chance to turn things around.”

“Don’t be too proud too soon,” Prince Rui said. “I’m the prince my father trusts most. No matter what I’ve done wrong, when he figures it out, he will always use me again. This time is no different.”

But it might take a while.

The King of Chu had been locked in his palace for three years and had eventually turned things around. How is he worse than the stupid boss?

Ji Yanming didn’t care to argue with him further.

“Do you know how His Majesty found out about your plan to assassinate the King of Chu?” Ji Yanming asked.

“It must be you who made Hu Yang betray me.”

Hu Yang was the deputy minister of the Ministry of War who had revealed Prince Rui’s plans.

Prince Rui thought he had guessed it right and waited to see Ji Yanming’s reaction, but Ji Yanming only responded coldly.

“There are many things in politics that are beyond one’s control. As long as Hu Yang did not betray his master, it can’t be considered a betrayal.”

Prince Rui’s eyes filled with panic: “Is there someone else behind Hu Yang? Who is his master?”

“Of course, it’s your Majesty,” Ji Yanming said. “You must have heard about the story of the Crown Prince and Prince Rong from the previous dynasty’s Emperor Yingzong.”

Back then, Emperor Yingzong had high hopes for his Crown Prince Zhao Xun. To help him grow faster, he gave Zhao Xun other sons to practice with. No matter how well the other princes did, they would never become the Crown Prince. Zhao Xun was the only one Emperor Yingzong recognized.

Ji Yanming was implying that the King of Chu was like Zhao Xun, and Prince Rui was like the discarded pawn used for practice.

Prince Rui widened his eyes in disbelief and spoke in a rushed manner: “This is impossible! My older brother is not better than me in anything. Even the Crown Prince back then was only three times as smart and talented as I am. Father was just angry this time and punished me a little harshly, just to discipline me…”

Ji Yanming didn’t care to listen to more of his nonsense. “The decree from Xuanzheng Hall will arrive soon. You should wait for it.”

This was likely the last time Prince Rui would be addressed as “Your Highness.” Once the decree arrived, he would become a commoner.

Not long after Ji Yanming left, someone came from Xuanzheng Hall to announce the imperial decree. Prince Rui was demoted to a commoner, moved to Nanyuan ^[1]refers to a remote place., and imprisoned for life, with no chance to leave until his death.

_ 

Three days later, Tao Sheng heard the news from King Huan.

Demotion and imprisonment for a short period were nothing, but being demoted to a commoner and sent to Nanyuan meant that Prince Rui was finished.

In the original story, King Rui was a major winner, but now he had become a notorious prisoner. Meanwhile, the Prince of Chu, who was supposed to die young, had become the clear choice for the crown prince. It was quite surprising.

But there was more shocking news King Huan brought.

Prince Rui had been killed while heading to the bathroom, shortly after being demoted. He never had the chance to move to Nanyuan.

Tao Sheng almost dropped the cup in surprise. “Is this true?”

“Of course,” King Huan said. “The Ministry of Justice arrested the murderer yesterday. Apparently, he was a young gardener from the mansion.”

A gardener?

Tao Sheng frowned.

People like gardeners don’t usually have close contact with their masters, so what could have happened to make a gardener kill Prince Rui?

King Huan had gotten first-hand information and explained the situation. The gardener’s sister was once a maid at the mansion’s teahouse. She caught Prince Rui’s attention because of her looks and became obsessed with him. However, she angered Princess Rui and was framed by her. Prince Rui grew tired of her and sent her away, where she eventually died.

The gardener had wanted to kill Prince Rui for a long time, but was afraid of the consequences. However, now that Prince Rui had been stripped of his royal status, the consequences were much lighter. So, the gardener took his chance and succeeded.

At that moment, Mother Tang came in quickly and told Tao Sheng, “Shen Ruojin came to look for the young lady but was stopped by the gatekeeper. He’s kneeling outside and refuses to leave, saying he can’t find the young lady. It seems he came because of Prince Rui’s matter.”

Tao Sheng frowned: “What does she have to do with this?”

And now, he was coming to stir up trouble.

King Huan understood the situation well: “They are very close to Sixth Brother, so they must be involved. They’re probably here because of your husband’s situation.”

After all, Ji Yanming was one of the judges in this case, and Shen Ruojin thought coming to Tao Sheng’s house was the easiest way to ask for help.

“Don’t we still have Duke Ling?” Tao Sheng said, “He’s your son and daughter-in-law. Even if the family has separated, you shouldn’t ignore them. Duke Ling was a close friend of the Emperor, and he still respects him.”

But King Huan disagreed with Tao Sheng’s idea.

“My brother is really angry this time. He doesn’t even want his son, let alone care about his old friends.”

Shen Ruojin’s action, kneeling outside the house, seemed like a way to guilt others into helping her, but it worked. This was the inner city, and people were watching. Standing outside the door might be acceptable, but kneeling in public was not.

Tao Sheng sighed and stood up. “Let’s go and see what’s happening.”