socalfunplaces Page 450
Page 450
While arranging for people to escort these people back to the capital, Lü Qing also arranged for someone to report to the Prefect of the Capital, since this was no small matter.
"Master Li, I would like to trouble you to come with me to the government office to witness this matter."
Li Chang'an landed on a horse that Lü Qing had brought over and casually said, "It's only right."
Prince Yu, who was anxiously searching the area around Qinglong Temple with his personal guards, suddenly received a report from the yamen runners of the Prefect of the Capital, and almost fell off his horse.
In the original novel, Prince Yu fell seriously ill and was bedridden after losing his daughter, and almost died.
This prince was a sentimental man. He arranged his daughter's marriage, but that doesn't mean he didn't love his only daughter.
"Let's go! To the Jingzhao Prefecture!"
As Prince Yu rode his horse toward the capital, Princess Huaiqing, deep within the palace, also heard a soft "ding" sound in her mind.
"Could it be Number Two chatting again..."
Huaiqing, having nothing else to do, calmly took out the small jade mirror.
After reading just one line of text, Princess Huaiqing's vision went black, her face contorted with rage, and a murderous aura flickered within her.
[Number Seven: Big news! Princess Pingyang's attempt to elope with a monk failed, and she was nearly raped by the son of the Minister of War!]
Princess Pingyang is her cousin!
Chapter 269 Huaiqing leaves the palace, draws his sword in Lin'an!
The Zhang residence in the capital.
Zhang Feng, the Minister of War with a goatee and an upright demeanor, paced anxiously back and forth in the main hall.
"Lord Zhang! What should we do?!"
The Earl of Pingyuan, a military officer by profession, was completely bewildered and rushed in in a panic.
Although Zhang Feng appeared calm on the surface, he was inwardly terrified because things had escalated.
Intending to rape a princess of the royal family and harm a member of the royal family is a heinous crime punishable by the extermination of three generations of one's family!
"These three lads are truly reckless. Sending the person out of the capital would have been enough, but they actually dared to harbor evil intentions towards the princess!"
Zhang Feng practically roared and cursed, and Sun Zhongming, who had just reached the door, felt a jolt in his heart.
The three princes have been arrested, but such a matter concerning the royal family's reputation has spread like wildfire throughout the capital, making it impossible to reach a private settlement with Prince Yu. Who exactly spread this news?
On the way to the Zhang residence, Sun Zhongming was filled with fear and unease. Zhang Yi was a playboy; this time he had gotten himself into serious trouble.
This is probably because Zhang Yi couldn't control his lust and had bad intentions on the road, and was caught red-handed.
That damned Zhang guy, he's really got people killed!
Even if they did not succeed, it was still a heinous crime that would result in the extermination of three generations of their family, because plotting against members of the imperial family was tantamount to rebellion and treason, and there was absolutely no possibility of leniency.
Whether the three old men knew or not was irrelevant; the three families of the three young masters—their fathers' families, mothers' families, and wives' families—would all be implicated.
Sun Zhongming tried countless methods on the way, but couldn't think of a single way to survive.
The most important thing now is to figure out how far things have progressed. If those three boys really raped the princess, then it's all over.
"Lord Zhang, you must make a decision!"
As Sun Zhongming entered the hall, he immediately adopted a sorrowful and desperate expression, temporarily suppressing all the plans that had been on his mind.
Looking at the expressions of Pingyuan Earl and Sun Zhongming, Zhang Feng sneered, "It's one thing for scholars to be cowardly, but Pingyuan Earl, you're a mere warrior and you're so flustered? Were you this cowardly when you were fighting in the war?"
After ten years of hard study and decades of maneuvering in the imperial court and the military, Zhang Feng is no pushover; he's a ruthless character who has killed and seen blood.
Pingyuanbo's face turned pale, but he forced himself to calm down. In his heart, he had cursed Zhang Yi a thousand times over, just like Sun Zhongming.
Everyone in the capital knows that Zhang Yi is a lecherous man who is unrestrained and incredibly audacious.
"Lord Zhang, there's no turning back now, it's a dead end! This is far more dangerous than fighting on the battlefield. Now that the news has spread, the Ministry of Justice and the night watchmen might already be on their way!"
Zhang Feng's face was grim, and a cold glint flashed in his triangular eyes. "I don't know who's so despicable. The person hasn't even been brought back yet, and the news is already spreading like wildfire..."
At this moment, a man dressed as a warrior descended from the roof and knelt on one knee in front of Zhang Feng.
"My lord, the government has dispatched a large number of yamen runners, including some of our own. Princess Pingyang and the monk from Qinglong Temple have eloped, and the three young masters are helping them escape the capital."
"But after leaving the capital, the three young masters took the princess to the desolate mountains with ill intentions. Before they could succeed, they were stopped by a passing knight-errant, who captured all three young masters."
"Young Master Sun and the young master who were guarding Heng Hui had their martial arts skills crippled, and the young master who attempted to commit illicit acts... was castrated."
Zhang Feng's hand, which was resting on the table, gradually clenched into a fist.
Not only were they caught red-handed, but the princess was still alive; this was truly a dead end.
Once the princess reveals the truth, none of the three families will escape.
Sun Zhongming's eyes darted around, his expression shifting between light and shadow.
It was Zhang Yi who intended to commit the crime. If his son insisted that Zhang Yi was lustful and that he himself had no malicious intent, there might be a glimmer of hope for him.
Upon hearing this news, the Earl of Pingyuan, a mere military man, collapsed completely into his chair.
"It's over, it's all over! What a coincidence! Was that wandering knight arranged by the Qi faction or the Wang faction?"
Zhang Feng observed the two men's reactions and essentially ruled out the possibility that they had leaked the information, since the three of them were already in the same boat. In such a serious matter as murdering a member of the royal family, no one could easily escape involvement.
Now it seems that the Zhang family is completely finished, all three generations are finished.
"Even a rabbit will bite when cornered. We have worked hard all our lives to achieve some success. We can't just suffer a complete defeat and have our family wiped out."
Marquis Pingyuan said anxiously, "My lord, where is there any way to survive now!"
Zhang Feng said coldly, "You keep a gang of thieves outside the city, don't you have a few experts? I also have more than a dozen Jianghu retainers. The people from the government haven't arrived in the capital yet, so we may not be without a way to survive."
Hearing Zhang Feng's chilling words, Sun Zhongming couldn't help but shiver. In this almost certain death situation, Zhang Feng was indeed going to take a risk.
"My lord... if you're going to break into the prison, then things become even more complicated."
Zhang Feng replied, "You're a scholar, why don't you use your brain? The only breakthrough now is that bald monk!"
"This matter is clearly the work of the bald monk who seduced and kidnapped the princess. Now that the matter has been exposed, the bald monk's accomplices are going to rescue him and also try to abduct the princess."
At this point, the Earl of Pingyuan realized what Zhang Feng meant and said, "Although there are many people in the government office, the strongest among them is only an eighth-rank martial artist. As long as the night watchman does not take action, we may still have a chance."
"I have several dozen martial artists under my command, one of whom is of the fifth rank and two of the sixth rank. I wonder if Lord Zhang has any..."
Zhang Feng glanced at Sun Zhongming, who shrank back and lowered his head. Clearly, he was just a civil official with few people under his command.
"Lord Zhang, Lord Pingyuan, have you considered that the news of their arrival in the capital is already spreading, perhaps to throw us into disarray?"
He then suggested that they should plead with His Majesty directly, as there might still be a chance.
"boom!"
Zhang Feng slammed his hand on the table. "Useless!"
Zhang Feng, of course, knew what Sun Zhongming was thinking, and he was even more furious. At this point, even if the young master of the Sun family had no ill intentions, how could he be exonerated? He was truly short-sighted.
Emperor Yuanjing valued the imperial family's reputation above all else and would never tolerate any act that challenged the imperial authority. Prince Yu also doted on his only daughter. Asking the emperor or trying to reconcile with Prince Yu in this matter was completely useless.
"Even if what you say is true, are we just going to sit and wait to be wiped out? We have to take a risk, even if it means certain death!"
“I also have two sixth-rank martial artists under my command. Marquis Pingyuan, have your men and mine shave their heads and eyebrows, and make sure they don’t have anything on them that could reveal their identities. They will then impersonate monks and kidnap that bald monk and the princess.”
"If it's too difficult to abduct her, just kill Princess Pingyang!"
These words sent a chill down the spines of both Pingyuan Bo and Sun Zhongming, their hearts raced, and beads of sweat appeared on their foreheads.
As noble as a princess, she probably hasn't told the constables of the government office in detail about the near-rape incident.
If the princess were dead, the situation would be completely muddied. How many people would believe the words of a mere martial artist, since the princess had not been raped?
If things are handled properly, it might turn into the three young masters capturing the evil monk and rescuing the princess.
At this moment, the Earl of Pingyuan asked the Zhang family's retainer, "What is that wandering knight's cultivation level?"
The retainer replied, "It is said to be unfathomable, mysterious, and its cultivation level is unknown."
Zhang Feng waved his hand and said, "Stop talking nonsense, there's no better way, let's go!"
The Earl of Pingyuan cupped his hands in greeting, wiped the sweat from his brow, and then hurriedly left with his retainers.
Zhang Feng glared at Sun Zhongming and said, "Lord Sun, you should leave too. We don't know if the night watchmen have been watching this matter, so let's not see each other again anytime soon."
Sun Zhongming stood up, but his legs went weak, and he almost fell over, which earned him a glare from Zhang Feng.
"Fortunately, Lord Zhang was here, otherwise I could only sit and wait for my entire family to be exterminated..."
After Sun Zhongming left, Zhang Feng's legs went weak, and he slumped into a chair. Not long after, he got up, walked to the weapon rack, and picked up an exquisite sword.
"Zhang Yi, you're such a troublemaker!"
Inside the inner city of the palace, a luxurious carriage made of golden nanmu wood was speeding along, and a knight was chasing after it on horseback.
"Your Highness, Princess Lin'an has already gone to the government office. She looks very angry. She smashed several things and was carrying the precious sword bestowed upon her by His Majesty."
"The news of the princess's incident has spread throughout the capital. The Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review have also dispatched capable experts who are on their way to provide support outside the city. The matter has not yet been fully investigated, and His Majesty is not aware of it yet."
Princess Huaiqing's anger had not yet subsided, but she said calmly, "I understand."
She took out a small jade mirror, which was equally lively.
[Number 5: How can the capital be in such chaos?! The chief constable of the Six Doors was killed just a few days ago, and even the princess was almost raped! What kind of world is this?!]