Chapter Eighty-One: The Truth Revealed
Lin Miaomiao nodded after hearing this, and suddenly understood that the bird’s nest had been obtained by Li Yanhe at the risk of his life on the battlefield, so she no longer felt like eating it. Li Yanhe, a man who astonished many, noticed Lin Miaomiao hesitating to continue eating, and instantly realized why she had stopped. Li Yanhe reached out his large hand, gently patted Lin Miaomiao’s head, and said, “It makes me happy to see you eat this.”
Hearing his words, Lin Miaomiao felt a sudden warmth blossom in her heart. After finishing the bird’s nest, she looked at Li Yanhe and said, “Then I’ll earn lots and lots of money and let you spend it all in the future.”
Li Yanhe nodded at her words, and together, the two sat down to breakfast in cheerful spirits, unaware that the capital itself was on the brink of upheaval, with all its powers stirring restlessly.
Lately, rumors had been spreading in the capital: the Crown Prince, Li Hanwen, was jealous of his younger brother and had tried several times to have him assassinated. The younger brother, of course, was Li Yanhe.
Once this story began to circulate, the people of the capital started to speculate. The current crown prince, they said, was a man without talent or virtue; during his regency, he had left the people homeless and destitute.
The next day, as court convened, most officials knelt in the Hall of Supreme Harmony and called out to Emperor Yongchang: “The crown prince lacks both talent and virtue. He is unfit for the position of heir.”
Emperor Yongchang was furious. With a sweep of his sleeve, he stormed out. The crown prince, Li Hanwen, merely stood there in silence, watching as the retainers of the Third Prince withdrew.
Li Hanwen knelt outside the imperial study, beneath a sky heavy with gloom, while everyone in the palace sensed that a fierce storm was about to break.
Third Prince Li Taian, seeing the crown prince kneeling outside the imperial study, could not help but sigh. He turned to Xiao Gexu behind him and said, “Let’s see how Father will handle this.”
Emperor Yongchang emerged from the study, saw the crown prince kneeling before him in his inner robes, and sighed. “The crown prince is unwell,” he said. “From tomorrow onward, claim illness.”
Li Hanwen’s eyes reddened as he knelt, and he bowed his head deeply in the direction the emperor had gone. “Your subject thanks Your Majesty for your boundless grace.”
Li Hanwen remained on his knees for a long time. From that day forward, he did not leave the Eastern Palace. It was said the crown prince was ill.
When Third Prince Li Taian heard the news from the palace, he revealed a handsome smile. Turning to Xiao Gexu, he said, “The Crown Prince is claiming illness.”
Xiao Gexu nodded in understanding, while Li Hanwen remained in the Eastern Palace.
After Li Hanwen claimed illness, the palace doors were tightly shut, and even his servants were dismissed. The new servants were few and far between, and were in fact placed there by Emperor Yongchang to keep watch over him.
In the first month of the fifteenth year of Yongchang’s reign, the officials at court were divided—some petitioned for the abolition of the crown prince, while others pleaded for his retention.
Fourth Prince Li Deren stepped forward and knelt before the emperor. “Your subject wishes to present a memorial.”
Emperor Yongchang glanced at him and said, “Proceed.”
Li Deren handed his memorial to the chief eunuch, Bai Qiu, who in turn placed it before the emperor. After reading it, Emperor Yongchang hurled it at Li Deren’s face.
“Absurd!” the emperor shouted, rising to his feet. “Investigate this thoroughly!” He flung the memorial to the floor, and all present could see its contents. Third Prince Li Taian’s face turned ashen when he read what was written.
The emperor immediately ordered the Imperial Clan Court to take Li Taian away; without imperial summons, no one was to visit him.
Upon entering the Imperial Clan Court, Li Taian understood that his fate was sealed. The fourth prince and the crown prince had set him up.
In the second month of the fifteenth year, Li Taian was brought forth from the Imperial Clan Court. Consort De was demoted, and Li Taian knew then that all was lost.
Kneeling before Emperor Yongchang, Li Taian was struck on the forehead by a thrown memorial, drawing blood. Looking through the stack of memorials before him, Li Taian gave a mocking smile.
The emperor fixed him with a cold stare. “The criminal confesses his crimes.”
With a furious slam of his palm on the table, the emperor shouted, “You are dismissed from office!”
Li Taian knelt and bowed his head. “All the faults are mine alone and have nothing to do with others.”
He knocked his head to the floor once more, and in the end, the emperor was silent. Soon, Li Taian was sent to guard the imperial mausoleum, forbidden to enter the capital without summons.
When the crown prince, Li Hanwen, at last emerged from the Eastern Palace, he found Li Deren waiting for him at the gate, holding an umbrella.
Li Hanwen lifted his head and said to Li Deren, “Spring has come; the willows are budding.”
Li Deren draped a cloak over the crown prince’s shoulders. At that moment, Seventh Prince Li Yankang and Ninth Prince Li Yonghe appeared and bowed in salute.
“Your Highness, the Crown Prince,” they greeted.
Li Hanwen looked at them with a mocking smile. He bent down and said, “I have a good memory. I hold grudges. Don’t think that being young allows you to do as you please.”
He straightened his cloak and added, “See? Someone has already crossed Father’s bottom line.” With that, he left with Li Deren.
Li Hanwen returned to the imperial study, knelt outside, and requested an audience. When the emperor heard him, he glanced at Li Zheng.
Li Zheng made a gesture of farewell and left. Li Hanwen entered the study, and the emperor looked at his son.
Truly ruthless, both to himself and to others. The emperor asked, “Are you satisfied now?”
Li Hanwen knelt and replied, “Your son does not understand what Your Majesty means.”
He bowed his head, then turned and left.
Chief Eunuch Bai Qiu approached and said, “Your Majesty, Xiao Gexu, the Grand Secretary’s son, requests an audience.”
“Let him in,” the emperor said.
Bai Qiu withdrew. Xiao Gexu entered, knelt, and said, “Your Majesty, I am guilty. All faults are mine alone. I persuaded the Third Prince, Li Taian, to defy his sovereign, to frame and attempt to assassinate his brother. I beg Your Majesty’s forgiveness.”
The emperor gave a sardonic smile. “Since you and the Third Prince share such affection as master and servant, you should remain in your residence and reflect.”
He waved him off. Xiao Gexu knelt and bowed his head.
Li Taian had defied his sovereign, framed his brother, and wounded a court official. “I never expected the Third Prince to be so ambitious, to attempt fratricide and frame the Crown Prince. One so lacking in filial piety and virtue is unworthy to remain my son. Strip him of his rank, and let him atone before our ancestors.”
Li Taian knelt, listening to Bai Qiu declare the sentence, and gave a bitter, mocking laugh, calling toward the palace, “The criminal Li Taian thanks Your Majesty for your boundless grace!”
Xiao Gexu, sitting in his carriage, coughed up blood. He was sent by the Grand Secretary’s family to the countryside to recover.
The emperor decreed: “Xiao Gexu, son of the Grand Secretary, is frail in health. In consideration of the Grand Secretary’s lifelong service, he is permitted to recuperate in the countryside.”
Li Taian knelt in gratitude as Bai Qiu handed him the imperial edict. “Your Highness, it is time to depart. His Majesty has shown mercy, sparing Consort De and the Grand Secretary’s household. Only the eldest son must leave to recover.”
Li Taian rose, glanced at Bai Qiu, and said, “Rest assured, I will inform the Crown Prince.”
He boarded his carriage, and as it rolled away, Xiao Gexu watched the capital recede into the distance. He gazed up at the sky and murmured, “This place is too oppressive. Better to find a quiet spot and live out my days in peace.” As he spoke, he saw Li Taian’s carriage pass by his own.
Yet both carriages were sealed tight with planks, so neither could see the world outside.
It was from Li Zheng that Lin Miaomiao learned about what happened after Li Yanhe was wounded. She asked Li Yanhe in some puzzlement, “Were you really assassinated?”
Li Yanhe gave a wry smile. “No, but both the crown prince and the third prince will think the other was behind it.”
Lin Miaomiao didn’t quite understand. Li Yanhe looked at her and explained, “You should know, years ago it was the crown prince and the third prince who tried to have me killed.”
He sighed. “With me gone from the capital, the struggle for power was left to those two.”
Looking at Lin Miaomiao, he continued, “If I die, the command at Da’an Pass will fall to someone else. The third prince’s faction wants the crown prince to take over, hoping to use my death to frame him. The crown prince hopes my death will send the third prince to the border. In the end, my death would serve both their interests.”
His bitter smile deepened. Lin Miaomiao frowned—she had never realized there was so much behind the last assassination attempt on Li Yanhe.
He sighed again. “In the contest between the third prince and the crown prince, it’s clear the crown prince was the more skilled. By feigning illness in the Eastern Palace for three months, he managed to bring down a formidable rival.”
Lin Miaomiao, hearing his explanation, was curious. “Why? Why didn’t the third prince’s people support the crown prince?”
Li Yanhe laughed. “The third prince thought that by joining forces with the seventh and ninth princes, he could topple the crown prince and install a new heir. But this made Father suspicious. Then the fourth prince exposed the third prince’s attempt on my life, and when the others investigated, all of the third prince’s misdeeds became obvious.”
In that moment, Lin Miaomiao finally understood—the so-called struggle for imperial power was such that one misstep meant falling into an abyss.
She remembered clearly the way Third Prince Li Taian and Xiao Gexu had left the capital, like elegant young gentlemen.
She sighed to Li Yanhe, “If the third prince hadn’t been born into the imperial family, he might have become an excellent poet.”
Li Yanhe fell silent at her words, and Li Zheng, having overheard, also frowned.
Lin Miaomiao took a few silver notes from her account and handed them to Li Zheng. “Here, take these to His Highness, the Third Prince, when you get the chance.”
Li Zheng accepted the silver notes without a word, glancing at Li Yanhe.