Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 155 Whether it's fake or not, you don't need to say it.

To be honest, their fate was sealed the moment they were subdued. Senior Cui's martial arts were simply too superb; dealing with these few was more than enough. So, although General Zhao was very stubborn, he surrendered in less than half an incense stick's time.

He confessed to everything he had done. When Jiu Que learned that General Zhao was also involved in the human trafficking, he was furious. Good! So, they all knowingly broke the law, huh? They were originally from Da Jing, and even held official positions there, yet they didn't care about the people of Da Jing. Instead, they stood on high ground, trampling on the blood and flesh of innocent people, and then turned around to mock others. They profited and then acted innocent!

"Zhao Gou, I ask you, do you even know that the price of the salt you sell far exceeds the price set by His Majesty? Don't you understand the importance of affordability?! Right here in Yancheng, a place abundant in salt, there are people who can't afford the lowest quality salt and have to resort to using vinegar cloths to stave off hunger. Don't tell me you didn't know!"

Zhao Gou opened his mouth, but in the end, he gave up.

"Since you already know, why bring it up? I do know the price is high. But if the price weren't high, where would I make the money? Do you think being a general is easy? Do you think I don't need to bribe officials everywhere? But since I have to bribe officials, and I don't have the money, I can only make money from these places. Instead of blaming me, why don't you open your eyes and look around? Where in the entire officialdom doesn't require bribery?! It's the same everywhere in the world, so why should I be the only one blamed? You officials in the capital have all the advantages, and you've always had a life of comfort since childhood. How could you understand how difficult it is for people like us to climb to the top?"

Jiu Que sneered. She had heard these words before. Liang Heng, a young man who had risen rapidly through the ranks, was still not satisfied. He believed that the existence of powerful families was hindering his progress, and even went so far as to pledge allegiance to a prince in the court, committing all sorts of unethical acts. However, when Jiu Que questioned him, she did not sense any clear remorse in his attitude. Perhaps he only regretted not being more discreet.

Or perhaps they felt incredibly unlucky to have been discovered. But it wasn't anyone else's fault; they were the ones who couldn't stay true to themselves, yet they turned around and blamed others.

Furthermore...

"But what does all this have to do with ordinary people? Are they destined to be forced to use vinegar cloth because of the high price of salt? And what about the salt workers in the salt fields? You lured them with high prices and promised them extremely high wages, but not only did the wages disappear, you also cleverly turned them into slaves. At the beginning of the founding of our Great Jing Dynasty, His Majesty already proclaimed to the world the abolition of slavery. This decree was circulated ten times to ensure that every county knew about it. Don't you know that?"

"You knew perfectly well the salt price set by His Majesty, and you knew that slavery had been abolished, yet you still chose to do this illegal act. Knowing the law and breaking it is an even greater crime!"

Zhao Gou trembled with fear.

Every criminal in this world has probably silently imagined what it would be like to be arrested. But even if they've rehearsed it a thousand times in their minds, when the day actually comes, they still can't help but feel afraid.

His mind raced, desperately trying to recall anything that could prolong his death. But he was used to being arrogant and domineering, and had never done anything so exhausting. For a moment, he couldn't think of anything, until a glimpse of the bed beside him caught his eye, and his eyes lit up!

"But I didn't do any of this! I was just following orders. The entire Yancheng is the Prince's territory, and as his subordinate, I could only follow his orders. At most, I'm an accomplice. And as for those transactions with the Northern Barbarians you mentioned, I didn't get involved. To be honest, I did notice something unusual about the Prince's behavior, but I dared not object or interfere. After all, he's not only the Prince, but also my uncle. What could I do in this situation? I could only turn a blind eye." What a clever way to shift the blame! Even the dying fake Prince couldn't help but glance at Zhao Gou again. Although he already knew this guy was a useless fool, he still felt he'd learned something new today. Did he really think that finding someone else to take the blame after being caught red-handed was enough? Utterly foolish.

The fake prince only glanced at Zhao Gou before feeling exasperated, and simply withdrew his gaze to continue staring at the unconscious 'Prince of Binyang'. The ways of heaven are constant; no one can do something without leaving a trace. Besides, could that idiot Zhao Gou possibly erase the mess he'd made?
He finally understood: this woman who had fallen from the sky was not someone to be trifled with. He was probably going to die, but he was curious to see what kind of punishment those powerful figures behind the scenes, who could so easily control the lives of others, would receive. Those people probably thought he was just a pawn without any self-awareness, but who said a pawn couldn't rise up and become the player? He wasn't like that fool Liang Heng, who was obsessed with his master coming to his rescue. If he died, he'd at least drag a few high-ranking officials down with him before he died, right? Otherwise, nobody would care about his worthless life.

Seeing Zhao Gou's clumsy performance, Jiu Que couldn't bear to expose him, but even if she couldn't bear it, there was nothing she could do, so she regretfully told him.

"You can't convict the Prince of Binyang with just your words, unless you have concrete witnesses and physical evidence."

Zhao Gou gritted his teeth and stamped his foot, then simply told the truth.

“I am the witness. This Prince Binyang is an imposter. The real prince was taken into his control three years ago and his whereabouts are still unknown. It took me a long time to confirm this, but I am of low rank and cannot contend with the fake prince. So I have been patient, but over the years I have gradually collected a lot of evidence. If Your Excellency needs it, I will present it immediately. I only ask that Your Excellency, in consideration of my being the first to accuse me, reduce my punishment.”

It turns out that Zhao Gou wasn't entirely useless; at least he was quite adept at playing these kinds of tricks in private.

Jiu Que did indeed need this evidence, so he nodded. Zhao Gou immediately offered to bring the evidence over right away, but received only a half-smile from the imperial envoy.

"Trying to pull this trick on me? Who knows if you'll yell 'Assassin!' and then surround the house, leaving me no way to escape?"

Zhao Gou's heart skipped a beat, and he responded with great humility.

"How could I dare? I sincerely want to bring the evidence. If you don't believe me, you can send someone to follow me until I'm sure I've brought the evidence."

Jiu Que didn't bother with his little scheme at all, rejecting him decisively and immediately preparing to contact Chunyu Shuang and the others.

(End of this chapter)