The struggle for the throne among nine princes—I really don't want to be the crown prince.

Chapter 374 I welcome reasoning, and I also welcome unreasonable behavior.

Shang Rongjun's face turned bright red, and he was stammering, unsure how to respond, when someone next to him spoke up:

"Your Highness, you seem to have misunderstood what Lord Shang meant just now."

"He's right, Lord Tian's death was purely an accident!"

"In addition, Lord Tian already had a pre-existing condition. These internal and external factors combined led to his unexpected sudden death!"

"Surely, there's some explanation for this kind of unexpected turn of events, isn't there?"

The speaker was a man in his thirties to Shang Rongjun's left, also dressed in the robes of a sixth-rank official, who looked very refined.

As soon as this person arrived, Shen Ye figured out his background—

Left Yindu, Censor of the Censorate!
When it comes to exams, this guy might not be as good as Shang Rongjun.

However, when it comes to the skill of substituting one thing for another and shifting the focus, he is far more adept than Shang Rongjun.

Upon hearing this, Shen Ye was so angry that he laughed: "Lu Baizhou and the others beat up Tian Wenjing on purpose."

"This has absolutely nothing to do with whether Lady Tian Wenjing is ill or not!"

After speaking, he glanced at Zuo Yindu, then at Shang Rongjun, whose face was flushed red, and said with a hint of sarcasm:
"According to your absurd logic, if I were to kill you with a knife, it wouldn't be my fault for being ruthless, but rather that your neck wasn't strong enough to withstand my blade? What kind of logic is that!"

His voice suddenly turned cold:
"If you're going to knock on the gate with such a sophistry, then I really have to wonder how you even passed the imperial examination!"

"Did all those classic texts of sages go to waste?"

Zuo Yin was so frightened by this barrage of blows and punches that he broke out in a cold sweat.

He felt that if he continued to dwell on the cause of Tian Wenjing's death, he would be led by the nose by the Crown Prince.

But if you try to put it another way, the momentum is gone. He moved his lips, but didn't dare to say anything more.

The scene froze for a moment.

Just then, a sturdy-looking man to Shang Rongjun's right spoke up: "Your Highness, this time Lu Baizhou and his group acted somewhat inconsiderately, which is truly inappropriate."

"But their intentions were right; they wanted to rid the court of a scourge!"

"They're not targeting Lord Tian Wenjing, but that wicked brat who has no ruler, no father, and no teacher—Zhen Yan!"

"The rise and fall of the nation is the responsibility of every citizen! Let us unite to face the national crisis and punish the wicked!"

"I believe that the Crown Prince should not only not be punished for this behavior, but should be rewarded instead."

"Only in this way can the imperial court remain as stable as Mount Tai!"

"Only in this way will more people be willing to risk their lives and fight wholeheartedly for the imperial court!"

"Please, Your Highness, see the truth!"

Zhang Ying listened from the side and nodded secretly.

Shang Rongjun just said a lot, and he was quite emotional, sounding indignant.

However, the focus is too scattered, making it easy for the crown prince to defeat them one by one.

Unlike the good student now, who is focused on "loyalty to the emperor and serving the country".

As long as the Crown Prince cannot refute this point, then Tian Wenjing's death is not a big deal at all!
What does it matter if Tian Wenjing dies?
At worst, we can just pay some money back and be done with it!

The key now is not to discourage the loyal ministers of the land!
Shen Ye looked at the person who spoke, his expression remaining calm, and casually asked, "What position does my dear minister currently hold?"

"I am a seventh-rank compiler in the Hanlin Academy, Cheng Youdao," the kind-looking man replied in a deep voice.

Shen Ye smiled and said, "The imperial court has its own laws and regulations."

"If even the laws and regulations are disregarded, wouldn't the whole world descend into chaos?"

He stared at Cheng Youdao and continued, "Whether a minister is a treacherous official or not is not up to you or him to decide."

"If that's the case, then if someone calls you a traitor, can they just beat you to death and not be held responsible?"

"From then on, there will be no need to reason in the court."

"Whoever has more people, just accuse the other of being a traitor and kill them, wouldn't that solve the problem?"

His gaze fell on Cheng Youdao: "Lord Cheng, the laws of the court are not child's play."

"Do you understand what the world would become if everyone disregarded the law?"

Cheng Youdao opened his mouth, wanting to refute, but was speechless for a moment.

He had a vague feeling that what the Crown Prince said made a lot of sense.

If what the Crown Prince said is true, I might not even know how I died one day.

However, he was unwilling to admit defeat so easily.

The fact that everyone pushed them forward shows that they trust them.

If we were to suffer a crushing defeat and slink back home, we would feel incredibly frustrated!

Moreover, if something like this happens again, who will believe them?
"Your Highness, Lü Baizhou and the others are truly loyal!"

"We are willing to vouch for them with our own official hats. Please, Your Highness, spare them this time, considering their unwavering loyalty."

Shang Rongjun hesitated for a moment, then suddenly took off his official hat, knelt on the ground, and solemnly said.

When Cheng Youdao and Zuo Yin saw this, their expressions changed.

Although they didn't quite agree with Shang Rongjun's approach, the three of them were now in the same boat.

We are all in this together, whether we prosper or suffer.

If you back down now, you'll definitely be looked down upon.

So they had no choice but to remove their official hats and say in unison, "We are also willing to vouch for Lü Baizhou and the others, please have mercy, Your Highness!"

Shang Rongjun and the others spoke with a tragic tone, but Shen Ye knew in his heart that this was a case of being unable to reason with each other and resorting to shameless tactics to force a change of heart.

Looking at Shang Rongjun's generous expression, Shen Ye said indifferently, "Shang Rongjun, you have truly disappointed me!"

"When they can't win an argument by reasoning, they start resorting to threats."

"You guys have some nerve."

"I'm giving you one last chance: put on your hats, leave here, and tell the people kneeling outside the court's attitude."

"Make them realize their mistake and disperse." "I can let bygones be bygones and pretend this never happened."

"Otherwise, don't blame me for acting according to the law!"

Shang Rongjun's face turned pale instantly, his heart skipped a beat, and his legs went weak.

But this timidity was barely sprouted before it was immediately suppressed by the stubbornness of a scholar within him.

He knew in his heart that if he withdrew today, he wouldn't be able to explain it to his classmates who had recommended them.

Besides, he's a top scholar in the imperial examination!

He is a man of great learning and outstanding talent, destined to become a pillar of the court and a high-ranking official.

Not to mention the Crown Prince, even Emperor Qianxi couldn't bear to see such a talented person like him perish.

With that thought, he straightened his back a bit more and decided to tough it out.

Cheng Youdao and Zuo Yindu both stared at Shang Rongjun, their expressions shifting.

This is, after all, related to their bright future, so they have to be careful.

Just as they were struggling internally, Shang Rongjun made up his mind—he wouldn't back down!

"Your Majesty, I am utterly devoted, solely to preserve the last vestige of righteousness in the court!"

As soon as he said this, he was moved, and his voice involuntarily rose a few decibels:
"Your Majesty, I implore you to be shrewd and spare Lü Baizhou and his accomplices. I would gladly die nine times over!"

As expected of the top scholar, his words were inspiring and very moving.

Zhang Ying and Li Guangdi stood on either side of Shen Ye, like two door gods, neither speaking nor making any moves.

It was as if all of this had nothing to do with them.

In fact, they had been observing Shen Ye's reaction out of the corner of their eyes, trying to see what kind of person the Crown Prince really was.

Is it outwardly strong but inwardly weak, or outwardly gentle but inwardly firm?

"Since you can't distinguish right from wrong, the court doesn't need a muddle-headed fool like you who can't even tell the difference between right and wrong!"

After saying that, Shen Ye's voice was as cold as ice shards in the dead of winter. He instructed Zhou Bao, "Remove his official hat and have the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel abolish his academic titles!"

"Reclaim all written records written since birth!"

When he heard that his official hat was to be removed, Shang Rongjun stubbornly stuck out his neck, acting as if he was "not afraid".

But upon hearing that the system of granting official titles was to be abolished, he felt as if he had been struck by a blunt object, causing him to tremble all over.

If he was merely dismissed from his official post, he would still be a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination) and the Zhuangyuan (top scholar in the imperial examination).

Even if they went home, they would still be considered part of the officials and gentry, and their lives might even be more comfortable.

However, once he loses his official rank, he becomes nothing more than a commoner!

Even if he gains fame, it means that all his hard work in studying and his potential to bring glory to his ancestors will be wasted.

The "confiscation of all written records since birth" would be an even greater catastrophe.

This means that within the official and gentry system of the Great Zhou Dynasty, he was completely erased!
It not only affected him, but also brought shame upon his family.

Shang Rongjun felt dizzy and his body swayed. He almost lost his balance. If he hadn't been afraid of falling and losing face, he really wouldn't have been able to hold on.

He swallowed hard, his throat dry, and couldn't help but say, "Your Highness, you can't do this."

"I will not surrender!"

Shen Ye said calmly, "I came here in the cold wind to express my sincerity and to reason with you."

“But when reasoning fails, you start to cheat.”

"Since you all want to cheat, then I'll show you that if you don't follow the rules, I can too."

At this point, Shen Ye turned his gaze to Zuo Yindu: "Lord Zuo, I'll ask you one more time, do you also want to follow in Shang Rongjun's footsteps?"

Zuo Yindu's heart trembled, and he hesitated before saying, "Your Highness, this humble subject... this humble subject..."

"If Lord Zuo also wants to stick to his principles, then he should be dealt with the same way as Shang Rongjun: strip him of his official position and his academic qualifications..."

Before Shen Ye could finish speaking, Zuo Yindu quickly interjected, "Your Highness, I know I was wrong! My actions were rash!"

"Your Majesty believes that everything should still be handled in accordance with the laws of the Imperial Court."

"Please forgive me, Your Highness!"

After saying this, Zuo Yindu's tense nerves relaxed.

Although he was prepared to be dismissed from office, he did not expect the Crown Prince's punishment to be so severe.

Furthermore, with Shang Rongjun's example serving as a cautionary tale, the faint spark of righteousness in my heart was completely extinguished.

What greater cause could be more important than protecting oneself?

The price is too high! He can't afford to take that risk.

Moreover, he finally got to where he is today after a lot of hard work.

Why should he risk his promising future for someone else?

After weighing the pros and cons, he simply threw his pride aside.

This time, people might gossip behind his back, but at least he has preserved his identity, fame, and official position.

Although Shang Rongjun may be praised by some people, he will be just an ordinary citizen from now on.

He was also disliked by the Crown Prince, so his future was predictable.

Yang Shen was so powerful back then, but after becoming a commoner, he could only stay in the countryside for the rest of his life.

He didn't want that.

He still wants to live a good life!

Shen Ye smiled slightly as he looked at Zuo Yindu, who seemed relieved.

Their gaze then turned to Cheng Youdao—did this Lord Cheng know whether he understood the times?

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(End of this chapter)