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

Chapter 555 The Drum of Appeal: The Horn of Counterattack

Longkodo felt a tightness in his chest as he left Yuqing Palace.

If the Crown Prince were to send any random nobody to the Infantry Commander's office, Longkodo would have plenty of ways to make them "give up in the face of difficulty."

After all, he had been operating in the territory of the Infantry Commander's Office for many years and had deep roots there.

Ordinary people want to shake Longkodo's chair? No way!
But this time, instead of a cat or a dog, a prince arrived.

That would be different!

He was the commander of the infantry, and indeed the top leader;

But the princes were born to be the sons of dragons and phoenixes, of noble birth, and in terms of status alone, they were definitely superior to him.

To outsiders, the prince was the ruler, and he was the subject; the difference in their status was enormous.

Even if his subordinates still obey his orders, his authority will still tremble.

Moreover, the tenth prince was in charge of criminal justice, so it was perfectly legitimate.

Would Longkodo dare to oppose the Tenth Prince's words?

Even if the tenth prince is wrong, he would have to carefully consider his tone and attitude before objecting.

If the Tenth Prince had followed the rules exactly, he wouldn't have dared to utter a single word of dissent.

and also……

The Tenth Prince was notorious for his arrogant and reckless behavior, a fact personally acknowledged by Emperor Qianxi!
What if one day he takes a dislike to me and beats me up without warning? Then it would probably be for nothing!

Even if the Emperor were here, would his cousin, the Emperor, side with his own son? Of course he would protect his own son first!
Longkodo felt increasingly frustrated and sullen all the way home, so he simply turned and went straight home.

When I entered, Tong Guowei was receiving guests.

As soon as the guests left, Longkodo barged into the study without saying a word.

Now the Tong family still relies on him for many things, so Longkodo has also become more assertive at home.

Seeing his ashen face, Tong Guowei slowly began to speak:

"Who has offended our Lord Long, that he's so furious?"

Hearing his father's sarcastic words, Longkodo sneered: "Who else could it be? It's none other than my own father!"

"Regarding the Maqi matter, I'm just asking you to prepare in advance."

"And what did you do? The very next day, you sent Ma Qi and his stupid son to apologize in person!"

"Haha, he even beat his son in public, staging a 'righteous act of sacrificing family for the greater good'!"

"He's truly impartial and incorruptible, Father!"

Longkodo became increasingly agitated as he spoke:
"But my chief minister, do you know how much I suffered at the hands of the crown prince today?"

Tong Guowei calmly sipped his tea: "At most, I'll just give you a scolding, it's no big deal."

"Hmph, scold me? You make it sound so easy!"

"The Crown Prince found me a father right away!"

Longkodo's words were ambiguous and cryptic, which immediately broke Tong Guowei's defenses.

So you've found yourself a father? Then who am I?!

You damned bastard!
"Dangdang!"

Tong Guowei's hand trembled, and the teacup slammed onto the table with a crash. He shouted angrily, "What nonsense are you spouting, you brat!"

"Why did the Crown Prince find you a father?"

"The Crown Prince neither got angry nor punished me when Ma Qi took his son to apologize."

"I was just busy with official duties, and mistakes were inevitable."

"To ease my burden, I have specially dispatched the Tenth Prince to temporarily oversee criminal matters there."

"Isn't this just like inviting a living ancestor for me to worship?!"

Tong Guowei frowned, then realized:

This isn't helping; it's clearly putting a tight headband on his son's head!

Is the Tenth Prince someone who can be neglected?
We cannot afford to neglect or be negligent!

If Longkodo's underhanded tricks are caught and he gets a beating from the Tenth Prince, then it would probably be all for nothing.

Thinking of this, he felt a pang of guilt towards Longkodo.

Her tone softened, and she patted her son's shoulder:

"Just bear with it for now. The Crown Prince's crackdown on crime is probably coming to an end soon."

"The tenth prince won't be staying long either; he'll go back soon."

After hearing his father's words, Longkodo's anger subsided somewhat.

Looking at his father, he hesitated and asked, "Are you all really ready?"

"You can rest assured about that!"

Tong Guowei said confidently, "This time there will definitely be no more mishaps."

Longkodo didn't say anything more.

He knew his father's personality; he usually kept a low profile, but he would never make promises he wasn't sure about.

Tong Guowei did not disappoint his son. Seven days later, a thunderous drumbeat broke the tranquility of the Forbidden City.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The thunderous drumbeats, combined with the gloomy sky, gave the impression that a storm was brewing.

Shen Ye was strolling around the courtyard of Yuqing Palace with his hands behind his back.

For him, work is important, but health is even more important.

These days, with limited medical resources, health is the foundation of everything.

As soon as the drumbeat sounded, he stopped in his tracks, his brows furrowing deeply: "What's going on?"

Zhou Bao, standing beside her, was also completely bewildered. Just as he was about to send someone to inquire, Wei Zhu bowed and replied:

"Your Highness, that's the sound of the Dengwen Drum! Someone is beating the Dengwen Drum!"

Shen Ye's heart skipped a beat!
Memories of the former crown prince flooded his mind in an instant. The Dengwen Drum was established by the founding emperor; those who had been wronged could strike the Dengwen Drum to appeal to the emperor!
However, the Dengwen Drum is not something that can be struck casually; the rules are very strict.

According to the regulations of Emperor Taizu, those who beat the drum to appeal to the emperor, regardless of the size of their grievances, must first be given fifty strokes of the cane before anything else is discussed.

This rule is clearly an anti-harassment mechanism: to prevent people from constantly making accusations.

The emperor's time was too precious to spend every day seeking justice for others.

A person who can grit their teeth and endure fifty lashes must have a deep-seated hatred for someone.

Furthermore, starting with the Qianxi Emperor, the Dengwen Drum was given special protection by the Ministry of Justice and the Imperial Guards.

Ordinary people want to get close? They simply can't even reach the Dengwen Drum.

Emperor Qianxi was fully aware of this situation.

However, he turned a blind eye and tacitly approved, since it's always better to avoid trouble.

However, once the drum for petitioning is sounded, according to the rules set by the ancestors, the emperor must ascend the throne and hear the case, no matter where he is.

Shen Ye's mind raced, but his expression remained calm and composed:

"Have the imperial guards bring the drummer here. Also, have Tong Guowei and the others wait in the main hall."

Half an hour later, Shen Ye sat in the main hall of Yuqing Palace.

Although as regent, he could use the Qianqing Palace and even the Taihe Hall, Shen Ye had basically never used them.

Tong Guowei and his entourage had already arrived. Seeing Shen Ye sitting high above, they all bowed and said, "Greetings, Your Highness."

Shen Ye's gaze swept across the faces of Tong Guowei, Zhang Ying, the Third Prince, and the Eighth Prince, and he sneered inwardly:
None of the staff members in the Southern Study left by my father were of the same mind as me.

They're all old foxes, all treacherous villains!

Do they really not know that the petition drum has sounded this time? They're fooling us!

Shen Ye smiled faintly and looked at Tong Guowei, saying, "Prime Minister Tong, do you know who beat the petition drum?"

"This old minister does not know," Tong Guowei said, appearing completely unperturbed.

Actually, he was secretly overjoyed at that moment, how could I not know!

The stage is set up, and we're just waiting for you, the Crown Prince, to take the stage!

Shen Ye didn't expose him, and calmly said:
"Then bring the person up here. I want to hear what injustice is more unjust than fifty strokes of the cane."

Before long, a man who looked to be in his thirties and had the appearance of a scholar was brought up.

He hadn't been punished yet for striking the drum on his own, and he seemed relatively calm, though his legs were trembling a little.

After the man kowtowed and paid his respects, Shen Ye asked calmly, "Who are you, and why are you beating the petition drum?"

The scholar looked up, his voice trembling:
"Reporting to the Crown Prince, my student Shen Zhuowang is a scholar from Wanping County."

"Today, I risk my life to beat the drum... I want to seek justice for my father!"

"My father was originally an honest and upright man."

“Some time ago, Ma Dianshi from Wanping County took a fancy to a shop in front of the school and wanted to buy it at a low price.”

"The shop in front of my house can bring in twenty taels of silver in rent every year!"

"But he wanted to buy it, yet he only gave us five taels of silver."

"This is absolutely outrageous!"

"My father naturally disagreed with this kind of extortion."

"That Clerk Ma held a grudge. Some time ago, under the pretext of the imperial court's efforts to maintain social order, he found a poor family to falsely accuse my father of bullying the good and seizing other people's property two years ago, and had my father arrested!"

Before my father could even defend himself, the yamen runners under Magistrate Ma beat him mercilessly in an attempt to force him to confess, and they actually beat him to death.

"The students filed complaints everywhere, but the officials of Shuntian Prefecture and the Ministry of Justice protected each other and refused to accept them."

"If you really want to say it, say that my father was a wicked man who oppressed the good and deserved to die."

"That Clerk Ma even boasted that they were carrying out Your Highness's orders, and that it would be no use for me to complain to the heavens!"

Shen Ye remained calm, but in his heart he knew perfectly well: they were indeed coming for me!

Shen Zhuowang said with tears streaming down his face, "I have no way to repay the kindness of being born and raised."

"I will fight to the death today, just to clear my father's name!"

"He was an honest and simple man all his life, and it's heartbreaking to see him end up like this!"

Shen Ye nodded, her tone gentle:

"I understand your grievances. Your filial piety is commendable. I will entrust this matter to the three judicial departments for a thorough investigation."

Turning to Zhou Baodao:

“Take him away. Tell the Imperial Guards that although the rules set by our ancestors cannot be changed, the punishment can be ‘lightened’ as appropriate.”

"He's a filial son, don't hurt him."

Zhou Bao hurriedly agreed, but in his heart he thought, "The Crown Prince's use of the word 'at his discretion' is truly brilliant."

They quickly led the imperial guards to take the person away.

As soon as Shen Zhuowang was taken away, Zhang Ying slowly stepped forward, his face showing the expression of a loyal and patriotic minister, and said earnestly:

"Your Highness, although this case was minor, its impact is far-reaching, and it is quite inappropriate."

"If it is confirmed that Ma Dianshi was indeed using this as an opportunity to settle personal scores, it will likely incite even greater public outrage."

"Your Highness, your efforts to improve public order in the capital were originally for the long-term stability of the court, and were a move that would benefit the country and its people."

"But everything still needs to be considered. Too much rigidity leads to breakage, and too little is as bad as too little."

“The laws of the imperial court are too strict, and it is inevitable that some unscrupulous people will take advantage of the loopholes and cause trouble, which may lead to a regrettable incident like that of Shen Zhuowang’s father.”

"In my humble opinion, the security situation in the capital has been greatly improved after this period of time, and the results are remarkable."

"This kind of rectification that goes back three years should be temporarily suspended to give the people a breather."

"Only in this way can the people's hearts be at ease and His Highness's benevolence be demonstrated. We hope Your Highness will consider this carefully!"

　It's almost the end of the month, so if any of you have any votes, please give me a couple! I'm begging for votes!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)