The Ming Dynasty's Five Hundred Years

Chapter 139: Supporting the Collapse of the Building

"The capital city, which is usually quite dry, has received a lot of rain this year."

A few days ago, the capital city was hit by a torrential downpour, and today it's drizzling again. Raindrops are strung together on the pavilions and towers of the princess's mansion, and they splash in the pond, creating ripples. On the main road in front of the mansion, raindrops hit the bluestone slabs, splashing up water droplets before slowly flowing into the sewers on both sides.

There were hardly any pedestrians on the street, only a few travelers hurrying by, creating a tranquil atmosphere.

Li Xianmu, wearing a raincoat and holding an umbrella, boarded the carriage. Inside, Princess Lin'an sat solemnly, dressed in an elaborate princess's attire, more dignified than ever before. Usually, she would only wear more elaborate decorations when entering the palace to pay homage to the Empress for a grand ceremony.

She is entering the palace today to pay her respects to Consort Zhang, Zhang Fu's sister.

Of course, everyone knew this was just a pretense. She was simply waiting for her son, Li Xianmu, in the palace so that if anything unexpected happened in the court, she could rescue her son from the emperor's clutches as quickly as possible.

"I've kept Mother waiting."

"It's alright. Today is my son's big day. I'm willing to wait as long as it takes."

Princess Lin'an removed the raincoat from Li Xianmu's body, straightened his collar, and said softly, "Are you confident about entering the palace this time?"

"Nine percent!"

Li Xianmu was very confident.

Princess Lin'an visibly relaxed. Entering the palace today was extremely dangerous. If she were to defend the Crown Prince and things went wrong, she would surely be imprisoned. Even if her life was not in danger, her career would be ruined. She knew what that meant for her son!
The atmosphere at the carriage yard instantly improved. Although the mother and son looked serious, they chatted and laughed as they headed towards the palace.

The rain didn't intensify; it remained a light drizzle. The roads were a bit slippery, but fortunately, the princess's carriage was stable enough.

Before they reached the palace gate, the mother and son's laughter gradually ceased.

Princess Lin'an straightened Li Xianmu's collar again, then gently stroked his head and said softly with a smile, "Mother is waiting for your good news."

The carriage was not cramped. Li Xianmu knelt down and kowtowed three times heavily. Because he was going to see the emperor, no blood appeared on his forehead this time.

"Mother, your son is leaving now."

After saying that, Li Xianmu got out of the car. As soon as he got out, the smile on his face disappeared, and there was a deep worry and determination in his eyes.

He exhaled softly twice, then strode towards the palace, holding his umbrella.

“Mu’er”.

Princess Lin'an, sitting in the carriage, also lost her smile. Her face was filled with deep worry, like the lingering crescent moon in the sky that would never dissipate.

No one knows a son better than his mother; how could she not know that her son was just comforting her?

When meeting the emperor, there's no way you can be 90% certain of anything!
Li Xianmu was led by only a young eunuch. Their footsteps gradually merged in the empty palace corridor, mixed with the pitter-patter of rain. Li Xianmu's mind wandered for a moment. He even had the leisure to ramble on about the raindrops falling from the sky, splashing up a few petals, and then landing in the cracks between the stone bricks.

Even the longest road has an end.

As he stepped through the palace gates and onto the high steps, the majestic palace before him remained unchanged. In the misty rain, it resembled a wild beast ready to devour its prey. The wide-open palace gates were like the gaping maw of a beast. For some reason, two red lanterns swayed on the palace tower, like a pair of blood-red eyes staring intently at Li Xianmu, sending a chill down his spine.

Today, the meeting took place neither in the Fengtian Hall nor the Huagai Hall, but in the Wuying Hall. There were not many people present, only the Emperor, the Crown Prince, the Black-Robed Chancellor Yao Guangxiao, the Prince of Han, and Li Xianmu, who arrived later. Several ministers stood on either side, but all of them kept their heads bowed deeply, and no one dared to speak.

"Your Highness, your savior has arrived."

As soon as Li Xianmu entered the hall, he heard the emperor's mocking laughter.

The crown prince, kneeling on the ground, grew increasingly pale. He said nothing, but kowtowed three times heavily on the ground, then bowed and lay motionless on the ground.

"Your subject Li Xianmu pays his respects to Your Majesty and wishes Your Majesty a long life."

Li Xianmu seemed not to have heard anything and calmly walked into the hall. He had already taken off his raincoat and umbrella in the outer hall, and wiped the mud off his feet. If it weren't for a few drops of water still on his hair, the corners of his eyes, and his brow, he would not have looked like he had come from the rain.

"I am guilty."

After performing the grand ceremony to the emperor, Li Xianmu did not rise immediately, but instead kowtowed deeply again.

Zhu Di was taken aback by Li Xianmu's sudden remark, and involuntarily followed up by asking, "What crime have you committed?"

"Just now Your Majesty said that I am the Crown Prince's savior. I do not understand, and I do not know when I became the Crown Prince's savior. As a minister of the court, I have failed to understand Your Majesty's intentions and failed to perceive the Crown Prince's danger. Have I not committed a crime?"
However, there is one thing I do not understand. I wonder what is wrong with the Crown Prince that Your Majesty could not save him in person and that I had to come to his aid.

Your Majesty is the supreme ruler, holding the power of life and death over the world, while I am but a lowly public instrument of the Ming Dynasty, my words and actions merely serving as a vessel to hold the flower of Your Majesty's great and outstanding thoughts.

If the Crown Prince is not in trouble, he does not need my help; but if the Crown Prince is in trouble, only Your Majesty can save him, not someone as lowly as me!

Li Xianmu spoke these words in the hall, each one distinct and resounding. He then kowtowed again, straightened up, but kept his head slightly lowered, avoiding eye contact with the emperor. He waited quietly for the emperor's evaluation of his words, knowing that the emperor's attitude would determine how he would respond.

Before the emperor could express his opinion, the other ministers in the hall, who had been holding their breath and not daring to utter a sound, were now becoming increasingly tense.

Since Li Xianmu entered the palace, the emperor's attitude has been very direct, directly linking Li Xianmu with the crown prince. Li Xianmu's response, however, has been very clever.

He kept himself very separate from the Crown Prince, yet there was a slight connection between them. After all, if he said he had no relation to the Crown Prince at all, he would be treating the Emperor like a fool; if he said that he and the Crown Prince were indeed closely related, he would anger the Emperor.

He consistently emphasized that he was a loyal subject of the emperor, not the crown prince.

The monk Daoyan, Yao Guangxiao, slightly narrowed his eyes, a smile playing on his lips.

Duke Zhang Fu of Yingguo breathed a slight sigh of relief. Fortunately, his future son-in-law did not directly confront the emperor, proving that he indeed possessed considerable political wisdom.

Before you have the ability to confront the emperor, you must always leave him a way out and the means to make a decision, no matter when or where. If the emperor feels that he has been forced into a corner, it will be a disaster.

"Truly worthy of being the first top scholar personally selected by me, truly worthy of being the first scholar in history to achieve the highest honors in six consecutive imperial examinations, truly worthy of being Li Xianmu, who at the age of twelve surpassed all other scholars in the three hundred prefectures of the Ming Dynasty and won an unprecedented title, truly worthy of being the son of a sage of our time!"

Zhu Di said "Truly worthy" four times in a row, his voice filled with admiration, laughter, and deep-seated tyranny, "With such eloquence, such skill, such cleverness, and such sophistry, what can I do to you?"

These were words that could almost be described as murderous and psychologically damaging. Even the monks Daoyan and Yao Guangxiao, along with other ministers, frowned slightly. Zhu Gaochi slowly clenched his fists. His heart was filled with despair, but he had made up his mind. Today's events were caused by him, and even if it meant paying a heavy price, he would never let Li Xianmu face the emperor's wrath alone. It was just a matter of sharing today's disaster!

But he couldn't speak yet; the final moment hadn't arrived. He remembered Li Xianmu's words: he absolutely couldn't let the emperor suspect that there was an extremely close and profound connection between the two of them.

Faced with the sudden tense and stagnant atmosphere in the shop, Li Xianmu was not afraid and said loudly: "Your Majesty, I once asked my late father how to offer advice and how to debate so that he could win one victory after another and never be defeated."

My father pondered for a long time and said, "Where in this world is there any such thing as winning one victory after another, or being invincible?"

When facing a monarch, one must be sincere and speak earnestly. There are debating skills in this world; the Logicians of the Spring and Autumn Period even made a living from them. However, in the end, one cannot win a debate by sophistry.

Even if renowned scholars could truly argue that a white horse is not a horse, so what? Would the world really believe their sophistry?

Lies don't hurt, truth is the knife.

The core of debate lies in reason and sincerity. When His Majesty can feel the sincerity in your words, you will be invincible!
Your Majesty finds my words reasonable, which is why you believe me!
Your Majesty, I kowtow in gratitude. Under the current circumstances, you still hold such trust in me. I could never repay this immense debt, not even with my life. The only way to repay this great favor is to serve you with utmost sincerity and diligence, dedicating myself to the cause of the Ming Dynasty until my dying breath!

Li Xianmu's words were in no way inferior to Zhao Zhenji's sophistry before the Jiajing Emperor.

Furthermore, because of the different relationship between Li Xianmu and Zhu Di, there was an extra touch of genuine sincerity.

Upon hearing these words, Zhu Di's expression softened considerably. Although he had not completely abandoned his suspicions about Li Xianmu, he was at least much better than before.

The expressions of the people in the hall varied.

Then they all glanced at the emperor, only to see that his tightly furrowed brows had relaxed slightly. He then looked back at Li Xianmu kneeling on the ground, his eyes flashing with amazement. The Prince of Han, on the other hand, showed a hint of shock and unease.

Li Xianmu's eloquence was completely unexpected to him; he had no idea why anyone could say such a thing in the blink of an eye.

Li Xianmu sensed the change in the atmosphere in the hall, steadied his turbulent heart, and kowtowed deeply again, his voice carrying a hint of sternness, "Your mother was the eldest daughter of the founding emperor, and she was influenced by the imperial family from a young age."

In my childhood, I was personally taught and raised by my maternal grandfather. He once encouraged me, saying, "This child will surely be the one to bring prosperity to our dynasty." I know that this was just an old man's encouragement to the younger generation.

Ke Chen took it seriously!
I have dedicated my life to serving the Ming Dynasty, which is why I have made many radical statements and disregarded the opinions of the court. I have heard from the common people that I could have been a noble son, but I have been deeply mired in corruption, skilled in serving the country but inept at protecting myself, and with too many enemies, I will surely be punished by Heaven.

I merely laughed it off. The imperial family's kinship is beyond the comprehension of ordinary people.
How can a sparrow know the ambition of a swan?

High above, Li Qi gazed at the scene before him, where two incense sticks slowly burned, their smoke seemingly drifting down to earth.

Leaving aside matters in the heavens, the Wuying Hall on earth has fallen silent!
(End of this chapter)