Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

The sound of whips echoed throughout the palace compound.

Many timid eunuchs and palace maids had already turned their heads away, unable to bear watching.

Several ministers, seeing that the Third Prince's fine robes were stained with blood, yet he gritted his teeth and persevered, not daring to make a loud sound, felt a sense of admiration for him.

So they all spoke up to plead for the Third Prince.

But Emperor Ningkang paid no heed, continuing to lash his whip, each lash sharper than the last, as he struck his ambitious, ruthless, and rebellious son beneath his feet.

At the same time, his heart was bleeding.

He was heartbroken by the Crown Prince's betrayal, but he never considered killing him.

He remembered that he had considered many ways to deal with the crown prince at the time...

Among the many princes, he knew that he, the third son, was the most cunning and had a long-standing grudge against his eldest brother.

Therefore, when the Third Prince volunteered to capture the Crown Prince, he hesitated for a moment.

But he thought it probably wouldn't come to that.

Everyone knew that the crown prince had been abandoned by him and was destined to be a useless person.

But to his utter surprise, things still developed in the direction he least wanted to see.

He was angry, he was furious.

He even began to doubt whether he was really wrong!

But it was all already done; the Crown Prince and his wife were dead, and there was nothing he could do.

He certainly had his suspicions about the Third Prince.

I also thought about finding out the truth.

He even considered killing him.

But after waking up from his illness, he suddenly realized that he was actually biased.

Although he could explain his favoritism by saying that the crown prince was the rightful heir, he could not deceive his own heart and truly cared more about the crown prince, his eldest son.

The crown prince is dead.

Even if the Third Prince is executed, what's the point?

Years later, the fourth and fifth princes might very well end up like their eldest and third brothers.

He began to ponder how, as an emperor, he could best protect his children.

The Crown Prince is dead, and the Third Prince is his eldest son.

As the eldest son, he will inherit the throne in the future.

He decided to put this matter aside for the time being and give the Third Prince another chance.

But in his heart, he couldn't help feeling sorry for the Crown Prince, even though the Crown Prince had wronged him first.

He was also conflicted.

Tian Liang's appearance was an accident.

Princess Zhaoyang's willingness to speak up for Tian Liang surprised him even more, and he began to realize that perhaps a new change had occurred among his children.

He wanted to see clearly.

So he accepted Tian Liang's petition, perhaps because he also wanted to know the truth.

After all, no emperor likes to be a fool.

The result was not too surprising to him.

If there was anything unexpected, it was that he hadn't expected the Third Prince to have so many flaws in his actions!

How arrogant and conceited must he have been to kill Tian Qu and the others and then casually throw their bodies back?

He could have done it more meticulously.

Did he really think that once the crown prince died, the world would be his?

Emperor Ningkang also went through this process. Looking back, he felt that every step he took was like sitting on pins and needles. Even after he finally sat on the throne, he was still very cautious.

He began to doubt whether the Third Prince would be able to hold onto his position in the future.

This is also why he is whipping the Third Prince like this now.

On the surface, however, he was venting his anger and seeking justice for meritorious officials.

Finally, after half an hour, when the Third Prince appeared to be on the verge of death, Emperor Ningkang stopped what he was doing.

Handing the blood-stained whip to the eunuch, Emperor Ningkang looked at Tian Liang and said, "The Third Prince has lost his moral character and has killed a minister without authorization. He is hereby stripped of his title of Prince and demoted to a Prince of the County. He is also dismissed from all his posts in the court and ordered to reflect on his mistakes in seclusion for a year."

Upon hearing this, Tian Liang was unwilling, but he knew that he could not make the prince pay for his brother's life, so he could only kneel down to express his gratitude.

Does your brother have any children?

"He has two sons."

"Hmm... Tian Quping was meritorious in this trial, and he was posthumously granted the title of Earl of Yongyi, and his eldest son was granted the title of Second-Class Light Cavalry Captain."

"Thank you, Your Majesty. Long live the Emperor!"

Tian Liang felt a little better after that.

But he also understood that the emperor's posthumous conferment and bestowal of titles were clearly an attempt to silence him.

Therefore, he could only apologize to Jia Lian and Princess Zhaoyang in his heart; he could no longer accuse the Third Prince of plotting to murder the Crown Prince.

On the corridor, Princess Zhaoyang opened her mouth several times, but seeing Emperor Ningkang's increasingly aged face and his swaying body after exhaustion, she ultimately said nothing more, helped Emperor Ningkang up, and walked into the palace.

Everyone dispersed.

But tonight's events are destined to stir up huge waves in their hearts.

No one could have predicted that the Crown Prince was dead, and the Third Prince, who should have been at the height of his power, would suffer such a huge change in less than a day.

A mere sixth-rank commander dared to directly petition the Emperor against the Third Prince, and what's more, he succeeded!

The third prince was demoted and punished by being confined to his home for a year to reflect on his actions.

This punishment may not seem severe, but given the circumstances surrounding the Third Prince, it inevitably evokes other thoughts.

Emperor Ningkang had more than one son, the Third Prince!

Many who had originally planned to curry favor with the Third Prince secretly backed down and decided to wait and see how things went.

Even more so.

They naturally hadn't forgotten that, in addition to accusing the Third Prince of murdering his elder brother, Tian Liang also claimed that the Third Prince had murdered the Crown Prince!

Although the charge was ultimately dropped, the emperor seemed to accept the third prince's explanation.

But the emperor's final lash seemed to have some unusual significance.

It seems that the emperor did not legitimize the third prince at all!

The emperor abruptly ended the interrogation of the third prince, but did not draw any conclusions as to whether the crown prince had been murdered or whether the third prince was the murderer.

This gives intelligent people unlimited room for imagination.

Some people couldn't help but sigh that this hunt at Tiewang Mountain was truly one wave after another!

I heard that a large number of troops have arrived at the foot of the mountain, and I don't know when it will end.

……

As Tian Liang walked out of the palace, many people who had been waiting outside the palace gates to listen to the commotion gathered around him.

Many people admired his courage for daring to confront the Third Prince.

But more than anything, I wanted to find out more inside information.

After all, the commotion was so big, and the Third Prince had just been dragged away by his personal guards in such a miserable state that it was impossible not to be curious.

Tian Liang gave a perfunctory response. After looking around and not seeing any trace of Jia Lian, he ordered his men to send the bodies of Tian Qu and the others back. He himself, along with Zhou Xianming, went to Jia Lian's tent in the firearms camp.

Upon entering the tent, Tian Liang immediately knelt down, saying with great emotion, "Thanks to Your Excellency's help, I was able to clear my brother's name. I have no way to repay Your Excellency's kindness, please accept my bow!"

Although Jia Lian did not go to the scene, he already knew the general outcome.

"Commander Tian, ​​there's no need for such formalities. General Tian Qu is a loyal and brave man who should not have died under mysterious circumstances. As fellow commanders of the Imperial Guard, it is my duty to clear his name and seek justice for him."

Upon hearing this, Tian Liang was even more moved.

Consider that Feng Sheng, their leader, held a second-rank official position, yet dared not utter a single word in front of the Third Prince. Meanwhile, Jia Lian, a complete stranger to them, was willing to go to great lengths to help them. The contrast between the two was stark.

Although he guessed that Jia Lian's actions were not solely for his benefit and that he had other motives, he still felt indebted to the Tian family for their help.

"Your Excellency is truly righteous. It is only my incompetence that I failed to fulfill Your Excellency's instructions to get the Third Prince to confess to the crime of plotting against the Crown Prince..."

Tian Liang began to explain the situation at the time.

Jia Lian's reputation preceded him, and this encounter only deepened his awe and respect for him. After all, the fact that Princess Zhaoyang could be at his beck and call was enough to prove how formidable Jia Lian was.

When Tian Liang and Tian Liang met Jia Lian and Princess Zhaoyang in the tent before, although Princess Zhaoyang appeared to be in charge, they could tell that Princess Zhaoyang listened to Jia Lian.

Therefore, like Zhou Xianming, he also wanted to align himself with Jia Lian. Fearing that Jia Lian would blame him for his poor performance, he explained the emperor's attitude and the current situation.

Jia Lian nodded and said, "It's alright, you've done enough."

Yes, Tian Liang did do everything he was supposed to do.

As for the emperor's final decision, that is something no one can control.

Originally, he didn't expect to kill the Third Prince in one go.

At present, he has achieved almost all of his goals.

The Third Prince is almost completely disgraced... He wantonly killed a third-rank military officer who had just rendered meritorious service to him and his father. This will undoubtedly become an obstacle for the Third Prince to cultivate his own faction in the future.

Moreover, he was also punished with a one-year ban from his home.

There's plenty of room to maneuver within a year.

Jia Lian was confident that by the time the Third Prince was released from confinement a year later, the Fourth Prince would have already developed a certain level of ability to contend with him!

The most important thing here is to confirm in Emperor Ningkang's mind that the Third Prince deliberately murdered the Crown Prince. Whether the charges are valid or not is not so important.

Once Emperor Ningkang has made up his mind about this, given his temperament, even if he doesn't kill the Third Prince, he probably won't want to make him the Crown Prince again.

After all, if the Third Prince could kill the Crown Prince this time, he might kill the Fourth Prince or even the Fifth Prince in the future.

As long as Emperor Ningkang still has a shred of paternal affection, he will consider the Fourth Prince, who is kind-hearted and has a pure heart.

This is the greatest political resource that has been secured for the Fourth Prince this time.

Seeing that Jia Lian had nothing more to say to them, Zhou Xianming and Tian Liang exchanged a glance, expressed their willingness to serve him, and then took their leave.

Jia Lian did not try to keep them.

Although these two men were only sixth-rank minor officers, they were in the central military camp and might be of great use in a critical moment, so Jia Lian was naturally willing to accept them.

Of course, this is also because they all have some ability and are willing to get close to him; otherwise, Jia Lian would not look down on ordinary mediocre people now.