Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 872

Chapter 872: Collecting the Corpse

Li Xing’s three consecutive utterances of fear echoed throughout the hall, but none of them emboldened the prince to move.

Duke Cheng approached Li Xing. “Your Highness, accept the decree.”

Li Xing shook his head. “Your Excellence, such a heavy responsibility is beyond my capacity.”

Duke Cheng was not one for flattery. Seeing Li Xing’s reluctance, he simply held the decree up.

The other ministers knew Li Xing was merely going through the motions, trying to give them a way out, to make them believe he was forced to accept the decree.

But Duke Cheng already felt disgusted by such a thing, and now he had to say something against his will; he simply could not bring himself to do it.

When Pei Que felt Duke Cheng’s pleading gaze, he prostrated himself and kowtowed. “Your Highness, I implore you to consider the fate of the nation.”

The moment Pei Que spoke, all the officials gasped.

Li Xing reluctantly accepted the imperial edict.

With the abdication edict in hand, Li Xing became the new Emperor. His first order was to have the rebellion investigated by dawn the next day.

Meanwhile, in Renzheng Hall, Xue Mengyao moved out with the abdicated Li Zhi, temporarily residing in her palace until Li Xing’s formal ascension to the throne, after which they would leave for Xiling.

With the new Emperor on the throne, everything needed rebuilding. The previously unsolved rebellion case was resolved overnight.

Pei Que returned to the Pei Mansion the next morning. He had just returned from the Military Court, but could not rest. After changing his clothes, he still had to go to the palace on business.

While changing, Pei Que said, “Last night, a group of rebels stormed the prefectural prison and killed Pei Yu and his entourage.”

“The prefectural prison? Is that not one of the most difficult places to enter in the capital?” An Zhi asked, looking at Pei Que. “Was it you?”

The new Emperor’s ascension to the throne was to grant a general amnesty.

Yesterday, anticipating Li Xing’s rise to power, An Zhi spent a sleepless night. She had finally seized the opportunity to kill Pei Yu, but if it was due to a general amnesty, the next attempt would be much more difficult.

Upon hearing of Pei Yu’s death, An Zhi’s first thought was of Pei Que.

The Prefect of the Capital was Pei Que’s man; while others could not enter the imperial prison to kill, Pei Que could do so at any time.

But Pei Que shook his head.

“I did not order it,” Pei Que said, putting on his last official robes. “Yesterday, when Duke Cheng finished reading the edict, the Emperor hesitated to accept it. I was the one who shouted first, which led to the officials’ response.”

Pei Que did not say the rest.

Li Xing would grant a general amnesty according to the rules, but he had gone to great lengths to arrest so many people; those who deserved to die would still die. As for killing Pei Yu, it was a gift to Pei Que, a way of thanking him for yesterday’s events.

When Pei Que received the Prefect of the Capital’s message that night, he hurriedly went to the imperial prison. At first, it felt like a dream, but seeing Pei Yu lying in a pool of blood, one arm severed and unchained, his death was particularly gruesome.

The Prefect of the Capital pulled Pei Que aside before daring to whisper, “The group of people who came last night were all veterans of war. When they entered the government office, I peeked through the crack in the door, and they went straight for the prison. I guessed what was going on and only dared to enter the prison after they were all gone.”

The Prefect, still shaken, paused to take a few deep breaths before continuing, “The thick stench of blood hit me as soon as I entered. What you see is the result of our men having dealt with them for a while. At first, the severed limbs on the ground could not even be pieced together. When I reached Pei Yu’s cell, Pei Yu was still alive, but both his arms had been severed. He was muttering something unintelligible. When he saw me, he suddenly opened his eyes wide and called out your name before reluctantly passing away.”

Pei Que frowned as he recalled Pei Yu’s severed hands.

The Prefect of the Capital had not finished speaking, though. “In my opinion,” he continued, “you must be careful in everything you do from now on.”

An emperor so ruthless, yet outwardly benevolent and kind, was most terrifying.

When Pei Que left the government office, he felt terribly cold. Back at the Garrison Command, the image of Pei Yu after his death kept replaying in his mind.

Serving a ruler was like serving a tiger. After the incident with Li Da, Pei Que always kept this saying in mind when interacting with Li Xing.

Seeing Pei Que lost in thought, An Zhi called out softly. After Pei Que looked over, she said, “Since he’s dead, send a few people to help collect the body. He’s dead anyway; let’s give Pei Yu some dignity, and that will preserve our reputations.”

“I’ve already notified the eldest branch of the Pei family next door to collect the body. They will handle it; we do not need to worry about it,” Pei Que said.

With Pei Yu dead, the eldest branch of the Pei family came to an end. After the funeral, the neighboring house would be emptied.

Pei Que changed his clothes and walked out, saying, “With the new Emperor’s ascension to the throne, there are many affairs to attend to these days. The Consort Dowager Xue is staying in the inner palace with the retired Emperor, so the Emperor must be feeling uneasy. If Consort Jiang invites you to visit, remember not to go. Keeping your distance from them now is for their own good.”

An Zhi nodded, understanding. “I always felt that Consort Jiang was not simple. Now it seems she’s going to become empress. I heard from Yu Yao that the Jiang family is coming to the capital soon. If Consort Jiang becomes empress, and she has a son of her own, but the eldest son is Chang’an, what will happen then?”

“Naturally, there will be another struggle,” Pei Que said. “However, I heard that after returning to his fiefdom, the Heir Apparent, Chang’an, has been ill, seemingly suffering brain damage from a fever. The Emperor might just abandon him. In any case, it’s all a matter for the future.”

An Zhi saw Pei Que out. Upon returning, she had all the festive decorations removed from the mansion. Although it was an abdication, the red ribbons should only be hung on the day the new Emperor officially ascends the throne.

An Zhi was busy at home. Just after noon, Consort Jiang indeed sent a message, saying that An Zhi had always been close to Consort Dowager Xue and wanted her to visit her in the palace.

Fortunately, An Zhi was prepared. She had powdered her face white and almost coughed up blood in front of the eunuch delivering the imperial decree, thus refusing Consort Jiang’s suggestion.

Even if Consort Jiang suspected she was faking illness, it was still for the best. Maintaining distance was better for everyone until Li Xing was completely at ease.

Meanwhile, the palace was in a flurry of activity, except for Xue Mengyao’s palace, which remained deserted.

Li Zhi was still lying in bed, but the strong smell of medicine was gone from the room. He was playing with a nine-linked ring puzzle in his hand. Seeing Xue Mengyao enter, he immediately put it down and asked happily, “Your Highness, when will we leave the palace?”

“The Imperial Observatory has calculated an auspicious time. The new Emperor will ascend the throne in five days. After the enthronement ceremony, we can leave the palace,” Xue Mengyao said.

Li Zhi counted on his fingers. “Five more days… no, does that mean I have to stay in bed for another five days?”

“You’ve already been lying in bed for so long. Just bear with it for the last few days. Once you’re out of the palace, everything will be alright,” Xue Mengyao reassured him.

She felt suffocated in the palace and longed to leave. Although there would still be people watching over them in Xiling, it would be better than in the palace. At least there would not be those rules, and they could be much more at ease.