Spring Remains the Same - Chapter 19

Puyang had memories of her past life; she remembered much of what happened in the following twelve years. This was an incomparable advantage. After all, how many princes and nobles had met their end, their families destroyed, all because of a single misjudgment?

Thus, even if many things had deviated from their original course due to her rebirth, Puyang still held an advantage.

For example, the brothers, the Prince of Jing and the Prince of Jin. In Puyang’s memory, the Prince of Jing was always at the Prince of Jin’s beck and call, and she had never heard of any discord between them. Puyang still remembered the time the Prince of Jing took the blame for the Prince of Jin.

At that time, the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Zhao had been clashing for over a decade. The Prince of Jin finally found a fatal mistake of the Prince of Zhao’s, defeated him, and emerged the victor. All the ministers at court believed the Prince of Jin was about to enter the Eastern Palace and become the Crown Prince, but His Majesty suddenly issued an edict, ordering the nineteen-year-old Imperial Grandson, Xiao Dewen, to participate in court politics. Not long after, a case from the Prince of Jin’s past was exposed. The physical evidence and witnesses were all complete, enraging the Emperor, who wanted to punish the Prince of Jin. Just as the Prince of Jin was at a dead end, the Prince of Jing stepped forward, shouldered all the blame and punishment, and secured the Prince of Jin’s innocence. He himself, however, was demoted to a Commandery Prince, banished to his fief, and placed under house arrest.

With this incident in mind, Puyang was convinced that the Prince of Jing would not act against the Prince of Jin. She was not a fragile person who, after dying once, would assume everyone was out to get her, live in daily fear of being framed, and no longer believe in the existence of warmth between people. She firmly believed that no matter what, a person’s fundamental nature would not change.

That year was truly filled with constant intrigue. The Prince of Zhao was defeated and confined to his residence. The entire court thought the Prince of Jin would finally achieve his desire, but who would have expected such a thing to happen?

Speaking of that matter, it was a disaster sown by the Prince of Jin’s own lack of virtue. Two years prior, the Prince of Zhao was out hunting when he took a fancy to a beautiful woman. This beauty was the concubine of a wealthy man. To seize the beautiful concubine, the Prince of Zhao severely injured the master of the house and abducted the woman. Somehow, the Prince of Jin learned of this. Not long after, he heard that the beautiful concubine had refused to submit and had taken her own life to preserve her honor. The Prince of Jin then decided to escalate the matter. He sent men to kill the wealthy man’s entire family and left behind some evidence, claiming the Prince of Zhao had killed them in a fit of shame and anger. Given the Prince of Zhao’s prior misdeeds, annihilating an entire family truly seemed like something he would do. The Prince of Zhao was severely reprimanded. Fortunately, there were some doubts about the evidence, so the Emperor merely purged his subordinates and let the matter drop, thus protecting his son to some extent.

But who would have known that it was the Prince of Jin who had framed him? The wealthy man’s family had not been completely wiped out. A second son survived, hidden by a loyal family servant. He was then taken in and secretly sheltered by a family friend who rushed over. Two years later, he found an opportunity and, through an Imperial Censor, presented a petition for redress written in bl00d to the imperial desk.

The evidence was presented, complete and orderly, leaving no room for debate.

To this day, Puyang still remembered His Majesty’s face, twisted with rage. His usually vigorous figure suddenly stooped, filled with disappointment, anger, and hatred—it was hard to say what it was, or perhaps it was a mixture of all the painful emotions in the world.

The Emperor’s face, having aged overnight, held the cold desolation of an old man. He summoned Puyang before him. His voice was utterly cold, yet he tried to soften it for her. The mixture was enough to send a chill through one’s entire body. He said to her, “The Prince of Jin is without virtue and unworthy of the great throne. I intend to make Dewen the Imperial Grandson, to succeed me one day and bring glory to the Xiao clan. Seventh Lady, Dewen is young and ignorant of many court matters. But Father is already old. I want to teach him, but I don’t know how long I can hold on. If that day truly comes, you must remember to assist Dewen and help him become a good emperor. The only one Father can trust is you.”

At that time, she was so shocked by the Emperor’s words that she couldn’t react for a long time. After that came a series of reversals: the Prince of Jing single-handedly took responsibility for the crime, vehemently arguing for the Prince of Jin’s innocence and claiming he had done everything. The Emperor must have softened. The sentence was passed quickly. He did not pursue the matter with the Prince of Jin further, only sentencing the Prince of Jing. Compared to his previous fury, the punishment was extremely light.

Puyang was busy consolidating power with the Emperor’s tacit approval and paid no more attention to the matter. In any case, the Prince of Jin, having reached this point, was finished.

It wasn’t until much later that she discovered that incident had been Wei Xiu’s handiwork. The seamless evidence, the continuous follow-up moves, the way the matter was handled so absolutely, cutting off all escape routes and beating the opponent so thoroughly they could never recover—all of this was precisely Wei Xiu’s consistent style!

That was also the first time she had witnessed Wei Xiu’s methods. How long had she been planning? The wealthy man’s family was merely rich; not a single member of their clan was an official. Forget a prince in power—even a county magistrate could have found a plausible excuse to ruin his family. And the family friend who took in the second son was also an ordinary family. Since the Prince of Jin intended to frame the Prince of Zhao, how could he not have thoroughly investigated the family and allowed someone to escape, leaving behind a future threat? How could a mere family friend have protected the second son and also preserved so much evidence? And how did that second son get into the capital and happen to connect with an upright and incorruptible Imperial Censor? And how could it be such a coincidence that this Censor was not an official under the Prince of Jin?

Clearly, someone had been secretly assisting him all along.

What was even more terrifying was that when Sir Wei learned of this, she did not strike immediately. Instead, she slowly observed the situation at court, waiting for the Prince of Zhao to be brought down, waiting for Xiao Dewen to enter the court, display his talents before the Emperor, and gradually establish a firm footing, only then bringing the matter to light for a fatal blow.

Puyang stood outside the Hall of Proclaimed Virtue, recalling that series of events from years ago. She had originally been seeking proof of the deep brotherly bond between the Prince of Jin and the Prince of Jing to bolster her own confidence. But instead, she recalled Sir Wei’s glorious history of never having been defeated, and the more she thought, the less confident she became.

It seemed… she was going to lose…

Then she recalled Wei Xiu’s resolute statement, “If there is one person, it must be the Prince of Jing.” Puyang was simply…

This was just great. She had dug this pit herself, and now she might have to fill it with herself.

A cool breeze blew, and Puyang was suddenly filled with sorrow. How could she have forgotten at that moment that Sir Wei never did anything she wasn’t sure of? It must have been because Sir Wei was too beautiful and had captivated her mind.

Puyang tried hard to find a reason for her “moment of folly,” yet couldn’t help but cling to a sliver of hope. After all, this was the Sir Wei from twelve years ago, so much younger. Perhaps she wasn’t quite so formidable yet. She wasn’t entirely without a chance of winning.

Puyang had a strong competitive spirit. With this self-reassurance, her confidence was bolstered once more. In any case, the bet had been made. To admit defeat before the end was truly not her style.

She stood outside the Hall of Proclaimed Virtue. A eunuch immediately came forward to bow. The Emperor inside the hall also knew she had arrived. When he waited a while and she didn’t enter, he sent someone out to check.

Puyang steadied her mind and walked in.

The Emperor was in a good mood. Seeing Puyang, his face was full of smiles. “Have you been? How is that hermit named Wei?”

“Still a free spirit, carefree and at ease,” Puyang said. She sat down beside the Emperor and glanced at the imperial desk, where a memorial was spread out. Puyang sat very close to the Emperor, and her eyesight was good. With just a glance, she recognized the handwriting on the memorial as the Prince of Jing’s.

“A free spirit, carefree and at ease, that’s good. But, have you heard him speak of the former dynasty?” the Emperor asked, his expression not so pleasant.

Puyang glanced at the memorial, then looked away. Hearing the Emperor’s words, she knew it was likely those few famous scholars who still called themselves “loyal scholars of Zhou” who had displeased him.

“Sir Wei is only twenty-one. When the Wei dynasty rose to replace the Zhou, she was only four. How could she know anything about the former dynasty?” Puyang said with a smile. “If she were also a self-important scholar like Chen Du, your daughter would have cut ties with her long ago. Why would I go to see her again?”

The Emperor laughed loudly, thinking Puyang was being forthright. After laughing, he sighed. “Chen Du is still a talented man. It’s a pity he cannot serve the court. The Prince of Runan is also not very settled.”

The Prince of Runan was the former Zhou Emperor. The Emperor, after all, had once been a subject. The reputation of a regicide was very ugly, so he had deposed the Zhou Emperor, making him the Prince of Runan, and kept him in the capital.

The fortune of the House of Zhou was exhausted, and they had long lost their power. Even with the Prince of Runan in the capital, his every move was under the Emperor’s surveillance; he couldn’t stir up any trouble. Moreover, after Xiao Yi ascended the throne, the government was upright and clear, and he allowed the people to rest and recuperate. The common folk were used to good days and had long forgotten the former dynasty.

Puyang knew this, so she wasn’t too worried. “Has someone tried to use the Prince of Runan to stir up trouble again?” she asked.

“Just some minor squabbles. They’ll have to go through a few more before they’re willing to give up hope,” the Emperor said coldly. After speaking, he picked up the memorial spread on the imperial desk, handed it to Puyang, and told her to look. “Sixth Brother was the one who discovered the signs of this. Take a look.”

The Emperor showed no hesitation in discussing matters of state with Puyang, even those concerning the fate of the nation. This was the tragedy of being a princess, and also her advantage. Firstly, the Emperor trusted Puyang; this was a habit deeply ingrained since her childhood. Secondly, what could a princess do? Seize the throne? It wasn’t as if there had never been powerful princesses in history, but no matter how powerful they became, they still had to rely on the Emperor.

Since the Emperor had given her the memorial to read, Puyang did not refuse. She read it through and saw that it was about several military officers plotting a restoration, wanting to welcome back the Prince of Runan as emperor.

The Xiao family’s throne had been seized from the House of Zhou. To the Zhou Emperor, the Xiao clan were treacherous rebels whom everyone had the right to execute. But which family could truly last for a thousand autumns and ten thousand generations? There would always come a day of decline. The Great Wei was currently in its prime, but after several hundred years, there was no guarantee it wouldn’t become history. In the end, it was simply a matter of “the victor is king, the loser is a bandit.” From this perspective, Puyang didn’t think there was anything wrong with her family having seized the Prince of Runan’s throne. A corrupt court would always be replaced by someone. If not the Xiao, it would be the Zhao, the Wang, the Zheng—any family under heaven.

Besides, Puyang’s surname was Xiao. When she was born, the Emperor was already the Emperor, so she naturally favored the Xiao family.

After reading the memorial, Puyang closed it and said leisurely, “It’s a small matter. Why should Father be angry over this?” After speaking, she placed the memorial back on the desk and obediently went to massage the Emperor’s shoulders. “Getting angry only harms your own body. It’s not worth it.”

The Emperor was amused by her. “You’re right. But this matter cannot simply be dropped.”

Puyang thought for a moment. “Getting rid of these few officers isn’t difficult, but it only treats the symptoms, not the root cause.”

In the end, it was about the hearts of the people. With those men around, and with the Prince of Runan still alive, it was inevitable that people’s minds would be unsettled. How could the Emperor not know this? He asked, “What do you think should be done?”

Puyang thought for a moment and smiled. “Aren’t those famous scholars aloof and proud, styling themselves as subjects of Zhou? Then let them enter the court as officials.”

After hearing this, the Emperor clapped his hands and said, “Excellent!”

To have these most loyal scholars of the House of Zhou sing the praises of the new dynasty—this would be proof of the new dynasty’s virtuous governance.