manynovel Chapter 518: Confinement and salary fine
Chapter 518: Confinement and salary fine
The fourth prince noticed that the gaze above him had turned away, and for some reason, he felt uneasy. He always felt that his father did not scold him alone, but was disappointed in him.
"Father, I know I was wrong. I was also worried that there would be some warnings on the Tianji Stone that would be unfavorable to the court. I couldn't help but feel worried and a little curious." The Fourth Prince crawled forward and finally knelt at the emperor's feet.
"Father, I know I am wrong." The second and third princes also hurriedly admitted their mistakes.
He didn’t know if it was an illusion, but the Second Prince clearly sensed a cold look in his father’s eyes when he looked at him.
He knew that his father had always looked down on him. When he had made great contributions in the previous few times, his father had only praised him indifferently and given him some rewards. But compared to the second and third sons, his father really favored one over the other.
But his father had always been like this, and he was used to it. From childhood to adulthood, whenever his brothers made achievements, his father would praise them. Although he was inevitably partial, he was never excessive.
But for him, he had to perform twelve points better than his brothers in order to barely get a praise from his father.
"You all saw what was written on the Tianji Stone, right?" The emperor ignored the three people kneeling on the ground and instead talked about the Tianji Stone.
The three of them were stunned and didn't know how to start for a moment.
"I think these are all absurd. How can there be such a mythical existence in this world? Maybe someone is pretending to be a ghost and waiting for an opportunity to act." The Fourth Prince was the first to express his opinion.
The Third Prince was not willing to be left behind, "I second the motion!"
"Since you know that someone is playing tricks on the Tianji Stone, why do you want to go and check it out in person? Humph!" The emperor snorted coldly.
"Your son was also bewildered by the devil for a moment!" The second prince finally expressed his opinion.
The emperor glanced at him and then said, "The predictions of the Heavenly Secret Stone have never been wrong, but it is not ruled out that someone has used the Heavenly Secret Stone to make a fuss and made some moves. But no matter what the situation is, it is certain that someone has ulterior motives."
The emperor recalled the secret letter from the imperial teacher. "The Emperor Star is weak and has not yet fully grown, but the surrounding stars have shown signs of submission, and are gradually showing a trend of many stars surrounding the moon..."
"Your Majesty is absolutely right!" the three said in unison.
"If you want to resist foreign aggression, you must first stabilize the country. Next, focus on finding the real culprit behind the assassination, and don't focus on scheming against your own brothers."
When the emperor spoke, his eyes swept over the second prince especially clearly.
"Pass on my oral order, take the prefect to the Tianlao for careful questioning, send the female members of the family to the Jiaofang Bureau, and the male members to exile."
The emperor thought for a moment and said, "This man is mediocre, but he hasn't made any major mistakes in the past few years, so I will forgive his family this time. However, all officials of the Wan clan who are not out of the fifth mourning period and are serving in the court will be demoted one level and will be assigned by the Ministry of Personnel."
This matter cannot be publicized, and there will be no explanation to the outside world. Otherwise, if the news that the princes were almost wiped out spreads, wouldn't it be a laughing stock?
Only oral instructions are enough to show the emperor's attitude.
"The matter of finding the real culprit behind the scenes will be handed over to the third and fourth brothers. The third and fourth brothers have been relieved of their previous duties. If you don't find some clues, don't come to see me."
After the emperor finished speaking, the third and fourth princes hurriedly expressed their gratitude.
"Thank you for your forgiveness, father. I will obey your order."
The only person not mentioned was the Second Prince, who felt nervous and had a bad feeling.
"While the eldest brother is away, you, as the elder brother, have led the younger brothers to behave recklessly and set a bad example.
You did not even try to persuade the younger brothers, but instead became the instigator. You are also dismissed from your post, confined to your residence for three months to reflect on your mistakes, and fined for half a year to serve as a warning to others."
Upon hearing this, the Second Prince clenched his fists at his sides. He was filled with grief and anger, and was unable to speak for a long time.
The emperor stared at him with cold eyes, looking at his tightly pursed lips, but another figure appeared in front of him.
That face was so charming and beautiful, yet it was often cold as ice, with eyes revealing stubbornness and disdain.
"Yes, Your Majesty!" The second prince said nothing in the end, because he knew it would be useless to say anything.
The emperor hated it most when someone questioned his decision. If someone questioned his decision, it would only make him angrier. But he thought he was as hard as stone. But today, what happened almost broke his back teeth.
The third and fourth brother went there on their own. How could he control them? He was just looking for an excuse to punish him!
Jiang Youzhen had been listening to them discussing what happened last night all day, and everyone was enjoying it. Some classmates pulled her aside to discuss it, but she just smiled and didn't join in.
It was not until the school was over and they were sitting in the carriage that Wen Ruyu could not help but bring up the matter again. Jiang Youzhen just said that the matter should not be mentioned again in the future.
Late at night, Jiang Youzhen put down his pen only after he finished copying the last post.
The post given by Princess Changsui was indeed a good thing, and it fascinated her for a while.
By the way, this princess seems to be very low-key recently?
Suddenly, there was a noise at the windowsill. Jiang Youzhen was alert and was about to take out the Qiankun fan from the space, but there was a light knock on the window.
Jiang Youzhen rolled his eyes, put the Qiankun fan back, and then sat in front of the desk, waiting leisurely.
Soon the window bolt was slowly moved open by a dagger, the window was gently opened, and a dark figure jumped in.
When the man landed, he saw Jiang Youzhen looking at him with a sneer on his face.
He was startled. "Since you noticed it, why didn't you help me open the window? Don't you know that scaring others can kill them?"
"Your Highness is really unconventional. This window is tailor-made for you, right?" And he even opened the window for you? You are so beautiful!
If it were before, the Second Prince would definitely have retorted a few words, but today he seemed a little uninterested.
He produced a wine gourd from nowhere and waved it towards Jiang Youzhen, "Want to drink and enjoy the moon?"
Jiang Youzhen twitched his lips, "Your Highness is really young and strong! You didn't sleep all night last night, but you are still so energetic tonight? But you have nothing to do during the day, so you slept too much?"
Jiang Youzhen shook his head and yawned, "I'm different. I have to study during the day. Shouldn't I go to bed early tonight?"
The second prince laughed at himself, then walked to the table and sat down.
"I just have nothing to do." He uncorked the gourd and took a sip.
"Aren't we looking for the real culprit behind this? And... we can't just leave it alone, right?" Jiang Youzhen wanted to talk about the Tianji Stone, but when the words came to his lips, he swallowed them back.
"Under house arrest for three months." The second prince said in a calm tone.
Jiang Youzhen was a little surprised, but then he thought, he was almost implicated this time, the emperor was furious, so it was normal to put him in solitary confinement.
"What about tracking down the assassin?"
"There are the third and fourth brothers!" When the second prince said this, his emotions finally fluctuated a little, with an imperceptible coldness.
"Ah?" Jiang Youzhen was a little surprised. So only the second prince was punished?