flstandardbreds Chapter 373 His Highness the Crown Prince is Outstandingly Talented (1)
Chapter 373 His Highness the Crown Prince is Outstandingly Talented (1)
The imperial court these days is like an anthill before a storm, filled with a thick and suffocating low pressure.
At every court assembly, the air beneath the high dome of the Golden Palace seemed to solidify like an iron plate, making it hard for the ministers to breathe. They even had to deliberately keep their breathing light, for fear that the slightest movement would provoke the thunderous wrath of the emperor on the throne.
All of this stemmed from the disappearance of the princess's unknown son.
It's a royal secret, to tell you the truth.
During the reign of the late emperor, the eldest princess married a prince consort. However, their marriage was not harmonious, and she even became pregnant and gave birth to a son. Because of her disgust for the prince consort, she cruelly sent the infant child away from the capital. She did this in secret, and almost no one in the world knew about it.
Now that the years have passed, the eldest princess's family is desolate. In the dead of night, when she dreams of her blood relatives, her heart is torn apart, and she finally regrets it.
After much trouble, they secretly sent someone to bring the child back to Beijing, hoping to make up for the debt they had owed for more than ten years.
Unexpectedly, on the way back to Beijing, he went missing.
The news was secretly sent to the palace, and the eldest princess fainted on the spot. When the emperor heard it, his face turned ashen, and the Longquan celadon teacup in his hand clenched so tightly that it creaked and cracked. Finally, with a "crack," it shattered on the ground, and the porcelain shards mixed with tea splashed everywhere, just like the murderous intent that the emperor was bursting out at that moment.
"Investigate! Investigate thoroughly! Turn every inch of the capital upside down, find my nephew!" The emperor's roar shook the entire palace.
Once the imperial edict was issued, the Imperial Guards, the Prefect of the Capital, the Ministry of Justice, and even the clandestine Imperial City Guard, all sprang into action like wound-up puppets.
Initially, the search was only to find a young man of noble birth, but little did they know that once the search net was cast, it would unearth a giant, sinister net that had entangled the capital for many years.
In recent years, most of the cases of children who have mysteriously disappeared have been related to this!
Through layers of investigation, clues, like venomous snakes, led to a massive human trafficking ring.
They had a clear division of labor. Some people were responsible for taking "orders" in the black market. Buyers only needed to make a request—age, gender, appearance—and they would move out like hunting dogs, wantonly abducting suitable children in the capital region.
Armed with a roster, the Imperial Guards conducted a massive search throughout the city, uncovering faces that were either dignified or indistinguishable from ordinary people, and imprisoning them.
The most astonishing thing was a name that stood out prominently on the list—Zhang Zhengyuan, a scholar of the Hanlin Academy.
The residence of this scholar Zhang, who was known for his integrity, was forcibly broken into by the fierce Imperial Guards.
Beneath those ornate beams and painted rafters, a hidden entrance leads to the deep underground.
The moment the torches illuminated the cellar, even the seasoned soldiers, accustomed to bloodshed, couldn't help but gasp. There, lay more than just the princess's children.
Dozens of children who had been missing for a long time and whose families had cried their eyes out were chained up like livestock, huddled in the filth, each one ragged, emaciated, with only numbness and fear in their eyes.
The princess's son, whom she had lost and then found again in this hellish situation, was huddled in a corner, trembling.
With the evidence irrefutable, His Majesty was furious and immediately ordered the Zhang residence to be sealed off, and all those involved to be severely punished.
However, the roots of this horrific human trafficking ring run far deeper than one might imagine.
Following Zhang Zhengyuan's lead, the "backer" who finally surfaced left the entire court speechless—it was none other than the current emperor's own younger brother, Prince Yu!
This prince was known in his early years for his frivolous and dissolute lifestyle and neglect of state affairs. He was not favored by the late emperor. After the current emperor ascended the throne, he took into account the brotherly bond and saw that the prince seemed content to be a leisurely and wealthy prince, so he did not delve into the past.
Who would have thought that it was this royal status that made him the biggest protector of this dirty business, allowing him to use his position to gather followers and commit such heinous acts!
The wrath of an emperor can cause the deaths of millions.
His Majesty was utterly disheartened and made up his mind.
Anyone directly involved in the human trafficking case will be executed immediately! Their immediate family members, those who knew about it but failed to report it, or even those who profited from it, will be implicated and brought to the execution ground together! The rest will be exiled three thousand miles away, with no possibility of pardon!
In an instant, the sky over the capital was stained red with the blood that had been flowing continuously from Caishikou for days.
The executioner's blade dulled, and he had to replace it again and again. The sound of the prison cart rolling over the bluestone road was incessant day after day, intertwined with cries, shouts of injustice, and the muffled thuds of decapitations.
The heavy stench of blood lingered over the capital, refusing to dissipate and turning everyone's faces pale, forcing them to stay indoors.
The once bustling streets are now as desolate as a ghost town.
In the imperial court, no one dared to utter a sound. Every time His Majesty's gaze swept over them, the ministers trembled. This silence, forged with countless heads and blood, was more chilling than any clamor. Everyone was in danger, wondering who this storm, sparked by royal secrets, would ultimately devour.