Red Mansion Royal Cat

Chapter 577: Asking for Execution
According to the rules, when an emperor passes away, the funeral rites include bathing, feeding, small burial, beheading and mourning, setting up several banquets, making a coffin, large burial, wearing mourning clothes, calming silk, setting up a memorial flag, giving the emperor a posthumous title, and sending the coffin out for the funeral.

Yesterday, at the first moment of the third hour on the seventh day of the twelfth lunar month in the twelfth year of Yuanyou, the sage passed away.

Under the auspices of the Ministry of Rites, the emperor would personally place a jade stone into the saint's mouth after bathing, which was called "fanhan".

Later, he, together with Crown Prince Liu Hong, Prince Liu Yi and Liu Ke, changed the saint's body into a twelve-chapter dragon robe, which was the small burial.

The Ministry of Rites requested the emperor to approve the request and issued an edict, stating that upon the death of the saint, the emperor's sons, grandsons, and concubines in the harem should wear mourning clothes for 27 months starting from the date of the start of mourning.

The princes, heirs, princes of the county, as well as the princesses, heirs' wives, princesses and princesses of the county outside the capital started to wear mourning clothes on the fourth day after receiving the news of the death. They also wore mourning clothes for 27 months.

All civil and military officials in the capital must wear mourning clothes for twenty-seven days starting on the fourth day after hearing of the death.

After the twenty-seventh day, all civil and military officials who went to court or to the government office had to wear plain clothes, black gauze hats, and black horn belts. This period lasted for twenty-seven months. Students, clerks, monks, and Taoists also had to wear plain clothes for twenty-seven months.

The wives of officials and nobles also have to wear plain clothes for 27 months. As for the rest of the ordinary military and civilian population in the country, they have to wear plain clothes for 20 days.

In addition, all music and sacrificial activities throughout the country were suspended for 100 days. Weddings of men and women were suspended for 100 days for officials, and for one month for ordinary military and civilians...

When the sage passed away and the Jingyang Bell struck 9981 times, the people of the capital changed into mourning clothes without the order of the court. They mourned together, holding incense and candles, walked on the streets, kowtowed and cried towards the direction of the Dragon Head Palace.

Liu Yi forcibly carried the emperor back to his bedroom, fed him a bowl of medicine and slept soundly all night. The next day, he dragged his sick body to the Huangji Palace.

"Your Majesty, I have something important to report..."

Jia Cong's voice was particularly eye-catching amid the crying in the hall. All the royal relatives and officials looked sideways, secretly glanced at the grief-stricken emperor, and then quietly lowered their cries to listen to what Jia Cong had to say.

However, the emperor just waved at Jia Cong, asking them to come closer, and did not give them any chance at all.

Jia Cong stepped forward and knelt on the right side of the emperor, whispering: "Commoner Liu Xing died yesterday. My father did it himself..."

The emperor paused in throwing paper money into the brazier, and his gaze towards the coffin showed even more sorrow.

"No wonder your father has been missing for more than a month. Your Majesty is really worried about me."

The emperor did not show the slightest sadness at the death of the fourteenth prince.

Unlike the second and thirteenth brothers, the fourteenth brother has no relationship with Liu Heng except for that flesh and blood.

"Send a message to your father and ask him to come back quickly. He is the most beloved son and nephew of the emperor, so how can the funeral be without him?"

The emperor had never thought about Liu Heng's funeral. He was just worried that if Jia She didn't come back quickly to see the old man off for the last time, he would have regrets for the rest of his life.

Unexpectedly, Jia Cong shook his head, because since dawn, his father had been sending messages to the palace.

As soon as the city gates opened today, Jia She rushed back to the capital from the imperial mausoleum.

But he did not return to Rongguo Mansion, nor did he come to the palace. Instead, he clearly drove to Prince Yi Zhong's Mansion.

"My father entered the city after daybreak and went directly to Prince Yi Zhong's mansion and deposed Liu Ye."

The news from the guards was that Liu Ye would never stand up again in his lifetime. A former crown prince's bastard son with crippled hands and feet could no longer pose the slightest threat to the throne.

If Liu Ye did not have the blood of the former crown prince in his body, Jia Cong dared to bet that Master She would send him and Liu Heng on the road without hesitation.

The emperor was not sure what secret instructions the old man gave to Jia She, but judging from the two events of killing Liu Heng and deposing Liu Ye, who else could have done it so cleanly and efficiently except Marquis Jia En?

However, this secret decree was enough to give the emperor a headache, because he had no idea how many people the old man wanted Jia She to kill.

"Go and convey my order, and have your father come to the palace immediately. No matter who the emperor wants him to kill, stop it. My world is not afraid of any conspiracy or trickery now!"

All privacy calculations are simply vulnerable in the face of strength.

The emperor was confident that even if his elder brother were reborn, he could not match his supreme status in the hearts of the people of the world.

On the contrary, he was worried that if Marquis Jia En continued to kill like this, it would cause turmoil in the court.

After all, the old man had just passed away, and some people were worried that the emperor would have new ministers and would settle accounts with them.

Unfortunately, the emperor's order was obviously too late.

After entering the city, Jia She had no intention of hiding anything, and he clearly broke down the gate of Prince Yi Zhong's mansion with his carriage and crippled the hands and feet of Liu Ye, who was under house arrest.

Just when Jia Cong was about to leave the palace in person, all officials had already received the news that Liu Heng had died and Liu Ye had been deposed.

At this time, Master She was in heavy mourning. He entered the palace from the Daxia Gate, kneeling every three steps, and walked towards the Longshou Palace on his knees.

"Your Majesty, Jia She is so bold and reckless. I think he should be handed over to the authorities for questioning!"

"Those who kill the emperor's relatives without authorization should be executed. I ask for your judgment!"

"Let's ask first. Jia She is an important official of the imperial court. It is impossible for him not to understand the consequences of killing a relative of the emperor without authorization..."

Most of the royal family members who were originally lying on the ground crying had pale faces.

In the struggle for succession at the end of Zhaowu period and the power struggle at the beginning of Yuanyou period, except for the Thirteenth Prince and a few families, almost all of them were from the Fourteenth Prince's party and the Yi Zhong Prince's party.

Since the old man was around, the emperor still gave them some face.

Now that the old man is dead, who wouldn’t worry that the emperor would settle accounts with them?

It was definitely the emperor's idea for Jia She to kill Liu Heng and depose Liu Ye!

The emperor could see what these people were thinking, but he didn't care about being criticized.

He was too lazy to even explain. He just glanced coldly at these useless royal relatives and said to the officials with various attitudes: "My father has just passed away, and the funeral is not over yet. Don't bother me with these trivial matters. When my father was alive, he treated Jia She as his own nephew. Even if you want to punish him, you have to wait until he buries my father!"

The "own son" wants to bury his father, and you don't allow Marquis Jia En to wear mourning clothes because of these trivial matters. Are you still human?
All the officials were stunned by the emperor's attitude. Some members of the royal family were indignant, but unfortunately the old man who used to protect them had passed away. Who would dare to say a word in the face of the "harsh and ungrateful" emperor?
Jia She's forehead was covered in blood, and his knees were also stained with blood.

But he still knocked every three steps, leaving bloodstains on the imperial road, and walked straight from the Daxia Gate to the gate of the Huangji Palace.

"Your servant Jia She respectfully sends the saint to heaven!"

dong dong dong...

The sorrowful cry caused many old ministers in the hall to burst into tears, which could not be stopped.

The emperor who ate meat and drank wine with them is gone, and the emperor who was tolerant of them has passed away!

The hall, which had just been filled with arguments, was once again filled with the sounds of crying.

Liu Hong went to support him personally, but Jia She stubbornly knelt and moved forward, until he fell to the ground in front of the coffin and cried bitterly.

"Let him cry. For him, it means he has lost another father."

……

The Ministry of Rites has a complete set of ceremonial procedures for funerals.

According to the rules, officials and their families had to come to the palace to pay their respects and memorialize the deceased. However, Empress Dowager Cao was old and she only lasted two days before falling ill.

Daiyu had no choice but to stay in the Cining Palace with several other princesses to take care of the old lady. It was not until the Crown Princess Zhang came to the Huangji Palace to ask for permission for the funeral that Jia Cong received news from home saying that the old lady was too sad and had a high fever.

When he and his father Jia She hurried back home, the imperial physician had just left.

"Boss, come here..."

Jia She took a step forward, but saw the old lady trying to hold on and slap her eldest son in the face with her hand.

"I know you received an order from the saint, but you are gambling with the lives of your entire family to win the heart of the emperor. Do you want to piss me off to death?"

The slap from the old lady was something that no one in the room had expected.

She knew clearly that the old saint was an emperor in her eldest son's heart. Her eldest son had a special kind of blind loyalty and filial piety towards the old saint from the bottom of his heart, which was formed when he was young.

She was also aware of the old sage's favor and preferential treatment of the Jia family. After the former crown prince committed suicide, almost all families related to the Eastern Palace were implicated.

Even Master Zhang and his entire family were exiled, but the Jia family was able to enjoy wealth and prosperity in the capital. To put it bluntly, it was all because of the old man's special care.

But Jia She killed the emperor's relatives without authorization, which is a very serious crime!
If something goes wrong, all nine members of the Jia family will be implicated.

"Don't worry, mother. I have my own ideas..."

"Since it is the saint's secret order, you can have someone spread the contents of the secret order secretly. Although this will damage the saint's reputation, it can avoid a lot of trouble for our family..."

The old lady was really sick and confused, so Jia Cong had to persuade her: "Absolutely not, the secret decree must not be made public."

"What Cong said is true. Although you have obeyed a secret order, this matter has helped His Majesty get rid of a great threat. Even if you are really punished, it will be a good thing in His Majesty's eyes..."

Look, even the usually slow-witted Mr. Zheng has figured out the secret.

Jia She did not have this idea. Instead, he looked in the direction of the ancestral hall, kowtowed to the old lady, then stood up and walked out of the house.

"Don't worry, old lady. My son will take care of this matter alone. It will never affect the family..."

"Am I afraid that you'll implicate my family? I'm worried about you!"

The old lady was so angry at her eldest son that she laughed. It was true that she favored her younger son, but the eldest son was her flesh and blood after all.

Now all the officials in the court are impeaching the eldest son for killing royal relatives. Although the emperor has temporarily suppressed the matter, after the national mourning, who can guarantee that the eldest son will not be tried by the three judges?
But Jia She just paused for a moment, then walked out the door without stopping.

……

During the national mourning period, in addition to going to the palace to pay tribute every day, all officials also had to go to the government office to handle official business according to the rules.

Just as the cabinet convened all officials to discuss the saint's posthumous title and temple name in the Fengtian Hall, an official from the Ministry of Public Administration ran in hurriedly holding a memorial.

"My Lord, Duke Rong has just sent me a memorial in which he requests to be stripped of his title and dismissed from office in order to atone for the crime of killing a relative of the Emperor!"

"Ridiculous! What does the death of commoner Liu Xing have to do with him?"

What a joke! No matter how brave Jia She was, could he kill the saint's own son in the imperial mausoleum?
It goes without saying that it was the old sage who issued a secret order, which allowed the Imperial Mausoleum Guards to allow Marquis Jia En to stay in the Imperial Mausoleum for more than a month. They waited until the sage passed away, and then killed Liu Heng with a single knife.

Which of the ministers in the cabinet could not guess the mystery behind this?
Since the emperor had tacitly agreed to those officials who could not see through the situation in order to put the blame on him, the cabinet had originally planned to handle the matter coldly. After all, Liu Heng was dead, so were they really going to punish the emperor?

I didn't expect Jia She to jump out again. Why? Isn't it chaotic enough?
Old man Zhou Jiong dragged his sick body to preside over the cabinet meeting. When he heard that Jia She had actually submitted a memorial to confess his guilt and accept punishment, his temples began to throb.

"The saint is gone, the Duke of England is gone again, who can control this fellow? Ru Hai, go and persuade your uncle to go home quickly and stop causing trouble at this time!"

Lin Ruhai was shocked by his uncle's actions. How could he admit to this crime?
Just as he was about to accept the order and leave, he saw a man in heavy mourning walking outside the hall. Who else could it be but his uncle Jia She?
"I did kill him, I admit it!"

Jia Cong was holding something wrapped in red cloth in his hand. After entering the hall, he bowed slightly towards Zhou Jiong and then uncovered the red silk.

"Red Book and Iron Certificate!"

It was indeed a red-lettered iron certificate, and it was the red-lettered iron certificate bestowed by Taizu to the first generation of Duke Rong.

"I was the one who killed Liu Heng and crippled Liu Ye. I was not instructed by anyone else. I admit my guilt. You all should have heard about how many times Liu Heng plotted against my family. I killed him out of personal vengeance and it has nothing to do with others. If anyone dares to talk about this matter again, I don't mind using a knife to reason with him..."

As he spoke, he held up the red-lettered iron certificate high up: "Today, I use the red-lettered iron certificate given by the Great Ancestor to plead guilty to the crime of murder. Please, according to the law, depose my Dukedom and dismiss me from all my official positions. When I escort the saint's coffin to the imperial mausoleum, I will go to the prison to serve my sentence."

"In this way, can my sins be redeemed?"

Even according to Zhang Zhengju's newly revised "Daxia Criminal Law", with the red-lettered iron certificate, it would be impossible for Jia She to exchange his life for another, let alone execute all nine generations of his clan.

This is the reason why Jia She dared to say that he had his own ideas and told the old lady not to worry.

Jia She pleaded guilty today and accepted the punishment, thus preserving the reputation of his grandfather and the emperor. Even if he lost his official title, the Jia family would still be one of the top noble families in the dynasty.

After all, he has two good sons and one Duke!
Zhou Jiong felt even more pain in his head when he looked at the red-lettered iron certificate with dragon pattern engraved on it.

This guy is really a scoundrel. The red book and iron certificate bestowed by Emperor Taizu is more of a symbol of honor. Who would really use it to absolve themselves of guilt?

However, there is a sentence engraved on this red-lettered iron certificate: If it is not a crime of rebellion and treason, the death penalty can be avoided.

Liu Heng had long been demoted to a commoner. Even if Jia She really killed him, it would not be considered as killing a royal relative, let alone treason.

Therefore, Jia She's sudden action is actually better than cold treatment.

Whether it is the reputation of the old saint or the reputation of the emperor, the ministers in the court must protect it. After all, it concerns the dignity of the country.

After much deliberation, Zhou Jiong finally accepted Jia She's letter of apology.

"In this case, this cabinet will follow your request. We will report the matter of dismissal to the emperor. There can be no more objections to Liu Xing's case. Instruct the Wucheng Military Department and Shuntian Prefecture to stop the rumors. Anyone who dares to discuss this matter will be punished according to the law!"

Monthly ticket recommendation ticket

(End of this chapter)