Chapter 28: A Devious Plan with Threefold Benefits

The foolish young emperor asked in sheer disbelief, "What? Mo Zixiao, a man of your standing—a General of the Tiger Tooth, a third-rank official—are you truly intending to marry a twice-widowed woman?"

Mo Zixiao slowly raised his head. "Your Majesty, you have misunderstood your humble servant."

"Misunderstood? You have been kneeling before me for nearly an hour; is it not to demand that I rescue the eldest daughter of Marquis Chu from the Left Prime Minister’s residence?"

"Your humble servant wishes for Your Majesty to bestow the disgraced Princess Lanxin, who is to be exiled to the frozen north, upon the Prime Minister’s eldest son, Qi Huan, in marriage," Mo Zixiao replied, his eyes burning with intensity as he gazed at the Emperor.

The Emperor was stunned at first, but as the implication dawned on him, he sneered, "Heh, the great general so skilled in the art of war is truly a master of schemes. If I were to bestow Lanxin upon Qi Huan, you would have a legitimate excuse to rescue Chu Xi from the Prime Minister’s estate, while simultaneously dealing a crushing blow to both the Marquis’s house and the Prime Minister’s residence."

"And as for me, I would achieve my goal of punishing Lanxin. This is truly killing three birds with one stone."

Mo Zixiao immediately responded, "Your Majesty is brilliant."

"But does the great general not remember that the Left Prime Minister is my only maternal uncle, and that Qi Huan is the cousin with whom I grew up? How could I possibly follow your advice and make things difficult for them?" The Emperor’s face clouded with irritation.

Mo Zixiao looked up, his expression resolute. "Your Majesty is mistaken. I do this entirely for the sake of Your Majesty and the stability of the Ping Kingdom."

"Nonsense! That is utter rubbish!" Naturally, the young emperor sided with his uncle.

Mo Zixiao insisted, "Your Majesty, the entire capital is now aware that the Marchioness of Chu personally delivered her own daughter into the Prime Minister’s estate. Under the weight of public outcry, the Marquis’s house is on the verge of being drowned by scorn. As for the Left Prime Minister’s residence, it has become a den of iniquity, condemned by the entire nation. People enter in good health only to die within days. One death might be overlooked, but one after another points to the grave crime of murder."

"Is it possible that, simply because he is the Emperor’s uncle, human life is treated as mere grass, and he is permitted to act with such lawlessness at the very feet of the Son of Heaven? The common people have long been dissatisfied and resentful; this anger now reflects poorly upon Your Majesty and threatens the very foundation of your imperial authority."

"Does Your Majesty intend to continue shielding them in their wickedness?"

The seventeen-year-old emperor, unaccustomed to such grave warnings about the stability of his throne, could not help but recoil two steps at Mo Zixiao’s words.

"Then what would you have me do?" the Emperor asked, his dull eyes looking toward Mo Zixiao in supplication.

Knowing he had achieved his goal, Mo Zixiao said, "Your Majesty need only bestow the disgraced Princess Lanxin upon Qi Huan. If you do not strip her of her title or her stipend when she enters the Prime Minister’s residence, then Qi Huan and his family will not dare to take her life—for murdering a princess is a crime punishable by the extermination of one’s entire clan. I suspect there will be mistreatment and cruelty, but if Your Majesty chooses not to investigate, no harm will come of it. So long as Lanxin survives in that residence for five years, the people will gradually forget the matter."

"In this way, you both restrain Qi Huan and appease the public."

The Emperor sighed. "Let me think on this."

"Your Majesty, there is no time. Chu Xi could be carried out in a coffin at any moment. Your humble servant is not exaggerating."

The Emperor said, unwillingly, "But wouldn't this be letting Lanxin off too easily?"

Mo Zixiao shook his head. "On the contrary. That residence is what the people call a living hell. The mere news that Your Majesty has bestowed her upon Qi Huan will surely terrify her to the core, let alone what will happen once she is married inside."

"Heh, that is true," the foolish young emperor could not help but nod with a smile.

Mo Zixiao struck while the iron was hot. "Then I pray Your Majesty will issue the decree quickly."

"Very well, I shall grant you this wicked method that strikes three birds with one stone." With that, he picked up his brush, ready to write the imperial edict.

But just as the brush touched the paper, the Emperor recalled something. He stopped, looked up, and said, "Wait."

What now? Mo Zixiao felt a surge of both urgency and frustration.