The Lucky Farmgirl
Chapter 1230 - 1208: Pardon

Chapter 1230: Chapter 1208: Pardon

The Emperor thought for a moment, and without much hesitation, nodded his head and then asked, "Did you also ask Minister Feng and others to plead on your behalf?"

The Crown Prince furrowed his brows, "No, I spoke directly with Father Emperor. Why involve them?"

The Emperor pondered, "Then who sought them out?"

The next day, the Emperor learned who had sought them out. It couldn’t be helped; the story spun by Bai Shan was too captivating. Moreover, he had gone back to consult with Manbao and Bai Erlang. After the three of them filled in the gaps, blending together seven parts truth with three parts fiction, they fascinated their classmates at the National Academy and their families to no end.

Even someone like Minister Feng, after hearing the story from his grandson, couldn’t stop thinking about it and even took the time to visit Xiang Mingxue in the heavenly prison.

A good story always travels quickly, especially when it originates from a scholarly atmosphere such as the National Academy.

Everyone would chat after class and gather together after school; and so, the story spread from the National Academy to the neighboring Highest Institute, and then to the Four Gates School nearby.

At the same time, siblings at home also found it very interesting, and once the sisters gathered, it spread throughout the inner quarters.

The next day, Yin Li casually brought up the matter to the Emperor during their morning meeting.

As the governor of the capital, in addition to gossip from his own household, he would "casually" share with the Emperor any interesting news or matters involving high court officials.

The Emperor became interested and asked, "Is it true that after falling into the water, Xiang Mingxue entered a cave that was like a Peach Blossom Spring and found a book of secret martial arts techniques inside?"

Yin Li replied with a light smile, "This servant had inquired with Minister Feng. Minister Feng said he asked Xiang Mingxue, who claimed his swordsmanship was learned from a knight during his times of hardship, and that there was no such cave."

The Emperor was slightly disappointed, "However, for him to have trained from a frail scholar to a knight in such a short time, he indeed must have put in some hard work."

Yin Li said, "This servant conducted an investigation when leading the troops to Suizhou. The Xiang Family of Dongxi Village was quite renowned in Suizhou. Since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, they had migrated there, and an ancestor had held the office of a governor in a previous dynasty. Unfortunately, subsequent wars and unworthy descendants meant that no one further entered officialdom. However, the direct lineage has consistently been dedicated to their studies, qualifying as a household of literature and poetry."

The Emperor then sighed, thought for a moment, took out the petition from Minister Feng asking for clemency, signed the word "Pardon" on it, stamped it, and set it aside.

Yin Li saw this, and his eyes dropped as he obediently stood aside.

The Emperor, not noticing his reaction, continued to ask, "When you went to deploy the western army, did you examine their defenses?"

"I did, there were some minor oversights, which General Lu corrected immediately."

The Emperor nodded, "Since you’ve seen it, what do you think of Tubo’s current military strength?"

Yin Li was taken aback and then frowned, "It has become somewhat stronger than it was more than ten years ago, but since the third year of the Great Virtue era, Tubo has already been a vassal to our Great Jin, Your Majesty..."

The Emperor showed him a document from the Ministry of Rites, saying, "Tubo has sent emissaries, claiming that this year’s steppe snow disaster has occurred, hence they have halved the tribute."

Yin Li quickly took it.

The Emperor said, "I don’t wish for war, but if they harbor ulterior motives, I am not afraid. You have led the western army before and defended the borders. Tell me, if war broke out on both sides, how many troops would we need?"

It wasn’t about whether they could win, but how many troops were needed; the Emperor clearly believed they would surely win.

Yin Li also felt that if a real fight broke out, they would certainly win, but why must they go to war?

As the Intendant of the Capital, he was well aware of how treacherous the situation was, so he pushed the responsibility back to the emperor, "Your servant has been away from the border for many years and knows very little about the current military strength of Tubo. Perhaps Your Majesty could summon Minister Li to inquire."

Discussing matters of war should indeed involve the Minister of the Ministry of War Li Zhen, oh, and also Liu Hui, the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

The emperor, unable to obtain any recommendations from Yin Li, was slightly disappointed and consequently gestured for him to withdraw.

As soon as he left, the emperor handed the vetted memorials to Gu Zhong, especially the one requesting amnesty for Xiang Mingxue, placing it on the very top, "Tell the courtier on duty that although the Empress Dowager is ill, her senses are sharp. Ask them to keep their movements and noise to a minimum."

Gu Zhong hastily agreed, bowing deeply just as he was about to withdraw when the emperor called him back, clearing his throat lightly and saying: "Send a couple of clever people out of the palace to have a walk and listen to what stories about the Xiang Family are being told outside?"

Yin Li was good in every aspect, but his manner of speaking was too plain and straightforward, and with an ever-stern face, even a good story would lose its charm after being relayed by him.

Gu Zhong, upon hearing this, knew that the emperor was in a playful mood, so he immediately raised his voice in acknowledgement and bowed to take his leave.

Lord Tang, as the head of the Imperial Censors, certainly had heard these stories circulating outside, and knew them in greater detail than anyone else.

The story was fabricated and spread by those three youngsters. Lord Tang chuckled as he thought of how he had just arrived home that day to receive a parcel of local products from Jianzhou sent by Zhou Man.

Since those three young men had entered the capital, it seemed they deliberately avoided visiting the County Magistrate of Tang personally to prevent any association, and even when previously imprisoned, their family communicated through Wei Zhi and never visited him directly, let alone sent any gifts.

Now that the dust had settled, they came, and what they brought for his father, an official of Yizhou, from the youngsters of Mianzhou turned out to be local specialties from Jianzhou.

Lord Tang, with the memorial in hand, went to seek out Ji Xiang, and together they looked for Minister Feng, who, as it happened, had not yet left the office for the day.

Thanks to the top brass examining and passing on the memorial, one that was supposed to reach the Ministry of Justice the next morning arrived in Minister Feng’s hands in no time.

And then, the orders that should have been carried out the next day were executed by Minister Feng right away after he glanced at Ji Xiang and Lord Tang; he called for Tao Yi and handed him the memorial saying, "Release those two from the heavenly prison."

Tao Yi took it and quickly skimmed through the document, then after a glance at Ji Xiang and Lord Tang, who were sitting in the office and having tea, he smartly refrained from asking questions. After bowing and withdrawing, he thought for a moment and then summoned a clerk to run an errand, "Go to Changqing Alley, find the Bai Family, and tell them to pick someone up from the heavenly prison; just say that His Majesty has generously granted amnesty to Xiang Mingxue."

The young clerk hurriedly complied.

Only then did Tao Yi start preparing the documents to release the prisoners from the heavenly prison.

Releasing people wasn’t as simple as just unlocking a prison cell, there were procedures to follow; the reasons for the incarceration and the release had to be clearly documented.

By the time Tao Yi finished the paperwork, his colleagues at the Ministry of Justice had already left for home. He could only work overtime to rush to the heavenly prison, where Zhou Man and his companions were lined up, squatting on the steps in front of it, waiting for him.

As soon as they saw him arriving, they immediately sprang up with big smiles to greet him.

Tao Yi couldn’t help but sigh, "Having connections really is good, you all are so at ease and convenient, whereas I still have to put in overtime for you."

Bai Shan immediately said, "Lord Tao, we are grateful for your care while we were incarcerated, and we’ve brought you some special products from Jianzhou."

Tao Yi paused in his steps, not because he could not accept gifts, but rather he found it strange, "Jianzhou? Aren’t you all from Mianzhou?"