The Succession Struggle in the Dream of the Red Chamber

Chapter 88 A Meeting in the Imperial Court, a Matter of Life and Death

When the second son and his companions saw through the crack in the window that Tu Chengyu was being pointed at with a musket by Prince Yixiao, they became very anxious.

Later, Tu Chengyu and the other man wrestled on the ground and disappeared from the sight of the people outside the window.

The second brother and his friends became even more anxious.

They quickly ordered someone to open the doors and windows, but the greenhouse doors and windows were indeed very sturdy.

Even when people tried to ram the door, it didn't budge.

Even if you cleave with a knife or slash with a sword, it won't do much good.

Finally, they found a piece of wood elsewhere and together they managed to break the door open.

They burst through the door and rushed in like a swarm of bees.

They saw Tu Chengyu, covered in blood, sitting blankly on the floor, leaning against the table.

Beside him lay Prince Yoshikō, also covered in blood, lying motionless on the ground.

Seeing the two people in such a terrible state, everyone was shocked and stood frozen in place, at a loss for what to do.

After a long while, it was the second son who reacted first.

He went over to check on Tu Chengyu's body and found that although there was blood on Tu Chengyu's body, he was not injured.

This immediately put the second brother at ease, and he then ignored Tu Chengyu, who was still in a daze.

He turned around to check on Prince Yoshikō's condition.

Upon checking, my heart sank.

Although Prince Yixiao's body was not yet stiff, he had already stopped breathing and had no pulse; he was completely dead.

The second son frowned, unsure of what to do next.

Those waiting for news on the other side became even more anxious when they saw the second brother standing there in a daze after checking.

The fourth brother, with his straightforward nature, couldn't help but ask, "Second brother, how are they?"

Upon hearing this, the second son replied, "The fifth son is fine, but Prince Yixiao is dead."

"what."

Everyone gasped in surprise at the result.

This has really resulted in a death.

Moreover, it was the current prince who killed the former crown prince and heir apparent.

Prince Consort Huo Daichun disregarded everything else and rushed over. Undeterred, he knelt beside Prince Yixiao and carefully examined him once more.

When he saw that the wound on Prince Yixiao's chest had stopped bleeding, he finally accepted the fact.

Huo Daichun sat beside Prince Yixiao's corpse, looking utterly dejected, shaking his head and muttering to himself;

"What should we do? What should we do?"

Now that Prince Yixiao was dead, the second son no longer cared about him.

He turned around and leaned close to Tu Chengyu, calling softly, "Xiao Wu, Xiao Wu, wake up."

In fact, Tu Chengyu was not in a daze at all. He just didn't know how to face everyone after killing Prince Yixiao.

Then he pretended to be frightened and sat on the ground in a daze.

So when the second child called for the second time, Tu Chengyu pretended to come to his senses.

He feigned a frightened expression and said, "Second Brother..."

The second brother cooperated, gently patting Tu Chengyu's shoulder while whispering:
"Xiao Wu, don't be afraid, everything is alright now."

Tu Chengyu asked, "How is Brother Yixiao doing now?"

The second son replied, "He's already dead."

Tu Chengyu pretended to be very remorseful and said, "I didn't do it on purpose. It was because my brother, Prince Yixiao, wanted to kill me that I was forced to resist."

The second brother said, "Don't be afraid, Xiao Wu. We all saw it. You didn't do it on purpose."

Then the second brother worried that it was inappropriate for Tu Chengyu to stay there any longer, so he pulled Tu Chengyu up and took him outside the greenhouse.

After they left the greenhouse, the second son ran to the side and started talking to a eunuch.

The other brothers surrounded Tu Chengyu, all asking him with concern what had happened inside.

Tu Chengyu briefly recounted what happened, but of course, he wouldn't go into some details.

After they finished asking their questions, the second brother ran back to the greenhouse, and the third and fourth brothers also went to the side. Only the sixth brother stayed with Tu Chengyu.

At this moment, Tu Chengyu turned his head and saw Lao Yao and the others walking over.

With expressions of frustration, they walked to within a few steps of Tu Chengyu and, with a thud, all knelt on the ground.

Old Yao knelt at the front and said in a deep voice:

“We failed to protect Your Highness, putting you in grave danger. We have neglected our duty and beg Your Highness for punishment.”

Tu Chengyu waved his hand and said, "This is not your fault. Who could have predicted that such a thing would happen in the Prince's mansion?"

Old Yao wanted to say something more, but Tu Chengyu said impatiently:
"Stop saying that. Someone go and get my spare clothes."

Seeing the bloodstains on Tu Chengyu's body, Lao Yao wisely kept quiet and quickly ran back to get Tu Chengyu's clothes.

After Lao Yao left, Tu Chengyu told the other guards to stand up.

Then he said to Xiao Liu, "Xiao Liu, where is the young imperial uncle? I haven't seen him."

Xiao Liu said, "The young imperial uncle has been taken away by Steward Dai."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu said, "It's good to take him away, so he won't be frightened if he sees him."

After finishing discussing the matter of the young imperial uncle, Xiao Liu took the opportunity to say to Tu Chengyu:
"Fifth Brother, someone from the palace has arrived."

Tu Chengyu asked in confusion, "Why did people from the palace arrive so quickly?"

Xiao Liu said, "They didn't come for this?" Tu Chengyu asked, "Then what did they come for? Did they come for Prince Yixiao?"

Xiao Liu said, "Fifth Brother guessed right, they came for Prince Yixiao. It's said that Father Emperor summoned Prince Yixiao to the court for a meeting."

Tu Chengyu was surprised. Why would his father summon Prince Yixiao for a meeting?

Is there something in the court that involves Prince Yixiao? It's a pity he's gone now, so any connection is irrelevant.

Tu Chengyu asked Xiao Liu, "Where are the people from the palace now?"

Xiao Liu said, "The eunuch who was talking to Second Brother just now was the one who delivered the imperial decree, but he's in the warm room now."

Tu Chengyu asked, "When did the eunuch who delivered the imperial decree arrive?"

Xiao Liu said, "It was when Prince Yixiao pointed a musket at you."

Tu Chengyu said, "So the eunuch who delivered the imperial decree saw the whole thing."

Xiao Liu said, "He not only saw it, but he also sent a eunuch back to the palace to report it. I suppose Father Emperor already knows about this by now."

Tu Chengyu muttered to himself, "It's good that I saw it."

In the short time the two brothers were talking, Lao Yao had already brought over Tu Chengyu's spare clothes.

Accompanying Lao Yao was the sedan chair that Tu Chengyu had ridden in today.

Tu Chengyu asked, "Why did you bring the sedan chair with you?"

After Old Yao came over, he said, "Your Highness, I was thinking that you need to find a place to change your clothes, but we haven't had time to check the rooms here yet, and there might be some danger."

"So I took the liberty of bringing the sedan chair over. Your Highness, you can change your clothes and rest in the sedan chair for a while."

Tu Chengyu didn't expect that Lao Yao was quite capable.

He nodded and said, "You've thought of everything. I am indeed a little tired after what just happened. I'll rest in the sedan chair for a while."

When Xiao Liu heard that Tu Chengyu had finished changing his clothes and was going to rest, he left on his own.

Tu Chengyu climbed into the sedan chair, changed out of his blood-stained clothes, handed them to Lao Yao to tidy up, and then changed into new clothes before leaning back in the sedan chair to rest.

Perhaps the events that had just transpired had exhausted Tu Chengyu's mind; he leaned against the sedan chair and fell asleep shortly afterward.

Tu Chengyu slept for an unknown amount of time before he heard someone calling him.

He opened his eyes and saw that it was his second brother standing next to the sedan chair.

Tu Chengyu asked, "Second brother, is something the matter?"

The second son said, "Father has sent someone to summon us to the palace."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu got up to get out of the sedan chair, but was stopped by the second son.

The second son said, "Fifth son, you don't need to come down. I came here to tell you that Father already knows that Prince Yixiao is dead. He may ask about this in court later, so you should prepare in advance."

Tu Chengyu asked in surprise, "Why would you ask that in the imperial court?"

The second son said, "Because today in the court, an official impeached Shang Yuanfeng, and one of the memorials involved Prince Yixiao, who needs to testify."

"Now that Prince Yixiao is dead, Father Emperor wants us all to go to the court to explain this matter clearly."

Tu Chengyu nodded to indicate that he understood. The second brother gave a few more instructions before leaving.

After the second son left, Old Yao came over and said, "Your Highness, it's time to get out of the sedan chair."

Tu Chengyu said, "I understand."

Immediately, at Old Yao's command, the sedan chair was slowly lifted and swayed as it headed out of the Prince's mansion.

After leaving the Prince's residence, Tu Chengyu's sedan chair joined the others, and together they headed towards the palace.

Because we needed to go to the imperial court, we had to detour to the Meridian Gate, so this trip took longer.

Upon arriving at the Meridian Gate, everyone disembarked from their sedan chairs.

Led by the eunuchs who were already waiting, they entered the palace through the left side gate.

Then, after crossing the Jinshui Bridge, we arrived at Fengtian Gate, where the emperor held court.

When Tu Chengyu and his entourage arrived, civil and military officials, members of the imperial family, and nobles were already waiting on both sides of the Imperial Street in front of Fengtian Gate.

The emperor was sitting upright on the golden platform at Fengtian Gate.

Tu Chengyu and the others lined up, stepped forward to greet the emperor, and then stood on the Imperial Street, waiting for the emperor to ask them questions.

The emperor's first words were a question to Tu Chengyu.

"Prince Su, step forward and report."

Upon hearing this, Tu Chengyu stepped out of the queue, took a few steps forward, stood in front of everyone, and said:
"Your subject receives the decree and reports back."

The Emperor asked, "The eunuch reported that you killed Prince Yixiao at his residence?"

Tu Chengyu bowed and replied, "Father, it is indeed true."

Although I knew beforehand that no one would dare to spread rumors about such a thing.

However, when the ministers heard it with their own ears, King Su admitted to it himself.

They couldn't help but start talking among themselves, and questions immediately arose from the ranks of officials.

These voices greatly displeased the officials in charge of supervising court etiquette. They coughed several times to quell the murmurs.

Once they quieted down, the emperor began questioning again: "For whom did you kill Prince Yixiao?"

Tu Chengyu said, "Father, it was Prince Yixiao who tried to kill me first. I had no choice but to kill him by accident."

The emperor said, "Who can vouch for you?"

Tu Chengyu said, "Father, all those who came with me can testify on my behalf."

The emperor said, "I understand. You may leave now. I will ask the others."

(End of this chapter)