The next day at noon, Helian Marquis came to Mingli Hall to thank for the reward.
Fu Man blocked Helian Marquis and advised: “My Lord Marquis, please wait. His Majesty is taking a nap at the moment and will only be able to summon you later.” He stepped aside. “If you are not in a hurry, you may wait here for a while.”
Helian Marquis had come today specifically to express loyalty. The rumors in Yong City had kept him sleepless at night, fearing that if Li Jian Ting became enraged, she would confiscate the Fei family. He immediately nodded in agreement and stood waiting under the sun.
The noon sun was viciously hot. After less than half an hour, Helian Marquis was drenched in sweat. He did not dare ask anything, his heart sinking further. Under the silent gazes of the surrounding eunuchs, he sensed the new emperor’s punishment.
“My Lord Marquis,” Fu Man called softly, “why not wait in the side hall instead? It’s too hot out here.”
Helian Marquis forced out a smile and wiped his sweat with his sleeve. “It’s fine.”
The grain relief in Yong City had been organized by him. With such a mishap, he could not escape responsibility. If Li Jian Ting suspected him of colluding with rebels, his head would certainly not be spared. At this moment, let alone standing and waiting—even if he were made to kneel and wait, as long as he could preserve his life, he would do it.
He did not know how long passed, but Helian Marquis felt as if his back was pressed against a scorching iron plate. His face turned deathly pale, his sweat became cold sweat, and his vision blurred. He could only force himself to stand.
The beaded curtain swayed slightly. Feng Quan appeared half in shadow and said in a soft, feminine voice: “His Majesty is awake. Move quickly and do not delay His Majesty’s handling of state affairs.”
The eunuchs and palace maids under the eaves entered carrying basins. Soon after, Helian Marquis heard his name called. He lifted his robe and stepped up the stairs. At the hall entrance, his old eyes were so dim he had to support himself on Fu Man.
“Oh dear,” Fu Man said with concern, “My Lord Marquis, what is wrong?”
Helian Marquis felt a heavy blockage in his chest, almost making him retch. He was suffering heatstroke. Li Jian Ting was waiting inside the hall. Helian Marquis steadied himself in panic, his legs trembling slightly, and could only murmur to Fu Man: “It’s… it’s fine…”
“There are ice basins inside,” Fu Man said softly. “You can cool down once you go in.”
Helian Marquis stepped through the door, knelt before the imperial desk, and bowed in greeting. His voice was weak: “This subject… this subject greets Your Majesty. May Your Majesty have boundless blessings.”
Li Jian Ting held a memorial, not looking up.
Helian Marquis did not dare move, holding his breath carefully. Sweat quickly soaked his sleeves.
“I am reading Liang Dishan’s memorial,” Li Jian Ting said, taking a sip of cold tea. Her voice was gentle. “It says the Fei family in Yuancheng has encroached on civilian land. Do you know of this matter?”
Cold sweat replaced all the heat on Helian Marquis’s body. He said: “This subject knows. The Censorate has impeached me, and the Cabinet has issued instructions for the Ministry of Punishments and the Ministry of Revenue to send officials to Yuancheng to investigate land taxes, and also appointed Grand Judge Xue Xiuzhuo as supervising officer.”
“Now the Ministry of Revenue says your Fei family in Yuancheng, together with the Pan family of Dancheng and the Han family of Wucheng, are colluding, deceiving the court, privately seizing land taxes, and harshly punishing the people, causing over a hundred households in Yuancheng to flee last year.” Li Jian Ting said. “Is this true?”
Helian Marquis felt as if his organs were burning. He gasped and said in urgency: “This subject… this subject would never dare…”
Li Jian Ting suddenly slammed the memorial onto Helian Marquis.
“Would never dare? Were there no people starved to death in Yuancheng in winter?” Her voice turned cold. “Not only did you collude with the Pan family, you also joined with merchants from Western Yanxi, using the grain of Yuancheng’s people to flatter the rebels. Do you think I don’t know? That Grand Preceptor doesn’t know? The court has long been watching you parasites!”
Helian Marquis nearly collapsed. He cried: “Your Majesty! Your Majesty! In the Xian De years, the Hua Party and Pan faction controlled the court, with the Empress Dowager’s support. I had no choice in order to protect my family’s lives!” He knocked his head against the ground and cried loudly. “The people of Yuancheng are like my own children! Since the founding of the Taizu era, they have been under the Fei family’s governance. If I had not been forced into a dead end, how would I have committed such beastly crimes! As for the grain, Your Majesty—I saw Your Majesty troubled by the famine in Yong City, and I was anxious beyond measure, which is why I fell into that Shen clan rebel’s trap!”
At death’s door, Helian Marquis became sharp-minded and shifted blame cleanly, not mentioning Yan Heru at all.
“Han Cheng acted tyrannically and repeatedly forced this subject to help him assassinate the emperor and seize the throne,” Helian Marquis said with a face full of tears, looking up at Li Jian Ting. “But this subject is a minister of the Li clan and would never collude with him! That night at the banquet, this subject risked his life to protect Your Majesty… I deserve death, but I only beg Your Majesty to consider the Taizu’s grace and spare my wife and children…”
Li Jian Ting seemed moved. She said: “The Taizu bestowed favor, entrusting eight cities to you all, yet you have committed grave crimes for personal gain.”
“This subject knows I deserve death,” Helian Marquis sobbed. “…The debt of tens of thousands in land taxes… even if only one member of the Fei family remains, we will exhaust everything to repay it.”
As long as Li Jian Ting did not kill him, Helian Marquis was willing not only to return the reclaimed lands, but also to make up the taxes. Yuancheng’s position was special, bordering Dicheng and connecting waterways to Western Yanxi; he might actually be able to repay this amount. But like other cunning aristocrats, he did not specify how long it would take.
Li Jian Ting turned away as if thinking. After a long pause, she said: “Your crimes are unforgivable. But considering your willingness to resolve the crisis in Yong City, you still have some conscience. I will spare your life.”
Helian Marquis felt a sudden relief and quickly kowtowed: “Your Majesty’s heart is merciful…”
“But you formed cliques and betrayed the Taizu’s grace. The title of ‘Helian Marquis’ can no longer be retained,” Li Jian Ting said without giving him time to breathe. “And the matter of encroaching on civilian land.”
Helian Marquis’s heart tightened again.
“Fu Man,” Li Jian Ting said toward the door, “drag those bastards out.”
Fu Man responded. Soon, guards dragged several people into the hall and forced them to kneel in the open space. Helian Marquis turned back and saw through the beaded curtain that these were officials he had planted in the Yuancheng yamen.
“The Taizu entrusted eight cities to you, but the eight cities still belong to the Li clan. You escaping death is already my mercy. These people abused authority, violated law, and oppressed the people,” Li Jian Ting said, stepping beside Helian Marquis and lightly patting his shoulder. “They caused the people to be displaced. They deserve death. Fu Man.”
Fu Man raised his voice: “Beat them!”
As soon as the command fell, iron-bound palace rods struck bodies.
Helian Marquis trembled violently.
The officials had cloth stuffed in their mouths. They were not taken to the Duancheng Gate as per normal procedure, nor wrapped in padded clothing. Their official robes had already been stripped off, leaving only inner garments. The eunuchs wielding the rods were former Eastern Depot men, striking with lethal force. After a few blows, the men were reduced to bloody pulp.
Helian Marquis’s ears rang. Mingli Hall was cold, making his entire body shiver. The beating continued. One of them lifted his head weakly; blood soaked through the white cloth in his mouth as he whimpered toward Helian Marquis. The entire hall was silent, eunuchs standing in formation. Only the sound of “thud, thud, thud” echoed.
After half an hour, the thick stench of blood filled the air.
Li Jian Ting no longer looked at Helian Marquis. She simply said: “Withdraw.”
When Helian Marquis stood, he tripped and fell back to his knees on the hard floor. Fu Man signaled to the young eunuchs, and they dragged him out. His boots stepped into the pool of blood. He looked down.
The blood reflected Helian Marquis’s official robe.
He staggered a few steps and felt the world spinning, fainting from shock.
Li Jian Ting leaned in her chair, watching through the dim window shadow as Fu Man ordered the guards to clean up the corpses.
Feng Quan picked up the memorials from the ground and said softly: “This scene is truly frightening.”
“You have never seen a slaughterhouse,” Li Jian Ting said from the darkness. “When famine spread in Dancheng, refugees crowded the gates of Du City, trying to crawl through drainage tunnels. In the end they clogged the tunnels completely, and the stench of corpses filled the air. No one saved anyone. That scene—that is what is truly frightening.”
Feng Quan did not touch the imperial desk, only placed the memorial back down.
“Use harsh law in troubled times,” Li Jian Ting said after a long pause. “Let Helian Marquis live a little longer. Has Xue Yanqing come to see you recently?”
Feng Quan bowed: “He came to ask about Your Majesty’s daily routine.”
“Cen Xunyi is an old courtier and wary of Zhongbo; he has long foresight. This time I did not follow Xue Yanqing’s intention,” Li Jian Ting said. “He should be compensated.”
“Lord Xue is pure and frugal, and was famous at the Imperial Academy. If Your Majesty rewards him with gold and silver…” Feng Quan’s voice slowly trailed off.
Li Jian Ting thought for a moment. “Jiang Qingshan contributed to grain procurement and treats the people as his own children. Let the Grand Preceptor draft a memorial. I also heard his wife, Madam Liu, has a good reputation—reward her as well.”
Jiang Qingshan was Xue Xiuzhuo’s subordinate in Western Yanxi. Rewarding him was a way to appease Xue Xiuzhuo. Moreover, Li Jian Ting still had use for Jiang Qingshan. The Eastern Fierce King Qi Zhuyin now had no one to restrain her, but the garrison of Qidong needed military grain, and the key to the granary was placed in Jiang Qingshan’s hands.
Feng Quan softly acknowledged and withdrew with great care.
“Xue Xiuzhuo changed emperors so easily. She cannot help but be on guard. Jiang Qingshan is a border governor who received no favor from the Li clan in Xian De or Tian Chen years; now he is about to rise rapidly,” Shen Zekuan said, putting aside Yu Xiaozai’s letter. “I actually think her method of dealing with Helian Marquis is unexpected.”
“Yes,” Xiao Chiye looked across the table. “She’s quite bold.”
Li Jian Ting ordering rod punishment to intimidate Helian Marquis—Shen Zekuan truly had not expected this. He tapped his brush against the ink and said: “I originally thought she would find an excuse to kill Helian Marquis. I didn’t expect her to hold back her anger.”
“Helian Marquis originally said he had no money, but now he is so frightened he is willing to make up the deficit, even abandoning his estates,” Xiao Chiye said lazily in his chair, slightly lifting his head. “The female emperor combines authority and mercy better than Xue Xiuzhuo, who refuses to back down. The aristocratic families have been beaten to this point; seeing her treat Helian Marquis like this, they will likely make up losses on their own to seek survival.”
“Impressive,” Shen Zekuan said, holding his brush, lightly tracing Xiao Chiye’s eyes. “This is a true emperor.”
“I never believed anyone was born to be an emperor, but she truly has extraordinary talent and has only been in the inner court for five years,” Xiao Chiye reached across the table and held Shen Zekuan’s wrist. “—Want a reward?”
“I’ve only been in Zhaozui Temple for five years too.” Shen Zekuan kicked off his wooden clogs under the table, brushing along Xiao Chiye’s leg. His fingers loosened slightly, and the brush fell onto the table, leaving diagonal ink marks on the paper. Lan Zhou curved his fingers and pressed against Xiao Chiye’s nose bridge.
“Hurry up and give it to me.”