Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!-Chapter 1227: Passing the Buck

Zhang Yang sat down, hugging his knees with both hands, grateful that his dieting had been effective; otherwise, he wouldn’t have managed even this movement, though wrapping his arms around his knees still could not bring him a sense of security. Hearing the sound of the door lock opening caused panic in the depths of his eyes.

Eunuch Liu entered carrying a tray, "Drink this."

Zhang Yang shook his head frantically, "No, I won’t drink, I don’t want to die, I—I wanted to take down the Zhang family, I wanted to help the Crown Prince ascend to the throne, yes, that’s right, I was meritorious."

Eunuch Liu was disgusted by Zhang Yang’s shamelessness, the Crown Prince’s orders were to let Zhang Yang suffer from the poison, to let him slowly feel the approach of death.

However, because Zhang Yang had injured Prince Liang, the Emperor did not wish for Zhang Yang to die so easily. He had seen clearly at that moment that Zhang Yang had intended to kill Prince Liang.

How could the Emperor easily forgive the murder of his son?

Eunuch Liu said, "This is the antidote, if you drink it, you will live."

Zhang Yang’s pupils constricted, "You’re not lying to me?"

"You may choose not to believe."

Zhang Yang abruptly stood up, snatched the antidote, and downed it as though he feared Eunuch Liu might change his mind.

Eunuch Liu laughed. Already elderly and being a eunuch, coupled with the dark prison cell, his smile appeared even more sinister, "I forgot to mention, this is only one-third of the antidote."

Zhang Yang’s pupils constricted, "What happens with one-third of an antidote?"

Eunuch Liu’s laughter turned shrill, "With one-third of the antidote, ah, you will live, but the poison within you remains uncured, and that is not a pleasant feeling."

He would not live long; his life extended only slightly with poison lingering in his body, making it a torturous experience.

The prison guard could hear the sounds of banging on the door and shouts, but, regrettably, it soon quieted down; Zhang Yang still lacked the courage to take his own life.

Time flew, and though three days had not eased the capital’s people’s fear, the capital had already regained its bustling activity.

The closer Rongchuan got to the capital, the more restless he felt, almost wanting to flee.

Upon reaching the capital’s gates, someone was already waiting; Prince Qi on horseback, flicking his fan in new patterns.

Prince Qi spurred his horse, "Fifth Brother, you’ve finally returned to the capital, everyone is waiting for you!"

Rongchuan swallowed, sensing the malice from Prince Qi.

General Hou stared wide-eyed, doubting his ears, and turned, "Prince Qi is calling you ’Fifth Brother’?"

Rongchuan forced a laugh, "He probably didn’t get it wrong?"

Prince Qi smiled amiably, "Drop the ’probably.’ I am not mistaken, this is my real brother, the Fifth Prince, the Emperor’s legitimate second son."

General Hou, unfamiliar with the recent events in the capital, had rushed back and was now completely bewildered, suddenly understanding why the Emperor had insisted he keep an eye on Princely Heir Ning—no, it should be the Fifth Prince.

General Hou said dryly, "I finally see where your confidence comes from."

With an Emperor as a father and the next Emperor as a brother, no wonder he dared to take on the foreigners’ affair.

Prince Qi said to General Hou, "The Emperor has ordered me to take charge of these foreigners."

General Hou had sent word back to the capital in advance, and now that someone was taking over, he understood that the Emperor had approved of the crimes declared by the Fifth Prince, "We were originally going to destroy the ointment on the island, but then I thought, this is evidence, so I transported it all back."

Prince Qi had already spotted the line of carts and gasped, "This much?"

General Hou also looked perturbed, "A lot gets smuggled each year."

Prince Qi nodded and gestured to his men to proceed with the handover, but he didn’t leave. Instead, he took hold of Rongchuan, "By the Emperor’s decree, you are to enter the Palace immediately."

Rongchuan took a deep breath, unable to avoid it any longer.

Zhou Shuren, on the other hand, had already heard of Rongchuan’s arrival in the capital, but alas, he was too busy and had no chance to see the drama unfold in the Palace, sighing in regret.

Ning Zhiqi, "Milord, what’s wrong?"

Zhou Shuren, "I wish to enter the Palace."

Ning Zhiqi, "?"

Zhou Shuren signalled that it was nothing, and continued with his instructions, "As for the antiques and such from the house raids, they will be handed over to your Ministry of Commerce in the future. You will need to draft new regulations for this."

Ning Zhiqi, "Yes."

In the Palace, Rongchuan nervously entered, and upon reaching the government hall, was greeted with a paddle, along with a seemingly friendly Eunuch Liu, who was smiling.

Although Eunuch Liu had no idea how terrifying his smile was.

General Hou, "??"

This outcome was rather unexpected.

Eunuch Liu extended a hand, "Fifth Prince, please."

Rongchuan tried one last struggle, shouting, "Father Emperor, there is a reason behind your son’s actions, your son has also made contributions."

Regrettably, the hall inside was silent; the Emperor and the Crown Prince seemed deaf, showing no reaction whatsoever.

General Hou felt extremely awkward; he didn’t know whether to stay and watch the Fifth Prince get paddle or to enter the hall.

Thankfully, Eunuch Liu did not ignore General Hou, "General, the Emperor is waiting for you inside the hall."

As General Hou watched the Fifth Prince being held down, ready to be paddled, he felt an inexplicable sense of relief. The last bit of discomfort from being threatened at sea had finally dissipated.

Eunuch Liu, "The Emperor’s decree is ten paddlings."

Being beaten as a child was a common occurrence for Rongchuan, but since he had been with the Zhou family, he hadn’t been beaten and had forgotten what it felt like, one paddling after another.

Rongchuan couldn’t help but cry; it truly hurt, it hurt too much.

Inside the hall, the Emperor paced back and forth, "Why is there no sound?"

The Crown Prince thought to himself, at the time when he should have shown backbone, he didn’t put up a fight, so what was the use now? Cry out; surely Father Emperor would soften at the sound of tears.

Rongchuan had counted up to five paddlings when he heard, "You all stop at once, for this Palace’s sake."

Turning his head, Rongchuan looked pitiful, "Mother."

The Empress was distressed, and she sent a Female Officer to fetch the Imperial Physician. After seeing her son had not sustained serious injuries, she rushed into the hall.

"Have you lost your mind, to actually beat Rongchuan? If you do not give me a reason, this is far from over with you."

Her words reached the Emperor’s and others’ ears before she appeared.

The Emperor stiffened, then turned to ask the Crown Prince, "You didn’t tell your Mother?"

The Crown Prince, "... I was too busy."

He meant, Emperor, you obviously have plenty of free time, so why didn’t you explain things clearly to Mother?

General Hou fell silent; he regretted entering the hall. As a superfluous presence, he tactfully made his exit.

The Empress was furious; she was truly angry this time. Without an enemy in sight, she felt the Emperor was merely looking for discomfort.

Regaining his composure, the Emperor watched as the Crown Prince also made an exit, and he chuckled coldly to himself. Then, smiling apologetically at the Empress, he said, "Listen to me, the situation is like this..."

After listening, the Empress’s anger subsided. Then, with a glare, she said, "Rongchuan is young and rash, thinking too simply. You could educate him, but to beat him with paddles like this, aren’t you afraid it will do harm?"

Seeing the Empress’s anger recede, the Emperor whispered, "It was all the Crown Prince’s idea, saying it was to give Rongchuan a lesson he would remember and to prevent him from being even bolder in the future, which would be worrisome."

Stealing a glance at the Empress’s expression, he continued, "At first, I refused. How could I beat this old son of mine? I am overcome with love for him. But then the Crown Prince spoke of Rongchuan’s potential knighthood, and with the Crown Prince being the next Emperor, I have to take his opinion into account."

The Crown Prince hadn’t gone far, just to the doorway of the study, "..."