The daughters of these two men were in the emperor's harem, so they might have framed him to compete for favor.
So, having an extremely brilliant and formidable father isn't always a good thing. Prime Minister Song still hasn't realized that it's not Jiang Yankun and Jiang Hewei who want him dead, but the emperor himself.
"With both witnesses and evidence at hand, and even those officials in prison confessing that the Song family instructed them to commit evil deeds, how dare you still quibble?"
The Xuanwu Emperor spoke these words with great skill, not mentioning Prime Minister Song directly, nor uttering a single word about Prime Minister Song.
In the end, whether Prime Minister Song took all the blame upon himself to clear his family's name, or Prime Minister Song sacrificed himself to save his son, the emperor would profit greatly.
In truth, the person the Xuanwu Emperor most wanted to bring down wasn't the son, but the father.
Song Jiangming was merely a obedient puppet under Prime Minister Song's tutelage. His position as the current Prime Minister was entirely due to having a good father.
Though he lacked great talent, he also had no wild ambitions. Whatever Prime Minister Song said, he would do. His strength lay in his docility and obedience, which allowed him to sit firmly in the Prime Minister's position for decades.
As long as Prime Minister Song fell, the Song family would no longer be a threat.
Song Jiangming truly didn't understand. His father's actions had been so covert, how on earth did Jiang Yankun and Jiang Hewei uncover them?
He cast a venomous glare at Jiang Yanxi, who was cowering in the corner. It was all because of this meddler. If he hadn't reported the corruption of the Qinzhou prefect, how could the emperor have followed the trail to the Song family?
Jiang Yanxi felt he had been wronged!
He had only accidentally discovered that the prefect was privately selling spots for the summer palace retreat. He thought that by reporting it to the court, perhaps the higher-ups would commend him, and this achievement would make it easier for him to get promoted in the future.
He had used a bit of cunning, mixing his report in with the prefect's letters to be sent to the capital. It was his luck that the Song family's servant sorting the letters was unwell that day, dizzy and mistaking the report for a "letter of recommendation."
In the Great Yan Dynasty, there were two paths to officialdom: the long and arduous path of the imperial examinations, or the shortcut of being recommended by a fourth-rank or higher civil or military official.
The Song family servant directly treated the report as a letter of recommendation, sorting it together with the memorials to be given to the emperor.
The emperor was very diligent in handling state affairs. Both Chengqian Palace and the imperial study were his workplaces, and in both places, Wang Dequan had arranged for young eunuchs and palace maids to organize the documents the emperor needed to review daily.
As soon as the report appeared, it was reported to Wang Dequan by a young eunuch. Wang Dequan didn't dare delay and immediately presented it to the emperor.
This led to the series of charges that shook the entire Great Yan Dynasty: the Song family's corruption, selling of official positions, murder, and so on.
On his way to the capital, Jiang Yanxi faced several assassination attempts. Fortunately, the emperor knew the importance of this matter and arranged for dozens of palace guards and secret agents to escort him, saving him from death.
But he didn't quite believe the emperor would deal with the Song family. Fearing he would fall victim to Concubine Li's poison as soon as he entered the palace, he proposed to first go to his clan brother's home to get his affairs in order.
Seeing that he wanted to go to the Jiang family, the emperor understood his concerns. So he used Jiang Xinyue's words to promise that as long as he testified to frame... no... to reveal all the things the Song family had done, which the emperor was well aware of.
If there was no evidence, they could fabricate it. If there were no witnesses, they could use threats and bribes to turn criminals into informants, accusing the Song family of their crimes.
Now, wasn't everything in place, both witnesses and evidence?
As Song Jiangming was being taken down to the dungeon of the Ministry of Justice, Prime Minister Song was still gathering all the members of the Song family for a family meeting.
Everyone was trying to persuade him to abandon his son, to consider the bigger picture, not to ruin the Song family's great foundation because of one descendant.
However, Song Jiangming was his only son by birth. The other descendants were all clan relatives, with whom he shared a weaker blood tie.
Those people kept telling him to give up his own son for the sake of the clan, but when he suggested using any of their illegitimate sons to take the blame, they all refused with high-sounding reasons.
"Our son is just a collateral illegitimate child. If you let him take the blame, even I wouldn't believe it. Aren't you treating the emperor like a fool?"
"Our good-for-nothing won't do either! He's just a seventh-rank petty official, how could he command so many people? Uncle, it really can only be the Prime Minister who takes the blame."
"That's right, that's right, Uncle, you're the pillar of our Song family. Don't do anything foolish like going to confess to the emperor!"
Prime Minister Song's spirit seemed to be drained in an instant, his hair turning half white: "Ni Er is still in the palace. If something happens to Jiangming, her position as a favored concubine will also be over. All these years... how many benefits has she obtained for you all? Search your conscience. If her father commits a capital crime, won't all those consorts in the palace push her down when the wall falls?"
"The emperor favors Concubine Li. At most, she'll just be demoted in rank. There won't be any danger to her life. Perhaps because of this incident, the emperor might even pity the concubine and compensate our Song family even more."
"I say this is all because of that Jiang Yanxi from the Jiang family. We've never heard of this person before, and he suddenly appears now. It must be that Jiang Yankun's doing. I heard his daughter was once punished by Concubine Li when she entered the palace, and they became enemies because of it."
"Ni Er has made too many enemies in the palace these past few years. She doesn't know how to conceal her sharp edges. Now that she's offended so many people, she's finally hit a snag! I said from the beginning that her temperament wasn't suitable for the palace. It would have been better to send my daughter instead. She's the most cautious and prudent, and would never make enemies everywhere."
Concubine Li hadn't even fallen yet, and someone was already thinking of replacing her, and this person was from her own clan.
Prime Minister Song gave a cold smile, straightened his robes, and rose from his chair: "Very well, then I shall go to the Ministry of Justice now and persuade Jiangming to confess and accept his punishment."
Everyone present breathed a sigh of relief.
If Song Jiangming were sentenced to death, the position of Prime Minister would be vacant. With their clan leader's abilities, the Prime Minister would still be someone from the Song family, and each of them would have a chance.
"Your Highness! Your Highness! Something terrible has happened!"
For the first time, Xia He was so lacking in decorum, bursting into Concubine Li's chambers.
Concubine Li frowned severely. There was still sweet seedless watermelon chilling in the ice basin in front of her couch. She rose impatiently: "What are you doing, being so flustered?"
Xia He's face was full of panic: "The Prime Minister... Prime Minister, has been... No... Chief Minister... No, no, Prime Minister Song has been arrested by Minister Jiang and Secretary Jiang from the Ministry of Personnel. The Chief Minister is now at the Ministry of Justice, removing his hat to confess his crimes in order to save the Prime Minister."
"How dare they?"
Concubine Li suddenly stood up from her concubine's couch, running out barefoot.
Xia He hurriedly picked up the embroidered shoes adorned with South Sea pearls and chased after her.
"Bang!"
Consort Shu had just stepped down from her sedan chair when a slender figure pushed her backward. "Out of my way!"
Concubine Li didn't even look as she shoved the person aside, quickly disappearing from everyone's sight.
