Chapter 849: Valley Scenery (IV)

"Liu Xunyi, the emperor has done his best for you."

Looking at Liu Xunyi, who was in a trance and absent-minded, a trace of regret flashed in Prince Rong's eyes, and he said helplessly: "No matter whether you and Hu Lie were in cahoots or not, at least the robbery of the granary has a great relationship with you. You have caused such a big trouble, causing the people to be angry and the gods to be angry. Even the court cannot calm down. After all, food is the first necessity of the people. Now that you have exposed other people's heaven, if the emperor remains indifferent, the people will inevitably rise up and cause chaos in the world. However, the marriage between Song and Mongolia was not easy to come by, and the tension at the border has finally subsided. At this time, tearing faces with the Mongols again... wouldn't it be a loss of the big for the sake of the small, and all the previous efforts will be wasted? Therefore, in order to give an explanation to the three prefectures of Xingyuan, to the civil and military officials of the court and the people of the world, the emperor had to shed tears and execute Ma Su, and severely punish you, the "meritorious minister". I hope you can understand the emperor's difficulties."

Prince Rong's implication was, "The fault lies with the Mongols for not keeping their word, but we cannot afford to offend the Mongols, so the emperor can only use you as a scapegoat, executing you on the 'unfounded' charge of colluding with foreign countries, to quell the grain-grabbing incident."

As the saying goes, "People only pick on the weak." This time, Liu Xunyi undoubtedly became a scapegoat for the Mongols and even the Song Dynasty court.

After all, all the agreements between Liu Xunyi and the Mongols were reported to the court in detail and the court agreed. If Liu Xunyi was guilty of "letting the wolf into the house", then the court was also guilty of "making unclear decisions", and both were to blame.

However, the imperial court was powerful while Liu Xunyi was weak. Speaking objectively, the biggest fault of Liu Xunyi in being wrongly accused was not that he mistrusted Hu Lie or the imperial court, but that he mistrusted himself.

His mistake was that he was not strong enough and always wanted to lean on a big tree for shade.

Little did they know that when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. The Song court was now on the verge of collapse and could no longer take care of itself. It could only use Liu Xunyi's life to prolong its own life.

It’s a pity that when Liu Xunyi tasted the bitter fruit, it was too late to turn back.

After saying this, Prince Rong gently waved his hand at the soldiers and sighed, "Take them away!"

"and many more!"

Suddenly, Zhao Yu, who was flustered, hurriedly raised his glass and stepped forward, bowing to the hesitant Prince Rong, and said sincerely: "Father, Liu Xunyi and I have known each other for a while. After today's separation, we may never have the chance to meet again in this life. Anyway, he once taught me martial arts, so he is half my master. Therefore, I want to toast him with one last glass of wine, just as... to send him off."

"This……"

"Father!" Seeing Prince Rong's hesitation, Zhao Xie pleaded again and again.

"Well! It's rare that my son is so kind and righteous, so let him have a drink." Prince Rong waved his hand to stop the soldiers who kept approaching Liu Xunyi, and agreed reluctantly, "But... just one drink!"

"Thank you, father!"

Zhao Xie was overjoyed and hurriedly came to the stunned Liu Xunyi with a wine glass, his melancholy eyes revealing a hint of urgency.

"Liu Xunyi, how dare you cause such a big trouble? Have you forgotten everything I taught you?"

Looking at Zhao He who spoke strangely and kept making eyes at him, Liu Xunyi couldn't help but be stunned. After a moment of silence, he suddenly remembered the note he had slipped to him in advance. He frowned immediately, and a deep suspicion emerged in his eyes when he looked at Zhao He.

Liu Xunyi slowly unfolded the note in his sleeve without leaving any trace, took the wine glass doubtfully, and glanced at the note at the same time.

Just two simple lines of beautiful small characters made Liu Xunyi's pale face change suddenly, and his trembling eyes were filled with horror.

"If you deserve to be punished, surrender. If you need to be vindicated, take me and run away."

"This……"

Looking at Zhao Xie's solemn expression in disbelief, Liu Xunyi, who had just experienced great joy and great sorrow, suddenly felt very upset. His mind went blank and he was unable to recover for a long time.

"Liu Xunyi, I know you're not in the mood to drink right now, but... don't let me down."

Being in public, Zhao Xie did not dare to act too ostentatiously, but he was afraid that Liu Xunyi would act on impulse and refuse to listen to his advice, so he was extremely anxious and kept hinting to him with words.

"The little prince has treated me with such kindness... that it is as deep as the sea..."

Liu Xunyi looked at the anxious Zhao Xie with complicated eyes. It was not until this moment that he truly understood what Zhao Xie meant by "being at a dead end".

Understanding Zhao Yu's good intentions, Liu Xunyi felt touched and ashamed. After all, this was the third time Zhao Yu took a risk for him.

The first time, he helped Liu Xunyi deliver a letter to Zhao Xin who was trapped in the palace. Although the letter was stolen by Qin Wei, Zhao Xie's original intention was beyond doubt.

The second time, he helped Qin Wei introduce Su He, also to save Liu Xunyi from the Heavenly Prison.

Including today, Liu Xunyi already owed Zhao He at least three favors, not to mention that Zhao He had helped him and Zhao Xin have secret trysts countless times.

If it were in the past, Liu Xunyi would never use Zhao Yu to escape, he would most likely surrender to show that he was upright and had a clear conscience. But now is different, Liu Xunyi's deep and solemn eyes slowly swept over Prince Rong, Lord Qian, Lord Jia, and a group of court ministers, gentry and wealthy people, looking through their ugly faces that were either sanctimonious, pretentious, or gloating, and he finally realized at this moment.

Today's banquet was clearly a long-planned "Hongmen Banquet".

The emperor deliberately issued two imperial decrees in succession, deliberately rewarding and then punishing Liu Xunyi in front of so many people. His purpose was only to publicize the court's selflessness and clear rewards and punishments, so as to shut up the people in the world.

Killing Liu Xunyi was easy, not even worth mentioning. But killing a loyal and meritorious general who had worked hard would most likely lead to a repetition of the history of Qin Hui and Yue Fei, especially since the Song Dynasty had declined to this point, and the court could no longer withstand the slightest disturbance.

To put it bluntly, today's drama was not for Liu Xunyi to see, but for the world to see. The purpose was not to confirm Liu Xunyi's guilt, but to make the world believe that Liu Xunyi was a fake loyal minister with a rotten heart, a real traitor.

If you want to kill someone, first destroy his reputation, then falsely accuse him of his actions, and finally destroy his heart.

Everything that happened in Jingyun Pavilion today, as well as the various accusations made by Mr. Qian against Liu Xunyi, will surely be exaggerated by those present, especially those folk gentry who do not know the truth. Through word of mouth, Liu Xunyi's "scandal" will surely spread like wildfire and be known to the world.

As the saying goes, "the brunt of the gossip can melt gold." Once rumors spread, most people will be evil-minded and bring out the evil in human nature. They will enjoy talking about Liu Xunyi's "scandal" and even make up stories. As for the truth? No one will care by then, and it will no longer be important.

In this way, the court's killing of Liu Xunyi was not a case of throwing away the bow after the bird is dead or throwing the bow away after the rabbit is dead, but rather it was in line with public opinion and eliminating a scourge for the country.

The death of Liu Xunyi can not only calm down the disturbance caused by the granary robbery, but also preserve the dignity of the court, and vent the anger of the emperor, while also making the cooperation between Xifu and Qingfeng closer. Why not do it if you can achieve four goals at once?
Prince Rong, Lord Qian, Lord Jia and other important officials of the court who knew the whole story were all aware of this. However, some of them were fanning the flames, some were trying to protect themselves, and some felt sorry but could do nothing about it.

From the beginning to the end, Liu Xunyi's fate had already been arranged by them. His promotion and demotion were all carefully calculated, so that he was still unaware of it even when he was imprisoned.

Now recalling Qin Wei's various behaviors yesterday, everything became logical. I guess Qin Wei probably knew the final outcome of today's "Hongmen Banquet", so he said goodbye to me in tears in advance.

Thinking of this, Liu Xunyi's heart felt as if it had been hollowed out by a knife. He felt heartbroken, sorrowful, and at a loss whether to laugh or cry. He felt completely hopeless.

Gradually realizing the dangers of the world and the unpredictable human heart, Liu Xunyi was heartbroken, but also gained great enlightenment.

At this moment, he no longer had any hope or fantasy about the cruel and ruthless reality, and he would not even expect the Ministry of Justice to do him justice.

After experiencing today's disaster, Liu Xunyi even began to doubt the "natural law", "morality", "reward for good and punishment for evil", and "cause and effect" that he had believed in for more than 20 years.

He had never been so sure of his fate as he was today. If he still foolishly believed in the "law of the king", once he surrendered, what awaited him would not be a redress of his injustice and the truth. Instead, he would be subjected to a dark dungeon, outrageous torture, and the utmost humiliation, and the end... would be death.

Perhaps, he would not even wait for the trial by the Ministry of Justice. As soon as Liu Xunyi stepped out of the gate of Jingyun Pavilion, he would "die suddenly" halfway.

That is truly dying unjustly, and there will be no redemption.

After all, Liu Xunyi couldn't be lucky every time. The last time he was imprisoned, he escaped death because of the joint help of Qin Wei and Su He. This time, Qin Wei's attitude was self-evident. Liu Xunyi had no power or influence in Lin'an, and no relatives. It would be difficult for him to survive again.

Therefore, there are only two options before Liu Xunyi.

Or you can just leave it to fate, let others control you, and hastily end your sad, pathetic and ridiculous life.

Either you die rather than surrender, or you fight and die heroically. You must never let the despicable villain get what he wants.

After all, the only person who can save him right now is... himself.

Liu Xunyi was never afraid of death, but he was afraid of dying in obscurity. He was even more afraid that he was loyal and devoted when he was alive, but after his death, he would be accused of being unkind, unjust, and unfaithful to his father and his king, and be cursed for all eternity.

However, these are still not his Achilles' heel.

What Liu Xunyi could not tolerate the most was that he cried out to heaven and earth but got no help, and died in shame and humiliation, while the truly shameless, masked and heartless people were surrounded by flowers and lived freely.

In broad daylight, how can we do things in a perverse way and confuse right and wrong? How can good go unrewarded and evil go unpunished? How can good people die in vain and bad people succeed?
If this is true, it would be a loss of human nature. Isn't it true that "good people are often bullied"?
Living in a world without justice is already extremely unfortunate. It is even more unfortunate if we allow ourselves to be bullied and manipulated by those who are greedy for money and power and who are accomplices of evil.

To accept what is given to you is the greatest indulgence in meanness, the heaviest trampling on kindness, and the cruelest humiliation to oneself.

Liu Xunyi has never been a coward who kowtows and curries favor with the powerful, nor has he been a spineless person who is afraid of death and changes his attitude according to the wind.

……

(End of this chapter)