The women of the Ji family were in a panic.
Ji Zixiu and Ji Ziyan extended their arms, shielding the Ji family's wives behind them.
Ji Zizhao remained kneeling, staring directly at the Second Prince and pleaded, "I implore His Highness the Second Prince to permit the Ji family widows to review the military dispatch."
Xie Jingxi's heart leaped unexpectedly.
He knew all too well how each stroke on that military dispatch had come to be. He dared to deceive his father, the Emperor, because he understood his father's impetuous and irascible temper. Once all the crimes on the dispatch pointed to the Ji family, the Emperor would be furious and disregard everything else.
But for some reason now, he was extremely unwilling to hand the military dispatch to Ji Zizhao.
Those dark eyes were too sharp.
So sharp that he could barely withstand them.
Xie Jingxi tightened his grip on the military dispatch, his expression darkening considerably. "I have done my utmost to preserve the last vestiges of your Ji family's dignity, yet your Ji family has grown insatiable, relentlessly forcing your way, casting your final shred of honor to the ground. Now, with the evidence of guilt on the military dispatch glaringly apparent, does your Ji family still intend to delay and deny?"
"Your humble servant merely implores His Highness the Second Prince to allow me to examine the military dispatch. Why does His Highness react with such vehemence? The purpose of a military dispatch is to record the battlefield situation in detail, rewarding the meritorious and punishing the wrongdoers! Now that all the men of my Ji family have perished in Luoyi, regardless of who bears the blame, as an orphan of the Ji family, what is amiss with me wishing to personally witness the contents of the military dispatch?"
Xie Jingxi felt a constriction in his chest, utterly speechless, cornered by a woman.
"My Ji family has lived upright lives; we must also die with clarity. If His Highness the Second Prince refuses to permit the Ji family widows to review the military dispatch, then I, your humble servant, cannot accept the punishment!"
As Ji Zizhao spoke, she pivoted on her knees and moved past the Second Prince, prostrating herself towards the direction of the Imperial Palace.
Xie Jingxi's face turned pale, cold sweat seeping through his palms.
Of course, he did not want to relinquish the military dispatch. But the issue now was not merely about silencing the Ji family, but about how he would persuade the surrounding populace if he did not hand it over.
Those eyes fixed upon him felt like thorns pricking his back, making him wish to crush Ji Zizhao, yet he dared not make a move.
As a prince, he was keenly aware that the most crucial element of imperial power was the hearts of the people.
If he were to ruthlessly punish the Ji family women now, even if no Ji family member ever stood in his way again, the scandal of this day would likely become the greatest obstacle on his path to the throne.
Ji Zizhao...
She was utterly malicious!
Ji Zizhao, feeling the Second Prince's bone-chilling gaze, remained neither subservient nor arrogant.
A military dispatch that had been so thoroughly altered that it was unrecognizable; it was no matter if she saw it or not.
Therefore, her objective was not the military dispatch.
Her aim was to make the Second Prince fly into a rage and become entangled in his indecision.
For every moment the Second Prince was conflicted, she gained a sliver of time. For every moment he hesitated, she gained an extra moment.
The gazes of the surrounding populace began to shift towards suspicion.
If the military dispatch were truly blameless, why would the Second Prince dare not show it clearly to the Ji family?
Xie Jingxi, drenched in cold sweat, knew that further delay would only increase the suspicion of the entire city. In a fit of rage and utter helplessness, he flung the military dispatch before Ji Zizhao.
Ji Zizhao, with a placid expression, picked up the bamboo slips shattered on the ground one by one and carefully pieced them together in her hands.
Looking at the handwriting from various individuals on them, a chill spread through Ji Zizhao's heart.
The authenticity of the military dispatch lay in its inclusion of analyses of the battle situation by all the generals and records of merits and demerits. Yet now, not a single trace of the Ji family's handwriting could be seen on this dispatch. Even the brushstrokes of the vice-generals who had accompanied her grandfather had been altered beyond recognition.
Ji Zizhao looked at the words that distorted right and wrong, the sentences that twisted black and white, and her entire heart felt as if it were burning in a raging inferno.
Hatred, coupled with earth-shattering fury, caused a growing killing intent to emanate from Ji Zizhao.
If she could not slay the Second Prince today, she would have lived this life in vain!
Xie Jingxi, unnerved by Ji Zizhao's silence, was compelled to strike first. "Open your eyes wide and properly examine the crimes of your Ji family! Guards! Prepare the ropes! Since the Ji family disregards all semblance of decorum, let the eldest daughter of the Ji family be hanged before the palace gates as a warning!"
The guards obeyed, drawing thick ropes from their waists and approaching Ji Zizhao.
The rope that spelled death dangled above Ji Zizhao's head.
The Ji family's women, merely witnessing this, were petrified.
If that rope were to fall upon their own heads, they would have long fainted.
Lin Wanyun, the eldest madam of the Ji family, was already weeping profusely, lunging like a madwoman towards her daughter, only to be forcefully restrained by the guards beside her.
The life-threatening rope swung with the wind, brushing against Ji Zizhao's scalp and hair with each sway.
Zhang Ji, standing amidst the crowd, had his eyes reddened with anxiety. Having learned that the refugees of Luoyi had been brought to the main city by the Fourth Miss, he knew what the eldest daughter was waiting for. But imperial authority was paramount; how dare those Luoyi refugees defy imperial authority?
He simply could not comprehend why, knowing that the outcome was uncertain, the eldest daughter still persisted so stubbornly.
Ji Zizhao was persistent.
Because it was the Ji family's only lifeline.
Human hearts are unfathomable, not to be gazed upon directly; she would not argue.
But as a physician, she understood better than anyone that the Luoyi refugees lacked but one essential element: a cure.
As long as people's hearts were unburdened and filled with righteous indignation, what was there to fear, even from imperial authority?
A sound of horse hooves, approaching from afar, suddenly pierced the air.
Ji Zizhao, holding the military dispatch, curved her lips silently. They had arrived.
Zhang Ji looked back in astonishment. Upon seeing the figure of the Fourth Miss approaching on horseback, and upon seeing the Luoyi refugees, who had previously only known how to eke out an existence in the four major medical halls, trailing behind her, his heart pounded with shock.
They, they had truly come?
How was this possible!
The number of Luoyi refugees who had been hiding in the four major medical halls was vast, numbering in the hundreds. Now, following Ji Ziyan, they arrived in a mighty procession, a scene that was bound to shock all eyes.
Zhang Ji, snapping out of his stupor, quickly signaled the surrounding guards to clear a path for the Fourth Miss.
As the surrounding imperial city residents parted way, Ji Ziyan arrived unimpeded with the Luoyi refugees, heading directly towards the open space in front of the Imperial Palace.
Xie Jingxi stared in disbelief as he met the gazes of the Luoyi people, burning with anger. A sense of foreboding washed over him.
The commander of the guards at the Imperial Palace entrance drew his saber first, shouting sternly, "Who dares such insolence! The area before the Imperial Palace is not to be trifled with!"
Ji Ziyan dismounted, strode a few steps, and knelt beside her elder sister. She raised her face and spoke clearly, "What was the reason for the battle in Luoyi? How can a single military dispatch explain it all? These individuals are refugees who fled from Luoyi to the Imperial City. Ask them, and you will know why Luoyi was defeated!"
W-what!!
Xie Jingxi stumbled back in shock, but thankfully, a nearby eunuch quickly supported him, preventing him from falling.
However, Xie Jingxi was now beyond caring about his image. His eyes widened as he looked at the disheveled, ragged commoners, his entire body trembling uncontrollably.
They were...
from Luoyi?!