IDWBE -Chapter 84 Impeaching Oneself

Late at night.

Inside the Commander-in-Chief’s Office, a group of old men either stood or sat, all with furrowed brows and heavy sighs. Not a single one looked pleased. The atmosphere was completely different from usual.

On the table, the tiny flame of a candle flickered in the wind that seeped through the window, swaying as if it might go out at any moment.

Shi Quan watched nervously from the side, afraid it would suddenly extinguish and plunge them into darkness.

With their old arms and legs, even finding a light would be difficult. If one of them fell, getting back up wouldn’t be easy.

He glanced at Xie Zan. “Lord Xie… should we light another candle?”

Ever since Bian Jing experimented with gunpowder and accidentally burned down a warehouse, the Prince had declared he would deduct their “monthly stipends”!

Heaven have mercy!

This bunch of old men had never received any so-called “monthly stipend” from the Prince’s estate!

There was nothing to deduct!

Yet astonishingly, even under such circumstances, old Xie Zan had found “another way.”

He began cutting their daily expenses instead.

Food and drink were unaffected, but brushes, ink, paper, inkstones, candles, clothing—everything else was reduced.

Now, even using a single candle at night required caution.

Hearing the suggestion, Xie Zan nodded. “Very well. Add another candle. Make an exception for today.”

Shi Quan was overjoyed and quickly lit a half-burned candle from the first one.

With two candles in the room, it suddenly became much brighter.

Wang Qingbang sighed. “Gentlemen, we must come up with a plan. We can’t just stay silent like this. One step behind means a hundred steps lost. Surely you all understand this?”

He Jixiang said lazily, “Old Wang, you already know what should be done. Why ask us? Isn’t this unnecessary?”

Wang Qingbang replied, “One man’s plan is short; many men’s plans are long. You should at least say something. Otherwise, I may overlook something.”

Xie Zan rubbed his temples. “Our Prince’s problem right now is simply this: without legitimacy, his words carry no authority.”

Xing Keshou added, “If the name is not proper, speech is not justified; if speech is not justified, affairs cannot succeed. What is to be done?”

Anyone with experience in officialdom knew the biggest disadvantage in Sanhe was the lack of a proper provincial government office.

The Prince’s various makeshift “regulations” were irregular and unofficial—carried out quietly, hardly presentable, even laughable.

Moreover, a feudal prince meddling in governance harmed his reputation.

The Prince himself might not care about reputation—but these old men did.

Shi Quan said curiously, “All this talk is pointless. Can we really just conjure up a Provincial Administrator or a Governor? Having even an Investigating Commissioner would be lucky. And even if someone came, would they listen to us?”

Chen Desheng snorted coldly. “As long as someone is willing to come—whoever it is—once he boards our ship, do you think he can get off? Otherwise, when the new emperor ascends the throne, I can guarantee it will be the day his whole family is exterminated!”

Shi Quan shuddered.

He believed Chen Desheng. Elevating someone was hard—but ruining someone and making him lose imperial favor was easy.

If one wishes to accuse, why worry about lacking a charge?

Bian Jing shook his head. “If you have an idea, say it quickly.”

Xie Zan said, “My position is too low to reach the Son of Heaven directly. And the Prince cannot submit a memorial himself. As for you gentlemen—though you may have disciples and former subordinates across the land, you’ve been away from the capital for years. People’s hearts are hard to read. Who can be trusted? In my opinion, we should send someone to the capital to impeach the Prince.”

Except for Shi Quan, all the old men’s eyes lit up.

Wang Qingbang clapped his hands. “Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant!

“As long as the accusation portrays him as rash and reckless—based on my understanding of His Majesty, he will remember it.”

Cao Heng laughed. “No! Add another charge—unauthorized taxation!”

They exchanged glances.

Chen Desheng stroked his beard. “That would make it foolproof. But we cannot leave without permission. Who shall go to the capital?”

According to the current emperor’s temperament, aside from military power, the one thing he could least tolerate was financial power falling into someone else’s hands.

Not even his own sons were exceptions.

Wang Qingbang smiled. “Who else but Shan Yin?”

“His uncle, Shan Qi, is a Censor. Offering criticism is his duty. If we have Shan Yin file a complaint, Shan Qi—whether for public or private reasons—will certainly impeach the Prince.”

Xie Zan chuckled. “Besides, this isn’t the first time that Censor has impeached His Highness.”

Hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.

Shi Quan frowned. “I still don’t understand. Will the Prince agree to this?”

Chen Desheng replied solemnly, “Though the rise and fall of a state may be called fate, is it not also the work of men?”

The others nodded.

Nothing more was said that night.

The next morning, Lin Yi rose early.

Today, he planned to have Yu Xiaoshi—now a blacksmith—and A-Dai take him into the mountains for hunting.

Mainly, they would do the hunting; he would follow behind and handle the barbecue. As for seasoning, he had everything prepared.

The moment he stepped outside, he saw eight old men kneeling in a row.

Impeach himself?

Only a fool would agree to that!

And to invite some Provincial Administrator back just to cause him trouble?

His mind was perfectly clear.

No matter how they tried to explain it, it was useless.

Just in case, he kept Shan Yin by his side, lest he be sweet-talked into stupidity by those old foxes.

They crossed the newly built West River Bridge and followed a narrow path overgrown with weeds and shrubs into the deep forest.

Not a single carnivorous beast was seen along the way. Instead, otters were everywhere—strangely unafraid of people—holding up wild fruits as if showing them off.

As if to say: Look how beautiful my fruit is!

Yu Xiaoshi tried to grab one, but Lin Yi stopped him.

Catching otters was pointless. They couldn’t be domesticated, and their meat wasn’t worth eating. There was no need to harm them.

“Protect wildlife—start with yourselves!” Lin Yi declared righteously.

“Your Highness…”

A-Dai had no idea what that meant.

He idly swung the hundred-jin iron hammer in his hand through the air.

Ever since becoming blacksmiths, he and Yu Xiaoshi had somehow decided to forge themselves iron hammers weighing over a hundred jin.

The manager of the newly established smithy—Liu Duo from the silk shop on Middle Street—knew the two fools were from the Prince’s residence. Out of respect, he neither dared beat nor scold them, and could only let them mess around.

They were born with tremendous strength.

Lin Yi could only watch enviously.

He comforted himself:

At least my brain works better than yours!

Suddenly something darted out of the forest. When Lin Yi saw it was a golden monkey, Fang Pi had already leapt after it into the trees.

Lin Yi wanted to shout for him not to chase it, but Fang Pi was already out of earshot.

Along the way, Lin Yi hadn’t stopped eating—wild fruits constantly found their way into his mouth. Not eating them would be a waste of heaven’s bounty.

“Your Highness…”

After hesitating for a while, Shan Yin finally spoke.

“I believe Lord Xie’s proposal makes sense.”

“And then?”

Lin Yi bit into a red fruit and immediately spat it out.

His lips turned black; his mouth went numb. He barely had the strength to speak.