Courtesy of Yu Cang's loose and malicious tongue, news of the Empress's defection had spread like wildfire in the reception room where all the courtiers gathered before attending court in the morning. The crafty Yu Cang had his own plans for Su Yi; taking advantage of the fact that Wanyan Xu had neglected to explicitly order him to keep this matter a secret, he had made sure that every courtier gathered in that room now knew what Su Yi had done, stirring up animosity towards him and laying the groundwork for what Yu Cang wished to happen. That way, even if Wanyan Xu was still inclined to show favouritism towards Su Yi, all of the ministers would vehemently raise objections and prevent that from happening.
For the moment, the room was noisy with discourse, it would seem as though everybody had something to say. When the ministers remembered how the Emperor had shown this Empress so much favour and love, without exception, they could not help but to feel fury and loathing towards that ungrateful Empress. Curses and recriminations were flying, condemning Su Yi for being ungrateful and saying that he must not get off lightly. There were even some ministers who asked the High Official in charge of the Ministry of Justice to prepare all the implements necessary for carrying out "Death by a Thousand Cuts", so vehement was their antagonism towards Su Yi.
Suddenly a high voice was heard saying: “Court will commence.” Only then did the ministers quiet down and begin to proceed into the large hall in single file and in accordance to their rank with the highest ranking officials in front. When they saw that Wanyan Xu's eyes were swollen and bloodshot, they couldn't help but to feel sad on behalf of the Emperor, and their hatred for Su Yi grew more intense.
After the simple memorials pertaining to the daily business of running the empire had been presented and dealt with, he saw that none of the ministers had any more memorial scrolls in hand to submit to him. Instead they were looking at him expectantly. Without exception, their eyes were blazing with fury. He heaved a heavy sigh, knowing that these courtiers must have already discovered what Su Yi had done. Having no recourse, he had to ask: “The Empress Su Yi's heart is still loyal to his destroyed country. Yesterday, he defected and escaped from the palace. Credit must be given to the Honourable Minister Yu, due to his tireless efforts in searching everywhere for the Empress, he was captured by the light of the stars last night. As for how he should be punished, let's see what the High Official in charge of the Ministry of Justice has to say.” [1]
He Jian stepped forward and in a grave voice he said: “The Empress is the Mother of the Nation; as such he should have assisted and supported the Emperor by taking the lead in the running of the Inner Court and also setting an example for everybody under Heaven. But not only did he spurn His Majesty's kindness, he secretly formed a coterie with treasonous villains. Taking advantage of the Emperor's favour and trust, he absconded. His actions show that his heart is even more ruthless than that of wild beasts. After committing such a heinous crime against Heaven's Son, he deserves the punishment of lingchi [2]; he should be sentenced to be executed through Death by a Thousand Cuts.
Wanyan Xu could only laugh bitterly for a while, truth be told, he had already anticipated what kind of answer He Jian would give him. Even worse, he knew that by the laws of the land, he could not refuse to mete out such a punishment to Su Yi. His heart was heavy as he thought: Wanyan Xu, oh Wanyan Xu, even at this stage you cannot bear to part with him. Whenever you think of his death, all you wish to do is to follow him into the Yellow Springs of Hades so that he will not have to make the journey alone, you... you are in no way the same Great King of Jin Liao that you used to be.He was still determined to save Su Yi's life, but he had always ruled the country with impartiality and in accordance with the established laws. If he, as the monarch, were to take the lead in flouting the law today, in future how could he maintain the moral high ground when leading his officials or commanding the common people?
Several important officials immediately saw that the Emperor still could not contemplate executing the Empress, and quickly stepped out from the lines to fall upon their knees. One after another, they implored Wanyan Xu to sentence Su Yi to death. When Wanyan Xu saw that the outrage of his court was of such violent intensity, he instinctively knew that this time, he really could not preserve Su Yi's life. However, although he opened his mouth a few times, he was still unable to say the two words "bestow death" [3]. Before he could speak those words, tears were welling up in his eyes, threatening to spill over. He lowered his head and hurriedly pretended to cough behind his sleeves, but in actual fact, he was wiping his eyes dry.
Divided over what to do with Su Yi, the Emperor and his ministers were deadlocked. At this juncture, they saw that the little Crown Prince Wanyan Shuo had entered into the palace hall. Without preamble, he knelt stiffly on the floor and said: “Imperial Father, your Son and Subject knows that Mother Empress has committed a heinous act, the crime he is guilty of is so serious that it really cannot be pardoned. But on account of the effective guidance he has given to me, I hope that Imperial Father will spare his life and sentence him to live out the rest of his life in hardship instead. Your Son and Subject begs Imperial Father for this favour.” So saying, he knocked his forehead on the ground three times.
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