Demotion in Rank
Upon hearing this, Mother Wei's mind went blank.
"... Wei Li Niang, aiding her father in committing murder, ordered her servant Li Mu to kill the family members of a high-ranking official; and on the 26th day of the seventh month of the Xinwei year, she switched her twin son Zhao Jingli with Zhao Ruxi, the daughter of Zhu Xinyi, and later switched Zhao Ruxi with Zhao Ruyu, the daughter of Lin Chunmei, a villager from Xiaorong Village, Beining, thus confusing the bloodline of nobles and committing treason. She shall be executed immediately."
The old lady, Zhao Yuanxun, and the first wife had been plotting for so long; judging by the days, good news was almost here. So when they heard that an angel had come to deliver the imperial decree, they guessed its contents. Hearing about Wei Qiu and Lady Wei's fate was like drinking ice water on a hot June day—a refreshing sensation that went straight to their hearts.
This news was a bolt from the blue not only for Mother Wei, but also for Zhao Jingli, Zhao Jing'an, and the other members of the second branch of the family.
Zhao Jingli could hardly believe his ears.
How could he not be his parents' son, but Zhao Yuanliang and Lady Wei's son? He and Zhao Jing'an are twins? How is that possible? How is that possible? There must be a mistake, there must be a mistake.
If anyone else had said this, he wouldn't have believed a word. But this was an imperial edict...
Zhao Jingli was completely bewildered. He wanted to ask Zhao Yuanxun beside him, but the angel was still reading the imperial edict, and the room was silent. Zhao Jingli could only suppress his questions and dare not utter a sound.
When Zhao Jing'an heard that his mother had been beheaded, he almost fainted from shock. He was oblivious to the fact that his Mother Wei, had collapsed to the ground beside him; he knelt there dumbfounded, motionless.
Zhao Yuanliang's situation wasn't much better than Zhao Jing'an's.
Although he and Lady Wei had no feelings for each other and bickered like cross-eyed cocks all day long, they were still husband and wife. When he heard that she was to be beheaded, he was just as shocked.
His wife, how dare she? Switching children with her sister-in-law, making her own son the heir? No wonder this person who's always so argumentative is so tolerant and loving towards Zhao Jingli, her nephew from the first wife's side. No wonder she hates Zhao Ruxi so much and has no maternal heart whatsoever. It turns out Zhao Jingli is her son, a twin with Zhao Jing'an? But why do the two children look nothing alike?
Furthermore, what does she take the Marquis's mansion for? She actually ordered its servants to commit murder. Doesn't she know that if this is exposed, it will implicate her husband and son? In her heart, what are her husband, Zhao Jing'an, and her beloved son compared to her maternal family, the Wei Family?
Leaving aside those who had been kept in the dark, even Zhao Ruyu and Xu Xi, who prided themselves on knowing the future development of the Great Jin and the Marquis of Suiping's Residence in the next few years and often viewed the world from a god's-eye view, were stunned.
Zhao Ruyu, in particular, was completely devastated.
Such things never happened in the past life, okay? Even the fact that Lady Wei angered the old lady to the point of stroke, and that the Wei Family was reprimanded by the Emperor and Empress Dowager, didn't happen. Even if the things she did—killing for Wei Qiu and using her own child to replace Zhao Ruxi and seize the position of Marquis's heir—didn't come to light in the past life, so how did they suddenly come to light in this life? How could such horrifying things Wei Family being raided and exiled, and Lady Wei being beheaded, happen?
Zhao Ruyu felt like her entire life had collapsed.
Her greatest achievement in her past life was marrying Fu Yunlang and becoming the Wife of the Marquis of Pingnan. After being reborn, she felt she wasn't greedy at all. Even knowing who the future emperor would be, she never considered marrying that prince as a concubine to enjoy more wealth and glory. She would be content simply to follow the path of her past life.
Why is fate so cruel? Giving her a second chance at life, only to shatter her perfect existence? Why? Why?
Xu Xi knew perfectly well that Lady Wei had switched the children, but she never expected that Lady Wei would be so bold and foolish as to kill someone for Wei Qiu, thus putting herself in such a predicament.
But then she thought about it and could understand.
Lady Wei's entire reliance stemmed from her father. Only if her father held a high position, or even rose to a higher rank, could she act arrogantly and domineeringly in the Marquis of Suiping's Residence. And the thing she did fourteen years ago, even if exposed, wouldn't have too severe consequences—or perhaps, it was precisely because of the unease she felt after the child was switched fourteen years ago that she became the murderer for her father, allowing him to get promoted, in order to protect herself?
In this world, everything has a cause and an effect. Cause and effect are cyclical, and retribution is inevitable.
After hearing about Lady Wei's fate, she, like the old lady, Zhao Yuanxun, and the first wife, still looked at the angel and listened intently.
The Marquis of Suiping's Residence did not split up. As the second wife of the Marquis's Mansion, even if what Lady Wei did harmed the interests of the Marquis's Mansion and cleared obstacles for her own father's official position, it cannot be denied that it was a member of the Marquis of Suiping's Residence who was "executed immediately".
As the Marquis of Suiping, Zhao Yuanxun was guilty of failing to properly manage his household, which led to the murder of Minister Wen's grandson. He was certainly to be punished. If the child had not been switched, his crime might have been quite serious. While he might not have been exiled or his property confiscated, he would certainly have received several dozen strokes of the cane.
For any other strong, able-bodied man, a few dozen lashes wouldn't be a big deal; he'd recover after a while. But Zhao Yuanxun's body...
Therefore, although everyone was pleased to hear about the fates of Wei Qiu and Wei Liniang, their hearts were still heavy with worry, fearing that the Emperor's punishment of Zhao Yuanxun would be too harsh.
The eunuch who came to deliver the imperial edict knew that Wei Qiu's wife had come to the Marquis of Suiping's Residence, and that the things Wei Qiu Lady Wei had done and their fate were closely related to the Marquis of Suiping's Residence. That's why he read out the contents of the imperial edict concerning the Marquis of Suiping's Residence's residence.
After reading out the matters concerning the Wei Residence, and seeing the reactions of the people in the Marquis of Suiping's Residence, he paused, then continued, "The Suiping Marquis, Zhao Yuanxun, has failed in his duties in managing his household. His sister-in-law has committed a grave error, and the servants in his household have committed violence without his knowledge. He should be severely punished. However, considering that the actions of the Lady Wei Qiu have nothing to do with the Suiping Marquis, and that the matter concerning the heir apparent is the victim's fault, therefore, the Suiping Marquis is demoted by one rank and renamed the Earl of Suiping, and is removed from his post as the Five Cities Military Command. Zhao Yuanliang, as the husband of the Lady Wei, has failed to discipline his wife and is to be given thirty strokes of the cane. Zhao Jingli's position as heir apparent is hereby abolished. This is the imperial decree."
Upon hearing that her title had been demoted, the First Madam knew something was wrong and quickly said to the Old Madam, "Everyone is safe and sound, that's better than anything else. Mother, think about it, our whole family is fine." She was genuinely worried that the Old Madam might suffer a stroke due to the shock.
The old lady was slow-witted due to her age; although she could read, she hadn't studied much. She needed to think carefully before she could understand the meaning of the imperial edicts read by the eunuchs.
Therefore, before she could even understand what Zhao Yuanxun had said about being demoted, she heard her daughter-in-law's words.
Xu Xi had previously advised her, and the old lady's obsession with wealth and status wasn't as strong as before. Hearing her daughter-in-law's words, she wasn't greatly affected. She sighed and, at the madam's prompting, kowtowed to the ground. "Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor! Long live the Emperor!"
The eunuch handed the imperial edict to Zhao Yuanxun and waved his hand, saying, "Take away Wei Qiu's wife, Lady Yu. Give Zhao Yuanliang thirty strokes of the cane."