C31 (1/2)
Ever since the day Kong Sheng had been thrown into death row, there had not been a single broken person in his cell. Those old classmates of his who had stayed in the imperial city after graduating from Imperial Military Academy, those who had muddled with him together in the Wulian Border Army, and even those from Aristocratic Family who had once tried to rope him in, came over as well.
The prison wardens also received orders, everyone who came to see Kong Sheng was allowed to leave, causing Kong Sheng's cell to feel like there was a banquet every day. The people who came to see him never bothered with this piece. They carried wine and food, at least one or two of them, and at most five or six of them worked together. When they came here, they did not care about his status or rank, and just sat there cross-legged. They pulled Kong Sheng along and chatted, from the border trials to the Wulian Mountain Range, from the aristocratic clans to the prosperity of the empire. To put it bluntly, Kong Sheng had been in prison for half a month, and his knowledge of the empire's history had already been replenished even more than when he was in school back then.
At the beginning, Kong Sheng was a little touched, he thought that they had reminisced about old friends, and that they had taken the risk of His Majesty getting angry to come and reminisce with him. Then, Kong Sheng suddenly thought of something. Why were these people looking for him? There was always a reason for everything, but there had to be a reason for coming to find him, right?
Some of them were truly friends who had fought together in the Wulian Mountain Range to the death for the Demonic Beast's life, while some people who had only seen it once also brought wine and meat over to exchange with Kong Sheng. What did they want?
As intelligent as Kong Sheng was, he quickly understood the logic behind it. They didn't come by his own volition, but were forced to do so.
However, if Huo Yanrann wanted Kong Sheng to become a prince of a secondary nation, the first thing she needed to do was to deal with the big families. Especially now that the Luo Family had declined, the faces of the Zhan Clan and the Shu Clan had greatly increased. Even if the Zhan Clan had tacitly agreed to meet the two of them, what about the Shu Clan? Other than a true friend who had gone through thick and thin, the only person who dared to come and see Kong Sheng under the covetous eyes of the Shu Family would be someone who followed the demands of someone who couldn't defy orders. It shouldn't be difficult to guess the identity of this person who couldn't be defied.
After thinking through this point, Kong Sheng closed the door to thank the guests. He closed the door of the cell and sat on the ground facing the wall. He didn't want to eat unless the guards came to deliver food. Those who ”visited” him were smart people, upon seeing Kong Sheng, they immediately understood his intentions. After putting down the delicious food and wine, he bowed towards Kong Sheng and thanked him before turning to leave.
After another half a month, no one came back, Kong Sheng's daily diet had also become a rotten prison. Other than the fact that he didn't have the shackles on his hands or feet, he was living the life of a prisoner who was about to be executed. As a result, Kong Sheng's heart had completely calmed down, and the only regret was that he was afraid that he would not see the Xiu'er before the execution.
The days passed one by one, and the weather grew warmer with each passing day. The clothes on Kong Sheng's body turned from white to yellow, the sleeves on his collar had already turned black, and his entire body released a stench of sweat. When the head of the prison came over to tell him that it would be the day of execution seven days from now, and if there were any other matters he needed to attend to, Kong Sheng could only bitterly smile and ask if he could take a bath first. The head of the prison didn't dare agree and politely told him that although the Lord Kong had a special identity, no prisoner on death row could take a bath before walking onto the execution platform.
Six days later, four royal guards suddenly came to the death row. The four of them drove Kong Sheng out of the cell room and onto a horse carriage, then pulled him into a house. Hot water was already prepared here, and there was even a complete set of clean clothes, shoes and socks from the inside to the outside. Kong Sheng washed himself for a good half an hour before changing into a clean set of clothes and leaving the room. After asking in the direction of the palace, Kong Sheng kowtowed a few times, then returned to the carriage and returned to the death row to await the day of execution.
Before the four guards left the cell, Kong Sheng suddenly asked, ”The four of you, how is your Phoenix City Pass?”
The four of them suddenly stopped and looked at Kong Sheng with a face full of shock. One of them blurted out with a childish face, ”How do you know ~ ~”.
Kong Sheng sighed lightly, ”I was previously also a student who graduated from Imperial Military Academy. According to the Imperial Military Academy regulations, only senior students from the fourth grade could enter the royal guard. However, the most obvious difference between the freshmen and the seniors was that the seniors no longer regarded the physical fitness test as an important result and had to participate in the palace guards.
The person who spoke followed Kong Sheng's gaze and looked towards his and his companion's calves. Amongst the four, other than the person at the door, there were three other people with leggings on their legs, this couldn't be blamed on them. After all, there was still a long distance test to be carried out in the afternoon, so there wasn't enough time to go back and wrap up their leggings.
Kong Sheng continued, ”The former principal of the military academy, old commander Shi Keren, was my teacher, I know him fairly well. If it wasn't for the important military information, I'm afraid that we wouldn't have recruited soldiers from the royal guard. Since the royal guards had been deployed, that meant that either something had happened to the Wulian Mountain Range or something had happened to it. The Wulian Mountain Range was close to the five northern provinces. If the Demonic Beast wreaks havoc, perhaps not even a single royal guard could handle it. That's why I dared to guess that there was a problem with the Phoenix City Pass and that the royal guards were in urgent need of reinforcements. Everyone, am I guessing right? ”
The three young guards looked towards the old student who was standing at the entrance of the cell at the same time. The old student sighed, walked up to Kong Sheng and softly said, ”Lord Kong, to be honest, Moqiu Army has violated the Phoenix City Pass for more than a month now. This time, Mo Qiu had mobilized over 500,000 troops, and the number of troops was still increasing. Commander Elder Shi had to struggle to hold on by himself, and had already asked the imperial city for help several times. His Majesty has already sent out fifty thousand troops, and we are currently gathering an army to prepare for a second rescue. ”
Kong Sheng was startled when he heard it, and after a while, he knelt on one knee towards the four guards who were much younger than him. ”Kong Sheng, as the commander of Phoenix City Pass, I, Kong Sheng, am actually quite familiar with the perimeter of Phoenix City Pass, and am experienced in fighting enemies. I hope that His Majesty can put aside his personal grudges and allow this sinful subject to lead the troops to Phoenix City Pass to save the lives of the citizens of the empire! ”
The old student immediately came over to support Kong Sheng. ”Lord Kong, we are only guards, we can't even meet His Majesty.”
Kong Sheng could not help but shake his head, ”If it wasn't for Your Majesty, who would dare to send a person who is sent to the execution grounds tomorrow to take a bath and change his clothes?”
Seeing the old student at a loss for words, Kong Sheng continued, ”There is no need for the four of you to be in a difficult situation. As for the other things, leave it to fate ~ ~ ~ ”The four guards saw that Kong Sheng had spoken up to this point and could only nod their heads in agreement. They guaranteed that they would bring the word back. After the four of them left, Kong Sheng sat cross-legged on the bed, raised his head and looked at the small window the size of a palm, and prayed in his heart for the Phoenix City Pass.
Kong Sheng waited from dawn to dusk, all the way until the moon rose. Only then did he gently shake his head, lie down on his bed, and wait for the day of his execution.
The next day, after they had just finished breakfast, the head of the prison came in with four jailers. They cupped their hands towards Kong Sheng and greeted him, ”Lord Kong, congratulations to you.”
Kong Sheng smiled faintly and did not say much. He first placed his finger marks on the torture manual, then allowed the guards to put on the handcuffs on his legs, and with half of them supporting him, he walked out.
Three miles outside of the prison, there was a small yamen of the Board of Justice. This place was normally not open, and only opened when the death penalty was to be carried out. The Lord of the Board of Justice would sit down here and take out the names of the people in the book.
Kong Sheng was then dragged here, where two guards pressed him down to the ground and pushed him to the side, quietly waiting for the head of the Punishment Department to appear. Kong Sheng turned his head slightly, and saw Xiu'er kneeling on the other side as well.
After not seeing her for a few months, Xiu'er's complexion had clearly become much more haggard. The prison uniform on her body was still considered clean, and the few strands of hair on her forehead showed that she had only hastily tidied it up a little before coming over. Xiu'er first looked at Kong Sheng in shock, then returned her gaze with a wordless and bitter smile. Kong Sheng smiled at her but also did not say a word.
Not long after, two attendants and a scribe, dressed in the official uniform of the Ministry of Justice, came out from behind the desk and sat down. They nodded at the scribe.
The thin official took out a scroll from his bag and opened it, facing Kong Sheng and the Xiu'er, he read it out loud. It basically meant that Kong Sheng, as a general of the border, had entered the imperial city without permission even if he was not ordered to, and had attempted to assassinate the King. He was convicted according to the laws of the empire and was punished according to the military rules.
Kong Sheng did not think much of what he heard, but when the official picked up the second volume and started to read, he could not bear to listen anymore. Even though it was a death sentence, he was decisive while the Xiu'er was on fire!