“You want to call me despicable?” Li Jiancheng’s smile grew even more pronounced: “I am exactly this despicable. What can you do about it?”
Saying this, he forcefully pulled away Wang Zhengfeng’s hands and told Jiang Yuan: “Take him out. Remember, let everyone see his beheading!”
“I understand!” After saying this, he gripped a rope that came from who knows where and, together with Li Yuanji, bound Wang Zhengfeng securely. Having done this, he shouted loudly: “Come here!”
Soon, a squad of soldiers rushed in. Upon seeing the scene in the room, they were all momentarily stunned. When they came to their senses, they hurriedly moved to untie the ropes on Wang Zhengfeng. Before they could take two steps, Jiang Yuan already shouted sternly: “No one is allowed to untie him!”
Jiang Yuan was, after all, the deputy general of the city. With his shout, the soldiers dared not advance further, but the confusion in their eyes only increased. After a moment of silence, someone tentatively asked: “General, why must General Wang be bound?”
Jiang Yuan solemnly raised the “imperial decree” with both hands: “His Majesty has issued a decree: Wang Zhengfeng’s lax military discipline caused Luoyang, despite being closest to Chang’an, to fail to arrive in time for the royal rescue, nearly causing Chang’an to fall. This crime is unforgivable. He is to be beheaded immediately as a public example, and I am to temporarily assume his position!”
The soldiers looked at each other in disbelief, none daring to believe that Li Shimin would execute Wang Zhengfeng over such a matter. The one who had spoken earlier boldly said: “General, does His Majesty really… really want to behead General Wang?”
Jiang Yuan said solemnly: “The imperial decree is here. Could it be false? Or do you think I would falsely transmit an imperial decree?”
“We dare not!” Those soldiers hurriedly denied it upon hearing this. They had an instinctive reverence for imperial decrees and couldn’t imagine that Jiang Yuan would be so audacious as to forge one.
“As soon as General Wang received news of Chang’an being besieged, he immediately sent you, General, to lead troops for the rescue. Even if there truly was delay, it was because the news didn’t arrive in time, and General Wang cannot be blamed for this.”
Faced with the soldiers’ words, Jiang Yuan deliberately sighed: “How could I not know this? I explained it to His Majesty in every possible way, but unfortunately His Majesty wouldn’t listen to my persuasion and insisted on executing General Wang. I have no choice!”
Wang Zhengfeng was both angry and anxious. This Jiang Yuan was truly full of lies. Unable to speak, he could only keep shouting “ah ah,” hoping to arouse the soldiers’ suspicions!
Indeed, someone noticed Wang Zhengfeng’s abnormality: “General, this General Wang… why does he seem mute?”
“Sigh, General Wang fainted upon hearing His Majesty’s decree. When he woke up, he had suddenly become mute and couldn’t say a word.” Jiang Yuan had anticipated this question and prepared his explanation early. To gain the soldiers’ trust, he even squeezed out a few tears and said painfully: “General Wang has served Great Tang loyally all his life, risking his life countless times. I never expected him to encounter such a thing in the end. His Majesty… is truly too heartless.”
As the soldiers sighed in sympathy, he embraced Wang Zhengfeng’s shoulders and said sadly: “Old brother, don’t blame me. I’ve done my best. If I don’t act according to His Majesty’s wishes, I fear we’ll all suffer.”
Wang Zhengfeng was nearly driven mad with rage. While struggling, he kept shouting, trying to remind the soldiers not to believe Jiang Yuan’s words. Unfortunately, his actions appeared to the soldiers as unwillingness to die.
“General, couldn’t you plead with His Majesty again?” Faced with the soldiers’ words, Jiang Yuan shook his head sadly: “When I met His Majesty, I pleaded everything I could, but His Majesty remained unmoved. I am truly… powerless.” Saying this, he released Wang Zhengfeng and said with feigned sorrow: “Very well, take General Wang to the execution ground.”
The soldiers reluctantly complied, leading the struggling Wang Zhengfeng out of the General’s Mansion. As Wang Zhengfeng was the garrison commander of Luoyang City, many citizens recognized him. Seeing him bound and being led to the execution ground, they were all extremely shocked. Word spread from ten to a hundred, and soon half of Luoyang City knew.
When Wang Zhengfeng was forced to kneel on the execution ground, countless citizens and soldiers flocked to the area around the execution ground, watching the struggling Wang Zhengfeng in surprise and confusion, whispering among themselves, speculating about what crime he had committed to meet such a fate.
The execution ground was surrounded three layers deep, with nothing but a sea of dark heads visible, and more people rushing from all directions.
Soon, all the major and minor officials of Luoyang City had arrived. Seeing Wang Zhengfeng bound and kneeling on the execution platform, they all frowned deeply. Several who were Wang Zhengfeng’s confidants couldn’t bear to watch and immediately tried to step forward to untie him, but were blocked by soldiers and couldn’t advance an inch. Upon learning it was Jiang Yuan’s order, those several people immediately rushed to Jiang Yuan, who was sitting behind a desk, and said sternly: “Jiang, you’re only the deputy general of Luoyang City. How dare you bind General Wang on the execution platform? Have you gone mad? Quickly order his release!”
Jiang Yuan sighed deeply: “It’s not that I don’t want to untie him, but I dare not!”
Someone with a more careful mind heard the implication in his words and stopped the impulsive person: “General Jiang, what do you mean by this?”
Jiang Yuan respectfully pointed to the yellow silk scroll placed on the desk: “Deputy General Zheng, please look. This is an imperial decree personally issued by His Majesty. The decree states that General Wang’s lax military discipline caused him to fail to arrive at Chang’an in time for the rescue, and he is to be executed immediately!”
Upon hearing this, those several people were immediately stunned. The one who had spoken earlier was the first to react, shouting loudly: “Impossible! After learning that Chang’an was besieged, the General immediately sent you to rush to the royal rescue. Where do these words ‘failed to arrive in time’ come from? Moreover, even if this were true, it wouldn’t be a capital offense!”
Jiang Yuan shook his head: “Deputy General Li, I told His Majesty everything you just said, but His Majesty remained adamant. What could I do? Could I disobey the imperial decree?”
Deputy General Li blurted out: “If His Majesty’s decree is unreasonable, what’s wrong with disobeying it?”
“Don’t speak nonsense!” Deputy General Zheng stopped his words and stared at Jiang Yuan with a grave expression: “Executing General Wang—is this truly His Majesty’s intention?”
Jiang Yuan said with a serious expression: “The imperial decree is here. Could it be false? His Majesty is truly furious this time!”
Although Deputy General Zheng felt that Jiang Yuan couldn’t possibly fabricate such a thing, he still had doubts. After hesitating for a long while, he said: “Could you allow me to examine the imperial decree?”
Jiang Yuan’s eyes turned cold as he stared at him: “What does Deputy General Zheng mean by this? Do you think this imperial decree is false?”
“I dare not!” Though he said this, Deputy General Zheng had no intention of giving up: “However, this matter is of great importance. I believe we should be more cautious!”