Volume 5 Old Testament 147, Yang's Scheme

  The lord of Daya City's legs went soft and he almost fell back into his chair. Amun was ruthless, actually putting a hat on him that implied he was the mastermind behind the assassination attempt, and all the officials in the hall who were accusing him were also implicated. The crowd was shocked and furious, but they looked at the Holy Maiden with pleading eyes, waiting for her to make a statement.

  Maria stood up with a calm face, took out the staff and said: "The security affairs of the city are the responsibility of the Lord of the City, and they will be handled according to the imperial decree! The Isis Blessing Ceremony is imminent, and we must not slack off. Everyone, please hurry to attend to your respective duties. The Temple of Isis also has a supervisory role, Gabriel, Bulke, you two represent the temple to supervise the city lord's office, do not interfere with the case, just supervise whether it is handled according to the decree!

  After saying this, the Holy Maiden retreated to the rear hall with her staff in hand. The implication was clear: this matter was not under her jurisdiction, but she would send someone to keep an eye on it. Lord Darya hurried back to handle the situation clearly, lest he disturb the Isis Blessing Ceremony and commit a great sin.

  The Lord of Daja Castle rushed back to the government office with a group of people, and Armon was sitting in the hall, holding a sword, with a kicked-over desk in front of him, and things scattered all over the floor. The Lord of Daja Castle didn't dare to step forward for a moment, but instead, the High Priest Burk of the Temple frowned and asked: "Armon, as the Imperial General, you should know the law and etiquette, why did you rush into the government office with a sharp weapon?"

  Among the three high priests of the Isis Temple, George and Amun were the closest, while Burke did not participate in the war on the front line and was also a representative of the priestly group's power before the Holy Girl took office, and was the most incompatible with Amun. Maria sent Burke and Gabriel together this time to show that there was no bias.

  Ahmon sneered and replied, "Wearing a sword in and out is the Pharaoh's personal gracious decree. Even if I were in the Pharaoh's chariot, I would still be wearing a sword, let alone in this city governor's official residence?"

  Everyone was stunned, the general said is a fact, Ramses II in order to praise Amun's meritorious deeds, specially allowed the general to wear a sword. He can wear a sword by the pharaoh's side, let alone in the city-state government, Bulkeley's question is unreasonable. John stifled a smile and reminded: "General, you are here to report a case, you should give up the seat of the lord of the city."

  Amon stood up, sheathed his sword and nodded: "Thank you for reminding me, I was rude! Because of a momentary anger, I also kicked the city lord's table. I'll make it up to him later, please take a seat, City Lord."

  After everyone sat down, they began to deal with Amun's accusations. It had already been made such a big deal that everyone wanted to shrink back a bit, especially the lord of Daya Castle who wanted to smooth things over. In fact, the investigation into the matter was very clear, and all the testimonies were consistent, without any contradictions or disputes.

  "General, this is just a misunderstanding from the brothel's squabble, it can't be clearer. You've made such a big fuss and taught whoever you wanted to teach a lesson, and vented enough. The Isis Goddess blessing ceremony is imminent, I think we should let it go. You haven't suffered any losses, and later I'll have the other nobles apologize to you."

  Amun shook his head: "Absolutely not, if this gets out it will be terrible to hear. The great general got into a big fight with a girl in the brothel, and actually arrested so many people and even demolished the deputy mayor's mansion, this is also too outrageous. How can we just let it go? I don't use my power to bully people, I only ask that we follow the imperial law and first determine the crimes of these people!"

  The lord of Daya City frowned and said: "How is this crime determined?"

  Gabriel snorted coldly on the side: "Whatever is to be decided, if Generalissimo has a crime, then decide Generalissimo's crime name, and so are Sheng Yi and others!"

  Dahya City Lord turned his head and asked Gabriel: "Do you think the general is guilty?"

  Gabriel's face sank as he said, "The city master shouldn't ask me, I'm just supervising and don't interfere with the investigation."

  "Since you said that, let's start with me asking first. May I ask, Lord City Master, can this general go to the brothel to drink and enjoy music and dance?"

  Daya City Lord: "Alright."

  Ammon: "I was just sitting there, giving out money left and right, did I offend someone?"

  Daya City Lord: "No."

  Amun: "Isn't it that when on official business and without permission, going out at night in the city-state, one should carry a weapon? Although I have Pharaoh's special permission, even in brothels I don't wear a sword."

  The lord of Daya Castle said: "It should not be."

  Amun: "I was just drinking peacefully, and someone burst in with a sharp object, is that right?"

  Daya City Master: "It's like this. It's all a misunderstanding, and it has nothing to do with General. It's just that Sheng Yi was competing with a girl for favor and accidentally offended the General!"

  Amun: "I don't want to discuss any misunderstandings. If it were you, Lord City Master, sitting there drinking wine, and someone burst in with a sharp object, would you say he wasn't an assassin? John took action, Long Teng caught the person, what's wrong with that?"

  Dahua City Master: "Of course there's nothing wrong. Indeed, it was not right for Young Master Sheng Yi to do so, but you also can't conclude that he intentionally tried to assassinate."

  Amun: "You can't say that, it's not like I invited him in. The testimonies of the people present are clear. Ask him if he pointed his sword at me and said I wanted to die? What does 'die' mean? I think Lord City Master wouldn't be unclear about this, right? This isn't an assassination attempt, what else would it take to count as one? Do we have to wait until I'm actually killed by him before making a verdict?"

  Daya City Lord: "General, calm down, I've already asked clearly, that scoundrel Sheng Yi doesn't know you, this is a misunderstanding!"

  Amun sneered, "I have publicly attended various official ceremonies of Meng Fei Si, and as the deputy mayor of the city-state, he says he doesn't know me. Do you believe it? Even if he didn't recognize me, is it my fault as a great general? Is he not an assassin?"

  Dahua City Lord: "But why did Sheng Yi want to assassinate you? This makes no sense."

  Amun smiled: "The lord of the city has already investigated clearly, it's just because of a girl in the brothel who is jealous and quarrelsome."

  Daya City Lord, who had been wiping his sweat continuously, finally let out a slight sigh of relief: "It was originally just a small matter of quarreling and jealousy in the brothel, why did General make such a big fuss about it?"

  Amun's face turned stern: "A small matter? It is true that there was a dispute over the wind and vinegar, but the evidence of the assassination attempt on the great general is ironclad! For such a trivial matter as a dispute over a brothel, to dare to commit the serious crime of attempting to assassinate the empire's great general, how can this person not be severely punished? If something even bigger were to happen, who knows what kind of disaster this kind of person would bring upon the country?"

  Standing beside him, John spoke up: "Lord City Master, all the questions have been asked clearly and the evidence is conclusive. Meng Fei Si, Deputy Director of the Finance Bureau of Chengbang, only because of a dispute over a prostitute in a brothel, dared to assassinate the Imperial General. He is the main culprit, and the others who committed the crime with him are accomplices. Are you not sure what the case is about? Is it that Rong Yi had premeditated or was someone behind the scenes manipulating him?"

  Daya-Yang could no longer hold back the scene, and looked around with a pleading gaze. Although the adults present were outraged when they reported earlier in the morning, now they all remained silent. If Ah-Mon insisted on pursuing the matter according to the law, this would be the result, it just depended on whether General Daya-Yang was willing to back down or not.

  The lord of the city silently scolded these people one by one in his heart, and reluctantly got up to walk to Ah Mon's side, whispering: "General, you must not deal with them like this, it's not good. In fact, we all know that this is a misunderstanding. You want to teach them a lesson, but you have to be moderate. Not to mention other things, Sheng Yi is the nephew of the imperial prime minister...

  "Ah! What's that? Imperial Chancellor Joseph-sama?! Is this matter related to the Chancellor as well?! Speak louder, I couldn't hear you!"

  Daya-Yang was startled, his face turned bright red, and he repeatedly retreated, waving his hand: "General, please don't talk nonsense, I didn't say that the Prime Minister is related to this matter, but Sheng Yi is the Prime Minister's nephew, everyone here knows it, I just kindly reminded."

  Amun stood up and pointed at John: "Thank you for the kindness of Lord Daja! But what does this have to do with whether Sheng Yi is going to assassinate me? Look at this general, he was born on the battlefield, but because of his careless words, he was stripped of his title. Can having an uncle as prime minister make up for General John's military achievements?"

  Some things are feared to be clearly stated, such as the fact that Xingyi is the nephew of the prime minister. It's indeed difficult to deal with him, but this can only be discussed privately and cannot be brought up openly. Ameng straightforwardly pointed it out - who dares to say that Xingyi cannot be dealt with? Not even Prime Minister Joseph himself can publicly declare such a thing.

  The matter has already been forced to death, unless Lord Deya explicitly states that he wants to abuse the law for personal gain, otherwise there is no room for maneuver. Ah Meng saw Lord Deya's difficulty and smiled at everyone: "So you all know that Sheng Yi is the nephew of the Prime Minister, I won't make it difficult for you either. As for this case, let's just submit a public document to the Imperial Law Elder, the Prime Minister, and the Military Department, and ask for instructions on how to handle it."

  After finishing speaking, Amun handed over a volume of documents to the Lord of Daya City. He had written it before he came, and the content was roughly as follows: The great god Horus blesses and guards Upper and Lower Egypt, defends the dignity of the Empire, inherits the glory of An-Ra, and is renowned throughout the nations. General Arothamenmesiah Huayanra Yemontemont, who left his territory a few days ago to attend the Isis Goddess's Blessing Ceremony in Meng Fei City State, was attacked by assassins with swords during the night banquet in the city.

  After investigation, the main culprit was found to be Sheng Yi, Deputy Director of the City State Financial Bureau, and there were dozens of accomplices. The facts of the case and the interrogation records are clear and accurate, and the evidence is conclusive. Sheng Yi is the nephew of Imperial Chancellor Joseph, and some people say that the Chancellor is also involved in this matter. As the leader of all officials, how can the Imperial Chancellor be implicated in this matter? Special inquiry was made about how to deal with his nephew.

  Since I led the army back to our country, I have rarely enjoyed the pleasure of rural life. However, some people are jealous of the rewards and titles conferred upon me by the Emperor and Your Majesty. They stir up trouble without reason. During a night banquet, someone attempted to assassinate me; is it not permissible to investigate? I ordered my personal guards to capture the assassin, but a group of nobles took advantage of the situation to rise up in revolt, gathering people to accuse me of ordering the assassination. What kind of logic is this? Please instruct me, Your Majesty.

  ...from Dreamflight to E'gudu City, sailing upstream along the Roni River with open sails takes nearly a month. Riding horses along the official road by the riverbank is faster, taking five or six days, which is only done when delivering urgent documents. A faster way is to take the flying arrow, which takes two days; if one doesn't mind fatigue and uses flying scrolls for assistance, it can be as fast as a little over a day.

  The general urged the urgency, and in five days it will be the Isis blessing ceremony. The matter must be handled before the ceremony is officially held, which is also the order of the Holy Girl. Therefore, Amun's letter was sent to Dis City at the fastest speed, along with a long sword with a family crest, a detailed investigation record of this incident, and an additional list of names, including not only the main culprits but also the nobles who went to the city lord's mansion to accuse Amun.

  That sword is Zhong Yi's, fell in Amon's wine hall, the hilt has a family crest, it's the most important evidence. Amon deliberately let the messenger bring this sword and hand it over to Imperial Chancellor Joseph.

  What Ah Mon submitted was not a secret letter, but an open document, which shocked everyone. As soon as the messenger left, everyone knew the outcome. No one would dare to defend Sheng Yi anymore. The vice-minister of the Ministry of Finance would definitely be severely punished, and those involved would also be implicated. The severity of the punishment depends on Ah Mon's attitude. Because the general had already exposed this matter, the Pharaoh would definitely give him face.

  The letter was sent to Pharaoh Ramses II, the Imperial Chancellor Joseph and the Ministry of War, which also made it public among the Egyptian officials. The Chancellor was furious, he could not say anything to Amun, but only scolded his own nephew for his shameful behavior in front of everyone.

  Before the law elder could even speak, Prime Minister had already taken the initiative to request severe punishment for Sheng Yi and others involved in the imperial court. Such behavior was unbecoming of their noble status and was truly unforgivable. Regardless of how many shady deals Prime Minister had made behind closed doors, this matter had been laid bare on the table, leaving him no choice but to act accordingly.

  Some of the officials in the imperial court were on good terms with Amun, while others didn't know him and were just bystanders. Many people couldn't help but secretly admire him, thinking that the prime minister had messed with the wrong person. Amun was a true general who fought his way to the top, not someone who played tricks like the prime minister. This slap from Meng Fei directly sent him back to Dis City, and it was a loud and shocking blow.

  Many people thought that General Amun's arrest of Sheng Yi was aimed at Prime Minister, because Prime Minister had secretly instigated Party Yu to impeach John, but in fact it was a slap in the face for Amun. Since Prime Minister took action against John, Amun would take his nephew Sheng Yi to justice.

  Chancellor Yueshuai made a painful and sorrowful appearance in front of the group of ministers, but Pharaoh Ramses II saw the document of Amun and laughed instead. He smiled at Yueshuai and said: "Chancellor, don't be too hard on yourself, it's inevitable that a big family like yours will have some bad apples. Your attitude is very comforting to me, and this matter must be thoroughly investigated. Sheng Yi is the main culprit and should be severely punished according to law. As for the others, I think they are indeed misunderstood and not targeted at the great general. The great general's anger is also understandable, but since this document impeached them all, it must be dealt with."

  Sun Yi was demoted to a commoner, no longer a member of the noble family of the Prime Minister. General Amun wanted to punish him further, as long as it didn't violate any laws, he would do as he pleased. As for the others involved, those who held weapons and participated together were either demoted one rank or paid a fine; those who gathered to falsely accuse General Amun were all required to pay a fine and apologize to the general, with the specific amount depending on whether the general was satisfied or not, and the matter would be handled by the Meng Fei Si City-State.

  The Pharaoh's decree was to severely punish Shun Yi, and be lenient with the other accomplices. Ramses II saw it clearly that Shun Yi's accomplices were indeed unaware of the situation at the time, and it was just a common brawl that took place at night with people carrying weapons in violation of the city-state's laws. However, due to Long Teng's timely handling, no serious consequences occurred. If they had all been treated as assassins, it would have implicated too many people.

  As for those who ran to the city master's office and temple to report, Pharaoh issued a decree to reprimand them. The punishment was also very interesting, requiring them to pay a large sum of money to apologize to the general. Anyway, it was at someone else's expense, and Pharaoh didn't have to spend his own money. Amun's face was completely given.

  The Pharaoh also specifically praised John and Long Teng in the edict, commending them for their loyalty to their duties. Although it was only verbal praise without any actual reward, it was equivalent to giving this matter a nature, they broke two legs of Sheng Yi not only white fight, but also good fight, should fight!

  Ahmose, as the Grand General of the Empire, had merits but no demerits. The more he was secretly feared, the more his dignity on the surface needed to be maintained. When the Grand General went to a brothel to drink and cause trouble, even ordering his personal guards to injure an official of the city-state, Pharaoh felt relieved instead. If Ahmose, young as he was, had known how to endure and never committed any errors or faults, that would have been truly terrifying.

  The messenger flew back and forth at incredible speed, and three days later, the Pharaoh's edict arrived in Dream Flying City, along with a verbal message from the Prime Minister demanding that the murderer be punished. All the "murderers" were already locked up in the great prison, and Daja-Turjan didn't dare to delay, immediately summoning Amun to the city lord's official residence, where all relevant personnel were also brought, and the matter was dealt with on the spot.

  According to the Edict of E, except for treason, nobles' crimes can be commuted according to their severity by demoting their titles. Sheng Yi was dismissed from office, not only stripped of all his titles but also deprived of his noble status and reduced to a commoner, which is a very severe punishment. It's just that in a fit of rage, they drew swords against each other, and this poor guy didn't even dream that it would make such a big noise.

  The Pharaoh's edict also specifically mentioned that if Amun felt unsatisfied, additional punishment could be added without violating the imperial decree. The lord of Daya City asked at the time: "General, do you want to add punishment?"

  Amun pondered, "Since he has been stripped of his title and demoted to a commoner, I only want to give him a chance to redeem himself. I plan to send Sheng Yi to the An-La military unit to guard the border, and have him join the corresponding troops according to his birthplace. Lord City Master, does this violate imperial law?"

  Daya Chengzhu nodded and said: "Of course it's not against the rules. I think he should thank Generalissimo instead!"

  According to the Egu Empire's conscription system, warriors from the same region were usually assigned to the same combat unit. Amun wanted to send Sheng Yi to the Anra Legion and assign him to the squad that Jules had once commanded. The soldiers there were all sons of farmers from Old Jules' farm, and they had been training with Jules since childhood. They were sworn brothers in life and death. Amun knew what would happen if Sheng Yi went there.