Episode 33 recap: The Sun family encountered a problem.
Some ministers accused Sun Ru of colluding with Beiliang and smuggling private salt. Each incident was recorded in this ledger, which made Liu Chen very angry when he saw it. Sun Yun Qian was furious and punched Shen Jing Hong, expressing his disappointment that he had promised to protect the Sun family, but what was the result now?
Shen Jing Hong said that since Princess Rou Jia had made a decision, he had nothing more to say. Sun Yun Yun had gone out to clear her mind because of Liu Yan's matter, but now she had returned home. Sun Yun Yun approached Sun Yun Qian and talked about her experiences over the years. As a noblewoman from the capital, everything she did had to be in accordance with her status.
Sun Yun Qian said he hadn't thought about all that. He just wanted his family to be safe and sound. Shen Jing Hong came to see Sun Yun Qian, hoping that he could help. Sun Yun Qian said that he was a member of the Sun family and would never do such a thing.
Shen Jing Hong claimed that he could protect the people of the Sun family. Sun Yun Qian truly disagreed with what the Sun family had done, but he still believed Shen Jing Hong. He brought out the ledger, which was the evidence of the Sun family's actions. Shen Jing Hong was also pleased and presented the ledger at the morning court, revealing that the mastermind behind the embezzlement of disaster relief grain in Huaizhou was the Sun family.
The evidence was conclusive, and Mr. Sun had no choice but to plead guilty. Shen Jing Hong said that the evidence was given to him by Sun Yun Qian and hoped that he could spare the lives of the Sun family members out of righteousness. Zhou, the official, presented the evidence and exposed Sun Ru's collusion with Beiliang and the smuggling of private salt, all recorded in this ledger. Liu Chen was also furious after seeing it and no longer paid attention to Shen Jing Hong's words. He ordered Mr. Sun to be executed in public, the Sun family's male members to be exiled, and the women to be registered as commoners. As for Sun Yun Qian, he spared his life due to his act of sacrificing his own family.
Shen Jing Hong was shocked but had no choice. Sun Yun Qian angrily punched Shen Jing Hong, reminding him of his promise to protect the Sun family. Shen Jing Hong apologized to Sun Yun Qian, who burst into laughter and said that an apology was useless. He blamed himself for being foolish enough to believe Shen Jing Hong's words.
Princess Rou Jia came to see Zhou and reminded him that she had fulfilled her promise, and now it was time for him to fulfill his promise.
Shen Jing Hong went to see Princess Rou Jia and asked when she had started cooperating with Zhou. He had clearly promised to protect the lives of the Sun family members.
Princess Rou Jia stated that the actions were all done by the Sun family themselves, and she had not wronged them. She had even left a way out for her good friend. Shen Jing Hong said that since Princess Rou Jia had made up her mind, he would not say more and left after speaking.
The maidservant thought that Shen Jing Hong looked very angry, but Princess Rou Jia said to let him be angry. During the morning court, Mu Zhuo Hua proposed the implementation of a pardon decree, changing the privilege of granting titles to the eldest son of officials ranked seventh or higher. The detailed explanation was that civil officials would be granted the rank of third grade, while military officials would be granted the rank of second grade.
Liu Chen thought it was a good idea and could be implemented. As it turned out, this idea was actually proposed by Mr. Shang. Previously, Mu Zhuo Hua had only read the first part of the article he wrote and didn't see the second part. He felt that he had become impatient because of Mr. Shang's affairs during this period and now he should calm down and proceed slowly.
Liu Yan also told Mu Zhuo Hua that there were two groups of people who went to find Mr. Zhang before. The first group was from the Sun family, just warning Mr. Shang, while the second group was the ones who killed him. Mu Zhuo Hua understood that only Princess Rou Jia could do such a thing. Liu Yan told Liu Chen about the pardon decree and felt that it was just a transitional strategy and that the system of granting titles should be completely abolished in the future.
Liu Chen agreed, saying it was exactly what he had in mind. Princess Rou Jia saved Sun Yun Yun and stated that the crimes of the Sun family did not deserve such a punishment, and the Emperor also wanted to show mercy, but someone was obstructing it. Sun Yun Yun believed it must be Mu Zhuo Hua who refused to let them go.
Sun Yun Qian felt sorry for his family and chose to end his own life. When Sun Yun Yun returned, she saw Sun Yun Qian dead in front of her and was greatly shocked, bursting into tears.
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