Culinary Chronicles of the Court Flower: Volume 11 [Parts 1 to 11] by Miri Mikawa

Author:Miri Mikawa
Language: eng
Format: epub

III

“Please don’t cry, Rimi. I beg you.”

But Rimi’s tears wouldn’t stop.

“Why won’t you tell His Majesty everything?” Rimi, looking unkempt, implored Shusei. “If he’s informed of your feelings, I’m sure he won’t allow you to be executed.”

“Then all the more reason to stay silent. You said it before. Everyone must recognize who I am, and then I need to die. Even if the Ho House perishes, there’s no guarantee that no one would use that as a pretext to plot something nefarious,” Shusei explained. “The emperor must be the one to pass the correct judgment, directly landing the final blow to end the Ho House. That’s what my plan was from the start.”

This was all for the stability of Konkoku and to fix what was wrong. The Ho House needed to fall. Rimi could understand the logic behind this, but she couldn’t stand watching Shusei get executed.

Master Shusei might be a cruel man, as he’d called himself earlier. He’s cruel to even himself. Despite being a kind man, his cool-headed intelligence forced him to come to such a decision.

Had Shusei been even a touch more flexible, this wouldn’t have happened. He gleaned any necessary information, predicted the future, and made his decision to walk the most beneficial route—even if it meant being cruel to himself.

“Perhaps we can fake your death...” Rimi started.

“It’s meaningless if my execution isn’t publicized. What’s more, the witness and I must declare that I am indeed the criminal Ho Shusei. Will you convince the witness to lie? That may be possible, but what shall you do about the execution? Will you have a different criminal take my place? Do you truly think that the person will claim himself to be the head of the Ho House just so that the Ho House may survive?”

Shusei calmly continued while admonishing this train of thought.

“In exchange for the criminal taking my place and lying, will you promise to reward the family he leaves behind? Even if you manage to do so, others can easily tell if a person hails from the palace by glancing at one’s hands, fingers, and mannerisms.”

Shusei paused for a moment and looked on sternly.

“And should the person taking my place be truly worried about his remaining family, though a criminal, there’s a good chance that he only sinned because he simply had no other choice,” Shusei concluded. “Am I supposed to live on while sacrificing such a man’s life? I’ve destroyed the Ho House, started a rebellion, and caused the death of countless soldiers. I must atone for my sins.”

“But...”

“Should I attempt to fool the public at the very end, and the truth of faking my execution comes to light, all will be for naught. I would lose everything. There’s no need for me to cross such a dangerous bridge. Or else my sins, the dead soldiers, and the fall of the Ho House will be meaningless.”

“But I’m sure His Majesty doesn’t want you to die, Master Shusei!”

Should Shohi learn of Shusei’s true motive, the emperor would surely not allow his execution.

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