Selena and Ashley were clueless about what the couple did, but Sylvia and Moonsong were aware of why they knelt like that.
"Hoo!? What happens?" Tang Shaoyang pretended to be surprised, but his acting was suck. Aleesa and the elven couple immediately realized that Tang Shaoyang already knew the attacker's identity. Revalor glanced at Moonsong, but the latter shook his head, indicating it was not him who told Lord Tang the attacker's identity.
"The attacker this morning. He is my second son, My Lord." Revalor confessed. Deep inside, he was glad that he followed Aleesa's plan instead of executing his plan to swap the attacker. Lord Tang already knew the attacker's identity, and if he did that, they were doomed for sure.
"What? He is your second son!?" Tang Shaoyang pretended to be shocked. Ashley could not bear it anymore and cut off midway. "Your acting is terrible. I don't know what happened, but I can tell you already know everything…. Wait, what?
The attacker this morning is your second son?"
"Trying to assassinate The Lord's wife is the same as treason. I think he deserves the death penalty." Ashley did not listen to the drama until the end as she delivered her judgment. The reason was that the Second Prince of The Elven King was the culprit. "As a royalty, he should know the punishment for killing The Lord's wife."
"We know he deserves the death penalty, but I wish you to listen to the whole story before you deliver your judgment, My Lord." Aleesa stepped in. "Until a few days ago, he was Sylvia's fiance. He was heartbroken when the Moonlight Tribe canceled the engagement all of a sudden and made an irrational decision by trying to kill Sylvia."
"It's our negligence for not paying extra attention to our second son, My Lord. I wish you to give our second son a second chance." Revalor put his head on the ground. The prideful, former Elven King knelt with his head on the ground. This was for his son, the father's love.
"Also, I don't think executing the Second Prince is a good decision. Especially when we have just surrendered to The Tang Empire. I am afraid it will raise the Elven Kingdom's people's dissatisfaction, and they might riot if you execute Prince Arbane." Aleesa added.
"I see. So, I shall just let this slide, so the others will know that they will be forgiven if you try to assassinate my wives or me and fail. Are you trying to say that, Aleesa?" Tang Shaoyang smiled.
"That's not what I meant, My Lord. I…" Aleesa tried to correct herself, but Tang Shaoyang cut her midway while waving his hand. "I know you don't mean that, but what do others think? There will not be a few that think like that if I forgive Second Prince Arbane after what he has done."
"This…." Aleesa was lost for words. She could not refute that because people would interpret the action differently. "Of course, we will still punish the Second Prince Arbane, My Lord." Since she had promised to her sister to save Arbane, she would do her best. "We can give him a severe punishment."
"A severe punishment? Like what?" Tang Shaoyang nodded his head. "Life imprisonment? What's the harsh punishment in your mind, My Lady?"
For some reason, her husband's smile was terrifying for her. Aleesa swallowed mouthful saliva as her right was shaking slightly. Now she thought about it, and she never thought about the proper punishment for Arbane's grave offense. Life imprisonment was no different than the death penalty, but she could not think of a better punishment.
"I will bear half of my son's sin, My Lord," Revalor said. He knew that Aleesa was being cornered, and if this continued, Aleesa would have a hard time later. He had to interfere. "Arbane and I will be war slaves for twenty years. No, fifty, No! A hundred years of war slaves.
We will serve you as a war slave for a hundred years. We will use our power to pay for our crime!"
Tang Shaoyang put his right hand above his lips, covering his mouth. However, Selena and Ashley, who sat closest to Tang Shaoyang, could see the smile underneath his hand. Both immediately realized their man had achieved what he wanted, pulling off the former Elven King to fight for him.
"Alright, I can agree with that. However…." Tang Shaoyang paused for a moment before he continued with a smile. "Instead of a hundred years, I will cut it to seventy years. Seventy years of service as a foot soldier in the military, that's the punishment for you and your son. If you agree, I will overlook Arbane's offense, and we will announce that the attacker has been executed.
We will keep this a secret for the people in this room."
Revalor raised his head and looked toward Tang Shaoyang with his eyes open. He was not expecting that Tang Shaoyang would let them off easily . He was relieved deep inside and also grateful that Lord Tang did not execute his second.
"Thank you for your benevolence, My Lord. We will do the best for the glory of the Tang Empire." Revalor bashed his head onto the floor.
Meanwhile, the Elven Kingdom's dungeon
Second Prince Arbane sat at the edge of the stone bed of his jail. His expression was full of regret for what he had done. He acted out of his emotion and tried to kill Sylvia, who had betrayed him. However, he forgot the implication of his action. By doing this, he endangered his family.
While he did not care about his life, his action might drag everyone to their doom, including the Elven Kingdom.
Arbane heard the steps, and it stopped in front of his jail. He raised his head and saw his brother, the new Elven King. He stood up and rushed forward. "What happened, Brother? Is everything okay?" He asked with concern.