Chapter 117: Meeting the Prisoners
Rewari kingdom, inner place of Bawal, early morning of 1557.
After coming from his bath, Aditya changed into his finely embroidered kurta and dhoti in his quarters.
Standing by the window and lost in thought, he contemplated various pressing matters. He wondered whether it would be wise to take Princess Meenakshi to the cannon factory. Although he cannot escape for a month , he considered whether he might delay the visit and prepare designs in advance rather than drawing them in her presence.
Additionally, he awaited a message from Delhi regarding the ongoing conquest of Agra. As he pondered the situation, he reflected on the current leadership’s absense in the kingdom, where military professionals were temporarily managing law and order due to the near-extermination of noble families involved in the rebellion.
Their figureheads were still rotting inside the dungeons. His thoughts also turned to the upcoming court meeting and the urgent need to select a capable representative to lead his forces in assisting Tejpal with his kingdom’s rescue.
He sighed, frustrated with the radical Muslim scholars who were inciting unrest and rallying commoners to their cause under the pretense of their version of peace.
Suddenly, an idea came to him. He moved swiftly to his writing desk, opened the trunk, and retrieved a parchment. He seated himself on a cushion near a low foot table, quill in hand, and began drafting his plans and letters as his mind raced with solutions.
Moments later, Bheem entered the room, accompanied by Colonel Ratnakar and his butler, Hari Singh. The trio had arrived as per Aditya’s orders.
Aditya lost in his thoughts, looked up from the parchments which he was organizing before. He returned the documents to the trunk and stood to acknowledge their greetings and salutes with authority.
He then turned to Ratnakar and commanded, "Colonel, provide me with a brief report of all the prisoners."
Ratnakar reported, "Sir, as per your orders, we have arrested the extremists from the city and nearby villages. Despite our hospitality treatment in the specialised dungeons, none of them have opened their mouths and they appear confident. Additionally, the rebel nobles are proving uncooperative. They keep insisting on their innocence and claim they were forced to join the rebellion by the previous leader out of fear of death.
Aditya scoffed, "So now they expect to be rewarded for their surrender? Very well. You’ll accompany us."