Tianliangyuan

Chapter 302 One Sleepless Night

Emperor Yong'an did not actually intend to take action against Prince Qing so soon.

He sent men to surround Prince Qing's residence and investigate the matter of privately manufacturing weapons. Even if it was true, Emperor Yong'an only wanted to reprimand Prince Qing a few more times, and at worst demote him to a prince or duke.

But Prince Qing is really courting death!

Before he even entered the capital, he had already begun ordering his men to plot in the city. If his men actually succeeded, he didn't even dare to imagine how chaotic the capital would become!

Emperor Yong'an did not doubt the loyalty of his generals, but if the enemy succeeded, even if the generals risked their lives to protect him as emperor, their families would surely be killed. How could he face his ministers then?

Emperor Yong'an's eyes flashed. If these people dared to lay a hand on the families of several generals, who could guarantee that they wouldn't lay a hand on the families of other officials?

"Zhao Changqing, go and investigate immediately..."

Besides Zhao Changqing, the Ministry of Justice, as well as the magistrates of Chang'an and Wannian counties, all mobilized.

Good heavens, the capital was suddenly under martial law.

After interrogating the arrested individuals, Zhao Changqing followed the clues and discovered several shops. In addition, a large number of weapons were found in a private residence.

The more Zhao Changqing investigated, the more alarmed he became, thinking to himself that Prince Qing was courting death!

Initially, only a few officials in charge of criminal justice intervened, but later, Xie Zheng, Cui Shu, and others were also instructed to intervene.

Cui Shu was reassigned to guard the main gate of Taiji Palace, while Xu Han was replaced at the outermost gate.

Xu Han never expected that, having fallen to such a low point, he would still have to guard the gate.

There was nothing we could do; the Emperor's will was hard to defy.

As for Li Zhangping and Xie Zheng, they each led their men to patrol the entire city.

Xie Zheng sent a message home, while Xu Zhaozhao immediately arranged for people to close all the gates of the Duke's mansion, including the back gate, and assigned guards to guard them.

Such a commotion naturally alerted the old lady.

Xu Zhaozhao did not mention her entry into the palace, but only said that some traitors had been discovered in the capital, and Xie Zheng was ordered to search the entire city, so no one was allowed to enter or leave the Duke of Huguo's mansion unless there was a reason.

Lady Yu was slightly worried, after all, the capital had been peaceful for many years, and the last time there was such a large-scale operation was when His Majesty purged his political opponents after ascending the throne.

Xu Zhaozhao then sent messages to Third Master and Fifth Master, instructing them to keep a close watch on their homes and prevent thieves from taking advantage of any loopholes. She also reminded them to behave themselves during this period, especially to avoid anyone associated with Prince Qing.

Both Master Xie the Third and Master Xie the Fifth were born out of wedlock and had been separated from the government for many years. Since they had never served as officials in the court, they naturally had no access to the upper echelons of society.

Unless the Duke of Protectorate is willing to reveal something.

Xu Zhaozhao has already given them a heads-up.

This is tantamount to a signal from the Duke of Huguo's mansion: even if the Third Master and the Fifth Master have separated, they are still members of the Xie family and remain inseparable from the Duke of Huguo's mansion.

In fact, this is normal.

After all, it's just a family split, not a branch of a clan.

If the Duke of Huguo's mansion were to commit a serious crime and be subject to confiscation of property and extermination, the third and fifth branches of the family would not escape either.

Xie Zheng did not return that night, and the pillar lamps in Jinxiu Courtyard remained lit all night.

Xu Zhaozhao, on the other hand, rested very well and went to bed early.

Because she was certain Xie Zheng wouldn't return, there was no need to wait for him. Moreover, since Prince Qing hadn't yet entered the capital, this wasn't something that could be resolved in a single night.

However, this experience also made Xu Zhaozhao truly realize that once the great machine of the nation starts running, its speed is astonishingly terrifying!

In just one night, as many as 23 shops in the capital were found to be connected with Prince Qing, along with six related residences. Thousands of weapons belonging to Prince Qing were seized, and the number of people involved has reached nearly 2,000.

This is no joke!

These two thousand men were all able-bodied men. If Prince Qing really started a rebellion, these two thousand men would be his vanguard.

Because they are originally hidden among ordinary people, if something happens, it will definitely be the ordinary people who suffer.

She didn't know if she could storm the palace, but she would definitely kill every civilian she could see.

This is the real struggle for power.

Sure enough, it was so bloody it made me want to vomit.

That night, Xie Zheng and Li Zhangping made a great contribution. After all, they seized a lot of people and weapons. More importantly, during their patrol, they directly confronted a group of people and then fought each other with knives.

Now, it seems that Prince Qing's plot to rebel can no longer be kept secret.

All evidence, testimonies, and other materials were submitted.

The Dali Temple, the Ministry of Justice, and the Jingzhao Prefecture may seem to be handling cases independently, but in reality, they are all connected.

For military generals like Xie Zheng, things were relatively easier.

At least, they don't have to deal with annoying things like interrogations.

Xu Zhaozhao had just finished breakfast when Xie Zheng returned. He first went to the study to take a shower and change his clothes before arriving at Yuehua Tower, where Xu Zhaozhao was staying.

"Quickly, prepare a meal for the young master."

Xie Zheng wasn't too particular about his meals; he was happy as long as he was full.

But now that Xie Zheng was at home, he had been busy all night and was happy to be able to eat something good.

Xu Zhaozhao personally served him food, but Xie Zheng ate without even looking up.

There was no way around it; I was exhausted after a whole night of tossing and turning, and I was starving.

Xu Zhaozhao watched as he devoured all the steamed buns, shrimp dumplings, and pumpkin cakes that were served, and she was genuinely worried that he hadn't eaten enough.

"Okay, that feels good!"

Xie Zheng ate two more bowls of porridge before finally putting down his chopsticks.

If a noble lady had seen Xie Zheng eating like that, she would probably have laughed at him for being rude.

But Xu Zhaozhao had seen Xu Han's ruthless and unrestrained eating habits since she was a child, so she didn't find it particularly strange.

"Can I lie down and rest for a bit?"

"Hmm, let's rest for a while, but I don't think it will last long."

Xu Zhaozhao laughed: "A little rest is a good thing. Dingxiang, go outside and keep watch. No one is allowed to disturb the young master's rest."

"Yes, ma'am."

Xu Zhaozhao was reading on the couch, occasionally taking a sip of tea.

Xie Zheng simply lay down on her lap and gently closed his eyes.

Neither of them spoke, except for the occasional sound of Xu Zhaozhao turning the pages of her book.

In just a few breaths, Xie Zheng's breathing became even and long. Xu Zhaozhao shook her head slightly, thinking that it wasn't easy for a man to achieve success.

However, Xie Zheng didn't sleep for very long, less than half an hour, before Jian Jiu came looking for him.

Xu Zhaozhao woke Xie Zheng up: "Sanlang, His Majesty summons you to the palace."

Xie Zheng opened his eyes and immediately became alert.

"Saburo!"

Xu Zhaozhao stopped him and told him about her audience with the emperor yesterday, also to remind him that the initial credit for this matter belonged to Zisu and Maidong.

Xie Zheng thought about it for a moment and then understood his intention.

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing. You wait for me at home."