Tang Dynasty Mingyue Song Dynasty Pass

Chapter 896 Tension

The next day, the sunlight shone through the clouds onto the streets of Bianjing, appearing particularly dazzling.

The Wude Division and the Imperial Guards both captured the injured black-clad assassins and interrogated them separately without interfering with each other. The atmosphere in the interrogation room was tense and solemn. Under torture, the assassins finally revealed the mastermind behind the scenes.

The conclusions reached by both sides were surprisingly similar - the mastermind behind the scenes was a big shot in the city of Bianjing, the prefect of Kaifeng and Prince of Jin, Zhao Guangyi, who was able to cover the sky with one hand.

This conclusion shocked the Wude Division and the commander of the Imperial Guards. After receiving the evidence and the transcript, they all felt that this was a hot potato.

After Wang Jie'en received the testimony, he was hesitant. Who was Zhao Guangyi, the Prince of Jin? He was the emperor's younger brother, and had been crowned a prince. He had been the prefect of Kaifeng for too long, nearly ten years. It can be said that in Bianjing City, his power was so intertwined that even many generals and officials were very afraid of him.

Now, only Zhao Pu stood firm in supporting the eldest prince. As a prime minister with great power, he was not afraid of the power of the King of Jin. Others were a little afraid of the King of Jin because they could not guess the emperor's mind. They did not know whether Zhao Kuangyin wanted to pass the throne to his younger brother or to his son. They did not dare to offend the powerful King of Jin rashly, for fear of retaliation at the moment, and also worried that their careers would be affected when the King of Jin ascended the throne in the future.

Since Jin Wang Zhao Guangyi was also a member of the Zhao royal family, the civil and military officials felt that it didn't matter whether Zhao Guangyi or Zhao Dezhao inherited the throne, because they were both members of the Zhao family and the imperial power was not lost. In addition, after a hundred years of wars during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, Confucianism had declined, and benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness were abandoned by warlords and powerful people. The emperors of the Five Dynasties passed on the throne in various ways, including adopted sons and nephews, so no one felt that it was not in line with orthodoxy.

However, Wang Jie'en had already been won over by Zhao Guangyi. At this most critical moment, Wang Jie'en felt that it was necessary to send a message to Zhao Guangyi in advance so that he could be prepared. Whether to ask for forgiveness, or to destroy the evidence, or to prove his innocence and turn the tables, these were all things that the King of Jin should consider.

Although Wang Jie'en wanted to suppress the matter, he also knew that the Imperial Guards were also interrogating the emperor, and the result would probably be the same. Therefore, he planned to go to the palace to meet the emperor, but he would be more cautious and wait to see how the Imperial Guards commander would report, and then report it himself. This would be safer.

After thinking of a solution, Wang Jie'en found his confidant, took the secret letter, quickly left the palace, and went to the Prince of Jin's mansion to deliver the letter. He prayed in his heart that the Prince of Jin could handle the matter properly and not implicate himself.

In the Prince of Jin's mansion, Zhao Guangyi had just finished lunch and was about to take a short nap. However, at this moment, someone hurriedly delivered a secret letter. Zhao Guangyi frowned slightly, took the letter and quickly opened it. The content of the letter shocked him, his face turned pale in an instant, and there was a trace of panic in his eyes.

He immediately summoned counselors and confidants in the palace, including Cheng Yu, Fan Min, Zhao Rui, Shi Xizai, Dou Zhen, Song Qi, Jia Yan, Yao Shu, Liu Qi, Cheng Dexuan, Wang Yande, Zhang Xun, Yang Shouyi, Zhao Rong, Wang Xian, Chen Congxin, Wang Jisheng, Yin Xian, Zhang Xu, Pei Ji, Zhang Qixian, Wang Mian, etc. Chai Yuxi and Mi Dechao, who were in charge of intelligence organization, and military generals Zhao Yanpu, Li Qi, Zhang Yugui, Yuan Da, and Li Chonggui. Family generals and warriors such as Fu Sirang, Wang Hanzhong, Wang Neng, Zhang Ning, Gao Qiong, Wang Rong, Ge Ba, Geng Quanbin, Yang Qiong, and Wang Gao were also summoned.

In a large secret room, these people gathered together, about seventy or eighty in number, with solemn expressions.

Zhao Guangyi stood in front of everyone, his voice revealing a hint of seriousness: "Everyone, this is a serious matter. Now the Imperial Guards and the Military Virtue Department have obtained the assassin's testimony, insisting that it was I who sent someone to assassinate the eldest prince Zhao Dezhao. What do you think of this matter?"

Everyone was silent for a moment and looked at each other. Cheng Yu was the first to bow and said, "Your Highness, Prince Jin, is this something you did?" There was a hint of caution in his voice as he asked carefully.

Zhao Guangyi shook his head slightly, his voice revealing a hint of firmness: "It was not done by me." He stared at everyone, his eyes revealing a bright and upright look.

Cheng Yu nodded slightly, his voice revealing a hint of analysis: "That is, someone framed and deliberately provoked the conflict between the King of Jin and the eldest prince, causing disputes in the royal family. If we report the truth to His Majesty and let the Wude Division and the three divisions hold a joint trial and re-investigate, perhaps the King of Jin can be cleared of all charges." He swept his eyes over the crowd, his eyes revealing a calmness. Shi Xizai frowned slightly, and said worriedly: "That being said, this matter may be a trap set by someone. If it is a trap, then it is very likely that the traces have been erased long ago. These men in black have given their testimony, and it is estimated that it will be difficult to save their lives in the next step. By then, there will be no evidence of guilt, and there will be no way to investigate, and the King of Jin will be in a very passive position."

Jia Yan then interjected, "Because we are not sure at this moment who did it. Maybe it was done by the Wu or Liao Kingdom, or maybe it was someone from within the Song Dynasty who wanted to harm the King of Jin!" There was a hint of doubt in his voice and a hint of vigilance in his eyes.

"Mr. Jia, do you think someone set up this trap on purpose, just to kill someone with a borrowed knife, anger the emperor, and do harm to Prince Jin?" Zhao Rong was slightly surprised and looked a little confused.

Jia Yan nodded and said in a firm voice: "Yes, it is not clear whether this is a self-torture trick or not, but all kinds of possibilities are possible. It is difficult to judge whether they really want to kill the eldest prince, or they want to kill the eldest prince on purpose, or it is a self-torture trick, or a rift trick!" He swept his eyes over everyone, with a serious look in his eyes.

After listening to the analysis of several people, everyone felt a little irritated and felt that things might get out of control. "Yes, this is very risky. The emperor is likely to do this!" Someone whispered, with a hint of worry in his voice.

"Could this be arranged by Zhao Pu, playing a trick of self-torture on the eldest prince?" There was a hint of doubt in the other person's voice and a hint of vigilance in his eyes.

"It could also be the work of spies from the Wu State, who devised this vicious plot to alienate the relationship between the Prince of Jin and the eldest prince and the emperor!" Someone else suggested another possibility, with a hint of uncertainty in his voice.

The counselors and generals discussed the matter and felt that all kinds of possibilities were possible.

Prince of Jin Zhao Guangyi was upset after hearing this. He frowned, and there was a hint of helplessness in his voice: "I am an upright king. At worst, I can go to the palace and report to my brother that I did not do it." He stared at everyone, seemingly expressing his position, but in fact he was still soliciting opinions.

Cheng Dexuan immediately stopped him and said, "Your Highness the Prince of Jin, at this critical juncture, the emperor's injuries have worsened and he is often in a coma. It is already a critical time. If someone attempts to assassinate the eldest prince, I'm afraid Zhao Pu and his people will definitely hold on to it and make a big fuss. Even if it was not done by Your Highness the Prince of Jin, many people will insist that it is related to His Highness. This is a good opportunity for Zhao Pu and his people to strike at the Prince of Jin's Mansion. How could they miss it?" There was a hint of seriousness in his voice and a hint of alertness in his eyes.

“Once many ministers of the court jointly write a petition demanding punishment for the culprit, then the emperor, who was originally hesitant about choosing an heir, may take the opportunity to give the crown prince position to Zhao Dezhao. Even if the emperor does not take action against Prince Jin because of their brotherhood, he will lose the overall situation and may no longer have the possibility of succeeding to the throne!” There was a hint of worry in Cheng Dexuan’s voice and a serious look in his eyes.

After hearing this, Zhao Guangyi immediately agreed with Cheng Dexuan's words. Even if it wasn't his doing, the position of the heir was already uncertain, and his brother Zhao Kuangyin must be wavering and undecided. If this happened, his brother could completely use the public opinion of Zhao Pu's faction in the court to demand accountability and suppress the King of Jin, justified.

Once he, the Prince of Jin, is stigmatized and difficult to wash off, his wings will be clipped and his power will be taken back. At that time, he will most likely be a leisurely prince and will have no chance of becoming emperor at all.

This is a critical point and should not be taken lightly!

Zhao Guangyi stared at his trusted adviser Cheng Dexuan and asked, "What should we do?"

Cheng Dexuan took a deep breath, his voice revealing a hint of determination: "We can only prepare for the worst and prepare to take action, using the false as the real and seize power in advance!"

As soon as he said this, everyone in the room showed surprised expressions.