Thief Emperor

Chapter 1046 Major Case
Outside the Taiji Hall, His Highness the Crown Prince knelt outside the hall, remaining kneeling for a long time.

Behind him, the third prince, Li Cang, and many other princes who were not yet adults knelt on the ground, wanting to go in and visit their father.

Princess Li Shu of Lujiang, along with her sisters, also wanted to enter the Taiji Hall to see if their father was alright. In the end, only Princess Li Shu of Lujiang, along with her second, third, and fourth sisters, successfully entered the Taiji Hall.

Inside the Taiji Hall, Emperor Li was speaking with the Empress.

At this moment, the Empress had just returned from outside the palace. She was sitting next to Emperor Li, her brows furrowed: "At Jing'an Gate, so many people advised you not to go to crowded places, but you just wouldn't listen."

"If only, if only..."

Empress Xue was also filled with lingering fear: "If something really happened, the court might not collapse, but our Li family's sky would truly fall."

His Majesty the Emperor had already washed off the bloodstains and changed into new clothes. Hearing this, he looked at Empress Xue and said calmly, "How can we know what the situation is like in Luoyang if we don't go and see for ourselves?"

"Now the lady has seen it."

His Majesty the Emperor smiled, his eyes narrowed: "There are many people who want me dead at all times. They will not let go of any opportunity they can get."

"Just right."

Emperor Li said with a smile, "I've also disliked some of them for a long time. I'll take this opportunity to have a good talk with them."

At this moment, the eldest princess had already entered the Taiji Palace's sleeping quarters with her three younger sisters. The four daughters ran up and surrounded the emperor. Li Shu tugged at the emperor's sleeve and looked at her father.

"Father."

The emperor looked at her and said with a smile, "It's so late, why have you come to my place?"

The other three princesses also gathered around, addressing her in the same way as the eldest princess.

The fourth princess, Cai Mei, was born to Empress Xue, the emperor's legitimate daughter, while the third princess was born to Consort Liu.

The second princess's mother was Lady Lu, who came from the Lu family of Fanyang and was now one of the nine concubines in the imperial harem.

For many years, she and Li Yun have only had this one daughter, and she has not yet been granted the title of one of the Four Consorts. Among the Nine Consorts, her status is still below that of Consort Qin and Consort Lu.

It wasn't that Li Yun deliberately neglected her; the two had shared a bed quite a few times over the past ten years. Perhaps the birth of the second princess had damaged her health, and after that, Madam Lu was unable to conceive again.

Therefore, the Lu family of Fanyang had only a mediocre status in the new dynasty, since they did not have any princes or grandsons, so they had no standing among the imperial relatives.

Looking at his four daughters gathered around him, the Emperor smiled and said, "It's already late, there's no need to stay here. Your father has nothing to do, you can all go back and rest."

"Shu'er".

His Majesty the Emperor called out, and Princess Lujiang immediately responded, "Your daughter is here."

"Go out and tell your brothers to disperse."

His Majesty the Emperor said calmly, "I am perfectly fine. There is no need for me to kneel at the door; it is bad luck."

Princess Lujiang responded and was about to leave when she suddenly turned back and grabbed the Fourth Princess, saying with a smile, "Caimei, you come with your sister."

Even though she had her father's orders, she was still somewhat afraid of her elder brother, the Crown Prince. It was much easier to talk to him when she took his younger sister out with her.

Upon seeing this, Emperor Li chuckled.

Empress Xue looked at Li Yun and sighed, "The children have all come; it's a token of their goodwill. Let them come in and have a look."

"It wasn't a big deal to begin with, there was no need to make such a fuss."

Empress Xue glanced at her two daughters who were still inside the palace.

"Then why are you showing favoritism by letting your daughters in?"

"Because this matter has absolutely nothing to do with them."

Emperor Li said with a smile, "Their visits are more sincere."

Empress Xue frowned deeply: "Could it be related to the children outside?"

"It probably doesn't matter."

Emperor Li remained calm: "But it's possible that they'll be implicated, which is why they rushed here. This matter could be big or small."

At this point, Li Yun hesitated for a moment, then looked at his third daughter: "Afu, go and call your brother, the Crown Prince, in. Run quickly and call your eldest sister."

The third princess nodded quickly and ran out.

At this moment, Princess Lujiang was leading the Fourth Princess out when Little Afu ran over and grabbed Princess Lujiang, saying, "Sister, Father has changed his mind."

After exchanging a few words, the two sisters left the Taiji Hall together. Princess Lujiang, along with her sisters, walked up to the Crown Prince and bowed to him. The fourth princess tugged at the Crown Prince's sleeve and whispered, "Brother Crown Prince, Father wants you to come in and talk."

The crown prince wiped the sweat from his forehead, nodded slightly to his three younger sisters, and carefully entered the bedchamber.

After His Highness the Crown Prince left, Princess Lujiang was the most senior person present. She immediately relaxed and waved her hand, saying, "Everyone, disperse, disperse."

Upon hearing their eldest sister's words, all the princes and princesses got up and dispersed under the guidance of the palace servants.

Upon learning that her father was unharmed, Princess Lujiang was in high spirits. She pulled her two younger sisters and said with a smile, "Sister recently acquired some beautiful fireworks. They're new from the workshop and even more beautiful than the ones we set off today."

"Come to my place tomorrow night, and I'll show it to you."

In Li Yun's harem, Empress Xue had a very good relationship with the princes and princesses born to the two imperial concubines; the three were like sisters. The two younger sisters cheered with joy.

Meanwhile, the Crown Prince cautiously entered the imperial bedchamber, knelt before his parents to pay his respects, and upon learning that the Emperor was safe and sound, the Crown Prince collapsed to the ground and burst into tears.

"Father, tonight, I was almost scared to death."

His Highness the Crown Prince was in tears, but it did not seem like he was faking it.

He was genuinely a little scared.

The Crown Prince is only twenty years old this year. If his father were to die overnight, would he be able to support his family and uphold the court?

It's hard to say.

If our uncles and brothers could help, that would be fine, but Prince Jin is currently not in Luoyang, and Prince Chu is only in charge of the imperial clan's residence, not his brothers…

The younger brothers are still too young.

His Majesty the Emperor looked at his son, whose face was streaked with tears, and shook his head: "Why are you crying?"

"Be strong."

The emperor rose, helped the crown prince to his feet, patted him on the shoulder, and said once again, "Be strong."

“Your father has faced life and death countless times since the uprising began.”

"Since we are in this position, we cannot be afraid."

The emperor patted his son on the shoulder and said quietly, "Whether it's you or me, we must both be strong."

At this point, His Majesty the Emperor looked out of the hall and said calmly, "In this world, no matter what happens, no matter what difficulties come our way, as long as you and I, father and son, are not afraid."

"They are the ones we're afraid of."

At this point, Emperor Li smiled and said, "The court will definitely investigate this matter. Go to the Secretariat tomorrow and investigate with them. Consider it as doing supervision on behalf of your father."

"Let's see what you can find out."

The crown prince wiped away his tears and bowed deeply to His Majesty the Emperor: "Your son understands."

He clenched his fists, his anger blazing, and gritted his teeth.

"No matter who they are, if they try to harm Father, I will take their entire family's lives!"

…………

The next day was October 30th, the day of the grand assembly.

His Highness the Crown Prince and the civil and military officials waited for a long time at the Taiji Palace, but His Majesty the Emperor did not arrive. After waiting for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the eunuch Gu Changcai carefully entered the Taiji Palace and came to His Highness the Crown Prince. He bowed deeply and said, "Your Highness, His Majesty is unwell and court is suspended today."

Upon hearing this, His Highness the Crown Prince was taken aback at first, then nodded to Gu Chang: "Understood."

Gu Chang bowed deeply, showing utmost respect to His Highness the Crown Prince.

His Highness the Crown Prince glanced at Prime Minister Du and said quietly, "Prime Minister Du, court is suspended today."

Du Xiangong bowed to the Crown Prince and replied, "Yes." Then he turned to the officials, spoke a few words loudly, and dismissed them.

After leaving Taiji Palace, these officials began to discuss the matter extensively.

It's easy to imagine that rumors will soon be spreading throughout Luoyang.

His Highness the Crown Prince, along with Prime Minister Du and others, arrived at the Secretariat. The Crown Prince sat in the main seat, looking at the prime ministers who were taking their seats in turn. His expression was serious, and he said in a deep voice, "Gentlemen, this matter must be thoroughly investigated and dealt with."

Prime Minister Du nodded first, then said, "Your Highness, the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Prefectural Government of Jingzhao—all the government offices that the court can mobilize have done their utmost in the investigation."

He rubbed his temples and sighed, "But, but two of the three assassins from last night are too badly injured and have already died."

His Highness the Crown Prince narrowed his eyes and slowly said, "They got off too easily."

He looked at Du Qian and asked, "What about the last one?"

"Jiu Si has been taken away."

Du Qian answered silently.

The Nine Offices were not government offices under the jurisdiction of the imperial court; they were directly under the emperor and existed independently outside the court.

His Highness the Crown Prince stood up abruptly and said, "I'm going to the Nine Departments."

He walked to the door, then stopped, turned back to look at the ministers, and said in a deep voice, "My father was benevolent, therefore this dynasty has spared them from being implicated."

"But plotting treason is not included in this category!"

He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth.

"This time, we'll find every single one, follow the clues, and show no mercy!"

(End of this chapter)