The revitalization of the Tang Dynasty began with the Ganlu Incident.

See Zheng's commentary?

Upon hearing Liu Hongyi's suggestion, Li Ang glanced at him sideways, but quickly returned his gaze to the letter in front of him.

"Seal these letters one by one," Li Ang said with a cold laugh.

"I don't want to see such a two-faced scoundrel."

Li Ang raised his head and looked at Liu Hongyi, who was bowing his head and hanging his hands, seemingly respectful. His tone was indifferent.

"It's your job to examine Zheng's commentary."

"Now that the man has been arrested, tomorrow I will issue an edict to the Council of State Affairs, formally stripping Zheng Zhu of his post as military governor of Fengxiang on the grounds that he led troops back to the capital without authorization."

"As for any other crimes discovered during the subsequent retrial, those crimes will be discussed separately."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Hongyi paused for a moment, a rare occurrence, and looked somewhat surprised.

After a moment, he asked hesitantly.

"What everyone means is..."

Li Ang looked at him and said, "Of course, we should conduct the trial as it should be conducted."

A surge of emotion welled up in Liu Hongyi's heart, but he quickly calmed down, bowed his head, and said, "This old servant understands, but..."

His gaze shifted to the letters on the imperial desk, and he hesitated, saying, "Your Excellency, since Zheng Zhu dared to bring out these letters, there must be many more that he hasn't brought out yet. This old servant is worried that if he really has something hidden, it might cause trouble."

"That's your problem." Li Ang leaned back, his tone calm and collected. "If I entrust the man to you and you can't even get the information you need to know, then you, as the Shence Lieutenant, are utterly useless."

"Only when you've thoroughly investigated the people who need to be investigated and obtained the things that are due can you say you've done your job well, understand?"

Although the words were not spoken loudly, they sounded like a great bell to Liu Hongyi, making him unconsciously feel a genuine sense of awe towards the emperor before him.

For some reason, he always felt that after the Qiu Shiliang incident, this great man seemed to have become more decisive and resolute than before.

Liu Hongyi bowed his head again and respectfully responded. Just as he was about to leave, Li Ang suddenly called him back.

"etc……"

"This old servant is here."

Liu Hongyi stood there, but some doubts lingered in his mind.

Seeing this, Li Ang thought for a moment and then said to him, "When Chen Yixing left just now, I instructed him to summon Li Deyu back to the capital."

"You and Xue Jiling have already succeeded as lieutenants, and the Privy Council cannot remain vacant for long. I have promoted Yang Qinyi to Privy Councilor. After he takes office, the position of Xuanhui Commissioner will be vacant, and there is also a vacancy in the Privy Council. There are two important ministers in the inner court, and I do not have anyone in mind for the time being."

"After you return, tell Xue Jiling that you two should each select two eunuchs to send to me."

"Go..."

This time, before Liu Hongyi could react, Li Ang ordered him to leave.

As Liu Hongyi walked out of the Zichen Palace and returned to the Inner Palace, he was still pondering the emperor's last words.

After a long while, he finally managed to sort out some clues, and then he reached out and called in the waiter outside, giving him instructions.

"Go and invite Lieutenant Xue here. I have important matters to discuss with him."

Xue Jiling arrived quickly, but his expression upon entering was inexplicably rather unpleasant.

Of course, it was only for a moment before Xue Jiling put on a smiling face and said.

"Lieutenant Liu, you've worked hard. Did you find anything on this trip?"

Liu Hongyi stood up to return the greeting and said, "I have made some progress, but Zheng Zhu is a cunning and shrewd man who is not easy to deal with. I'm afraid it will take some more time."

As he spoke, he briefly recounted what he had learned from Zheng Zhu, but he did not produce the letters.

Upon hearing this, Xue Jiling's expression darkened, and he coldly snorted, "Even at this point, Zheng Zhu is still so stubborn. He really doesn't understand the gravity of the situation. Lieutenant Liu, now that we've made our move, everything must be done quickly. You..."

Before he could finish speaking, Liu Hongyi raised his hand and said, "Lieutenant Xue, don't worry. Now that he's in the inner prison, I have a way to make him talk. In less than half a month, I'll have stripped him of everything he has."

This air of confidence surprised Xue Jiling: "Lieutenant Liu, are you really that sure? Do you mean you're planning to use torture?"

Zheng Zhu was, after all, a favorite minister of the emperor, and also held the important position of military governor.

It should be noted that even in the case of Song Shenxi back then, when he was interrogated in the inner prison, Wang Shoucheng only dared to use torture on some low-ranking officials, and did not dare to do anything to Song Shenxi himself.

Now, Liu Hongyi says he can get the evidence within half a month, clearly not intending to drag things out with Zheng Zhu.

As expected, the next moment, Liu Hongyi raised an eyebrow and replied, "His Majesty has already granted permission. In two days, he will issue an edict to the Secretariat and the Chancellery to dismiss Zheng Zhu from his post. At that time, he will be just an ordinary official with a guilty conscience. In the inner prison, there will naturally be plenty of ways to make him taste the bitterness of life."

Xue Jiling was somewhat surprised.

In his memory, although the emperor had ambitions, his style of doing things was still conservative.

The phrase "more planning than decisive action" perfectly describes the situation.

Now, Zheng Zhu has produced evidence of his conspiracy with Li Xun, hoping only to protect himself.

Under such circumstances, given the emperor's past temperament, there is a high probability that he would compromise.

Unexpectedly, the emperor was so decisive this time, which was something he had not anticipated.

Liu Hongyi, sitting opposite him, seemed to have seen through his thoughts and shook his head, saying, "Zheng Zhu is a smart man, but his mistake is that he's too smart. Do you know what His Majesty said when I presented this evidence to everyone?"

"What did you say?" Xue Jiling leaned down, a hint of concern flashing in his eyes.

Liu Hongyi said, "His Majesty was furious at the time, saying that this person was trying to use this to coerce me and was a wicked villain. After that, His Majesty ordered me to use any means necessary to get him to talk."

He spoke calmly, but Xue Jiling's expression clearly showed a change.

The two sat facing each other, and for some reason, they both fell silent.

A moment later, Xue Jiling was the first to force a dry laugh and say.

"This is a good thing. Now that His Majesty has made this decision, it will be much easier for you and me to carry out our work."

Liu Hongyi nodded.

Compared to Xue Jiling, his reaction was more subdued, and he continued.

"That's natural. However, since Zheng Zhu has been stripped of his official position, his imprisonment can no longer be kept secret. As a result, Lieutenant Xue, you'd better think about how to deal with it."

For some reason, Xue Jiling always felt that there was a hint of probing in the tone of these words.

However, since he and Liu Hongyi weren't particularly close to begin with, he didn't mind and said directly.

"Don't worry about that. I've already made arrangements. Zheng Zhu's reputation in the court is already bad. Once the news of his imprisonment spreads, there will be censors in the court who will take advantage of his misfortune."

"As for Li Xun, he has ruthlessly eliminated dissidents over the years and made many enemies in the court. With a little guidance, people will naturally follow suit and submit memorials to impeach him."

"At that time, as long as Lieutenant Liu acts quickly enough and gets Zheng Zhu's confession first, Li Xun can be put to death."

These words were spoken with such confidence that a knowing glint flashed in Liu Hongyi's eyes.

"It seems that when it comes to relationships with court officials, I am still not as good as Lieutenant Xue."

His tone was somewhat strange, which made Xue Jiling feel uncomfortable.

However, now is not the time to think about that. He nodded and quickly continued.

"The most difficult part of this matter is with His Majesty. Although His Majesty has already approved the imprisonment of Zheng Zhu, Li Xun is different from Zheng Zhu. If Li Xun were to meet His Majesty and give his explanation, His Majesty would inevitably waver."

"Therefore, we need to think of a way to prevent Li Xun from seeing the Emperor for the time being..."