Doctor Amnesiac, but not completely amnesiac

The two of them sat down in the lobby, and before the tea was served, Yu Cheng started his questioning.

"Master Qiao, I heard from the palace earlier that you were the one who conveyed the emperor's order to Zhu Ronghui, the Junior Minister of the Honglu Temple, to take office."

"Indeed, I read the imperial edict and personally handed it to Shaoqing Zhurong."

"After conveying the message, Shao Qing Zhu Rong never met anyone else. After packing up, he took his family to Victoria the next day?"

"I don't know whether he has met other people or not, but when Shaoqing Zhurong left, I did go to see him off. After all, we worked together."

Qiao Yelan sighed.

"I didn't expect that this farewell would be a farewell forever."

Yu Cheng didn't have time to watch Qiao Yelan feeling sad, he was here to investigate the case.

"Master Qiao, I can tell you now. Ever since I came that day, an official from the Dali Temple has been keeping an eye on you. That's why he also reported what happened when you went to deliver the imperial edict that day. The person who pushed your wheelchair was not a eunuch from the palace, but a foreigner."

"You are talking about - before being promoted to the position of Shaofujian, Qiao was just the general manager of a business. In addition, I have always been weak and sickly, so I kept some guards around me. But after I entered the Shaofu, it was Shaoqing Zhurong who guarded me. These guards have been placed in the royal villa where I live when I come to the capital."

Qiao Yelan narrowed his eyes and nodded to acknowledge it.

"It's nothing, right? I know the rules. These guards have only lived in the Royal Courtyard from the beginning to the end. It's very easy for you to track their whereabouts."

"I didn't say there was anything wrong with the guards at the Royal Courtyard. I was just curious. Lord Qiao only has these guards. Doesn't he have any others?"

Yu Cheng stared at Qiao Yelan, not missing any changes or details on the other's face.

"The Dali Temple has also investigated the Babel Tower business. Its main business is not in Da Yan. The business has a branch in Longmen, and it has only done some business in Da Yan. Therefore, your real strength is outside Da Yan."

"Yes, Babel Tower's headquarters is indeed in Casimir, and its commercial activities in Da Yan are mainly in the Longmen area - but so what?"

The gentleness and humility on Qiao Yelan's face had disappeared, replaced by a cold and businesslike look.

"It's nothing, but Lord Qiao just met with Lord Zhurong, and in the blink of an eye, Lord Zhurong's family was murdered by thieves outside Dayan. I know Zhurong Hui's strength, and other people in Zhurong's family are not without experts. If you want to kill them, you must have a powerful armed force."

"I have also seen the guards you left at the Royal Courtyard. They are all good fighters and are extremely good at fighting in a team. Since you said that you have more than just these people, and Babel Tower's main business is also outside of Da Yan, it is inevitable that people will think too much."

Yu Cheng continued to press forward, but Qiao Yelan no longer showed any emotion.

"So what - Yu Shaoqing, you are free to suspect, but if you want to arrest someone for interrogation, you must first produce evidence. Don't forget that in terms of rank, you are one rank lower than me. If you want to interrogate, let your Dali Temple officials do it yourself!"

The situation was frozen by Qiao Yelan's words, but Yu Cheng felt that he should have grasped something - the other party's reaction was too different from the last time.

So something must have changed.

"Yes, evidence is indeed needed. My subordinates are looking for evidence. During this period, the Dali Temple has been keeping a closer eye on the money houses in order to investigate the murders of Shopkeeper Wang and Minister Wang. What's interesting is that we found out that the night before Junior Lord Zhu Rong left Beijing, that is, after you delivered the imperial edict, Junior Lord Zhu Rong went straight to the money house to withdraw two sums of money."

There was still no change in expression on Qiao Yelan's face.

"In addition to the official banks, there are also many private banks in Da Yan. These banks are not as confident as the official ones, so all the banknotes issued have special stamps. When a customer deposits money in them, the banknotes they receive will have a stamp that belongs to this customer. First, it is to verify the identity, and second, it is to prevent over-withdrawal of money."

"That night, Shaoqing Zhurong not only went to the official bank and took away all the savings of the Zhurong family, but he also went to a private bank and took out a large sum of money of unknown origin - the amount of this money far exceeded the salary he could get as a commander in front of the palace."

Yu Cheng continued to increase the pressure, but still did not notice Qiao Yelan's reaction.

"Then you should investigate whether Zhu Rong Hui has engaged in corruption or other power-for-money transactions, instead of coming to me. After all, Commander Zhu Rong and I have only worked together for a short time."

"We are investigating, but the simpler way is, of course, to check the stamp on the banknote to see who gave him the money."

"Good idea, simple and direct."

Qiao Yelan nodded and approved.

"Then I wonder if Yu Shaoqing has found out?"

"There should be news soon."

"Then why not drink some tea first? This is the Bamboo Leaf Green Tea bestowed by His Majesty, a precious tribute from Shang Shu."

Qiao Yelan leisurely picked up the teacup.

Yu Cheng felt a sinking feeling in his heart.

In fact, he should not have been so radical in defrauding Qiao Yelan - because there was no evidence to link the Zhu Ronghui family massacre case with the previous two family massacre cases, and even the Wang Manager family massacre case and the Wang Shilang family massacre case were not strongly connected at present.

However, Qiao Yelan appeared in two cases successively, and before the two families were wiped out, the last person who came to their homes to listen to them was also Qiao Yelan.

Just a coincidence?

Yu Cheng doesn't believe in coincidences, or at least, there must be some connection between them.

So he came here with the look of coming to accuse Qiao Yelan, and was aggressive in his words, just to see if Qiao Yelan would reveal any flaws under the pressure.

After all, the other party is just a young man in his twenties, and he was promoted directly from a commoner to a third-rank official. His cunning and cultivation are far from enough.

But Qiao Yelan was very thorough - either this matter really had nothing to do with him, or Qiao Yelan was not worried at all that he would be able to find evidence.

It seems that the money Zhu Ronghui raised has nothing to do with Qiao Yelan...

While he was thinking, an official from the Dali Temple hurried in and whispered something in Yu Cheng's ear.

"What did you say?"

Yu Shaoqing almost blurted out this question.

It wasn't that the other party was slurring his words, nor was it that he was distracted - it was the shock that this sentence brought to him that made him ask this question involuntarily.

The officer repeated his words, without any deviation from the previous ones.

[The stamp on the silver note Zhu Ronghui used to withdraw money represented the Wangji business name.]

The Wangji business was wiped out ten days ago.

"It seems that the results of your investigation have come out. Have you obtained some key evidence? Are you planning to leave?"

Qiao Yelan slowly put down the teacup, and Yu Cheng then realized that he had stood up without knowing when.

"...I'll take my leave."

After saying this, Yu Cheng hurriedly left the Shaofu with the officials.

Qiao Yelan watched Yu Cheng leave and listened to the sound of the front door opening and closing.

"Now, the fire is enough - the frog in the warm water should also feel that something is wrong."

The man smiled.

"Let's go, Eunuch Wang, we should go to the palace and meet His Majesty."

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"The Dali Temple has been caught. They have found evidence that can link these three murders together. Next, the officials of the Ministry of Revenue will have to face real pressure."

"Just relying on the money Zhu Ronghui raised?"

"Yes, it depends on that money."

Qiao Yelan held the hot water bottle and analyzed the case word by word and frame by frame for the emperor.

"In the case of murdering a family, the first two possibilities to consider are revenge and silencing. Whether it is Shopkeeper Wang or Minister Wang, the bad debts they have on their hands cannot withstand investigation. In addition, the murderer did not intend to torture the victim, so the Dali Temple must be inclined to consider silencing the victim."

"That's why they kept investigating the banks and the flow of money. At this time, the last sum of money Zhu Ronghui asked for before his death was actually paid in the form of a banknote from Wangji Commercial Bank. With such a big suspicion, it's impossible for the Dali Temple not to investigate further."

The emperor also reacted according to Qiao Yelan's words.

"So they would think that this banknote was given to Zhu Ronghui by Shopkeeper Wang before his family was exterminated. This means that at least Zhu Ronghui was also involved in the secret business between Shopkeeper Wang and Minister Wang."

"Your Majesty has a keen eye. The Dali Temple has already found evidence of Wangji Trading Company's smuggling. Smuggling means that many people will be involved in providing cover. Therefore, Wangji Trading Company will definitely give these people a share of the money. So at this time, when Zhu Ronghui was about to leave Dayan, he took away such a large amount of cash. It seems that he is guilty and wants to take his money and run away."

Qiao Yelan complimented.

"I see. No wonder you only killed people and didn't allow fire when you exterminated the first two families. But this time you burned the bodies of Zhu Rong's family beyond recognition and deliberately reduced the number of bodies."

The emperor now knew what Qiao Yelan was going to do - he wanted the Dali Temple to think that Zhu Ronghui was worried that he would be the next one after discovering that Minister Wang and Shopkeeper Wang had both been killed, so he wanted to escape and leave Dayan.

"That's why I requested that Your Majesty not publicly announce the appointment in the court, but let me deliver the imperial edict. It looks like Zhu Ronghui privately asked Your Majesty for permission in order to achieve his goal, so that he could take the opportunity to escape."

"Good means."

The emperor praised it.

Qiao Yelan did not use any lies, but used solid evidence to lead the Dali Temple down a completely deviant path.

In the eyes of the Dali Temple, the nature of these three cases has completely changed - the people who organized the smuggling want to silence every unstable person who knows the truth so that no one can find out the truth.

"What are you going to do next, my dear?"

"The key to the next step is your reaction, Your Majesty. If a family of civilians dies, then Your Majesty will give an explanation to the civilians; if an official dies, then Your Majesty will give an explanation to the court - then if Your Majesty's family members are killed, then it is up to the others to give an explanation to Your Majesty."

Qiao Yelan's voice seemed to be born with the temptation of power, tempting every ambitious person to follow his words involuntarily.

"You need to be angry, furious, and furious. Only in this way can you naturally end the open forces in your hands, such as the Secret Service and the Imperial Guards."

"No matter how much the court officials pretend to obey you, they dare not go against you on this matter - because they also know that the royal family must get an explanation for this matter, and before getting an explanation, anyone who opposes it may become the one at any time."

The emperor nodded with satisfaction. After the Dali Temple was taken down, if the Yulin Guards and the Secret Service were also taken down, then he would be able to execute the final stage of Qiao Yelan's plan before Cai Yan and his gang could react.

"I will be very angry at tomorrow's court meeting - what about you, my dear?"

"I will naturally take care of the last worry for your Majesty."

The man raised his head and smiled with a determined look.

"I want to visit Master Taifu."

"Master?"

"Your Majesty, although Zhu Ronghui is dead, the mission you gave him has not yet ended. Zhu Ronghui went on a mission to investigate the matter of [Draque's orphan bloodline appeared in Longmen]. Who is involved in this matter?"

who is it?

Of course it’s his “good brother”.

"Now Zhu Ronghui is dead, but the cause of death is unknown. However, the Grand Tutor will surely be anxious for you to send another special envoy so that this 'rumor' can be confirmed - so he will definitely not mind speaking for you at this time."

"As long as the Grand Tutor speaks up, the Simatai and the Ministry of Rites will certainly follow suit. Then, in the eyes of outsiders, there is no doubt that the largest neutral force in the court has already sided with Your Majesty."

Qiao Yelan bowed respectfully.

"Plus, my plan has reached its final stage. By that time, the offensive and defensive positions between you and Prime Minister Cai will be different."

Even the emperor could not contain his joy at this vision.

"Qiao Aiqing, you are truly a great man."

"Your Majesty, I am so humbled."

Qiao Yelan is as humble as ever.

With the emperor's spies following you, wouldn't it be inconvenient to go to the Si Sui Tai to discuss things with others?

Then just go there openly in front of the emperor.

Chapter 88: The first day without barbecued pork, so cool

"Thank you, father-in-law."

"Mr. Qiao, you are too polite."

Wang Zhi bowed respectfully to Qiao Yelan and the tutor, then left on his own accord.

"I think I've seen this person before."

"There are only a few eunuchs of the fourth rank in the palace. The Grand Tutor must know them."

The old man was silent for a while and didn't respond.

Qiao Yelan had only been in the capital for half a month, and the palace had already sent a fourth-rank eunuch, arguably the emperor's most trusted person, to push Qiao Yelan's wheelchair. Even though he had come to see the person the emperor was always wary of, the eunuch did not even ask for surveillance and simply left.

This guy...his methods and abilities are still as jaw-dropping as ever.

"Sure enough, you were the one who did all these three murders."

"【As expected】——Are you so sure?"

"People started dying after you arrived in the capital, and—if it was you, wouldn't it be normal to kill the whole family?"

The Master snorted coldly.

"I only kill those who deserve death."

Qiao Yelan picked up the teacup and took a sip.

"——Zhu Ronghui is not dead?"

"No wonder you were able to suppress the Second Phase forty years ago. There aren't many people in this world who can keep up with my thinking."