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Chapter 125 Investigating the case? I think we don't need to investigate! Let's just quell

Chapter 126 Investigating the case? I think we don't need to investigate! Let's just quell the rebellion!

In Jiangnan Prefecture, at Zhuyue Residence.

Zhuyue Residence is a quiet and elegant place, where the Jiangnan Prefecture received imperial envoys and stayed.

The room was brightly lit and filled with a table of food and drinks.

Unfortunately, there were few guests inside, and there was no sign of drinking and merrymaking at the table.

The group remained seated cautiously, glancing around occasionally, their eyes fixed on Chen Yu's retreating figure.

The candlelight flickered inside the room, and the hearts of these people were like that flickering candlelight, as if they might be extinguished at any moment.

Chen Yu never expected that upon arriving in Jiangnan Prefecture, these aristocratic officials would dare to ignore him so blatantly.

His original intention was merely to host a banquet for aristocratic officials in order to intimidate them and force them to hand over the embezzled tax revenue.

Emperor Xuanwu valued silver as much as his life. As long as they handed over the silver so he could fulfill his duty, Chen Yu naturally didn't want to kill too many people.

He walked to the window and gazed intently at the dark night outside.

"These people are just shameless! They take advantage of kindness but don't appreciate it!"

Chen Yu turned around, looked at the scattered guests, and smiled, "Gentlemen, am I right?"

Seeing Chen Yu's sinister and terrifying expression, they could only nod repeatedly, replying, "Yes, yes! Lord Chen is right!"

The banquet ended, leaving only Chen Yu sitting inside.

There are many powerful families in Jiangnan Prefecture with intricate relationships. Although the Embroidered Uniform Guard has helped him obtain information, Chen Yu even knows who is behind it all.

However, what's needed to investigate a case is evidence. If there's no solid evidence, it's not easy to deal with powerful families.

It was very late at night, and the candles in the room had long since burned out, leaving the room completely dark.

Just then, he heard shouts outside: "Fire! Fire!"

Chen Yu rushed outside and saw that the southeast corner was on fire, which was where his bedroom was located.

His expression suddenly changed, and he roared, "These people have some nerve! They actually dared to kill the imperial envoy!"

He was no ordinary imperial envoy; Chen Yu was from the Directorate of Ceremonial, one of the emperor's closest eunuchs.

I never imagined that Jiangnan Prefecture had become so depraved.

Just as Chen Yu was still raging, a white light flashed in the distance.

They were two assassins dressed in black. If it weren't for the firelight reflecting the cold glint of their blades onto his face...

Chen Yu had not yet discovered the two of them.

The sudden attack left the unsuspecting Chen Yu seriously injured.

Fortunately, the accompanying Imperial Guards reacted at this moment and rushed to provide support.

However, these two were highly skilled in martial arts, and more than ten Imperial Guards were no match for them.

Moreover, new assassins soon joined the ranks. Although the Imperial Guards had a considerable number of men, they were ultimately no match for these assassins. The next morning, the sun rose.

The once tranquil and elegant Bamboo Moon Residence has been reduced to ruins, with wisps of white smoke rising from it from time to time.

Chen Yu, oblivious to his fate, had almost all of his accompanying Imperial Guards killed.

Not far away, a middle-aged man in an official robe looked at the Bamboo Moon Residence in front of him.

This man was none other than Zeng Yue, the newly appointed prefect of Jiangnan.

At that moment, an official hurried up behind him and said, "Sir, five bodies are missing."

Zeng Yue frowned and said in a deep voice, "Five bodies are missing. Has Chen Yu's body been found?"

"They've all been burned to a crisp and are unrecognizable, but I heard that Chen Yuding was seriously injured last night."

Zeng Yue roared, "These assassins are incredibly audacious! They dared to attempt to assassinate an imperial envoy! Issue my order: close the city gates and conduct a city-wide search!"

"Yes, sir!"

When news of what happened in Jiangnan Prefecture reached Bianjing, Emperor Xuanwu was furious and smashed his alchemy furnace.

"This is outrageous! These people are utterly depraved and devoid of any conscience!"

Wang Xi was also deeply saddened, for the one who died was his beloved son, Yu.

He thought to himself, "These aristocratic families no longer care about the Emperor or the Great Zhou Dynasty."

The imperial envoy was assassinated shortly after arriving in Jiangnan Prefecture.

The behavior of these powerful families is far too lawless.

"Your Majesty, please calm down. It's not worth getting sick from angering these treacherous officials."

Emperor Xuanwu, his eyes bloodshot, glared angrily at the south.

"You're right, these people are traitors and rebels. In my opinion, there's no need to investigate this case anymore; we should just quell the rebellion."

"Wang Xi!"

"Yes, sir!"

"When a military officer of the third rank or above is summoned, Zeng Shihong will also have six ministers from various ministries come to the palace to meet the emperor."

Emperor Xuanwu spoke almost word by word, clenching his teeth to suppress his anger.

Soon all the high-ranking officials arrived at Xiyuan, and the officials from the six ministries and Zeng Shihong all had solemn expressions.

They had already received word of what had happened, and they had guesses why Emperor Xuanwu wanted to see them.

Shen Moxuan looked relaxed and at ease, and his spirits had improved considerably, although his face still had a sickly pallor.

Yet no one dared to underestimate him; even a severely wounded tiger still possessed the strength to roar through the mountains.

For military officers, war is naturally a good thing, and among them, the most relaxed are the generals.

When the civil and military officials entered the main hall, they saw Emperor Xuanwu sitting alone on a futon, meditating with his eyes closed.

Wang Xi whispered in his ear that all the officials had arrived before he opened his eyes.

Zeng Shihong's heart jumped when he saw the scene before him.

Emperor Xuanwu usually met with his ministers behind a curtain, but this time he actually lifted the curtain.

He cursed inwardly, "These little bastards, they're always causing me trouble!"

As expected, Emperor Xuanwu immediately brought up the case of the murder of the imperial envoy from Jiangnan Prefecture.

Wang Xi passed this memorial from the Embroidered Uniform Guard to the officials for a look.

Everyone who read it turned pale. To kill an imperial envoy, and in Jiangnan Prefecture no less!

One was killed last year, and not long after the start of this year, another imperial envoy was killed.

He came from the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs; isn't this a blatant slap in the face to the Emperor?

Neither the civil officials of the Six Ministries nor Zeng Shihong spoke, but the military officer on the side couldn't help but speak up.

"The prefecture of Jiangnan is so audacious; I think they intend to rebel! Your Majesty only needs to give me ten thousand soldiers, and I will surely wipe out Jiangnan Prefecture."

Upon hearing this, the civil officials of the Qingliu faction immediately retorted: "Using the army is too wasteful of resources and manpower, and it is easy to disturb the people. Our Great Zhou's treasury is empty and cannot withstand such a fuss."

"His Majesty's dignity must be upheld. If they are not severely punished and their arrogance is encouraged, it will not be long before they raise the flag of rebellion."

"How dare you!"

'

The military officers wanted to fight, but the civil officials did not.

Firstly, it was indeed expensive, and secondly, many of the officials in the court were scions of prominent families in Jiangnan.

When the army sets out, these people will be the first to be affected.

Emperor Xuanwu watched them argue with a cold expression.

Zeng Shihong stood silently to the side, while Shen Moxuan adopted an attitude of indifference, as if it were none of his business.

The civil and military officials argued for a long time, but neither could convince the other.

After observing for a long time, Emperor Xuanwu finally spoke, "Minister Zeng, you have also been observing and listening for a long time. Do you have any good suggestions?"

Zeng Shihong immediately stepped forward and knelt down, saying, "I believe that we should send another imperial envoy to request the royal command and grant him the power to execute first and report later. We must thoroughly investigate the matter in Jiangnan Prefecture, kill those who should be killed, arrest those who should be arrested, and show no leniency."

Emperor Xuanwu was not satisfied with this answer. He wanted to use Zeng Shihong to silence the Qingliu faction.