After Emperor Liang was assassinated, he had been hiding in Zhiluo Palace of Concubine Jing to recuperate. Not to mention that the courtiers could not see him, not even the queen and the prince could see anyone.
Now except Concubine Jing, Prince Jing and Gao Zhan, almost no one can see Emperor Liang.
Emperor Liang kept Prince Jing in the palace to protect him, which led many courtiers to speculate that the royal family of Prince Jing was in good health.
At this time, the capital had long been under martial law, and Meng Zhi sent imperial troops to block the palace gates and strictly investigate the assassins for rebelling against the party.
In order to avoid suspicion, King Yu stayed in the palace and cooperated with the investigation.
Xia Jiang, the head of the Xuanjing Division, received the imperial edict from Emperor Liang and returned to Jinling with his two disciples Xia Chun and Xia Qiu overnight.
At the same time, Xia Dong, who was investigating the Qingguo public land invasion case in Jiangnan, was also transferred back to Jinling by Xia Jiang.
One division and three disciples arrived at Jinling, and were immediately summoned to the palace by Emperor Liang.
Emperor Liang asked Xia Jiang to solve the case as soon as possible and find the mastermind of the assassination.
Everyone knew that the group of assassins would not appear in Jinling out of thin air. The gunpowder in Emperor Liang's carriage was so heavy that the source could not be traced.
Xia Jiang, the leader of the Xuanjing Division, was very capable. He quickly found out the clues and reported his orders to Emperor Liang.
In Zhiluo Palace, Emperor Liang lazily leaned on Concubine Jing, enjoying her massage.
Wang Gang was sitting at the desk on one side, looking at a book casually, looking a bit like a family.
After Xia Jiang arrived at Zhiluo Palace, he bowed respectfully to Emperor Liang, Concubine Jing and Wang Gang, and then reported what he had discovered to Emperor Liang.
"Your Majesty, after investigation by the Xuanjing Division, the identities of the assassins have been basically confirmed. They are all warriors of the Qin Kingdom."
Xia Jiang glanced at Wang Gang, who had been reading.
"Ye Qin?" Emperor Liang looked at Wang Gang unconsciously when he heard this.
"Ye Qin has destroyed the country, and there are still assassins who can sneak into the capital?"
Xia Jiang replied: "Although Ye Qin was destroyed, there are still many rebellious parties who intend to restore the country. This assassination is not only against His Majesty, but also against Prince Jing."
Wang Gang slowly put down the book and said: "A centipede insect can die but not freeze. Ye Qin has been a country for more than a hundred years, and it is somewhat die-hard."
Emperor Liang said angrily: "Ye Qin is so powerful that he can actually load gunpowder into my imperial carriage."
Xia Jiang looked at Concubine Jing and Prince Jing with some hesitation.
Concubine Jing was a good person and immediately said to Emperor Liang: "Xia Shouzun has an important report on state affairs. Concubines and Jingyan should stay away for the time being!"
Emperor Liang shook his head and said, "You and Jingyan don't need to avoid it. Didn't you listen to what Xia Jiang said? This assassination is aimed at me as well as Jingyan."
Xia Jiang saw that Emperor Liang had no intention of being avoided, so he continued: "I found out that the gunpowder on your Majesty's chariot was not smuggled in from outside Jinling, but came from a private artillery workshop in the city."
When Emperor Liang heard this, he sat up straight and said angrily: "There is a private artillery workshop in the capital at the feet of the Emperor. What do you, the Xuanjing Division, do for food?"
Xia Jiangcheng said in fear: "Your Majesty, forgive me, the Xuanjing Department did not strictly supervise this time, which led to the emergence of private artillery workshops in the capital."
Emperor Liang frowned and said, "Who built this private cannon workshop, and what is its purpose?"
Gunpowder has always been a product controlled by the imperial court, but a dangerous place like a private artillery workshop could appear in the capital. Emperor Liang's first reaction was that someone wanted to use gunpowder to rebel.
Xia Jiang said in fear: "After investigation, it seems that the private artillery workshop and the Ministry of Revenue Shangshulou Zhijing are inextricably linked. The matter is of great importance. I dare not make the decision without authorization, so I came here to report to Your Majesty."
"Lou Zhijing?" Emperor Liang was shocked. Of course he knew that Lou Zhijing had surrendered to the prince a long time ago.
The private artillery workshop was run by Lou Zhijing, so it has something to do with the prince. On the day of the assassination, the prince made an excuse to leave first, and the assassin appeared as soon as he left. If it was a coincidence, it would be too much!
At this time, Emperor Liang understood why Xia Jiang was about to speak but hesitated just now.
Zhiluo Palace instantly became quiet, and you could hear the drop of a needle.
"Xia Jiang, you mean that the person behind this assassination is the prince." Emperor Liang said with a gloomy face.
"I dare not make rash guesses." Xia Jiang lowered his head deeply.
Emperor Liang said: "Go and arrest Lou Zhijing immediately. You must find out whether the prince is involved in it."
Concubine Jing's hands shook, and she couldn't help but think of the Chi Yan tragedy twelve years ago.
The prince at that time, King Qi, was given poisonous wine by Emperor Liang because of an unfounded letter of rebellion. Could it be that the prince today will follow in the footsteps of King Qi?
Emperor Liang turned to Wang Gang and said, "Jingyan, why don't you come out of the palace with Xia Shouzun today?
Xia Shouzun is an old minister, you can ask him for advice when you have time."
Wang Gang knew that Emperor Liang had already wanted to depose the prince. Regardless of whether the assassination had anything to do with the prince, Emperor Liang was extremely disappointed with his son.
Once the prince falls, the balance in the court will inevitably be broken. In order to balance the influence of the prince, Emperor Liang must support another person, and Wang Gang became the best candidate.
Emperor Liang asked Wang Gang to get close to Xia Jiang, which was also paving the way for him.
"I sincerely follow my father's teachings," Wang Gang said without comment.
Emperor Liang waved his hand half-heartedly, asking Wang Gang and Xia Jiang to retreat.
When Emperor Liang and Concubine Jing were the only ones left in Zhiluo Palace, Emperor Liang couldn't hide his exhaustion and almost fell down due to dizziness.
Concubine Jing, with quick eyesight and quick hands, immediately supported Emperor Liang.
"Your Majesty, take care of your dragon body!"
Emperor Liang said sadly: "What evil did I do to give birth to that crazy and rebellious son?"
Concubine Jing pretended to persuade him: "I think the prince should not have the courage to do treasonous things!"
Emperor Liang shook his head and said, "The prince secretly built a private cannon workshop in the capital. What do you think it is for?"
Concubine Jing stopped talking.
Emperor Liang snorted coldly: "I think he has long been rebellious!"
Concubine Jing gently stroked Emperor Liang's chest and said intentionally or unintentionally: "The prince is young, so he must have been deceived into doing something wrong."
"Bewitched?" Emperor Liang was startled, thinking of the prince's biological mother, Concubine Yue.
"That's right! The prince is in the East Palace, so he shouldn't be able to put gunpowder on my chariot. Only the Yue family, who has been a noble concubine for a long time and has minions all over the palace, has the opportunity to do these things."
The more Emperor Liang thought about it, the more wrong he became. The more he thought about it, the colder his heart became. He quickly called Gao Zhan:
"Inform Xie Yu immediately and ask him to transfer the patrol battalion to Beijing..."
Before Emperor Liang finished speaking, he suddenly realized that something was wrong. Xie Yu had many contacts with the prince, so asking Xie Yu to lead the patrol camp to Beijing was not playing into the prince's ambitions.
"Gao Zhan, go to Ningguo Hou's Mansion immediately and ask Xie Yu to hand over the patrol camp's Tiger Talisman."
Gao Zhan asked in a low voice: "Your Majesty, what if Lord Xie refuses to hand over the Tiger Talisman?"
Emperor Liang said coldly: "I will send Meng Zhi to accompany you with the imperial army. If Xie Yu dares not to hand over the tiger talisman, I will kill him immediately!"
Gao Zhan narrowed his eyes, somewhat surprised by Emperor Liang's decisiveness.
"Your Majesty, the patrol battalion has the responsibility of guarding the capital. If you dismiss the commander rashly, you may cause criticism from the courtiers." Gao Zhan reminded carefully.
Emperor Liang doesn't care too much now. If the prince really dares to rebel, the military power of the patrol camp must not be in Xie Yu's hands.
"You take a quick step, chase Prince Jing back, and ask him to accompany you to the Ningguo Hou Mansion. If Xie Yu doesn't hand over the tiger talisman, Prince Jing will do things easily. If Xie Yu hands over the tiger talisman, Prince Jing will take over the patrol camp immediately."
