Chapter three hundred and sixty seventh thorough investigation
Tai Chi Palace Ganlu Hall.
The smell of sandalwood wafts in the hall, and bursts of heat are emitted from the bronze furnace, making the entire hall as warm as spring.
The chamberlain respectfully served His Majesty Li Er some fragrant tea, then quietly stepped aside.
After a long while, after finishing the memorial in his hand, His Majesty Li Er couldn't help but stretch his back, picked up the tea cup next to him and slowly walked towards the stage.
Through the Glazed Pavilion, one can see that it is still snowing outside, and there is a thin layer of snow on the bluestone road inside the Forbidden Palace. On the road, the chamberlains and maids holding brooms and other tools are busy clearing away the snow.
In the distance, there are multiple vermilion gates, majestic halls, and rows of exquisite granite railings. It is not difficult to see the grandeur and majesty of the palace.
The red walls and white snow, the majestic palaces, and the palace in the snow are extremely beautiful. Everything makes His Majesty Li Er feel heroic.
Standing quietly, His Majesty Li Er said nothing, but his eyes were a little wandering.
The majestic figure is as tall and straight as a pine tree, still as sharp as when he was charging into battle.
Thinking of this vibrant empire, His Majesty Li Er couldn't help but curl up his lips.
His greatest achievement in this life was to lead the Tang Empire to prosperity, and now it can be considered that the country is peaceful and the people are safe, and the world is at peace.
In the past few years, when the barbarians were in turmoil, he led the mighty troops of the Tang Dynasty across Mobei and made the barbarians surrender.
This year, although there were some clowns like Songtsen Gampo, they were still captured by the Tang Dynasty and brought back to the capital as a tribute to him.
Now that Tubo has been classified as the territory of the Tang Dynasty, it will only be able to formally pray to heaven to recognize its legal status when the spring festival is held next year.
Although the Sui Dynasty was extremely prosperous for a while under the rule of Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, there was absolutely nothing that could be done against Tubo.
Now, under his rule, thousands of miles of Tubo territory have been absorbed into the Tang Dynasty, which is an unprecedented achievement.
As long as he conquers foreign countries like Goguryeo, His Majesty Li Er will become the emperor of the ages.
Now that the treasury is full, he only needs to solve the internal worries of the empire to achieve his eternal hegemony.
Thinking of this, His Majesty Li Er's face flushed, and the corners of his mouth could not help but curl up slightly, obviously he was in a very good mood.
However, he also knew that the source of all this was Yang Fan, a free-spirited boy, which gave Li Shimin a headache.
Just now, I reviewed a bunch of reports, but many of them could only be put aside temporarily because Li Er didn't know how to deal with Yang Fan, a hero.
Although Tubo's contribution to the destruction of the country was a huge achievement, Yang Fan also took the greatest credit.
But his merits are not covered up, he disobeys military orders, eliminates dissidents without authorization, and so on...
There were as many memorials to impeach that boy as snowflakes,
What a bastard that people both love and hate.
At this moment, soft footsteps came from behind, and the voice of the old eunuch Wang Huangui sounded.
"Your Majesty, Li Junxian, the leader of the Hundred Cavalry, would like to see you."
His Majesty Li Er rubbed his temples, retracted his thoughts, and asked directly: "What's the matter?"
No wonder Li Er asked this question.
It was getting late now, and the palace gate was about to close. Normally, Li Junxian would not ask for an audience at this time unless there was something particularly important.
Wang Huangui quickly replied: "I didn't ask, but General Li looked very anxious!"
"Send him in!"
With that said, Li Er turned back to the couch and sat down, while adjusting his robes.
…
As soon as Li Junxian entered the hall and opened his mouth, Li Shimin stood up with a roar, and his entire face suddenly turned as black as the bottom of a pot.
A pair of eyes flashed with cold light, staring intently at Li Junxian who was kneeling below, and asked in a deep voice: "What did you say?"
"Marquis Zhongyi and His Highness King Wu were ambushed and killed in the Qinling area. Because they were injured by crossbows, they turned to Junyangfang for treatment." Li Junxian was shocked and said in panic.
With a bang, the desk in front of him was kicked away by His Majesty Li Er, and the memorial on the desk flew far away.
The beloved tea set also fell to the ground and shattered with a thud.
Several chamberlains were so frightened by this sudden turn of events that they immediately knelt down and did not dare to raise their heads. Their thin bodies were trembling for fear of harming Chi Yu.
"This is simply unreasonable. I am so angry!" As expected, His Majesty Li Er was furious.
Just now, he was proudly thinking that the peace of the Tang Dynasty was inseparable from his martial arts and martial arts.
But the slap in the face came too quickly. In the blink of an eye, his son and Yang Fan were assassinated, making him unable to control the anger in his heart.
The veins on his forehead were like quivering earthworms, and his face was ferocious, like a tiger that chose to devour others. His warm temperament just now had already flown out of the sky.
Even Wang Huangui, the trusted old eunuch beside him, did not dare to say anything at this moment and kept his head down without moving.
It is no joke that the emperor is angry and the land is thousands of miles away.
His Majesty Li Er vented for a while, then sat down on the couch, huffing and puffing for a long time, and then he felt a little calmer: "How is the injury?"
Li Junxian was a little worried and quickly bowed and replied: "Marquis Zhongyi blocked the arrow for His Highness King Wu, and was injured by a crossbow arrow in the back, and His Highness King Wu was also injured in the thigh by a crossbow arrow..."
"It is said that the arrow is not poisonous, and the miraculous doctor Sun Simiao is in Junyangfang. His Highness, King Wu, only injured his thigh, so it should be fine!"
His Majesty Li Er glared at Li Junxian and asked rather worriedly: "I'm asking about the condition of Marquis Zhongyi's injury?"
"The general has just received the news. There is no way to know the specific situation, but according to the messenger sent by Marquis Zhongyi, the injury should not be a big problem." Li Junxian was lying on the ground.
However, I was secretly shocked that Yang Fan was so favored.
His Majesty Li Er looked gloomy, but felt a little relieved. He frowned and asked, "Who is the assassin? Has he been caught? Is there someone behind the scenes?"
Li Junxian was a little frightened and knelt down involuntarily: "Hou Zhongyi and his party have eliminated all the assassins, and the assassins are all Fusang people."
"However, before General Mo entered the palace, he had dispersed all the troops and detained all the Fusang people in Chang'an City. However, there has been no news of this. Your Majesty, please forgive me."
It turned out that when Yang Fan went to Junyangfang, he sent a personal guard to Chang'an to report.
After all, as a general on an expedition, he should first report to the Ministry of War when he returns to the capital.
Due to the sudden incident, he had to change his route to Junyangfang and had to ask his personal guards to come and report the matter.
Of course, Yang Fan caught a bandit leader, but he didn't plan to report it right away.
To be able to provide these Fuso people with so many crossbows, the people behind the scenes must be important officials in the court.
If the prisoners were taken to Chang'an for detention, they might be killed and silenced.
More importantly, Yang Fan had an immature idea.
…
Seeing Li Junxian asking questions and not knowing anything made Li Shimin even more angry, but he could understand it. After all, investigation also takes time.
But it was clear that there was something wrong with the direction of Li Junxian's investigation, and Li Shimin had to remind him: "Have you sent anyone to investigate the origin of the crossbow?"
The Tang Dynasty had extremely strict management of long-range weapons with huge destructive power such as bows and crossbows. They were only equipped in the army, and the output was very small. Private private ownership was absolutely not allowed.
Every crossbow produced by the Ordnance Supervision must be registered in a register from manufacturing, distribution, recycling, and even scrapping, and management is extremely strict.
Moreover, the manufacturing technology of crossbows has been lost among the people, and only the imperial court has been able to produce them.
As long as you use a crossbow to trace it, you will be able to find the source quickly.
Li Junxian smiled awkwardly: "General Mo also wanted to find out who was involved by tracing the origin of the crossbow, but...but General Mo was afraid that it would involve too much."
How could he not think of this?
But thinking about it, if we start the investigation from this aspect, we will really offend half of the officials in the court.
If you can get so many crossbows, there will definitely be many people involved.
Besides, how difficult would it be to find the crossbow wielded by the assassin among the thousands of crossbows every year, or even to trace its origin?
After hearing Li Junxian's words, the veins on His Majesty Li Er's forehead were looming, and there was a hint of an explosion.
As the leader of the Hundred Cavalry, he is a sword for the emperor and has great power. Unexpectedly, he is timid at this time.
If you don't even dare to offend people, then what's the point of establishing Baiqi?
Although I know what Li Junxian is afraid of, this guy is too rigid.
He just needs to look for clues to investigate, and he doesn't want him to arrest the officials involved and torture them one by one.
It seems that this person is extremely loyal and brave, but he is not a person who is good at intelligence organization.
Whatever is gained must be lost!
But who in the world is proficient in all fields?
Thinking like this, His Majesty Li Er could not help but think of Yang Fan's face. Maybe that boy could do it.
Although that kid is a bit rough-and-tumble, he is really an all-rounder.
Not only was he able to propose strategies for reforming the imperial examinations, but he was also able to come up with some strange inventions, and he was also very successful in the military.
No matter from every aspect, that guy did a good job.
This guy usually has a lot of thoughts and often does things unexpectedly. He might really be a spy.
Soon, Li Er put this idea aside, because he had more important arrangements for Yang Fan, a bastard, and he could not be trained as a spy leader.
At present, we still have to rely on Li Junxian to find out who is the mastermind.
The blatant assassination of a prince and a distinguished general of the imperial court was simply a provocation to the power of the Tang Dynasty.
In the eyes of His Majesty Li Er, this kind of behavior is abhorrent and must be cut into pieces by a thousand cuts.
If the mastermind behind the scenes is allowed to go unpunished, it will not only bring disgrace to the court, but also be a provocation to the imperial power.
If the assassins in the future were lucky enough to attack him as the emperor, wouldn't it be a mess?
Therefore, the murderer behind the scenes must be found out and brought to justice in order to relieve the hatred in his heart.
Your Majesty Li Er doesn’t care what your identity or status is!
Once the evidence is conclusive, severe punishment will be given.
Thinking of this, His Majesty Li Er said domineeringly: "I grant you the position of taking advantage of others. If anyone dares not to cooperate with the investigation, you can kill them first and then report them. No matter what happens, I will take care of them. Of course, you can't take revenge for personal gain, otherwise I will take it."
You are asking."
"The general will definitely live up to His Majesty's expectations." Li Junxian was immediately overjoyed.
The purpose of this trip was to get a Shangfang sword. There were many nobles in the capital. With His Majesty Li Er's words, he felt relieved and did not have so many scruples when doing things.
Just as he was about to turn around and leave, he heard His Majesty Li Er continue: "Immediately send someone to escort the two imperial doctors to Junyangfang. I will go to visit you tomorrow!"
"promise!"
Li Junxian stopped staying and turned around to leave.
He knew that tonight would be another sleepless night because he had to catch the person behind the scenes before they destroyed the evidence.
On a snowy night, phantom-like people shuttled through the city of Chang'an.
Both the Fusang people and those involved in the manufacture and use of crossbows were all under secret surveillance, and the entire Chang'an City was undercurrent.
After Li Junxian left, the entire Ganlu Hall became quiet again.
Several chamberlains were still trembling on the ground and did not dare to move, for fear of interrupting His Majesty Li Er's thoughts and being punished.
After a while, His Majesty Li Er slowly raised his head and said to himself: "Who do you think is the mastermind behind this?"
"Your Majesty, could it be that Marquis Zhongyi offended Envoy Fusang last time..." the old eunuch Wang Huangui said with a low eyebrow.
Li Shimin waved his hand and said firmly: "It's impossible. It's impossible for the Fusang people to be able to unknowingly mobilize such a large number of crossbows from the army."
"Your Majesty's holy name, this old slave is stupid." Wang Huangui flattered him, and then said: "However, according to Lao Nu, this interception should be aimed at Marquis Zhongyi."
Li Shimin raised his head, looking quite interested: "Oh, what should I say?"
Because His Majesty Li Er was worried that the assassination was his brother Ni Qiang, Li Er was really afraid that his sons would repeat his mistakes...
"Because all the princes are from the Tang Dynasty, even if they usually have some friction with each other, they will not rely on the power of foreigners."
As an old man who has served Li Shimin for decades, Wang Huangui certainly knows what His Majesty Li Er is worried about.
Hearing this, Li Shimin nodded in agreement. Although his sons usually fought openly and secretly, they also had their own bottom line, which made him feel relieved a little.
But Li Er started to complain about Yang Fan again.
This kid usually offends so many people, it's really hard to guess who is going to deal with him.
I don't know what Yang Fan's expression would be if he knew that he was shot for no reason.
Although I don’t know that His Majesty Li Er regards him as a troublemaker.
But Yang Fan, who went to Junyangfang, felt like his heart was on fire.
The sky was getting dark, and there were still people riding horses through the snowy night on the snow-covered roads, and the neighing of horses trampled the silent snow.
"drive……"
The snow has been falling, flying like goose feathers, covering the sky.
The war horses and the guards on horseback were all breathing white gas from their mouths and noses. The armor on their bodies was as cold as iron, and the guards' faces bore the marks of the plateau wind.
The snow clung to the armor and was freezing to the bone, but everyone felt warm in their hearts because they came back alive.
Riding the horse at a gallop, uu read a book www.uukanshu.com Yang Fan wiped his face, which was frozen by the cold wind, on the horse's back and narrowed his eyes.
Looking at the towering and majestic city wall in the distance in the wind and snow, a burning expectation surged in my heart.
Junyangfang was his first safe haven in the Tang Dynasty.
Home has an indescribable sense of belonging!
Breaking through the wind and snow, we arrived under the city wall of Junyangfang.
The rapid sound of hoofbeats reached the city gate from a long distance in this silent snowy night.
The guards stationed at the checkpoint waited early at the crenellations of the city wall, looking on guard.
All the guards used their eyes to look down, trying to see clearly who was speeding through the snowy night.
When the guard saw Yang Fan's handsome face, he immediately exclaimed: "Open the city gate quickly, the Marquis is back..."
That voice full of excitement carried far and wide on this cold winter night.