Chapter 1108: Chapter 1108: People in a State of Panic
The Emperor quietly waited in the palace, and the Imperial Physician came to prescribe him medicine once more.
As he was halfway through drinking the medicine, the Forbidden Army returned.
They also brought evidence of Gong Qiu and the Second Prince conspiring to rebel.
This single piece of evidence was enough for the Emperor to have an excuse to kill them.
The Imperial Study was very quiet, and as the sky turned dark, Xiping lit the candles, instantly illuminating the vast space as if it were daytime.
The Emperor, alone, slowly examined the evidence, clutching it tighter and tighter as he read, until finally he threw it all away in a fit.
Xiping looked at the Emperor, who was angrily breathing heavily, with some concern but dared not speak.
After a long time, the Emperor instructed him to pick it up and continued reading.
At some point, feeling exhausted, he went to lie down and slept for two hours. His sleep was restless, and when dawn broke, the Emperor got up again.
This time, upon rising, he asked Xiping to bring a few items, then, with a stern face, prepared to attend court.
In fact, due to health reasons, he hadn’t attended court for days.
Therefore, when the Emperor appeared, many officials in the court were momentarily taken aback.
However, what they didn’t expect was that this day’s court session was a whirlwind that made hearts tremble. The incident of Gong Qiu and the Second Prince’s attempted rebellion was exposed, shocking the entire court and public.
Some people, well-informed, knew about Gong Qiu’s arrest and his connections to Noble Princess Consort Liu. They assumed Gong Qiu and Noble Princess Consort Liu had some unspeakable secret but didn’t expect he would help the Second Prince in rebellion?
Some didn’t know, but seeing that Gong Qiu hadn’t appeared publicly in two days, guessed something had happened to him.
Others, officials with close ties to Gong Qiu, turned pale, trying to minimize their presence.
But the Emperor’s actions this time were decisive and grand.
He appointed the Fifth Prince to oversee the matter, with a joint trial by the Ministry of Justice, the central judicial office, and the Monitoring Department, determined to thoroughly investigate the case.
Among the evidence confiscated from Gong Qiu were also records implicating officials colluding with the three departments. All involved officials were detained.
The Emperor directly appointed the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, vice minister of the central judicial office Lord Jing, and the Right Imperial Censor of the Monitoring Department to be in charge, and others were not to interfere or obstruct.
The Third Prince, hearing that the Fifth Prince would handle the affair, furrowed his brow slightly. But he wasn’t surprised; his rivalry with the second brother was more or less out in the open, and their father wouldn’t trust him to take over.
The Fifth Brother was not a prominent presence, so he wasn’t worried, just offered him some subtle ‘guidance’ in private.
However, what the Third Prince didn’t know was that the Fifth Prince used this situation not only to firmly establish the Second Prince’s plicity in the rebellion but also to get rid of several of the Third Prince’s subordinate officials.
By the time he realized, it was already too late.
With the Emperor’s health not in the best state, after delegating the tasks, he returned to the inner palace.
The Imperial Study was very quiet, and the Emperor closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
However, outside the palace, the atmosphere was tense and fearful, as the Forbidden Army went around arresting people, causing the whole capital to be on edge like a startled flock of birds.
Meng Yunzheng was once again taken to the central judicial office as a key witness to assist in the investigation.
Shu Yu remained at the Jing Family’s residence, while Lord Jing had not returned, having stayed at the central judicial office for three to four days.
Fortunately, Shu Yu knew there was news awaited, so the attendant, under the pretext of going home to retrieve clothing, sent Meng Yunzheng’s message across.
Knowing he was safe, Shu Yu relaxed.
However, this turmoil lasted for over half a month before it finally subsided.
Meng Yunzheng also stayed at the central judicial office for half a month before he was released.
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