Wu Zetian said to Wan'er expressionlessly, "Listen!"
Wan'er bowed and said, "Yes!"
Wu Zetian then turned to Lai Junchen and nodded lightly. Lai Junchen, who was looking up, quickly lowered his head and continued with his unique kneeling greeting.
Even though Lai Junchen had already reported half of the matter when Wan'er arrived, the intelligent Wan'er still understood after he finished. "Someone is plotting a rebellion!"
Before Wu Zetian ascended to the throne, there had been many "people plotting a rebellion": the royal family members were "plotting a rebellion", groups of prime ministers were "plotting a rebellion", and the generals who had been through hundreds of battles were "plotting a rebellion". Too many people were killed in the name of "plotting a rebellion". Some of these cases were unjust cases that the Emperor was well aware of, and some were unjust cases where she was kept in the dark by cruel officials.
However, even the unjust cases where Wu Zetian was kept in the dark had no evidence. They were basically confessions forced out by cruel officials. Wu Zetian would rather believe it than believe it. It didn't matter if she killed the wrong person, but if she let the wrong person go, the consequences would be too severe. She only wanted her empire to be secure forever.
However, since the Crown Prince was wrongly accused, the musicians had disemboweled to show their sincerity, and Lai Junchen had fabricated false confessions of Di Renjie and Ren Zhigu, especially the "Wanren Rebellion Case" in Nanjiang, which almost turned into a real rebellion, Wu Zetian was deeply affected. She began to feel that the practice of killing the wrong person rather than letting the wrong person off seemed to be disadvantageous to her rule.
So when Lai Junchen secretly reported that there was a rebellion, Wu Zetian was skeptical. She suspected that Lai Junchen was using the same old trick to deliberately fabricate a case of rebellion in order to climb up the ranks. So she did not make it public, nor did she send Lai Junchen, the informant, to investigate. She sent someone from the Wu family, Wu Yizong.
Wu Yizong was conferred the title of Prince of Hanoi and became the Great General of the Left. After receiving his aunt's secret order, he immediately took action and secretly arrested Qi Lianyao of Luo Province and interrogated him overnight.
This Son of Heaven, who was said to have the King's Mandate and the King's Aura, could not withstand Wu Yizong's interrogation. After being tortured and threatened, he was so scared that he confessed all of his plans without missing a single word.
Wu Yizong had raided Qi Lianyao's mansion. His letters, family members, and the testimonies of the future founding fathers were all in his possession. He had even written down the country's founding principles in high spirits.
Qi Lianyao was quite efficient with his connections. In such a short time, Zhang Daoist's miraculous explanations had bewitched quite a few people, mainly his relatives, neighbors, subordinates, and old acquaintances. All of them had been captured as well.
Only then did Wu Zetian believe that Lai Junchen had not fabricated the rebellion. Mercy was actually indulging in evil!
Granny Wu was furious and immediately sent the Dragonguard to Ji Province. They had to arrest Liu Sili before he knew of the situation and started the rebellion. She also issued several edicts, ordering the governors and generals of the surrounding prefectures to be on standby and cooperate with the Dragonguard.
In the capital, Wu Yizong was in high spirits as he searched many people's homes. Wu Yizong was short and had a natural hunchback. His appearance was also very ugly, so he wasn't well liked by his fellow clansmen. This time, he had made a great contribution and his name had spread far and wide. He was truly elated.
It was a pity that the people he investigated were either commoners or low ranking officials, and could not display his power. Lai Junchen told him that there must be high ranking officials involved in this rebellion, but their methods were brilliant and they had not been exposed yet, which was exactly what Wu Yizong was thinking. He immediately agreed and pulled Lai Junchen to report to his aunt.
When Wan'er came in, Lai Junchen was reporting the progress of the case to the Emperor. He had cleverly added a few hints to deepen Wu Zetian's suspicions. Although he did not have much knowledge, Lai Junchen was a very clever person. He was also very good at reading people's expressions. His words finally convinced Wu Zetian.
"Lai Junchen, you have made a great contribution this time!"
After listening to Lai Junchen's report, Wu Zetian said amiably, "From now on, you and Yizong will be in charge of this case. You must uncover all the traitors and bring them to justice!"
Lai Junchen was wild with joy. He quickly kowtowed to the ground and said in a trembling voice, "I am willing to sacrifice my life for Your Majesty!"
"You can all leave!"
Wu Zetian waved her hand. Wu Yizong quickly crossed his arms and bowed to his aunt. Lai Junchen was still not in a hurry. He kowtowed once, twice, thrice. Only then did he crawl up and leave Wu Yizong Hall with Wu Yizong.
Although Wu Zetian did not look at him, she was able to see all of his actions. In the past, she only felt that Lai Junchen's actions were very cautious, and she suspected that he was trying to flatter her. However, because of this case, she felt that although Lai Junchen was not perfect, there was no doubt that he was loyal to her.
Wu Yizong and Lai Junchen left Wu Yizong Hall. Wu Zetian turned to Wan'er and said with a serious face, "Wan'er, you heard everything?"
Wan'er heard half of it. Although she had a general understanding of the events and the people involved, she still had many questions in her heart. However, she could not let the Emperor tell her everything in detail. She could only flip through the files and quickly said, "Yes! Wan'er understands. "
Wu Zetian said angrily, "These rebels do not give up their evil intentions! I have already issued an edict. All the Prime Ministers are to stay in the Political Affairs Hall. Before this case is resolved, no one is allowed to leave the palace. The court meeting is suspended. All the officials who left the capital to inspect and those who returned to the capital to report are to stay in their own offices. Without the edict, they are not allowed to take a step. Otherwise, they will be charged with treason. I have already read through these memorials. Follow my instructions and draft a few memorials for me. "
Wu Zetian handed the memorials to Shangguan Wan'er and said, "All the Prime Ministers are staying in the Political Affairs Hall just in case. Before they are proven innocent, some important government affairs, especially those that involve the army, cannot be allowed to touch them. These days, I will have to trouble you!"
Wan'er's heart trembled. She quickly bowed and said, "I will serve the Saints!"
…
Wu Chengsi sat behind the desk. His eyes were straight and he was mumbling to himself. Zhang Jiafu had to get closer to hear clearly. Wei Wang said, "Lai Junchen is crazy? Lai Junchen is crazy! Lai Junchen is really crazy! "
Once the Emperor's edict was issued, Lai Junchen immediately took action. He acted decisively and decisively. It was already the ninth day since he received the edict.
In these nine days, Wu Yizong and Lai Junchen did many things.
He used the same method that he used to interrogate Di Renjie and the others. Because he had just regained the Emperor's favor, he was still cautious. He did not dare to torture Lai Junchen like he did in the past. He only tempted Lai Junchen, telling him that as long as he obediently confessed and revealed more of his accomplices, he would be spared from death.
Lai Junchen did not have the integrity of Di Renjie and Wei Yuanzhong. He immediately followed Lai Junchen's "hint" and began to confess. Thus, the Heavenly Official Residence's head Shi Baozhong, Liu Qi, Zhou Pan, Lu Jingchun, and other officials all fell from their horses and became Lai Junchen's accomplices.
Soon after, Liu Sili, who was still daydreaming about the founding of the empire in Ji Province, was also broken into by the Longwu Guards who descended from the sky. A Brigade Commander by the name of Ma Qiao dragged out Provincial Governor Liu, whose head was hidden inside the stove and buttocks were exposed. Then, he tied him up and sent him to the capital.
Wu Yizong, who was dissatisfied with the low rank of the traitors and the confiscation of their possessions, was overjoyed. He immediately ordered Lai Junchen to interrogate Liu Sili. This Liu Sili was the same as Lai Junchen, a spineless person. Although Lai Junchen had left the imperial court for a few years, his ferocious reputation did not diminish. When he saw Lai Junchen's sinister smile, he was scared out of his wits. After receiving the promise that he would not die as long as he confessed his accomplices, he immediately confessed.
His rank was higher than Lai Junchen's, and the accomplices he confessed were also of higher rank than the people Lai Junchen confessed. In a short period of time, the Assistant Minister of the Phoenix Pavilion, Li Yuansu, the Assistant Minister of the Summer Office, Wang Chi, the Provincial Governor of Jingzhou, Wang Chi, the Renhuang of the Phoenix Pavilion … all became traitors and were arrested and thrown into prison.
Because Wu Zetian had first come to see the evidence that Lai Junchen had delivered, she was already certain of this matter. In addition, her nephew would be participating in the following trial and manhunt, so she did not doubt anything that Lai Junchen had reported to her. Originally, the cruel officials were on the verge of death, but the case of Liu Sili's rebellion made Wu Zetian, who knew that her days were numbered, become suspicious again.
The reason why Wu Chengsi was dumbstruck was because Lai Junchen had been stifled in Tong Province for a few years. It seemed that he had been stifled and could not restrain himself from biting people. Under Lai Junchen's instigation, the two brothers, Wang Zhu and Assistant Minister of the Heavenly Official Wang Lei, also became accomplices of Liu Sili and Lai Junchen and were arrested and thrown into prison.
Wu Chengsi's influence in the imperial court was extremely limited. In this aspect, he could not compare to his cousin Wu Sansi. The two brothers, Assistant Minister of the Heavenly Official Wang Lei and Supervising Imperial Censor Wang Zhu, were among the accomplices that he had developed in the imperial court. They had extremely high positions and great power, but now they had been bitten by that mad dog Lai Junchen and thrown into prison.
Wu Yizong was Wu Sansi's man, so Wu Chengsi could not ask him to be lenient. Faced with such a situation, Wu Chengsi really wanted to cry but had no tears. His original intention was to use Lai Junchen to deal with Li Zhaode and Yang Fan, but he did not expect that Li Zhaode and Yang Fan would fall before Lai Junchen could find a chance to go crazy. Lai Junchen, who was a hero without a place to use his skills, bitten the two generals under him to death.
When a mad dog is released from its cage, how could it do as you wish and bite whoever you want?
Now that things had reached this point, Wu Chengsi was truly filled with regret.
The Benefactor of the Phoenix Pavilion, Zhang Jiafu, was even more restless. The plan of "driving the wolf to fight the tiger" had been carefully designed by him. Now that the wolf had been released and the tiger was gone, the "lonely expert" Lai Junchen had begun to randomly bite people.
Seeing Wu Chengsi's remorseful expression and thinking of the possible consequences, Zhang Jiafu had no choice but to brace himself and go forward. In a low voice, he said, "Your Highness, Your Highness, now is not the time to be upset. The two brothers Wang Lei and Wang Zhu are already in prison. Now we must take remedial measures!"
Wu Chengsi's face darkened as he glanced at him. "Remedial measures? How? Can you save them? "
Zhang Jiafu gathered his courage and said, "They have already become food for Lai Junchen's mouth. How can this lowly official save them? Your Highness must prevent them from revealing Your Highness's plan when they have no hope of leaving prison … "
Wu Chengsi's heart trembled. He could no longer care about self-pity and hurriedly asked, "Then … what should this Prince do?"
Zhang Jiafu gritted his teeth and said, "Wang Zhu must die. He knows too much. We must immediately bribe the prison guards with a large sum of money and poison Wang Zhu to death!"
Wu Chengsi asked, "What about Wang Lei?"
Zhang Jiafu said, "Wang Lei is only following Your Highness's orders and letting Liu Sili take over the position of the former Provincial Governor Lin Xiwen. This alone cannot do anything to Your Highness. If necessary, we can completely explain it as taking money to do things. The two brothers of the Wang family cannot 'die of a sudden illness at the same time'. This lowly official thinks that we can use the safety of Wang Lei's family as a condition to exchange for his silence. "
Wu Chengsi was silent for a long time and said dejectedly, "Go and do it …"
"Yes! Yes! "
Zhang Jiafu did not dare to say more. He hurriedly bowed and retreated.
After a while, Wu Chengsi suddenly jumped up and kicked the table in front of him away. He cursed fiercely, "This mad dog!"
No one would have thought that Lai Junchen, whose thinking had reached the realm of a heavenly steed, would now target the Western Capital Ming Court Captain, Ji Xu!
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