Zuo Jinwei learned of the situation the moment the troops were intercepted. He was filled with excitement and anticipation.
Your Majesty should have received his report, right?
Pang Zhixi's achievements were so great that they shocked your Majesty, and he did not know how to restrain himself.
He had just taken control of the Brave Tiger Army's Tiger Tally, yet he was already able to grasp such a huge handle on His Majesty's Dawn. Regardless of how the reward was going to be, his position in His Majesty's heart was going to be upgraded by a step.
Weren't those bastards in the Tiger Army not convinced of him? Weren't they willing to go through water and tread on fire with just a word from Pang Zhixi?
He was going to show them who was the real commander of their army!
Zuo Jinwei rode his horse forward in high spirits and ordered the troops to wait in place.
The five battalions, the Divine Arms Battalion, the 3,000 battalions, and the 10,000 Dragon Stallion Army had formed a huge formation in front of the city gates.
The commoners did not panic when they saw the troops gathered here. This was because the Tiger Army and the Dragon Stallion Army had returned to the capital. There were camps outside the city, and soldiers were often seen entering the city.
However, a situation like this where the troops were facing off in front of the city gates was unprecedented.
At this moment, there was a commotion outside the city gates.
Zuo Jinwei sat on his horse and curiously craned his neck to look at the city gates.
He saw the newly appointed Minister of Justice, Qi Rugang, leading a group of people out of the city gates. He ordered the soldiers guarding the city, "Watch the city gates. Today, all the city gates in the capital are only open for exits. No one is allowed to enter!"
"Yes!"
The situation outside was so tense that the soldiers guarding the city did not know what was going on. They were afraid that they would delay the important matter, so they quickly passed the message to the various city gates.
Zuo Jinwei clenched his fist excitedly. This way, Pang Zhixi would not be able to sneak into the city! When Your Majesty held him accountable, he would not be able to shirk responsibility!
Zuo Jinwei also hurriedly turned around and gave his lieutenant a look.
The deputy understood and said in a low voice, "I've already watched the carriage. He's still sick inside. "
Zuo Jinwei nodded in satisfaction. He dismounted from his horse and walked forward with a puzzled and angry expression. "What is the meaning of this, Lord Qi?"
Qi Rugang looked down at Zuo Jinwei and paused for a moment before dismounting.
Zuo Jinwei secretly cursed Qi Rugang for being a treacherous person.
There had always been a gap between Qi Rugang, who had surrendered to Beiji, and Zuo Jinwei, who had followed Your Majesty to conquer the world.
However, the conflict between the surrendered officials of Beiji and Pang Zhixi was even greater.
Wasn't Qi Rugang here today a knife to kill Pang Zhixi?
Zuo Jinwei suppressed his anger and said calmly, "Lord Qi closed the city gates. Are you trying to keep the Tiger Army out? Aren't you being too unreasonable by doing this?! "
Qi Rugang looked at Zuo Jinwei's excellent performance as a commander who only cared about his troops and felt a wave of disdain in his heart. He cupped his hands and said, "Lord Zuo, there is no need to worry! I'm here today because of Prince Zhongshun's private mobilization of troops! "
The moment he said this, the surroundings fell into silence.
In the Da Zhou Dynasty, Prince Zhongshun's reputation as Pang Xiao was too well-known!
This was especially true in the capital.
This was because Pang Xiao was the one who conquered Beiji's capital. In the eyes of the enemy, he was a fiend. In the eyes of his own people, he was an undefeated war god.
Because the city gates were blocked, more and more commoners stayed around. Everyone looked at the scene in front of the city gates curiously.
With so many people watching, Zuo Jinwei used a lot of effort to not show any gloating expression on his face.
Zuo Jinwei pretended to be confused and said, "Prince Zhongshun's private mobilization of troops? But Prince Zhongshun told me that he was following Your Majesty's orders to train 20,000 soldiers. "
This time, there was an uproar.
If the Ministry of Justice's private mobilization of troops was true, then Prince Zhongshun's words to the current commander of the Tiger Army about "following Your Majesty's orders to train" was obviously a fake imperial edict!
Many people already knew that Pang Zhixi was no longer the commander of the Tiger Army. Privately mobilizing troops without a commander's seal could be seen as treason. Now, not only did he privately mobilize troops, he even lied to the current commander of the Tiger Army.
In this way, disobeying an imperial edict, mobilizing troops to commit treason, and faking an imperial edict were the three major charges. This person was definitely going to die!
In the crowd, the commoners were discussing.
The Tiger Army soldiers had serious expressions on their faces.
The scene became chaotic again. The discussion became louder and louder. It was going to develop into an uncontrollable situation.
Seeing this, Zuo Jinwei laughed in his heart. However, his expression was very serious. "Lord Qi, you must understand that this is not a small matter. If you don't have evidence, don't speak carelessly. Don't wrongly accuse Prince Zhongshun."
The Ministry of Justice's Qi Rugang was an old official of Beiji. In his heart, he looked down on both Pang Xiao and Zuo Jinwei.
Therefore, he didn't have the patience to speak at this time. "No evidence? Didn't the Left General's secret report say that Prince Zhongshun privately mobilized troops and then lied that he was following Your Majesty's orders to train troops? You were the one who brought the evidence. This official only knew the clues and came out to arrest a rebellious official. Why are you playing riddles with this official? "
In one sentence, he revealed Zuo Jinwei's secret report to the Tiger Army.
Zuo Jinwei instantly felt countless pairs of eyes staring at him from behind. If eyes could materialize, he would probably be killed by the gazes of the Tiger Army behind him.
He was also a little embarrassed that he was exposed. However, now was the time to be busy with serious matters. Therefore, he didn't waste energy arguing with Qi Rugang. He only said,
"This general is just stating the facts. As a subject of Your Majesty, I must do my duty well. I must not do anything to deceive Your Majesty. Since Lord Qi is here, then let's do things according to the Ministry of Justice's rules. In order to avoid suspicion, I won't interfere in today's matter, nor will I stop you. "
After finishing his words, Zuo Jinwei retreated to the side.
Qi Rugang glanced at Zuo Jinwei from the corner of his eyes and ordered the people beside him, "Go and invite Prince Zhongshun out."
"Yes!"
The people who came with Sun Qi Rugang were originally Beiji's surrendered subjects. These people all had grudges against Pang Xiao. Naturally, they didn't want to let Pang Xiao have an easy time.
Therefore, as soon as Qi Rugang gave the order, these people immediately led people to conduct a carpet search and went straight to the 20,000 people returning today.
At the same time, among the crowd of onlookers, the emperor of Zhou, Li Qitian, was wearing a dark green cotton cloak. He hid among the crowd with the head eunuch, Li Guanwen, and craned his neck to watch the show.
Li Qitian's heart was no less excited than Zuo Jinwei's.
Since he had set up such a big scene today, he wanted to make Pang Xiao's crime of defying the imperial edict and deceiving the emperor known to the world. At that time, even if he killed Pang Zhixi, no one would say that he was afraid of the meritorious officials who had served him well. Instead, they would say that Pang Zhixi didn't know how lucky she was and actually deceived the emperor.
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