bayedsolid Chapter 1196 [The Glory of Tang Dynasty 23]
Chapter 1196 [The Glory of Tang Dynasty 23]
Cui Caiping was extremely alert. She cleverly led Li Chu and successfully avoided the relentless assassins and the inner dragon envoy sent by the emperor, and then returned to the capital without anyone noticing.
At the same time, on the other side, Li Chu's men met the killer and Nei Longfei unexpectedly. A fierce fight ensued, and Li Chu's men were agile and fearless. They killed all the ill-intentioned people in a lightning speed.
After Li Chu returned to the palace, he went straight to see the emperor. However, before he could even open his mouth, Yang Guozhong couldn't wait to attack him: "Why were all the inner dragon envoys killed, but you were able to return safely? Could it be that you secretly raised a group of assassins?"
Facing Yang Guozhong's questioning, Li Chu showed no weakness. His thinking was as quick as lightning, and he quickly retorted: "I have just stepped into the palace and have not uttered a word. How do you know that all the Inner Dragon Flying Envoys have died?" This question was like a wake-up call, leaving Yang Guozhong speechless and unable to answer.
Yang Guozhong knew very well that Li Chu must have successfully obtained the crucial list during his trip. He secretly speculated that Li Chu would use this list to win over those who were hostile to him. In order to seize the initiative, Yang Guozhong decided to strike first, so he openly accused those people of treason in the court.
Not only that, the ruthless Yang Guozhong did not even let the dead Shen Yizhi go. He even falsely accused Shen Yizhi of passing messages to Tubo many times like those people. When the emperor heard this, his anger was ignited and he was very angry at Yang Guozhong's behavior.
At this time, Li Chu stepped forward and reported the situation to the emperor. Li Chu said that there was no conclusive evidence to prove whether Shen Yizhi had committed treason. He pleaded with the emperor not to easily believe Yang Guozhong's one-sided statement, but to conduct a detailed investigation before making a final decision.
The emperor listened to Li Chu's words and thought they made sense, so he agreed to his request. As a result, the matter was temporarily shelved, awaiting further investigation results.
After the court session, Li Chu hurried to the East Palace to tell his father what happened in the court. As soon as he saw his father, Li Chu couldn't wait to say, "Father, today in the court, Yang Guozhong actually got ahead of me and started to frame the loyal and good people in the court. Moreover, this time I was able to return safely, all thanks to Cui Caiping's sacrifice."
After hearing what Li Chu said, the prince said thoughtfully: "Oh? So it seems that Cui and Yang are not of the same mind. This is an opportunity worth taking advantage of. Maybe you can find a breakthrough from Cui. The most important thing now is to make Cui the crown princess as soon as possible. In this way, we can use Cui's power to fight against Yang Guozhong's power. Didn't you also hope that Cui could become your crown princess?"
Li Chu nodded quickly and said, "Yes, father, I understand what you mean."
In the Guangping Prince's Mansion, Shen Zhenzhu was strolling leisurely in the courtyard. Suddenly, a maid ran past her in a hurry and accidentally bumped into Shen Zhenzhu, causing the jade pendant she was carrying to fall to the ground.
Shen Zhenzhu quickly leaned over to pick it up. When she picked it up, the sunlight just happened to shine through the gaps in the leaves onto the jade pendant. At that moment, she was surprised to find that under the sunlight, the jade pendant could faintly show the word "Dugu".
Shen Zhenzhu's heart moved, and she immediately thought of the Dugu family in Yunnan. She couldn't help but think of what her father said to her when she left home, and she felt more and more that there must be an unknown story behind this jade pendant.
Shen Zhenzhu thought hard but still couldn't figure out the reason. In desperation, she decided to go to Zuixianlou to get a jar of Zuixian wine, and then go up the mountain to find the all-knowing know-it-all.
Arriving at Zuixianlou, Shen Zhenzhu successfully obtained a jar of Zuixian wine. She held the jar and hurried up the mountain.
Finally, Shen Zhenzhu found the know-it-all on the top of the mountain. She put the wine jar aside and asked directly, "Know-it-all, do you know why my family was wiped out?"
The know-it-all smiled slightly, shook his head, and said, "I don't know what happened recently."
Seeing this, Shen Zhenzhu was not discouraged. She took out the jade pendant from her bosom, handed it to Wan Shi Tong, and asked, "Then take a look at this jade pendant. Is there any connection between my Shen family and the Dugu family in Yunnan?"
Mr. Wanshitong said slowly: "This jade pendant is not simple, it is the Qilin Order that can command the Dugu family!" He paused, and then said: "Several generations ago, the Shen family was kind to the Dugu family. In order to repay the favor, the Dugu family gave the Shen family such a token, which is this Qilin Order."
Mr. Wanshitong picked up the jade pendant and examined it carefully, as if he could see the traces of time on it. "As long as the person holding this token makes a request to the Dugu family, no matter what it is, the Dugu family will agree." He sighed, "You know, the Dugu family is rich enough to rival a country, and their military force is also quite strong. Therefore, the value of this Qilin token is simply inestimable!"
Shen Zhenzhu was shocked when she heard this. She suddenly realized that the disaster that the Shen family had encountered might be related to this Qilin Order. She could not help but frown and fell into deep thought.
At the Prince of Guangping's mansion, Feng Shengyi came over and reported to Li Chu: "Your Highness, there is news from Mo Yanchuo that the Dong Zebu he has been looking for is hiding in Jincheng County."
Li Chu nodded and said thoughtfully: "I see, it seems we have to go to Jincheng County." He turned to look at Shen Zhenzhu, "Zhenzhu, the governor of Jincheng County, Ku Jun, was murdered. I am responsible for the Ministry of Justice and must go to find out the truth. You and Cui Caiping will go with me."
In fact, Li Chu was afraid that Shen Zhenzhu would hear rumors about her father in the capital, which would add to her worries. He asked Cui Caiping to go with her because Li Chu discovered that Cui Caiping was extraordinary, and that bringing her along might bring him different gains.
But Cui Caiping refused, saying that her aunt wanted to go to the palace to stay with her for a few days, so Li Chu had to take Shen Zhenzhu with him.
In Jincheng County, Li Chu and Feng Shengyi were discussing Ku Jun's case in the room, while Shen Zhenzhu and Hong Rui were sitting quietly. After a while, Shen Zhenzhu felt a little bored, so she stood up and said to Li Chu, "Hong Rui and I will go to a nearby restaurant to buy some wine, and you guys can talk slowly." Li Chu nodded and told them to be careful.
Shen Zhenzhu and Hongrui walked out of the room and came to a restaurant not far away. As soon as they entered the door, the waiter came up to greet them warmly. After seeing Shen Zhenzhu, he was suddenly stunned and muttered, "Boss lady, why are you here?" Shen Zhenzhu was a little confused by his words, while Hongrui was laughing at the side.
Shen Zhenzhu explained: "I'm not the boss's wife, I'm just here to buy wine." The waiter then came to his senses, apologized quickly, and took them to choose wine.
After buying the wine, Shen Zhenzhu and Hong Rui were about to leave when suddenly Shen Zhenzhu found a woman's earring in the corner of the restaurant. She picked it up and smelled a faint fragrance on the earring, which reminded her of the smell she had just smelled in the restaurant.
Shen Zhenzhu's heart moved, she thought the fragrance might be related to Ku Jun's case. So, she took Li Chu and others back to the restaurant and asked the waiter about the source of the fragrance. The waiter told them that the fragrance came from an uncommon chrysanthemum that only grew in the back mountain.
After hearing this, Li Chu and others immediately decided to go to the back mountain to look for clues. In the back mountain, they indeed found the chrysanthemums, and also found some suspicious footprints nearby. Feng Shengyi told Li Chu that he noticed there was an ancient tomb nearby, which was a good hiding place.
Li Chu and his companions followed the footprints to the ancient tomb and found Aqina there. When Aqina saw Li Chu and his companions, his face turned pale, but he still pretended to be calm and said, "I killed Kujun, it has nothing to do with others."
However, Li Chu found that the situation at the crime scene did not match what Aqina said. He decided to take Aqina back to the mansion first and then interrogate him slowly.
In the evening, Mo Yanchu came to Li Chu's study, and the two began to discuss Ku Jun's case. When Shen Zhenzhu passed by the study, she heard their conversation and became more curious about the case.
It turned out that Li Chu had known the relationship between Aqina and Dongzebu for a long time. He came up with a plan and sent Kujun to provoke Aqina, with the real purpose of luring Dongzebu out. However, man proposes, God disposes. Li Chu never expected that Dongzebu would accidentally kill Kujun because of jealousy.
Faced with this sudden situation, Li Chu was extremely anxious. He knew that time was running out and he had to catch Dongzebu as soon as possible, because only by getting the key evidence from Dongzebu could he completely overthrow Yang Guozhong. So he begged his elder brother Moyanchu to lend a hand and give him a helping hand.
Li Chu told Mo Yanchu in detail about Yang Guozhong's evil deeds in the court. He pointed out that Yang Guozhong not only framed loyal officials, but also falsely accused Shen Yizhi of treason, causing the entire Shen family to be wronged. Shen Zhenzhu accidentally heard these words outside the door. She was struck by lightning and could no longer suppress her grief and anger. She suddenly opened the study door, walked straight to Li Chu, and begged him with tears in her eyes to clear her father's name.
Li Chu looked at the heartbroken Shen Zhenzhu and felt a sharp pain in his heart. He solemnly promised Shen Zhenzhu that he would do his best to clear the Shen family's grievances.
After careful consideration, Shen Zhenzhu came up with a bold plan. She decided to pretend to be Aqina and be imprisoned in a prisoner's car and escorted to the capital. In this way, Dongzebu would definitely come to rescue her and fall into the trap they set. Hongrui was shocked when she heard this plan. She thought it was too dangerous and firmly opposed it. However, Shen Zhenzhu had made up her mind and said she was willing to take the risk.
Li Chu admired Shen Zhenzhu's courage, but was also worried. After weighing the pros and cons, he finally agreed to Shen Zhenzhu's proposal.
The next morning, a prisoner van slowly drove out. The prisoner van was heavily guarded, and the face of "Aqina" in the van was covered by a thick veil. However, when the prisoner van was halfway, Li Chu suddenly discovered an astonishing fact - the person in the prisoner van was actually Shen Zhenzhu!
Shen Zhenzhu narrowed her eyes slightly, and there seemed to be silent words flowing between their eyes. Her eyes fell on Li Chu, conveying a firm and subtle hint, signaling him not to interrupt the current action.
Li Chu understood what she meant, and he continued to move forward calmly, keeping a certain distance from Shen Zhenzhu. The two walked one after the other through the dense woods, and the sound of their footsteps was particularly clear in the quiet forest.
Just as they were about to walk out of the woods, suddenly, a burst of rapid horse hoof sounds came from far away. Li Chu stopped vigilantly, and Shen Zhenzhu also looked nervously in the direction of the sound.
A fast horse came galloping over, and the person on the horse was Dong Zebu. He looked anxious, and it was obvious that he had something important to ask Shen Zhenzhu.
When Dongzebu saw Shen Zhenzhu, he immediately dismounted, walked quickly to her, and wanted to take her away without saying a word. However, when he saw that the person next to Shen Zhenzhu was not Aqi, a trace of anger appeared on his face.
Seeing this, Shen Zhenzhu quickly explained: "Don't be impulsive, Dong Zebu. This is Li Chu, the Prince of Guangping. He is here to help us."
Dongzebu looked at Li Chu doubtfully, and Li Chu smiled and nodded to show his friendliness. Shen Zhenzhu continued, "Donzebu, we are going to Beijing this time to meet the emperor and expose Yang Guozhong's true face. With Li Chu here, we will definitely succeed."
Dong Zebu listened to Shen Zhenzhu's words, and his doubts gradually dissipated. After thinking for a while, he finally agreed to follow Li Chu to Beijing.
At the same time, Mo Yanchuo was also actively taking action in the capital. He met with the emperor and presented the secret letters intercepted from Dongzebu. These secret letters recorded in detail the confidential information of the court, including the real reason for the defeat in the war with Tubo.
The emperor took the secret letter and read it carefully, his face became very solemn. He finally understood why the battles with Tubo ended in failure many times. It turned out that Yang Guozhong was behind it.
The officials in the court identified the handwriting on these secret letters and finally determined that they were written by the Jiannan Envoy, who was promoted by Yang Guozhong.
Then, the ministers in the court reported to the emperor one after another, exposing Yang Guozhong's crimes. They pointed out that Yang Guozhong persecuted loyal officials in the court, framed Wei Jian's family and executed them, framed Chen Xilie, and slandered Shen Yizhi for treason. One after another, the serious crimes were listed, and the evidence was solid and outrageous.
Dongzebu and Chen Xilie also testified in the court, exposing Yang Guozhong's crimes one by one. After hearing this, the emperor was furious, slammed the table, and ordered Yang Guozhong to be taken to prison to await his fate.