At this moment, in the residence of Deputy Minister Tian, Prince Rong sat holding the imperial decree. Contrary to what the emperor had expected, he didn't feign politeness to his uncle. Instead, his tone was filled with anger and threat.
"When my Concubine Mother passed away during my childbirth, and my Emperor father hadn't yet married the empress, seeing the decline of my maternal family, the emperor granted you the title of Junior Maternal Uncle, hoping to give me some support in the capital. Have you forgotten that the Tian family was originally just a lowly horse officer under a king's tent on the northern grasslands? If it weren't for the emperor's youthful nature and the affection he developed after my mother saved him from falling off a horse during a trip, do you think you could have left the grasslands? Do you really believe that with such a small stroke of luck, you could conspire with the century-old southern clans to covet imperial power? You are seeking skin from a tiger!"
"No, no, Rong'er, your uncle has never harbored any treasonous intentions," Deputy Minister Tian was genuinely timid, having been intimidated by Minister Cui before and now relying on him.
"Call me Prince Rong!" Rongzhi gritted his teeth, glaring at this sole relative who was now beyond rehabilitation.
"Yes, Prince Rong. Ten years ago, when the empress passed away and the Prince Mo was sent to the southern border, uncle worried about you being alone in the palace with no support. I couldn't bear to see you live as a dependent in the south, so Minister Cui suggested a plan to keep you in the capital. He helped me persuade the emperor to allow me to take care of you and even promised the position of Deputy Minister of War. Uncle was truly grateful to him back then, wishing could do more for him every day. But later, when I found out he was the mastermind behind the Battle of the Coastal Defense, I couldn't extricate myself, and I dragged you into the quagmire. You will never know how uncle regrets it deeply."
Rongzhi could sense some truth in Deputy Minister Tian's words, softening his tone slightly. "I was chased all the way down south before. Was that arranged by your people?"
"No, it wasn't me! Prince Rong, during the snow disaster on the grasslands, almost ninety percent of the Tian clan perished, leaving only your uncle and your mother. You know uncle has no children of own, except for your distant cousin, who has long been married back to the Western Regions. There's only your cousin, Maide, waiting to be married at home. Besides her, there are no direct descendants in our family. To put it bluntly, uncle regards you as my own son."
"So, are you saying you had no knowledge of the assassin?" Rongzhi chuckled with a hint of sarcasm.
Deputy Minister Tian was so frightened that he fell to the ground, kneeling before Rongzhi, repeatedly kowtowing and pleading, "Prince Rong, Prince Rong, it's all uncle's fault. The assassins were arranged by Minister Cui. He repeatedly demanded that I coerce you into serving him, but I refused on the grounds that the timing wasn't right. It wasn't until a few months ago, when you accidentally discovered his secret plans and escaped from the Tian residence, that he sent assassins to kill you. I couldn't stop them, let alone protect you. It was only then that uncle realized we all had been used as foolish pawn by him, Prince Rong! uncle is useless, just a coward. But uncle won't make any more mistakes. Today, you don't need to persuade me. Whatever is in your best interest, your uncle will do as you say."
"With those words, you will always be my regarded maternal uncle, Tian." Deputy Minister Tian hadn't misspoken; he regarded Rongzhi as his own son, as he had no children of his own. With that said, Rongzhi didn't say much more, directly instructing Huo Changlin to guard the Tian residence and apprehend people.
Minister Cui fell ill and was confined to the hospital, inaccessible to outsiders. Both online and offline, chaos ensued without a leader. Meanwhile, at this critical moment, Cui Qi, who was ignorant and incompetent, was thrown into prison with a Wa people's sword. Before he even faced his sentence, he began to randomly accuse others. Countless people were invited to the Inspectorate's Office, and those who were at their wits' end had no choice but to come to the Tian residence seeking advice.
As soon as these people arrived at the door, they were escorted into the barracks of the Imperial Guards by the Huo family's soldiers stationed outside, where they were to await the "viewing" of the military parade.
Speaking of which, when these people were imprisoned, they blamed Cui Qi for his random accusations, but they were truly mistaken. In fact, the Inspectorate's Office only asked him a few simple questions before throwing him into prison, mainly about the origins of the Wa people's sword.
He said someone else gave it to him.
Who?
The Magistrate of Lingshui County.
Did he give you anything else?
It was all goods from the southern seas.
Do you know if he gave anything else to anyone else?
My uncle, officials from the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Finance, and also the Deputy Minister of Personnel, Qiao Bensan.
who delivered things every time.
With that, they considered their questioning done, and he was left in prison with no further attention.
In reality, the Inspectorate's Office was really short-staffed to handle him. Every person he mentioned was promptly summoned to the Inspectorate's Office, where they were asked similar simple questions:
"Have you received goods from the southern seas?"
"Yes, I have."
"What kind?"
"Finely carved ivory."
"Who gave it to you?"
"The Magistrate of Lingshui County."
"Who did you give it to?"
"Huo Houshouchen."
"No, that's not what I asked about, think again."
"Oh, there was also a foot-long piece of red coral, given to me by Deputy Minister Qiao Bensan from the Ministry of Personnel. I gave it to Chen Renshui, the chief jailer in the capital."
"That's not it, think again..."
"Bring Chen Renshui." As more and more intersecting points appeared on Pei Zhenyan's list. Those individuals listed were without exception "invited" by Pei ZhenYan to the Inspectorate's prison for questioning. Then they were swiftly escorted by Huo Changlin to await the "military parade."
As more and more points were woven into a rope, and the ropes formed a net. When all pointing to Lingshui County, the hawk's message finally reached Cheng Mo's hands. That very night, the Cheng family's guards secretly infiltrated Lingshui County, disguised themselves, and replaced those key figures, escorting them to the capital.