The Child Emperor

After a little interrogation, the King of Donghai felt that he must immediately deliver Ma Mu to the emperor. The short confession contained too much information, and the Donghai Kingdom, the Yan family, the Cui family, etc. were all implicated. He did not want to be induced to confess. of suspicion.

The assassin was first brought to see Cai Xinghai, but Cai Xinghai was also surprised. After a little inquiries, he felt that he should report it to the emperor immediately, so he entered the house late at night and knocked on the door.

Han Ruzi put on his clothes and was escorted by a group of guards and soldiers to the front hall. For the sake of safety, the assassin was not brought, but was detained in the guard camp next door. The King of the East Sea was waiting here and explained the cause and effect once again, and attribute the credit to the mad monk Guangding.

Han Ruzi was surprised by the efficiency of the East Sea King, and even more surprised by Guangding's willingness to help. He had more contact with Jianghu people, and he felt that it was normal for the crazy monk to leave without saying goodbye.

After listening to the words of the King of the East Sea, Han Ruzi thought for a while and asked, Did that Ma Mu say, 'Even the emperor has our people by his side', or did he say, 'The emperor will have our people by his side'?

This sentence was told to Guangding by the thief, and Guangding then told Donghai King. Assassin Ma Mu did not confess directly, Donghai Wang was stunned for a moment, the meaning of one word is very different, This... I will ask again. ask.

Who is the thief who passed the news to Guangding? Can you find it?

This... Guangding didn't say it. The king of Donghai began to sweat on his forehead. He thought that the emperor would immediately investigate the relationship between the assassin and the Yan family and the Cui family, but he didn't expect the emperor to be more concerned about the source of the news and whether it was accurate.

Interrogation is a skill. Criminals are usually more professional than ordinary officials. Han Ruzi is short of such a person. The original criminals in the government have not yet gained his trust. In the battle of Jincheng, the emperor was even more unavailable.

Bring the assassin. Han Ruzi wanted to interrogate him himself.

Donghai King and Cai Xinghai persuaded at the same time, with different reasons. Cai Xinghai thought that it was an assassin after all. If he struggled desperately, it might disturb His Majesty. Donghai King thought that the emperor did something wrong and personally interrogated an ordinary little official and Jianghu warlock. , it doesn't sound good to say.

There were many guards and eunuchs in the hall. Han Ruzi was considering who should interrogate the assassin instead of him. He even thought of Jing Zhaoyin Judicial joining the army and Lian Danchen. He was hesitating, and Jin Chunzhong squeezed in from the crowd, Your Majesty, let I'm going to interrogate the prisoner.

Han Ruzi was even more hesitant. Although Jin Chunzhong was a Xiongnu, he was born in Dachu and grew up in the Guiyihou mansion since he was a child.

It's late at night, so it's hard to find someone. If I'm not suitable, it's too late to change someone tomorrow. Jin Chunzhong added.

Jin Chunzhong is a relatively calm person, and he will not recommend himself easily if he cannot do it. Han Ruzi thought of this and said, Alright, you and the King of Donghai will go to interrogate again.

When they walked out of the Marquis Mansion, the King of the East Sea turned to Jin Chunzhong with a smile: I didn't expect Brother Jin to understand this kind of thing.

Reluctantly. Jin Chunzhong also smiled.

Arriving at the door of the next door, the East Sea King once again folded his hands, I haven't congratulated Brother Jin yet.

Congratulations? Jin Chunzhong asked in surprise.

It is rumored that Concubine Jin is happy outside the fortress, and it is very likely that the eldest son will be born to His Majesty. With this son, Concubine Jin can return to Beijing, and Brother Jin can also make progress.

Jin Chunzhong was even more confused, Where did the rumors come from? My sister never communicated with Da Chu outside the Great Wall, nor did she have any correspondence with His Majesty, and... where did the rumors come from?

King Donghai looked embarrassed, That's what everyone said nonsense, Brother Jin, don't blame me.

The King of the East Sea hesitated, and it was not until he entered the mansion that Jin Chunzhong understood that the King of the East Sea was deliberately setting his own words, and he felt amused in his heart.

In the House of Marquis, Cai Xinghai strengthened the guards. No one, including the eunuchs and the soldiers of the military guard, could enter the back house at will to approach the emperor. Even so, he was still uneasy. The phrase the emperor has our people around made him deeply. Feeling uneasy, but he has an official position and can't break the rules casually, so he invited Wang He, the head of the guards, to see the emperor together.

Before all the assassins were arrested, did His Majesty think about going back to the palace for a while? Cai Xinghai said first.

There are many people in the palace, so it's not necessarily safer than the Marquis Mansion. Han Ruzi was not so nervous.

Then, can His Majesty... see some people less recently? Cai Xinghai made another suggestion.

Are you worried about assassins mixing in?

It's not impossible.

This Ma Mu was originally a warlock in the rivers and lakes. A year ago, he infiltrated the state minister's mansion as an official... Han Ruzi's heart moved. He was not the emperor a year ago, so what was Ma Mu's pseudonym for as an official? He continued: It just shows the credibility of the court officials, Yun Mengze can't buy it, so he can only send people to mix in.

Cai Xinghai had nothing to say, looked at Wang He, Wang He stepped forward and said: The officials are trustworthy, but the people around the officials are not necessarily. I hope Your Majesty will give us a little time to investigate the people around the people who enter the palace. If there is no problem, It's not too late to see you, Your Majesty, and let's lighten our burden a little bit.

Cai Xinghai nodded again and again.

Han Ruzi thought for a while, Okay, I'll give you three days first, I'll give you a list, first investigate a few people who often enter the house, and others will talk about it later.

Han Ruzi first wrote down the names of several noble children and scholars who often entered the mansion and even lived in the mansion, and handed it to Cai Xinghai.

Cai Xinghai and Wang He retired, and when they got outside, Cai Xinghai glanced at the list and said, Who should start first?

Wang He said: Let's start with you and me.

Cai Xinghai was stunned for a moment, then understood and smiled: Okay, you investigate me, I will investigate you, then our subordinates, then Donghai King and Cui Teng, and then these people. He shook the paper in his hand. .

Especially my subordinates, please look into General Cai carefully. Wang He urged.

Cai Xinghai was not surprised this time. He knew who Wang He's so-called subordinates were. As the leader of the guards, Wang He was not easy to investigate personally, so he had to rely on outsiders.

I hope our judgments are all wrong. Cai Xinghai said, and said goodbye.

The interrogation would not be too fast. Han Ruzi returned to the bedroom. Concubine Shu Deng Yun was already asleep and snoring lightly. She didn't care about anything, she just wanted to have a son and lay the foundation for the Deng family's comeback.

Han Ruzi lay down, not particularly concerned about the assassin, and still thinking about what Zhao Ruosu said: transforming the court with the rules of the court, although time-consuming and laborious, is the most secure. He understood the reason, but he didn't know how to proceed. He couldn't help blushing a little when he thought that he had boasted to Meng E that he had mastered the art of emperor.

The next morning, Han Ruzi assigned tasks to the Zai and others in Qinzheng Hall, asking them to formulate an overall strategy for the Huns as soon as possible.

Compared with the Huns, Yunmengze and the pirates in the East China Sea are only minor problems. So far, the emperor has only sent generals to guard the frontier. He hopes that he will be able to fight the Huns after the Great Chu regains a certain strength. There is no more detailed plan, or even no. Start negotiating the matter.

The emperor handed such an important task to the minister, the prime minister Shen Mingzhi and others were all surprised and relieved at the same time, this means trust after all.

According to convention, the first step for the court to solve a problem is not to discuss the problem itself, but to find the most suitable person to discuss the problem. General Cui Hong has been recuperating at home after returning to Beijing. Deliberation, followed by a whole set of procedures, such as issuing imperial edicts, collecting memorials, sorting and selecting the best and other paperwork, is enough for the entire court to be busy for several months.

At the same time, Han Ruzi invited a minister of state affairs to go to the House of Marquis Juan, so that the emperor's decision could be immediately uploaded to the Qinzheng Palace, instead of discussing it the next day.

This is even more of an honor. Prime Minister Shen Mingzhi did not dare to take it alone, and suggested that the ministers of government should take turns to go to the Marquis Mansion, each for ten days, and the prime minister himself could not go.

The matter was settled like this, the emperor made a little compromise with the minister, just like someone who got a new sword for the first time, Han Ruzi had to try to swing it twice, try the weight, and then practice the routine, and finally he could be handy and hold it. Blade kills the enemy.

Returning to the Marquis Mansion at noon, Jin Chunzhong's examination papers were already placed on the desk.

Han Ruzi watched while eating, and was quite surprised. Jin Chunzhong asked rigorous questions and recorded detailed records, and he had the demeanor of an old official.

Ma Mu was very tough at the beginning. Although it was omitted from the dossier, Han Ruzi could still see that the fortune-teller had said a lot of swear words, but after some torture, he still recruited.

He didn't know how many assassins Luan Banxiong had sent. There was only one person who connected with him, disguised as a businessman and mixed in with the debt collection team.

He did say that the emperor has our people around, but he heard it from Yunmengze's military division. At that time, he said it purely to appease the other party. As for whether it is already or will be , he doesn't know either.

Jin Chunzhong also asked about Ma Mu's question as an official a year ago. It turned out that Yun Mengze's original goal was not the emperor, but the East China Sea. Ma Mu's mission was to assist in the assassination of the country's prime minister, Yan Kang's family, when necessary. He failed too fast, and the East China Sea was not the main force in pacifying the chaos, so he stayed, never exposed, and even gained the trust of the Yan family and his son.

The Cui family in his mouth was indeed the Taifu Cui Hong's family, but that was only because Master Yan Peng lived in the Cui house, and it had no meaning.

Jin Chunzhong repeated the interrogation with different questioning methods to confirm that Ma Mu was not lying temporarily. Many people were involved in the testimony. Except for the businessman Yunxiong who wanted to be arrested as soon as possible, Jin Chunzhong did not dare to make decisions about others. At the end of the dossier, who should he ask for instructions? You can call for evidence.

Han Ruzi was very satisfied. It wasn't that Yunmengze's assassin finally leaked, but that he found a useful person like Jin Chunzhong.

The Cui family has little to do with this. Han Ruzi circled the names of Cui Hong and his son, and the rest followed Jin Chunzhong to ask questions. Although Yan Pengshi was also a high-ranking official, Ma Mu was brought by him after all, and the situation must be explained.

Han Ruzi wanted to let Jin Chunzhong go to investigate immediately. After thinking about it and pressing the dossier, he had to seal Jin Chunzhong a formal position before sending him to investigate the case. This is also the rule of the court. As an emperor, he should abide by it.

The Minister of Personnel Feng Ju came to the Marquis Mansion that afternoon, but he didn't see a few people. Cai Xinghai and Wang He were investigating the background of each person and their entourage, and most of them were not allowed to enter the mansion.

This evening, Cai Xinghai sent the first report, and the person at the top was the bodyguard Meng E.

The report was as concise as possible, without making judgments. Meng E's background and behavior were listed one by one, most of which were not secrets to the emperor. At the end, Cai Xinghai wrote a line in thick pen: October 7th, October 10th First, Meng E left the house twice in the evening, and returned the next morning, missing her whereabouts.