Chapter 205

Seeing that Huang Jin dared not speak further, the Emperor continued the words himself.

"Yes, what the Taizu personally designated back then was not the lineage of the Chengzu, but the Jianwen Emperor."

"And what the Xiaolingwei is loyal to is indeed not me. It is just that they are only responsible for guarding the Imperial Tombs and never interfere in political affairs; furthermore, when the Chengzu attacked the capital back then, they did not cause trouble, so the ancestors of successive generations did not move against them and just let them be."

The Emperor pondered for a moment and said.

"So, you mean that the Xiaolingwei stole while on guard duty, colluded with the Ming Sect thieves, and deliberately released the Jianwen Emperor."

"And their intention is to 'restore order' and 'clarify the universe', right?"

The Emperor could say this jokingly, but Huang Jin did not dare to truly answer following the Emperor's words, so he took a detour and said.

"Your Majesty, this matter only had the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Xiaolingwei as options to begin with."

"And the Embroidered Uniform Guard..."

The Emperor gave a cold snort.

"That old thing Zhu Zai has indeed had his own thoughts in recent years, associating with court officials all day and having quite a few complaints about me. I had already been thinking of forming a yamen to replace the Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"But he truly cannot do this."

"His background is not high, so it is impossible for him to know about things inside the Imperial Tombs; his martial arts are just so-so, and he couldn't train a figure capable of exchanging blows with the Jianwen Emperor."

"If not for the experts supported by the imperial court, his Embroidered Uniform Guard would have no capital to fight the Ming Sect at all. Ji Tianrui was killed by the team he led, and it is indeed hard to imagine the Ming Sect would collude with him."

"Therefore, it can only be the Xiaolingwei."

"Zhu, Shou, Jing."

The Emperor read out this name one character at a time.

And Huang Jin also added.

"Your Majesty, last night I brought several Xiaolingwei members for questioning; Zhu Shoujing was indeed very suspicious last night."

"On that day after the Xiaolingwei arrived, Zhu Shoujing stared at the Jianwen Emperor for a moment and actually attacked his own Heaven-Man subordinates, crippling one on the spot."

"Afterward, he caused his own true energy to go astray and suffered Qi deviation, and the Jianwen Emperor took advantage of the time the Xiaolingwei were checking his injuries to escape in the chaos; the Ming Sect thieves also escaped during this time."

"Comparing the events before and after, Zhu Shoujing is probably hard-pressed to argue."

Huang Jin hesitated for a moment and continued.

"It is just that there is one point I have not figured out."

"If this person is from the Xiaolingwei, why did he first assist the Ming Sect in releasing the Jianwen Emperor, only to then fight him to the death?"

"The actions are inconsistent."

"It is also because I could not figure this out that I did not move against the Xiaolingwei, but hurried back to report to Your Majesty for a decision."

"Heh."

The Emperor chuckled.

"The Jianwen Emperor."

"After the Chengzu ascended the throne back then, many scholars and poets wrote stories about the Chengzu, secretly writing many tales that painted the Jianwen Emperor as a gentle, generous, and benevolent wise monarch."

"The Chengzu compiled history books and deleted the Jianwen Emperor's affairs altogether; the news circulating outside the palace about the Jianwen Emperor now is mostly these fabricated stories."

"I estimate that Zhu Shoujing also believed these, which is why he assisted the Ming Sect in releasing the Jianwen Emperor."

The Emperor said with a cold laugh.

"But they don't stop to think: if the Jianwen Emperor were truly so wise, how could the Chengzu have attacked the capital? The foundation the Taizu left him was something ten Chengzu combined couldn't catch up to."

"If he were truly so generous, how could the imperial clan members have responded one after another, bringing food and drink to welcome the royal army, and sending the Chengzu into the Hall of Supreme Harmony?"

"Do you think the Chengzu wanted to rebel?"

"It was just that he had no other choice and could only try to fight for his own life."

The Emperor asked.

"Did anyone see the Jianwen Emperor's appearance last night?"

"Yes."

Huang Jin replied.

"Excluding the Ming Sect and that person, many in the Xiaolingwei also saw it, saying he was like a demon."

"The corpses of Lord Yin and Lord Wang were also extremely miserable."

The Emperor nodded and said.

"That is how it is."

"The Jianwen Emperor is not as good as Zhu Shoujing thinks. Once he leaves the tomb, he intends to 'eat people'."

"I suppose that person must have assisted the Ming Sect in releasing the Jianwen Emperor, only to discover he was not the wise monarch he imagined, but a man-eating demon, and that is why he tried to remedy the situation by wanting to press him back into the tomb."

"That is why he made these inconsistent moves."

"It is also laughable."

Huang Jin nodded in agreement.

"In that case, Your Majesty, should I take troops to arrest Zhu Shoujing?"

The Emperor waved his hand.

"No need."

"The defense of the Imperial Tombs is already thin, and the day after tomorrow is the day for ancestor worship; if I withdraw the Xiaolingwei now, I fear it will cause trouble."

"First move the garrison back to the Imperial Tombs, and you take ten experts to watch Zhu Shoujing; before the ancestor worship, take them down along with those battalion and company commanders—the remaining soldiers won't be able to cause any trouble."

"Yes."

Huang Jin replied.

"There is one more thing."

The Emperor said slowly.

"Tonight, arrange a family banquet."

"Invite all the imperial clan members within the Shuntian Prefecture."

Huang Jin was surprised.

"Your Majesty, according to the rules, the family banquet is on tomorrow evening..."

The Emperor waved his hand.

"You don't know the Jianwen Emperor's true nature."

"That appearance of his is because he is 'hungry'."

"To him, there is no 'food' more nourishing than the Zhu family members."

The Emperor said lazily.

"It is just right to invite the gentleman into the urn."

————————

Zhu Residence, study.

Zhu Zai frowned, staring fixedly at the paper filled with names, his hand unconsciously rubbing the brush handle.

After exchanging information with Li Miao, it was already the hour of the dragon (7-9 AM); Li Miao was immediately exhausted and went to find a side room to sleep.

And Zhu Zai had no mind to go to the Embroidered Uniform Guard to perform his duties, so he went straight back to the study and stayed there until now.

Li Miao spoke lightly.

Who to kill, how to kill, when to kill.

Yes, by now, Zhu Zai already had a clear understanding of Li Miao's combat power, and he did not doubt at all that if Li Miao said a few names, Li Miao would really rush over overnight and pull all those heads off.

But, Zhu Zai was an imperial clan member after all.

He might not be loyal to the Emperor, but he was truly loyal to the Zhu family and the Great Ming.

Such a big matter, Li Miao handed it over to Zhu Zai's hands in a lighthearted manner; he really did not know what to do, nor did he know if he could truly take on this matter.

He was, after all, not as thick-skinned as Li Miao, who could still sleep at a time like this.

After a long while, Zhu Zai sighed deeply, crumpled the paper on the table into a ball, and threw it under his feet.

The floor was already full of such paper balls.

Zhu Zai pinched the bridge of his nose, looking worried.

Suddenly, a sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

A servant walked quickly into the study and said softly.

"Master, Eunuch Huang has arrived."

Zhu Zai raised his head abruptly.

"Huang Jin?"

"Yes."

"What for?"

"His Majesty has an edict, inviting you to enter the palace for a banquet, a family banquet."

In an instant, Zhu Zai's hair stood on end, and he thought to himself.

"Did Li Miao hide his identity well last night!?"

"This wouldn't be a Hongmen Banquet, would it!"

(End of chapter)