Chapter 4 A Heavy Crime

Disrespecting the Imperial Ancestral Temple was a grave crime tantamount to treason.

Although Jiang Chen had displayed thunderous methods and suppressed the matter with Xu Changqing, he still had to give everyone an explanation.

After all, the power of the Great Wei royal family was still very strong. Most of Jiang Chen's elders were still alive. If he, the emperor, dared to deal with this matter vaguely and let Xu Changqing off the hook,

Jiang Chen was sure that his royal uncles and grand uncles would definitely rise up!

Glancing at Prince Fu, who stood beneath the imperial steps with a gloomy face, Jiang Chen felt a headache coming on.

At this time, the Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs was still howling and begging for mercy, oblivious to the danger. His shrill voice made Jiang Chen's anger rise even more.

He turned his head and shouted sternly, "What are you still waiting for?"

"Drag this traitor down and execute him immediately!"

Sensing the emperor's displeasure, the imperial guards trembled inwardly. They quickly carried away the Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs, transporting him outside the hall to begin the caning.

*Pa! Pa!*

The muffled sound of wooden sticks striking the human body echoed into the hall.

Accompanied by the increasingly weak pleas for mercy from the Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs, each strike landed heavily on the hearts of everyone present, chilling them to the bone.

But no one dared to plead for mercy.

Even when they could no longer hear the Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs' voice, and began to suspect that he had been beaten to death, no one dared to speak out.

In this strange atmosphere, Jiang Chen handled several more government affairs.

Those government affairs that had been constantly stalled by the officials' squabbling were now discussed extremely smoothly. Almost everyone agreed with whatever Jiang Chen said, making the efficiency remarkably high.

After a long time, when the imperial guards had finished the execution and the muffled sounds outside the hall had stopped,

Jiang Chen said regretfully, "Let's end the court session here for today. Dismissed!"

"As for the matter of Xu Changqing, I will give an explanation in seven days!"

Everyone looked at each other upon hearing this, but dared not say anything more.

Seven days it is, then!

His Majesty was willing to give an explanation, so they could wait a few days.

After all, the last Grand Master of the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs who stood up to express his disagreement had been beaten half to death. They didn't want to follow in his footsteps!

Qinzheng Hall.

The Noble Consort Shu had already heard about the matter at the Imperial Ancestral Temple. At this moment, she had removed her hairpins, dressed in plain clothes, and knelt in front of the imperial desk, tearfully pleading guilty to Jiang Chen.

"Yun'er, get up first. The ground is too cold and not conducive to your recovery!"

Jiang Chen said with concern, personally helping the Noble Consort Shu up, wanting to warm her cold, jade-like hands.

The Noble Consort Shu was stunned when she heard this.

Seeing Jiang Chen treating her as he always had, without any change, her tears flowed even more fiercely.

But her frightened and apprehensive heart calmed down. She held Jiang Chen's large hand in hers, sobbing, "Your Majesty, my brother is not that kind of person. He, he would not trespass into the Imperial Ancestral Temple, let alone disrespect the late emperors… He must have been framed. Please investigate thoroughly!"

As she spoke, the Noble Consort Shu struggled tremblingly, wanting to get out of Jiang Chen's arms and kneel down to beg him to agree.

Pity appeared in Jiang Chen's eyes, "I know."

"I will definitely investigate thoroughly, catch the real culprit behind the scenes, and not let your elder brother be wronged!"

Having received his promise,

The big stone in the Noble Consort Shu's heart finally fell, and her tears gradually stopped. She said cautiously, "Your Majesty, such a big thing has happened, it will surely cause a stir in the city. I only have this one brother, can you let me see him and confirm his safety?"

Jiang Chen was somewhat embarrassed, and sighed, explaining, "Um, Yun'er, that's not possible for the time being."

"Although I believe that Xu Changqing would not do such a presumptuous thing, other members of the royal family and relatives see your elder brother as an enemy. Moreover, the mastermind who planned all this has not been caught. With so many enemies hiding in the dark, your elder brother's whereabouts cannot be revealed for the time being."

As he said this, Jiang Chen held the Noble Consort Shu even tighter, and whispered in her ear, "I have now arranged for Xu Changqing to be in the imperial prison. Although the conditions there are poor, it is safe enough to protect your elder brother from being schemed against by villains."

"Yun'er, believe me, after seven days, I will definitely restore his innocence and reunite you siblings!"

Hearing this, the Noble Consort Shu was completely relieved.

In her heart, Jiang Chen was an omnipotent hero, and she would always trust him wholeheartedly!

Nodding vigorously, a smile bloomed on the Noble Consort Shu's face again,

"Okay, then I'll go back to my palace first, and not stay here and delay you from working!"

After she left,

Xu Mu arrived.

"Your Majesty, I have some preliminary results. The news was spread from several palace maids on duty, but I haven't found the reason why it spread so quickly."

His voice was uneasy, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead, afraid that the emperor would not be satisfied with this result.

"What about those palace maids?" Jiang Chen's expression was indifferent, and he couldn't tell whether he was happy or angry.

Xu Mu knelt on the ground, a trace of bitterness flashing in his eyes, and hesitated, "Dead, dead… They died of poison after being interrogated for information by the Court of Judicial Review!"

Jiang Chen closed his eyes forcefully, a flash of anger on his face, "What about the follow-up?"

Xu Mu's inner armor was already soaked with sweat, and he said in horror, "Yesterday, when General Xu was passing by the Exotic Beast Garden, he should have left through the Yingtian Gate by carriage, but the people accompanying him inexplicably fainted!"

"When they woke up, it was already the time of the incident in the evening."

"During this blank period, they had no memory at all… As for General Xu, he said that he saw a hooded figure with suspicious behavior, suspecting that this person was an assassin who had sneaked into the palace, so he chased after him, and unknowingly came near the Imperial Ancestral Temple…"

Jiang Chen frowned and asked, "And then?"

Xu Mu swallowed, and said hesitantly, "Then, then General Xu said that he smelled a strange fragrance, and then he fainted. When he woke up, he was lying in the Imperial Ancestral Temple, with… with…"

Jiang Chen suddenly stood up, his eyes filled with bloodthirsty ferocity!

"Good! Very good!"

"My palace, the most heavily guarded place in all of Great Wei, has actually been infiltrated into a sieve by this mastermind behind the scenes!"

"First, they attacked the palace servants in the Exotic Beast Garden, then they drugged my Great General, and finally, they destroyed the Imperial Ancestral Temple!!"

The more Jiang Chen spoke, the more terrifying his expression became.

At this time, Xu Mu no longer dared to breathe, his face flushed red, for fear of making a noise and being noticed by the emperor and held responsible.

He was the commander of the imperial guards, responsible for guarding the palace.

Now that so many mistakes had occurred, he should be held primarily responsible!

Just when the atmosphere was frozen to the extreme, Jing Yue appeared.

She had been hiding in the dark, protecting Jiang Chen's safety, but when she heard that the situation was so serious, she couldn't help but come out and join the discussion.

"Your Majesty, I believe that although this matter is棘手 (jí shǒu, thorny), if handled properly, it may not be a bad thing!"

Jiang Chen raised his eyebrows and regained his composure slightly, "Speak."

A pensive look appeared on Jing Yue's cold and pretty face, "Based on my past experience, the more meticulous the plan, the more flaws and clues it leaves behind!"

"If we can seize these clues and investigate them, we may be able to find the person behind the scenes and solve a major problem!"