Zhu Ci glanced at Ge Xudong, nodded, said, "Go out and ask."
Ge Xudong's heart instantly raced, he opened his mouth, wanting to say that His Highness the Crown Prince needed someone to attend to him.
But when he thought about how he hadn't been by the Crown Prince's side when he needed someone most just now, he shut his mouth and walked out with Shen Fangxin, head bowed.
However, before they left, Zhu Ci spoke up, "Just get a sense of the situation. Manager Ge has always been loyal and will not collude with the rebels."
Shen Fangxin paused for a moment, hesitated, but then responded, "This general obeys your command."
Ge Xudong immediately bowed to Zhu Ci in gratitude. With these words from the Crown Prince, he could be spared the agony of interrogation; otherwise.. what good could come from falling into the hands of the Jinyi Guard?
Zhu Ci had not intended to make things difficult for him; if he died, Ge Xudong would have to be buried with him, unless the Emperor secretly ordered it and promised to spare his life.
Even if a promise were made to protect him, he would still escape death only to face other tribulations.
Most importantly, it's not even certain that he could be protected.
If word got out that the Emperor had sent people to assassinate the Crown Prince, hardly anyone would believe it.
The Emperor wants to kill his own son, yet he acts so sneakily; it is quite undignified.
Although Li Longji once killed three of his sons in a single day, that was because the Crown Prince had attempted treason first.
Whether or not the Crown Prince was truly rebelling, at least he had entered the palace with guards and weapons, the evidence was irrefutable.
Zhu Ci had never engaged in any improper behavior, so Zhu Yousong could find no leverage and could only look for an opportunity to strike. However, this was something that absolutely could not be allowed to become known to the court officials; once they found out, the Great Ming would surely collapse.
If even the Emperor can attempt to assassinate the Crown Prince, what else can't he do?
While Zhu Ci was thinking and preparing to continue writing the memorial, he suddenly snapped back to reality, realizing that Ge Xudong had been taken away, he no longer had a ghostwriter.
He couldn't be bothered to find anyone else to help, so he simply wrote a memorial using his own chicken scratch.
Luckily, he had practiced his calligraphy during this period; even if it wasn't beautiful, it could at least be considered neat.
Just as he had arranged for someone to send the memorial to Nanjing, Shen Fangxin returned with Ge Xudong to report the news.
Shen Fangxin knelt below, his forehead touching the ground as he said, "Your Highness, this general is incompetent; I failed to find the true mastermind behind it all."
Author's Note:
----------------------
Zhu Ci: Heh, didn't see that coming, did you? I can fight! Cat practicing Wing Chun. jpg
Next update tomorrow at 12:00 PM~
Chapter 19
Zhu Ci was warming himself by the fire; Nanjing in late November was already very cold, especially now that it was already the hour of Shen.
He was not surprised to hear Shen Fangxin say this, but simply asked, "What have you found?"
Shen Fangxin presented a deposition and said, "The final clue was lost once it reached the Vice Minister of Rites, Guo You."
The Ministry of Rites.. Indeed, the entire mission for this trip was arranged by the Ministry of Rites, which explains why the assassins were able to successfully penetrate through layers of protection to reach the central tent.
Zhu Ci asked, "And what is suspicious about this Guo You?"
Shen Fangxin hesitated for a moment before saying, "Guo You's wife is the younger sister of Consort Chen."
Oh, so it all connects now.
Zhu Ci set the deposition aside and looked at Shen Fangxin with great interest. "You don't think he is the true mastermind?"
Shen Fangxin said solemnly, "Exactly. Although Guo You can arrange the mission, the Jinyi Guard's patrol lines are a secret that he shouldn't know about. Furthermore, the food and drink for the eunuchs around Your Highness are all arranged by the Eastern Palace Dianshanjian, which is absolutely beyond Guo You's reach. It's just that now.. no matter how I investigate and question, I find no clues. I beg Your Highness to punish me."
Zhu Ci said in a gentle voice, "This is not your fault. The rebels must have been fully prepared before they acted. Furthermore, Guo You might indeed be able to manipulate Dianshanjian. When the Noble Consort and her son's rebellion was discovered, it was because they had planted people within Dianshanjian to administer poison. It is possible that someone is still lurking there even now."
Shen Fangxin was unaware of this. Upon hearing it, he immediately said with excitement, "This general will conduct a more rigorous interrogation."
Zhu Ci waved his hand. "There is no need for further interrogation; the truth of this matter has already come to light."
"But.. if we don't find the true mastermind.." Shen Fangxin looked at Zhu Ci with some confusion.
Enough!" Zhu Ci raised his hand and pressed it down, looking at Shen Fangxin with sharp eyes. "Did you not understand when I said this matter ends here? Guo You is the mastermind behind it all!
Shen Fangxin's body shuddered as he immediately knelt and said, "This general understands."
Zhu Ci raised his hand, handed the deposition back, said, "Do whatever needs to be done with the rest; do not cause unnecessary complications."
Shen Fangxin took the statement and was about to take his leave when he heard Zhu Ci say, "If you submit a memorial, remember to state that the relevant parties have been punished by me."
Shen Fangxin looked up at the Crown Prince in surprise, but Zhu Ci looked at him with a gentle expression. "I do not want this matter to have widespread consequences, do you understand?"
Shen Fangxin's eyes instantly reddened. While escorting the Crown Prince this time, he had brought only his most trusted confidants, yet this kind of incident had occurred nonetheless.
Even though he had done everything in his power to investigate, the fact that the Crown Prince had been assassinated was real. He could barely ensure his own safety, let alone that of his subordinates.
Now that the Crown Prince had said this, he, as a Thousand-man Commander of the Jinyi Guard, would certainly be punished, but his subordinates would be able to save their lives.
Shen Fangxin kowtowed heavily and said, "Thank you, Your Highness!"
After Shen Fangxin withdrew, Ge Xudong hesitated for a long moment before asking, "Your Highness, do you know the identity of the mastermind?"
Zhu Ci shook his head. "I don't know."
Ge Xudong was somewhat puzzled. "Then why not continue the investigation?"
Zhu Ci leaned back and said expressionlessly, "The opposition is very cautious. All the clues point to Guo You, so even if we continue the investigation, we might not find anything; instead, it would only cause the Jinyi Guard to manufacture many wrongful cases to protect themselves. At that time, blood would surely flow in the imperial court. Besides, we cannot stay here for too long. The most important thing right now is to go to Hangzhou to find Zhu Ci. Once we arrive in Hangzhou, we will actually be safe."
Gao Hongtu's people might not protect him, but they will certainly protect Zhu Ci.
Moreover, even if the investigation continued, it might not yield anything, as there wasn't a single mention of Fu Chunsheng or Fu Qiulu in the existing evidence.
Zhu Ci trusted his own observations; the assassins were definitely connected to these two, but their backgrounds were simply too "clean" to uncover anything.
Since nothing can be found out, why continue? It would be better to let the mastermind believe this matter is over and continue their schemes.
Thinking back, those two assassins didn't seem to be after his life from the very beginning; perhaps they had other schemes in mind.
Ge Xudong fell silent for a moment before saying in a low voice, "Your Highness is merciful, but.. the officials in the imperial court may not necessarily let this opportunity pass."
Zhu Ci gave a helpless smile. "I will do what I can; as for the rest.. I cannot control it either."
Just as he could not stop the Qing army from advancing south, nor could he stop the factional struggles within the imperial court.
Of course, if he were to sit in Zhu Yousong's position, everything would naturally be different; compared to Zhu Yousong, he might even be better able to control the imperial court.
After all, he had grown up learning the art of slaying dragons; given that the Ming Dynasty raised vassal princes like pigs, what talent could Zhu Yousong possibly possess?
Unfortunately.. there is no such opportunity. Even if there were, he would still hesitate.
If he had just a little more time to deal with those bastards in the imperial court, it might have been possible, but now, it is truly beyond saving.
Zhu Ci turned to Ge Xudong and said, "Give the orders. Do not delay; we depart tomorrow."
Ge Xudong bowed.
Of course, while some hoped for an early departure, others did not. Even within a small mission, disputes were inevitable, the disputes here were merely an extension of factional strife.
Some wanted to protect Guo You, feeling that the case was full of suspicious points and demanding that the Crown Prince conduct a thorough investigation, while others wanted to suppress Guo You and naturally insisted that he was the one who acted.
The commotion escalated until it reached Zhu Ci, what was originally supposed to be an early morning departure was delayed so much that they hadn't even begun moving by noon.
Zhu Ci sat in the tidied camp tent, expressionless, clutching a string of Buddhist prayer beads as he watched the civil officials of the mission below attacking one another with mutual accusations.
Because he had remained silent, the situation naturally escalated, eventually turning into shoving and pushing, looking as if they were about to come to blows.
Ge Xudong immediately stepped forward and shouted, "Presumptuous! What kind of conduct is this, resorting to physical shoving? Do you have any respect for His Highness the Crown Prince!"
Of course they didn't respect him; these civil officials sometimes didn't even respect the Emperor, so what was a Crown Prince without real power in their eyes?
However, on the surface, they still stopped and bowed to Zhu Ci to beg for forgiveness, albeit reluctantly.
Zhu Ci leaned forward, his right arm resting on his thigh, stared at one of them as he asked, "You.. are you dissatisfied with my judgment?"
That man was the Vice Director of the Guest Affairs Bureau of the Ministry of Rites. On the surface, he had nothing to do with Guo You, but in reality, he was a distant cousin of Guo You's mistress. Being stared at by Zhu Ci, he instantly broke into a cold sweat.
This Crown Prince had always been gentle and silent, so how could he possess such immense pressure?
He took a deep breath and said, "Vice Minister Guo has always been loyal and would never act against His Highness the Crown Prince. I ask Your Highness to investigate this matter thoroughly."
Zhu Ci straightened his back, leaned against the chair, let out a light laugh. "Investigate? The evidence is irrefutable; how much more investigation do you need? Or do you have other evidence?"
The Vice Director of the Bureau of Personnel gritted his teeth and said, "I suspect this matter is related to the Minister of Rites, Jiang Yeguang.."
“Enough!” Zhu Ci's expression darkened, he interrupted the Vice Director of the Bureau of Rites before he could even finish speaking. “Shen Fangxin!”
Shen Fangxin immediately stepped forward. "This general is here."
Zhu Ci pointed at the Vice Director of the Bureau of Personnel and said, "Seize this man and send him back to Nanjing to be dealt with by the Court of Judicial Review."
The Vice Director of the Bureau of Personnel turned pale. "Your Highness, is this because of my words?"
Zhu Ci let out a cold snort. "You are in the Ministry of Rites and have connections to Guo You; I suspect you were also involved in the assassination attempt."
Before the other could speak, Zhu Ci stared at him and said, "You don't actually think your relationship with Guo You can be hidden from the Jinyi Guard, do you?"
After speaking, he glanced at the person who was itching to speak up for the Vice Director of the Bureau of Appointments and said, "Anyone who dares to plead for mercy will be treated as an accomplice!"
The Vice Director of the Bureau of Personnel had no way to deny this; he could only desperately cry out his innocence before being silenced and dragged away.
After the man was dragged away, the scene fell into silence. Zhu Ci lowered his eyes and said, "I hope you all can behave yourselves for the rest of the journey. I did not wish for this matter to involve too many people, but if anyone insists on making a scene, I will not be merciful."
Having finished speaking, he waved his hand. "Set out!"
The Ministry of Rites officials of the mission all quietly withdrew.
They need to re-evaluate this Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince was clearly far more opinionated than his father and much more resolute and decisive in his actions, far from the gentle and weak appearance he projected.
Zhu Ci simply did not care what his subordinates thought.
He indeed did not want the situation to escalate. If it had been a mere ordinary quarrel, he might have simply struck both sides equally to gloss over the matter, but Guo You's people absolutely should not have tried to drag Jiang Yeguang down with them.
Admittedly, as the Minister of Rites, Jiang Yeguang certainly bears an inescapable responsibility for the treasonous actions of his subordinates.
Zhu Ci went to great lengths to downplay the situation precisely so as not to affect Jiang Yeguang.
He did not know how this person would be in history, but in the plot he knew, the Minister of Rites might be one of the few in the imperial court who advocated for active war preparations, military reorganization, suggested joining forces with the remnants of the peasant armies to resist the Qing.
Unfortunately, Ma Shiying and the others insisted on allying with the Mongols to suppress the rebels, remaining indifferent to the Qing invasion while focusing their attention on the rebel peasant armies.