mtl008 Chapter 55 Hmm, how can it not be considered Lin Shiming's instruction?
Chapter 55 Hmm, how can it not be considered Lin Shiming's instruction?
The crowd below the stage was so frightened by Emperor Longyun's anger that they quickly bowed their heads and knelt down, shouting "Calm down!"
Lu Yuxi quickly pulled the person in his arms down to kneel. Fortunately, he reacted quickly, otherwise, in the Taiji Hall with its unobstructed view, the two of them would have become the most conspicuous figures, attracting everyone's attention.
Having averted an embarrassing crisis, Lu Yuxi finally breathed a sigh of relief, only to see Emperor Longyun rolling his eyes at them without any regard for their image while everyone was bowing their heads in kowtow.
"..."
Lu Yuxi immediately pulled Lin Shiming's head even closer to her chest. Seriously? Lin Shiming had already been clamoring about the roast duck for half the night; if this little devil saw it again, wouldn't he start a fight with his father right there and then?
Lu Yuxi sighed wearily and then gently pressed down on Lin Shiming, who was making little movements in her arms.
These two should just calm down. As the Crown Prince, all he does is try to mediate the "mother-in-law and daughter-in-law relationship" between the Crown Princess and the Emperor!
On the imperial platform, Emperor Longyun rolled his eyes and then smugly withdrew his gaze, continuing to feign rage. "Calm down, calm down! How can I calm down when something like this happens right under the emperor's nose?!"
The audience members bowed their heads deeply, not daring to speak.
"Alright. Get up, all of you. Where is the Commander of the Military Command? The Military Command is responsible for the security of the capital region. Tell me what you think about this matter."
Liang Zhang, the commander of the military command, had just stood up when he was called out of the ranks. He glanced quickly in Lin Shiming's direction, and Lin Shiming turned his head and nodded imperceptibly.
"Your Majesty, I seem to have some leads regarding Lord Huang!"
Emperor Longyun frowned. "Explain yourself! If it exists, it exists. What do you mean by 'seems like'?"
Liang Zhang bowed and scraped, "Your Majesty, the matter is as follows."
"Some time ago, Her Highness the Crown Princess was in charge of maintaining order in the examination hall. Her strictness and orderliness impressed us. Therefore, I took advantage of my own background in the Tingyun Army and shamelessly asked Her Highness the Crown Princess to leave a team of soldiers at the Military Command so that we could also retrain the soldiers of the Military Command."
Emperor Longyun nodded. "You reported this matter, and I am aware of it. But what does this have to do with Huang Renxuan?"
"Your Majesty, the cause lies here. When I was retraining the military, I also tightened some regulations and strengthened the management of security in the capital region. In particular, after the curfew, there are frequent patrols. Yesterday at 9:00 AM, a subordinate reported that they had caught a group of people who had gone out after the curfew during their night patrol."
The ministers had already sensed that something was wrong.
Lin Shiming grinned: Yes, yes, yes! It's them, except we didn't arrest them, they delivered themselves to our door!
Lin Shihe lowered his head and sighed.
"According to my subordinates, these people are acting suspiciously, refusing to cooperate with the interrogation, spouting nonsense, and insulting the soldiers. They claim to be high-ranking officials and wealthy families, and are demanding that I personally meet them. I naturally do not believe it. How could there be more than a dozen officials in our dynasty breaking the law at the same time, traveling in the middle of the night, and refusing to explain their reasons? Therefore, I have ordered my subordinates to detain them for a few days until they are obedient before interrogating them."
The ministers were shocked, realizing that the Crown Princess was likely involved in this matter once again!
Lin Shiming grinned, revealing most of his white teeth: Yes, yes, yes! I taught them to temper the arrogance of those who were disobedient. I reckon those people are too hungry to walk by now.
Lin Shihe pulled up his sleeves and began to play dead.
"I initially thought they were just a bunch of stubborn people with ulterior motives, and that I could interrogate them slowly. But I didn't expect that the Prefect of the Capital's Office just reported that a minister had indeed gone missing, and the timing matches up. That's when I remembered this matter. I think that Lord Huang might be among them."
Lin Shiming almost couldn't help but burst into laughter.
The Minister of Rites, with a mournful face, strode out with his trembling old bones to perform his duties.
"Your Majesty! Please issue an order to release them immediately. How can they, in their official robes, endure such humiliation?"
Liang Zhang, upright and selfless, interjected to defend himself, "Minister Li, rest assured, they weren't wearing official robes when they were arrested, otherwise I, as their subordinate, wouldn't dare to imprison them so casually! Besides, even if they were, we usually remove the prisoners' outer garments before interrogation, so we won't humiliate them!"
We're meticulous!
Another military officer from the Tingyun Army also came out to support Liang Zhang.
"That's right, that's right, Minister Li, why are you in such a hurry?"
"It's not even confirmed yet whether it's Lord Huang!"
"Even if we confirm that Lord Liang did something wrong, there's nothing wrong with it. They're out wandering around in the middle of the night instead of sleeping. Isn't that just wrong?"
…
"Enough! What kind of behavior is this, making such a racket in the main hall?"
Emperor Longyun slammed his hand on the table, and the hall fell silent instantly.
The previous Minister of Rites, who was disobedient, had already been exiled to the frontier under some pretext. This new one was someone he had painstakingly selected; although a bit pedantic, he was to his liking. He was getting on in years; he couldn't afford to let these roughnecks cause him trouble, otherwise where would he find another Minister of Rites with such discernment?
Emperor Longyun waved his hand, signaling Minister Li to return to his seat shakily before calmly sitting up himself.
“What you all say makes sense. In that case, Liang Zhang, you go with Mu Bolin to see for yourself. If it's not true, continue the interrogation according to your rules. If it is…”
Emperor Longyun meaningfully flicked the memorial presented by Yin Hao on the table.
"I also want to know why those dozen or so ministers went out late at night but dared not confess."
"I will obey your orders!"
Everyone watched Liang Zhang and Mu Bolin leave the Taiji Hall one after the other, and sighed deeply. It seemed they wouldn't be able to leave the hall before noon! They wondered if His Majesty would provide food.
*
Unlike the Six Ministries, the Capital Garrison had multiple outposts throughout the city for convenient patrols. Its headquarters and training grounds were located in Guanyafang, east of the Imperial Palace, and Beidaying, north of the Imperial City, respectively.
Many government offices not located in the palace were in this area, while some institutions such as the Imperial Academy were located to the west of the palace.
Therefore, it took Liang Zhang and his men half an hour to reach the prison of the Military Command, where they pulled the group of disheveled, poorly dressed, and dizzy-eyed ministers out of the cell.
In order to save time, Liang Zhang did not allow them to tidy up their appearance or have a meal. He threw them onto horseback and paraded them through the city to the palace.
If it weren't for the fact that there are government offices everywhere here, and few ordinary people come here, these people would probably lose face throughout the whole city.
Well, how can it not be considered as Lin Shiming's instruction?
After another half hour of riding, the dozen or so ministers, who were so shaken on horseback that they were about to vomit acid, finally stumbled and crawled to their knees in the Taiji Hall.
Staggering, Huang Renxuan, who had been reported by his family, tripped and lost his shoe. A sizable spider scurried out of the shoe, startling several civil officials nearby.
Emperor Longyun above sighed in exasperation, unable to bear watching any longer.
Lin Shihe remained motionless, continuing to feign death.
A quick-witted military officer stepped forward and stomped the spider to death.
"Don't worry, it's not poisonous!"
Huang Renxuan felt weak all over and crawled forward two steps while still lying on the ground.
"Your Majesty~"
The resentful tone of the voice made Emperor Longyun shudder with disgust, almost vomiting.