Chapter 62 Interrogation

To be honest, it was purely coincidental that Zhang Taiyue was in the Forbidden Garden at this time. Mu Qi had earlier dragged this newly-minted scholar into the Forbidden Garden in the name of "cooperating in organizing the Banquet of Grace and Honor". He had originally planned to flatter Lao Deng after the rocket issue was settled, and then let Zhang Taiyue compose a poem on the spot to lay the foundation for his presence in front of the delighted old Taoist priest. However, before the rockets were set, a fire broke out in Wuyi Palace, and the Forbidden Garden was in chaos. Even as the imperial court became a boiling turmoil, no one gave a single word to the confused newbie Shezongtong.

Therefore, during the chaos of more than half an hour, the helpless official Zhang Taiyue, who was in a trance due to the terrible chaos, could only huddle pitifully under the parasol and dare not move, until several Jinyiwei rushed over and dragged the confused Zhang Taiyue into the other courtyard; then the prince stepped forward and explained the terrible situation in a few words, and directly handed over the task:

"There are so many things going on in the court right now, and only a strong pen can calm everyone's hearts. I'll entrust everything to Zhang Hanlin!"

Zhang Taiyue, who had only been in the officialdom for five days:...Ah, me? !

The fear and shock in Zhang Taiyue's heart surged uncontrollably, and he almost started shaking on the spot. But SSR is SSR after all. Even though he is a newbie facing this incredible and fatal task right after his debut, and even though his spirit is already highly tense, Zhang Taiyue is still keenly aware of this critical and delicate opportunity. One step for life and one step for death. The rewards of success are of course immeasurable, but if there is even the slightest mistake in writing, not only will I be devastated, but I am afraid that the Prince of Duke Mu will also suffer the consequences!

Now that things have come to this, there is no turning back. Zhang Taiyue took a deep breath and calmed himself. After paying his respects, he took the writing brush and pondered for a moment before spreading out the silk and starting to write.

They are all top-notch examinees who have honed their skills through ten years of hard study, and their writing skills are definitely outstanding. Referring to the minutes that Li Zaifang and Huang Shanggang had already written, it took him more than half an hour to finish writing the imperial edict of nearly a thousand words, and then respectfully presented it to the important ministers for their review.

Zhang Taiyue's political talent was indeed extremely brilliant. When he started writing, he had already caught the prince's hint of "using heavy pen", so the article was laid out freely, written very beautifully and at a very high level. The edict was both firm and flexible. It severely condemned the various evil deeds of "Yin Ni" and shocked the world with its thunder and lightning. Then, it narrated the various changes in government affairs and personnel in a very calm and peaceful tone, with appropriate details and method. It showed that the court was still as stable as a rock, and everything was under the control of the central government, which calmed the hearts of people in various places.

When such an imperial edict was presented to the emperor, all the important ministers read it one by one, but they could not change even a single word. They could only remain silent, with a slight ripple in their hearts. A glimpse of the whole picture can tell us a lot. We have all come through mountains of documents and meetings, so of course we know how powerful a good article is. Whether it was just a coincidence or he had planned in advance, the candidate recommended by the prince was indeed impeccable.

Of course, the rest of the people probably just sighed in amazement and said that the young are formidable. Only Lord Xu witnessed the whole process, and at this moment he was so shocked that he could not bear it any longer - after regaining his freedom, he also heard Gao Suqing's explanation and knew that Zhang Taiyue was sent to the Prince's Mansion of Duke Mu as a token of the alliance between the two sides, but he did not take it to heart. It was not until now when something unexpected happened that Lord Xu suddenly realized a horrible reality - the future star of the elite class that he had devoted so much effort to cultivate might have been poached by this madman a long time ago!

He watched Zhang Taiyue finish writing the imperial edict and then retreat obediently behind the prince. The shame and pain of being ignored suddenly surged into his heart. Even with Lord Xu, who was so shrewd and experienced, his face was distorted and his defenses were broken for a moment, and he was unable to say a word.

In this world, the new generation pushes the old generation forward. Although they are incompatible with Yan Ge Lao and are hostile to each other, when facing this new generation that is rising like a rocket, the pain of the two is always similar.

The edict was finally approved by the emperor and sealed by Eunuch Li. Then the important ministers came forward one by one to sign and seal, expressing their full approval of the edict and no objection. This was a turbulent and thrilling day with not a single moment to breathe. After going through this final process, everyone felt relieved and finally realized an obvious fact:

I'm afraid the world today is finally going to see big changes!

·

Of course, history will never pop up a prompt box to warn of any "change nodes". Although it had experienced unprecedented changes in decades, the situation in the capital quickly returned to stability after the emperor's hastily assembled central team took office. In the midst of great chaos, it was particularly important to appease the people's hearts. After consulting the emperor, Prince Yu and others immediately lifted the curfew that had only lasted for a few days, reduced the scope of searches and interrogations, gradually restored the normal order of life in the capital, and focused on interrogating Prince Yin and other princes who were directly involved in the rebellion.

As the saying goes, "Misfortunes often bring blessings." At this time, the great superiority of the Da'an vassal system can be seen. Because the royal family members were so hated by everyone, basically no officials were willing to deal with this group of trouble-making shit machines. So even if it was a serious crime of treason with far-reaching consequences, after investigation, only a few officials in the capital were implicated. This effectively ensured the stability of the court and the easing of the political atmosphere, which was indeed unexpected good news.

Bureaucrats always have similar tempers. Once they are sure that they will not be affected by the rebellion, the ministers who were originally in a state of panic immediately calm down and spontaneously develop a strong desire to make progress - even if they cannot catch up with the credit for saving the emperor, they can at least get some credit for reporting and exposing fabricated charges, right?

Therefore, after the political situation in the court gradually stabilized, the newly formed cabinet was most busy not with national affairs, but with endless reports from top to bottom and from inside to outside. The popularity of Prince Yin and his vassal clans was indeed very bad. After the news spread, almost all the officials who had contact with them stood up to criticize and expose them in depth, recalling every detail of this group of people's rebellion from the time they were born and could speak. The whole clan was implicated and basically all the royal family members who came to Beijing to celebrate the birthday were dragged away.

These pampered manure-making machines were of course no match for the tactics of the Imperial Guards and the Eastern Depot. Within three to five days of being imprisoned, they were terrified and wanted so much that they could vomit out the breakfast they had eaten ten years ago. However, the political quality of the royal family members was beyond the expectations of the court officials. Originally, the six ministries and nine officials were ready to go, intending to catch a well-organized, vicious, experienced and powerful behind-the-scenes rebel in this rebellion, and then frame them to get a big KPI for themselves. But now, after interrogating the main culprit over and over again, they still could not get any signs of foresight from him.

King Yin was unable to bear the torture and was forced to confess his crime of treason, but the plan he revealed was truly bizarre - to put it simply, King Yin completely believed in the plan of the immortal master to ascend to the fairyland, and tried his best to provide maximum assistance to the immortal master on his journey to ascension. After the mission was accomplished, Chan Yunzi attained immortality. As long as the immortal used some magical powers, wouldn't the vacant throne fall to the ground easily?

As for the unrest in the court after the emperor was burned into a roasted pig, the unrest in the capital that might lead to a civil war, and the fact that Master Feixuan actually had two sons who were enough to kill the traitor's entire family - all these problems were not within the consideration of His Royal Highness Prince Yin; the underlying logic was also very direct: All my allies have become immortals, so who should I be afraid of?

Before I became an immortal, I had to worry about this and that. After I became an immortal, I still had to worry about this and that. Didn’t I become an immortal in vain?

So, the whole process is actually quite simple when you look back on it. There was no brilliant plan, nor were there any deep-rooted allies. It was simply that the charlatans and the princes colluded with each other and slapped their foreheads, and they almost made Feixuan Zhenjun Wanshou Emperor the second barbecue emperor of this dynasty.

When such a confession was submitted, the cabinet could only look at each other in bewilderment. To be honest, this confession is so bizarre and confusing that it seems like a deliberate mockery of the imperial court. But after the cabinet elders reviewed it again and again, they always felt that there was a strange rationality in it - even for an ultimate old man like Fei Xuan, who was as cunning as a monkey, experienced, treacherous and well-planned, his IQ was actually not much different from that of an idiot after he was exposed to the mysterious magic and immortal way. What's more, King Yin was a born idiot?

The idiots rebelled without any hesitation, and there is actually some rationality in this.

It can only be said that noobs have always been able to defeat masters. Prince Yin's miraculous operation really made the cabinet a little confused.

Of course, it doesn’t matter that the cabinet is confused. The most troublesome thing is how to present such a confession to the emperor? Prince Yin was able to achieve great success with such straightforward and crude means, and almost caused a huge change in the capital city; how should we evaluate Master Fei Xuan who was so confused that he was almost taken away by Prince Yin?

If King Yin is a complete idiot who is crazy about believing in alchemists, then what is the True Lord? It has been a long time since the people in the world who are obsessed with mysterious methods and as stupid as pigs are not worthy of Your Majesty?

This kind of report, which was full of innuendo and extremely malicious, would definitely make Master Feixuan, who was bedridden and mentally extremely fragile, fly into a rage. Even if he couldn't curse the minister to be deceiving the heaven, he had to at least spit two mouthfuls of ambergris on the face of the minister who delivered the report!

Therefore, King Yin must have accomplices, must have plans, and must have a complete set of grand plans that are shrewd, vicious, and far beyond the expectations of ordinary people. With the intelligence level currently demonstrated by His Royal Highness Prince Yin, it is estimated that he is unable to complete such a difficult and complex task. Lu Wenfu, who was in charge of the Qin case, had no choice but to shift his attention to Can Yunzi, hoping to extract key information from this alchemist of unknown origin.

But this idea is also difficult to implement. Perhaps because the sap of the curare tree had been exposed for too long and had partially lost its effectiveness, Can Yunzi was lucky enough to survive after being hit by a wooden thorn. However, most of his body functions had collapsed, and he had basically lost the ability to move and speak. After this man was arrested by the Jinyiwei who arrived later and thrown into the imperial prison, he refused to eat or drink and lay as stiff as death in prison, completely refusing to cooperate. Unfortunately, this important witness who was on the verge of death could not be tortured at will, and the matter came to a standstill.

After struggling for a few days, there was no solution. On the 17th of that month, Prince Mu, who was also ordered to take charge of the case, finally took action. He went to the Imperial Medical Bureau to find several highly respected imperial physicians, and then took them straight to the imperial prison, where he met the traitor who was held in solitary confinement.

Even if there was no torture, after two or three days of not eating or drinking, Shen Yunzi would no longer be in human form. It was not until the imperial doctors pried open his mouth and fed him a bowl of thick ginseng soup that they finally awakened the alchemist's hazy consciousness. His cloudy old eyes turned several times and then stared at the prince without moving, his expression still stiff and cold.

The prince paid no attention to the hawk-like cruel eyes. He just waved his hand and asked the imperial doctors to go to the other side to make more ginseng soup to keep him alive. He then moved a stool and sat in front of Shen Yunzi. He tilted his head and looked at the battered and old body carefully, as if he was admiring the embarrassment of the traitor with interest.

But when the steam from the steaming ginseng soup filled the damp and dim cell, and even the accompanying Jinyiwei could no longer distinguish his features, the prince's fingers moved slightly, and a tiny piece of paper slipped from his sleeves and floated onto Can Yunzi's face.

This is the fragment of the "Heart Voice Diary" left by the predecessor. Although most of the functions can no longer be activated, the remaining system still retains some basic capabilities, such as recording heart sounds.

The prince bent his fingers slightly, and his voice rang in the ears of both of them at the same time:

【I want to make a deal with you】

Can Yunzi's dull old face finally twitched for a moment. Obviously, as a madman who has studied the sacred book for seven or eight years, he also knows this function.

Although his functions had collapsed, the Taoist priest could still move his facial muscles and speak his mind:

【what are you up to? 】

I want a confession from you. The prince flicked his fingers under the cover of his sleeves: [A confession that could decide the outcome of the court]

[A dignified immortal actually has to use such sneaky and deceitful means to seek worldly power? 】

Mu Qi was too lazy to correct the "immortal" statement and just pointed out two facts:

[First, I am now the second in the cabinet, entrusted with important confidential matters, which is the pinnacle of power in the court. I don’t need to seek anything extra. Secondly, this is not a deceitful or hypocritical method, but just the right adjustment. 】

Mu Qi looked calm and just glanced back. After confirming that the imperial physician and the royal guards could not see the figure in the smoke, he flexed his fingers again:

[The interrogation has now encountered a huge bottleneck, and the center has gradually split into two factions. One group believed that it was the White Lotus and the Ming Cult that bewitched their followers and had evil intentions; that Prince Yin and other clan members were deceived by the evil teachings and thus committed rebellion. Another faction believed that this was a long-planned plot by the royal family to covet the throne, and that was why they had done everything they could to coax the evildoers into committing treason. Judging from the interrogation materials so far, both views have their own merits, which is why the dispute remains unresolved. 】

Can Yunzi was silent for a moment. Of course, he was shrewd and cunning, but after all, he had devoted too much effort and attention to a divine book, and was unaware of the tricks in the court:

You want to get the truth from me? 】

[Of course not.] 】Mu Qi's inner voice remained calm: [You may not quite understand, but in this kind of major conspiracy case and political trend involving a wide range of people, the least important thing and the least need to care about is the truth. In other words, the truth is of course important, but how to interpret the truth is most important. In other words, qualitative analysis is needed. 】

He looked up at the Jinyiwei not far away and raised his eyebrows slightly:

[If the case is characterized according to the first opinion, then the cult and its followers will bear the primary responsibility. The cabinet would immediately send a letter to Henan and surrounding provinces, ordering them to cast a wide net to capture all believers who might be involved in the rebellion, torture them severely and frame them until they were completely rooted out and the emperor's anger was completely wiped out - as for how many innocent men and women would be involved, it was not within the government's concern. 】

[On the contrary, if the second opinion is followed, the main responsibility will be borne by the princes and vassals. Taking into account the previous rebellion of Prince Ning and Prince Anhua, in just over 60 years, there were actually three princes in the royal family who rebelled, and the consequences were more serious each time than the last. Facts will prove that the vassal system since Emperor Taizong can no longer be continued, and the friendship between royal relatives has become a bubble. Taking this opportunity, the imperial court could severely punish a number of illegal vassal states, try to restrain the royal family, and even further change the relevant systems. 】

In fact, after the Ning Wang Rebellion of the previous dynasty, Emperor Wuzong had already begun to reform the vassal system, which was led by the then Prime Minister Yang Tinghe. However, the campaign failed and Emperor Wuzong was easily dispelled. After the current emperor ascended the throne, in order to attack political enemies and win the hearts of the people, he abolished all the reforms that were just beginning and removed all restrictions. As a result, the tumor was festering and the problem continued, leading to the current situation.

——In that case, how come this is not considered a large boomerang?

Of course, Your Majesty is just selfish, not stupid. Even though he may be generous to others when watching a fire from the other side of the river, once it is proven during the interrogation that the royal family has ulterior motives, the spark will fall on the instep of Feixuan Zhenjun and Wanshou Emperor, and they will definitely jump higher than anyone else. The royal family reform plan put forward by then will also be filled with Feixuan Zhenjun's heartfelt hatred and resentment, and will definitely be ten times more insidious, vicious, and mean than Yang Tinghe's petty pranks.

You don't accept my toast, but you drink the wine for punishment. You have lived a comfortable life for the past few years. Do you really think that you have become an immortal? Now that God is furious, he wants to make the royal family members taste the pain that the civil servants have suffered from being pua-ed to the point of being unable to survive for so many years!

If you get caught in the rain, you must tear down other people's umbrellas. This is the style of a Da'an official.

Since Zhang Cong, successive civil officials have made extraordinary efforts to reduce the privileges of the royal family and save state spending, but basically they have failed under the protection of the emperor; and facts will eventually prove that choosing the right time is indeed much more important than simple efforts. The key is never the facts, but the means of using facts to create opportunities.

Mu Qi stared at the dying face of Can Yunzi and tapped his fingers again:

[…Therefore, I need you to provide a confession, in which you can put most of the blame on Prince Yin, on the general guarding the country, and even on all the daring royal family members in Henan. You have to provide sufficient evidence to accuse the Henan princes of having ulterior motives long ago and not just being instigated by you.

Although the White Lotus and the Ming Cult helped them to a certain extent, these daring descendants of the dragon had already been semi-publicly venting their dissatisfaction with the emperor and deliberately interfering with the official business of the government long before you came. The country's annual financial expenditure of mountains of gold and silver is actually supporting a group of ignorant fools! 】

——This is the ultimate killer move, the most vicious, the most terrifying, and the most incisive method. Now the two factions have been confronting and arguing in the cabinet, making it difficult to carry out normal official business; but the power to decide this matter does not lie with the ministers, so even if the riot gets so serious that the roof of the duty room is blown off, what is the point? If you want to deliver a fatal blow, you have to poke Master Feixuan where it hurts the most!

What? Just because Zhenjun says a few words about brothers living in harmony with the family every day, do you really think he is a living god who has attained enlightenment, is kind and friendly? If a dragon has a reverse scale, it will kill people if it is touched, let alone a sick dragon lying in bed with an extremely sensitive mind? That is to say, it is really not easy to exterminate all nine clans of the royal family, otherwise Master Feixuan would have to make the court and the people recall the terror of Emperor Gao!

To change the situation at will and to sow discord among the royal family to carry out their own ambitions, this is the method used by corrupt officials in power. Yang Ting, Zhang Cong and Xia Yan should all give in now.

Of course, the idea is good, but the first step requires the cooperation of Can Yunzi. But the dying Taoist priest didn't seem to be in the mood for this. He simply closed his eyes:

Why should I confess? 】

I won’t talk about big principles. Mu Qi said: You said that there was a severe drought in Henan ten years ago and the government was unable to provide relief. But in fact, the surrounding provinces did provide food and seeds for disaster relief, but a considerable part of the food was looted by bandits led by General Zhu Chongzhuo, so the deadline was delayed and a great disaster occurred. This matter is extremely confidential, and we will probably have to investigate it carefully before we can get any clues. 】

——That's right, although the prince prepared countless bizarre charges for the royal family and vassal states in that confession; but if they are carefully checked and verified one by one, 99% of these charges are completely tenable, and the remaining ones are also quite reliable guesses. There is absolutely no fabricated charge. The princes and vassals in Henan are so incredible, and the idle royal family members are so outrageous. None of these incidents can be considered as injustice to them!

That was why Mu Qi went out of his way to defend himself. His methods might be considered sneaky and a bit despicable, but they were definitely not "deceitful" - he had never told a lie, never fabricated any material, so how could there be any deception?

Feixuan Zhenjun Wanshou Emperor is probably the smartest, most perceptive and most sarcastic emperor of this dynasty; such an emperor will never be deceived by simple lies (except for cultivating immortals). What can deceive the emperor's ears and influence his vision must be the absolute truth, the complete truth. It's just that the timeline and logic line of the truth need to be slightly edited to present a unique flavor.

This is the fascinating moment of journalism.

Unfortunately, in the face of such a brilliant plan, Can Yunzi just rolled his eyes again:

What does this trivial matter have to do with me? 】

I have been obsessed with this magical book for more than ten years, and the past is now a thing of the past. Seeing that the fairyland had turned into a dream, Can Yunzi would not have the energy to pursue a mere drought.

Mu Qi had expected this, so he wasn't too surprised.

【All right. Then talk about something that interests you. He said: [First, if the reform of the vassal system can be successful, we can save a lot of expenses, which will not only improve the people's livelihood in Henan, but also make room for military expenditures, try to stabilize the situation on the border, and buy time for the future. Of course, this change is very small, but if you do it one by one, maybe you can get one step closer to the "fairyland" you imagined. 】

[Secondly, your body can't hold on for much longer, I believe you understand that. But if you are willing to confess, I can try to give you a glimpse of "Wonderland". Although it’s just a fantasy, it should be pretty lifelike…】

After saying that, Mu Qi shook his sleeves and took out a small electronic screen from the interlayer. The screen was still emitting a faint light.

·

After an incense stick of time, the imperial doctors finally prepared various emergency medicines. The prince also patted his clothes, stood up from the stool, and looked down at the prisoner who was curled up in a ball.

"He who knows the current situation is a hero." He said coldly, "The best doctors are here now, enough to keep you alive until the Jinyiwei have tried all the tortures. If you want to suffer less, you'd better tell the truth!"

As if frightened by the prince's stern threat, the lifeless prisoner shuddered suddenly, and there were even some tear marks on his dirty and skinny old face.

·

At the beginning of the afternoon on the 17th, the Prince of Mu personally went to the imperial prison and interrogated the criminals involved in the treason case under severe torture. Can Yunzi, who had pretended to be dead for more than several days, was frightened by the punishment and finally confessed. By that time, Chan Yunzi's throat was hoarse and his limbs were broken, so he held a soft brush dipped in ink between his teeth and "wrote" his confession, confessing one by one his accomplices and the conspiracy he had painstakingly planned over the years.

At three quarters after the interrogation, the prince led the crowd away. The prisoner sat in the prison for a long time and finally breathed his last.

At the beginning of the You hour, the original, unedited confession was urgently sent to the cabinet. The confession was so fiery and explosive that even though the cabinet ministers had anticipated it, they were still shocked and shocked after reading it, let alone the Lord, who usually had a narrow mind. But in the end, no one dared to conceal the emperor's ears on such a matter, so the confession was sent directly to the palace without any changes and presented to His Majesty the Emperor by Li Zaifang.

The outcome was not unexpected. The emperor couldn't really curse anymore, but his basic motor functions were still normal. He had only read the first tenth of the confession, and was so angry that he jumped up from the bed, and then fell uncontrollably to the ground, collapsing the bed with his butt!