Chapter 496 Wu Qiqi analyzes the person behind the scenes.

Imperial City Gate.

Li Shimin waited respectfully.

He built the Lingyan Pavilion, and Li Yuan did not object!

That means... Li Yuan has truly relinquished power!

"Father."

Upon seeing Li Yuan return, Li Shimin hurriedly stepped forward to greet him.

"You bastard."

Li Yuan kicked it out directly.

They didn't give Li Shimin any face at all.

"How exactly did you train your subordinates?"

"If even the most trusted secret guards can be infiltrated, what security can the Tang Dynasty royal family possibly have?"

Li Shimin's expression was also very unpleasant.

If the secret guards dare to assassinate Li Yuan today, they might assassinate him tomorrow!

"Your subject will investigate the matter as soon as possible."

Li Shimin said solemnly, "But Father, are you alright?"

"What could possibly be wrong with me?"

Li Yuan arrogantly declared, "They're just a few dozen assassins. Even if ten times that number came, I'd still make sure they never return!"

"Yes, yes, yes..."

Li Shimin nodded repeatedly.

You're the father, whatever you say is right.

"Wang De, escort the Emperor back to Da'an Palace."

After offering a few words of reassurance, Li Shimin instructed Wang De to escort Li Yuan back to Da'an Palace.

Taiji Hall.

Li Shimin did not summon Wei Shuyu first, but instead summoned his secret guards...

"Dugu Mou!"

"Your subject is here!"

Secret guard.

A large portion of them were descendants of loyal ministers.

For example, Dugu Mou was the son of Dugu Yanyun.

Responsible for this operation to protect Li Yuan...

"Did you get anything out of those assassins?" Li Shimin

"Your Majesty, please forgive me."

Dugu Mou clasped his hands in a fist salute and replied, "They are all a group of death warriors."

"After the assassination attempt failed, they all committed suicide by poisoning themselves."

snort.

Li Shimin snorted coldly: "What about the secret guards?"

"How could it have been infiltrated by outsiders?"

Li Shimin stared intently at Dugu Mou.

Dugu Mou was the son of Dugu Yanyun.

Dugu Yanyun accompanied him during the Xuanwu Gate Incident, making him a true loyal subject who followed the emperor!

He knew some things in his heart.

The reason for not revealing it was simply to give the descendants of loyal ministers a chance.

But today, Li Yuan's assassination attempt has thoroughly enraged him.

"Your Majesty, please punish me!"

Dugu Mou clasped his hands in apology: "It was my dereliction of duty!"

"Dugu Mou..."

Li Shimin's voice suddenly turned cold: "Your father followed me in my campaigns, and he was the person I trusted most."

"He wouldn't lie to me, and I don't want you to lie to me either!"

Dugu Mou felt a tremor in his heart.

He knew that Li Shimin was angry, and perhaps he had guessed something.

"His Majesty……"

Dugu Mou forced a smile and replied, "Your Majesty, I dare not conceal anything from you!"

"Then tell me honestly..."

Li Shimin rebuked, "What does Jieli's death have to do with you?"

Dugu Mou's lips twitched.

He wanted to argue, but the other party was Li Shimin!

In the end, I chose to tell the truth.

“That day, someone sent a message saying that Jieli would be killed, and that I should not interfere.”

Dugu Mou lowered his head in shame: "Your subject... agrees!"

"You bastard!"

Li Shimin slammed his hand on the dragon throne: "Do you know that because of your selfishness, the Eastern Turks and the Tang Dynasty have now gone to war!"

Li Shimin was like an enraged lion.

If it weren't for Dugu Yanyun's sake, he would have killed Dugu Mou right now.

"His Majesty……"

Dugu Mou knelt on one knee: "The hatred for the murder of my father is irreconcilable. I am willing to atone with my death!"

Li Shimin stared intently at Dugu Mou.

When war broke out on the frontier, Dugu Mou could be considered one of the indirect culprits.

He really wanted to execute Dugu Mou.

But the thought of Dugu Yanyun turned his boundless anger into a sigh...

When the Tang Dynasty and the Eastern Turks went to war, Dugu Yanyun died at the hands of Jieli!

That's somewhat understandable.

Moreover, Dugu Yanyun had already passed away, so how could he bear to kill the only son of a meritorious official?

"Never mind..."

Li Shimin waved his hand: "Let's pretend this never happened."

"Effective immediately, you are relieved of your position as head of the secret guards. From now on, you can live a peaceful life as a county magistrate."

"Your Majesty, I have disappointed you." Dugu Mou bowed in gratitude.

After reporting Dugu Mou's departure, Li Shimin sat upright in the Taiji Hall for a while.

Recalling Dugu Yanyun's experiences, one can't help but feel a little sad.

at the same time.

Wei Shuyu listened to the imperial edict outside the palace.

While waiting, the group also conducted some analysis.

“Wei Shuyu…”

Wu Qiqi said, "Actually, there's something we might have been overlooking all along."

"Which point?" Wei Shuyu asked.

"Military rations!"

Wu Qiqi frowned and said, "The mastermind behind it all hid the military rations so well back then, why did she release them?"

"Even if she couldn't move the grain out, she wouldn't need to go to such great lengths to return it to the Tang Dynasty, would she?"

Um?

These words made Wei Shuyu ponder.

When the military rations were distributed, he was unconscious because of the K9 incident.

The military rations passed through many hands...

Consort Yin, Li Tai, Consort Wei, Li Chengqian, Li Yuan... In the end, the blame was placed on Wenyun Pavilion.

"you mean……"

Wei Shuyu asked solemnly, "Something happened while I was unconscious?"

"right."

"What is it?" Wei Shuyu frowned.

"Big pot, big pot..."

Choi Shin-ki raised his hand and shouted, "Ask me about this, I know!"

"Tell me..."

Choi Shin-ki immediately perked up, moved closer to Wei Shu-yu, and began to speak with a sly grin.

"Big pot..."

“During the month you were in a coma, something really big happened in Chang’an.”

"His Majesty has gone mad for some reason and issued a decree."

"Suppress Buddhism!"

Swish.

Wei Shuyu's pupils contracted.

He then remembered that before he fell into a coma, he had asked Li Shimin to suppress Buddhism.

Although he was unconscious at the time.

Wei Zheng, however, forcefully refuted the suggestion made by the court officials.

They even managed to get Xiao Yu dismissed from his post...

"right!"

Wu Qiqi continued, "The temple buildings are large, and the land it has acquired is extensive, making it the best place to store grain!"

"And with His Majesty's suppression of Buddhism..."

"A large number of soldiers have poured into the temple to investigate!"

"The person behind the scenes was afraid of exposing the military rations, so they risked distributing the grain."

Wei Shuyu nodded.

This possibility is indeed very high!

If such a large batch of grain is discovered, the imperial court will certainly conduct a thorough investigation.

"Then let's make another assumption..."

Wu Qiqi continued, "Why did the mastermind push Chen Shuozhen out?"

Is there any possibility...?

"After His Majesty suppressed Buddhism, she was no longer able to secretly develop her own network?"

"Is that why you founded the Holy Spirit Cult?"

Um?

That's quite a possibility.

Failure means abandoning a pawn.

If successful, the person behind the scenes will have a large number of fanatical followers.

"Not bad, not bad..."

Wei Shuyu smiled; Qi Qi's intelligence was simply unparalleled.

As for Choi Sin-ki standing to the side, looking like he's begging for praise...

well.

Let his brain develop for another two years.

"besides……"

Just as Wu Qiqi was about to continue her analysis, a eunuch suddenly came to announce her arrival…

"Physician Wei, His Majesty summons you to an audience!"