Chapter 26

Xue Jin'an's voice wasn't loud; it was calm, as if he were asking "What should we eat today?"—a completely emotionless tone. Yet, it was like a colossal boulder crashing down, making everyone's eardrums go numb.

Although it was the first time I had heard the terms "fake match" and "truly bad," everyone present, who was well-educated and had a clear head, immediately understood their meaning after considering the context.

So, the Seventh Prince was mocking the Imperial Guard, which was known as the strongest fighting force of the Great Qi Dynasty and whose soldiers were all elite, right? Right?

Although noble families have been sending their younger members into the Imperial Guard these days, and although Chu Wenjing and Chu Tietou have frequently impeached the Imperial Guard for dereliction of duty, holding their positions without doing their jobs, and being good-for-nothings when they were the Prefect of the Capital, although... although... in short, Your Highness, isn't it a bit too arrogant of you to complain to the Emperor in front of the Imperial Guard like this?

So, people associated with Consort Zhen are indeed stubborn, right? Is this the confidence that the favored concubine gives them?

Those who understood secretly grumbled in their hearts, but in front of the emperor, they all lowered their heads, even holding their breath, not daring to look at the emperor's expression.

The atmosphere in the hall suddenly shifted from quiet to deathly still; even the crisp sound of pieces being placed abruptly stopped.

Thump! Thump! ... Several sounds of knees hitting the ground rang out, accompanied by the subtle rustling of armor. The commander, deputy commander, and captain of the Imperial Guard in charge of this team all knelt down, crawled out on their knees, and, like the Fifth Prince, kowtowed to the ground and remained prostrate.

The emperor was about to drink his tea when he was almost choked by Xue Jin'an's merciless and sharp words. He frowned and forcibly suppressed the cough that rose in his throat. His expression was very bad, as if he was about to get angry, so the atmosphere became even more tense.

In fact, the emperor was indeed somewhat angry, but it wasn't directed at Xue Jin'an; it was purely out of dissatisfaction with the Imperial Guards.

The emperor was naturally aware of the current state of the Imperial Guards. He had wanted to reform them ever since Chu Wenjing first raised the issue.

However, the Great Qi Dynasty had only been established for a short time, and the legacy of their ancestors still lingered. Those who had fought alongside Emperor Yuan to conquer the country were still alive, and those people were the starting point for those noble families and the source of their confidence.

It is said that a new emperor brings a new court, and a new official always makes a splash when he takes office, let alone a new emperor. But as mentioned before, the frequent changes of power make the political situation unstable, and there are still barbarian tribes eyeing the borders. What the emperor needs to do is to implement new policies while stabilizing the court.

The methods can be tough, since a strong ruler makes his ministers weak, and if they are not tough, they can easily be fooled by the court officials. However, the methods cannot be too tough. Sometimes it is necessary to turn a blind eye and offer some benefits. The strategy of "surrounding three sides and leaving one open" is still useful in politics. Otherwise, if you leave too much room for maneuver and force your subordinates to take desperate measures, it will not be good for anyone.

The corruption of the Imperial Guard by powerful families began during the reign of the late emperor, and his insistence on implementing a new conscription policy, which won over the hearts of the people and the border troops, accelerated the corruption of the Imperial Guard to some extent.

The sons of nobles always needed somewhere to go, and the Imperial Guard stationed in the capital was a good job. The emperor intentionally or unintentionally allowed the Imperial Guard to be infiltrated, which was the result of political maneuvering.

The emperor looked at the Imperial Guards kneeling on the ground. More than half of them were familiar faces from aristocratic families. The Deputy Commander Wei, who had risked his life to protect the emperor, was someone he had specially promoted from the Imperial Guard Bureau, intending to train him for a few years to succeed the President.

Although the Imperial Guards were not as prestigious or powerful as the Imperial Guards, and had a bad reputation, being known as the "Blood-Clad Guards" for their "blood-stained brocade robes and sinful deeds," they were an armed force that the emperor completely controlled and trusted.

Unfortunately, the Clothing Service was ultimately a spy agency, and even though it had many skilled people, it couldn't be put into the open.

The emperor's mood worsened immediately, his eyes flashing coldly as if daggers were being thrust out.

"You couldn't protect the emperor, and you couldn't catch the assassins either. Are you really that incompetent, or did you do this on purpose?" The emperor suspected that there were other accomplices of the assassins at the scene.

In fact, the emperor suspected more than just the Imperial Guards. The fact that the assassin was able to escape from under the noses of the Imperial Guards during the pursuit meant that he not only had other inside help, but also that he was very familiar with the palace.

There must be someone from the royal family involved behind the scenes. Which prince, or a concubine?

At the same time, the emperor also realized that this was more of a test, a performance, than an assassination attempt. There were three assassins, but none of them were really after him. They took two hostages, but both of them were unharmed, suffering only minor injuries.

Oh, Xiao Wu's injury was inflicted by Xiao Qi. In the end, the assassin abandoned Xiao Wu, saying he found him a nuisance. Why not just stab him to death?

So, were the kidnapped Xiao Wu and Xiao Liu truly unlucky, or were they deliberately chosen? The emperor narrowed his eyes, glanced around, and said in a light tone, "It seems quite a few people want me dead."

"Your Majesty, I am filled with fear and deserve to die!" Upon hearing this, everyone immediately knelt down, even the old man at the head of the table who was playing chess with the emperor lifted his robe and knelt down.

As a result, Xue Jin'an, who remained seated, became even more conspicuous. However, Xue Jin'an did not notice this at all, and of course, even if he had noticed it, he would not have cared.

Xue Jin'an was deep in thought. Following the emperor's words, he re-examined the logic of the whole matter, and then deduced the cause from the result, constructing a tree diagram that resembled a parallel universe.

Then I found the key point in one of them: Was it coming for me?

He appeared with the Fifth Prince. When the Fifth Prince learned that the Emperor had arrived ahead of schedule, he said he didn't want to go, but he didn't stop walking. He noticed Cui Zui and felt that the coachman was a bit strange, so he paused slightly.

In other words, the Fifth Prince was half a body length ahead of him, and if the assassin rushed over to grab the hostage, it would obviously be easier to grab the Fifth Prince. However, the assassin completely bypassed the Fifth Prince and went straight for him.

Afterwards, the assassin helped the Fifth Prince avoid a deadly attack, Zheng Xi mistook the Sixth Prince for the Sixth Prince, and the assassin's Gu poison were explained, which immediately raised Consort Rong's suspicion rate to 90%.

Besides, Consort Rong should have had another collaborator. If this assassination was just a test... Crime novels often depict murderers returning to the crime scene, firstly to check if any evidence has been left behind and to keep up with the police's progress, and secondly to admire their criminal achievements.

So, is the murderer at the scene?

Xue Jin'an looked up sharply, and then said: There are too many suspects. Can't we have a classic three-way selection like in that elementary school detective show?

"A triangle is the most stable shape!" Xue Jin'an muttered incoherently to himself, his mind filled with the suspect's data.

Just then, a young eunuch hurried in and whispered something to Li Hechun. Li Hechun quietly reported back to the emperor and then quietly withdrew.

Li Hechun covered his lips, his voice barely audible. Xue Jin'an knew from the occasional glimpses of his mouth movements that the concubines of the harem were about to arrive.

Xue Jin'an noticed something amiss while browsing the live stream earlier, and now, upon checking the trending topics, he found them filled with assassination attempts.

The first three posts, #His Majesty Assassinated in the Imperial Study#, #Fifth Prince Injured#, and #Sixth Prince Kidnapped#, were all followed by the word "explosive" in bright red.

The commotion was so great, and it even involved a prince, that it couldn't be kept secret any longer. Even the Empress Dowager, who rarely left the palace, was helped by Granny Su into a sedan chair and headed this way.

Since all the concubines in the harem were women, the ministers had to avoid any appearance of impropriety.

As expected, the emperor frowned and waved to the crowd, "Today's assessment will be postponed for now. You may all return home."

Saying that the assessment is temporarily postponed actually means that this matter is not over yet.

"We take our leave." The crowd immediately bowed and left in an orderly and quick manner, leaving only Prince An and the princes behind. Half of the guards also left.

Li Hechun reappeared and directed the palace maids and eunuchs to quickly and quietly tidy up the hall. The Fifth Prince was also helped up from the ground.

Not long after, the sound of hurried footsteps came again outside, which had just quieted down.

A beautiful woman dressed in a red palace gown, adorned with jewels, appeared first. Her robes fluttered like butterfly wings, her hair was slightly disheveled, and her expression was panicked and frightened. She immediately embraced the Fifth Prince, who had just stood up, tightly, tears welling up in her eyes before she could speak.

Her eyes were broken, and she cried silently, her face streaked with tears, looking utterly pitiful.

It seems Consort Rong got blush in her eyes. Xue Jin'an's high-definition camera clearly showed her exquisite and perfect makeup.

The fifth prince, caught off guard by the sudden embrace, was probably choked and shuddered.

Although Xue Jin'an didn't understand why blush was applied to the eyelids and nose, there was a reason and purpose behind their makeup, which was not something he, with his narrow-minded and shrewd aesthetic sense, could interfere with.

Following closely behind Consort Rong was a woman dressed in light-colored palace attire, with simple makeup, graceful features, and a cool demeanor. She walked briskly, supported by a palace maid, her posture always dignified and elegant.

"Mother, oh my god—" The sixth prince's eyes instantly reddened upon seeing the person, and he rushed over like a cannonball.

Consort Shu did not immediately embrace the Sixth Prince. Instead, she spun him around to make sure he had no other injuries before cautiously reaching out to touch his neck. Her fingers stopped just before touching him, and she gently pulled him into her arms, closing her eyes and murmuring a sorrowful yet poignant voice, "My peace..."

Ping An was the childhood name of the sixth prince, Xue Chenping.

"Mother, I... I don't hurt, it doesn't hurt..." The Sixth Prince buried his head in her neck, sobbing as he tried to comfort her.

While the Sixth Prince is showing affection for his mother, the Fourth Prince is in a rather precarious situation.

The Fourth Prince had a bad feeling when he heard that Xue Jin'an had betrayed his Fifth Brother. He secretly hid in the crowd, using his brothers' bodies to cover himself, but he didn't expect that the Sixth Prince's escape would expose him.

As expected, Xue Jin'an's gaze turned towards him. The Fourth Prince was extremely flustered, but he was rooted to the spot by Xue Jin'an's gaze.

Upon seeing the battery he liked again, Xue Jin'an couldn't help but glance a few more times at the accessory warehouse containing it, only to find with some displeasure that the battery's health had dropped to 95%.

Has it still not been fixed after all this time? The imperial physicians in the palace aren't very skilled. Xue Jin'an was starting to consider fixing it himself.

"Okay, I'll go check it out tonight then." Xue Jin'an set a schedule for himself.

The fourth prince hunched his shoulders and retreated back into the crowd, feeling a sense of security return to him and letting out a sigh of relief.

The Third Prince, who witnessed all this, sneered disdainfully, "Little Seven is only a few years old, and you're already this scared? Coward."

The fourth prince clutched his chest, his face deathly pale, and stubbornly insisted, "I'm clearly in pain from my wound, not from being afraid of Xue Jin'an!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the fourth prince shuddered, a familiar chill creeping up from the bottom of his heart.

There's no mistake, I feel like I've been targeted by the Seventh Prince! The Fourth Prince's hand trembled slightly, and the wound on his chest that had already healed seemed to start hurting again, tearing at his heart, causing tears to stream down his face.

The third prince was startled and looked at his chest hesitantly. "Didn't you say it was just a wound the size of a fingernail? It's been more than ten days and it still hurts so much? Did you run into a quack doctor?"

"No, no, I'm not in pain." The Fourth Prince reflexively denied it. He looked at the two pairs of mothers and children embracing each other on either side of Xue Jin'an and said with tears streaming down his face, "I just miss my mother a little."