In fact, Li Shimin was never a diligent emperor, at least not as diligent as a certain model worker surnamed Zhu in later generations.

Therefore, he did not know many of the officials in the imperial court.

Li Shimin had absolutely no recollection of this Ministry of Revenue official named Geng Jingming.

Of course, this is mainly because Geng Jingming's official rank was too low. If he had been promoted to the third rank, Li Shimin would definitely have recognized him!

"Since he's so insignificant, let's banish him to Lingnan to breathe in the miasma!"

Li Shimin wrote "utter nonsense" on the impeachment memorial, and then sent it to the Secretariat, asking the Secretariat to draft an imperial edict of demotion.

To Li Shimin, Geng Jingming's matter was nothing more than a trivial matter.

Over the years, he has demoted many officials, numbering at least several hundred, if not several thousand.

However, he never expected that this unknown nobody would cause such a huge uproar in the imperial court.

The Secretariat.

When Ma Zhou and others returned, Li Jing, Gao Shilian, and other regents automatically relinquished power and went home to rest.

When Ma Zhou saw Geng Jingming's memorial, he almost thought the same as Li Shimin: Geng Jingming was an opportunist who deliberately chose the time when the army returned victorious to impeach the eldest grandson, and it was clear that he had ulterior motives.

Therefore, upon receiving Li Shimin's approval, Ma Zhou immediately drafted a dismissal document, demoting Geng Jingming to a county magistrate position in a small county in Lingnan.

However, when he sent someone to the Ministry of Revenue to deliver the imperial edict, he found only Geng Jingming's corpse!

When Ma Zhou heard about this, he knew the sky had fallen and immediately informed His Majesty the Emperor.

Li Shimin was dumbfounded when he learned of this. This was almost the first case in the Tang Dynasty, and there was no history to learn from.

"Ma Zhou, what do you think should be done about this?"

“Your Majesty, this matter can be either a big deal or a small one. If it is left unattended, it will surely arouse the indignation of the censors and officials. However, if it is handled carefully, not only can the impact be mitigated, but Your Majesty will also gain a reputation for being considerate of your subordinates.”

"Tell me, what are your plans?"

"Your Majesty, the best course of action is to rescind the decree of demotion, then send an imperial physician to diagnose Geng Jingming's death as due to overwork in state affairs. Your Majesty should then reward him, promote him, and allow him to enjoy posthumous honors!"

Upon hearing this, Li Shimin's eyes lit up immediately. He thought to himself, "As expected of the talent I have cultivated for the future prime minister, he does things in a very methodical way."

"Granted!"

"Go and arrange this matter immediately. Make sure to minimize the impact and absolutely do not let them drag my eldest grandson into this!"

Ma Zhou nodded upon hearing this.

"I obey the decree..."

Whether it was Ma Zhou or Li Shimin, upon learning of Geng Jing's death, they immediately guessed that this matter was aimed at Li Jue.

Although Ma Zhou and Li Shimin were very fast, they were still a step too late for those who were truly interested.

When Ma Zhou arrived at the Ministry of Revenue, the office was already packed with officials.

These people included not only censors and officials, but also many newly promoted minor officials.

Just as Ma Zhou was ordering his men to drive these people away, a sudden cry of surprise erupted from the crowd.

"Look everyone, there's a letter written in blood here!"

"A letter written in blood?"

"Lord Geng did not die of illness, but was murdered!"

"He was murdered in his duty room simply because he impeached the eldest grandson of the emperor!"

Ma Zhou was sweating profusely when he heard this, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't squeeze through the crowd.

While Ma Zhou was desperately pushing his way through the crowd, someone in the crowd was already reading Geng Jingming's suicide note.

In his suicide note, Geng Jingming stated that he had known he would die, so he left a will in advance and copied the memorial impeaching Li Jue again, fearing that others would not see his loyalty to the Tang Dynasty.

Upon hearing the contents of the suicide note, Ma Zhou could no longer contain himself and immediately ordered his men to forcibly drive him away, barely managing to squeeze inside.

But when he looked around, trying to find a suicide note, he found that every official had their head bowed guiltily, and there was not a trace of a suicide note.

"Where's the suicide note?"

"I order you to hand it over immediately!"

No one responded to Ma Zhou's threats; all they saw were angry stares.

"Lord Ma, why are you only focusing on the suicide note and not asking why Lord Geng died?"

"Do you think a suicide note is more important than a human life?"

"you……"

Even with a thousand brilliant schemes, Ma Zhou was utterly defeated by these words.

As the saying goes, one should respect the dead. Ma Zhou's questioning of the will instead of the deceased was indeed a taboo.

"Where is the imperial physician?!"

"Your humble servant is here!"

"You must immediately examine Lord Geng and find out exactly how he died!"

"Lord Ma, I am a physician, not a coroner..."

"Then call the coroner over!"

"promise!"

Before long, the Ministry of War's coroner arrived, examined Geng Jingming's body, and finally came to a conclusion.

"My lord, this man died from poisoning!"

"Poisoning?"

Are you sure he didn't commit suicide by poisoning himself?

"My lord, this man has bruises and marks on his face and chin, clearly indicating that he was forced to drink poison. Furthermore, there is poison residue in his nostrils, suggesting it was expelled during the altercation. Therefore, it can be concluded that this man was poisoned!"

"this……"

Upon hearing the coroner's explanation, Ma Zhou was momentarily flustered. However, he quickly regained his composure and immediately ordered the Ministry of Revenue's office to be sealed off.

"From this moment forward, you may enter the Ministry of Revenue, but you may not leave!"

"Bring me the travel log immediately! I need to check the list of everyone who entered and left the Ministry of Revenue today!"

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!