Chapter 411: Treason

Bian Zhiming's memorial stated that upon arrival, His Royal Highness the Eighth Prince immediately went to the gathering place of the disaster victims, consoled them with kind words, and explained the court's grace. He also set an example by not avoiding filth and personally working.

The people were touched by his sincerity and said, "If even the prince of the Heavenly Family is so kind, why should we fear disaster?"

The people were reassured and disaster relief work was carried out smoothly.

The eighth prince also took charge of relief work, distributed food, built relief sheds, housed the elderly, the weak, women and children, cleared roads, and restored business. The disaster in southern Fujian was quickly brought under control.

After the disaster, an epidemic broke out suddenly, and the Eighth Prince immediately summoned medical officers to discuss countermeasures.

At first, the prescriptions prescribed by the Imperial Hospital were ineffective, so the Eighth Prince found a traveling female doctor who formulated a prescription, prepared a decoction, and distributed it to the people.

He also issued strict orders to clean water sources and set up separate hospitals to isolate patients to prevent the spread of the disease.

Now that the epidemic has been contained and many of the sick have recovered, the people are saying, "If it weren't for your Highness's kindness and brilliant policy, southern Fujian would have become a ghost town."

A memorial brought the eighth prince to the forefront, and Emperor Defeng looked at his son in the eye for the first time.

The court officials praised him, saying, "Although the Eighth Prince is a descendant of the royal family, he shares the hardships of life with the soldiers and the people, and works tirelessly day and night. This kind of character is not found in ordinary people."

"The Eighth Prince commands with unwavering confidence, employing both kindness and authority. Officials are intimidated and the people are loyal. The situation in southern Fujian is under control, thanks to your virtue and ability, and even more so to your Majesty's wise parenting. The world is fortunate!"

Everyone flattered him, and Emperor Defeng was also very proud. In addition, the epidemic in southern Fujian was under control, and his mood also improved visibly.

The only thing that worries him is that the situation in southern Yunnan is still unclear.

At this time, two months had passed since Xiao Yanci left Beijing, but no news had been sent back.

Emperor Defeng later sent troops to southern Yunnan, but they also never returned.

This abnormal situation caused many people to have doubts, fearing that something big had happened in southern Yunnan.

This speculation was soon verified.

On this day, a group of people hurried back from outside the city.

One of them was carrying a dirty and disheveled person on his horse.

This group of people were the Dragon Scale Guards.

The leading Dragon Scale Guard showed his token and went straight into the palace, bringing the disheveled man into the palace as well.

Others thought he was just a refugee who had suffered a disaster, but they didn't know that he was Zhu Jirui, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, who was the person who had been ordered to go to southern Yunnan to dig for gold sand.

Prior to this, an urgent report was sent from southern Yunnan, saying that the Jinsha River Basin had suffered a landslide, and all the officials and soldiers who were excavating were buried, with no one surviving.

Unexpectedly, today, Zhu Jirui, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Works, came back, and he looked so embarrassed.

The Dragon Scale Guards had the right to meet the emperor directly, so they all entered the imperial study and knelt down.

Sheng Changming, the leader of the Dragon Scale Guard, said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, the situation in southern Yunnan is different."

Emperor Defeng's face darkened.

"What's going on?"

Zhu Jirui, who was half dead just now, breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Emperor Defeng.

His tone was filled with grief as he spoke loudly, "Your Majesty, I, Zhu Jirui, the Governor of Jinsha, Diannan, risk my life to report that the King of Diannan is colluding with foreign enemies, fabricating disaster reports, and slaughtering imperial officials in an attempt to rebel!"

After these words were spoken, Emperor Defeng's already gloomy expression became even gloomier.

"How dare you! You dare to speak nonsense, do you know what the consequences will be?"

"Your Majesty, every word I have said is true, not a single word is false! I was ordered to supervise the mining of gold sands in southern Yunnan to replenish the national treasury. The King of Southern Yunnan also sent people to actively cooperate. Initially, the mining went smoothly. However, little did we know that this was just an appearance. In reality, the King of Southern Yunnan had long harbored evil intentions."

"The so-called recent flood disaster in southern Yunnan was actually caused by the King of Southern Yunnan secretly ordering the dikes to be dug to release water and block the river. It was not a natural disaster! Their purpose was simply to prevent the imperial court from continuing to mine gold sands."

"After the flood, the King of Southern Yunnan, under the guise of rescue, secretly instructed the jungle tribes of Southern Yunnan to disguise themselves as bandits and encircle and massacre the surviving gold mining officials and craftsmen!"

"I witnessed with my own eyes that dozens of my colleagues were brutally murdered. Only I and a few others managed to escape. The King of Southern Yunnan is attempting to silence us and prevent the court from investigating!"

"While on the run, I stumbled upon a secret letter from the King of Diannan, revealing his long-standing collusion with the Kingdom of Nanyue! Nanyue's deployment of troops on the border wasn't accidental; it was a pact with the King of Diannan to forge an internal and external alliance. The King of Diannan, under the guise of a natural disaster, would sever ties with the imperial court and establish himself as king. Nanyue would seize the opportunity to send troops to aid him in his struggle against the imperial court, with the goal of sharing the spoils of the Golden Sands."

"I was fortunate to have encountered the Dragon Scale Guards and was able to escape death. I have no choice but to risk my life to submit this report. I humbly implore Your Majesty to quickly send a secret envoy to investigate and dispatch troops to suppress the rebellion of the King of Southern Yunnan to prevent a catastrophe!"

After saying this, Zhu Jirui was exhausted and crawled on the ground.

Emperor Defeng's body shook and his head buzzed, and he couldn't recover for a long time.

Feng Youcai's expression also changed, and he hurriedly reached out to support Emperor Defeng.

"Your Majesty, please don't be anxious. This matter has not been thoroughly investigated yet. Perhaps there is some misunderstanding."

Emperor Defeng took a few quick breaths and looked at Sheng Changming, "You say."

Sheng Changming lowered his head, his tone heavy with sorrow.

"When I arrived, the main road to southern Yunnan had been destroyed. I tried to force my way through, but was attacked, resulting in many casualties. I revealed my identity, but the attack didn't abate; instead, it intensified."

"I saw the Ministry of Works' markings on the enemy's arrows. Those arrows might have come from the reinforcements of His Royal Highness Prince Jin."

As soon as he finished speaking, Emperor Defeng's face trembled violently and his expression became frighteningly gloomy.

Sheng Changming hurriedly said, "I am afraid that I may have made a mistake, so I have collected a large number of bows and arrows and sent them to the Ministry of Works for their craftsmen to identify."

Coincidentally, the Ministry of Industry has come up with results.

Those broken arrows did come from the Ministry of Works, and only the reinforcements led by Prince Jin used bows and arrows made by the Ministry of Works.

Why didn't Prince Jin's reinforcements show up, but instead secretly attacked the Dragon Scale Guards to prevent them from overcoming the obstacles and reaching southern Yunnan?

The reason behind this is really intriguing.

Zhu Jirui spoke again, "Your Majesty, I dare to say that the imperial reinforcements have been incited to revolt. This army is not an army to support the emperor, but an army to aid the rebellion!"

Emperor Defeng slammed his hand on the table. "How dare you! Are you implying that Prince Jin is plotting treason?"

"I dare not, but this matter concerns the safety of the country. I am living on with my broken body, and I only hope that Your Majesty will understand! If I say even one word falsely, I will be willing to be tortured to death!"

Emperor Defeng breathed rapidly and did not speak for a long time.

The situation in southern Yunnan was a mystery, and Emperor Defeng was increasingly puzzled. For a moment, he found it difficult to make a decision.

Is there really a rebellious intention in southern Yunnan?

Once this thought arises, it is difficult to suppress it.

What he found hard to accept was what role his son, his preferred crown prince, played in all this?

Was he an accomplice in this matter?

He was unlikely to rebel, but if Gu Qishan and Concubine Rou's affair was true...

Emperor Defeng's head felt swollen, and the veins on his temples were throbbing. He looked in very bad condition.

Feng Youcai was startled. "Your Majesty, this matter requires further consideration. You should prioritize the emperor's health first."