Chapter 457: You'll Never Return

After the order was issued, all the troops in the city were mobilized except for the imperial guards in the palace.

It is not convenient for the ministers attending the banquet tonight to return home.

Xiao Yanlin ordered people to temporarily place them in various halls in the palace and wait until tomorrow morning to see the situation.

Xiao Yanlin returned to the bedroom and smashed a set of teacups.

Originally, tonight was supposed to be his highlight moment in front of his brothers, but it was completely ruined by those traitors.

That night, everyone was worried and no one could sleep.

In the second half of the night, the court officials were awakened by the slightest noise and immediately sent servants to inquire.

"The rebels have infiltrated the palace! The imperial guards are searching the palace."

This news immediately frightened them to the point of their legs going weak.

How, how did he get into the palace?

Xiao Yanlin's face turned ashen.

From receiving the news that the rebels were approaching the city, to the rebels causing chaos in the city, to now, the rebels have even sneaked into the harem, in just one night, the rebels have invaded step by step like ghosts. No one would believe that there is no internal support in the court!

He thought of something and immediately ordered, "Go to the cold palace and arrest Concubine Rou."

Concubine Rou is an important hostage. If we capture her first, we will have the bargaining chip to restrain Xiao Yanci.

"Encircle the palaces where the court officials reside and send people to inspect them one by one. If anyone is suspicious, arrest them immediately!"

He wanted to see who dared to play tricks under his nose.

The confidant who went to the cold palace to arrest someone brought back bad news, "Your Majesty, it's bad, Concubine Rou is missing!"

Xiao Yanlin's eyes suddenly became sharp, and a surge of anger rushed to his head.

He raised his foot and kicked his confidant to the ground.

"You're useless. You can't even take care of one person. What's the point of me keeping you?"

The confidant felt a dull pain in his chest after being kicked, but he didn't dare to utter a cry of pain. He could only kneel back down with difficulty.

"It is my fault for not doing my job well. Please punish me, Your Majesty!"

"Even if you have to dig three feet deep, you must find him for me! Otherwise, bring your head to me!"

The confidant nodded repeatedly and bowed and retreated.

Xiao Yanlin smashed several sets of tea sets in the palace to vent his anger.

The disappearance of Concubine Rou proved one thing: the series of movements tonight were indeed caused by Xiao Yanci.

He might be hiding somewhere in the palace now, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

This thought startled Xiao Yanlin, and he turned around abruptly to look around the hall.

Realizing his own panic, Xiao Yanlin felt ashamed and angry, and was enveloped by a sense of hostility.

"Xiao Yanci, if you dare to come, I will make sure you never return!"

The search on the other side has made progress.

"Your Majesty, I have discovered that the attendant of the Minister of Justice, Lord Qin, has a dragon-patterned token hidden on his person."

The imperial guards were ordered to search all the court officials and their attendants. When they found the attendant, he looked obviously different, and finally they found something on him.

Xiao Yanlin took the dragon-patterned token with a serious face, his eyes as dark as ink.

The dragon-patterned token can pass through the inner palace gate, which is definitely not something a follower should have.

This old guy Qin Zhongju turned out to be him!

"Can it be tried?"

"The man had a poison sac hidden in his mouth. When he saw his plan was exposed, he bit through the sac and committed suicide."

What a suicide out of fear of punishment!

Xiao Yanlin squeezed the dragon-patterned token until it made a rattling sound, and the anger in his chest grew more and more violent.

He walked towards Wenhua Hall.

There was unrest in the palace, so everyone was gathered in the Wenhua Hall to facilitate the search.

At this time, the atmosphere in Wenhua Hall was very strange.

The rebels who came and went without a trace made everyone panic, and the dragon-patterned token found on Qin Zhongju's followers made everyone even more nervous.

Unexpectedly, Lord Qin colluded with the rebels.

How many of them harbor evil intentions?

The corpse was still placed in the center of the hall. The imperial guards, holding broadswords, surrounded Qin Zhongju, as if they would kill him without mercy if he resisted.

Qin Zhongju's face was pale. It was a cold day, but he was sweating all over and his back was wet.

He didn't know how many times he had explained it, he had no idea what was going on, but no one believed him. The swords of these imperial guards were shining with cold light, and he could almost imagine the pain of the swords piercing his flesh.

The fear of death enveloped him deeply.

Everyone stayed away from them, fearing that they would be accidentally injured.

Xiao Yanlin arrived with a murderous look on his face. Everyone knelt down together, and Qin Zhongju knelt particularly hard.

"Your Majesty, I bow to you. Your Majesty, please understand that I am truly innocent. I have no idea how he got that thing on him!"

Xiao Yanlin was distracted by the rebels' repeated actions, and any slight disturbance was enough to arouse his sensitive nerves.

What's more, the evidence is right in front of us.

"Don't know? Sir Qin, you think you can just shirk your responsibility by saying you don't know?"

Qin Zhongju kowtowed and cried out in protest, "Your Majesty, I am loyal to you and have no second thoughts. You should know this!"

His words seemed to imply something else, but they made Xiao Yanlin's eyes darker and the murderous intent in his heart stronger.

"I only believe in evidence."

A court official said, "Master Qin, if this man didn't have something to hide, why would he have hidden a poison sac in his mouth?"

The other ministers echoed, "The Imperial Guards reported earlier that the Qin Mansion was looted by the rebels. Why didn't the rebels loot other mansions, but only the Qin Mansion? I'm afraid the so-called looting is fake, and the real reason is that the Qin Mansion is secretly colluding with the rebels."

When Qin Zhongju heard this, he was speechless.

"Come here, take Lord Qin away and interrogate him properly."

Qin Zhongju's face suddenly changed. "Your Majesty, please spare my life. I am innocent! Your Majesty, please understand!"

Xiao Yanlin was not moved at all.

This person was originally a supporter of Xiao Yanqing, but in the end he defected to me.

If he can betray his old master, he can also betray himself.

What's more, at a time like this, it is better to kill someone by mistake than to let him go.

When everyone heard Qin Zhongju's cries, they immediately felt a sense of sympathy.

Will I be the next one to be implicated?

It was also at this moment that everyone realized that the new emperor in front of them was not as gentle as they had thought, but instead exuded a cold and murderous aura.

"Take him away."

He didn't say a word of unnecessary nonsense, and his voice was even colder than before.

Qin Zhongju was held up by the imperial guards, and a foul odor suddenly seeped out of his lower body.

"Your Majesty, please believe me. I am truly loyal to you. Can't you see my loyalty in the matter of Zhao Shuning?"

He turned his head to look at Xiao Yanlin hopefully, but the young emperor did not look back.

Qin Zhongju felt a deep despair.

The emperor wasn't going to leave himself any chance of survival! Since that was the case, he was completely desperate!

He roared loudly, "Your Majesty, I was ordered by you to rescue the condemned Zhao Shuning from prison. I have long been loyal to you and have no second thoughts!"