As they were talking, Wu Chuan rushed over with a grave expression: "Master, a civil uprising has broken out in Mu City. Tens of thousands of people have gathered at the gate of the prefectural government and smashed the government office. Prefect He is missing, and His Highness the Third Prince has also been injured."
Everyone was startled, and Zhu Yu immediately asked, "What happened?"
Wu Chuan glanced at his master and realized that since the two of them woke up from their coma, the princess seemed to be more perceptive than his master in many matters.
Even the rule that women in the inner quarters should not interfere in politics became an empty phrase in the eyes of their masters.
Wu Chuan said, "His Highness the Third Prince purchased grain from several nearby counties and sent it to Mu City in batches."
"The last batch of grain totaled 70,000 shi, but the Third Prince did not go to Mu City with this batch of grain. Instead, he rode ahead and rushed to Mu City."
"Then who will be in charge of escorting them?" Lu Xiaoyun asked.
"It is Minister Xie, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue."
"Xie Jianghong?"
Wu Chuan nodded: "Yes, everything was fine the last few times, but this time when the grain escort team passed through Beiqiupo, a group of bandits suddenly appeared."
Feng Yan: "Master, Beiqiupo is mostly mountainous and forested. There is a narrow valley leading to Mucheng, which is the only way through. However, Mucheng is just beyond Beiqiupo."
Wu Chuan nodded: "Yes, the disaster relief grain was robbed there."
"Where did these bandits come from?" Lu Xiaoyun asked.
Wu Chuan shook his head: "Master, that's not the key point. The key point is that some bandits opened the grain sacks on the spot and found that they didn't contain rice at all, but rice bran mixed with mud and sand!"
"What!" The group exclaimed in surprise.
"How could Zhu Chen do such a thing? Even if he isn't exposed by the bandits on the spot, he will be exposed when he gets to Mu City. Does he really have the guts to do this?"
Although Zhu Chen is treacherous and ruthless, he is in charge of this matter. If he dares to tamper with the disaster relief supplies so drastically, he will be ruining his own future.
He's not that stupid.
Five hundred thousand taels of silver is nothing to Zhu Chen.
"The bandits immediately tied up Lord Xie and his men, and then took the grain to Mu City. At that time, the Third Prince was distributing porridge at the entrance of the prefectural government office, and thousands of people were queuing up. The bandits immediately cut open hundreds of bags of grain to show the people, and the scene got out of control."
That's outrageous! Just listening to it, Lu Xiaoyun could imagine how angry the people would be when they discovered that the imperial court had been deceiving them like this.
"Not only that, the winter clothes and quilts that were sent were cut open on the spot, and the cotton inside was not only black, but also had a foul and pungent smell."
“These clothes not only fail to keep you warm, but they also easily cause illness. They suspect they were taken from the dead. The people are relentless. The Emperor allocated 500,000 taels of silver, so it's impossible that the grain and winter clothes were embezzled.”
"The news spread quickly, and more and more people gathered. The situation eventually got out of control, and the gates of the Mu City Prefectural Government were smashed by the angry crowd. His Highness the Third Prince shouted himself hoarse, but no one paid any attention."
"Lord He came out to mediate the matter, but was swarmed by the angry crowd and was instantly overwhelmed by them. His fate and whereabouts are now unknown."
"There were just too many troublemakers, so His Highness the Third Prince ordered the garrison of Mu City to suppress them. Those soldiers were reckless and killed many people in the conflict, most of whom were civilians. Naturally, the people were even more furious."
Zhu Yu frowned. Sending troops to suppress the people would only make the situation worse: "How is the Third Prince now?"
"The Third Prince's forehead was smashed open, and the injury is quite serious. He is still in the Mucheng County government office. He refuses to leave, but there are many soldiers guarding the place, and the angry crowd does not dare to rush in rashly. He is safe for the time being."
It's only temporary. If this matter isn't resolved and Zhu Chen doesn't return to Shengjing, something serious will still happen.
Whom did the Emperor send to handle this matter?
Wu Chuan: "We sent the Duke of England."
Lu Xiaoyun frowned; the riots by the people would be difficult to quell in a short time.
But then Lu Xiaoyun thought of something else.
She curled her lips into a cold smile.
Zhu Yu glanced at her and realized the same thing.
Feng Yan, Wu Chuan, and the others were completely baffled, not knowing what their two masters were thinking. They simply couldn't understand it.
Jiang Chuan scratched his head: "Your Highness, Your Highness, what are you laughing at?"
"Qi Shaocheng," Lu Xiaoyun and Zhu Yu said at the same time.
Lu Yuyan strode over, swinging the jade-bone fan at his waist: "The old emperor sent the Duke of Ying to Mu City and transferred tens of thousands of people from the Xishan Military Camp there. This shows that the old emperor no longer trusts the Duke of Ying."
Jiang Chuan was even more confused when he saw Feng Yan and Wu Chuan laughing. Could it be that they both knew, and he was the only fool?
Feng Yan continued, "It just so happens that the Northern Army has been stationed outside Shengjing City for several months, and the Emperor has been wavering on how to deal with this large army. General Qi risked his life to save the Emperor last time, and has gained the Emperor's trust even more. So the Emperor's intention in doing this is that the Northern Army will become the army that guards the capital from now on."
Lu Yuyan slapped the jade-bone fan into his palm: "Brilliant! After the Duke of Ying returns to Shengjing, this Xishan Military Camp will probably have to change its name and go guard the border city."
Jiang Chuan looked at this and then at that, wondering why they could all think of it, but he couldn't.
He lowered his head in frustration and silently went to the kitchen to bring everyone fruits and snacks. Well, with his brains, he'd better just be a servant to the prince and take care of his daily needs.
However, he felt that something was wrong, but he just couldn't figure it out.
Lu Xiaoyun said, "However, before Father Emperor swaps the two armies, the Northern Army needs to achieve another military merit, otherwise it will be difficult to win over the masses."
Now, apart from Zhu Yu, even Feng Yan and Lu Yuyan were confused. Didn't the Northern Army have enough military achievements?
Jiang Chuan stared blankly at Zhu Yu: "Your Highness, you know?"
Lu Yuyan rolled his eyes at Jiang Chuan. Of course, this man is the real Prince An, and he understands the Emperor's thoughts best. But his sister seems to be getting more and more in sync with this Zhu Yu.
Zhu Yu: "The war to attack Chen should be handed over to Qi Shaocheng."
The crowd suddenly understood; the old emperor could not tolerate such humiliation.
Lu Xiaoyun added, "This popular uprising is likely being orchestrated by someone with ulterior motives, but what are their goals, and who would do such a thing? We need to investigate further."
Feng Yan said, "Master, could it be His Highness the Crown Prince? Is his aim to eliminate His Highness the Third Prince?"
Lu Xiaoyun shook her head.
Zhu Yu frowned: "It's not impossible, but it's unlikely."
The group all looked at him.
He said, "Zhu Zhi is brainless, but Bu Feizhang is a cunning old fox. He will never allow Zhu Zhi to do this. The intention of this matter against Zhu Chen is too obvious. Once something happens, the Emperor will find out as soon as he investigates. At that time, Zhu Zhi will truly be doomed."
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