After the emperor finished speaking, he looked at the Seventh Prince and the Northern Qi delegation leisurely.
Who can guarantee the Seventh Prince and the Northern Qi envoys? Qi Luhar knew that this trip would be a one-way trip, so he acted and spoke without restraint, which really made people hate him.
As soon as the Northern Qi delegation stopped, an official from the Ministry of Rites stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
"explain."
"General Qilu couldn't sit still when he arrived at the embassy yesterday. He wanted to go out for a walk and happened to run into the Miao envoys. General Qilu was attracted to the Miao Saint Girl and made many flirtatious remarks and even made a move."
The official continued, "I was at the scene at the time. The Miaojiang Saint wanted to leave without paying attention, but General Qilu stopped her, hugged her, and even kissed her.
At that time, the people around the Miaojiang Saint were furious, and the two sides were on the verge of a fight. If His Royal Highness the Crown Prince had not happened to pass by and persuaded them, he would have persuaded General Qilu to leave.
"After that, General Qilu went to other embassies and took all the things and beauties he liked back to his own place, which annoyed many people."
The emperor pondered for a moment, "So, what General Qilu did during his lifetime was truly like a rat crossing the street, everyone shouting and beating it."
The hall was completely silent; neither the Seventh Prince of Northern Qi nor the envoys uttered a word.
The emperor smiled inwardly, but his face was very serious. "It seems that we must conduct a thorough investigation. We must not wrongly accuse the Marquis of Anchang. Eunuch Li, send a decree to the Minister of the Supreme Court to investigate thoroughly."
"This case is of great importance. The Fourth Prince is assisting the Dali Temple in its investigation. You have three days to complete the case."
The Fourth Prince knelt down to receive the order, "Your Highness obeys."
At this moment, the Fourth Prince regretted it very much. He should not have competed with the Crown Prince for the reception of the envoys. Now it was not easy to fool him by asking him to investigate Qiluhar's death.
The Seventh Prince of Northern Qi and the envoys saw that they could not gain any advantage. Su Nanting had already left the capital, and it would be the same if they intercepted him on the road.
If one wants to completely take control of the Jing Dynasty, killing Duke Dingguo and Marquis Anchang is the key. Without these two generals, the Jing Dynasty will surely fall into the hands of Northern Qi.
Xiao Zhensheng has their people around him and is under constant supervision. They are not afraid that he will leave the capital. If he makes any unusual movements, he will be killed immediately.
The seventh prince of Northern Qi and the envoys brought thunder bombs into the palace just to see the attitude of Emperor Jingchao. They didn't expect the result to be like this. At first, he was submissive, but in the end, he still had to let the Dali Temple investigate as they said.
It was impossible for them to really blow up the palace. If they did so, everyone in Jing Dynasty would probably rise up in resistance and die with them.
The Northern Qi envoys, respectfully escorted from the palace by the Fourth Prince, officials from the Ministry of Rites, and the Imperial Guards, felt somewhat frustrated, as if they had punched cotton today. The Emperor of the Jing Dynasty was no simple matter; he wasn't as weak as he appeared.
The Seventh Prince of Northern Qi looked at the Fourth Prince, who nodded. "I will escort His Royal Highness the Seventh Prince and the other envoys back to the embassy. Please."
When we returned to the embassy, we found that it had been taken over by the Dali Temple and strict restrictions were in place. Members of the delegation had to register and state the reason for entering and leaving.
The Seventh Prince of Northern Qi glanced at the Fourth Prince and felt like he was shooting himself in the foot.
The Fourth Prince said, "Don't worry, Seventh Prince. I will definitely not stop you from leaving."
"It was all your good idea. We've lost both the wife and the army." The Seventh Prince of Northern Qi entered the embassy with a cold face. "Tell your emperor to prepare the tribute. In three days, I will return to Northern Qi."
The Fourth Prince quickly followed, "Don't worry, Your Highness, we have already prepared the tribute."
"You haven't paid tribute on time. My father is very unhappy. Tell your Jing Dynasty Emperor to add another 10%. No matter what the reason, the Northern Qi general died in your Jing Dynasty. You must compensate me. No more, just add another 10% to the tribute."
When the officials from the Ministry of Rites heard this, their hearts pounded. However, the Fourth Prince agreed readily, "Don't worry, Seventh Prince. We will prepare the things immediately."
The Dali Temple Minister and his men happened to walk over. Seeing the Fourth Prince's servile behavior, their brows furrowed in anxiety for a moment, then regained their composure. They were here to perform official duties, questioning everything that had transpired since last night's banquet.
Soon, the Northern Qi's request was compiled into a memorial by officials from the Ministry of Rites and delivered to the emperor.
After reading it, the emperor threw it on the ground and said, "The Fourth Prince has already agreed. What else can I say? Let's prepare according to what they say."
The originally planned ceremony of the emperor celebrating with the people was cancelled. Eunuch Li knew that the emperor was in a bad mood. "Your Majesty, the embassy has the Fourth Prince and the Supreme Court Minister and others. They will surely uncover the truth quickly."
The emperor didn't care about these things at all. Holding the Wanshou Festival was just a delaying tactic. It didn't matter how Qiluhar died. What mattered was that Northern Qi took this opportunity to ask for a huge amount of money.
Rubbing his brows, the emperor asked, "Duke Dingguo should have arrived at the manor, right?"
"We should be here by now."
The emperor nodded and asked, "I wonder where Su Nanting has gone?"
We just set out this morning, and judging by the time, we should have just left the capital.
Outside the capital, there are a thousand cavalrymen of Northern Qi.
The emperor stood up and walked to the bed. The sky outside was clear, but the wind was freezing cold. Eunuch Li quickly took the cloak and put it on the emperor, "Your Majesty, it's cold outside."
"I can still bear this little bit of cold. In the past, I also went to the battlefield and won several battles." The emperor recalled the past. He also dressed in fine clothes and rode a horse, beheading the enemy soldiers.
He was once a brave and resourceful general, and he was once an ambitious emperor. However, his bold words were blown away without a trace by the bombing of the Northern Qi Dynasty.
These seven years of humiliation left a mark on his bones.
"Bring the sword."
"Your Majesty~"
The emperor insisted, so Eunuch Li had to hand over the sword.
The emperor grabbed his cloak and threw it to Eunuch Li, then walked out of the imperial study with his sword in hand and started playing in the open space at the door.
Eunuch Li waited by the side, holding his cloak, watching the emperor's smooth sword moves, as if he saw the emperor's heroic figure in his youth, and his eyes moistened. These seven years have been very difficult for the emperor.
News of the Emperor's sword dance spread immediately to all the palaces. The Empress showed no emotion. "It's normal for the Emperor to be depressed after such a good birthday celebration. Don't worry, his Consort Hua Shu will go back to comfort him."
Sure enough, when Concubine Shu got the news, she immediately made desserts and went to comfort her.
Princess Huasheng received a letter from the manor and entered the palace. "Mother, Duke Dingguo really did take his wife and children to the manor to relax and have no other plans."
Concubine Jin nodded. "As a military commander, Xiao Zhensheng certainly can't stand the emperor bowing his head like this. He's hiding in the manor house. Have someone keep a close eye on him. If he leaves the manor house and goes somewhere else, take action immediately."
"Can't we leave him alive?" Princess Huasheng felt a little unwilling to not be able to eat him.
Concubine Jin looked at her daughter unhappily and said, "When the time comes, destroy his skills and tear the tendons of his hands and feet. You can do whatever you want with him."
Princess Huasheng immediately smiled brightly, "Thank you, mother."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com