Chapter 79 Assassination
"Cough cough, Fourth Brother, cough..."
Yinxiang was awakened by the screams outside. As soon as he opened his eyes, he was choked by the smoke that filled the room. Seeing the flickering fire outside, he ignored his shock and quickly shook Yinzhen awake.
"Cough cough... What happened?" Yinzhen frowned as he got up, still a little groggy.
"Fire! Fourth Brother!"
"Fire?" Yinzhen was shocked. He turned his head and looked at the fire outside. He couldn't understand it at all. What were the guards doing? How could they let the fire spread so big? "Oh no, Father Emperor!"
Yinzhen was startled. He and Yinxiang exchanged a glance and then rushed out, heading towards Kangxi's room next door.
Avoiding the flames, the two ran out of the house, only to find that those shouting "Fire!" were villagers, and none of the guards in the courtyard made a sound. Even knowing that something was wrong, Yinzhen and his companion had no time to think and turned to rush into Kangxi's room.
Seeing that the fire was most intense in the main house, the two men became anxious and, ignoring the villagers' attempts to stop them, poured a bucket of water over themselves and tried to rush inside. Fortunately, at that moment, a dark figure rushed out of the house carrying the unconscious Kangxi.
"Father!" The two rushed over. Yinxiang was somewhat suspicious of this ordinary man he had never seen before. But Yinzhen knew in his heart that this was Kangxi's secret guard.
Before the two sides could confront each other, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the courtyard, and a large group of guards who had stayed outside the village arrived at the scene.
"Your Majesty, we have arrived too late to save you!"
The gleaming swords and knives terrified the people present, turning them pale. Upon hearing the names they used, even the most ignorant among them knew who lived in the courtyard. Unable to contain themselves, they knelt down one after another, trembling with fear.
At this moment, there was no time to consider the people's feelings. Under Yinzhen's command, some people moved Kangxi to a safe place for treatment, some fought the fire, and some sealed off the scene to investigate the truth. Everyone was on high alert and mobilized.
"Your Highness, all the guards in the courtyard are dead. They all suffocated in the fire." Yue Xing'a, as Kangxi's new favorite, also accompanied the emperor on this trip to protect Kangxi's safety.
With his face still covered in soot, Yue Xing'a, who had taken the lead in extinguishing the fire and investigated the situation, walked solemnly to Yinzhen to report back.
"They must have inhaled a sleeping pill before the fire started. The fire started at the curtain of the main house, and there were traces of oil stains around it, which clearly indicates that it was arson."
Yue Xing'a's expression grew increasingly grim as he spoke. This was clearly an assassination attempt against the Emperor, yet he, as the head of the guards, had failed to notice it at all; it was his dereliction of duty.
"Has the arsonist been found?" Yinzhen nodded, having already anticipated this. Now that the incident had occurred, his only concern was who the culprit was.
Yue Xing'a shook his head helplessly, "We haven't found anything yet..."
"Fourth Brother, Father has woken up!" Yinxiang, who had been left by Yinzhen to stay by Kangxi's side, rushed over excitedly to report the news. Yinzhen then took Yue Xing'a and went over there.
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Get up. How's the investigation going?" Kangxi leaned against the headboard, his face slightly pale and his voice a little hoarse.
"Your Majesty, according to the situation at the scene..." At Yinzhen's signal, Yue Xing'a stepped forward to report the information. Knowing that this was a chance for him to redeem himself from his sins, Yue Xing'a was grateful. He knelt down and earnestly recounted all the information he had found, word by word.
"I am incompetent and have not yet found the murderer."
After Yue Xing'a finished speaking, Kangxi remained silent, and the air grew heavy and tense. Finally, as Yue Xing'a broke out in a cold sweat, Kangxi spoke.
"Yinzhen".
"Your subject is here."
"I'm entrusting the arson case to you. Tomorrow, at this time tomorrow, I need to know who the arsonist is."
"Yes, Your Majesty, I obey your command."
"Yinxiang and Yue Xing'a, you two will follow Yinzhen's orders and investigate this matter together."
"yes."
...
Under the escort of his guards, Kangxi rushed back to Jinan Prefecture in the dead of night, leaving only Yinzhen, Yinxiang, and a group of men led by Yue Xing'a in the village.
"I trouble Guard Tongjia to send someone to inquire whether the people who helped put out the fire noticed anything unusual." After seeing Kangxi off, the group did not go back to rest, but continued to carry out the investigation under Yinzhen's leadership.
"Yes, this is my duty." Yue Xing'a replied. Having experienced investigating cases in Jiangnan with Yinzhen, Yue Xing'a adapted very well to returning to the Prince Yong's jurisdiction to investigate cases.
"Very well, I'll say a few more words. I hope that Guard Tongjia will be careful with his methods and discretion when questioning the people."
"Your Majesty, I understand." Yue Xing'a had long understood the hardships of ordinary people under Yinzhen's influence. They had this tacit understanding, so they naturally wouldn't implicate innocent people, but of course, they wouldn't let go of anyone who was found to be at fault.
"Thirteenth Brother, let's go take a look in the courtyard." Seeing Yue Xing'a and his men walk away, Yinzhen turned to look at Yinxiang.
Yinxiang nodded, and the two returned to the courtyard, which was a complete mess from the fire. In order to preserve the scene, the bodies of several guards who had suffocated in the fire were left in place and not moved.
Yinxiang saw it, and although he couldn't help but frown, he wasn't afraid, though he had other worries in his heart. Looking at his fourth brother carefully examining the area, Yinxiang hesitantly asked, "Fourth brother, can they really find out in such a short time? Father Emperor..."
"Therefore, Father Emperor only wants the arsonist."
Yinzhen stopped his inspection, turned around and looked at Yinxiang seriously, his gaze deep.
"The arsonist..." Yinxiang was stunned, then suddenly realized that the arsonist wasn't necessarily the mastermind. In such an obvious assassination attempt, why was his father only investigating the arsonist? Could it be...? Yinxiang's pupils dilated uncontrollably, utterly astonished. "Fourth Brother..."
"We only need to find the arsonist."
"Yes, Yinxiang understands."
Having understood Yinzhen's meaning, Yinxiang stopped thinking about it and followed behind Yinzhen, busily investigating the scene...
The next morning, Yinzhen and his entourage rushed back to the temporary palace. They arrived at Kangxi's gate without even having time to wash up, and happened to run into the Third Prince, Yinzhi, who had come to pay his respects.
"Have you found out?" Seeing that the group was still covered in black ash, clearly having rushed back from the scene, Yin Zhi eagerly approached to ask.
You see, when Emperor Kangxi returned late last night, he was restless after learning about the assassination attempt. If Emperor Kangxi hadn't forbidden anyone from disturbing him, he would have already rushed forward to serve him.
I rushed here so early because I couldn't sleep and wanted to know news of my father, the Emperor, as soon as possible. Meeting Yinzhen and the others was an unexpected joy.
When asked by Yinzhi, Yinzhen nodded but didn't say much. Yinzhi understood and followed the three of them inside.
"Your subject greets Your Majesty."
"Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."
"Get up, all of you. You're back so early. Did you find something out?" Kangxi's gaze swept over the four people below. Excluding Yinzhi, Yinzhen, Yinxiang, and Yue Xing'a looked like they had just returned. Judging from their expressions, they must have found something good.
"Yes, Your Majesty." As the chief investigator personally appointed by Emperor Kangxi, Yinzhen stepped forward to report the news, "After investigation, we found that the person who poisoned the guards and set the fire was Ma Jia Alinbao, one of the guards, and also one of the victims present."
"The dead guard?"
"Yes, according to the coroner's investigation, Alinbao did not die of suffocation, but from poisoning. Furthermore, traces of osmanthus oil were found on his sleeves, consistent with the oil stains found in the main house..."
Yinzhen presented a very complete account, from the cause of the victim's death to the murder weapon, from the time and place of purchase to Alinbao's biography.
According to Yinzhen's account, the evidence was conclusive, and Ma Jia Alinbao was undoubtedly the arsonist. Unfortunately, because the arsonist also died in the fire, the mastermind behind it could not be found.
"Alright, I understand. You may all go back and rest." Kangxi's expression was calm, revealing no hint of his true feelings. He was the one who seemed to value the matter, having only given Yinzhen a day. Yet, it was also he who, after hearing Yinzhen's account, casually dismissed everyone.
Completely baffled, but no one dared to say anything, and could only respectfully retreat.
“Ma Jia Alinbao…” Kangxi leaned against the headboard, the curtains blocking the sunlight, half his face hidden in shadow, making it impossible to see his expression. It was as if he were muttering to himself in the room, “Keep an eye on Suo'etu. I need to know his movements…”
"Yes." No one appeared, but a faint echo suddenly rang out, and then a figure flashed past the window.
“Song'etu…”
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