Chapter 403 Ma Mingqian, Councilor of the Court of Jurisdiction
Ever since they confirmed their feelings for each other, Prince Rui had been thinking about how to make their relationship public. However, no matter how many methods he considered, they had to be put on hold due to the current situation.
The hand that was pressing on Jiang Yu's wound was gently removed by him. Prince Rui turned his head and glanced at Xia He, who immediately went over, took out a clean handkerchief, and pressed it on Jiang Yu's wound.
Jiang Yu was not a weak person; compared to the serious matter before her, the pain from the wound on her forehead was nothing. She took the handkerchief from Xia He and pressed it against her wound. Once she felt the bleeding had stopped, she tossed the handkerchief back to Xia He and stared solemnly at the black-clad men being searched by the guards and patrolmen.
Judging from the situation, it seemed that no useful information could be found. She frowned slightly, but upon reflection, the other party must have made preparations to avoid being exposed if they dared to assassinate in the street; otherwise, the man in black would not have committed suicide without hesitation after the assassination failed.
Thinking of this, Jiang Yu raised the corners of her lips. Did they think she would just swallow this loss? They were mistaken; Jiang Yu was never one to suffer a loss.
At this moment, the commander of the secret guards came over to report the situation, but before he could speak, Jiang Yu said in a cold and stern voice, "Keep the evidence safe."
The guard was taken aback; he hadn't found any evidence!
From the man in black's clothing to his weapons, to his flesh, there wasn't a single distinctive feature. But the instant his eyes met Jiang Yu's, he understood. He had found the evidence; who could refute it?
"Yes," he immediately replied, bowing respectfully. He inwardly admired his Duke, who, having just escaped death, was able to calmly make a judgment and decision. How many in the capital could match such composure in the face of danger?
Prince Rui, standing beside Jiang Yu, saw everything. He leaned to the right and whispered in Jiang Yu's ear, "Ma Mingqian, the Councilor of the Court of Judicial Review, is Pei Chengkun's son."
In other words, if Jiang Yu wants to vent his anger, he can use Ma Mingqian as a scapegoat. It's easy to see that even if the Prime Minister wasn't behind today's assassination attempt, he's still implicated.
Jiang Yu was somewhat shocked, as Ma Mingqian seemed to have no connection whatsoever with the Prime Minister. However, she believed that Prince Rui was not one to speak without reason; since he had said such a thing, he must have already obtained information.
"I understand," Jiang Yu said.
It wasn't the right occasion for them to discuss this in detail, but she believed that what Prince Rui said was true.
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves approached, and Prince An arrived with more than a dozen Imperial Guards. Seeing the corpses lying haphazardly on the ground, his gaze immediately searched for Jiang Yu. Seeing her standing there calmly, he breathed a sigh of relief. Then, seeing Prince Rui standing beside Jiang Yu, his pupils contracted.
He dismounted and bowed to Prince Rui, saying, "Uncle."
Prince Rui hummed in agreement, and Prince An turned to look at Jiang Yu with concern, "Is she alright?"
Jiang Yu shook his head, "This humble official is fine, thank you Your Highness."
Prince An looked at her intently and asked, "Do you know who did it?"
“Ma Mingqian, Councilor of the Ministry of Justice.” In just a short time, Jiang Yu had already come up with a strategy.
Ma Mingqian, ostensibly a scholar from a humble background, rose through luck and hard work to become a fifth-rank official in the Court of Judicial Review. Now that this high-ranking duke has been assassinated in the street, and has claimed to have found evidence pointing to this fifth-rank official, it's clear that whether the authorities in charge of the arrest are the Imperial Guards under Prince An's command, the Golden Guards, or the Court of Judicial Review, they won't first investigate the authenticity of the evidence; they will undoubtedly arrest Ma Mingqian immediately.
The sudden attack was something neither the Prime Minister nor Ma Mingqian had anticipated. Once the perpetrators are captured, there's no information they can't obtain under severe torture. As for evidence, they can gather it back at the residence.
She wanted the Prime Minister and the Prince of Lingnan to know that her life was not so easily taken.
Prince An was taken aback upon hearing the name Ma Mingqian, but he didn't ask any further questions. Just as he was about to order his men to arrest him, the commander of the Imperial Guards arrived quickly with a group of men. He was initially surprised to see Prince Rui there, but then he breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing that Prince Rui was unharmed.
He didn't bother to speculate about why Prince Rui was here. As long as this powerful figure wasn't injured, that was enough. If anything happened to Prince Rui, he, as the commander of the Imperial Guard responsible for the security of the capital, might lose his job.
After bowing to the group, the commander of the Imperial Guards asked Jiang Yu the same question, "Does the Duke of Chu know who did it?"
“Ma Mingqian, Councilor of the Court of Judicial Review.” Jiang Yu’s voice was calm, as if she wasn’t the one who had caused such a commotion and was the one who was assassinated.
The commander of the Imperial Guard looked surprised upon hearing this. Ma Mingqian, the councilor of the Court of Judicial Review, had absolutely no connection with the Duke of Chu. However, the Imperial Guard was not the Court of Judicial Review and did not need to investigate cases, but it did have the duty to pursue the murderer.
At this moment, Prince An's voice rang out, "First, take him into custody to prevent him from escaping."
The commander of the Imperial Guard glanced at Jiang Yu, immediately replied "Yes," and led his men to Ma Mingqian's residence. Compared to the Duke of Chu, a high-ranking official, a fifth-rank councilor of the Court of State Affairs with no background was nothing. Regardless of whether the Duke of Chu had any evidence, they would arrest him first.
The commander of the Imperial Guards had just left with his men when the Prefect of the Capital arrived in haste with his own entourage. After exchanging greetings, the Prefect asked the same question, "Does the Duke of Chu know who did this?"
Jiang Yu also answered that it was Ma Mingqian, the Councilor of the Court of Judicial Review. The Prefect of the Capital paused for a moment, wanting to ask if there was any evidence. But seeing the injury on Jiang Yu's head, he shut his mouth. It was obvious that such a large-scale assassination attempt in the street couldn't have been mastermind by Ma Mingqian. Perhaps Ma Mingqian was just a scapegoat.
But what does this have to do with him? Such a major matter will definitely be of concern to the Emperor. Even if the Duke of Chu has evidence, he won't give it to him; he'll certainly present it to the Emperor. So what he needs to do now is to do his job well and wait for the Emperor's decree.
His current task was to wait for the Imperial Guards to arrest the man and then take him into custody. However, considering the conflict between the Duke of Chu and the Prime Minister, he felt it was highly likely that the Prime Minister was the mastermind behind the assassination. But he only thought about it and dared not utter a word of it.
"I will also go to Ma Mingqian's residence to assist the Imperial Guards in the arrest, so as not to delay the time."
He cupped his hands in greeting, his gaze sweeping over the mess on the ground, before heading towards the direction where the Imperial Guards were gathering. It's always better to handle this matter efficiently.
At this moment, Marquis Anyuan, Duke of Wei, and Jiang Chengye arrived. Seeing that Jiang Yu was unharmed, the three of them breathed a sigh of relief. However, this was not the place to talk, so Marquis Anyuan told Jiang Yu to return to his residence quickly, and then thanked Prince Rui and Prince An.
Prince An and Prince Rui were unable to accompany him to the Duke of Chu's residence and had to return separately. Prince Rui still needed to figure out why he had appeared here so quickly.
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