Chapter 65
The capital city, the imperial palace, the imperial study.
Emperor Tang Tai sat on the dragon throne, his face terribly grim. In his hand he held the token presented by Tang Pu and a detailed memorial, which recorded in detail the hijacking of the Royal Maritime Trading Company's fleet, the suppression of pirates on "Dragon Tooth Island," and the discovery of the British Duke's token.
"The Duke of England's mansion!" The Emperor slammed the memorial on the table and roared angrily, "I have treated them well, yet they dare to collude with pirates, hijack the royal fleet, and harm the national interest! They are utterly audacious!"
The atmosphere in the imperial study instantly became heavy. The eunuchs and palace maids trembled with fear and dared not utter a sound.
Tang Pu stood to the side, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, the Duke of Ying's mansion has committed heinous crimes. If they are not severely punished, it will be difficult to appease the people. I implore Your Majesty to order a thorough investigation of the Duke of Ying's mansion and bring them to justice!"
The emperor took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. He knew that the Duke of Ying's mansion was a long-established noble family in the Qin Dynasty, with deep-rooted influence that permeated the court and the countryside. If he rashly ordered a thorough investigation, it would likely cause turmoil in the court.
"This matter is of utmost importance, and we cannot draw conclusions based solely on a token." The Emperor spoke slowly, his tone calmer. "I need to investigate further and confirm that this was indeed the work of the Duke of Ying's mansion before I can make a decision."
Tang Pu wanted to say something more, but Cui Yunshu stopped him with a look. Cui Yunshu knew that although the emperor was angry, he also had his own concerns. The Duke of Ying's mansion was very powerful, and the emperor would not easily take action against them. The most important thing now was to get the emperor to order an investigation, not to punish them immediately.
"Your Majesty is wise." Cui Yunshu bowed and said, "This humble woman believes that Your Majesty is absolutely right. This matter does indeed require further investigation to confirm the truth. This humble woman suggests that Your Majesty could send someone to secretly investigate the recent movements of the Duke of Ying's mansion, as well as their connections with the pirates. At the same time, the Duke of Ying could also be summoned to ask his opinion on this matter."
The Emperor nodded, finding Cui Yunshu's words reasonable: "Very well, we will proceed as you suggest. I appoint you as Imperial Commissioner to investigate this matter in secret. Tang Pu, you will cooperate with Cui's investigation, and at the same time, you must strengthen the defenses of the capital to prevent the Duke of Ying's mansion from taking any desperate measures."
"Your subject (your subject's wife) obeys the decree!" Cui Yunshu and Tang Pu said in unison, bowing respectfully.
Stepping out of the imperial study, Tang Pu couldn't help but ask, "Master Strategist, why doesn't His Majesty immediately order a thorough investigation of the Duke of Ying's mansion? Doesn't he believe us?"
Cui Yunshu shook her head, her tone grave: "His Majesty doesn't distrust us, but he has his own concerns. The Duke of Ying's mansion is an old and powerful noble family. If we touch them, it could cause turmoil in the court. His Majesty needs time to weigh the pros and cons, and he also needs more evidence to prove the Duke of Ying's mansion's crimes."
She paused, then continued, "What we need to do now is to find more evidence as soon as possible to prove that the British Duke's Mansion colluded with the pirates. Only in this way can His Majesty make up his mind to punish them."
Tang Pu nodded, a determined expression on his face: "Don't worry, strategist, I will definitely cooperate with you and find the evidence as soon as possible."
Over the next few days, Cui Yunshu and Tang Pu began to secretly investigate the Duke of Ying's mansion. They used the intelligence network of Yunjian Pavilion to gather information on the recent movements of the Duke of Ying's mansion, and also sent people to monitor the members of the Duke of Ying's mansion.
Soon, they discovered some clues. The British Duke's Mansion had recently been in close contact with some merchants in the East China Sea and had secretly transferred a large amount of funds. More importantly, they discovered that Zhou Ye, the eldest grandson of the British Duke's Mansion, had secretly traveled to the East China Sea a few days before the Royal Maritime Trading Company's fleet was hijacked.
"It seems this matter is indeed related to the Duke of England's mansion." Cui Yunshu looked at the intelligence in her hand and said with certainty, "Zhou Ye's secret trip to the East China Sea is very likely to be to collude with pirates and plan the hijacking of the fleet."
Tang Pu said angrily, "That Zhou Ye! How dare he do such a thing! We'll take this evidence to His Majesty now and ask him to punish them!"
Cui Yunshu shook her head, her tone calm: "This evidence is not enough. Although we know that Zhou Ye secretly went to the East China Sea, we have no evidence to prove that he colluded with pirates. We need to find more direct evidence, such as his correspondence with pirates or records of financial transactions."
She paused, then said, "I have a plan. We can use the merchants of Yunjian Pavilion to get close to the East China Sea merchants who have close ties with the Duke of Ying's mansion and extract information from them. At the same time, we can also send people to infiltrate the Duke of Ying's mansion to find evidence of Zhou Ye's collusion with pirates."
Tang Pu nodded, finding the plan feasible: "Alright, we'll proceed according to your plan. I will send the elite troops from the Prince's Palace to assist you."
Over the next few days, Cui Yunshu and Tang Pu began their operation according to plan. Through merchants from Yunjian Pavilion, they successfully approached East China Sea merchants who had close ties with the Duke of Ying's mansion and extracted some important information from them. These merchants revealed that the Duke of Ying's mansion had indeed recently been in contact with a group of pirates in the East China Sea and had provided them with a large amount of funds and weapons.
Meanwhile, the elite guards who infiltrated the British Duke's residence also found some important evidence. In Zhou Ye's study, they discovered a letter between Zhou Ye and the pirate leader, which detailed their plan to collude in hijacking the Royal Maritime Trading Company's fleet.
"Great! We've finally found the evidence!" Tang Pu exclaimed excitedly, holding the letter. "We'll go and petition His Majesty to punish the Duke of Ying's mansion!"
Cui Yunshu looked at the letter in her hand and smiled: "Alright, let's go to the palace now. With this evidence, His Majesty will surely be determined to thoroughly investigate the Duke of Ying's mansion."
They immediately took the evidence to the palace. Upon seeing it, the emperor's face darkened completely. He hadn't expected the Duke of England's household to actually collude with pirates and do something so detrimental to the national interest.
"Issue my decree!" the emperor shouted angrily towards the door. "Immediately imprison the Duke of Yingguo, Zhou Ye, and the others, and thoroughly investigate the Duke of Yingguo's mansion! At the same time, seize all of the Duke of Yingguo's assets and freeze their bank accounts!"
"Yes!" The eunuch outside the door quickly responded and turned to convey the order.
Soon, palace guards surrounded the Duke of Ying's residence, arresting the Duke, Zhou Ye, and others, and imprisoning them. At the same time, the Duke of Ying's assets were seized, and his bank accounts were frozen.
The news sent shockwaves through the capital. No one had expected the Duke of Ying's mansion, a long-established noble family of the Qin Dynasty, to collude with pirates and commit such a crime. In the imperial court, officials who had supported the Duke of Ying's mansion turned against them, demanding severe punishment for the family.
Cui Yunshu and Tang Pu stood in the courtyard of the Prince An's mansion, looking towards the direction of the Duke of Ying's mansion in the distance, smiles on their faces. They had finally succeeded, not only avenging the Royal Maritime Trading Company's fleet but also striking a blow against their enemy, the Duke of Ying's mansion.
"Master strategist, we succeeded!" Tang Pu said excitedly, his voice filled with excitement.
Cui Yunshu nodded, a relieved smile on her face: "Yes, we succeeded. However, we cannot let our guard down. Although the Duke of Ying's mansion has fallen, their remnants may still be active in the shadows. We must continue to strengthen our vigilance to prevent them from doing anything detrimental."
Tang Pu nodded, his tone firm: "Rest assured, strategist, I will strengthen the defenses of the capital, and at the same time continue to investigate the remaining followers of the Duke of Ying's mansion, and will never give them a chance to cause trouble."
Cui Yunshu looked at Tang Pu, secretly relieved. Fortunately, she had Tang Pu as an "ally." Although he was somewhat reckless, he always played a crucial role in key moments. However, she also knew that the fall of the Duke of Ying's mansion was just the beginning. Many more challenges awaited them.
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