Geng Nian somehow acquired guards who were all swift and efficient, and they subdued the constables and yamen runners in the hall in no time, without Mai Kun and his men even lifting a finger.
McQueen and his crew seemed quite content with their leisure time, their faces showing great interest.
Liu Guanghan looked at the guard who was holding him, and his body trembled uncontrollably.
The other person's eyes were filled with undisguised killing intent. He felt that if he dared to make any further moves, the other person would definitely slit his throat.
I never expected Geng Nian to have hidden himself so well.
I never expected Geng Nian to be so bold!
"Ha! If we're all imprisoned, Jinzhou City will surely descend into chaos!"
Although Liu Guanghan was afraid of death, he was unwilling to be imprisoned like this.
Because once he's imprisoned, he might never have the chance to get out again.
But Su Muxi said calmly, "You? Does Lord Liu think that I, the Princess Consort, am going to imprison all the officials in this hall? I just said I would only imprison you. After all, Wei Huan only mentioned you and did not mention anyone else."
Upon hearing this, the other officials all knelt down and turned against him.
Before Su Muxi even had a chance to interrogate them, some of the spineless ones started to confess.
"Your Highness, please understand. I was only forced to obey Liu Guanghan because he threatened me!"
"To be honest, although Liu Guanghan was not directly involved in everything in Fukang County, he was aware of it all! Not only that, he also forbade us from getting involved!"
"I've heard that all of this was orchestrated by a high-ranking official in the court, but I don't know which official it is! Otherwise, I wouldn't be alive now; I would have been silenced by Liu Guanghan long ago!"
"Yes, yes! Your Highness, please investigate thoroughly! We do not know much, but Magistrate Zhang and Garrison Commander Xu should know, which is why they died suddenly the day after the Wei family's fire! Liu Guanghan must have killed them to silence them!"
…
Although Liu Guanghan knew the principle of "when a wall falls, everyone pushes it down," he didn't expect it to happen so quickly.
Just as he was about to say something.
Another commotion arose outside the hall, and in the blink of an eye, a squad of soldiers burst in.
Upon seeing the group of soldiers enter, the officials' hearts tightened even more, fearing that this was a backup plan left by Liu Guanghan.
They only breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the leading general clasp his hands in a salute to Su Muxi.
She is a member of Princess Yong'an's group.
It seems they made the right choice this time!
If they had known that Princess Yong'an had a backup plan, they would have confessed everything long ago. They only hoped that the princess would spare their lives because of their timely repentance.
"I am late, Your Highness, please forgive me."
Shao Jie, clad in armor, looked imposing. Although he was speaking to Su Muxi, his gaze swept over Geng Nian's guards before finally settling on the guard who was holding a knife to Liu Guanghan's neck.
It wasn't his imagination; these people all possessed a chilling aura unique to soldiers.
Especially this person, those eyes, even he couldn't help but feel a tightness in his heart when he saw them.
Su Muxi smiled slightly, "General Shao, you've worked hard. You've come at just the right time."
After speaking, he turned his gaze to the old man next to Shao Jie.
"Lord Xie, now that you're here, I'll leave the rest to you."
The old man standing next to Shao Jie was none other than Xie Chi, the Imperial Censor who had been ordered to come to Jinzhou to investigate.
Xie Chi did not come alone this time; he was accompanied by Feng Shan, a eunuch sent by the emperor.
They claimed to have come to share Xie Chi's burdens, but in reality, they were there to monitor Xie Chi.
Xie Chi was aware of this, but he didn't care.
Because regarding the matter of Fukang County, no matter what the truth is, he will handle it impartially and will never show favoritism to any side.
Therefore, he did not plan to conduct a public investigation, but instead planned to take a shortcut to Fukang County for a covert investigation.
As long as Xie Chi doesn't do anything out of line, Feng Shan naturally won't say a word against it.
So the group hurried along a shortcut to Fukang County.
Disguised as ordinary people searching for their relatives, they infiltrated the city.
After a thorough investigation, the truth of the matter became crystal clear.
After all, no plague ever gets better so quickly.
Apart from maintaining order in Fukang County, the soldiers of the Shuofeng Battalion did not take any other actions, nor did they have any intention of rebelling.
He didn't even plan to accompany Su Muxi back to Jinzhou City.
Xie Chi and Feng Shan also clearly heard what Su Muxi said to the people at the entrance of the government office.
That very evening, Xie Chi brought Feng Shan to find Su Muxi.
Such a momentous event could not possibly have been undertaken by a mere county magistrate like Jia Ren and a merchant family like the Wei family.
Therefore, it is imperative to find out the identity of the person behind this. We must not let such a bold and reckless parasite remain in the State of Qi!
Feng Shanzhong was loyal to Ye Jingchun and naturally did not want Ye Jingchun's throne to be threatened in the slightest.
But he wasn't sure what role the Su family played in all of this.
What if all of this was orchestrated by the Su family to eliminate the Wei family, a formidable enemy?
If that's the case, then Prince Yong'an must be the person behind it all!
Although Feng Shan didn't say it explicitly, Su Muxi could still see his worry.
"Lord Xie, I've said that the Su family has absolutely nothing to do with this matter. I'm sure you still have doubts. How about this: tomorrow you and Eunuch Feng go ahead to Jinzhou City to investigate, while we proceed at a slower pace."
Xie Chi knew that Su Muxi was referring to Feng Shan, and remained noncommittal.
However, they received news of the sudden death of the garrison commander of Jinzhou City. If this matter was related to Prefect Liu Guanghan, then their journey to Jinzhou City might be dangerous.
If a mere county magistrate like Jia Ren can commit such a heinous act, then Liu Guanghan, a prefect of a state, might also resort to desperate measures. Therefore, they must ensure their safety before heading to Jinzhou City.
After discussing it with Feng Shan, Xie Chi decided not to conduct a secret investigation and instead have Shao Jie lead troops to take control of Jinzhou City.
Su Muxi was naturally satisfied with the result, but since Xie Chi was prepared to take a hard line, she was happy to let Xie Chi and Feng Shan save some effort in the investigation.
That's why we discussed what's happening now.
Su Muxi led her men into the city first to interrogate Jia Ren and Wei Huan. If this matter was related to Liu Guanghan, Liu Guanghan would definitely try to kill them to silence them.
I just didn't expect Liu Guanghan to lose his composure like this and reveal his true colors so easily!
Xie Chi coldly surveyed the various officials in the hall, his heart filled with unbearable anger.
After bowing respectfully to Su Muxi, he said, "Your Highness, you have worked hard. I will certainly investigate all of this thoroughly and give an explanation to the Emperor and to the people of Fukang County who died unjustly!"
"Of course, the Su family has suffered this undeserved calamity, and I will give them an explanation."
This statement clearly indicates their stance.
Xie Chi believes that this matter has nothing to do with the Su family, and that the Su family are the pure victims.
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