Chapter 171 A Virtuous Consort?
"Your Highness, several ships are coming."
Zhao Emei reported without even raising his head.
Someone as adept at swimming as him was highly sought after on the ship. Both Chairman Mao and Youzi appreciated him and were keen to cultivate him. On this return journey, when many Imperial Guards were seasick, he happened to take on the important task and lead the charge.
Qi Chengming lay in bed, his forehead wrapped in gauze, his appearance heavily disguised, making him look pale and frail. He leaned against the bedside with a cold expression and scoffed:
"They arrived so quickly... Proceed according to plan, but proceed with caution. Is there anything unusual on our ship?"
The one who answered this question was Xiao Dezi, whose expression was rather unpleasant: "Among the people who disembarked yesterday, there was Aunt Ju from the hot water room, Zhao Jianghu's newly accepted apprentice of one year..."
Xiao Dezi named three or five people in a row, all of whom were the most suspicious: "Someone is already watching them."
Qi Chengming listened calmly, while simultaneously checking the names of the talents in his infrastructure system against the list, carefully filtering through each one. Among them were innocent people, but there were also indeed spies.
He felt confident.
In the darkness of night, the gentle sound of water concealed the subtle movements.
So when the two groups quietly boarded the ship, one group, led by a suspicious person, headed straight for the main cabin where Prince Rui was, while the other group went to the galley...
Song Gu squinted and stood on the deck, gazing at the several large ships ahead and behind.
Tonight, the rain is torrential, making the deck of the ship slippery. The thick fog makes the ship rock dangerously, so the guards on duty mostly take shelter under the eaves. From a distance, all that can be seen are scattered lights, and everything is calm, as if nothing is amiss.
He Santie, the only strategist from the Prince's mansion currently on the ship, changed into a set of light and easy-to-move clothes, had his sword ready at his waist, and was cold-eyed and tense, ready to make trouble at any time.
As a scholar, wearing a sword was always a refined pursuit for him. However, no one knew that this scholar had a heart set on riding a horse and bringing peace to the country, nor did they know that his sword, though seemingly flashy, was actually already sharpened.
"Is this all the people we have?" He Santie observed for a while longer, but when he saw no further signs of ghostly activity, he asked quietly.
As a senior eunuch who had also experienced the palace coup in his previous life, Song Gu had already guessed what was going on when he saw He Dajia's experienced and composed demeanor.
Dressed in red, even though he couldn't see the movements in the distance, his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's. He also held the short sword at his waist, and a meaningful smile slowly spread across his face: "There are naturally people and ships to meet us in the distance. I'll leave the command to Lord He... Your Highness has gone to such lengths, we must not let them escape even a little bit."
He Santie felt relieved, bowed, and readily agreed, "Thank you for your trouble, Steward Song."
As they looked at each other, they both seemed to understand something. When He Santie nodded, it carried a tacit meaning.
And so we part ways.
Xiao Dezi really stole the show this time. While the group of men were still in the ship's passageway, heading straight for Prince Rui's room, Xiao Dezi coldly ordered, "Take them all down!"
The group of men in the shadows originally intended to ambush the Imperial Guards on duty, but they realized they were surrounded. In desperation, they tried to draw their swords and attack.
"Whoosh!" Several powerful whooshing sounds rang out as the arrows, propelled by the crossbow, sank deep into the floor.
The Imperial Guards fired wildly, and screams and cries rang out. In a single exchange, they were unable to struggle or rise again; some were simply dead. Only the two leaders remained fierce, pulling something from their robes—a pair of daggers that looked exactly like the ones in the picture!
Before they could even pull the trigger, experienced Imperial Guard veterans stepped forward and subdued them with a couple of quick movements.
The terrifying moment came so suddenly that Xiao Dezi's legs were still weak when he came to his senses. He smelled the blood in the air and looked at the horrific scene before him. He barely managed to maintain the dignity of the prince's personal eunuch and said in a cold voice with a stiff face, "Take him away for interrogation."
When the familiar face who had led the way was taken away with a mournful expression, he couldn't help but cry and beg Xiao Dezi for mercy: "Eunuch De! Save me! I was forced to lead the way by them!"
"Shut up!" Xiao Dezi was already in a bad mood tonight, and when he saw that familiar face, he kicked the other person hard, gritting his teeth, "You're Zhao Jianghu's apprentice, you should think about how not to implicate him!"
Zhao, the craftsman, was entrusted with a heavy responsibility. He followed and improved many blueprints. His latest research focused on how to make the short crossbow more portable and faster. He worked on a prototype, but His Highness was never satisfied, commenting that it was "still too bulky and large," and ordered people to continue research and development.
But in Xiao Dezi's view, this was already a remarkable improvement. These blueprints were their most precious secret.
Now, Zhao Jianghu's apprentice has actually colluded with the enemy, and the enemy has even acquired that kind of weapon. How could Xiao Dezi not be shocked and furious?
On the other side.
Unlike Xiao Dezi's group, Zhao Ema did not immediately arrest the people. Instead, he watched as the group sneaked into the kitchen, met up with Aunt Ju in the hot water room, and together they carried out many heavy wine barrels.
"Boss, are they going to set the ship on fire?" The dark-skinned, thin man crouching beside him, like Zhao Emao, was a former miner, and he made a reasonable guess in a doubtful voice.
Zhao Emo glanced at the sky, somewhat uncertain: "With such heavy rain, even if they intend to add fuel to the fire, is it really possible for it to catch fire?"
“If we don’t use alcohol, we can’t burn it anymore. How are we supposed to deal with that? It’ll be even harder to salvage the ship.” Another brother, however, thought there was no problem and chimed in.
Zhao Ema nodded knowingly.
The prince's scheme was an open one. After spreading such rumors, how could those behind the scenes not be anxious? If they didn't take advantage of this opportunity to silence them or do something, they would definitely find fault with them once the prince returned to the capital safely.
Time was of the essence, and to make matters worse, it was rainy at this time of year, with rainy days making the journey even more difficult. His Highness's guards were also very tight, making the assassination attempt even more challenging, but they still had to bite the bullet and go for it.
Your Highness is truly narrow-minded.
Zhao Emao felt a deep sense of admiration when she thought about this.
Seeing that the old woman's conspiracy with the enemy had ended and she made no other moves but furtively tried to move out the barrels of wine, Zhao Emao stopped watching and whispered, "Leave them alive, capture them all!"
It's much easier to catch people here.
The first thing Zhao Emao and his veterans did when they went up there was to search them. They only found a few tinderboxes and knives, nothing else.
"Boss!" The two men went to check the wine barrels and immediately noticed something was wrong. They called him over.
Before Zhao Emao could even get close enough to ask what was wrong, he was hit by a pungent, strong odor. His brows furrowed immediately, shocked: "Petroleum?"
These aren't barrels of liquor; they're clearly kerosene that somehow got mixed on board!
If these things catch fire, their ship will be in real danger.
"Oil is expensive, and the procurement channels are not clean. Keep an eye on them, and don't let a single one die. I'll go report to the Prince right away." Zhao E'mao quickly realized the seriousness of the problem. Just the source of the oil alone would involve countless people.
He left in a hurry.
Because of his stakeout, Zhao Emao was the last person to report to the main room.
He saw the prince sit up, looking refreshed, the bandage on his head still in place, as if he had just listened to the reports from Eunuch De and Steward Song. Zhao Emao didn't dare to be careless and quickly told them about his own situation.
Upon hearing this, Song Gu felt a surge of anger and pleaded guilty with a very ugly expression: "I thought our ship's defenses were already very tight, but I didn't expect there to be so many oversights. Please punish me, Your Highness."
The existing team is almost entirely comprised of personnel brought from Liuzhou. They've been screened for several years, and at least been thoroughly vetted. Yet, when it really comes down to it, they're still so useless.
"What's a spy? What's a mole? If you move around in ordinary times and get caught, how can you be of any use when it really matters? It's not your fault," Qi Chengming comforted Steward Song.
"Moreover, those people on the water are involved with local gangs, and Huoyou may be related to powerful families. They are all cunning and shrewd... Steward Song, I'm leaving the follow-up to you. Go and thoroughly investigate the remaining suspicious people."
"Yes." Song Gu replied coldly and solemnly, then turned around and angrily lifted the curtain to leave.
Qi Chengming could tell that Steward Song was truly enraged this time and was bound to retaliate.
Aside from lingering fear, he remained calm.
In Qi Chengming's view, the success of the plan was enough. There might have been many thrilling twists and turns along the way, but nothing in life is ever entirely smooth sailing. Could he afford to be so angry? He should investigate the aftermath thoroughly.
The leak of the weapon formula was within his expectations; it was bound to happen sooner or later. But that wasn't important. What Qi Chengming truly valued was the gunpowder series.
All he needs to do is return to the capital and present the latest blueprints for the □□ to Emperor Hongren.
Once it becomes military supplies, those secretly trying to use it again will have a major handle against them, and this new avenue for profit will be blocked. He wants to see if those secretly will be furious.
This investigation took three or four days.
The two groups of men captured by Qi Chengming's men were of varying quality. The first group was tough and fierce, and they couldn't be pried open. However, the ship that He Santie and his men had captured in the distance was part of their fleet, providing a breakthrough—
Some admitted that it was a group of well-dressed people who secretly colluded with the river workers, which led to this desperate gamble.
The second group appeared to be ordinary servants and thugs. Their greatest crime was setting fire to the ship; they immediately began crying and begging for forgiveness during interrogation, spilling the beans. They were members of the local Xue family, a large and influential family renowned throughout the surrounding regions.
"You mean...they're all secretly pointing to Consort Xian in the palace?" Qi Chengming listened until the end, and after piecing together the relationship chart, he realized that whether it was the river workers' gang or the local powerful families, they were all more or less connected to Consort Xian in the palace.
This only confused Qi Chengming further.
The Empress Dowager's grand-nephew, Li Banhui, once wrote him a list, and he remembered who the Consort Xian was.
In the imperial harem, below the Empress are the four Consorts.
Leading the group was Consort Xian, the mother of the eldest princess who died young. The remaining three consorts were Consort Shu, the mother of the eldest prince; Consort Rong, the mother of the third prince; and Consort Shun, the adoptive mother of the seventh prince.
If the plot to harm him was carried out by one of the other three consorts, Qi Chengming would find it plausible, no matter who it was, even if it was the Empress. But the mastermind behind it all seemed to be Consort Xian, who had no children and no presence in the palace.
Is that even possible?
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