Chapter 71 Refuses to Confess
"Come with me!" Ye Wanning rushed over, untied the children's ropes, and shielded them behind her. Pei Zhi and Su Zhong then surrounded the people from the Tianyan Sect. Su Zhong fought with exceptional ferocity, every move aimed at the enemy's vitals, as if venting his guilt.
The elder sensed something was wrong and tried to escape through the back door, but Su Zhong blocked his way: "My opponent is you!" The two exchanged blows for more than ten rounds before Su Zhong seized an opening and punched the elder in the chest. The elder fell to the ground and was quickly tied up by the Shadow Pavilion men.
After sending the children back to Ci'an Hall, Ye Wanning took the elder to the interrogation room in Yingge. The interrogation room was dimly lit, and various torture instruments were displayed on the walls, which was frightening to look at. At first, the elder was very stubborn and refused to confess no matter what.
The elder's expression changed when Ye Wanning had someone bring him portraits of his family members—his wife and daughter had fallen into the hands of the Tianyan Sect, and he was forced to serve the sect.
"I'll talk! I'll talk!" The elder finally broke down, his voice trembling with tears. "The Heavenly Evolution Sect's stronghold is in Black Wind Mountain outside the city, and their leader, Xuanjizi, is there. He also said that on the Emperor's birthday banquet, he would have his disciples, who were lying in wait in the palace, launch a coup!"
"Who are the spies in the palace? Are they important?" Ye Wanning's heart tightened, and she quickly asked.
"I don't know exactly who it is, but it should be a high-ranking official in the court, someone who has access to the palace's security arrangements." The elder tried hard to recall. "Xuanjizi said that on the day of the birthday banquet, he would lead his disciples to break into the palace, control the emperor, and then announce his ascension to the throne. He also said that if he succeeded, he would appoint me as the commander of the Imperial Guards!"
"Your subject (your subject) obeys the decree!" Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi, who arrived shortly after, replied in unison, both knowing in their hearts that this battle could not be lost.
That afternoon, Pei Zhi led 50,000 Imperial Guards to Black Wind Mountain. Black Wind Mountain was steep and easy to defend, but difficult to attack. The disciples of the Tianyan Sect had also set up many traps on the mountain, making it very difficult for the Imperial Guards to attack.
But Pei Zhi was prepared. He had his soldiers carry oil and burn down the weeds and trees on the mountain, immediately revealing the trap. Then, he ordered his soldiers to attack from three directions simultaneously—the front, the flank, and the rear—catching the Tianyan Sect completely off guard. Although the disciples of the Tianyan Sect resisted fiercely, they were ultimately no match for the Imperial Guard and were quickly annihilated.
Pei Zhi led his men into Xuanjizi's main hall, only to find it empty—Xuanjizi had escaped! However, they found a large number of secret letters and a map of the palace, which was drawn in red ink with the palace's guard deployment, attack routes, and even the emperor's daily schedule.
Pei Zhi handed these things to Ye Wanning, his face grave: "Xuanjizi has escaped. He must have other schemes up his sleeve. We must find him as soon as possible, or there will be endless trouble."
“The capital is under martial law. Soldiers are guarding the city gates and checking passersby. Xuanjizi can’t escape the capital.” Ye Wanning looked at the map, feeling extremely anxious. “He’s like a time bomb now, and we don’t know when he’ll explode. We need to expand the search area and focus on places like inns and dilapidated temples.”
Su Zhong also chimed in, "Xuanjizi often wears a long black robe, has a hoarse voice, and likes to use incense. We can have the guards and Shadow Pavilion people search based on these points, and they'll definitely find him quickly."
While arranging the search for Xuanjizi, Ye Wanning also investigated her informants within the palace. Based on the elders' testimonies, she investigated all the high-ranking officials who had access to the palace guards, and finally discovered that the only suspect was the Prime Minister.
The Prime Minister's recent behavior has been very strange: he frequently finds excuses to visit the Empress Dowager in the palace, and each time he wanders around the palace for a long time before emerging; he also frequently sends letters to people outside the palace, his handwriting is messy, yet it bears some resemblance to Xuanjizi's secret letters. More importantly, his son suddenly disappeared half a year ago, and no one knows where he went—most likely he was captured by the Tianyan Sect.
Ye Wanning decided to test the Prime Minister.
"Greetings, Your Majesty! Your Majesty, the remnants of the Tianyan Sect have not yet given up. I believe that we should quickly encircle and annihilate Black Wind Mountain, and at the same time search high-ranking officials in the capital. If anyone is suspected of colluding with the enemy, they should be arrested immediately!"
Everyone echoed in agreement, responding repeatedly, "Yes!"
Only the Prime Minister looked displeased and frowned as he spoke: "Madam Ye, you are exaggerating. The Tianyan Sect's power is not yet strong enough. If we attack them too hastily, unforeseen circumstances may arise. It would be better to offer them amnesty, promising them high-ranking positions and generous salaries, thus enticing them to submit to the court. This way, we can avoid the turmoil of war, which would be a much better thing."
Ye Wanning chuckled inwardly, thinking to herself, "Judging from your tone, it sounds like you're doing something incredibly important."
She didn't expose him, but simply said, "The Prime Minister is truly kind-hearted. But the Tianyan Sect has killed so many people, their hands are stained with blood. How can you appease the dead civilians and soldiers by offering them amnesty?"
The prime minister was speechless at this question, and his face turned very ugly.
After the court session ended, Ye Wanning quietly followed behind the Prime Minister.
Watching him walk out of the palace, board a carriage that arrived shortly after, and head towards a dilapidated temple outside the city.
After the carriage stopped, the prime minister entered the dilapidated temple.
A moment later, a man in black emerged from the dilapidated temple—it was none other than Xuanjizi, who had escaped earlier!
Ye Wanning quickly led the people from Shadow Pavilion in and surrounded the two of them, sneering, "Prime Minister, Sect Leader Xuanjizi, what a coincidence."
She pointed her sword directly at the two of them, saying, "Aren't you two afraid that the Emperor will find out that you're plotting a rebellion here?"
The prime minister turned pale when questioned, but still tried to remain calm: "Madam Ye, don't make false accusations! I was just discussing state affairs with this gentleman, there was no conspiracy involved!"
"Discussing state affairs?" Ye Wanning pulled out the secret letter she had found in Xuanjizi's main hall from her bosom and threw it on the ground in front of the Prime Minister. "This has your handwriting on it, as well as your instructions to Xuanjizi regarding the palace guards. You still want to deny it?"
The prime minister stared at the secret letter at his feet, his body went limp, and he almost knelt down.
Xuanjizi glared at Ye Wanning hatefully: "Since you've discovered me, I have nothing more to say. But do you think you've won just like that? I still have a backup plan!"
"What backup plan?" Ye Wanning pressed, her heart leaping into her throat.
Xuanjizi refused to speak, only sneering, "You'll find out when the time comes. You'll never get any more information out of me!"
Ye Wanning stopped pressing for answers and ordered the Shadow Pavilion members to take the two of them to the Heavenly Prison and keep them under strict guard.
Watching the two being taken away, Ye Wanning knew in her heart that the "backup plan" Xuanjizi mentioned was definitely not simple and had to be found out as soon as possible, otherwise there would be great danger on the day of the Emperor's birthday banquet.
At this moment, Pei Zhi also arrived. Seeing the two being taken away, he breathed a sigh of relief: "Finally, we've captured the Prime Minister. The informant in the palace has finally been dealt with. Next, we need to find out Xuanjizi's backup plan to ensure the birthday banquet goes smoothly."
"Yes." Ye Wanning nodded. "We must increase the number of guards in the Heavenly Prison to prevent anyone from breaking in or causing trouble for them at the birthday banquet. In addition, we must continue to interrogate the elders and the prime minister to find out Xuanjizi's backup plan."
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