Chapter 494 Suspicion of the Imperial Teacher
The Northern Qi Emperor immediately summoned someone and bent down to pick up a fragment of the jade ring. He felt a sense of apprehension in his heart: "When did my Imperial Guards become so unruly, so noisy, and so unsteady? How can this be tolerated?"
The secret guard had no time to respond to the Northern Qi Emperor's reprimand and fell to his knees on the ground.
"Your Majesty, last night, I followed your orders and led an elite force to encircle and suppress them. When we arrived, we found that the place was already deserted."
"We quickly realized something was amiss. Worried they might harm the virtuous king, we rushed to join him. However, we arrived too late. The house was already engulfed in flames, and half the sky was ablaze."
"There are only ten horses tied in front of the house."
"The wise king and his entourage consisted of exactly ten people."
At this point, the secret guard said angrily: "They deliberately revealed their whereabouts so that we can find their whereabouts."
The Northern Qi Emperor couldn't believe it.
At this time, the secret guard took out an arrowhead from his bosom and presented it to the Northern Qi Emperor with both hands: "I found blood and this arrowhead at the door of the house. It is almost certain that the remnants of the previous dynasty ambushed the wise king."
The Emperor of Northern Qi picked up the arrowhead and saw the word "Chang" engraved on it.
The former prince carved a character of his name on it, as if telling him clearly that they had returned for revenge.
It's so arrogant.
The Northern Qi Emperor's face darkened. "The commander of the Imperial Guard is a skilled warrior, capable of fighting ten men at once. I have assigned him to protect the virtuous prince, so he should be alright. Perhaps they fell for Chang Yuan's scheme and have fled to the mountains."
He didn't believe that anything would happen to the virtuous king at all, and instead he became suspicious.
Chang Yuan deliberately left clues for the secret guards to find their whereabouts. Is their real target the virtuous king?
So how could Chang Yuan be sure that when the people opposed the virtuous king to be the crown prince and he accidentally learned of their whereabouts, he would definitely set his sights on them?
On this basis, they also had to accurately calculate that he would not only take action against the former ministers, but also frame them for the crimes, and order the wise king to investigate the tragic case of the Wang family's extermination.
Even if they thought of this, how did they know that he would set up a base for them to hide near the National Temple?
There can be no mistakes in any link of the entire plan.
The Emperor of Northern Qi frowned. If Chang Yuan wanted to achieve this, two conditions must be met, neither of which could be missing.
First, I understand his character very well.
Second, he placed spies around him.
The only people in the world who understood him so well were the Imperial Preceptor and the Empress.
Now the queen is guarding the imperial tomb.
He arranged heavy troops to guard the imperial mausoleum, and no news could be transmitted without his permission.
The Queen can basically be ruled out as a suspect.
Then, only the Imperial Master is left.
The imperial tutor is best at calculating people's hearts.
The Northern Qi Emperor's heart sank, and he stopped thinking further. He ordered, "Take your men to the nearby hilltops to find the virtuous king. Be quick, and don't let Chang Yuan's men get there first."
The secret guards had already concluded that the virtuous king had met with misfortune. However, lacking definite evidence, they could only euphemistically say, "We've searched everywhere. We're just waiting for the fire in the house to be extinguished."
The Emperor of Northern Qi heard the hidden meaning of the secret guard.
There is a high possibility that the virtuous king will perish in the fire.
He never thought that anything would happen to the virtuous king.
I don’t even dare to think about it.
Because the virtuous king was his only son of pure blood.
If something happens to the virtuous king, who will be entrusted with his kingdom?
So, when he heard what the secret guard said, he was extremely angry.
"Are you disobeying my order?" The Northern Qi Emperor's gaze was as sharp as a knife, revealing a strong murderous aura. "I command you to immediately lead your men into the mountains to find the virtuous king. If anything happens to the virtuous king, you will bring your head to me."
The secret guard's face changed drastically and he was about to accept the order.
At this moment, Eunuch Liu's voice rang out from outside: "Your Majesty, the Imperial Guards have come to report that there is news about the virtuous king."
The Northern Qi Emperor glanced at the secret guard and said coldly, "Let him come in and answer."
With a creak, the tightly closed door opened.
The Emperor of Northern Qi looked at the guards who came in exhausted, and subconsciously clenched the broken ring in his hand. The sharp edges pierced his palm and embedded deeply into his flesh, but he was unaware of it, as if nothing was more important than the news of the wise king.
The guards looked solemn. "Your Majesty, the fire in the abandoned house has been put out. I have found over twenty charred bodies."
The Northern Qi Emperor's face was tense: "What does this have to do with the virtuous king?"
The Imperial Guard took out a jade pendant and handed it to the Northern Qi Emperor: "I found this jade pendant on a headless corpse."
The Northern Qi Emperor had just asked about the virtuous king, and the guards' response must have been about the virtuous king. So when he heard the words "headless corpse," he felt like a dull hammer hitting his heart.
There was no need to pick up the jade pendant to identify it. With just a quick glance, the Emperor of Northern Qi recognized that it was the jade pendant worn by the virtuous king.
His eyes went dark and he fell straight down.
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