Chen Guoting lay on the table. He passed away peacefully, as if he was asleep.
The eunuch Ma Jin, who was standing by, was so frightened that he dared not move. Zhao Huan took a deep breath and said, "Let's go!"
Ma Jin hurriedly followed Zhao Huan, looking back at the dead Chen Guoting as he walked.
Wende Hall.
Imperial Physician Sai Hua Tuo stood aside with his hands hanging down. Zhao Huan turned his back to him and asked, "Sai Hua Tuo, how is the matter going?"
Sai Hua Tuo bowed his head and said: "Your Majesty, the matter has been completed."
"Well, who else knows about this?"
Sai Hua Tuo shook his head: "Except me, no one knows."
Zhao Huan finally turned around and said, "I don't need to explain the consequences. If this matter gets out, my property will be confiscated and my entire clan will be exterminated!"
Sai Hua Tuo wiped his sweat and said, "I dare not."
Zhao Huan nodded and said, "There's nothing for you to do here. Go to the inner court to collect your reward."
"I obey the decree!"
The news spread so quickly in the capital that the next day, all civil and military officials knew of Chen Guoting's death. Before the morning court session, all the officials had heavy expressions on their faces, and everyone was filled with fear and uneasiness.
It was already past noon, and the emperor had not yet arrived for the morning court session. This had never happened since Zhao Huan ascended the throne.
"Lord Li Gang, it's almost noon and His Majesty hasn't arrived for the morning court yet. Shouldn't you go and call him?" Zuo Heng said.
Li Gang was secretly horrified by Chen Guoting's death. Serving the emperor was truly like living with a tiger. A loyal minister had spent his entire life, only to meet such a fate. He angrily declared, "Whoever wants to go can go! Your Majesty is willing to be a tyrant, so what can a minister do?"
Lu Pingzhi was a little frightened: "Shh, Li Gang, you are going to die."
Li Gang angrily said, "The Emperor can't tell right from wrong, black from white! And you won't let me speak?"
"The emperor has arrived, and all the ministers are here to attend the court early!" Amidst the quarrel, Cao Dongsheng shouted in the Purple Palace, and a group of ministers filed in.
Zhao Huan said sternly, "I heard Zheng Xian established the Tiger Yasi, and someone is secretly trying to stop him! Who is it? Stand up!"
Lu Pingzhi stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, it's not that I want to stop you. It's just that the Privy Council's seal is not with me. And since Lord Lan Xiaolong is on sick leave, I can't do anything about it."
"Someone come!"
Four guards walked in.
"Drag Lu Pingzhi out and give him twenty strokes of the cane!"
Lu Pingzhi was so frightened that he dropped the tablet in his hand. He could only clasp his hands together and bow: "Your Majesty, I am innocent."
Zhao Ye, the chief steward of the Northern Circuit, was the first to speak up: "Your Majesty, what crime has Lord Lu committed?"
"Drag Zhao Ye out and punish him with a cane!"
The guards held Zhao Ye up, and Zhao Ye's face turned pale: "Your Majesty, please spare my life. I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong!"
The ministers were in an uproar. Li Gang was about to step forward when He Li grabbed him. He Li, holding his tablet in both hands, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, I, He Li, have something to say. Your Majesty has punished an official with a cane without any reason. I am afraid that the scholars of the world will not accept it!"
Zhao Huanmu's eyes flashed with ferocity: "Come here! Drag He Li out and give him thirty lashes!"
The ministers were fed up and all knelt down: "Your Majesty, please think twice, Your Majesty!"
"Anyone who pleads for Lu Pingzhi again will be sentenced to death!"
The ministers below finally fell silent. They could no longer afford to lose their heads based on their own passion. So no one dared to speak anymore.
Zhao Huan said sternly, "The Tiger Yasi must be established within half a month. If anyone dares to obstruct us, their property will be confiscated and their entire clan will be exterminated!"
The ministers knelt on the ground and whispered to each other, everyone was silent.
Outside, Lu Pingzhi and Zhao Ye screamed like pigs being slaughtered, but He Li said nothing and just silently took the beating.
After being tortured, the three were carried back to the imperial court by guards. Li Gang and Meng Gurao supported He Li, but neither Lu Pingzhi nor Zhao Ye stepped forward.
All the ministers looked at Zhao Huan, their hearts filled with resentment, but no one dared to speak out.
"Zheng Xian, Pan Bufeng!"
"I am here!"
"The Tiger Yasi and the Imperial Dragon Guards will be established immediately. If anyone dares to interfere again, report this to me immediately! Dismiss the court!"
After this morning court session, the Tiger Court and the Imperial Dragon Guard were quickly established, with the Imperial Guards deploying three thousand elite troops: two thousand from the Tiger Court and one thousand from the Imperial Dragon Guard.
The office location, personnel allocation, and job scope were ready in an instant, and it finally looked like a court department.
Zhao Huan summoned Zheng Xian alone in Wende Hall.
"Zheng Xian, please investigate for me. How much assets do all the officials in the capital have? Either openly or secretly. Find out about the officials who are the most resented by the people. When you come back, draft a document and hand it to me."
Zheng Xian bowed: "I obey your command."
"You are the Chief of the Tiger Court, a fifth-rank official of the imperial court. From now on, you do not need to call me a slave, just call me your subject."
"Slave, I obey your order!"
…
Fanlou, the largest restaurant in Bianjing, was crowded with customers. A man with a sword found a seat and sat down. The waiter came over hurriedly to greet him.
Wiping the table has probably become a signature move for every waiter, and this waiter is no exception. He wiped the table with a white towel while smiling: "What would you like to order, sir?"
The man didn't answer. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a silver ingot, and slammed it on the table: "This is a reward for you."
The waiter's face was as bright as a flower: "Thank you very much, sir. Please feel free to tell me if you need anything."
The man asked, "Who are you, the owner of Fanlou?"
The waiter smiled and said, "I have three shopkeepers. The second shopkeeper's surname is Liu, and the third shopkeeper's surname is Zhu."
"Where is the other one?" asked the man with the sword.
The waiter looked around and whispered, "There's another person who can't be told to anyone else."
The man snatched the silver and said, "Since you won't tell me, I'll take it back."
The waiter's eyes widened, and he hurriedly took the silver back with both hands, saying with a smile: "In fact, the biggest shopkeeper here is a minister in the court."
The man nodded. "Regardless of who it is, your Fanlou is so prosperous. I'm sure you pay a lot of taxes to the court every year, right?"
The waiter raised his thumb proudly and said, "You don't understand, our boss is a high-ranking official in the imperial court. Anyone who dares to collect taxes from Fanlou must be dead!"
The man looked at the silver in the waiter's hand and said, "After talking for so long, you still haven't told me who your boss is. It seems that you don't want this silver anymore." As he said that, he stretched out his hand to grab it.
The waiter hurriedly took him into his arms, and fearing that others would know, he leaned over and whispered in his ear: "Our head shopkeeper is the prime minister Zhang Bangchang, Mr. Zhang."
Hearing this, the man slammed his hands on the table and stood up, using his fingers as a whistle. With a "whoosh!", he gave the signal.
"Clang!" The sound of unsheathed swords erupted. Hundreds of officers, wielding broadswords, burst in. The difference was that these officers were dressed strangely. On the chest of their official uniforms was a black tiger embroidered, its maw gaping, fangs bared, as if ready to devour someone alive. And in their hands were the eyebrow-tipped knives, one of the eight colors of swords.
One of the officers took out a token and said, "The Tiger Yasi is investigating a case. No one is allowed to move, or they will be killed without mercy!"
PS: There will be only one update tonight, sorry.
From tomorrow until the release date, there will be at least two updates. Five or more updates are expected after the release date.
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