Chapter 252: Turbulence in the Palace
Lu Ji was missing Qin Xiaoning here. His trusted secret guard walked into the study with a serious face and whispered in Lu Ji's ear for a while.

Lu Ji's expression gradually became solemn.

"Just some minor injuries?"

The secret guard replied: "After the treatment by the imperial physician, he is now fine."

Lu Ji frowned: "Did you catch him alive?"

"We caught one and he is being interrogated in the inner court," said the secret guard.

Lu Ji exhaled a breath of cold air and said quietly, "The methods used by the inner court are cruel. I'm afraid he can't stand it."

The secret guard replied, "He has been taken to the inner court for two hours. I estimate that he can only hold out for a day at most. My Lord, we have to make plans now."

Lu Ji nodded, his voice cold: "I understand."

He waved his hand at the secret guard and said, "You go down first. Don't act rashly. Just follow the original plan."

In the inner court.

The dungeon was dark and damp, with mosquitoes, rats and ants running rampant, and the air was filled with a disgusting smell of blood.

On a pile of messy hay, lay a man covered in blood, tortured to death.

The guard came out with a page of confession and said to the Jinyiwei leader, "This man has confessed."

The leader of the Embroidered Uniform Guard was named Chen, with a single character named Xing.

Upon hearing this, Chen Xing hurriedly took the confession. His sharp eyes eagerly swept across the page of paper, and then his expression paused.

After a while, he asked, "Is this the assassin's confession?"

Fanzi replied: "That's right."

Chen Xing frowned: "Are you sure he is telling the truth?"

His face was serious, and his eyes looked as if they were filled with blood: "The Saint is waiting for the results of our interrogation. This matter is of great importance and cannot be allowed to go wrong."

Upon hearing this, the guard clasped his fists and said, "We have interrogated him for a whole day and night, and have used all kinds of torture. This is what the assassin said."

Chen Xingfu glanced at the confession again, then turned to his subordinate and ordered, "According to what the assassin said, verify it immediately to see if what he said is true."

The subordinate took the order and left. Chen Xingfu then warned the guard, "Keep an eye on this man. Don't let him die."

Two old doctors had just come out of the saint's bedroom carrying medicine boxes, and Chen Xing, who had found out the truth about the assassination, bowed and walked in.

"Did the assassin confess?" The imperial physician had just changed the medicine for the saint. His arm was wrapped in gauze, and he was half leaning on the couch with his eyes closed to rest.

"I confessed." Chen Xing presented his confession: "Your Majesty, please review it."

The saint opened his eyes and smiled coldly: "Is there any need to look at it? That Lu Ji is ambitious and has been wishing that I would die so that he can support his nephew to ascend the throne and control the government."

"This Lu Ji dared to assassinate me. Haha, he is quite courageous." The saint showed a trace of disdain on his face: "It's a pity. After all, I am lucky. This time, he failed to steal the chicken and lost the rice. I am afraid that all his calculations will be wasted. It gives me a legitimate reason to exterminate the Lu family."

Chen Xing paused when he heard this, and replied after careful consideration: "Your Majesty, after interrogation, the assassin confessed that the mastermind behind the scenes was not Admiral Lu."

The smile on the saint's face froze immediately: "Isn't it Lu Ji?"

He immediately stood up from the couch and snatched the confession from Chen Xing. After reading the contents on it, he threw the paper to the ground.

"Impossible." The saint immediately became furious: "This is simply nonsense."

Chen Xing was frightened by this and quickly knelt on the ground. The Saint paced the ground angrily for a long time. He pointed at Chen Xing and said, "You are my confidant. Is this how you investigate the case for me?" Chen Xing hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I have carefully verified the matter after the assassin confessed. There is a reason and evidence for this matter. It is definitely not a random accusation by the assassin."

He glanced at the sage's gloomy face and kowtowed again: "The mastermind behind the assassination of Your Majesty this time is King Qing."

The son of Concubine Duan.

King of Qing.

His eldest son.

The saint finally calmed down from his anger: "Since the Jiang family incident, hasn't the King of Qing been under house arrest in the palace? How could he have the opportunity to assassinate me?"

Chen Xing replied, "The assassin confessed that it was the King of Qing who ordered this. I have already checked according to what the assassin confessed. These people are indeed the assassins raised by the King of Qing. However, this matter is of great importance. Without the order of Your Majesty, I cannot bring the King of Qing to trial."

Zhao Che was greatly disappointed when he heard that it was not Lu Ji's doing.

I thought I could wipe out the Lu family in one fell swoop, but now my plan has failed.

But when he heard that it was his own son who wanted to assassinate him, he couldn't help but reveal a trace of sadness: "Although I killed Concubine Duan, I still have a loving heart for this son. He is my eldest son."

The emperor paused, and turned to look outside at the small piece of sky outlined by the layers of palaces: "I still remember when he was just born, I held him in my arms, and I really loved him in my heart."

Seeing the emperor sad, just when Chen Xing thought that the saint would show leniency out of love for his son, he suddenly heard a cold voice coming from above.

"Immediately arrest the Prince of Qing, and all the staff and guests in the Prince of Qing's palace. Bring them all to justice and interrogate them thoroughly for me."

Once the interrogation is thorough and the truth comes to light, there will be no possibility of mercy.

Murdering an emperor is an unforgivable crime.

After the imperial edict was issued, there was a bloody storm in the Prince of Qing's mansion, and people in the deep palace were also in panic.

Inside Yilan Hall.

Concubine Shu was checking her son, Prince Qi's schoolwork. Upon hearing the news, Prince Qi was shocked: "Mother, did my eldest brother really do such a disobedient thing?"

Concubine Shu was calm: "What's so strange about this?"

The King of Qi paused, frowned and said, "I thought only an outsider would have such a rebellious thought."

When this incident first happened, Zhao Che was completely suspicious of the Lu family.

Thinking of his determination to eliminate Lu Ji, Concubine Shu felt so angry that her teeth itched.

Concubine Shu looked at her son and asked, "You also thought it was your uncle, right?"

The boy was silent after hearing his mother's words. After a long while, he looked up at his mother and said solemnly, "I have grown up. No matter what you do, you should not hide it from me anymore."

The young man had a cold face and dissatisfaction in his clear eyes.

Concubine Shu pulled her son to her side and asked in a low voice: "If your father really had a conflict with your uncle, who would you help?"

The young man thought for a long time after hearing this.

Then he asked, "Who does the mother want her child to be with?"

Concubine Shu didn't expect her son to ask this question. Glancing at the boy's childish face, she patiently explained to him, "If your father destroys the Lu family, he will definitely not tolerate us mother and son anymore."

Before Concubine Shu could finish, the young man interrupted her and said, "But I am the biological son of the emperor. The Prince of Qi is gone, and the Prince of Qin, born to Concubine Duan, has done such a rebellious thing. Among the older princes, the emperor only has me left."

"Don't be so naive." Concubine Shu restrained her expression and said seriously, "Don't think that he will give you the throne just because he has only one eldest son like you. The little baby adopted by Concubine Jing is what your father planned."