The emperor and his entourage returned to the palace, changed their clothes, and began to interrogate them in person.
Yan Zongqi and Zhang Cheng knelt in the hall, while the royal family members stood on both sides, not daring to express their anger.
Jin Wei took the captured Li Zhao and another injured and disabled assassin to a side hall, and two-quarters of an hour later dragged Li Zhao, who had changed his clothes, into the hall alone.
Although he had changed his clothes and wiped the blood on his face hastily, Li Zhao had been paralyzed on the ground like a puddle of mud since he was dragged in. Only his short breathing could tell that he was still alive, and blood traces snaked out from the corners of his mouth. Underneath, the exposed part of the wrist's flesh was turned out, which looked very horrifying.
Jin Wei knelt down and raised his hands in the air to confess:
"Your Majesty, this person's name is Li Zhao, and he is a secret agent that Mobei has painstakingly cultivated. According to Li Zhao's confession, not only was Mobei responsible for this assassination, but also several assassinations that occurred in the past few days were also committed by them. ."
"Including Zhu Dianhua, the eldest son of the Hong'an Prefecture, and Qin Zongheng, the second young master of the Duke of Qin. When the Ministry of Punishment, Jingzhao Yin Mansion, and the City Guards were investigating Chen Xiao's case, the Mobei people pretended to be common people and gave false evidence to mislead. In order to instigate the court. The feud between the important ministers and several of their highnesses caused the government and the public to be at odds with each other, and Mobei was waiting for an opportunity to take advantage of the chaos to raise troops."
"Li Zhao had been in the Imperial Guard for many years, and became a centurion, commanding a total of one hundred Imperial Guards. This time when he went to Shanchuan Altar, Li Zhao was guarding the inner palace, and he planned to assassinate His Majesty. In advance, Li Zhao sent the real Imperial Guard The army drugged them to make them unconscious, and asked the Mobei people to put on the uniforms of the Imperial Guards to confuse the public. There were eighty assassins in total, including Li Zhao, and all except the criminal Li Zhao were brought to justice."
Speaking of this, Jin Wei touched his head to the ground:
"I have the trust of Your Majesty to serve as the commander of the city defense army, but I let so many assassins into the city. I frightened Your Majesty and deserved death. Please punish me."
The emperor read the testimony carefully and signaled Zheng Cheng to show it to Gu Hongzhang. He scolded Mobei and Yanzong of Jinwei, Zhang Cheng, and temporarily imprisoned them in the sky prison.
His eyes were like knives shaving across Li Zhao, and the emperor's face was gloomy as he ordered:
The royal family members, princes and princesses, civil and military officials of the court and the Chinese government will cooperate with the city guards in self-examination and self-examination. If anyone has close contacts with Mobei, fails to report hidden information, or hides spies, it will be a crime of confiscating the property and exterminating the family.
The imperial guards who went to Shanchuan Altar today checked one by one. If they found out the slightest problem, they would be killed directly without reporting.
All the hundreds of imperial guards under Li Zhao's command were killed without mercy, and no one in the army who was friendly with Li Zhao was left alive.
When Li Zhao, who was originally a puddle of mud, heard the words, his eyes were filled with pain. He struggled to raise his head and say something to stop him, but because he was too seriously injured, he could only make a whooshing sound in his throat, and he was dragged out of the hall in regret and despair.
The emperor punished Li Zhao and sent everyone in the palace to watch Li Zhao's execution before returning to the palace, leaving Gu Hongzhang and his son alone to talk.
When everyone heard that they could go back home, their tense heartstrings relaxed, and they all bowed respectfully and left.
"General, in your opinion, what happened today was really only done by people from Mobei?"
Gu Hongzhang: "Your Majesty, Li Zhao's confession stated that these spies were all disguised as ordinary people or businessmen and sneaked into Kyoto years ago. It is indeed extremely difficult to identify them. The fact that the city guards were able to let people into the city shows that the road is genuine. There are dozens of spies. It may be difficult to complete the road guide without the help of people from the court."
The emperor's face was gloomy and unclear: "That's exactly what it is. These clues show that someone in the court has colluded with the Mobei people, or is motivated by money, and is being used by the Mobei people. Or, they may want to kill me and replace them."
"In this court, the one I trust the most is your Gu family. The Gu family has been stationed in the north for generations to fight against Mobei's intrusions, and they are also the most familiar with Mobei. I am leaving you here because I want you to investigate this matter secretly and not to make any announcement." ( End of this chapter)
