With his keen sense of smell, Emperor Su He felt that this was something unusual.
He looked at Prince Su Shu and ordered: "Shu'er, since you discovered the oil shortage, you are responsible for investigating this matter to the end."
Emperor Su He handed over the matter to the prince for investigation. He believed that the prince would handle the matter well.
Other ministers may have some involvement in the case.
For example, Cabinet Minister Wu Hongyi has been running the Nanyang region for a long time and has many students and disciples in the Nanyang region.
If Cabinet Minister Wu Hongyi is asked to investigate the case, the problem may not be found.
Other ministers may also have inextricable connections with Nanyang.
No one is as suitable as choosing the prince.
This incident was also a test for the prince.
Prince Su Shu heard that his father had entrusted him with the matter.
He immediately showed an expression of surprise, puffed out his chest and promised: "Father, please rest assured, I will definitely investigate this matter carefully.
I will never let go of any rat or moth, let alone act recklessly and wrongly accuse a good official. "
Prince Su Shu was very happy. This prince was different from the prince who had secured his position in the previous dynasty.
As long as the prince of the previous dynasty was the eldest son, even if he was a mediocre and incompetent person, he could still sit on the throne safely.
This is the consequence of the previous dynasty's struggle with the prime minister's power and total defeat.
In the Ming Dynasty after Tumubao, the emperor could no longer fully control the supreme imperial power.
The situation in the empire was completely different. While the imperial power was still supreme, his position as the prince was not yet stable.
Prince Su Shu must not act incompetent, he must always show his abilities to the outside world.
He must show the potential of a wise monarch and make all levels of the empire think that he can lead the empire forward.
Only in this way will his position as prince be stable.
Prince Su Shu has always sought a stage to show his abilities.
This time the cargo ship disappeared, he expected it to be a major case.
This kind of case can bring huge fame growth.
Prince Su Shu also took the opportunity to observe everyone in Qianqing Palace.
The faces of these people were as usual, and he found nothing suspicious at all.
When Prince Su Shu walked out of the Palace of Qianqing, he immediately called out Li Yuanzheng, the censor of Zuodu, and Maoxiang, the minister of punishment.
"Master Li, please stay here if you are the minister."
Li Yuanzheng had expected that Prince Su Shu would call him, so he deliberately walked slowly.
If this case was not an accident, it would definitely involve officials.
Prince Su Shu wants to investigate the case and cannot do without the help of the Metropolitan Procuratorate.
Li Yuanzheng stopped and pretended to be confused: "His Royal Highness, do you have anything to ask?"
When Maoxiang heard the prince's call, he was not surprised at all. No matter where the case was investigated in the empire, it was inseparable from the people of the Criminal Department.
They are professionals from the Criminal Department who investigate cases.
When Maoxiang heard what Li Yuanzheng had said, he immediately said: "If your Highness the Crown Prince has any instructions, please speak up.
What the Ministry of Punishment can do will not be delayed. "
From the answers of the two ministers, Prince Su Shu knew that the rumors in the officialdom were true.
Li Yuanzheng, the censor of Zuodu, was a lonely minister. He had no experience in serving in any local government. He had only been wandering around the Sanfa Division his whole life. He had no possibility of joining the cabinet, and his upper limit was basically locked.
Most official positions in the empire will be rotated, but Zuodu Yushi has never been rotated.
Prince Su Shu also learned skills from his father. This kind of person who investigates official corruption is not suitable for long-term rotation.
As long as these people have no problems, they must be allowed to live a long life, and their descendants must be promoted.
Only by doing this will anyone be willing to stand on the emperor's side and strictly investigate official corruption.
As rumored, Li Yuanzheng has always been very aloof to others except his father, who was kind to him.
Maoxiang, the Minister of Punishment, had a completely different attitude. As an official from the Donglin Party that his father hated most.
He was able to change his family in time, and was born as a minister of the Ministry of Justice.
This person's ability to observe current events and adapt to the changing circumstances has been fully developed.
Prince Su Shu first looked at Li Yuanzheng, the censor of Zuodu, and said politely: "Master Li, I need some censors who have nothing to do with the various forces to help me investigate the case.
I may go to the local area to investigate the case in the future, and I will also ask the local Metropolitan Procuratorate to cooperate. Please inform Mr. Li in advance. "
Li Yuanzheng nodded and said: "Prince, please rest assured, I will dispatch a group of censors from various places and let them enter the capital as soon as possible.
I cannot guarantee that these censors have nothing to do with any force.
But I can guarantee that these censors will never have anything to do with Nanyang and coastal areas.
The Metropolitan Procuratorate will then issue an order, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate in various places will cooperate with the prince to investigate the case of the missing cargo ship. "
After Li Yuanzheng, the censor of Zuodu, finished speaking, he bowed slightly and left.
Prince Su Shu saw Li Yuanzheng walking with a limp.
This is indeed a talent, but he was buried just because of his lameness.
My father promoted talents in an eclectic way, and even the cripples could be reused.
Li Yuanzheng's life was completely changed by his father. No wonder he was loyal to his father.
Prince Su Shu looked at Mao Xiang with a smile and said gratefully: "Master Mao, with the help of the Ministry of Punishment, I am more confident in finding out the cause of this case."
Maoxiang cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, this case has made His Majesty Long Yan very angry.
The Ministry of Punishment also wants to solve His Majesty's problems. The Ministry of Punishment will go all out on this case and must get to the bottom of it. "
After Prince Su Shu returned to the East Palace, he summoned his confidants to discuss carefully the angle from which to investigate the case.
Cabinet Minister Han Cuibai said sharply: "Your Highness, I am mainly responsible for agricultural matters in the cabinet.
But I have also served in the local area for many years, and I know the methods of those subordinate officials.
We must not investigate slowly, otherwise the clues left everywhere will be destroyed.
Now we can take advantage of the fact that the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Ministry of Criminal Justice have branches in local areas, so that various localities can initiate investigations and collect clues in a timely manner.
They don't need to investigate. As long as they keep the suspicious clues, it will be much easier for us to investigate in the future. "
Prince Su Shu nodded and said, "Mr. Han Ge reminded me very well.
I will then find Li Yuanzheng, the censor of Zuodu, and Maoxiang, the minister of punishment.
Ask them not to transfer people to the capital, but to transfer them to important places nearby to accept my command. "
Han Cuibai got off to a good start, and everyone began to check and fill in the gaps.
Prince Su Shu took out a pen and recorded the suggestions he thought would be helpful.
He believes that one person can think short and everyone can make mistakes.
With so many smart people in the East Palace, what they discussed must be more comprehensive than what he thought.
Prince Su Shu really collected directions that he had not paid much attention to before.
In the case of a missing ship, the most critical factor is the ship.
Did any of these two ships carry wireless telegraph machines?
Which route are they planning?
They could use the wireless telegraph network to interrogate ships taking that route that day.
The number of 10,000-ton cargo ships is extremely rare. Ordinary merchant ships must be deeply impressed when they see these 10,000-ton cargo ships.
Prince Su Shu first went to visit Li Yuanzheng and Mao Xiang.
His idea was supported by two ministers.
Prince Su Shu obtained the list and contact information of the people assisting him from the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Ministry of Punishment.
He immediately sent a telegram asking these people to determine leaders according to their grades and form several investigation teams.
They will go to Zhenhai Port, Quanzhou Port, Qingdao Port, Tianjin Port and other places to investigate.
These officials were very motivated when they heard that they were working under Prince Su Shu.
This will be an opportunity to rise to prominence. Once Prince Su Shu takes a fancy to them and recognizes their abilities, it will be much easier to get promoted.
Once he became the confidant of Prince Su Shu, he was the censor of the capital and the minister of punishment, and it was not impossible for him to do something.
Because of this carrot, they used all their skills and everyone investigated the case very seriously.
Prince Su Shu also had two telegraph networks for insurance and navigation information.
Through insurance and navigation information, he released reward information about the 10,000-ton cargo ship Nan 037 and the 10,000-ton cargo ship Lu 426.
If there are ships that can provide accurate information, rewards will be issued based on important circumstances, with a minimum reward of one hundred taels.
Prince Su Shu thought he had done what he could do now.
He can only wait for further feedback before he can decide on his next move.
Prince Su Shu was very anxious every day. He could not wait to take the train south immediately and lead people to investigate the case in person.
If there weren't some true or false clues every day, and he led his men to continuously analyze and reconstruct the whole story, he really wouldn't be able to endure it any longer.
Time flies, half a month has passed, and New Year's Eve is getting closer and closer.
Prince Su Shu didn't want this case to make any progress until next year.
When he sent a telegram to the front, he had already begun to urge them to speed up the progress.
The result of his urging was very effective, and they obtained two important pieces of information in succession.
Prince Su Shu led people to restore the events that were determined based on relevant clues.
After he read the conclusion, he exerted force with his right hand and broke the pencil he was using to take notes.
Prince Su Shu said angrily: "You are treating me like a three-year-old child. Who would believe such an outrageous thing?"
Cabinet Minister Han Cuibai advised from the side: "Your Majesty, your Majesty must know the results of our investigation.
Such outrageous results clearly indicate that the investigation team was misled.
Ability to mislead the investigation team and obtain a logical and self-consistent answer.
The power hidden behind this is extraordinary.
We cannot fight to the death with each other. They are provoking His Majesty and the authority of the empire.
The court should take action, and our task is only to investigate the case. "
Prince Su Shu understood Han Cuibai's underlying statement, and the other party's local power was likely to be very large.
There are only a few civil servants around him, and except for the guards of the East Palace, he has no control over any military force.
Their reckless behavior may pay a heavy price.
There are two consequences if the imperial court takes action. No force can compete with the force possessed by the imperial court.
Prince Su Shu humbly listened to Han Cuibai's advice.
He and his subordinates began to sort out the evidence they had collected.
Although the results are outrageous, the evidence must be made more logical.
He was attending the imperial meeting, waiting for his father and the ministers to discuss important matters in the kingdom.
By urgently mobilizing diesel from Luzon and Nanyang, the domestic oil shortage has been initially alleviated.
It was precisely because of the discussion about the oil shortage today that he felt several eyes lingering on him, as if they were asking about the progress of the missing cargo ship case.
Prince Su Shu's expression remained as usual. He already had his own opinions on this case.
He waited until the matter was discussed, then stood up and said: "Father, regarding the case of the missing cargo ship, I have already made a preliminary conclusion based on the information collected.
But this conclusion is very outrageous, so I need some advice from my father and other ministers. "
Prince Su Shu first expressed his opinion.
If he wanted to make this outrageous conclusion first and let everyone think of him stupidly, then the gain would outweigh the loss.
Emperor Su He was very curious. The prince would come up with outrageous conclusions. How outrageous was this?
He said with encouraging eyes: "The investigation time is too short. Even if the conclusion is outrageous, it can overturn a wrong line. It is better than finding nothing."
When Prince Su Shu heard his father's words, he briefly talked about the results of the investigation in the past half month.
"I sent people to the relevant ports to investigate the departure and dry port conditions of these three cargo ships.
Investigate the dock workers and the diesel production company at Zhenhai Port to learn about the conditions of these three cargo ships.
The shipowners traveling with these three cargo ships were consulted via telegram to learn about the situation at that time.
After investigation, the following preliminary conclusions were drawn.
Cargo ship No. 163 was the first to set off, carrying diesel oil sealed in iron drums.
It sailed smoothly and entered customs from Quanzhou Port normally.
The diesel on board is sold to major merchants after it reaches the shore.
Due to insufficient production capacity of the refinery, the two cargo ships Nan 037 and Lu 426 were not full of diesel when they were about to leave the port.
The ship was loaded with some gasoline and other products from the refinery.
Some ship owners of other ships traveling with these two cargo ships also recalled that they saw huge fireballs at sea and then heard explosions.
I learned from refinery workers that gasoline and some other products are prone to volatilize if they are not properly sealed.
When these gases come into contact with coal-fired boilers, violent combustion will occur.
Once the flames ignite the gasoline and diesel fuel on the ship, the consequences will be disastrous.
The investigation team concluded that the two ships were mixed with diesel fuel, which caused the cargo ship to catch fire and explode.
Because of the power of the explosion, the cargo ship sank into the sea, and no one on board survived. "
After Prince Su Shu introduced the outrageous conclusion, he found that his father and other ministers were not surprised by this outrageous conclusion.
Emperor Su He instead smiled and said: "I remember investigating the granary reserves in various places some time ago.
Fire dragons appeared to burn warehouses, and fires frequently broke out in major granaries, causing the food in the cabins to be burned down.
At that time, I killed many people.
These officials know that I don't believe in ghosts and gods, so they didn't pull the trick of borrowing food from underworld soldiers.
But as expected, I encountered the fire dragon burning the warehouse that has been passed down for thousands of years.
Knowing that I believe in science, now there is another fire boat burial in the sea, and the scientific principles are also made up. "
When Emperor Su He heard this outrageous conclusion, he did not get angry.
This is the variation of the Fire Dragon Burning Cang at sea.
No one will believe this outrageous conclusion.
This conclusion is full of doubts and cannot withstand scrutiny.
But it was this outrageous conclusion that allowed the prince to investigate.
If you think about the situation here carefully, the situation hidden behind it is very unusual.
The mastermind behind the disappearance of the cargo ship is confident that even if the prince investigates the case, there will be nothing they can do.
Emperor Su He is not angry about the new version of the fire dragon burning the warehouse.
But he was angered by the provocation of the mastermind behind the scenes. (End of chapter)
