Zhang Shao couldn't help but feel a little disappointed when he talked about Ma Qi.
Li Shimin saw that Zhang Shao was not in the right mood and asked with concern:
"Zhang Shao? Why is something so worthy of celebration making you suddenly depressed? Could it be that you are sick?"
Zhang Shao calmed down and said softly:
"Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. It's just that when I mentioned Ma Qi, I couldn't help but think of my father, so I felt depressed."
Zhang Shao didn't want to disturb everyone's interest, so he calmed down and continued as if nothing had happened:
"Ma Qi was once a great man under my father. He was also one of the five major tribes with the surname Ma in Langzhong, Brazil. He was as famous as Ma Zhong in the local area.
During his lifetime, his father thought highly of this person and recommended him to the late emperor many times. Both the late emperor and the prime minister treated him favorably.
I never thought that such a person who was deeply favored by the emperor would do things that harmed the court, such as spreading rumors and instigating dead soldiers to instigate the people. "
Everyone listened to Zhang Shao's words and felt sorry in their hearts. If such a disaster hadn't happened, Ma Qi might have become the target of His Majesty's wooing.
Seeing that everyone had no other questions, Zhang Shao continued:
"Yesterday, Your Majesty ordered Chen Zhong to come look for me. He said that Your Majesty wanted to use a 'play hard to get' strategy, hoping to use the imprisoned person to lure out the mastermind behind the scenes.
So Chen Zhong and I first withdrew the guards at the wall behind the Gold and Silver Palace, and then excused ourselves to remove several eunuchs, temporarily guarding them outside the prisoner's wing.
During this period, the two of us brought wine and food, drank freely outside the wing, and then pretended to be drunk.
Seeing that no one was watching, the people in the house broke out the door, untied each other's ropes, climbed over the wall behind the palace and went straight to the back mountain.
I have already ordered a number of female secret guards to guard certain places that must be passed by, to monitor secretly, and to report to me in a timely manner.
After today's court meeting, in a remote house in a small town in Chengdu, several people met Ma Qi secretly, hoping to exchange tunes.
I arrived after hearing the news and waited for a long time. When no one else showed up, I immediately ordered the secret guards to arrest them.
Together with Ma Qi and his entourage, a total of nine people were arrested and are currently being held in the barracks of the Forbidden Army under the temporary supervision of Mi Wei. "
After hearing this, Li Shimin couldn't help praising Chen Zhong and Zhang Shao for their strategies. He immediately expressed his intention to reward those who participated in the operation with gold and silver, including Huang Hao and his eunuchs.
When things happened, Li Shimin ordered Zhang Shao to lead the way, followed by Chen Zhong, Zhang Yan, and Huang Hao, and the group arrived at the barracks where Ma Qi was imprisoned.
Seeing Ma Qi being imprisoned alone in the barracks, Li Shimin first looked at him carefully.
This Ma Qi looks to be in his forties, with a thin figure, sharp eyes, and thin and red lips. At first glance, he is a smart, capable and eloquent person.
When Ma Qi saw His Majesty here, he knew that the evidence of what he had done was conclusive and that he was not guilty.
He simply put on a look like "a dead pig is not afraid of being scalded by boiling water". He didn't show any courtesy or kneel down, he just looked aside and remained silent.
Li Shimin retreated the two forbidden troops and ordered Chen Zhong to guard outside the gate, leaving only Zhang Yan beside him.
"Ma Qi, Ma Chengbo! You secretly raised dead soldiers in an attempt to threaten the imperial court. Do you want to rebel?"
Ma Qi did not expect that His Majesty's focus was not on rumors and inciting the people, but on raising dead soldiers. There was a "thump" in my heart, and I said "something is not good".
If you go by what you think, your majesty punishes yourself for the crime of "contempting the rural party", it will be "relegated to a common people" at best. If the princes of Yizhou intercede on your behalf, it may even be just a reduction in salary and a fine.
But now His Majesty directly said it from the perspective of "raising dead soldiers with the intention of treason", then the consequences would be serious! "Rebellion" is the first of the ten evils and the most serious crime of genocide!
Thinking of this, Ma Qi lost his previous disdain and indifference, his face collapsed, and he said with tears in his eyes:
"Your Majesty, I have been wronged. Those who instigated the people are not dead soldiers, they are just aides and retainers in my family. I was forced to make this move. I hope your Majesty will forgive me!"
Li Shimin felt proud when he saw Ma Qi surrendering, and continued to ask:
"Then who controls the retainers and staff of your family on a daily basis? Do you personally instigate the instigation of the people?"
Ma Qi was puzzled when he saw that His Majesty had been asking questions about those people who were instigating the people. But at this time, Ma Qi was already frightened by the "crime of rebellion" and didn't think much about it. He just hoped that His Majesty would leave him a way out.
So Ma Qi hurriedly followed His Majesty's wishes and said:
"The minister's staff and retainers are naturally under the control of the minister, and the minister has not sent any additional people to lead."
Li Shimin heard the answer he wanted, so he stopped asking any more questions, patted Ma Qi on the shoulder and turned around and left the barracks.
Seeing that His Majesty did not reveal any results, Ma Qi felt anxious, but he had no way to escape, so he had to "resign himself to fate."
After leaving the barracks, Li Shimin leaned into Chen Zhong's ear, explained some things, and then led Zhang Yan and Huang Hao back to the Forbidden Palace.
In the afternoon of that day, Ma Qi was put into a prison van and paraded through the streets of Chengdu along with several instigators.
Notices were posted at city gates and palace gates, and even the eunuchs of the court read them to the people.
By now, the people of Chengdu knew that Ma Qi and other Yizhou court officials were willing to spread rumors, incite civil unrest, and threaten the court for their own selfish purposes.
The rumors have also been completely settled among the people, and the people of Chengdu love His Majesty even more.
At the court meeting the next day, Li Shimin detained Ma Qi and others in the main hall, hoping to use Ma Qi's incident to further divide and suppress the Yizhou gentry.
Yesterday's parade made everyone in Yizhou feel uneasy. When they saw Ma Qi and others being escorted to the main hall, everyone in the hall couldn't help but burst into an uproar.
"Didn't His Majesty parade Ma Qi through the streets yesterday? But the crime of 'contempting the rural party' won't lead to a big fight in the court, right?"
"It seems that I, the Yizhou people, have to think about the future of my family. Your Majesty's only concern is to inherit the late emperor's legacy and expedition to the Central Plains. At worst, I will follow your Majesty out of Qishan again."
Li Shimin couldn't help but secretly rejoiced when he heard that all the princes in Yizhou were in danger, and some even wanted to rely on him to support the Northern Expedition.
It seems that this Baiqisi is my lucky star. He has made great contributions to me since its establishment. Now it has deepened the gap between the Yizhou nobles.
I believe that it won't be long before the Yizhou nobles will gradually break up and disintegrate under the attack of the secret guards, and finally they will all be under my control.
Seeing that everyone in the hall was talking about it, Li Shimin said seriously:
"This is the Yizhou official who you call loyal to the Han and the imperial court. In addition to confronting me tit for tat in the court, he also raised dead soldiers at home! Now everyone has gained the spoils. What else can the Yizhou princes say? "
Ma Qi and others couldn't speak because their mouths were stuffed with cloth. They could only struggle desperately in the palace, trying to defend themselves.
All the princes in Yizhou were shocked when they heard His Majesty's words.
I originally thought that Your Majesty was going to punish Ma Qi for the crime of "contempting the rural party", but now it sounds like Your Majesty is going to accuse Ma Qi of "raising dead soldiers and attempting to rebel"!
At this time, Qiao Zhou was in the train, trembling all over and sweating uncontrollably. I wanted to go out and say something to His Majesty, but I still couldn't make up my mind to take that step.
Although Du Qiong was a little uncomfortable, fortunately he had a strong psychological quality and did not show too many abnormalities.
The fashionable scholar Li Fu saw that Qiao Zhou and Du Qiong were behaving strangely. He was afraid that his majesty would see the clues, so he hurriedly came out and said:
"Your Majesty, I am so stupid that I don't know where the 'death warriors' mentioned by your majesty come from? Could it be that a few servants and servants ran some errands for the master's family and became the supported dead warriors?"
Li Shimin had already noticed the changes in Qiao Zhou, Du Qiong and others, and knew that this matter was closely related to the two of them. However, it was difficult for Li Shimin to attack something that was based only on speculation without any real evidence.
As for Ma Qi's raising of dead soldiers, it was not so easy to prevaricate. Li Shimin had already made plans.
Listening to Li Fu's words, Li Shimin sneered in his heart. Now that everyone has gained the stolen goods, it's not up to you to tell what crime Ma Qi is guilty of!
"Hmph! You still have to quibble in front of me! Let me ask you, the person who confronted Zhang Yan with a sword on the streets of Chengdu that day, was he a servant?"
Li Fu was speechless for a moment, and before he could react, Li Shimin continued:
"Do you still need to think about this? I would like to ask you servants and retainers, who dares to hold a sword and confront my personal guard and the Queen's sister in public?"
Without waiting for others to refute, Li Shimin said again:
"Taking a step back, even if they are just a retainer, what they do is beyond the scope of a retainer.
Besides, after a few people escaped from prison, they secretly met with Ma Qi immediately so that I could catch them. Now I am sure that Ma Qi has the intention to rebel, and has even started taking action! "
After saying that, he looked to his side and said loudly:
"Where is Chen Zhong?"
Chen Zhongxing came to the front of the palace and said:
"The general is here!"
"Pull Ma Qi and other rebels out and chop them down. The servants will be ignored. The main culprit, Ma Qi, will destroy the three tribes!"
As soon as this statement came out, everyone in the hall was shocked!
Especially among the princes in Yizhou, those who were related to Ma Qi were even more paralyzed.
When Ma Qi heard His Majesty's sentence, he ignored the pain caused by the rope and struggled to crawl in front of His Majesty, kowtowing, his eyes full of panic and pleading.
