At this time, everyone in the hall was drinking and laughing, but the words of Zhang Yan and Chen Zhong did not cause ripples among the ministers.
Only a few people around Li Shimin and He Zong looked at Zhang Yan and Chen Zhong.
I saw a lean man in a foreign uniform, stabbing a dagger in the direction of His Majesty and He Zong.
Because Zhang Yan and the two blocked him in time, the man did not succeed, but he could not tell which one of His Majesty and He Zong the man wanted to attack.
Upon seeing this, Li Shimin quickly signaled Zhang Yan to take down the assassin.
He Zong was also startled by the assassin and was looking at the assassin blankly.
Several courtiers who had witnessed the assassin's actions were about to start shouting.
However, His Majesty's eyes stopped him from moving.
Seeing that the assassination attempt failed, the assassin tried to resist and escape.
Zhang Yan stood in front of the assassin with a sword, blocking the assassin's way out.
The assassin held the dagger with a hammer and stabbed Zhang Yan in the face, threatening:
"If you don't get out of the way, I'll take your life!"
Zhang Yan didn't answer and stabbed the assassin with her sword.
When the assassin saw Zhang Yan's long sword stabbing out, he knew that his dagger would not be able to gain any advantage, so he ducked down to avoid Zhang Yan's sword edge.
Unexpectedly, as soon as the assassin lowered his body, he felt a chill coming from the back of his head.
The assassin didn't have time to look at the back of his head, so he just put his left arm across his head to try to protect the back of his head.
As soon as he raised his hand, before he could protect the back of his head, he was hit hard by a hard object on the back of his head.
The assassin swayed and subconsciously looked back, only to see a tall guard holding a long knife with the handle facing him.
"You... actually stole..."
Before he finished speaking, the assassin's vision went dark and he fell into Zhang Yan's arms.
The whole process only took a few breaths. As soon as the assassin fell, Chen Zhong helped Zhang Yan carry the assassin out through the inner door.
At this time, most people in the hall did not notice this scene.
Moreover, the assassin wears a foreign uniform. Even if someone from a little distance sees the assassin, they may not be able to see the dagger in the assassin's hand.
Most likely, the assassin was regarded as someone toasting to His Majesty.
Li Shimin asked Huang Hao to keep in mind the people who had just seen the assassination scene.
Then he raised his glass and said with a smile:
"Yanying? Don't you want to toast?"
At this time, He Zong had not yet recovered from the thrilling fight between the assassin and Zhang Yan and Chen Zhong.
Hearing His Majesty ask himself, he couldn't help but said in a daze:
"Why is your Majesty summoning your ministers?"
Li Shimin banged the wine glass against He Zong's, then raised his eyes to look at He Zong.
Only then did He Zong react, hurriedly raised the wine glass, and then drank the wine together with His Majesty.
"Your Majesty, just now..."
Li Shimin stretched out his hand to interrupt He Zong and whispered:
"Yanying must be careful, there is something fishy about what happened just now.
It's just that the assassin's target is unknown. I don't know which one of the two of us he is targeting.
Yanying must not make any announcement about this matter now. I will deal with it after the banquet.
Yanying can also weigh it in his mind to see if he has made enemies with anyone recently. "
When He Zong heard this, he began to think deeply.
Li Shimin did not interrupt He Zong, but silently observed the princes in the hall.
"Huang Hao, please call the people you just remembered in front of me one by one later. Don't let others notice anything strange."
Huang Hao heard this and said to His Majesty:
"I think your Majesty may ask the princes about this matter in the main hall.
After all, all the princes are here for this matter, and it is convenient for Your Majesty to observe his words and deeds.
If Your Majesty goes to ask the assassin after the banquet, all the princes will have dispersed by then, and even the local officials will have left the capital.
If Your Majesty wants to inquire and investigate in person again, I'm afraid it won't be that convenient. "
After Li Shimin thought for a moment, he said in a deep voice:
"I feel that this matter may be related to the previous assassination of me in the Imperial Garden.
Moreover, I have not let go of the Yizhou princes for what happened that day, but I will not pursue them for the time being.
Now that the assassin happened to appear when He Zong was toasting, it was probably not just a coincidence.
Today we only need to lock up the assassin secretly. If the people behind the scenes were in the hall and saw that the assassin failed to succeed, they would definitely be panicked.
All we have to do is wait and let that person reveal his flaws.
If a riot breaks out, everyone will be in panic when they hear this, and it will be even harder for us to tell who is behind the scenes.
You don't want to scare the real culprit later, just observe the performance of the princes secretly here. "
"In this case, that slave will definitely keep a close eye on all the gentlemen."
"Well, let's start with the people around us who witnessed the assassination.
When Zhang Yan and Chen Zhong return later, you can go and invite people. "
After receiving the order, Huang Hao retreated to stand behind His Majesty, lowered his head slightly, and raised his eyes to observe in the main hall.
Not long after, Zhang Yan and Chen Zhong arrived.
As soon as Zhang Yan arrived, she quickly whispered in Li Shimin's ear:
"Brother Adou, the two of us have quietly imprisoned the assassin in the secret room of the Gold and Silver Palace.
Now Ma Qi is leading several trained secret guards to guard and interrogate the assassin in the secret room. "
"Very good, please don't make any noise about this matter. I will go to the Gold and Silver Palace to deal with it after the banquet."
Huang Hao saw Zhang Yan returning and glanced at His Majesty.
Li Shimin nodded imperceptibly.
When Huang Hao saw His Majesty nodding, he took action silently.
In Huang Hao's memory, there were six people who had just witnessed the assassin, namely:
Xiaoyao Gong who is closest to His Majesty, Jiang Wan with the highest official position, Du Qiong, the head of the Nine Qings, Meng Huo, the Barbarian King, Li Fu who seems to be in a bad mood and is drinking alone, and Wei Lang who is toasting Meng Huo.
Huang Hao remembered that the assassin was wearing a foreign uniform, so he went to invite Meng Huo, who was also a foreigner.
Meng Huo first waited for Huang Hao to return to His Majesty, then looked around and saw that no one was paying attention, then walked towards His Majesty with a smile on his face and the wine glass in hand.
"Your Majesty, Meng Huo, would like to take advantage of today's banquet to propose a toast to Your Majesty, wishing Your Majesty happiness, longevity and health."
Li Shimin saw Meng Huo raising his glass, so he raised his glass and clinked it with Meng Huo and said:
"Censor Zhongcheng is so polite. I also wish Censor Meng good luck and prosperity."
As he spoke, the two of them drank the wine in their glasses at the same time.
Li Shimin put down his wine glass and said softly:
"You must have seen what happened around me just now.
Since that man was wearing a foreign attire, King Meng should recognize that man, right? "
When Meng Huo heard this, his eyes widened and he said excitedly:
"Your Majesty is aware of this! You can't just rashly attribute this matter to me just because of that person's clothes..."
Li Shimin stretched out his hand to interrupt Meng Huo and said with a smile:
"Hey, King Meng is worrying too much, I was just joking.
King Meng does not need to be so nervous, but I have no intention of making any announcement about this matter, so King Meng should just pretend that this has never happened. "
Seeing that His Majesty did not doubt his intentions, Meng Huo breathed a sigh of relief and said gratefully:
"Thank you for your trust, Your Majesty. I understand what Your Majesty means."
Li Shimin nodded, and then motioned for Meng Huo to return.
Meng Huo adjusted his mood, held the wine glass, and returned to his seat as if nothing had happened.
When Huang Hao saw Meng Huo leaving, he came to His Majesty and said softly:
"Your Majesty, why did you let Meng Huo go after just asking?"
Li Shimin shook his head and said:
"Meng Huo's performance was obviously without any mental preparation in advance.
As soon as I mentioned the assassin, Meng Huo panicked and didn't even know how to defend himself.
It doesn't look like the person behind the scenes. "
Huang Hao scratched his head and continued to ask:
"How many others are you going to invite this slave to?"
Li Shimin nodded and said:
"There is no need to invite Jiang Wan and Xiaoyao Gong. You can just tell them quietly not to mention this matter."
Huang Hao took the order and first informed Duke Xiaoyao and Jiang Wan, and then went to invite Wei Lang.
Li Shimin was not idle at this time, and had been secretly observing the princes in the hall.
When he glanced at an unfamiliar official, he suddenly found that the man was making eye contact with Du Qiong from a distance.
Li Shimin's heart thumped, and he thought to himself: "I'm afraid Du Qiong and others have another conspiracy!"
While he was thinking about it, Wei Lang came to Li Shimin with a wine glass.
"Your Majesty, I would like to thank you for your compliments to me and my wife a few days ago. Today is the time to bid farewell to the old and welcome the new. I would like to propose a toast to your majesty."
Li Shimin smiled, raised his wine glass and touched it with Wei Lang, and then whispered:
"Mrs. Zhu Ma Wang has just won the position of co-leader of the Xirong tribe in Wenshan. I should congratulate King Zhu Ma and his wife.
Now that the horse-catching king is on the rise and has a bright future, I hope that the horse-catching king will not be proud. "
Wei Lang heard that His Majesty was wrong and quickly explained:
"Xiao Wang doesn't think he's a wise man, he only thinks he's brave.
A few days ago, His Majesty praised the little king in front of the tribal leaders in Wenshan County.
I should be grateful to Your Majesty and manage the place for Your Majesty with peace of mind.
Xiao Wang really doesn't have the energy to think about other things. "
Li Shimin looked like "I knew it" and drank the wine in one gulp.
"That's good. Just focus on cooperating with the county governor to manage Wenshan County. Don't worry about other things."
Wei Lang understood and bowed to His Majesty before retreating to his seat.
At this time, Huang Hao said from the side:
"Your Majesty, since there is nothing wrong with the two barbarian kings, wouldn't this matter be beneficial..."
"This matter ends here. Let's first see if you know the official who is drinking alone at the end of the hall."
Huang Hao followed Li Shimin's gaze to the last table and found a minister with a strong stature but an elegant look on his face, drinking alone.
"This... Your Majesty, forgive me. I don't recognize this person. He may be a county guard or an auxiliary officer under the county magistrate."
“Today’s assassination incident may have something to do with this person.
There is no need for you to invite Du Qiong and Li Fu. Go and find out the identity of that person first, and I will deal with them together after the banquet. "
Huang Hao took the order and left.
In Li Shimin's mind, he connected the assassin who assassinated him in the Imperial Garden with what happened today.
In addition, the official whose name was unknown just now made eye contact with Du Qiong.
The general situation of the matter slowly appeared in his mind.
"It seems that they are much more likely to target He Zong this time. If they target He Zong, then this matter will be serious!"
