Chapter 110 The Great Court Meeting
After Wang Ermaizi finished speaking, Zhang Quanhe pointed to another person and asked him to talk about the situation. What the person said was very similar to what Wang Ermaizi said, except that the location was Fushun Street in South City.
Another person came over, and the words were similar, but the location was changed to Lianhuafang in the east of the city.
After asking everyone, everyone said that they saw dozens of people lying on the street, naked and with blood on their bodies.
The only difference is the places where they appear. These people appear in the south, east, west and north of the city, as well as the most lively Tongyifang in the city.
It sounds like there's something wrong with this matter.
But Zhang Quanhe couldn't tell exactly what was wrong.
Zhang Quanhe said to his chief guard, "Gather all the yamen runners, including those off duty. Then divide them into several teams and go to the places mentioned by the informants. Go to the patrol camp in person and borrow more people from them, and go together. Make sure to bring all those people back." "With so many people, the yamen runners in Jingzhao Prefecture alone cannot bring them back.
Moreover, this case is so big and involves so many people that it is impossible to cover it up.
Then he can only do it openly, so that the impact on him will be minimal.
He thought about it again, and then said to his master, "Find someone to get the coroners from the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple, and also get all the doctors with good medical skills in the capital. With so many people, the coroners in Jingzhao Prefecture are definitely not enough. Those people can help a little. It's better than laymen."
"We also need to contact the charity cemetery. We can't deal with so many people casually." Zhang Quanhe's mind was confused now. He felt that he was pretty good for being able to think of these things.
Then, he walked up to one of the teams of yamen runners and said, "I will go to Tongyifang with you."
He had to go to the scene to see what was going on.
Imperial City, Yonghe Hall.
Today is the grand court meeting held once a month.
All officials in the capital who are qualified to attend court must be present, regardless of their rank.
However, today, there are one third fewer people in the Yonghe Hall.
The Emperor Chengtian, who was sitting on the dragon throne, had an extremely ugly expression on his face. Even Eunuch Guo, who had served him for more than ten years, did not dare to breathe. He looked at his nose with his eyes and his heart with his nose, and was very cautious, fearing that if his breathing was a little louder, it would make the person on the dragon throne look even uglier.
The faces of the civil and military officials standing below were not looking very good either.
When they were waiting in Jiying Hall this morning, they felt something was wrong.
During previous grand court meetings, the Jiying Hall would always be packed with people waiting early in the morning. However, today, even though the court had already started, many familiar faces had not appeared.
Even if he was not feeling well and asked for leave, so many people wouldn't come together at the same time.
Who among those who can serve as an official in the court is a fool?
A cloud of gloom hung over everyone's heart. Something big was about to happen.
"Where are the people?"
Emperor Chengtian's voice was not loud, but it was full of majesty. In the Yonghe Hall, one could hear a pin drop, so Emperor Chengtian's question was naturally amplified.
However, no one present dared to respond.
They don't know the inside story either.
If it wasn't a matter of life and death, no one would dare not come on a day like the grand court meeting.
After waiting for another cup of tea, still no one spoke. Emperor Chengtian's patience was exhausted. When he was about to make trouble, he heard a eunuch report outside the Yonghe Hall.
"The Patrol Battalion General Xiong Deyi requests to see Your Majesty—"
At that moment, everyone's nerves were aroused.
The patrol battalion is responsible for guarding the capital. General Xiong Deyi has been in this position for many years and has always been trusted by Emperor Chengtian.
He reports directly to Emperor Chengtian and does not need to attend court sessions.
If he comes at this time, it will definitely not be a good thing.
Eunuch Guo glanced at Emperor Chengtian, and after receiving a sign of approval, he flicked his whisk and said, "Announce."
When Xiong De, who was waiting outside the hall, heard the summons, he rubbed his hands together several times before steadying his steps and walking towards the Yonghe Hall.
If someone familiar with him saw his frivolous steps at this moment, they would definitely be shocked. After all, he was a man who had fought his way out of a sea of blood and corpses. What could have caused him to lose his composure like this?
After Xiong Deyi entered the palace, he knelt on one knee and saluted Emperor Chengtian, "I am Xiong Deyi, your humble servant, and I pay my respects to Your Majesty."
Emperor Chengtian waved his sleeves and said, "No need to be polite. Let's talk about the matter first."
''yes.''
Xiong Deyi stood up, took a deep breath and said, "I am here for the adults who are not in the Yonghe Palace."
"Do you know where they are?" Emperor Chengtian asked hurriedly.
"Yes, the adults are all in Jingzhao Prefecture now."
When these words were spoken, not only did Emperor Chengtian's expression change, but everyone present was horrified.
"What did you say?!" Emperor Chengtian couldn't believe his ears. He almost stood up and wanted to rush to Xiong Deyi to question him. But he didn't know what he suddenly thought of, so he held back.
Holding his knees tightly with both hands, Emperor Chengtian said coldly, "Tell me in detail."
Xiong Deyi saluted again, and then he recounted in detail the whole process of how Jingzhao Prefecture Yin Zhang Quanhe sent people to ask him for help early this morning, and what they saw at the scene.
Xiong Deyi was a military general, so he spoke more directly, without the implicit wording of civil officials.
His words made everyone present start to twitch their foreheads.
"You mean to say that early this morning, my ministers were found unconscious in the streets of the capital without clothes on, not just one, but a full 172 people?!"
Although he was very scared, Xiong Deyi still said, "Yes."
With a "bang", a mountain of pens on the imperial desk was thrown down and hit Xiong Deyi's forehead. He really couldn't bear it anymore.
The moment Emperor Chengtian made his move, Xiong Deyi knew that the thing was meant to hit him, but he didn't dare to dodge and had to take the hit head on.
There was a cut on his forehead, and blood was dripping down from his eyebrows and eyes. However, Xiong Deyi did not dare to wipe it off, and always maintained the same bowing posture as before.
"Xiong Deyi! You really failed my trust in you! You are the general of the patrol camp, responsible for the protection of the capital! Such a big thing happened in the capital! You actually didn't notice it at all! You didn't know about it until Jingzhao Prefecture notified you! If someone sneaked into the palace and killed me one day, you would still be so clueless! You tell me, do you deserve to die!"