Catching Monsters

Chapter 342 What makes you think I haven't done a good enough job?

Inside the Imperial Study, Li Wangxin was kneeling on the ground with a solemn expression when the door was suddenly pushed open with a bang.

Xiao Yuzheng rushed in from outside. Li Wangxin and Feng Yu had followed Xiao Yuzheng for many years, and they rarely saw him in such a hurry.

"His Majesty……"

Xiao Yuzheng interrupted him and asked directly, "Has your identity been confirmed? Is she the girl who ran away twenty-nine years ago?"

"The person has been captured and taken back to the Northern Garrison." Li Wangxin respectfully handed the anonymous letter to Xiao Yuzheng.

Xiao Yuzheng took the letter and read it carefully: "Tell me how you caught her, whether she denied her identity, and explain everything in detail."

Li Wangxin said in a deep voice, "The person was captured at the Sanqing Temple."

Xiao Yuzheng was slightly taken aback. Upon hearing "Sanqing Temple," he even thought he had misheard. He looked at Li Wangxin in disbelief: "What? You're not going to tell me that this matter is also related to Jiang Yuneng, are you?"

"It has little to do with Jiang Yun."

Hearing this, Feng Yu, who followed behind, breathed a slight sigh of relief.

“However, she does have some connection with Wang Longzhi,” Li Wangxin said in a deep voice. “According to reports from my subordinates, this woman was escorted here by Wang Longzhi’s personal guards…”

“Wang Longzhi.” Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuzheng narrowed his eyes slightly.

Wang Longzhi's unauthorized detention of the Imperial Guards transporting the Imperial Seal had already greatly displeased Xiao Yuzheng, and now, she had even become involved with Xiao Min'er.

"As for the specifics, we'll need to interrogate Xiao Min'er to find out." With that, Li Wangxin glanced at Xiao Yuzheng.

"What are you looking at me for? Interrogate me!" Xiao Yuzheng glared at him, his anger rising.

"Your Majesty, you once said that whenever the imperial family is involved, our Embroidered Uniform Guard must obtain your approval before conducting any interrogation..." Li Wangxin lowered his head, his voice becoming increasingly faint.

It seemed that they were somewhat hesitant to mention Xiao Min'er's royal status.

As expected, Xiao Yuzheng's eyes turned colder when he heard the word "royal family": "Interrogate her thoroughly to find out what her relationship with Wang Longzhi is and what she wants to do. I give you the authority to use any means necessary, as long as you don't torture her to death."

"Yes." Upon hearing this, Li Wangxin opened his mouth slightly, as if he wanted to say something but dared not.

Feng Yu, standing beside him, offered him a way out, taking the initiative to ask on Xiao Yuzheng's behalf: "Lord Li, is there anything else you wish to say?"

"Xiao Min'er says she wants to see His Majesty."

Xiao Yuzheng slowly narrowed his eyes: "You want to see me?"

Xiao Yuzheng slowly stood up, his hands behind his back, lost in thought, looking extremely melancholy.

No matter when or where, killing one's brother to seize the throne is always a dishonorable act, and the official narrative has always been that Crown Prince Xiao Yubang died of illness.

As for the Crown Prince's family members, unfortunately, they also contracted a strange illness in the same year and died suddenly.

When Xiao Yuzheng first ascended the throne, his power base was unstable, and many civil officials and ministers advised him to investigate the matter thoroughly.

How could Xiao Yuzheng possibly investigate?
They could only do a perfunctory job.

As time passed and Xiao Yuzheng's throne became more and more secure, the Crown Prince Xiao Yubang's lineage suddenly fell seriously ill and died, and no one discussed it anymore.

"Your Majesty, shall we see him?" Li Wangxin took a deep breath and asked.

"I'll see you," Xiao Yuzheng said coldly.

……

In a small courtyard nestled in the bamboo grove outside the capital, Ye Xiuyuan was thoroughly enjoying this moment of tranquility.

Despite being in the bustling capital city, this small courtyard is as tranquil as a hidden paradise.

Feng Yu also suggested hiring some servants to take care of his daily life, or hiring some quick-witted servants to help with these rough tasks.

But Ye Xiuyuan politely declined them all.

Later on, Xiao Yuzheng even agreed to select some clever eunuchs from the palace and send them to serve him.

You should know that this is already a great honor.

But Ye Xiuyuan disagreed. He preferred to hide away here alone, occasionally whispering to each other, leisurely playing chess in the bamboo grove courtyard. Wasn't that a delightful life?

However, two more guests arrived today.

"Young friend Jiang, the meteorite you promised me last time still hasn't been delivered."

Inside the courtyard, Ye Xiuyuan brewed tea for Jiang Yun and Linglong, and said with a smile, "I dried this tea myself. Although it can't compare to those expensive teas, it's enough to drink."

Jiang Yun extended both hands to accept the cup of tea before saying, "Mr. Ye, I've come here to ask for your help."

"Oh." Ye Xiuyuan wasn't surprised when he heard this. "Tell me about it."

"His Majesty has captured someone, I'm afraid..." Jiang Yun paused, his gaze shifting to Linglong beside him.

This matter involves palace secrets, and it would certainly be inappropriate for me to reveal that Xiao Yuzheng murdered his brother to seize the throne.

Linglong understood, nodded, and continued, "We would like to ask Mr. Ye to meet with my father and persuade him not to kill a woman."

Then, Linglong quickly recounted the events.

After finishing her speech, Linglong's expression turned solemn, and she said in a deep voice, "If Xiao Min'er dies in the capital, the consequences will be unimaginable."

Upon hearing this, Ye Xiuyuan's smile gradually disappeared. Instead, he calmly took a sip of his tea and pondered something.

Jiang Yun and Linglong didn't know how to speak, so they could only wait quietly for Ye Xiuyuan's answer.

"She's quite a clever woman." Ye Xiuyuan was extremely intelligent and instantly understood Xiao Min'er's intentions. He then waved his hand and said, "You two go back first. I'll go see His Majesty." "Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Ye." Linglong paused and said, "This matter involves the secrets of our royal family, so we hope Mr. Ye will keep it a secret."

……

Inside the Northern Garrison Prison, a murderous aura filled the air, thick with the stench of blood.

The interior was dark and damp, somewhat different from the Eastern Garrison Command.

The imperial prison of the Eastern Garrison Command was mostly vacant and was mainly used to deal with evil spirits and ghosts.

In many cases, there is no need to capture demons; they can simply be killed on the spot.

Meanwhile, the Northern Garrison Command imprisoned a great many officials.

These officials are mostly guilty of serious crimes, and the verdicts have not yet been reached.

Or perhaps he embezzled a large sum of money.

Of course, most of them claimed they were innocent.

The scale of the imperial prison under the Northern Garrison Command was also much larger.

At this moment, Xiao Min'er, who had just been arrested, was placed in a corner cell.

Xiao Min'er's face did not show the same fear as the other prisoners; instead, it was unusually calm.

He even tried walking on his own two legs inside the prison.

She hadn't experienced walking for many years.

Outside the prison, a squad of Imperial Guards, a dozen pairs of eyes, stared intently at her.

There was a strict order from above: Xiao Min'er absolutely could not die before being interrogated.

Inside the imperial prison, countless people were captured, terrified, and committed suicide.

As dusk fell, several eunuchs suddenly entered and gave instructions to all the Imperial Guards in the prison.

The expressions of these Imperial Guards changed slightly.

The imperial prison was temporarily emptied, leaving only Xiao Min'er.

Although none of the Imperial Guards knew what was going on, they still did as instructed. Soon, various shackles and instruments of torture were used to bring out the most serious criminals imprisoned in the Imperial Prison.

Not only the criminals, but even the Imperial Guards inside were ordered to leave immediately.

The entire prison quickly fell into a deathly silence, and Xiao Min'er seemed to have guessed something.

Sure enough, soon after, two footsteps were heard.

Xiao Yuzheng, dressed in a golden dragon robe, strode over, with Feng Yu following closely behind him.

"Your Majesty, we have arrived."

Xiao Yuzheng's gaze quickly fell on Xiao Min'er in the prison cell. He raised his eyebrows slightly and said, "She does look quite alike."

Xiao Min'er slowly stood up, her eyes fixed on Xiao Yuzheng without flinching.

Although she had been taught to hate Xiao Yuzheng since she could remember, she dreamed countless times in her youth that she would sneak into the palace and successfully assassinate Xiao Yuzheng.

In fact, when you really think about it, this was the first time he had ever met his father's killer.

Xiao Yuzheng said in a deep voice, "Now that you've seen me, why aren't you kneeling?"

"You, who murdered your brother and seized the throne, do you deserve to make me kneel?" Xiao Min'er did not back down, her hand on the wooden bars of the prison, her eyes burning with hatred.

"The victor is king, the loser is villain." Xiao Yuzheng's eyes darkened, and he said coldly, "If you say you want to see me, and all you're saying is these things, then I have no interest in talking to you any further."

Xiao Min'er's eyes flickered slightly, and she said, "Oh, really?"

"But what have you done to the Zhou Kingdom since you ascended the throne?"

"The people were displaced, disasters were widespread, and corruption in officialdom became increasingly serious."

"You practice nepotism and use the Embroidered Uniform Guard to eliminate any dissenting voices."

"Shut up!" Xiao Yuzheng reprimanded with a stern face.

Xiao Min'er's eyes flickered slightly, and she continued, "Am I lying?"

"Do you know how people outside the capital speak of you, the emperor?"

"Everyone says you are incompetent and cruel, and that you have harmed loyal and virtuous people."

"Especially since you murdered your brother to seize the throne, which angered Heaven, causing this calamity and making the people suffer greatly."

"If my father had succeeded to the throne, would these things have happened?"

Upon hearing her last words, Xiao Yuzheng completely broke down. His eyes widened, and he said in a deep voice, "Since I ascended the throne, I have personally attended to every matter, working diligently and conscientiously, without daring to slack off in the slightest!"

"What makes you think I haven't done a good enough job!"

Feng Yu's expression changed. As an observer, he could see clearly that Xiao Min'er was deliberately provoking Xiao Yuzheng!

Got it!

(End of this chapter)