Catching Monsters

Chapter 343 Sending a Letter
Upon hearing Xiao Yuzheng's reply, Xiao Min'er's face was filled with sarcasm as she slowly said, "He personally attends to every matter, working diligently and conscientiously, without daring to slack off in the slightest."

"You've tried so hard, yet the Zhou court is still so rotten. Doesn't that just prove you're unworthy of your position?"

"You're working so hard just to prove that you're more suited to the throne than my father, and to become the restorer of the dynasty?"

"But what's the result?"

Xiao Min'er's sarcasm was like a thorn piercing Xiao Yuzheng's heart.

In fact, as Xiao Min'er said, why is Xiao Yuzheng so diligent in his duties? He spends the vast majority of his time every day dealing with government affairs.

Unlike many emperors in history who indulged in pleasure after ascending the throne, he did not.

He murdered his brother to seize the throne. Although no one in the court dared to mention it anymore, Xiao Yuzheng knew in his heart that if he did not make something of himself, what would his reputation be like a hundred years later?

However, over the past three hundred years, the Zhou Kingdom has suffered from severe land annexation, and local landlords and gentry have become too powerful to control.

The peasant uprisings were also showing signs of growing in size.

Corruption in officialdom has become deeply ingrained.

This is by no means a problem that Xiao Yuzheng can solve simply by being more diligent in his duties.

Lies don't hurt, truth is the knife.

Xiao Yuzheng's eyes were filled with murderous intent, wishing he could execute Xiao Min'er immediately. In all the years since he ascended the throne, when had anyone ever dared to speak to him like that?

"Guards! Execute her by slow slicing!" Xiao Yuzheng shouted, then realized that he and Feng Yu were the only ones there.

He turned to look at Feng Yu and said in a deep voice, "Go, have Li Wangxin arrange for her to be executed by slow slicing. I want her to be cut into a thousand pieces."

"A gentleman's word is as good as his bond," Xiao Min'er said coldly.

Xiao Yuzheng glanced at her coldly, then turned and walked out of the prison. Feng Yu quickly followed and whispered, "Your Majesty, she cannot be killed yet."

“Xiao Min’er and Wang Longzhi have a close relationship. Once His Majesty executes her in the capital, no one knows what Wang Longzhi will do.”

Xiao Yuzheng turned around, gave Feng Yu a cold stare, and said, "What? My words no longer carry any weight?"

Feng Yu was slightly taken aback. Soon after, Xiao Yuzheng left the Northern Garrison, boarded the imperial carriage, and rushed back to the palace in a huff.

Li Wangxin, who had been waiting outside the imperial prison, watched as His Majesty walked out with a gloomy and displeased expression, and left without saying a word.

He hurried forward and asked Feng Yu in a low voice, "What happened? Why does His Majesty look so pale?"

"Don't even mention it." Feng Yu took a deep breath, couldn't help but glance back at the prison, and said, "This Xiao Min'er is probably determined to die, sigh."

"Quickly send someone in to keep an eye on her; she can't die yet."

After Feng Yu finished speaking, he quickly walked out. This matter could only be resolved after His Majesty calmed down, and then he could properly persuade him.

Xiao Yuzheng rode in the imperial carriage and returned directly to the palace. However, as soon as he returned, he heard from the eunuchs on duty that Ye Xiuyuan had arrived and was waiting in the imperial study.

Xiao Yuzheng valued Ye Xiuyuan highly and rushed back to the Imperial Study immediately.

At this moment, Ye Xiuyuan was sitting on a wooden chair in the Imperial Study, drinking tea.

"Mr. Ye, what brings you here to sit with me today?" Xiao Yuzheng tried his best to forget his earlier unpleasantness, forced a smile, and sat down on the dragon throne.

Ye Xiuyuan, holding a cup of tea, said with a smile, "I just heard that His Majesty captured a woman?"

"Mr. Ye also knows about this?" Xiao Yuzheng's eyes flickered slightly, and he subconsciously asked, "Who told you?"

Since it involved royal secrets, Xiao Yuzheng did not want too many people to know the details of the matter, yet someone dared to tell Ye Xiuyuan about it.

Anger also surfaced on his face.

Ye Xiuyuan replied calmly, "Princess Ningyi came to my residence just now. She asked me to persuade His Majesty to spare the woman's life."

"That girl Linglong." Xiao Yuzheng frowned, but when he heard that it was Linglong who did it, the anger on his face completely disappeared.

"I have just given the order to have Xiao Min'er executed by slow slicing," Xiao Yuzheng said in a deep voice.

Upon hearing this, Ye Xiuyuan nodded slightly, offering no words of advice. Instead, he asked, "Is Your Majesty prepared?"

"Ok?"

"If Wang Longzhi were to lead an army of 400,000 elite troops in rebellion, how would Your Majesty handle the situation?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuzheng frowned deeply but did not answer Ye Xiuyuan's question.

After a long silence, Xiao Yuzheng finally said, "Wang Longzhi has been bewitched by Xiao Min'er and already harbors rebellious intentions."

Ye Xiuyuan nodded: "If we kill Xiao Min'er, he will probably rebel directly."

“Not killing Xiao Min’er will only make him hesitant to act. I’ve heard that Wang Longzhi’s parents passed away years ago. The Jingguo Duke’s family members who remain in the capital are probably not effective in restraining Wang Longzhi.”

"His Majesty's trump card is Xiao Min'er now."

"How can we easily play such a good hand?"

At this moment, Xiao Yuzheng gradually calmed down. He was not a fool, but he had just been ridiculed by Xiao Min'er and lost his temper, which was why he wanted to torture her to death.

"Does Mr. Ye have any brilliant plan?" Xiao Yuzheng asked.

Ye Xiuyuan fell silent, pondered for a while, and then said, "Then we'll have to see how Wang Longzhi reacts."

"Detain Xiao Min'er first, then send a letter to Wang Longzhi. Promote Wang Longzhi to Minister of War and order him to return to the capital to assume his post, then see his reaction."

Xiao Yuzheng shook his head slightly and said, "Mr. Ye, Wang Longzhi definitely won't want to return to Beijing. What good would it do to write to him?"

A smile appeared on Ye Xiuyuan's face as he explained to Xiao Yuzheng, "Sending the letter is to give everyone a clear stance."

“Your Majesty has bestowed many favors upon Wang Longzhi. If he rebels again, he will not be able to stand up to the moral high ground.”

"He refused to reply to the first letter, so a second one was sent."

"The third letter."

"And an imperial edict was issued, dividing the 400,000-strong army into four armies, and selecting three military officers and nobles of good reputation to go to perform their duties in each army."

Xiao Yuzheng said with lingering fear, "When the commander was changed at the last minute, the Zhenchi Army reacted extremely strongly..."

“It’s different.” Ye Xiuyuan shook his head: “The Zhenchi Army has long been under the command of the Duke of Zhenguo.”

"To say something His Majesty may not like to hear, the Zhenchi Army is practically becoming the household troops of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion."

"And this army of 400,000, though an elite force, was only recently assembled to suppress bandits, and its unity is not solid."

Ye Xiuyuan paused for a moment, then said, "Xiao Min'er is probably aware of this problem as well. Without unity of the army, it is impossible to rebel."

"If she dies in the capital, she must have already made preparations for the future. At that time, among the 400,000 troops, they will surely spread the rumor that Wang Longzhi's woman went to the capital for medical treatment, but was brutally killed by His Majesty."

"Furthermore, if I'm not mistaken, there must be members of the royal family in Wang Longzhi's army."

"At that time, taking advantage of the situation, a member of the royal family, holding the Imperial Seal of the State, will raise his arms and shout, thus creating an opportunity to lead an army of 400,000 in rebellion."

Listening to Ye Xiuyuan's analysis, Xiao Yuzheng nodded slightly and decided to try Ye Xiuyuan's method first.

……

"Do you think Mr. Ye Xiuyuan can persuade His Majesty?"

On the bustling streets of the capital, Jiang Yun walked with his hands behind his back, leading Linglong towards the Sanqing Temple. Linglong, with her hands behind her back and a thoughtful look in her eyes, said, "In the capital, if even Elder Ye can't persuade Father Emperor, then no one else can."

At this point, Linglong's face also showed a hint of worry.

Jiang Yun was also preoccupied with her own worries.

If His Majesty the Emperor really executes Xiao Min'er, then I will have no choice but to take the risk and rush to Wuling Prefecture to forcibly rescue Qin Shujian.

We can only wait for news from the Northern Garrison Command.

Soon, Jiang Yun returned to the Sanqing Temple. The hundred-man guard that had escorted Xiao Min'er to the capital had also disappeared, and no one knew where they had gone.

Upon entering the Sanqing Temple, one could see Xu Suwen pacing back and forth inside with a furrowed brow and some anxiety.

Seeing Jiang Yun and Linglong return from outside, she hurriedly ran to Jiang Yun and asked anxiously, "Jiang Yun, Qiaoqiao just came to the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion and said that something happened at Sanqing Temple and that it was surrounded by many Imperial Guards."

"what happened?"

Jiang Yun couldn't tell Xu Suwen the specifics, but said, "One of the people who came back with us this time is a wanted criminal by the imperial court, and he has been taken to the Northern Garrison Command."

"Don't worry, this matter has little to do with us."

Hearing Jiang Yun's last words, Xu Suwen breathed a slight sigh of relief. Her gaze then fell on Linglong, and she bowed, saying, "Greetings, Princess Ningyi."

"Alright, alright, I don't like all this formality." Linglong glanced at Xu Suwen, then said to Jiang Yun, "Alright, I'm going home now. Let's wait for news from the Northern Garrison."

"Row."

After watching Linglong leave, he finally had some free time.

Wen Chen rushed over and asked, "Master, where's Senior Brother Qin? Why didn't he come back with you?"

"He has something to do temporarily and can't come back."

Afterwards, he returned to the living room to rest and first asked Wenchen to prepare the meal.

Xu Suwen looked at Jiang Yun with some curiosity. Although she wanted to ask what was going on with those Imperial Guards, Jiang Yun clearly did not want to get involved in the matter.

"Where's Qiaoqiao?" Jiang Yun changed the subject.

"It's getting late, so we should rest at the Duke's Mansion." Xu Suwen said, then seemed to remember something and added, "By the way, Master Yunwu from Changxin Temple has visited our Duke's Mansion several times before. He asked you to go to Bailong Temple to find him after you return."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun suddenly remembered that he had entrusted Bailong Temple to Yunwu before leaving the capital.

He's been away for over a month now; I wonder how he's managed Bailong Temple.

"If we're free tomorrow, let's go for a stroll at Bailong Temple," Jiang Yun said in a deep voice.

Anyway, we still have to wait for news from the Northern Garrison Command to know how to deal with Xiao Min'er.

Upon hearing Jiang Yun's words, Xu Suwen's face immediately lit up with joy. Jiang Yun had been quite busy lately, and she wanted to spend more time with her, but she was too embarrassed to ask.

"Row."

"Oh, right, there's one more thing." Xu Suwen hesitated for a moment before saying, "Miss Feng from the Marquis of Weiwu's mansion has also come looking for you several times."

"She also asked you to inform her when you return. Do you think I should send a servant to inform her?"

(End of this chapter)