Catching Monsters

Chapter 474 I hereby bestow upon you the title of Marquis of Weinan

Upon hearing the result, Zhang Yao felt dizzy and his vision went black; he almost fainted from fright.

"Your Majesty, spare my life! Your Majesty, spare my life!"

Zhang Yao trembled slightly, knelt on the ground, and kowtowed repeatedly.

Xiao Yuzheng's gaze toward Zhang Yao turned icy cold as he slowly said, "Drag him out of here."

"Throw him into jail!"

"Furthermore, summon all officials to the palace immediately."

……

In the evening, outside the main hall of the imperial palace, civil and military officials from all over the capital rushed to the main hall.

Along the way, many civil and military officials were filled with deep confusion.

It should be noted that such a large-scale gathering of officials and meetings is generally only held in the morning.

The fact that the court officials were summoned at this particular time suggests that something extraordinary has happened.

Especially recently, things have been quite unsettled in the capital. The Imperial Guards suddenly placed the palace under martial law, preventing anyone from entering or leaving.

Most of the courtiers had a vague idea that a major upheaval was about to occur in the palace.

However, no one could guess what exactly happened.

Upon arriving at the palace gates, one sees that the Imperial Guards who once strictly guarded the palace have mostly withdrawn, replaced by many Imperial Guards from the Northern Garrison Command on duty at the palace gates.

This unusual situation left most of the officials completely baffled.

The palace guards were basically the responsibility of the Imperial Guards.

What does the withdrawal of the Imperial Guards mean?
Furthermore, many of the military officers and nobles who were close to Xiao Jingfu were well aware that Zhang Yao, the commander of the Imperial Guards, had secretly formed a deep alliance with His Highness the Crown Prince.

At this critical juncture, the Imperial Guards were withdrawn...

Although the six ministers were quite far apart, they looked at each other with a hint of joy in their eyes.

Despite their considerable power, the Six Ministries were powerless when the Imperial Guards imposed martial law on the palace. They couldn't even see Xiao Yuzheng.

Many matters could only be reviewed by His Highness Crown Prince Xiao Jingfu.

The eldest prince, Xiao Jingzhi, had also been notified and rushed to the scene.

In short, everyone knows that something big must have happened, but no one can figure out the specific details.

Soon, the civil and military officials arrived at the court.

Upon entering the court, everyone fell completely silent, their minds filled with countless thoughts, yet their faces remained impassive.

Finally, from behind the imperial court, Xiao Yuzheng, dressed in a dragon robe, slowly walked out with a solemn expression.

Upon hearing the news, Feng Yu rushed back to accompany him, keeping her head slightly lowered and following closely behind with a slightly faster pace.

Inside the imperial court, perhaps only Duke Zhenguo Xu Xiaogang could guess what had happened.

"Your Majesty has arrived."

The officials all knelt down, but whether civil or military, their eyes were even more confused.

Wasn't it said that His Majesty was nearing his end and would soon pass away?
But looking at Xiao Yuzheng's powerful and imposing manner now, could it be just a rumor?

After Xiao Yuzheng slowly sat down, Feng Yu stepped forward, glanced at the ministers present, coughed, and cleared his throat: "Zhang Yao, the commander of the Imperial Guards, intends to rebel and has privately mobilized the Imperial Guards with treacherous intent."

Just hearing this sentence sent a chill down the spines of many people in the court.

"Fortunately, His Highness Crown Prince Xiao Jingfu discovered it in time. In order to protect and save His Majesty, His Highness sacrificed himself for the country and died at the hands of the rebel Zhang Yao."

"His Majesty is unharmed."

The matter was explained simply in a few words.

Those who could stand in the imperial court were not fools; they naturally understood what Feng Yu's words meant...

His Highness the Crown Prince is dead!

The commander of the Imperial Guards was arrested after his defection...

Of course, as for whether His Highness the Crown Prince was killed by Zhang Yao...

This issue is no longer important.

When the eldest prince, Xiao Jingzhi, heard these words, he almost burst out laughing...

But I still forced myself to hold back...

His twitching lips alone betrayed his feelings.

"Li Wangxin, listen to my command." Xiao Yuzheng, sitting on the dragon throne, slowly spoke: "The Imperial Guard Commander Zhang Yao has rebelled. There must be more than just him behind this. This case will be thoroughly investigated by your Embroidered Uniform Guard."

"Yes!" Li Wangxin's heart skipped a beat, and he nodded respectfully.

After making a brief announcement, Xiao Yuzheng turned and left with a serious expression, without discussing anything further.

However, the palace quickly issued a notice overnight, officially announcing to the capital that Zhang Yao had rebelled and murdered the crown prince.

They also announced that the affair between Jiang Yun and Princess Ningyi was a setup by Zhang Yao.

……

In the small courtyard of the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion, Jiang Yun was sitting and chatting with Jiang Qiaoqiao.

"Brother, what's that fairyland like?"

Jiang Qiaoqiao blinked, her face full of curiosity.

Jiang Yun then vividly described the appearance of Penglai Wonderland to Jiang Qiaoqiao.

Hearing this, Jiang Qiaoqiao exclaimed in amazement. Just then, Xu Suwen happily ran in from outside, holding an extra notice in her hand: "Jiang Yun, where is Princess Ningyi? Your arrest warrants have been lifted."

As she spoke, she handed the notice to Jiang Yun. Jiang Yun glanced at it and chuckled. However, to Jiang Yun's surprise, Xiao Jingfu was dead.

Although he didn't know Xiao Yuzheng very well, he did know that this emperor was one of the few rulers who cared about family ties.

Xu Suwen said happily, "An eunuch from the palace has come to inform you that you and Xiaogang need to go to the palace early tomorrow morning. His Majesty wants to see you."

"Hmm." Jiang Yun took a deep breath, nodded, and could be considered to have breathed a sigh of relief.

"Sister Suwen, please sit down. My brother was just talking about that Penglai Wonderland." Jiang Qiaoqiao quickly got up and pulled Xu Suwen to sit down next to Jiang Yun.

Jiang Yun recounted what he had seen and heard to the two of them. However, looking at Jiang Qiaoqiao, Jiang Yun understood that Qiaoqiao was his weakness. This time it was a coincidence that Xiao Jingfu had Qian Buchou make the arrest.

But what if it were someone else?

We must find a way to solve this problem, or get Qiaoqiao to study under a famous teacher.

"By the way, Suwen, are there any well-known Confucian scholars in the academy where Qiaoqiao is?" Jiang Yun asked.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Qiaoqiao asked, "What do you want?"

"Find a good teacher for Qiaoqiao."

After pondering for a moment, Xu Suwen understood Jiang Yun's thoughts. She thought for a moment and said, "Are you worried that someone else will harm Qiaoqiao and threaten you?"

“Now that you are the Commander of the Eastern Garrison, and with the support of our Duke Zhenguo’s Mansion, ordinary people wouldn’t dare to mess around with Qiaoqiao.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun knew that there were probably only a handful of people in the capital who would dare to use Jiang Qiaoqiao to threaten him.

If such a person existed, finding a master for Jiang Qiaoqiao wouldn't have been enough.

There may be such people, but such people would never accept Jiang Qiaoqiao as an apprentice just to save face.

……

The next morning, Jiang Yun slept soundly without meditating. In the early morning, he and Xu Xiaogang took a carriage and headed towards the palace.

Outside the palace gates stood the Imperial Guards, all dressed in flying fish robes.

After the carriage stopped, the Imperial Guards of the Northern Garrison stopped the carriage and asked the two men to wait a moment.

After being informed, Feng Yu appeared in front of the palace gate.

"Lord Zhenguo, Commander Jiang, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting." Feng Yu said with a smile as he approached the two men, explaining, "The palace has been a bit stricter lately."

"I need to personally lead you two in."

"Come with me."

Inside the palace, it was visibly noticeable that the number of eunuchs and palace maids had decreased significantly.

Even if you occasionally see one or two eunuchs or palace maids, they are always in a hurry, rushing about with their own tasks.

Jiang Yun asked curiously, "Eunuch Feng, are there so many people missing from the palace?"

Feng Yu didn't treat Jiang Yun as an outsider, but there were many things that were inconvenient to say openly. He simply replied, "Many people in the palace are very close to Zhang Yao and have been sent to the Northern Garrison for interrogation."

"Many of the imperial chefs were among them."

"Alas, these are turbulent times."

Soon, the two arrived at the door of the Imperial Study.

Outside the Imperial Study, many people were waiting, including officials from various departments such as the Six Ministries.

There were also many Imperial Guards watching from all sides.

The Imperial Study was unusually lively, with people queuing up to await His Majesty's summons.

Feng Yu also whispered to Jiang Yun and Xu Xiaogang, "In the past four months, Xiao Jingfu has reviewed a lot of memorials, and they all need to be reviewed again. The workload is quite large."

"In addition, Duke Zhenguo, you need to make preparations. After meeting His Majesty, you will probably have to return to the front line."

"Zhang Yuhu, who is currently leading troops at the front, was previously very close to Xiao Jingfu..."

Although on the surface the capital was still calm, there was no doubt that a large number of people had been killed.

Those who were even slightly close to Xiao Jingfu were all caught up in his actions this time.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun quickly reminded him, "Eunuch Feng, Lord Qian Buchou of the Five Cities Garrison..."

"Don't worry, he was on the list this morning, but I've already removed him," Feng Yu said with a smile.

Just then, an official walked out of the imperial study with a solemn expression.

Feng Yu then led the two of them to cut in line and enter the Imperial Study first.

Upon entering the imperial study, one finds a wisp of sandalwood incense burning inside. Xiao Yuzheng sits on the dragon throne, looking quite energetic.

Upon seeing Jiang Yun enter, Xiao Yuzheng smiled, stepped forward, and grasped Jiang Yun's hand, saying, "Commander Jiang, good, very good. You went through hardships to bring back the elixir for me. Tell me, what do you want? I will reward you with anything!"

Xiao Yuzheng had been terminally ill for nearly five months, and the feeling of lying in bed waiting to die was unbearable.

That feeling was worse than death.

It can be said that it has been reborn.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Yun remained neither humble nor arrogant, and quickly replied respectfully, "This time, obtaining the elixir was a joint effort between Princess Ningyi and me, and it was not solely my achievement."

"You," Xiao Yuzheng raised his hand and pointed at Jiang Yun, quite satisfied with his attitude.

Despite having made such a contribution, he was not arrogant.

After he sat back on the dragon throne, he closed his eyes, pondered for a moment, and said, "Feng Yu, Xu Xiaogang, in your opinion, what should be rewarded to Jiang Yun?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Yu chuckled and said, "Commander Jiang certainly doesn't lack gold, silver, or jewels."

"If we're talking about promotions, he's now the Commander of the Eastern Garrison."

"Commander Jiang is still young after all, and there will be countless opportunities for him to make contributions to His Majesty in the future."

"However, for now, we are still born into humble circumstances..."

Feng Yu was implying something. Xu Xiaogang, who was in the imperial study, heard this and chimed in, "Your Majesty, what Eunuch Feng said makes sense. Why not bestow a title upon Jiang Yun..."

It should be noted that if Jiang Yun and Xu Suwen had married in the beginning, Jiang Yun could have married into the Zhenguo Duke's mansion.

No one would say anything, after all, the two were of very different social status.

But now, Jiang Yun holds considerable power in the capital, making it virtually impossible for him to marry into the family.

Xu Suwen could only marry Jiang Yun.

Although Jiang Yun held a high official position, his social status was not particularly high.

This suggestion was exactly what Xiao Yuzheng wanted to hear. He slowly said, "Since that's the case, Jiang Yun, you come from Nanzhou Prefecture. Therefore, I hereby bestow upon you the title of Marquis of Weinan!"

"I promise you, your descendants will be illustrious for generations to come!"

(End of this chapter)