Dugong

Chapter 97 The irrefutable evidence
"Eunuch An, we're waiting for you down there!"

Seeing his godson's dead state, Eunuch Deng knew he had no chance of survival. He cursed and threw himself against a pillar in the courtyard.

I'd rather die first than witness the tragic fate of my people.

"Don't worry, Eunuch Deng."

Li Ping'an flashed and stood in front of the pillar: "I said I would let you live in the stable, and I will definitely let you live there!"

Deng Gonggong circulated his true energy to his hands, and his fingernails suddenly grew several inches longer, their black tips gleaming with a metallic sheen, resembling ten sharp daggers.

"die!"

"Little tricks."

Li Ping'an flicked his ten fingers in quick succession, unleashing dozens of fine needles of true energy that pierced through the acupoints all over Deng Gonggong's body, freezing him in place.

"Arrest them all, destroy their inner energy, and throw them into the stables to be guarded!"

"As ordered."

The eunuchs under his command responded in unison, and surrounded Deng Gonggong's adopted son with ill intentions, hoping that the other party would rise up and resist.

Take this opportunity to make an appearance before the Admiral.

Perhaps intimidated by Li Ping'an's bloody methods, or perhaps because of Eunuch Deng's swift defeat, more than a dozen of his adopted sons obediently surrendered.

They were taken back to the Imperial Stables and locked in the stables.

Standing outside the fence, Li Ping'an watched as Eunuch Deng lay on horse manure and urine, finally avenging himself, and couldn't help but laugh triumphantly.

"Jie Jie Jie..."

……

Duty room.

Li Ping'an summoned his godson and spread out the handprint strip.

"One million taels. Search for the required amount as soon as possible. More is acceptable, less is not. I will report the good news to His Majesty in a few days."

Little Yu asked, "What about the extra amount?"

"Set aside funds for the repair of Guangwu Terrace; everything else will remain the same."

After Li Ping'an completely took control of the Imperial Horse Administration, he established a rule of dividing the spoils 30/70, which did not mean that he and his godson would share 30/70, but rather that they would share 30/70 with His Majesty.

The silver reserved for His Majesty will be randomly assigned to a lucky individual at the end of the year and added to the confiscated funds.

Eunuch Fei reminded him, "Godfather, His Majesty may be short of money, but this time he needs more than just money."

"Of course we know."

When Li Ping'an personally demolished the Guangwu Platform, he already had a follow-up plan. He instructed, "Inform Prefect Qian to arrest Eunuch Deng and all his adopted son's relatives and put them in jail."

Prefect Qian was straightforward in his work, and Li Ping'an didn't mind giving him credit.

After this incident, Prefect Qian will surely catch His Majesty's eye. Promotion is uncertain, but at the very least, he will be transferred to one of the Six Ministries.

Eunuch Xia said, "I know an old eunuch who is skilled in torture. Should we bring him over for a thorough interrogation?"

Li Ping'an asked in surprise, "There are such talented people in the palace?"

Eunuch Xia explained, "In order to increase the survival rate of castration, Eunuch Kang of the castration room studied ancient and modern cases of torture and survival, and compiled a unique secret technique called 'The Essentials of Castration'."

"It turned out to be him."

The memory of the old eunuch laughing strangely with a knife immediately flashed into Li Ping'an's mind. He had been awakened from his sleep several times in his early years, and it was only after he became an official that the memory was slightly relieved.

“I have a deep impression of this Eunuch Kang. I would be grateful if Eunuch Xia could invite him over so I can meet him.”

"As ordered."

Eunuch Xia sensed the chill in his words and silently prayed for his old friend to do a good job and please the governor, otherwise the "Essentials of Eunuchship" would be lost.

After a while.

When Eunuch Xia returned with an old eunuch, the eunuch immediately bent down and slid to kneel in front of Li Ping'an.

"Xiao Kangzi from the eunuch's quarters greets Your Excellency!" "Hmm—"

Li Ping'an snorted and said in a sarcastic tone, "Eunuch Kang's reputation is so great that it can stop children from crying at night. Our family has experienced it firsthand."

Kang Gonggong looked bitter. He was going to have to go through this again today. Whenever a junior eunuch gained power, he would inevitably be called over and scolded.

But he couldn't bear to leave the castration room, enjoying the process of turning people into eunuchs and relishing the pitiful screams of the little eunuchs.

"Your Excellency, have mercy! This servant was only following orders. To reduce the pain of castration, I studied several methods to induce numbness..."

"Alright, we have no interest in how to be castrated."

As Li Ping'an listened to Eunuch Kang's detailed account, he felt a vague discomfort in his lower body and interrupted, "We want you to go and interrogate them. Are you confident you can get a confession?"

Eunuch Kang asked, "What kind of confession does the lord require?"

Li Ping'an said quietly, "The collapse of the Imperial Hunting Garden the other day was not caused by the rainstorm, but by sabotage. The mastermind behind it was... Eunuch Leng."

Upon hearing this, Eunuch Kang immediately looked terrified. He glanced at the composed Eunuch Xia and cursed him inwardly for repaying kindness with enmity.

"This servant is willing to give it a try."

Li Ping'an said, "Eunuch Kang, our family never holds grudges. As long as you get the confession, we will not pursue the past."

The implication is that they will turn hostile on the spot if they cannot obtain a confession.

……

The next day.

When Li Ping'an arrived at the stable, the once smelly and dirty place had been cleaned up and tidied up, and layers of silk gauze covered the surroundings.

Lifting the curtain to enter, they saw Eunuch Deng lying on the bed, his body covered in blood.

His ears and nose were cut off, his hands were reduced to palms, his feet were severed at the ankles, and his chest was slashed open countless times, revealing his internal organs.

If it weren't for the slight twitching of flesh and blood in his chest, he would almost look like a dead man.

"My lord, he has already confessed."

Eunuch Kang produced a stack of confessions: "According to Eunuch Deng's confession, Eunuch Leng joined the service of Consort Zhang in his early years. After taking charge of the Directorate of Ceremonial, he has been delivering messages from the palace to the Prince of Zhenbei."

A few days ago, I believed a sorcerer who said that the completion of the Imperial Hunting Garden would enhance the feng shui and fortune of the nation, so I secretly sent people to sabotage it..."

Li Ping'an took the confession and flipped through it page by page. The cause, motive and process were clear and concise. There were not only witness testimonies, but also physical evidence.

For example, removing the palm print left on the pillars of the Guangwu Platform, or the magical artifacts left behind by sorcerers when they performed curses.

Li Ping'an looked somewhat bewildered. Could it really be that Eunuch Leng destroyed the Imperial Hunting Garden? What was our family doing that day?
"Have the evidence been found?"

"Eunuch Fei has already...found it!"

Eunuch Kang said, "Your Excellency, please rest assured. My family is an expert in all kinds of cases. Even if the three judicial departments get involved, there will be no mistakes."

Li Ping'an tucked the confession into his sleeve: "Eunuch Kang is indeed a great talent. Our family has wasted our time and brought back a few heads."

The eunuchs following behind opened the boxes they were carrying, inside which were the heads of people who died with their eyes wide open in disbelief.

Upon hearing this, Deng Gonggong's severely injured but not dying body twisted and trembled as he struggled to break free of the acupoint seal.

"Don't worry, little Dengzi. We'll send your clansmen down first, and then send you back to reunite with them in a few days. Not a single one will be missing!"

Li Ping'an is kind-hearted and cannot bear to see his loved ones separated by death.

Seeing that Eunuch Deng's face was contorted in rage and that blood was gushing from the wound wrapped in gauze, Eunuch Kang quickly reminded him.

"My lord, Eunuch Deng cannot withstand any stimulation."

Li Ping'an nodded and said, "Eunuch Kang, would you like to work at the Imperial Horse Administration? I guarantee you will be promoted and become rich."

With a bitter face, Eunuch Kang said, "We're used to staying in the castration room. If we leave rashly, the person who takes over might not be good at castration, and it could lead to more deaths."

Just as Li Ping'an was about to continue trying to win him over, Xiao Yuzi rushed into the silkworm room and whispered his report.

"Godfather, Eunuch Leng sent someone to ask you to come to the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs to speak with him..."

(End of this chapter)