SFS Chapter 494 Suspicion of the Imperial Tutor
Chapter 494 Suspicion of the Imperial Tutor
The Northern Qi emperor immediately summoned the man, bent down to pick up a fragment of a jade thumb ring, and felt a bit uneasy: "When did my royal guards become so unruly and boisterous, so lacking in composure? What kind of behavior is this?"
The guard, ignoring the Northern Qi emperor's rebuke, knelt down with a thud.
"Your Majesty, last night, I was ordered by you to lead an elite force to annihilate them. When we arrived, we found that they had already fled."
"We quickly realized something was wrong and worried that they might harm the Prince, so we rushed to meet him. But we were too late; the house was already engulfed in flames, and half the sky was burning red."
"Only ten horses were tied up in front of the house."
"The virtuous king and his entourage consisted of exactly ten people."
At this point, the guard said angrily, "They deliberately leaked our whereabouts so we could find out where we were staying."
The Emperor of Northern Qi found it hard to believe.
At this moment, the guard took out an arrowhead from his bosom and presented it to the Emperor of Northern Qi with both hands: "I found blood and this arrowhead at the entrance of the residence. It is almost certain that the remnants of the previous dynasty ambushed the Prince Xian."
The Northern Qi emperor picked up the arrowhead and immediately noticed the character "昶" engraved on it.
The former crown prince had one character from his name engraved on it, as if to tell him in a blatant way that they had returned for revenge.
That's incredibly arrogant.
The Northern Qi Emperor's face darkened: "The commander of the Imperial Guards is highly skilled, capable of taking on ten men at once. I have sent the commander of the Imperial Guards to protect the Prince Xian, so he should be safe. Perhaps they have fallen into Changyuan's trap and fled to the mountains."
He didn't believe for a second that the wise king would be in trouble; instead, he became suspicious.
Changyuan deliberately left clues for his secret guards to find their hideout. Is their real target the Wise Prince?
So how could Changyuan be so sure that he would definitely target them after accidentally learning of their whereabouts when the people opposed the virtuous king becoming the crown prince?
On this basis, they also had to accurately deduce that he would not only target former officials of the previous dynasty, but also frame them for crimes, and issue an edict ordering the wise prince to investigate the massacre of the Wang family.
Even if they had considered this, how did they know that he would set up a hideout for them near the National Temple?
In the entire plan, no step can go wrong.
The Northern Qi emperor frowned. For Changyuan to achieve this, two conditions must be met, and neither can be missing.
First, I understand his character very well.
Secondly, spies were planted around him.
And among all the people in the world who understand him so well, only the Imperial Tutor and the Empress.
The Empress is now guarding the imperial mausoleum.
He deployed a large number of troops to guard the imperial tombs, and no news could be sent out without his permission.
It can be basically ruled out that the empress is the suspect.
So, only the Imperial Tutor remains.
The Imperial Tutor was most skilled at strategizing and understanding people's hearts.
The Northern Qi Emperor's heart sank, halting his further contemplation, and he ordered, "Take men to find the Wise Prince on the nearby mountains. Be quick, don't let Changyuan's men get there first."
The guards had already concluded that the Prince Xian had met with misfortune, but lacking concrete evidence, they could only say tactfully, "We've searched everywhere, and are just waiting for the fire in the house to be extinguished."
The Northern Qi emperor understood the hidden meaning in the secret guards' words.
The wise king is very likely to perish in the fire.
He never imagined that something would happen to the wise king.
I don't even dare to think about it.
Because the wise king was his only son with pure blood.
If something were to happen to the wise king, to whom would he entrust his kingdom?
Therefore, he was furious when he heard what the guard said.
"Are you defying my imperial decree?" The Northern Qi Emperor's gaze was sharp as a knife, revealing a strong sense of murderous intent: "I order you to immediately lead men into the mountains to find the Wise Prince. If anything happens to the Wise Prince, you will bring your head to me."
The guard's expression changed drastically, and he was about to accept the order.
Just then, Eunuch Liu's voice rang out from outside: "Your Majesty, the Imperial Guards have reported that they have news of the Prince Xian."
The Northern Qi emperor glanced at the guard and said coldly, "Let him in and give his answer."
With a creak, the tightly closed door opened.
The Northern Qi emperor looked at the imperial guards who had rushed over, covered in dust, and subconsciously clenched the shards of the ring in his hand. The sharp edges pierced his palm and embedded themselves deeply into his flesh, but he was oblivious, as if nothing was more important than the news of the wise prince.
The Imperial Guardsman's expression was grave: "Your Majesty, the fire in the abandoned house has been extinguished, and we have found more than twenty charred corpses."
The Northern Qi emperor's face remained tense: "What does this have to do with the virtuous prince?"
The imperial guard took out a jade pendant and handed it to the Emperor of Northern Qi: "I found this jade pendant on a headless corpse."
The Northern Qi emperor had just asked about the virtuous prince, so the imperial guards' response was bound to be about the prince. Therefore, when he heard the phrase "headless corpse," he felt as if a heavy hammer had struck his heart.
There was no need to bring the jade pendant over for identification; with just a fleeting glance, the Emperor of Northern Qi recognized it as the jade pendant that the Prince Xian wore close to his body.
His vision went black, and he fell straight down.