Chapter 324: The Imperial Master of Dayu returns, Zhao Duan is urgently summoned into the palace (two-in-one)
In the early morning of this day, the hottest "topic" recently in the capital's official circles, that is, the arrest and conviction of the chief envoy Gao Lian back to the capital, using Taicang government corruption as a trigger, finally came to an end.
When the news came out that Wang Chusheng and Gao Lian both died suddenly in prison last night, as expected, it caused an uproar throughout the capital.
"Both of them died suddenly at the same time? Do you think I believe it or not?"
"How could this happen? Can people die at the same time in prison? It's incomprehensible!"
"I heard that Gao Lian left a confession before his death. Maybe he committed suicide!"
For most people, they don't know the inside story, and they are extremely surprised based on their own minds.
Immediately afterwards, more "grapevine" began to spread.
Among them, the one where Miss Mo leads the Imperial Guards out of the palace and enters the prison of the Ministry of Punishment late at night is the most eye-catching.
Everyone who heard it was stunned, and then kept secretive and fell into silence.
Combined with the fighting game in the court, the "Li Party" took action to silence him, and the speculation that the empress killed someone with backhand appeared in many people's minds.
And just when people were anxious and thought that another round of bloodshed was about to start, the story that happened this morning caught everyone off guard.
It is said that Li Yanfu spoke in court, claiming that since Gao Lian had pleaded guilty in prison and the charges were confirmed, Li Yinglong was the minister of the Ministry of Industry and was responsible for negligence, and requested to be removed from office and punished.
Xu Zhenguan readily agreed.
Xiaoge Lao was brutally sacrificed and became the victim to quell the dispute.
After Li Yanfu came forward, all the "Li Party" officials who cheered for Gao Lian also stopped. After all, everyone was dead.
Things can only come to an abrupt and unsatisfactory end in this way.
Externally, it was only said that one died suddenly and another committed suicide due to fear of crime. As for how the Jiangnan nobles would be comforted and accepted in the future, it was no longer a topic that Zhao Duan cared about.
"Your Majesty is so awesome." Qian Kerou said with admiration in the Lihua Hall.
The rest of Jinyi nodded in agreement: Yes, yes.
Everyone thought it was Zhen Bao who killed him, forcing Li Yanfu to bow his head and admit defeat... Zhao Duan sat slumped on the "office chair", holding his chin up and listening to the chatter of his men.
No one knows that the real murderer of Gao Lian is Mr. Zhao next to him.
However, Zhao Duan would not expose himself. In the next two days, the aftereffects of this incident in the capital gradually spread and calmed down.
The storm has come to an end for the time being.
Zhao Duan took some time off, and worked hard every day to come up with the plot of a novel about cultivating immortals, so that he could use it to "dream" to please Pei Niannu.
Even after being promoted to the Divine Chapter, the power of the soul has skyrocketed, and many memories of previous lives have become particularly clear, and many contents can be recalled.
However, it is still difficult to reproduce it completely. Fortunately, although Pei Niannu loves listening to books, his taste is not picky.
Zhao Duan used memories as the basis, and made up the forgotten plots by himself, which could satisfy this senior's appetite. However, the daily updates made Zhao Duan deeply aware of the hardships of a coder...
As for the relationship between the two, there has been no substantial breakthrough.
Ever since he was given a "spiritual flame" technique that day, Senior Pei has regained his aloof attitude. Whenever he is verbose, he will lift his spiritual cover. Only storytellers will avoid being killed.
Zhao Duan gradually understood:
Pei Niannu's temperament is that if he feels good about it, he will give him some benefits.
However, he did not want to be greedy and continued to seek any skills. Instead, he decided to use the rare "guidance and learning" opportunity to fight with Pei Niannu to polish and improve his martial arts.
——The golden-armored sorceress finally stopped killing him instantly after deliberately lowering her power.
In the blink of an eye, Gao Lian's case was gradually no longer mentioned. In addition to his daily practice of making up stories, Zhao Duan was making great progress in the Shenzhang realm.
It is to arrange for Lihuatang to investigate Kuangfu Society and find a breakthrough.
He had not forgotten that he had taken over the task of capturing Zhuang Xiaocheng. Seeing that it was already late autumn, he decided to work hard on this.
"How can the imperial court passively accept repeated provocations from traitors? We should take the initiative and attack!"
Zhao Duan said this during the meeting at the entrance of the hall.
I was wondering if I could completely dismantle Kuangfu Society’s intelligence network in the capital and complete this year’s KPI ahead of schedule.
…
…
"Whoosh——"
In the early morning, at the martial arts training ground of Zhao Mansion, Zhao Duan whizzed out a bamboo stick in his hand, splitting the air and making a sharp whistle.
With a pop, the dark-colored bamboo stick came out of his hand, like a sharp halberd thrown by a general on the battlefield, directly punching a hole in the target standing at the base of the wall.
"good!"
Nearby, several maids cheered and cheered. They rushed forward with basins and towels to wipe the sweat of Zhao Duan who had gotten up early to practice martial arts. His emotional value and service were full.
He learned this from the pomp of Zhenbao cultivating immortals in the palace.
Well...it's not that he is greedy for enjoyment, but that as the future emperor's husband, he should adapt to life in the palace in advance!
Zhao Duan opened his arms, closed his eyes and let the morning sun from the east shine on his naked upper body.
When he practiced martial arts, he only wore a pair of trousers and cloth shoes. The smooth and strong muscles of his upper body were covered with a layer of oil due to sweat beads, making them shine.
The maids of the Zhao Mansion were greatly envied. They would boldly squeeze it when wiping it, thinking that it was no wonder that His Majesty took a fancy to his young master. Who wouldn't be envious?
Every time she saw this scene, the eldest maid Mian Tao would glare and turn around to scold the newly recruited servants to obey the rules.
The most common saying on Mian Tao's lips is:
"You have caught up with the good times. If you came here a year ago and dared to be so presumptuous, the young master would definitely not give you good fruits."
It can only be said that Zhao Duan's original bad image at home has now been completely reversed.
"Okay, let's get down." Zhao Duan put on his coat, drove away the servants, and walked to the dining hall.
I saw my stepmother and sister waiting here, and Eugene Hua was explaining something to his servant.
Seeing him coming, her eyes turned into a smile, and she greeted her enthusiastically. Then she caught a glimpse of the thin coat that her stepson was wearing casually. She stretched out her hand to tighten the open skirt of his clothes and said:
"The weather is so cold, so you should wear more clothes when practicing martial arts. You are most likely to get sick if you sweat."
Perhaps because of his cultivation, Zhao Duan has grown a little taller recently. His fashion is not obvious when wearing robes, and he still looks like an elegant and feminine young man.
But wearing only a thin coat actually looks a bit "burly".
Especially when compared with the woman in front of him who was arranging his clothes, it was even more obvious.
Zhao Pan stood tall and straight, and Zhao Pan, who was sitting at the table, tore a persimmon with his fingers and curled his lips:
"Mom, with my current cultivation level, I am no longer afraid of the wind and cold."
Well, this is what Zhao Duan said to her last night. Now that the girl relayed it, she felt inexplicably good, as if she was sharing a little secret that her mother didn't know.
Zhao Duan smiled and stepped forward to sit down. Zhao Pan just tore off the last piece of persimmon skin, handed it over with his watery hands, and said with a smile:
"Brother, eat persimmons. They were just picked from the tree yesterday."
I missed the Mid-Autumn Festival when I was on a business trip to Taicang Prefecture. Now the leaves are falling in the capital, and the persimmon trees are bearing fiery red persimmons.
Like lanterns.
Zhao Duan took the persimmon, thanked him, and took a bite. The juice in his mouth was sweet and astringent, and he smiled and said:
"Good sign, it seems like something good will happen today (Persimmon)."
…
After dinner, Zhao Duan walked out of the house, and the coachman Xiao Wang was waiting outside.
On the way to the Yamen, the autumn wind blew through the streets and alleys, dead leaves were swirling on the ground, and the branches of the trees along the way also appeared to be withered.
Inexplicably, there was an indescribable pressure on his heart.
And this strange premonition reached its peak after arriving at the Yamen.
"What are you all doing here? Have you ordered your lunch yet?"
When Zhao Duan entered the Lihua Hall, he saw a group of people in Jinyi gathered at the entrance of the hall, discussing something, and the atmosphere was a bit strange.
"Sir? You are here," the little secretary Qian Kerou turned back, her round face did not have the smile of the past, but with a hint of autumn coolness, and her eyes were complicated:
"You should go to the Governor's Hall. The Governor has ordered that all the detectives from each hall should go there when they arrive."
Zhao Duan was stunned and wanted to ask what happened, but when the words reached his mouth, they rolled back into his throat. He nodded and said, "Okay."
I turned around and went to the Governor's Hall. The captains in Jinyi I met along the way also looked unhappy. They gathered in small groups and talked in low voices, creating a depressing atmosphere in the entire Yamen.
When Zhao Duan stepped into the meeting hall of the Governor's Hall, he saw that many people were already sitting in the hall, including Ma Yan, Haitang, Zhang Han and other acquaintances. "Duke, are you looking for me?" Zhao Duan asked.
Ma Yan had a serious expression on his slender face, motioning for him to sit down, and then said, "Do you understand?"
What do you know... Why are all of them becoming Riddlers... Zhao Duan shook his head.
Ma Yan pointed to something like a greeting card or invitation in the center of the table and said:
"This thing appeared on the Yamen gate this morning."
Then, Haitang beside him added seriously:
"Not only our imperial office, but also the six government offices, the Metropolitan Procuratorate... and several other important government offices have the same thing appearing outside them, and the contents inside are exactly the same."
Zhao Duan reached out, picked up the greeting card, spread his hands, and saw four large characters written in black calligraphy on the red post:
"I'm back."
Other than that, there is only the signature area, a square seal with a black eye as the main body in the center and whitewashed patterns around it.
Zhao Duan was stunned for a moment. He felt that the seal looked slightly familiar, but he couldn't remember it. He couldn't help but put down the post and wondered: "What is this?"
"You don't know?" The sassy female detective with a high ponytail and a mole on the corner of her eye was stunned for a moment, then slapped her forehead and said in annoyance:
"Come to think of it, you used to be just an unknown soldier in the Forbidden Army. It's not surprising that you don't know the seal. But when it comes to the owner of the seal, you must know it."
On the opposite side, Zhang Han, with a paralyzed face, said calmly: "National Master. It's the dead Demon Dao National Master who has returned."
Zhao Duan was stunned, first at a loss, and then the memory belonging to the original owner came out.
National Preceptor!
Of course he knew this name, and it was so familiar!
That was a figure during the old emperor's reign. Zhao Duan was just a pawn at that time. Although he served in the palace, due to his status, he was not qualified to get in front of the nobles.
But we also know briefly that a few years before his death, the old emperor was keen on ways to extend his life because he had a premonition that his life span would be short.
I ate a lot of elixirs from Tianshi Mansion and medicinal herbs from Shenlong Temple.
However, it is difficult to force a person to live a long life, and the old emperor also suspected that Tianshi Mansion and Shenlong Temple wanted to check and balance the imperial power, so they were perfunctory and refused to contribute.
So people were sent to try to find capable alchemists in the rivers and lakes.
The Imperial Master entered the palace at that time. At that time, he claimed to be an unknown charlatan, and the gods he cultivated were gods outside the territory of Dayu. Although he could not change his destiny, he could extend his life.
The old emperor was already suffering from illness, and he sought treatment urgently. Many of the sorcerers he had called before were helpless.
After the unknown warlock took action, in just one night, the old emperor became radiant.
The old emperor was overjoyed and immediately gave him a heavy reward and begged him to stay in the capital with the emperor. For this reason, he even gave him the title of "Grand Priest of Dayu".
As soon as this name came out, the little-known national master was immediately thrust into the spotlight.
Zhang Yanyi naturally didn't care about this and didn't bother to pay attention to it, but some people in the Tianshi Mansion were dissatisfied and thought that it was really arrogant for a foreign demon to dare to call himself a national master.
I don't even think that anyone can reverse the lifespan. It must be some evil way used by the demon.
But no matter how much he checked, he couldn't find anything wrong with the old emperor.
Bianji from Shenlong Temple saw this and contacted him. After a conversation, Bianji bluntly said that the national teacher was extraordinary and indeed unique.
For a time, the Imperial Master of Dayu gained great popularity and became a guest of celebrities in the capital. Countless people were proud to invite the Imperial Master as their guests.
Zhao Duan vaguely remembered that at that time, the second prince Xu Jianwen was very close to the imperial master and invited him as a guest many times... Well, the second prince always likes to make friends with capable people and strangers, so he has raised a team of Kuangfushe. No surprise.
According to rumors, when the second prince entered the palace during the Xuanmen coup, the Imperial Master of Dayu was in the palace of the deceased old emperor - he was summoned urgently to extend the life of the late emperor.
But it is worth mentioning that although the national master has extraordinary methods, he is notoriously not good at fighting.
Therefore, during the Xuanmen coup, he died in the rebel army... his body was shot by arrows and turned into a hedgehog, and his head was cut off.
After the empress suppressed the rebels, the Imperial Master of Dayu was also listed in the public list of rebels, which meant that he was also a member of the second prince's command at that time.
However, the late emperor's favored imperial advisor turned out to be a rebel... This was a bit of a slap in the late emperor's face.
In addition, people had died in the coup, so no one mentioned this name soon.
As a result, three years have passed, and Imperial Master Dayu has almost disappeared from people's memory, and he only exists as a dead "historical figure".
But today.
The already dead Imperial Master of Dayu actually came back?
"Duke, is what Zhang Han said true? How is it possible?"
Zhao Duan said in shock, he was really surprised, and he understood why the atmosphere in the Yamen was weird on the way here, "Just with a word and a seal?"
At this moment, he remembered that this seal pattern was the personal seal of the Imperial Master of Dayu.
"If you give me a carrot, I can fake this thing." Zhao Duan spread his hands and thought it was too ridiculous.
However, Ma Yan still looked serious, shook his head and said:
"It cannot be forged. The Demon Dao's seal is extremely unique and has a special verification method. After I got it, I compared it with some official documents with seals left by the Demon Dao in the Yamen warehouse. It was indeed written by one person. , which involves the level of spells, including handwriting.
Of course, putting aside the matter of the seal, it may indeed be forged, but the point is that we suspected at the beginning that this demon was not completely dead at all! On the day of the Xuanmen coup, the demon who died in the palace was probably not his true form! "
Big news!
Zhao Duan sat up straight. This news was beyond the reach of him, who was an unknown person at the time.
He murmured:
"I remember, the Imperial Master... Bah, after this evildoer died, there was indeed a saying in the capital that he escaped and it was not him who died in the palace. There was also a saying that the reason why the late emperor died was because of this evildoer. The black hand...
But these statements are all circulated in the market, and they are one of many statements. I have always listened to them as rumors and stories. "
Ma Yan shook his head and said:
"It is true that most of the rumors in the market are fabricated. People like to talk about things in the palace and they like to hunt for novels. It is not surprising. But the demon may not be dead, and it is indeed true... This was His Majesty's original judgment.
However, in the past two or three years, there has been no trace of this evil spirit, including in Kuangfu Society, and there is no trace of his appearance. Only then did we think that this person was indeed dead, but..."
At this point, as a witness to the Xuanmen coup and a master of worship who fought bloody battles at that time, Ma Yan stared at the invitation on the table and said nothing.
But Zhao Du felt relieved and had already completed the next game for him: "But he is back."
Yes.
A ghost who was supposed to have died in the palace three years ago returns again.
Is someone pretending to be fake? Or was he really not dead back then? But escaped from the capital? Hidden?
No one knows.
But Zhao Duan knew very well that it was definitely not good news for a traitor who had stirred up troubles in the capital and was affiliated with the second prince Xu Jianwen to return again.
Moreover, he still announced it so openly, obviously trying to tell everyone about his return.
"Does your Majesty know?" Zhao Duan's head sank and he asked nonsense.
At the same time, I complained bitterly, thinking that I was really a crow's mouth, but luckily it happened...
"After I got the post, I immediately went to the palace. On the way, I learned that other yamen had also obtained it and submitted it to the palace, so I returned first."
Ma Yan said calmly.
As a yamen that specializes in dealing with those who rebel against the party, the return of the imperial master seems to fall within the business scope of the yamen.
That's how the early morning meeting took place.
Zhao Duan also understood that their next purpose was to wait for the next order from the empress. At the same time, Ma Yan had already sent people out in advance to search for traces of the imperial master.
But even if you think about it, you know that this is doomed to be in vain.
"Mr. Ma, your majesty has an order!" At this moment, a young eunuch from outside the hall hurriedly walked in and said: "Your majesty summons you to the palace to discuss matters, and take Mr. Zhao with you."
It seems that things are getting serious... Zhao Duan stood up, looked at the eunuch and said, "Your Majesty only summoned us?"
"Hey, where is Mr. Zhao?" The eunuch bowed first and then said:
"If others ask, our family dare not say anything, but Master Zhao will naturally not hide it. His Majesty summoned many adults from the royal party to the palace, and also ordered people to go to the Tianshi Mansion. You two do not dare to delay, what is going on It’s important, get going quickly!”
Zhao Duan and Ma Yan looked at each other, and their hearts sank at the same time.
(End of chapter)