NOVEL NEXT Chapter 575 Is there a fourth person who knows?
After listening to Su Ziqiao's words, Zhao Chengye was silent for a long time before asking, "How do I know whether what you said is true or false?"
Su Zijiao grinned, his gums full of blood - he had been beaten to the point of vomiting blood, how could his teeth not be covered in blood?
"Your Highness, you can go back and ask if you don't believe me. As for who to ask, I believe that with your intelligence, you will definitely know the answer."
Zhao Chengye stared at him for a while, his eyes were as dark as ink, and it was hard to tell what was in his eyes. After a long while, he turned around and walked out without saying a word.
Su Zijiao was not worried at all, and even laughed arrogantly.
Zhao Chengye walked out of the prison, and squinted his eyes when he was illuminated by the sunlight outside. "Let's go to the Chengguo Mansion."
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince suddenly arrived, and General Xu hurried out to greet him.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, the two went straight to the study. Zhao Chengye asked straight to the point, "Duke Chengguo, how did you find out about this?"
General Xu had long anticipated that someone from the palace would come to ask him about this matter sooner or later, and he had already thought about how he should answer.
"Your Highness, I had my suspicions when Su Ziqiao came to visit on the first day. Everyone in the capital knows what kind of person my cousin is. His children are spoiled beyond belief and have no outstanding qualities. But Su Ziqiao is like a live-in son-in-law. What is he asking for?"
This is true.
Although Su Ziqiao acted like he had a good relationship with his wife Xu Yuyao, it was fake, just to fool a young girl who had never seen the world. One's eyes could not deceive whether a person was sincere or not.
What did Su Zijiao have in mind for their family?
"I never trusted Su Zijiao from the beginning, and he has Pishan blood in him, so I was even more worried. I had people watching him privately. But Su Zijiao has been disguising himself very well, and the people I sent to watch him never found anything wrong. I almost thought I was being too suspicious."
"Until recently, my niece came to visit and my wife met her. After she left, my wife inadvertently said that she seemed to smell a very strange smell on her, just like the smell of firecrackers set off all over the streets during the Chinese New Year."
"I didn't pay much attention to it at first, but later I thought it was strange. It's not New Year or a festival, no one is setting off firecrackers at this time, so where did the smell of firecrackers come from? The smell of setting off firecrackers, isn't that the smell of gunpowder?"
"I became suspicious, but I didn't dare to be careless. I had people keep a close eye on them day and night, and that's how I discovered Su Zijiao's suspicious behavior."
General Xu stopped talking at this point. The prince knew what happened next.
He reported the incident to the morning court, and following the clues and evidence he provided, they found that a large amount of gunpowder was indeed buried in important locations throughout the city. If all the gunpowder was ignited at the same time, the entire inner city would be turned into a sea of fire and ruins.
Of course, he reported such an important matter immediately after confirming it. He couldn't choose to conceal it and be partial to Xu Dexing just because of his relationship with him? How could the Chengguo Mansion do such a thing? They, the Chengguo Mansion, are loyal to Dayong and the royal family!
Zhao Chengye just nodded after hearing this.
He had already verified what he said, and once he checked, he would know whether what he said was true or not.
What he wanted to know more now was whether Duke Chengguo knew about what Su Zijiao had said?
"Duke Chengguo, in your opinion, are there any ministers in the court who are colluding with Su Zijiao and others to betray the court and Dayong?"
General Xu looked solemn and serious, "Your Highness, I'm telling you the truth. Judging from the current situation, there must be ministers in the court who are colluding with Su Zijiao. Otherwise, with Su Zijiao's ability alone, he would not be able to do this."
"It's just that this matter is of great importance. Your Highness, please investigate it carefully before making a conclusion, so as not to hurt the ministers in the court, and not to let the guilty escape. As for the Chengguo Mansion..." He paused, stood up and respectfully performed a monarch-subject ceremony towards Zhao Chengye, "The Chengguo Mansion is clean and innocent, and is not afraid of being investigated. I hope that Your Highness the Crown Prince can clear the name of the Chengguo Mansion."
Zhao Chengye stood up quickly and reached out to gently support his arm. "Duke Chengguo, this is serious. Of course, I believe in your loyalty to Dayong and have never doubted it. Not to mention that Concubine Xu is the daughter of Duke Chengguo. You are also my father-in-law. How can I not believe you?"
Zhao Chengye was sincere in what he said. He had never doubted the loyalty of the Chengguo Mansion. What he was worried about now was whether the Chengguo Mansion would know about this royal scandal.
He knew very well that his father was wary of the Duke Cheng's Mansion. If it were before, he might have believed that his father would not do such a ridiculous thing to get rid of Duke Cheng, but now he was not sure.
He certainly didn't want a fourth person to know about this.
Su Zijiao did not explicitly say who he was colluding with, but it was not difficult to guess.
Of course, whether there are other people is another matter.
Zhao Chengye felt that Duke Cheng probably didn't know this secret, or it should be said that he hadn't had time to know it yet. Otherwise, he wouldn't have reacted this way.
After confirming the answer, Zhao Chengye left Chengguo Mansion.
When he returned to the palace, he went to the emperor's bedroom and first asked about the emperor's situation today as usual.
After a few days of treatment, the emperor now looks much better, and can even sit up and review memorials. But it is definitely not the same as before, and the damage caused is visible to the naked eye. He has aged a lot in just a few days.
"Father."
The emperor raised his eyelids and looked at the prince in front of him with dark eyes.
Young, strong, and healthy. He has been handling government affairs these days, and the court has praised him. It seems that it doesn't matter whether he is the emperor or not.
"Thank you for your hard work these past few days, Your Highness." The emperor still had his dignity, but his aura was lacking and he looked powerless.
"I, your son, do not find it hard to share your father's worries."
"Oh, so you're enjoying it?"
Zhao Chengye paused, raised his eyes and met the emperor's heavy eyes, "These are all my son's duties, how can I say whether I am happy or not? If father can get better soon, I can relax and spend more time in the East Palace to accompany the Crown Princess."
Hearing him mention the Crown Princess, the Emperor still had high expectations for the baby in Pei Shaorong's belly, so he casually asked with concern: "How is the baby in the Crown Princess' belly now?"
Zhao Chengye smiled, "Thank you for your concern, father. Everything is fine. The imperial physician said that the baby in the Crown Princess' belly is healthy!"
"Don't just think about politics, but also pay more attention to the Crown Princess."
"Don't worry, Father. I will."