Chapter 31 Half an Hour Later

Qinzheng Hall.

Jiang Chen secretly summoned Xu Changqing.

"Your Majesty, I am ashamed!" Xu Changqing knelt before the imperial desk, his heroic face filled with self-reproach.

"This Xie Jin was once my subordinate. He rebelled, and I am also responsible. I have failed in my duty to restrain him!"

Jiang Chen smiled and helped him up, "Beloved Minister Xu, you are too polite!"

"You are Yun'er's elder brother, and also considered my brother-in-law. In private, we are family. There's no need to kneel and beg for punishment at every turn."

Speaking, he paused, his voice turning solemn: "Moreover, the matter of Xie Jin's rebellion has not yet been determined, so how could I randomly shift the blame?"

Xu Changqing's pupils shrank: "Your Majesty, what do you mean?"

Jiang Chen pointed to the map on the imperial desk: "You also heard what Meng Qi said in court today. Xie Jin's current behavior is not even close to rebellion. I think this matter is a bit strange. Before the scout returns, we will not send troops for the time being."

Hearing that Jiang Chen's tone did not seem false, Xu Changqing's heart relaxed slightly, and he felt fortunate for his friend.

He understood Xie Jin's character. He was the most loyal and would never betray the imperial court!

But now...

Thinking of the Forbidden Army's report in court today, Xu Changqing frowned: "Your Majesty, please forgive my dullness, but I really can't figure out where the strangeness lies?"

Jiang Chen's eyes flashed with a trace of contemplation: "Now that the information is incomplete, I cannot make a judgment on this matter."

"But I suspect that this so-called rebellion is very likely a conspiracy!"

"A carefully planned conspiracy aimed at you and me!"

A flash of indignation appeared in Xu Changqing's eyes, and he gritted his teeth and said: "I knew it, Xie Jin has always been loyal and has never been close to powerful officials, so how could he suddenly rebel!"

"He must have been framed by villains to end up in this situation!"

Jiang Chen looked at Xu Changqing, who was showing an agitated expression, and shook his head calmly: "No, the soldiers under Xie Jin's command must have rebelled, otherwise this conspiracy would be too clumsy."

Xu Changqing's eyes widened as he looked at Jiang Chen, who had a look of certainty. He couldn't understand the key to it.

But he heard the words 'rebellion' very clearly, and he couldn't help but panic.

"Your Majesty, what, what do you mean by this?"

As soon as Jiang Chen heard this voice, he knew that Xu Changqing was worried, so he didn't say anything else.

He comforted him: "Don't panic, I'm just guessing and can't be completely sure yet. I'm looking for you to completely clarify this matter."

"After you return to your mansion later, you must pay close attention to the movements of the four battalions of the Imperial City, especially those officers who have ties to the Mei family, like Wang Zijin!"

"Wait until the scout's news arrives before taking the next step!"

The next day.

The scout sent by Jiang Chen traveled day and night, rushing thousands of miles, and returned to the Imperial City in the early morning.

And this dusty scout was not an ordinary scout in the army, but the current emperor's confidant, the Imperial Palace Guard Commander Xu Mu!

"Your Majesty, I have not failed my mission!"

Xu Mu knelt in Qinzheng Hall, his face full of wind, frost, and fatigue, and his energetic eyes were also covered with bloodshot.

Jiang Chen stood up abruptly, helped him up with his own hands, and said solemnly: "Xu Qing, was the road safe? Were you injured?"

"I have already arranged for people to clean up the side hall. You haven't slept day and night, so you should have a good rest later..."

Xu Mu's eyes were slightly red, and he thanked him repeatedly. His tired spirit was invigorated by the emperor's attention.

"Your Majesty, your humble servant is not tired. The situation is urgent, and now is not the time for your humble servant to rest!"

Saying that, a dignified look appeared on Xu Mu's face: "Your Majesty, I have already found out the situation in Xinyang City. The army mutiny is real, but Xie Jin himself has no intention of rebelling!"

Jiang Chen nodded, not surprised by this news.

He had suspected before that this was a conspiracy concocted by the Mei family, and Xu Mu's words were just confirming his conjecture.

"Since Xie Jin has not rebelled, we must not send troops... What is the current situation in Xinyang City? And why did the army mutiny? Tell me quickly!"

Hearing this, a flash of killing intent appeared in Xu Mu's eyes, and he said angrily: "Your Majesty, this disaster was caused by the evil deeds of the officials in Xinyang City. Those soldiers were forced by this group of dog officials!"

"The military pay of Xie Jin's troops has been embezzled by the dog officials in Xinyang City for a long time. The soldiers are guarding the city on empty stomachs on weekdays. Over time, they have become estranged from the imperial court!"

"During this period, Your Majesty, you strictly investigated corruption. The chief official of Xinyang City, in order to escape punishment, boldly forged imperial decrees and blamed Xie Jin for embezzling military pay, saying that he had embezzled a huge amount and was going to be dismissed and beheaded."

"At that time, many guilty officials were beheaded and their families were destroyed by Your Majesty. This made Xie Jin's subordinates very worried. In addition, the chief official of Xinyang City was arrogant and domineering. Under the surge of public anger, those soldiers... they rebelled!"

Jiang Chen listened quietly, his calm expression unchanged, but his eyes became more and more gloomy, with a chilling killing intent!

In an instant, the air in the hall became cold, making people tremble.

After a long while, Jiang Chen smiled, but there was no trace of a smile in his eyes: "Very well, this group of dogs is really doing well!"

"A mere city chief dares to embezzle, and after the matter is exposed, he dares to falsely transmit imperial decrees and even forces the local garrison to rebel! He is really doing well! It is a waste of his talent to be a small city chief!"

As Jiang Chen spoke, his smile became more and more brilliant: "I have remembered this person!"

"After this incident is settled, I will definitely dig out this person's courage and weigh it to see how many pounds it weighs!"

Everyone shuddered, and the hairs on their bodies stood on end.

His Majesty was so angry that he even said such words. I'm afraid the Imperial City execution ground will be a river of blood again!

Xu Mu's face was bitter, and he said tremblingly: "Your Majesty, this, this chief official of Xinyang City has already been killed."

"After he framed Xie Jin, he was afraid that the matter would be exposed, so he coerced Xie Jin's family and imprisoned his wife, children, and old people. This move angered the soldiers under Xie Jin's command... So, those people rebelled and directly killed the chief official of Xinyang City to offer sacrifices to the flag."

"The previous scout reported that Xie Jin killed the local officials, referring to this."

A flash of ferocity flashed in Jiang Chen's eyes: "Dead? Such a simple death, it's cheap for this dog!"

"However, with his death, the clues are broken, and it will be difficult for me to find the mastermind behind the scenes!"

Xu Mu looked astonished and hesitated: "Your Majesty, you, you mean that the mutiny in Xinyang City is a conspiracy designed by someone with ulterior motives?"

Jiang Chen restrained his anger and nodded: "It's just a guess, but I can be sure that the truth of this matter is definitely not as simple as what we see."

"Falsely transmitting imperial decrees, forcing Xie Jin to rebel, putting pressure on me, this kind of vicious plan and extraordinary courage cannot be possessed by such a small official... There must be someone else behind him!"

Jiang Chen's tone was firm, and everyone in the hall fell into deep thought for a while.

Who would be behind such a large-scale plan?

Everyone looked at each other and then looked at Jiang Chen again...