"I didn't attack him just for that reason! Last night, Zhang Yue, from the Crown Prince's faction, sent people to arrest Liu Qin's son and a merchant! This is clearly him provoking us. If we don't retaliate, how will others see us in the future?"
Cai Xiao said indignantly.
"What did you say? Liu Qin? Which Liu Qin?"
Cai Jing blinked in surprise and asked again.
"Who else could it be? The old Liu steward from back home!"
Cai Xiao said, puffing with anger.
"Why would the Crown Prince's men suddenly arrest his son? Under what pretext? Where is he being held now?"
"He's currently being held in Kaifeng Prefecture. They've also sent word that no one is allowed to visit or approach, not even to interrogate him! Isn't this disregarding imperial law and discipline? Based on this alone, even if he's the Crown Prince, I'll make sure he suffers the consequences this time!"
Cai Xiao said through gritted teeth.
"Why would the Crown Prince's men arrest him? Did you find out what his son did?"
Although this person was just a minor steward under him, Cai Jing harbored deep worries.
This fellow was one of his confidants. While he was somewhat useless, he hadn't managed to climb any higher, only becoming a humble county magistrate of Changping County. However, this kid knew quite a bit...
"What other reason could there be? Deliberately picking a fight!"
Cai Xiao said without thinking.
"Go and investigate this immediately. Question everyone who was present last night to find out exactly what happened!"
Cai Jing, unable to tolerate this perfunctory answer and suppressing his immense rage, said.
"What's there to investigate? It's already the right time! The memorial from the Directorate of Ceremonial is already in Big Brother's hands, and the memorial from the Office of the Grand Courtiers is about to be presented to the Emperor!"
Cai Xiao was somewhat disdainful of Cai Jing's caution.
The Crown Prince was already a sinking ship. Did the original reason for this matter even matter anymore?
As long as the Crown Prince fell, everything would be justified. There was no need to consider the details, so he couldn't even be bothered to find out the reason.
"Are you going or not? You unruly brat! Are you trying to get our Cai family executed?"
As Cai Jing spoke, he grabbed the teacup in front of him and flung it towards Cai Xiao's forehead without aiming.
"If you want to investigate, investigate yourself! I just came to tell you!"
Cai Xiao had not expected Cai Jing to react so strongly. Being in a fit of anger himself, he certainly wasn't going to back down.
After saying that, he turned and walked out without even looking at Cai Jing.
After Cai Xiao left, Cai Jing slumped onto the chair behind him, as if all his strength had been drained.
Even though his health was somewhat accustomed to such things, he was now trembling all over, angered by this beast.
He was almost certain that the Crown Prince was plotting something, but he was less clear about what it was.
After all, even with his years of experience in court politics, he couldn't overcome the lack of clues.
Cai Xiao had left. In his office, Cai You waited for him, but he didn't come. As time wore on, he had no choice but to rise and deliver the memorials in his hands to the Emperor's desk.
Just as he finished preparing, the Emperor Zhao Ji, clad in a Taoist robe, walked in from outside.
"Anything happening today? Why so many memorials?"
Although he was the Emperor of the Great Song Dynasty, Zhao Ji's mind was entirely focused on practicing Taoism. The little free time he had was all spent on enjoyment and pleasure-seeking.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, almost all memorials would be resolved in the Hall of State Affairs.
The items that truly required his personal attention numbered only a few dozen.
However, today, the items placed on his desk had almost covered the entire huge table.
"Replying to Your Majesty, these memorials are all sent directly to the imperial court. The Hall of State Affairs dares not interfere in this matter..."
Cai You quickly replied.
"What is it that requires me to handle it personally?"
Zhao Ji had planned to take some of his concubines to Genyue today. Suddenly, with so many memorials appearing, his mood couldn't possibly be good.
"These are all memorials impeaching the Crown Prince, Your Majesty, you..."
Cai You stopped speaking here, knowing when to stop. He understood this better than anyone.
After all, Emperor Huizong was an exceptionally intelligent person. Otherwise, he wouldn't have reached such heights in playing the qin, chess, calligraphy, and painting.
Many things could not escape his eyes. For his ministers, often a mere hint was enough.
Just like now, if he simply stated what these memorials were about, the Emperor would likely understand what was going on.
"So many, all of them?"
Zhao Ji frowned, looking at the mountains of memorials before him in disbelief.
Apart from the congratulatory messages from officials when the Crown Prince was established, this was truly the first time so many people had impeached the reigning Crown Prince.
"That's right, all of these are..."
Cai You replied with a blank expression, keeping his head bowed.
"This is quite interesting. I really want to see what he's done to warrant such a collective impeachment!"
Zhao Ji sneered and picked up one of the memorials, beginning to read.
"These are all from the Directorate of Ceremonial, and a significant portion is still in the Office of the Grand Courtiers!"
Seeing the faint smile on Zhao Ji's lips, Cai You added another blow.
However, what puzzled him was that the Emperor's reaction wasn't as significant as he had expected. Even though he had described the situation as very serious, Zhao Ji still had that faint smile.
"Disaster relief? Wasn't it already decided? To block the disaster victims outside the capital region and settle them in different counties. What is this disaster relief business again?"
"This minister is not entirely clear. It seems that His Highness the Crown Prince impersonated an imperial decree and privately mobilized the officials of Kaifeng Prefecture! To gain fame and prestige, he conducted disaster relief outside the city, which led to the disaster victims flocking into the capital!"
All the excuses were pre-prepared. Although the words were incredibly naive, Zhao Ji seemed to have truly believed them...
"You said he mobilized the officials of Kaifeng Prefecture? Why wasn't I informed of this?"