"Imperial Edict!"
Despite the carefulness of the young eunuchs and their retinue, the moment the imperial edict was received, Zhao Kai's mind immediately went to a certain individual in the palace.
"Let's go! Forget everything else, get as far away as you can, and keep this matter buried!"
Cai Zhong's corpse was still in the carriage. If it were discovered now, he would truly be unable to explain himself.
After all, if the two of them had no connection, why would he have to silence witnesses at this particular time?
With his guidance, the household servants were quickly found. They all prostrated themselves on the ground, speaking in unison with various languages and accents,
"Your Highness, His Majesty has a message. There is no need to read this edict aloud; you may examine it yourself!"
After the young eunuch finished speaking, he directly handed the imperial edict in his hand to Zhao Kai.
Although he felt a little overwhelmed, Zhao Kai did not skip any of the necessary procedures.
He carefully took the imperial edict with both hands and began to read it in front of the young eunuch.
As he read, his expression immediately became unnatural, and large beads of sweat continuously dripped from his forehead.
"My prince needs to change his clothes. I beg the imperial envoy to wait in the side hall and be served tea!"
"Thank you, Your Highness!"
The young eunuch said nothing, but Zhao Kai felt a surge of nervousness just by looking at his watchful eyes.
Had this matter already been exposed?
The thought had barely crossed his mind before Zhao Kai, terrified, dismissed it.
The idea was too dreadful. If everything were to develop in the most unpredictable direction, once the matter was revealed, he would be in grave trouble.
"Your Highness?"
Seeing Zhao Kai frozen in place again, the attendant beside him quickly nudged him.
"Ah? Yes, I will change my clothes and then accompany you to the palace!"
Glancing at the spot where the carriage had disappeared, Zhao Kai finally felt a slight sense of relief. As long as this carriage left Bianliang city, everything would be manageable.
After all, with no witnesses, who would dare to accuse him, the Prince of Yun, of murder?
"Your Highness!"
Just as Zhao Kai was about to enter, a confidant he had stationed in the Imperial City Department rushed over.
Seeing the frantic expression on his face, Zhao Kai's heart immediately clenched. Had something happened in the Imperial City Department as well?
"What is this unseemly haste?"
After scanning his surroundings, Zhao Kai reprimanded him.
"Your Highness, Senior Official Gao from the Palace Front Department personally came to the Imperial City Department just now and, using His Majesty's token, confiscated all documents related to Cai Zhong!"
"What did you say?"
Upon hearing his words, Zhao Kai became agitated and grabbed his collar.
"Senior Official Gao from the Palace Front Department, holding a crucial token, came to the Imperial City Department and forcefully took away all documents pertaining to Cai Zhong!"
Seeing the agitation on Zhao Kai's face, the man quickly repeated himself.
With confirmation, Zhao Kai suddenly became very quiet.
Innumerable thoughts flashed through his mind. He was an extremely intelligent person; otherwise, he would not have been able to pass the imperial examinations under false pretenses and achieve the top rank.
Based on the clues available, he could almost ascertain that the Emperor already knew about Cai Zhong's matter.
This was now a serious problem!
At this moment, he truly regretted it. Had he known things would turn out this way, he should have confessed everything in court earlier. While he might have faced some repercussions then, he would not be in this completely passive position now.
If anything were to happen to the carriage he had just sent away, he would truly be unable to defend himself!
A matter that was originally not of great consequence to him had now become somewhat unmanageable due to a single, failed thought.
"Your Highness?"
Seeing him standing there lost in thought, his confidant beside him softly inquired again.
"I know about this. Go back to your duties and pretend this never happened..."
Dejectedly, he uttered these words before turning and returning to his manor.
He didn't even know how he changed his clothes. When he came to his senses again, he was already outside the Fu Ning Hall.
"Your Highness, His Majesty is waiting for you inside!"
Liang Shicheng had received a reprimand with a paperweight. After getting the Emperor's permission, he had gone home to rest. Currently waiting on the Emperor's orders was Liang Shicheng's godson, Shuangxi.
"Thank you!"
Taking several deep breaths, Zhao Kai forced himself to calm down. No matter what, he absolutely could not lose his composure. Otherwise, he might not even get a chance to explain before the enraged Emperor cast him into the abyss.
"Your humble son greets Father Emperor!"
As soon as he entered Fu Ning Hall, Zhao Kai saw Zhao Ji sitting on the dragon throne.
Glancing out of the corner of his eye at Zhao Ji's ashen expression, Zhao Kai immediately knelt on the ground.
"I ask you, what are your thoughts on what transpired in court today?"
Although Zhao Ji's voice was calm, Zhao Kai understood that this was the final calm before the storm.
"Replying to Father Emperor, your son believes this matter is a scheme orchestrated by someone behind the scenes to deceive Father Emperor!"
At this point, Zhao Kai no longer had many reservations in his speech.
He had to seize an opportunity to speak before the Emperor fully unleashed his wrath.
"I ask you, who was Cai Zhong?"
After hearing Zhao Kai's words, a hint of murderous intent flashed in Zhao Ji's eyes as he sat on the dragon throne.
However, he quickly suppressed it and calmly asked again.
"Replying to Father Emperor, he, he..."
"He what?"
Although Zhao Kai was resourceful, he found himself in a bit of a predicament when faced with this situation.
No matter how he tried to skirt the issue, Cai Zhong's identity was unavoidable. Furthermore, due to a single misjudgment on his part, the man was now dead, making many things difficult to explain. For instance, why had Cai Zhong been in his manor?
"He, he was someone from the Imperial City Department..."
Seeing that the Emperor was rapidly losing patience, Zhao Kai gritted his teeth and said.
"Then I ask you again, where is Cai Zhong at this moment?"