He worried that if the fake Li Xiu fell into the hands of Li Yao or Cao Zhengchun, it would expose his secret instigation of the fake Li Xiu and the fake Wuhuan to kidnap the Empress Dowager.
Therefore, he deliberately gave the fake Ri-soo a wink, so that the fake Ri-soo would think that he would cover for her escape.
Just as the fake Ri-soo suddenly broke free, he struck and killed him with a single palm strike.
In this way, he could use the excuse that the fake Li Xiu was acting strangely and wanted to harm the emperor, so that he had no choice but to kill the fake Li Xiu.
The depth of their scheming is astonishing.
Cao Zhengchun, however, was overjoyed, seeing this as a perfect opportunity to kick someone when they were down.
He quickly bowed and said to Zhengde:
“Your Majesty, Zhu Wushi’s haste in killing the fake Princess Lixiu is clearly an attempt to silence her.”
"This fake Princess Lixiu is probably closely related to Zhu Wushi. I request Your Majesty to issue an order to arrest Zhu Wushi immediately and have the Eastern Depot thoroughly investigate this matter."
At this moment, Zhengde was in a very difficult position.
Although he was always on guard against his uncle, Zhu Wushi.
However, it would be unreasonable to arrest Zhu Wushi and have him interrogated by the Eastern Depot based solely on this incident.
Furthermore, the fake Ri-soo did indeed make some unusual movements just now.
For a moment, he didn't know how to handle the situation.
At this moment, some court officials knelt down and pleaded for Zhu Wushi.
Duan Tianya and Shangguan Haitang did not understand why their adoptive father wanted to kill the fake Li Xiu.
However, they did not believe that their godfather had any connection with the fake Ri-soo.
Moreover, they did not want anything to happen to their godfather.
So they all knelt down and pleaded for their godfather.
Zhengde glanced at Li Yao and Cao Zhengchun, thinking that if it weren't for his uncle Zhu Wushi keeping these two in check, they would probably become even more unscrupulous in the future.
After much deliberation, Zhengde finally spoke: "Although it was somewhat reckless for Imperial Uncle to kill the fake Princess Lixiu, it was for my safety. So, Imperial Uncle, you shall be punished by having your salary reduced for a year."
Cao Zhengchun frowned and quickly said, "Your Majesty, isn't this punishment too lenient?"
Emperor Zhengde said in a deep voice, "I have made my decision. There is no need to discuss it further."
Cao Zhengchun had no choice but to shut his mouth, looking sullen.
Luck +31!
True Qi +29!
...
Sound wave power*1!
Japanese Ninjutsu *1!
...
After Li Yao received the attribute orb contributed by the fake Li Xiu, he pointed at a group of civil officials and bowed to Zhengde, saying:
“Your Majesty, the matter of Shenhou killing the fake Princess Lixiu without authorization can be dropped.”
"However, we cannot let this go unpunished, as these people have accused me of having improper relations with the princess of Izumo."
"I suspect that these people are colluding with the fake Princess Lixiu and intend to harm the Emperor."
"Your Majesty, please hand these people over to my Imperial Guard for rigorous interrogation and to uncover the truth."
Zhu ignored it, but with Zhengde's protection, he could be spared for the time being.
However, these annoying pawns must be taught a lesson.
Otherwise, others will think that I, Li Yao, am easy to bully.
"Your Majesty, I'm innocent!"
"Your Majesty, I do not know this fake Princess Lixiu at all, so how could there be any collusion?"
"Your Majesty, this old minister's eyesight is failing, and I was momentarily deceived by the fake Princess Lixiu."
"Your Majesty, this old minister is utterly loyal and would never dare to do anything against Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty, Li Yao is settling a personal score while on official business."
"..."
In an instant, those arrogant and domineering court officials who had previously framed Li Yao all knelt before Zhengde, begging for mercy.
Among these people, some were Cao Zhengchun's men.
Cao Zhengchun quickly interjected, "Your Majesty, these people were merely misled by the fake Princess Lixiu..."
Li Yao interrupted, "Eunuch Cao, you are pleading for these people. Could it be that you are also colluding with the fake Princess Lixiu to harm the Emperor?"
Cao Zhengchun immediately knelt down and expressed his loyalty to Emperor Zhengde: "Your Majesty, this servant is utterly loyal to Your Majesty and would never dare to have any disloyal thoughts."
Zhengde knew that Li Yao was taking the opportunity to retaliate, but he dared not offend Li Yao.
Besides, Li Yao's suspicions were not without reason.
These people had been targeting Li Yao in unison, as if it had been pre-arranged, and there must be someone behind it.
The mastermind behind this is probably Cao Zhengchun, and perhaps even the imperial uncle Zhu Wushi was involved.
It seems that Li Yao's appearance did indeed make Cao Zhengchun and the Imperial Uncle somewhat wary.
However, if he were to hand these people over to Li Yao, Li Yao's power would likely grow stronger.
Therefore, he was caught in a dilemma and didn't know what to do.
Sigh, being an emperor must be so tiring!
It's much easier and more fun to raise tigers or leopards.
Just as Emperor Zhengde was struggling to make a decision, a eunuch outside suddenly shouted, "The Empress Dowager has arrived!"
"Empress Dowager?! Empress Dowager is back?"
Zhengde was overjoyed and couldn't help but stand up.
With Lu Xiaochuan's help, the Empress Dowager entered the main hall.
Following behind were two other people, Bai San Niang and Guo Ju Xia.
Zhengde quickly left the dragon throne and came over to help the Empress Dowager, asking with concern, "Mother, are you alright?"
The Empress Dowager shook her head slightly and smiled, "I'm fine."
A eunuch had arranged a chair next to the dragon throne, and the Empress Dowager sat down beside Zhengde.
At the same time, Bai San Niang and Guo Ju Xia walked to Li Yao's side.
Bai San Niang lowered her voice and said to Li Yao, "During our rescue of the Empress Dowager, someone suddenly shot a poisoned arrow. Fortunately, Lao Guo discovered it, and the Empress Dowager was saved. However, the fake Wuwan was hit by the poisoned arrow and died. Although we captured the person who shot the arrow, they all committed suicide by biting poison. We were worried about your safety, so we took the Empress Dowager and rushed to the palace as soon as possible."
"Was the fake Karasumaru silenced?"
Li Yao's gaze involuntarily drifted towards Zhu Wushi.
Clearly, after learning that the fake Wuwan had been captured, Zhu Wushi split his forces into two groups.
One group arranged for a fake Li Xiu and civil officials to frame him for offending Princess Li Xiu, while another group sent men to silence the fake Wu Huan.
This Zhu Wushi is indeed meticulous in his actions and swift in his methods.
Now that the fake Toshihide and the fake Karasuma are both dead, no one can testify that he was involved in the kidnapping of the Empress Dowager.
That was absolutely brilliant!
Chapter 156 The Fragrance of Cardamom, the Loyal Eunuch Cao
Li Yao had to admire Zhu Wushi; after committing a bad deed, he cleaned up his mess perfectly, leaving no one with any evidence against him.
After the Empress Dowager was seated, she glanced at the kneeling court officials and asked Zhengde, "My son, what are you discussing?"
Zhengde quickly recounted what had happened.
After listening, the Empress Dowager pondered for a moment and said:
"As a member of the inner palace, I should not interfere in the affairs of the court."
"However, this time I was kidnapped by the fake Princess Toshihide and the fake Karasuma, and almost lost my life at the hands of these villains."
Upon hearing this, the court officials were all greatly shocked, never expecting that the Empress Dowager had been kidnapped.
Moreover, she was kidnapped by the fake Princess Rixiu.
Their hearts skipped a beat.
Previously, they had also conspired with the fake Princess Lixiu to frame Li Yao.
Now that the yellow mud has fallen into their crotches, it's not just excrement, it's excrement.
This time, they were terribly harmed by Zhu Wushi and Cao Zhengchun.
Sure enough, the Empress Dowager continued:
"Fortunately, Lord Li's men arrived in time and rescued me."
"These people, without any investigation or distinction, have joined forces to frame Lord Li. There must be something fishy going on here."
"Therefore, I believe that handing these people over to the Embroidered Uniform Guard for interrogation will surely uncover the truth."
Upon hearing this, many court officials were so frightened that they wet themselves.
What is the Embroidered Uniform Guard?
That's a place that eats people alive.
Once you join the Embroidered Uniform Guard, even if you don't die, you'll be severely injured.
They were not exactly loyal and righteous officials.
They were nothing more than lackeys of Zhu Wushi or Cao Zhengchun.