Repugnant Gateway 3

by Zhi Bai

  He did his best to look unhurt and walked smoothly.

  When the court officials who were rushing to the Extreme Heaven Palace saw An Zheng, they all felt a little strange. That young man seemed to have just turned around. He was already a fourth rank inner guard deputy commander and a first rank uncle. How could he suddenly push himself to the top?

  An Zheng walked into the Extreme Heaven Hall with his head held high and his chest puffed up. Then, he walked all the way to the side of the throne. The youth standing upright with a saber on his shoulder suddenly brought a wave of pressure to those courtiers in the great hall. He just stood there, but for some reason, he suddenly felt nervous. Surprisingly, none of the adults who had originally thought they were much more noble than An Zheng actually dared to look An Zheng in the eye.

  Before long, Swallow King Mu Changyan brought his people in from the side of the great hall, and quickly walked to the front of the throne. Mu Changyan swept his gaze across the crowd and then nodded slightly towards An Zheng.

  Mu Changyan sat down and looked at the suspicious expressions of the court officials.

  "The reason why I got people to ring the bell and summon you all here is because this matter is too big, so big that it touched upon the very nature of the great swallow. Just now, General Fang Zhiji sent someone over to report the situation of the battle at the front lines. He brought you all here because he wants you all to listen to him. "

  For some reason, when they heard it was a battle on the front lines, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

  Mu Changyan looked at General Su Zong: "Great General, you have just returned from the front lines. Do you know this person?"

  He pointed at Zhong Jiuge.

  Zhong Jiuge felt that he would be nervous, but when he stood here, he realized that he actually enjoyed it a lot. Then he said to himself, You're born to it, and you're a genius. He wasn't the least bit nervous. Instead, he was enjoying the thrilling feeling that this scene gave him.

  He knew that nothing would go wrong with him, because Fang Daozhi was the one who took care of his appearance. An Zheng asked Du Shoushou to contact him. Fang Daozhi told him to describe it, and Zhong Jiuge used the mask on him. Therefore, not even those who were familiar with him would be able to see through him, let alone Su Zong.

  Su Zong glanced at Zhong Jiuge. He indeed recognized this person.

  He nodded: "I do, this is General Fang Zhiji's personal guard, Fang Xiaoxi. When I was at the eastern border, I saw him a few times. "

  Mu Changyan nodded his head: "It's good that you know him."

  Su Zong was startled for a moment, he could vaguely hear a trace of ill intent from Mu Changyan's tone.

  Mu Changyan looked at Zhong Jiuge: "Tell General Fang Zhiji to bring back the words he said to you one by one, and don't leave them out."

  Zhong Jiuge cupped his fists and said: "This subject obeys."

  He stood up straight, and deliberately did not even look at An Zheng, and turned to look at the court official: "The great general had me rush back from the east border to personally report the situation at the battle, and did not pass on a report to the great king yet. There is a very high chance that the troops from the Eastern Frontier to the Fanggu have already been infiltrated by the assassins. All the news that was sent back to the capital in writing may have been tampered with. "

  The moment he said this, the entire hall went into an uproar.

  Su Zong said coldly, "I had already thought of it long ago. Otherwise, why would I rush back from the Eastern Region with a thousand miles journey instead of using an urgent report? The army was under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War, so Chen Zaiyan and his men's crime of betraying the army had already been proven, and it was reasonable for the army to fall into such a situation. Those sinners have long prepared everything. If I didn't discover their conspiracy in the eastern border, I'm afraid they would have a bigger plot. From the beginning, Chen Zaiyan had persisted on using his troops with malice towards the Youguo … His intention is for the great swallow to transfer all our troops over and then collude with the Youguo to eliminate all of our troops in one breath. That way, the Youguo would be able to take advantage of the situation and destroy my great swallow. "

  Su Zong turned and cupped his fists: "Great King, this subject requests Great King to immediately issue an order to kill all those who dare to disobey the order, Chen Zaiyan! If this kind of sinner is not eliminated, great swallow will not be able to rest at ease for a day. "

  Everyone on the empress dowager's side took possession of the body, "This subject requests the King to immediately issue an order to kill this unfilial official, Chen Zaiyan!"

  Mu Changyan laughed: "This sound is uniform, as if I have practiced it before …. "Don't be in such a hurry. Let Fang Xiaoheng finish speaking."

  Zhong Jiuge nodded his head, "It's exactly because something happened at the military base that we might be controlled, that's why the great general sent me, Xing Ye, to rush back. For the lords to be so worried for their country, it was the same for the lowly ones as well … However, what the lords did not know was that the military base was no longer under the control of the military. "Sensing that something is wrong with the military base, the general sent me to investigate and found out that since a few years ago, a large force has gradually infiltrated the military base and replaced the people that the military base had placed in the military base."

  Su Zong's expression changed, he suddenly felt that something was amiss.

  Zhong Jiuge looked at Su Zong: "When General Su came back, you have been staying in the military camp all the way. Did you find anything amiss?"

  Su Zong snorted, and did not say a word.

  Zhong Jiuge said: "The Great General had me investigate, so I did not dare slack off, and led my scouts to investigate continuously for a few days, and discovered that since last year, the army headquarters had already been infiltrated by the Gao Family. At first, he thought that the Gao Clan was doing this for the family business. The transport of goods was not on the surface business of the Gao Family. However, the fact was that the Gao Family had already taken control of all the official and military bases that led from the border to the various large cities. The circulation of goods between the cities was mostly through the hands of the government and army. In fact, many of the government and military camps have become transfer yards for the transportation of goods, and are responsible for the distribution of goods to the convoy. "

  "However, as the investigation became more and more thorough, it became clear that the control of these military encampments was not only for the transportation of goods. The subordinate led his men to intercept a convoy of goods sent to the front line at a military base in the east. After that, there was no news of these goods being received by the army in the east. In other words, these items were sent to the military as personal goods. And what made me even more afraid was … They actually had proof that they came out of seclusion, this batch of goods was going to be sent out of State of Yan, their destination was Youguo … My lords, do you know what's in these goods? "

  Zhong Jiuge took out a copy of the list and handed it to An Chengli: "Please have a look, Your Majesty."

  An Chengli handed the list over to Mu Changyan. After reading one page, Mu Changyan became furious: "A bunch of traitors!"

  An Chengli picked up the list Mu Changyan threw down, and then walked down and indicated for the officials to pass it on.

  When the ministers saw the list of items, their expressions immediately changed.

  Zhong Jiuge continued to speak, "There are millions of silver, military equipment, armors, and two hundred copies of the great swallow's map. These things were all meant to be sent to the Youguo. If those materials were smuggled in, how would the map explain it? "

  There were no Gao Clan members in the imperial court, but there were some who were close to the Gao Clan.

  Guo Wenli, President of the Ministry of Justice, said, "This matter can't b
e concluded with a final conclusion. There is no conclusive evidence that these things belong to the Gao Family." For such a large case, careful investigation is required before a decision can be made. "

  Someone echoed, "That's right, that doesn't mean anything."

  Zhong Jiuge said: "Master is right, this doesn't mean anything … But there is another letter, because it is too urgent, this humble servant has always kept it close to himself, and does not dare to reveal it. "

  He turned to look at Mu Changyan, "The King shall redeem himself, and this subject shall be worried that if this matter were to be exposed too early, not only will the subject die, the general's efforts will also go to waste. What is even more frightening is that the mountains and rivers of the great swallow may fall because of this."

  He suddenly opened his shirt and took it off. People noticed something strange on his chest. Zhong Jiuge actually clenched his teeth and cut open a wound in his chest as he took out a small, oily paper bag from within the flesh. After that, he opened it and took out a small, neat piece of paper from within.

  When he passed the item over, blood was dripping from his body. It was an extremely shocking scene to behold.

  And right at this moment, Zhong Jiuge glanced at An Zheng without leaving a trace, and the meaning in his eyes was... Boss, did I play it beautifully?

  An Chengli took the paper and quickly passed it to Swallow King. Mu Changyan looked at it, and after a moment, his face turned white from anger, and his entire body started to tremble.

  "Insolent traitor!"

  He spat out a mouthful of blood.

  An Zheng sighed in his heart, thinking that both Zhong Jiuge and Mu Changyan were playful people.

  An Chengli supported Mu Changyan immediately, and Mu Changyan passed the paper to An Chengli with trembling hands: "Read it out for them!"

  It was a letter, a letter from the Gao Family to an important official of the Youguo. The letter stated that the Gao Family had taken control of the majority of State of Yan's court officials through the casino. As long as the Youguo army could defeat the Yan Army, the Gao Family would be able to allow these people to welcome the Youguo army and enter the Fanggu. At that time, the Youguo would easily be annihilated by the army. The letter also stated that the important matter that had been plotting for so many years was finally about to be completed.

  "Blood... You're slandering us! "

  When Guo Wenli, the President of the Ministry of Justice, heard that his name was actually written on the letter, his expression immediately changed, "This is slandering me!"

  He kneeled down and said, "My lord, please do not believe this. This subject is loyal to my lord, as the sun and moon can be seen! The Gao Family plotted rebellion, colluded with the enemy nation, and their intention to destroy our great swallow was obvious. This subject requests the King to pass down the order for this subject to investigate this case thoroughly! "

  The moment he kneeled down, a large number of them kneeled down. "My King, please don't believe this rumor. This is the plan between the Gao Family and the Youguo.

  "Great King, the Gao Clan has done such an outrageous thing. They absolutely cannot tolerate it."

  "Great King!" Subordinate wishes to prove his innocence once he dies! "

  "This subject is not afraid of death, but this subject does not wish to be wronged!"

  The group of people cried out like their mothers and fathers. Their loyalty was as clear as the heavens and earth.

  An Zheng turned his head to look at Mu Changyan, and saw his lips moved... He said these three words silently with a pleasant face.

  Chapter 213 - Killing the Unconscious

  When the Left Prime Minister Su Mao saw the Minister of Justice's letter, Guo Wenli, kneel down, he cursed in his heart, "Idiot." With such an obvious trap in front of them, the group of people jumped in.

  What was the Gao Family? The Gao family was the empress dowager's biggest card. Right now, Swallow King's goal was to tear off the Gao Family's most useful arm. Not to mention Chen Zaiyan and the others, he was only using the Gao Family as a tool to declare war. He hated those idiots who heard that they were involved with him, even their brains were gone, and directly kneeled down, Mu Changyan's move was really ruthless.

  Although Empress Dowager Su often scolded Su Mao trash, this person was actually not simple. To be able to fight with the old Prime Minister Zhuge Yan for so many years without losing too badly, this person's abilities were clearly visible. However, the Empress Dowager Su was too powerful, it made people think that the people under her command were all trash.

  Thus, when she saw the situation become so passive, Su Mao immediately stood up.

  "Great King!"

  Su Mao raised his head and loudly said, "This subject feels that something is amiss with this matter."

  He raised his finger and pointed towards Zhong Jiuge: "Even if this person is General Fang Zhiji's personal soldier, what he said might not be true. This subject can't help but suspect that the purpose of the man being bribed by the Youguo is to disrupt my great swallow's government. It was just a piece of paper, and with just a single mouth, he has already involved all the officials of the imperial government, as well as the unimportant Gao Family. If this person is really a spy from Youguo, then his scheme has been successful.

  Mu Changyan squinted as he glanced at Su Mao. "You mean to say, the evidence he brought was not evidence?

  Su Mao quickly lowered his head. "This subject doesn't dare, but as the Minister of the Left, I must not watch helplessly as the civil and military officials of the dynasty are manipulated by a person of unknown origins."

  Mu Changyan replied. "Then, are you sure that this person is a spy from the Youguo, and that the Gao Family members are innocent?"

  Su Mao said: "Great King, the Gao Clan did well in the dragon race, so there is no reason for them to collude with those mysterious people. Furthermore, the ancestors of the Gao Family had left a message that they would not allow the people of the Gao Family to become officials.

  Mu Changyan said: "What you said makes a lot of sense, many people do not seem to have any need for rebellion, so why don't you tell me about Chen Zaiyan … He had already achieved the second rank, the Military High Scholar. What reason did he have to collude with the enemy countries? Could it be that in the future, after the destruction of my great swallow, he will be bestowed the title of king? "

  Su Mao stared blankly at him for a moment, then lowered his head and said, "You can't generalize about everything." The matter of Chen Zaiyan conspiring against us, the evidence is conclusive. "

  Mu Changyan said: "Why are standards so strange here? Regarding the matter of the Gao Family colluding with the Youguo, if someone had material evidence, you could see that they had framed him. In the case of Chen Zaiyan, there was also someone who had material evidence, and you say that it had iron evidence as strong as mountains? "

  Su Mao said: "Your Majesty, I just hope that Your Majesty will not be rash." Because this matter was too important, it involved almost all of the imperial court's civil and military forces. Furthermore, if it really is the enemy nation's scheme, then when the Gao Family is destroyed and most of the officials are destroyed, who would be able to take responsibility for the great swallow? "

  Mu Changyan frowned slightly: "You are... Threatening me? "

  Su Mao said: "This subject doesn't dare, I just want to ask the King to think it over."

  Mu Changyan stood up, and pointed to the blood on Zhong Jiuge's chest: "My loyal soldiers of the great swallow risked their lives to find out about such a shocking matter, and have travelled thousands of miles back to the capital, and have become the spy of the Youguo in your mouth. Since you can say that he was sent by the people of the Youguo to intentionally disrupt the great swallow's government, then Gu You can also think that some people were also bribed by the Youguo and purposefully disturbed my great swallow's government? "

  His gaze vaguely drifted towards the great gene
ral Su Zong, who immediately felt a chill down his spine.

  Su Mao looked down at the courtiers kneeling below, hoping that someone would stand out and help him. But he discovered that all of them were kneeling and watching, no one dared to speak carelessly. He knew that he could not do it alone. His only hope now was that the Empress Dowager would come quickly. As long as the Empress came, everything was fine.

  Mu Changyan looked at Su Zong: "Su Zong, I ask you... Is the information you brought back from the front line, the so-called evidence, true or false? "

  Su Zong took a step back, "This subject brought back … Of course it's true. "

  Mu Changyan pointed at Zhong Jiuge: "Speak!"

  Zhong Jiuge said: "Understood... When Great General Fang sensed that something was amiss in the eastern border, he was ordered to investigate. The Great General instructed them to use the goods and silver to fish out the spies who were in cahoots with the hidden assassins. The humble servant then pretended to be a member of the Gao family and delivered the goods out of seclusion. What a coincidence, after the silver and goods came out of seclusion, they returned back to our great swallow's military, only … All of them are in the hands of our General Su. "

  He looked at Su Zong, "Other than those military equipment, four hundred and sixty thousand silver, sixteen rare treasures, and the few beauties that were sent over from the Youguo were all sent to General Su's tent … Is General Su's accounts correct? "

  Su Zong's face was already terrifyingly white, because none of the accounts were correct, for someone like him to bribe him wouldn't need that much money. He said with a trembling voice, "You … These were all slanderous words! "There's no such large sum of money for me!"

  Mu Changyan laughed coldly: "Framing? Someone, bring Ma Ziwei up here! "

  A few Tiantong Palace guards walked in from outside in large strides, and pushed Ma Ziwei, the Assistant Minister of the Military Department, in.

  The moment Ma Ziwei saw Mu Changyan, he immediately kneeled down, "This subject … "We pay our respects to the King."