Siheyuan: tomb robbing? I am serious about hunting.

Chapter 833 Hearing

Her slender fingers tapped the handrails gently, and her eyes swept across the ministers kneeling at the bottom of the steps, finally landing on Su Mingwei, who was the first person on the left. Su Mingwei was wearing a moon-white official uniform with dark patterns, her black hair was tied up high, and a white jade hairpin was inserted diagonally in her hair, which made her look even more elegant and cool. As the most trusted confidant of the empress, she was appointed as the third-rank privy envoy, in charge of the most core intelligence network of the dynasty. At this moment, she lowered her eyes and waited quietly for the empress to speak. "Recently, I received a secret report saying that someone spread rumors among the people, saying that I came to power illegally and stole the will of the previous emperor." Xiao Mingxi's voice was as cold as ice, echoing in the empty hall, "Lord Su, you are in charge of intelligence, do you know about this?" Su Mingwei raised her head slightly, her eyes steady: "Your Majesty, I have heard about it. These rumors seem to have no clue, but they seem to be spread in an organized and planned manner, and there must be a pusher behind them." "I want you to investigate this matter thoroughly, no matter who is involved, I will never tolerate it." A trace of ruthlessness flashed in Xiao Mingxi's eyes, "In addition, in three days, I will hold a banquet in the palace to entertain envoys from various countries. Lord Su, you are responsible for the security of this banquet, and it must be foolproof." "I obey your order." Su Mingwei kowtowed and accepted the order. After retiring from the court, Su Mingwei returned to the Privy Council. This is a quiet courtyard with green tiles and white walls, and lush flowers and trees. It seems quiet, but it actually hides mysteries. There are secret sentries guarding every corner of the courtyard, and every person coming and going is a strictly screened spy. "My lord, this is the intelligence collected recently." A woman in black appeared quietly and handed over a sealed envelope. Su Mingwei opened the envelope and examined it carefully. After a moment, her brows frowned slightly. The letter mentioned that a mysterious woman in red had appeared in several key locations where rumors spread, and soon after each appearance, the rumor would spread rapidly. "Go and check, and be sure to find out the identity and origin of this woman in red." Su Mingwei handed the envelope to the woman in black, "In addition, pay close attention to the movements of ministers in the court, especially those who are dissatisfied with your majesty's accession to the throne." The woman in black took the order and left. Su Mingwei walked to the window, looking at the snowflakes falling outside the window, thinking secretly in her heart. This rumor incident came strangely, and the person behind it obviously wanted to shake the foundation of the empress's rule. The banquet three days later was even more fraught with danger, as envoys from various countries gathered, including some with ill intentions. Chapter 2 Three days after the banquet, the palace was decorated with lights and was extremely lively. In the Qianyuan Hall, envoys from various countries were dressed in gorgeous costumes and toasted each other. Xiao Mingxi sat in the main seat, while Su Mingwei stood behind her, scanning the room vigilantly. After three rounds of wine, the atmosphere was in high spirits. Suddenly, an envoy stood up staggeringly, and the wine glass in his hand fell to the ground with a "bang": "Your Majesty Xiao, I heard that the will of your late emperor was tampered with. I wonder if this is true or false?" As soon as these words came out, the whole audience fell silent. Xiao Mingxi's face darkened. Before he could speak, Su Mingwei took a step forward and said in a cold voice: "What is the intention of this envoy to openly spread rumors in my Dayin Palace?" The envoy was not in a hurry: "Don't worry, my Lord Privy Councilor. I have evidence in my hands." As he said, he took out a yellowed edict from his arms, "This is the real edict of the late emperor. It clearly says that the throne will be passed to the prince, but it has been tampered with!" Su Mingwei was shocked and stared at the edict. She knew very well that if this edict was true, the throne of the empress would be illegitimate and the consequences would be disastrous. At this moment, a crisp laugh suddenly rang out. Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a woman in red walking slowly from outside the palace. She had a beautiful face and her eyes were full of charm. "Your Majesty, I am late, please forgive me." The woman in red walked to the steps and bowed. Xiao Mingxi narrowed his eyes: "Who are you?" "I am Liu Ruyan, the daughter of the Minister of Rites." Liu Ruyan raised her head and a meaningful smile appeared on the corner of her mouth. "I heard that your majesty is holding a banquet today, so I came to sing a song to cheer your majesty up." Without waiting for Xiao Mingxi to answer, Liu Ruyan stood up and walked to the center of the hall, dancing to the melodious music. She has a graceful figure and light dance steps, like a smart butterfly. However, Su Mingwei noticed that every one of her movements seemed to have hidden mysteries, faintly echoing the edict in the hands of the envoy. Suddenly, Liu Ruyan turned around, and a dagger appeared in her hand, stabbing Xiao Mingxi! At the critical moment, Su Mingwei quickly drew out the soft sword at her waist and blocked it in front of Xiao Mingxi. With a "dang" sound, the dagger collided with the soft sword, and sparks flew. Su Mingwei turned her wrist, and her sword moves were unpredictable, and she fought with Liu Ruyan. The palace was in chaos, envoys from various countries fled, and the guards quickly gathered around. Su Mingwei was fighting with Liu Ruyan while paying attention to the movements around her. She found that several envoys' guards were also ready to move, as if they were ready to take the opportunity to attack. "Protect your majesty!" Su Mingwei shouted. Several elite guards immediately protected Xiao Mingxi and retreated. Seeing that the assassination failed, Liu Ruyan's eyes flashed a fierceness, and the dagger in her hand made a feint, and turned around to escape. How could Su Mingwei let her leave easily? She tapped the ground and chased after her like a shadow. Chapter 3 Clues With the help of the guards, Su Mingwei finally captured Liu Ruyan. However, when they were about to interrogate her, they found that Liu Ruyan had committed suicide by taking poison. "My lord, this was found on her." A guard handed over an exquisite jade pendant with a delicate red plum engraved on it. Su Mingwei took the jade pendant and looked at it carefully. She always felt that the jade pendant looked familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen it. Back at the Privy Council, Su Mingwei immediately summoned her men and began to analyze the incident. She put all the clues she had collected on the table, trying to find the mastermind behind it. "Sir, according to the investigation, Liu Ruyan and the Minister of Rites do have a father-daughter relationship, but she was sent to a mysterious place for training since she was a child, and did not return to the capital until half a year ago." A spy reported, "Moreover, the envoy who took out the imperial edict had close contacts with the Northern Yan Kingdom." Su Mingwei frowned. The Northern Yan Kingdom has always been eyeing Dayin, and this incident is likely related to them. But based on these clues alone, it is still impossible to determine the mastermind behind the scenes. At this moment, another spy hurried over: "Sir, we found this at Liu Ruyan's residence." He presented an exquisite brocade box containing half a broken Feng Zhao. Feng Zhao is the highest will written by the late emperor before his death. Only by collecting the complete Feng Zhao can the legitimacy of the succession to the throne be proved. Su Mingwei was shocked. She had always thought that the Feng Zhao had been lost, but she did not expect it to appear here. "Present this half of the Feng Zhao to His Majesty immediately." Su Mingwei said,