I Became the Devil Queen's Heart Demon

Chapter 757 - 284: Who Is Sneaking Food? Her Majesty the Empress Summons! (Part 2)

"I felt something wasn’t right, so I asked the former Minister of Communication, Qin Yucheng, to assist. After comparing the past five years’ documents, we finally found the missing content, and discovered that every piece was related to the Prince Yu Mansion."

Shangguan Jin took out a stack of documents from his sleeve and said, "Over the years, the Prince Yu Mansion has had frequent cases of hired servants going missing, with no less than a hundred people reporting it, and the actual number of missing persons might be several times higher."

"None of the petitions submitted by the government office were spared, all were suppressed and eventually led to no result."

"And to this day, the whereabouts of the missing remain unknown, living people can’t be found, and no corpses were seen."

When thinking about the crimson blood pool in that secret chamber, everyone’s expressions grew even more grave.

Is Chu Heng really killing and drinking blood for practicing an evil technique?!

That concerns the lives of hundreds, such sins can’t escape punishment even for a member of the royal family!

Eunuch Jin received the documents and passed them to the Empress.

The sound of pages being flipped came from behind the bamboo curtain, and a moment later, the Empress’s cold voice echoed:

"Good, very good!"

"Disregarding human life, wanton violence, what difference is there from a wolf?!"

"Lord Yan, I remember you have relations with the Qin Family, this case shall be handed over to you for investigation. Anyone involved, regardless of their rank, should be thrown into the Heavenly Prison, arrest first and trial later!"

Yan Peizhi’s face was somewhat gloomy, his fists clenched under his sleeve, he bowed his head and responded, "I obey, Your Majesty."

The Empress turned her gaze to Fu Baiyi and asked again, "Mr. Fu, do you have anything else to say?"

Anyone could hear the anger and displeasure in her tone.

Fu Baiyi was already sweating profusely, unable to withstand the pressure, he bowed and said, "If this is really the case, severe punishment must be enforced to serve as a warning!"

"And the others? Does anyone have any opinions?"

The Empress’s gaze swept across, and everyone bowed their heads, no one responded.

Zhuang Jingming kept his eyes slightly closed from beginning to end, appearing sleepy, but his heart was as turbulent as a storm.

The Empress initially set a one-month deadline for Chen Mo to solve the case, and he had held a mindset of watching a joke, but unexpectedly within just a few days, there was already breakthrough progress!

"What method did this guy use to make Chu Heng confess obediently?"

"And why did Shangguan Jin suddenly stand up to speak for Chen Mo?"

Shangguan Jin, as a third-grade official responsible for internal and external discussions and participating in major state affairs, had always been neutral, but this time he was clearly favoring Chen Mo...

While Zhuang Jingming was lost in thought, suddenly, a deep voice sounded beside him:

"Your subject has something to report."

Zhuang Jingming’s heart skipped a beat, he turned his head to look at the tall figure standing out like a crane among chickens, finally feeling stirred inside.

Lv Huaiyu?

What is he going to do?

For a moment, everyone held their breath.

Everyone knew that this Grandmaster was a staunch Royalist, representing the interests of the royal family, could it be that His Majesty wants to protect Chu Heng?

Zhuang Jingming’s thoughts raced, a slight cold smile on his face, "I knew it, His Majesty can’t possibly abandon his own nephew, it seems this move is still right, at least it indicates the Cabinet’s stance..."

"What does the Grandmaster have to say, speak plainly." The Empress said.

Lv Huaiyu’s voice was deep like thunder, "What I have to say is not related to the case, it’s about the Crown Prince’s studies... I propose having Deputy Thousand Households Chen Mo of the Sky Scale Guard serve as the Crown Prince’s reading companion, to study strategies together."

Upon hearing this, the ministers were dumbfounded.

Zhuang Jingming’s expression was somewhat confused, wondering if there was something wrong with his ears.

When he recovered, he finally couldn’t hold it, and said in a deep voice, "Having a military officer serve as the Crown Prince’s reading companion? Grandmaster Lv, are you joking!"

This so-called reading companion is merely a title, not a position, but the significance behind it is extraordinary.

It involves not only aiding academics and supervising conduct but more importantly establishing political ties; in other words, the one who spends day and night with the Crown Prince is bound to be part of the Crown Prince’s core team, the future key aides!

Typically, the sons of important ministers or talented youths who enter the officialdom through imperial examinations are chosen.

Zhuang Jingming had also considered this idea initially, wanting to send a direct descendant of the Zhuang Family into the palace but met with layers of obstacles, eventually could only give up.

Now Lv Huaiyu actually nominates Chen Mo as a reading companion?

How could someone like a third-rank official’s son, Deputy Thousand Households of the Sky Scale Guard, be qualified?!

"Though Chen Mo is a military officer, he has a unique understanding of administrative affairs, and the Crown Prince also enjoys interacting with him. In my view, he is quite suitable as a reading companion," Lv Huaiyu said.

"But..."

Zhuang Jingming wanted to say more.

Lv Huaiyu’s pale yellow eyes glanced at him, calmly saying, "I am talking to Her Majesty, not seeking Mr. Zhuang’s opinion."

Zhuang Jingming’s heart felt chilled, as if he was being watched by a predator ready to pounce, under the intense pressure, he swallowed his words.

The Empress pondered for a moment and said, "I will consider this matter, but there is much turmoil now, and Chen Mo won’t be freed anytime soon, let’s wait until the case is closed to discuss it."

"Your Majesty’s words are wise."

Lv Huaiyu nodded slightly and said no more.

The court meeting ended in chaos.

After the ministers left, the Golden Throne Hall finally quieted down.

Leaning against the Phoenix Throne, the Empress rubbed her temples, murmuring to herself, "Fortunately, Chen Mo obtained Chu Heng’s confession, otherwise letting Zhuang Jingming exploit a loophole would be quite troublesome."

Beside her, Eunuch Jin chuckled lightly, saying, "At critical moments, Mr. Chen never disappoints."

"Of course, in terms of handling cases, he dares to claim second, and no one in the Capital City dares to claim first." The Empress looked proud, but then frowned, saying, "However, this confession alone isn’t enough. If the crime of treason can’t be substantiated, it won’t shake the foundation of the Prince Yu Mansion."