"Your Highness, Your Highness, we have searched the entire palace and discovered large quantities of explosives separately under the main seats of Taihe Hall, the Altar, and the Imperial Garden, and Anhua Hall.
Later, Li Su brought the eunuch named He An, and large amounts of gunpowder were found in front of the Imperial Study, on the palace road outside Daqian Gate, and in the main hall of Weiyang Palace."
This time, not only Lu Qingwan, but even Si Fengwu, who had been listening calmly, was shocked.
"With so much gunpowder, he must have long expected that his throne would not be secure, so he wanted to blow up the successor and all the officials who supported the successor."
Si Fengwu's tone was extremely complex, as the person he had always disdained had suddenly done something so momentous.
"Every place where the explosives were buried is a place that the new emperor and the officials must go. Even if they can't be blown up at once, there will always be a place where he can succeed during the long process from enthronement to sacrifice.
I really didn't expect him to have the courage for mutual destruction."
Lu Qingwan scoffed, then asked the two, "Has the eunuch named He An been interrogated? How did he know about these things?"
Feng Qingheng, who suspected everyone, would never willingly let anyone know such secrets. The source of He An's information was very important.
Fortunately, Li Su was reliable. "We have interrogated him. Fearing he would play tricks, we specifically gave him a truth serum.
Those explosives were buried by Long An and his men. Long An, in order to save his life, left a map of the explosives' distribution, intending to use it to save his life, but he was still silenced by Feng Qingheng.
Before Long An died, he handed the map of the explosives' distribution to He An, intending for He An to blow up Feng Qingheng to avenge him, but He An was timid and did not dare to blow up Feng Qingheng.
Today, he was also afraid that we would find him after the large-scale explosion, so he took the initiative to help put out the fire, thinking he could earn merit!"
Li Su also said helplessly that following Si Fengwu and Lu Qingwan to fight wits and courage with various heroes, encountering someone who confessed themselves, made him feel both amused and exasperated.
Lu Qingwan was also extremely speechless, "He's not brave, but he has quite a few ideas. Let him go, no need to keep him locked up."
Li Su and Li Jin withdrew as ordered. Tang Xiao stepped forward, "Your Highness, Your Highness, Yue Yuanting and all the other criminals have been apprehended.
The Shence Camp prison is already overcrowded. What should we do with them?"
Si Fengwu tilted his head to look at Lu Qingwan, who quickly waved her hand, "Don't look at me!
This is your responsibility as the future emperor. Don't try to pass the buck to me!"
Lu Qingwan knew the rules of this era very well. She could help Si Fengwu with things, but the position of emperor would always belong to Si Fengwu.
She believed that if she wanted it, Si Fengwu would definitely give it to her, but in the same position, as a woman, she had far more restrictions than Si Fengwu.
And dealing with the old officials of the Qian Dynasty was the first step for Si Fengwu to become the ruler of the new dynasty.
The same position, once obtained with great difficulty, naturally had to be maximized in terms of benefits.
She could help Si Fengwu handle it, but the effect would not be as good as Si Fengwu handling it himself.
Si Fengwu had only habitually sought Lu Qingwan's opinion. Seeing her so eager to avoid it, he chuckled.
"Since it is to be handled by me, the future emperor, then let the Ministry of Justice handle it. It will also give me a chance to see how the new Minister of Justice, Han Guang, performs."
After thinking for a moment, he added, "Given that Yue Yuanting and other criminals are heavily involved, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Gu Cien, will be fully assisting in the investigation.
Censor Tan Sanjiang will be supervising the entire process, and the Shence Camp will provide support to complete the matter as soon as possible."
"A joint trial!"
Lu Qingwan sighed with emotion, clicking her tongue, "Now, those people in the court will probably have nightmares again!"
Tang Xiao grinned, "Actually, Prime Minister Wen and most of the officials of the six ministries are on the side of Your Highness and Your Highness.
It's just that those old fellows in the Court of Imperial Clan Affairs are a bit troublesome, and those officials between the third and fifth ranks are indecisive, like grass swaying in the wind.
Now, they probably wish that Yue Yuanting and the others would die on the spot, so they wouldn't be implicated."
During Lu Qingwan and Si Fengwu's absence, Tang Xiao had been ridiculed by those people many times, and now he spoke with a hint of schadenfreude.
Lu Qingwan did not expose him, "Just do as Your Highness said. As for those people, it's better for them to make a fuss. If they don't make a fuss, how can we deal with them?"
Saying that, she stood up and, shaking her head, asked Si Fengwu, "Where are we staying tonight?"
They had not yet ascended the throne, so it was not appropriate to stay in Weiyang Palace. It would seem too impatient, and Lu Qingwan would find the beds and bedding used by others disgusting.
Si Fengwu smiled when he saw her wrinkled little face, "Let's go back to the Regent's Mansion. I've already had them clean it up.
We'll stay in the mansion before the official enthronement, and it will be more convenient to handle matters."
The magnificent imperial palace looked rich and dazzling, but only those who lived there knew how tedious it was.
His little princess was impatient, and if something happened, it would take half a day to reach the palace gate, and he would be the one to suffer.
"But aren't the Grand Princess and Princess Fujia living in the Regent's Mansion?"
If they returned rashly, wouldn't they be driving them away?
"What are you thinking, am I that kind of careless person?"
Si Fengwu gently stroked her head, and holding her hand, he slowly walked out, "The Grand Princess has a princess's mansion in the capital. She only came to the capital to spend the winter at first, and she was hidden by Feng Qingheng.
Now that we are here, the mother and daughter can return to their own homes."
Lu Qingwan only realized this belatedly. Before she could speak, a thick cloak was placed on her body.
The fluffy hat was pulled down over her head, completely covering her head, and Si Fengwu's voice sounded as if it were coming from a distant place.
He said, "It's snowing, it's a bit cold."
Lu Qingwan stood obediently in place, waiting for Si Fengwu to put on her hat and tie the straps. One hand, however, reached out to catch the snowflakes falling gently.
"It's such beautiful snow, shall we walk back?"
Her palm slowly clenched, and the snowflakes melted in her hand. Lu Qingwan suddenly felt playful.
Everything within her sight was red walls and green tiles.
The brick-red color was cold and solemn. She stared at it for a long time. Si Fengwu wanted to cover her eyes, but she said faintly, "This red doesn't seem so terrifying anymore!"
Si Fengwu was overjoyed, "Really?
Do you not feel disgusted and uncomfortable, and are you not afraid anymore?"
"It's probably because it's still a bit short of being bloody, but it's quite nice to look at."
Wearing too many clothes, Lu Qingwan could only hold onto one of Si Fengwu's fingers and trudge forward with great effort.
On the palace road, many palace attendants did not stop their busy work due to the chaos of the day. Seeing the two, they bowed from afar and then resumed their tasks.
Only after leaving the palace gate could one see some signs of the change of dynasty.