The news spread, shocking the court from top to bottom.
No one could fathom why Prince Le would do such a thing, why he would take such actions.
If the other party intended to frame Prince Zhuang and Prince Ping, it would have been understandableāroyal heirs show their skills in power struggles. Although such a method is ruthless and disregards the common people, it still could make sense.
But damn, whatās the reason now? Is unrest in Great Zhou beneficial to him?
Does attacking the entire court benefit him?
Is he truly here to seize the throne?
The Emperor was furious and immediately ordered the arrest of Prince Le!
The original plan was disregarded as well. Initially, he intended to wait for Mu Shaoling to develop a remedy for Prince Leās illness before he made his move and then settle his sonās power once and for all.
But now he could not wait any longer. No matter how powerful, could it be greater than the entire Great Zhou? This is what the Emperor thought in his heart.
However, things were never that simple. When the Imperial Army surrounded Prince Leās Mansion, Prince Le was nowhere to be found, and even Princess Consort Le and the Heir of Prince Le were missing.
Throughout the mansion, only a few maids were left, and none of the important money or valuables were taken.
Even more ridiculous, he left a letter in the study!
The letter contained only one sentence: "Want to catch me? Are you joking? If I hadnāt exposed myself, you wouldnāt even find a trace of evidence."
Provocationāthe Emperor felt deeply provoked!
HumiliationāPrince Zhuang and others felt deeply humiliated!
It showed how inept they all were, as if he were merely toying with everyone.
"Did he just disappear without a trace?" Yang Chuxia was utterly shocked upon hearing the news.
Ye Ziāan nodded, "Indeed, not a single trace left. Now the Imperial Army is searching house to house, and the wanted notices have spread to other places, yet there is no news at all. Itās too strange."
"I find it very strange too, how could he just vanish like that?"
"I think you may not find anything in the Capital City," Yang Chuxia said. "He might have already left the city. Donāt forget his goal, he wants chaos across the land, chaos across Great Zhou. Now rumors are rampant. Although the Emperorās words have suppressed them, people in other places arenāt aware. At this time, just a little incitement of rebellion would explode it immediately."
"If an uprising occurs in one place, itās still manageable, but if he instigates rebellions in multiple places, then Great Zhou would truly descend into chaos. I think he might be heading to the neighboring Great Qi. Once there, he could either stir up internal chaos similar to Great Zhou or let Great Qi seize the opportunity to attack Great Zhou."
"Youāve analyzed it well!" Ye Ziāan nodded, "Looks like I need to have the Ministry of War prepare the arms supply and have someone guard the granaries, just in case he attempts to burn them, then we would be in real danger."
However, both Ye Ziāan and Yang Chuxia overlooked Prince Leās unpredictability!
Thus, they only guessed half of Prince Leās plan correctly, underestimating his hatred for the Great Zhou royal family.
On the last day of November, the third day since Prince Le disappeared, Capital City received urgent word from Baili, saying that bandits in Shandong colluded with pirates to burn, kill, and loot in the Shandong region, causing thousands of civilian casualties. The Emperor was furious and sent a young general to lead troops to suppress the bandits.
On the first day of December, again, an urgent word from Baili stated that Lord Prefect of Jiangsu Prefecture and the local garrison colluded, determined to purge corrupt officials and overthrow the dark court!
On December second, a cavalry rode swiftly to the palace, reporting that someone in Hebei Prefecture spread rumors that the Emperor was dying, and in the court, a few officials used the Emperorās commands to control the feudal lords, causing panic among everyone in the court that day.