When the imperial eunuch hurried to the Ministry of War with quick, short steps, Wu Jianzheng and other ministry officials were gathered together discussing the court's procurement of warhorses for the coming year.
"Lord Wu, please stop your discussion. His Majesty urgently summons you to the Imperial Study."
Wu Jianzheng immediately stood up from his chair, walked over to the eunuch, and asked in a low voice, "Eunuch, for what matter has His Majesty summoned me?"
Seeing the Ministry of War officials behind Wu Jianzheng all stand up and look their way, the imperial eunuch silently led him to the door.
"The potatoes in the imperial estate were stolen. His Majesty is furious, so you had best be careful, My Lord."
Wu Jianzheng's eyes widened in shock. "Hasn't the diplomatic mission from the Kingdom of Shuobei already left? Who else would steal the potatoes?"
The imperial eunuch shook his head. "That, this servant does not know."
When Wu Jianzheng and the imperial eunuch walked out of the Ministry of War, they happened to see Fan Guanshan leading the Imperial Guards hurrying past not far away.
Inside the Imperial Study, a palace maid was carefully kneeling on the floor, cleaning up the mess.
Seeing Wu Jianzheng enter, everyone silently retreated to the sides of the pillars, terrified that the Emperor would lose his temper again and bring disaster upon their heads.
"This humble official greets His Majesty."
As soon as Wu Jianzheng knelt down, Xiao Chengjing's questioning voice rang out.
"Have the people I ordered you to send to track the Shuobei mission sent any letters back?"
Wu Jianzheng's heart skipped half a beat, and his forehead began to sweat with tension.
"Replying to His Majesty, there is no news as of yet."
Smack! Xiao Chengjing slammed a memorial hard onto the desk. "They have already been gone for five or six days. Why is there absolutely no news?"
"I had barely withdrawn the majority of the Imperial Guards stationed at the imperial estate when someone went and stole from it. This was premeditated. Did the people you sent out not notice anything at all? They must have been discovered by Gong Linjue long ago."
Separated by a journey of five or six days, it took time to send messages back. Without having received any news, Wu Jianzheng was completely unable to answer the Emperor's question.
"The people this humble official sent to track the mission are extremely skilled at hiding and trailing. They shouldn't have been discovered so easily. Perhaps they were delayed because of the snowy weather and slippery roads. There might be news in a few days."
Having thrown away the memorial, Xiao Chengjing slapped his palm against the desk, making loud smacking sounds.
"No matter how skilled they are, can they subdue Gong Linjue? Out of all the civil and military officials, not a single one can, not even comparing to a woman! When war breaks out in the future, who will lead the troops?"
Kneeling on the ground, Wu Jianzheng kept his head bowed, unable to refute a single word.
The truth was, if it weren't for County Princess Linghui, not only would the Emperor have lost face this time, but the entire Dongzhao Kingdom would have been thoroughly disgraced.
It might have even affected the current situation between the two countries.
If war broke out in the future, the great army would feel fear in their hearts just hearing the three words 'Gong Linjue', and their will to fight would be greatly diminished.
After a moment of heavy silence in the Imperial Study, Xiao Chengjing's anger also slowly subsided.
"Send people immediately to catch up with the Shuobei mission. This time, remember not to expose your whereabouts. Once the potatoes are found, immediately join forces with the local officials and soldiers to intercept them. The mission can leave, but under no circumstances can they take the potatoes with them."
Wu Jianzheng heavily knocked his forehead against the ground. "This humble official obeys the decree."
Inside Prince Qi's Manor, the steward, who had just seen off the imperial physician, heard a subordinate's report and turned to walk towards Xiao Rongche's sleeping quarters.
"Your Highness, Lord Li sent someone with a message. The matter regarding the potatoes has been discovered, so there is no way to deliver them to the manor."
"However, he asks you to rest assured. All loose ends have been cleaned up, and the potatoes have already been transported to a safe place. You only need to stay in the manor and pretend you know nothing."
Xiao Rongche's heart, which had just jumped to his throat, settled halfway down again. "Are you certain this won't be traced back to me? Not even uncle can be implicated."
The steward nodded expressionlessly and made a slicing motion across his neck with his right hand.
"Everything has been cleaned up."
Xiao Rongche took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and then reached out to motion for the steward to come closer.
"We cannot delay. Go to the Li Manor personally and tell uncle the location for the rendezvous with Gong Linjue, and have him send someone to deliver it."
The steward nodded. "This servant understands. This servant will go do it immediately."
If one wanted to know the whereabouts of the stolen potatoes, the best method was to find the people who stole them.
Although seventy percent of the Imperial Guards in the imperial estate had been transferred away, the twenty men led by Chang Shiming were still on the estate before the theft. To steal a cartload of potatoes without anyone noticing, there must have been someone inside the imperial estate working with the thieves from the inside.
Therefore, after leading his troops out of the city, Fan Guanshan rushed to the imperial estate outside the city at the very first opportunity.
As soon as he entered the gates, he smelled a strong stench of blood.
Looking at the two corpses lying on the ground, the faces of the Imperial Guards who followed him in all changed.
"What happened?" Fan Guanshan sharply questioned his subordinate.
The general who had split up with Chang Shiming lowered his head, his face full of self-blame.
"When this subordinate brought people back, I only shouted once before they all drew their swords and slit their own throats. We didn't even have time to ask a single word."
Fan Guanshan clenched his fists, his face ashen and his eyes full of anger.
"Where is everyone else from the Court of Agricultural Affairs? It wasn't just one or two, it was an entire cart of potatoes. Did no one notice?"
The man lowered his head even further, not daring to look up at all.
"We truly didn't notice any problems with these two men before. During today's withdrawal, everyone was in the front courtyard. The granary was handed over to the people from the Court of Agricultural Affairs to guard last night. After so many days of peace, no one thought something like this would happen."
Dong Yuanbin, who arrived a step late after hearing the news, saw the two corpses laid out on the ground and was immediately so frightened that his legs went weak.
"What is going on here? Commander Fan, even if they are guilty, you cannot use lynching!"
Fan Guanshan rolled his eyes at him speechlessly.
"Lord Dong, with which eye did you see this commander abusing private punishment? These two men committed suicide out of fear of punishment."
"Instead, it is you, Lord Dong, who had such a blunder occur under your command. You had better think carefully about how to explain this to His Majesty."
Dong Yuanbin's face turned deathly pale. "Commander Fan, the Imperial Guards haven't completely withdrawn today. If there is guilt, it does not solely belong to my Court of Agricultural Affairs."
"In my opinion, the best plan is to quickly find the stolen potatoes. Otherwise, when the Emperor's wrath falls, neither you nor I will be able to bear it."
Too lazy to waste words with the other party, Fan Guanshan directly issued orders.
"You, immediately take inventory of the storehouse to see how many potatoes were lost. The rest of you, immediately interrogate everyone staying in the imperial estate. Additionally, dispatch thirty men to go and support Chang Shiming."
