Jinyiwei: Starting by Killing a Traitorous Superior – Chapter 17

Ch 17: Speculation

He brought Jiang Chen in because he had no other choice.

After all, the four of them had agreed long ago to give this credit to Tie Junzhuo in exchange for the Tie Family’s support.

That’s why he casually brought someone in, just to show a token of sincerity.

As for why it was Jiang Chen, it was purely because he had a slight memory of this person from the past two days.

Now that Jiang Chen had spoken, what if his answer wasn’t satisfactory? Wouldn’t that expose the fact that he just randomly picked someone?

If the Emperor harbored resentment towards him because of that, he would suffer a great loss.

“Speak.”

Regardless of what Meng Wangjin was thinking, the Emperor’s voice came from within the palace again.

“This humble official believes that the Princess is within the Imperial Palace! She was never abducted out.”

As soon as these words came out, everyone fell into dead silence. Meng Wangjin’s forehead was covered in sweat, and a layer of cold sweat broke out on his back.

“Your Majesty, he…”

“Reason.”

An invisible force pressed down on Meng Wangjin, immediately silencing him.

Jiang Chen was also very helpless at this sight.

If it weren’t for the System’s mission, he wouldn’t have spoken today no matter what.

But if this group of people continued to investigate in this way, then it was likely that the truth would never be found.

“Within the Imperial Palace, the defenses are tight. If someone could sneak in silently, this subordinate believes it is absolutely impossible.”

This was a world where the Martial Path flourished, and also a world that gathered the great power of heaven and earth.

The strength of a Martial Saint was inconceivable.

What blocked those assassins and infiltrators wasn’t the city walls, but the Ming Emperor himself.

Tie Junzhuo also thought of this point. It was certain that there was an internal accomplice within the Imperial Palace.

But they had all fallen into a thinking error, which was that since the Princess had disappeared, she must have been transported out of the Imperial Palace.

But they didn’t consider one question:

Any attempt to forcibly take someone out of the Imperial Palace carried an explosively high risk.

If he only had a 30% certainty before entering the palace, after seeing the strictness of the Imperial Palace’s defenses, that certainty rose to 70%.

To leave the Imperial Palace, one had to pass through three checkpoints, each with more than ten people checking.

And these guards were all from noble and official families.

Moreover, the people on duty each day were randomly matched.

To bribe these people, risking the extermination of their families to help them transport the Princess out, was simpler than directly rebelling.

But hiding the Princess within the Imperial Palace wasn’t as difficult as imagined.

“Then tell me, where would the Princess be hidden?”

Tie Junzhuo’s face turned green and then red, looking extremely unsightly.

Although he didn’t agree with Jiang Chen’s statement in his heart, he couldn’t refute it.

Because if he refuted this sentence, it would mean that there was a problem with the Imperial Palace’s defense.

And once there was a problem with the Imperial Palace’s defense, it wouldn’t be as simple as just a Princess disappearing.

It would require heads to roll and blood to flow all over the execution ground to be considered complete.

The hatred of those imperial relatives, meritorious nobles, who were responsible for the city’s defense wasn’t something that the Tie Family could bear.

Jiang Chen continued, “The Princess wasn’t hidden away. This official dares to assert! She is now right under everyone’s noses!”

These words shocked everyone again. Even the Emperor didn’t ask any further questions, as if he was thinking.

Tie Junzhuo laughed loudly, “Are you crazy? The Princess is right under everyone’s noses? Then tell me, where is she now?”

Jiang Chen’s eyes were burning. He knew that the most dangerous place was the safest place.

What place could be safer than hiding the Princess right under everyone’s noses?

As for how to hide her specifically, that was also very simple.

Jiang Chen completely put himself in the perspective of the murderer.

He had to kidnap the Emperor’s most beloved daughter right under his nose.

Moreover, he couldn’t use martial arts, otherwise, he would definitely be immediately detected by the guards in the Imperial Palace, or even the Emperor himself.

So what was the best way?

The answer was, of course, to use poison.

Using poison didn’t require activating True Qi. Even if the Ming Emperor was a Martial Saint, he couldn’t possibly detect someone using poison.

“May I ask Your Majesty! Where was Princess Yuling last seen?”

Jiang Chen asked directly.

“The Princess disappeared in Changle Palace.”

The Eunuch answered for the Ming Emperor, “You can ask me about matters related to the case.”

“Then may I ask Eunuch, when did the palace maids realize that the Princess was missing?”

“After the last palace maid finished serving the Princess, in the middle of the night, the palace maids on duty at the door heard a noise from the room, so they asked. The Princess didn’t answer, so they went in to check.”

“After they went in, they saw that the window was opened, and the Princess had disappeared from the room.”

The Eunuch told Jiang Chen the situation at that time in detail.

Jiang Chen directly cupped his hands, “Your Majesty, may this subordinate conduct an on-site investigation?”

“Granted!”

The Emperor’s majestic and deep voice penetrated the layers of curtains in the palace and clearly reached outside the hall.

This voice seemed to carry an irresistible force, making everyone present feel a chill in their hearts.

The Heavenly Human, Eunuch, after hearing the Emperor’s decree, immediately respectfully lowered his head. He turned around, made a gesture of invitation to Jiang Chen and the Four Garrison Commanders behind him, and signaled them to follow him to Changle Palace together.

Changle Palace, one of the most prosperous palaces in the Imperial Palace, was now tightly surrounded, layer upon layer.

The guards were wearing iron armor, holding spears, their eyes like torches, vigilantly watching all the movements around them.

Jiang Chen and the Four Garrison Commanders, led by the Eunuch, smoothly passed through the layers of guards and arrived at the front of Changle Palace.

The Eunuch gently pushed open the palace gate, signaling them to enter.

As soon as he stepped into Changle Palace, Jiang Chen immediately felt the unusual nature of this place.

The layout of the entire palace was rigorous and grand, and every detail revealed the nobility and luxury of the imperial family.

However, at this moment, the palace was shrouded in a layer of dark clouds, and the air was filled with a depressing atmosphere.

They arrived at the scene of the incident. This room was spacious and bright, and an exquisite red bed in the middle was particularly eye-catching.

Traces of the Princess sleeping still remained on the bed, and the soft bedding seemed to still retain the faint fragrance of the Princess’s body.

The quilt had fallen to the position facing the window, and it was obvious that it had been torn.

Judging from the traces left at the scene, the Princess should have been sleeping when someone suddenly entered from outside, directly kidnapped the Princess from the bed, and then left from the window.

“It seems that the Princess must have been kidnapped by a traitor who entered the room from outside the window. This person must be highly skilled in martial arts, otherwise, there wouldn’t even be footprints left on the ground.”

Tie Junzhuo confidently stated his speculation.