Gu Cangping was very smart. He did not ask Zhao Bairen to investigate who was the mastermind behind the assassination of the Crown Prince, because it would be easy to get himself involved.
The number of people in the world who had the guts and motive to assassinate the Crown Prince could be counted on one hand. Whether it was the first or the last, they were not people that Gu Cangping could afford to provoke. Once the Emperor suddenly decided, "My dear subject, then this case will be handed over to you to lead the investigation, or to assist in the investigation." Then wouldn't he be in a difficult position?
If he really found a big shot, should he report it, or should he conceal it?
Although reporting it could hurt his political enemies, it was also a matter that pierced the sky. There was a high probability that the Emperor would conceal this matter, turning a big matter into a small one and a small matter into nothing.
After all, this was very likely to be a terrible scandal of the royal family, ridiculed by the world.
Once a ruler lost his dignity, he would lose the legitimacy of his rule. This was something that no ruler could tolerate.
If he concealed it, then Gu Cangping would naturally have a political stain, which was equivalent to giving others a handle.
Therefore, the assassination of the Crown Prince was a shocking case, but no one dared to mention it, no one dared to touch it.
Even such a daring character as Gu Cangping only dared to save the country in a roundabout way, using this case to attack his political enemies.
Yes, I dare not touch the mastermind behind the scenes, but how did this mastermind know the whereabouts of the Crown Prince?
This can be investigated, right?
How did the mastermind collude with the two great devils of the cultivation world? This can be investigated, right?
If this investigation continued, it would be terrible.
It was equivalent to the officials of the Crown Prince holding the imperial sword in their hands, possessing great power. They could thoroughly investigate any officials in the court except the Emperor, including all the princes and marquises.
That kind of situation was absolutely not what the Crown Prince's enemies wanted to see.
But if an official stood up to oppose it, it was simply courting death.
The Crown Prince was assassinated, and you actually opposed the investigation?
What do you want to do?
Do you have a guilty conscience?
Confess without being pressed?
Agree, it was equivalent to Tai Ah, sending someone a divine weapon to kill him; oppose, it was equivalent to giving someone a handle and walking into a trap.
For a moment, the officials of the Fourth Prince's faction gasped, looking at Gu Cangping as if they were looking at a devil.
This was Gu Cangping's open plot!
No matter what he chose, he would still fall into his trap!
Zhang Datong was the spiritual leader of the Crown Prince's officials, Ning Tongyi was the chief think tank of the Crown Prince's national decision-making, and Gu Cangping, a middle-level official, was able to become one of the core members of the Crown Prince's group because of his unpredictable and overt plots!
For a moment, the court fell into a momentary silence, so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
Following that, the officials of the Crown Prince's faction were all overjoyed. They stepped forward and said, "This subject agrees!"
"This subject agrees as well!"
"I agree, Your Majesty, please investigate this matter thoroughly!"
"We second the motion!"
For a moment, a terrifying tide quickly swept through the imperial court. It seemed that the officials of the Fourth Prince's faction were about to lose their helmets and armor and be utterly defeated.
At this moment, the greatest weakness of the Fourth Prince's faction was exposed: the power of the imperial court was far inferior to that of the Crown Prince's faction.
It was just like how the greatest flaw of the Crown Prince's faction was the lack of support from the cultivation world. As a result, they had never had the support of a powerful, high-end combat force to back them up. When they encountered an audacious assassination attempt, they almost lost everything.
The Fourth Prince's flaw was exactly the opposite of the Crown Prince's. Although the Fourth Prince had the support of the Cosmos God Cult, compared to the Crown Prince's official connections and prestige, the Fourth Prince seemed very weak. In the imperial court, the Fourth Prince was like a younger brother.
The Daqi imperial court was similar to the system of three provinces and six ministries. The official system was complicated and huge, but to put it simply, the Secretariat was similar to the Cabinet, an institution in charge of confidential matters and issuing government decrees.
Among them, there were five Prime Ministers, one Prime Minister, two Prime Ministers, and two Deputy Prime Ministers.
When the Emperor did not attend the minor court meeting, three of the five Prime Ministers would take turns to be on duty. When the Emperor attended the major court meeting, the five Prime Ministers had to be on duty unless there was a special reason. The Cabinet formed by these five Prime Ministers was directly responsible to the Emperor or the Crown Prince. They provided the Emperor or the Crown Prince with policy suggestions, and thus decided where this huge empire should go.
The Secretariat was responsible for attending to the Emperor's left and right, advising and responding to various matters. When the Emperor went out, the Secretariat was responsible for matters such as attending to the Emperor. It was easy for the Emperor to get wind of things. It had a huge influence, but it did not have much real power.
The Secretariat was the entire Empire's bureaucratic hub, the highest government authority. The Ministry of Personnel, Ministry of Revenue, Ministry of Rites, Ministry of War, Ministry of Justice, and Ministry of Works, these six ministries were established under the Secretariat. The Ministers of these six ministries were the highest administrative officials, second only to the Prime Minister.
When the Prime Minister helped the Emperor make decisions, and the Emperor issued his decree, they decided where the empire should go.
The Cosmos God Cult had been operating for many years, and their tentacles had long stretched into the imperial court. Although they could not be officials, it did not prevent them from influencing and controlling some officials to lean towards them.
Among them, the Cabinet's Prime Minister, Yang He, was an extremely rare lone official in Daqi. He was neither an official under the Crown Prince nor the Fourth Prince's faction, loyal only to the Emperor.
The two Prime Ministers belonged to the Crown Prince's faction, and the remaining two Deputy Prime Ministers were supported by the Cosmos God Cult and the Fourth Prince's faction.
Although the Prime Minister had decision-making power in the Cabinet, he did not have veto power. Compared to the Prime Minister, who had veto power, the Prime Minister was like a younger brother. The Deputy Prime Minister's position in the Cabinet was even worse. He only had the right to make suggestions and speak, but had no decision-making power.
The remaining six Ministers of the Ministry of Appointments, Ministry of Revenue, and Ministry of War were firmly controlled by Emperor Zhao Bairen. The Crown Prince's faction controlled the Ministers of the Ministry of Rites, Ministry of Justice, and Ministry of Works. Even the Assistant Ministers of the Ministry of Appointments, Ministry of Revenue, and Ministry of War were in their hands.
In the six ministries, the Assistant Minister was second only to the Minister, wielding great power.
From this, one could see the Crown Prince's influence in the imperial court!
The biggest problem with the Fourth Prince's faction was that their brain was Dong Daoming, and this person … was not even a ninth-grade official. He was only the Fourth Prince's chief of staff, and his identity could not even be seen in public.
Almost all of the Fourth Prince's strategies were proposed by him alone, whereas on the Crown Prince's side, the brain of the Crown Prince's faction, Gu Cangping, was in the court. Not only could he hide behind the scenes, he could also go into battle at critical times.
The moment he appeared, he immediately played the role of rising to the top. The Crown Prince's faction moved with the wind, stirring up a storm, creating an astonishing momentum.
On the other hand, the Fourth Prince's faction was like a group of dragons without a leader. Even if there were objections, they did not dare to speak out.
At this time, the five Cabinet Ministers were like clay puppets playing dead, not saying a word, as if the court's affairs had nothing to do with them.
The six ministries' Ministers and Assistant Ministers were even more indifferent. They were high-ranking officials, they would not easily get involved. Once they got involved, it was equal to losing an important position, a heavy loss.
Seeing that the Crown Prince's side was about to make the final decision, the Fourth Prince's Deputy Prime Minister, Ma Ce, became anxious. He turned his head slightly and winked at an official in the fourth row behind him.
The official understood and braced himself to come out and said loudly, "I request that Taiyang Governor Li Tian be strictly investigated for neglecting his duties and harming the people!
This heartless official is still wearing a black veil. It is a disgrace to Daqi. I hope Your Majesty will investigate clearly! "
This official did not dare to go against Gu Cangping's overt plot. He could only turn the spearhead and shoot the other Crown Prince's faction where it hurt the most, in order to achieve the goal of besieging Wei to rescue Zhao.
What kind of person was Gu Cangping? How could he not respond?
Gu Cangping's eyes widened and his aura was astonishing. He scolded sternly, "We are discussing the matter of the Crown Prince's whereabouts being leaked, and investigating the mastermind colluding with Jue Wuji and Old Demon Lei Yun to assassinate the Crown Prince!
Li Zhuohua, you are confusing the public, what are your intentions?
Could it be that you have a guilty conscience? "
As expected, once this accusation was put on him, Li Zhuohua immediately knelt down and kowtowed, "I dare not!
I only request Your Majesty to investigate the case of Governor Li Tian! "
Gu Cangping immediately said, "Then we will discuss it later!
At this time, we should first discuss this matter! "
After saying this, Gu Cangping knelt before Zhao Bairen and said, "Your Majesty, please investigate clearly!"
One of the Fourth Prince's Supervising Censor jumped out and pointed at Gu Cangping, angrily rebuking, "Treacherous!
Gu Cangping, you colluded with hundreds of officials with ulterior motives!
Are you trying to force me to abdicate?
Is this the etiquette of a subject? "
Gu Cangping's expression did not change. He said loudly, "What I said is the will of the people and the general trend!
How is this forcing me to abdicate?
If Your Majesty feels that I am being rude, I will kill myself on the spot in front of this Nine Dragon Pillar! "
After saying this, Gu Cangping lowered his head and was about to ram into a huge stone pillar beside him.
Zhao Bairen hurriedly said, "Aiya, nonsense, nonsense!
Stop him, stop him! "
Li Chengfeng was the last to see everything clearly. Although he was a layman, he could see that the officials of the Crown Prince's faction had already won a great victory. Gu Cangping's immortal-like attack had struck the Fourth Prince's faction's soft spot. It was an angle that they did not expect at all, causing all their preparations to go up in smoke. Helpless, they were forced into a corner by Gu Cangping, making a fool of themselves.
Zhao Bairen then said, "This is no small matter, we must investigate it to the end!
However, I heard that there was a righteous cultivator who saved the Crown Prince along the way. Was this person in the hall? "
This was nonsense. Without the Emperor's summons, how could Li Chengfeng appear here?