In the grand hall, the Prefect of the Capital and the Minister of the Supreme Court knelt on the ground, not daring to raise their heads.
It was the second time the young emperor had flown into a rage today. The memorials were scattered on the ground, but no one dared to touch them.
The imposing aura of the one on the throne weighed heavily on everyone's hearts, making them dare not show any defiance. Even those who had been hit on the head by the thrown memorials, bleeding, did not dare to move.
"I've really raised a bunch of useless fools like you! You can't even figure out such a simple matter. What's the use of you?"
The Minister of the Supreme Court gritted his teeth. As the situation was urgent, he had to report the clues they had found.
"We've almost exhausted all the initial clues, but no matter what we do, we just can't find out where those missing colleagues ended up."
Hearing this, the young emperor let out a cold laugh.
"Is it because you're all incompetent, or is it really impossible to find any clues? What? Do you want me to investigate this myself? Then what's the use of having you lot?"
The Minister of the Supreme Court was so retorted that he couldn't say a single word. He bit his lip, his face turning bright red.
"Your Majesty is right to scold us."
Seeing his brother being scolded like this, the Prefect of the Capital couldn't help but speak up for him.
"Your Majesty, it's not that we're incompetent. It's just that the disappearances of these colleagues are extremely strange. Some disappeared right at home, while others vanished out of the blue on the street."
Ji Heng frowned, and a look of suspicion appeared on his young face.
If it was just a coincidence once, the disappearance of five or six officials this time couldn't be a coincidence.
After calming down, he began to question seriously.
"Do these officials' disappearances have anything in common?"
The Minister of the Supreme Court being questioned quickly took out a prepared memorial from his bosom.
"This is what we've compiled during the investigation. We hope it will be helpful for this case."
After he finished speaking, a junior official suddenly stepped forward and said something that made everyone even more worried.
"Your Majesty, this matter must never be made public. Otherwise, it will surely cause a panic in the city of Changjing."
Everyone present wasn't a fool. They all knew how important the public's trust was for this city.
The young emperor was looking at the memorial while glancing at the Prefect of the Capital. "You didn't even manage to keep the most basic confidentiality, did you?"
Hearing this, the Prefect of the Capital quickly replied, "We definitely did, Your Majesty. Please rest assured. We'll keep this news a secret even if it means rotting it in our stomachs. We'll never let outsiders know."
Just as the young emperor was about to nod, he suddenly heard a guard shouting outside.
"Your Majesty! It's bad! Something terrible has happened!"
Seeing a guard stumble into the grand hall, anger immediately appeared on the young emperor's face.
"As a member of the palace, how could you be so reckless? If the common people saw this, do you think they would still trust this court?"
The guard had no choice. As the situation was urgent, he couldn't care about these trivialities.
"Your Majesty, there are many common people at the palace gate. They said that if Your Majesty doesn't come out today and explain the disappearances of those officials, they won't leave."
The young emperor looked at the person kneeling and trembling in the grand hall with a puzzled expression. As if he understood something, his face turned cold.
"Didn't you say you kept it a secret? Then why do the common people know about it? Can you bear the crime of deceiving the emperor?"
The Prefect of the Capital was on the verge of crying. He had clearly told his subordinates to keep it a secret. Why were there still rumors spreading?
"Your Majesty, how dare I deceive you? I did tell my subordinates to keep it a secret. It must be someone who couldn't keep their mouth shut. Your Majesty, please rest assured. I'll definitely get to the bottom of this when I get back and give you an explanation."
Another memorial hit him, but the Prefect of the Capital didn't even dare to make a sound.
The young emperor took a deep breath. He knew that even if he killed them all here, it wouldn't solve the problem.
"Fine. Let's go out and take a look first. We can't just leave those common people at the city gate."
After he finished speaking, all the ministers followed him out of the palace gate. Just as they reached the gate, they saw a person about to run into them. Fortunately, the young emperor reacted quickly and stopped the person in time.
But when he let go, he found that it was a little girl about his own age.
Steadying the little girl, the young emperor spoke in a solemn voice.
"Who are you? Why do you want to run into the palace gate? Do you know what the consequences will be?"
The little girl's shoulders were trembling, and her eyes were red. She looked like a frightened little rabbit.
"Are you the emperor?"
As soon as this question came out, everyone around changed their expressions.
Fu Lu raised his eyebrows and stepped forward to scold sharply, "How dare you! How do you talk to the emperor?"
Hearing this, the girl seemed to be frightened. She took a few steps back in fear and then fell to the ground. Before everyone could react, she burst into tears.
This scene took everyone by surprise. They didn't expect the little girl to be so fragile.
The young emperor rubbed his forehead, feeling a little annoyed.
"Why are you crying? I didn't bully you."
The little girl cried even harder after being shouted at.
Just then, a noblewoman suddenly rushed out of the crowd. If it weren't for the aura she exuded and her luxurious clothes, they really wouldn't be able to associate this woman with the word "noblewoman."
The noblewoman quickly knelt in front of the young emperor, afraid that this Son of Heaven would kill her only daughter if he was in a bad mood.
"Your Majesty, please forgive us. My daughter didn't mean to do it. She doesn't understand the rules. Qingqing, quickly apologize to the emperor."
The little girl named Qingqing was pale, biting her lower lip tightly. Tears kept falling, making it really hard for people to blame her.
The young emperor had no choice but to make peace.
"Alright. Judging from your clothes and the way you talk, you're probably the wife of an official in the palace. Next time, take better care of your daughter. Don't let her come out and cry all the time. Not everyone is as magnanimous as I am."
They thought that the noblewoman would take her daughter and leave after hearing this, but the result was always contrary to expectations.
She pulled her daughter and knelt on the ground with a thud. "Your Majesty, please uphold justice for me. My husband has never offended anyone. He has always been upright and kind, and he has never even been involved in corruption. Now, we can't even find his body. I really don't know what to do..."
Towards the end, the noblewoman was sobbing uncontrollably. Well, now the young emperor understood why this little girl could cry so much. It turned out to be hereditary.
However, he suddenly thought of something. His eyes narrowed slightly, and he picked up the conversation. "So you made this matter public and got all the common people in Changjing to come here and force me?"