Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne
Chapter 117 - 110: Suicide Squad Assassination_2

Chapter 117: Chapter 110: Suicide Squad Assassination_2

The Emperor hurriedly arrived at Hulong Temple within an hour.

As soon as he reached Hulong Temple, the Emperor rushed to visit the Crown Prince.

Seeing that the Crown Prince only had an injured arm and no other injuries, the Emperor breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.

The Emperor expressed care and comforted the Crown Prince, which brought tears to the Crown Prince’s eyes, nearly causing him to cry.

The Crown Prince was genuinely aggrieved. He had been pampered since childhood, never facing hardship, let alone assassination attempts. It was his first encounter with assassins, and he almost lost his life. He was filled with shock, fear, anxiety, and grievance. While he could maintain his composure in front of Shen Hu and the others, he couldn’t hold back in front of his father, the Emperor.

The Emperor saw the Crown Prince’s aggrieved expression, close to tears, and slightly furrowed his brow, sighing helplessly in his heart, though his face still wore a benevolent fatherly smile.

"Rest well, I will go see Shen Hu and the others."

"Father, the eighth brother was stabbed twice by the assassin to save me. The Imperial Physician said his injuries are severe; won’t you go see him?" The Crown Prince knew the Emperor did not favor the eighth prince, but given the prince’s serious injuries for his sake, he felt he must do something for him.

Upon hearing this, the Emperor’s expression momentarily turned complex. He said nothing, turning to go to the eighth prince’s room. Just approaching the door, he could smell a strong scent of blood.

Yu Hai had been guarding beside the eighth prince’s bed and, seeing the Emperor arrive, quickly saluted him, "Greetings, Your Majesty."

The Emperor walked to the bedside, gazing at the pallid, frowning, and pained expression of the eighth prince.

"When will he wake up?"

The Imperial Physician, who had also been by the eighth prince’s side, quickly replied, "In response to Your Majesty, if the eighth prince has a fever today, he will not wake up. The wounds on the eighth prince’s abdomen are very deep; a fever is inevitable and it poses a danger. Once the eighth prince’s fever subsides, he will wake."

"Use the best medicine." Although the Emperor did not favor the eighth prince, he was still his son. "Take good care of him."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The Emperor observed the eighth prince for a while longer before turning to leave.

Shen Hu and Chu Ying were already kneeling at the eighth prince’s door. Upon seeing them, the Emperor kicked each of them.

Everyone was shocked by this action from the Emperor and knelt down in fear.

The Emperor’s face was dark, and his entire presence was intimidating: "I instructed you to protect the Crown Prince. Is this your idea of protection?"

Though the Emperor only kicked once, it wasn’t gentle.

Shen Hu and Chu Ying dared not show any expression of pain. They kneeled and sincerely begged for the Emperor’s forgiveness, "We were negligent, Your Majesty, please punish us."

"What’s the status on the assassins?" the Emperor interrogated coldly, "What have you discovered?"

Chu Ying respectfully answered, "The assassins are monks from Hulong Temple. They didn’t enter recently; some have been here for three months, some for six, and others for a year, doing odd jobs like sweeping, cooking, and fetching water."

Hearing this, the Emperor furrowed his brows, his tone chilling, "Premeditated?"

Shen Hu replied, "It appears so."

Chu Ying added, "The assassins haven’t confessed anything yet."

Shen Hu then said, "Your Majesty, the assassins are well-trained, their martial arts strange. They are likely suicide fighters."

The Emperor smirked, "The mastermind had patience, placing a suicide squad in Hulong Temple to wait for the Crown Prince’s visit to pray for the late Empress."

Having been by the Emperor’s side for ten or twenty years, Shen Hu and Chu Ying could tell from his tone that he was extremely angry. It made their scalps tingle.

"Do you have an idea of which family?"

"The Xie Family, Wang Family, Xun Family, Yuan Family, and Yu Family all seem likely."

"Oh, all of them?" The Emperor’s tone was unreadable.

With a stiff upper lip, Chu Ying said, "The suicide squad likely intentionally mimicked these families’ styles."

Shen Hu added, "The mastermind knows these families’ suicide fighters well and deliberately had the assassins use their strange martial arts."

"Stirring trouble?" The Emperor slightly squinted, appearing both cold and dangerous, "I don’t care what methods you use, extract a confession from the assassins quickly."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

The Emperor cast a cold glance at Shen Hu and Chu Ying, "Go and receive your punishment."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Shen Hu and Chu Ying obediently went to receive their flogging.

"Sun Kui."

"At your service."

"Investigate!" This command was filled with severity.

"Yes, as you command!"

"Where is the abbot of Hulong Temple?"

"He has been detained by General Shen and the others."

"Take me to see them."

The Crown Prince had not been well recently, and now traumatized by the assassin, he fell asleep as soon as he returned to his room. However, he did not sleep soundly, frequently dreaming of being chased by the assassin.

By dawn, news of the Crown Prince’s encounter with assassins had spread throughout the court.

Upon learning of the incident, Duke Zhen hurried to Hulong Temple.

The Emperor instructed Duke Zhen to join Shen Hu and the others in investigating the assassination attempt on the Crown Prince.

It was not until four units past the hare hour that the Emperor left Hulong Temple to return to the Imperial Palace.

As soon as Zhao Yao awoke in Kunde Hall, he heard about the Crown Prince’s assassination and the eighth prince’s severe injuries.

"I want to visit the Crown Prince and the eighth brother at Hulong Temple."

Liang Zhaoyi said, "Go with the fourth prince."

"Alright, I’ll go find the fourth brother immediately."

After washing up, Zhao Yao didn’t even bother with breakfast and went to find the fourth prince.

The fourth prince was also preparing to visit the Crown Prince at Hulong Temple. Seeing that Zhao Yao wanted to go, he brought him along. Not trusting Zhao Yao to ride alone, he had him sit on his horse. The Imperial Guard escorted them to Hulong Temple.

The third prince and others naturally also intended to visit Hulong Temple, but they set off later than Zhao Yao and the fourth prince.

Over half an hour later, Zhao Yao and the fourth prince arrived at Hulong Temple.

First, they went to see the Crown Prince, whose pallor and exhaustion worried them, so they comforted him. Afterwards, the Crown Prince took them to see the eighth prince.

Stepping into the eighth prince’s room, they were hit by a strong scent of blood and bitter medicine.

Zhao Yao ran over immediately upon seeing the eighth prince’s pale face lying on the bed, anxiously calling, "Eighth brother... eighth brother... eighth brother..." Despite calling out repeatedly, the eighth prince showed no response. He urgently asked, "How is the eighth brother?"

"Your Highness, the prince is still feverish." The eighth prince had started to run a fever shortly after falling unconscious and hadn’t cooled yet, meaning the eighth prince remained in great danger.