Imperial City; The Imperial Palace

Elder Wang was deeply suspicious of the events that took place in Elder Chen's son's Manor. Elder Chen was no hothead. Elder Chen was a sly slippery cunning wolf that survived dozens of years of schemes of the Imperial court and was also the coordinator and perpetrator of many vicious schemes.

Elder Chen was once the Prime Minister of the Tolling Lands. He once clasped the power of the Imperial court in the palms of his hands. More than one-third of the Officials and Ministers of the Imperial court owed the Chen Family a favor or two. So how was it Elder Chen was caught red-handed so simply!? Something was wrong! Although Elder Wang sent Imperial Guards to arrest Elder Chen. Elder Wang didn't even attempt to trap or scheme Elder Chen only to arrest him. So what was this?!

The Shadow Warriors that performed the investigation for the melded ore blood storm were suspicious of the Chen Families' involvement in the Melded Ore conspiracy. However, the shadow warriors we unable to find any evidence of the Chen Family involvement. Elder Wang did issue an order for the arrest of Elder Chen. However, Elder Chen was not being arrested for being involved in the Melded Ore conspiracy.

An arrest for Elder Chen was issue after finding solid proof of Elder Chen's involvement in the conspiracy of the framing of the four martial families and conspiring behind the scenes in the plot of triggering a rebellion that caused the death of the previous emperor.

Correspondences written by Elder Chen in Elder Chen's own hand conspiring and contriving the scheme of the rebellion and framing the four martial families were retrieved from the house of the former Prime Minister.

Although Elder Chen had retired from the court years ago. Who didn't know of the subtle, quiet power of Elder Chen who looked harmless but in fact, was a wolf in sheep clothing? Every official and Minister of the court knew that the only reason the Chen family survived the long vicious, violent feud with a family that was almost three times the size of the Chen family was due to the deep schemes of the harmless-looking insidious Elder Chen.

Elder Chen slowly ground down the once-powerful Family and almost schemed them into annihilation. The name of that Family was the Hàn Family. Although the Hàn Family wasn't as powerful as the four martial families. Their power wasn't that far behind the four martial families. However, by the time Elder Chen finished scheming against the Hàn Family. One by one, they were all killed. Although everyone knew who was behind the schemes. The slippery cunning Elder Chen was never caught in action. Nor was anyone able to find evidence to prove it was him.

Elder Chen's schemes were vicious and harmless looking. His schemes rivaled that of the First Lady of Wang Royal Manor. Many fell victim to the schemes of Elder Chen and never lived long enough to know why they died. Most never even knew they fell to a scheme of Elder Chen even after they died.

Elder Chen's specialty was killing with a borrowed knife. In the majority of his schemes, he never got his hands dirty. He was very good at finding people who had a grudge against his enemies. He would work behind the scenes and push that person with a grudge to the front using a borrowed knife to eliminate his enemies. Everyone would know it was the scheming Elder Chen at work. However, because Elder Chen never used his own knife to kill and always used the knives of others to do his dirty work. No evidence could ever be found to convict him.

Long have the Imperial Family suspected Elder Chen and the Chen family of many crimes. Unfortunately, they just were never able to catch Elder Chen in the act. Elder Chen's always set someone up to take the fall and escaped punishment. This is why Elder Wang was so deeply perplexed. When the Imperial Guards broke down the gates of Elder Chen's son's Manor. The Chen Family Guards were already dressed in battle gear.

However, the Imperial City was sealed, and Elder Chen was not foolish enough to challenge a city full of Imperial Warrior with just over four thousand Warrior. Elder Wang knew he was missing the bigger picture, and before the day was done, he aimed to find out what that picture was.

All documentation and letters salvaged from Elder Chen's son's Manor was immediately given to the Imperial clerks. Elder Chen had already long summoned the Imperial Clerks specifically for this task. Upon receiving the documents and letters, the Imperial Clerks immediately began carefully going through everything.

Many of the documents and letters were damaged. However, Elder Chen had commanded for the Imperial Clerks to carefully go through every single document and letter that was retrieved. So the Imperial Clerk proceeded to do so. They didn't dare to slack off. Every single document was carefully inspected and reviewed.

The Emperor and Wang Fèn Yǒng had no time to rest from their travels. An emergency meeting with the Grand Prince, the Emperor, Elder Wang, Wang Fèn Yǒng, and the First Lady of Wang Royal Manor was held at dawn. Elder Wang explained to everyone what happened as the Imperial family sat at a high table in the corner of the Emperor's work studio drinking tea.

It's was the cunning first Lady of Wang Royal Manor who said. "I suspect you caught him as he was about to flee the Imperial City."

Elder Wang's eyes turned piercing as he looked at his Granddaughter in law. He paused to think about what she just said. In the silence. Muffled sounds of celebration and fireworks were heard coming from outside.

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With a slight frown on his face, the Emperor called "Cùn Yīn."

Following the sound of his call, a Shadow Warrior appeared in the room. "Your Majesty," the shadow warrior answered bowing before the Emperor.

"What is going out there?" The Emperor inquired.

"The Citizens have taken to the streets. They are celebrating the unsealing of the Imperial City, Your majesty." The Shadow Warrior replied.

"I understand," the emperor said. Understanding that the Emperor was dismissing him, the Shadow Warrior bowed and retreated.

Wang Fèn Yǒng, who agreed with his Imperial mother, said, "Send the Imperial Guards back, now is the time while the citizens are celebrating. Have the Imperial Guards seal off the whole area around Chen's Manor. Send enough Imperial Guards that they can quickly seal off the whole manor and dig it up. I guarantee you will find a tunnel that leads from Elder Chen's son's manor to the outside of the city."

The Emperor nodded with a grim smile on his face. "That sounds about right," the Emperor said. "Elder Chen is daring enough to do it. I wouldn't put it past him to do it. However, I want solid proof. Grand Prince, I will put you over this project. Mid-afternoon, I will be addressing the Imperial City. I will also call for the convening of an emergency court session. Will you have an answer for me by then?" The Emperor asked.

"I will have an answer for you before then." The Grand Prince firmly responded.

"I don't need it as proof to condemn Elder Chen. We have enough to do that. However, when it comes to dealing with Elder Chen. I've learned not to only follow my own assumptions but to also have proof. I want solid proof of everything regarding this matter. For years we have been chasing Elder Chen's tail unable to catch him. Now that he is in my grasp, I want no errors. I want evidence and proof of everything."

The Emperor looked over to Elder Wang and said, "Imperial Grandfather, thank you for taking the initiative to arrest Elder Chen. If Elder Chen had escaped the Imperial City through a secret hidden tunnel. With as cunning as Elder Chen is, he would have fled to a neighboring country. I suspect it would've been years before we were able to catch him. Who knows how many secrets he would give up and how much damage he would cause in the process of seeking asylum with a neighboring country." The Emperor said in a grim, hard voice.

The Grand Prince looked at the Emperor and said, "Long have you, and I suspect his involvement in Imperial Father's death. It's just no matter how we secretly dug for information. We were never able to find anything to pin on him. For years we had to tolerate him and turn a blind eye to his schemes," The Grand Prince said in a bitter hard voice.

"In the former Prime Ministers letters of correspondence with Elder Chen. Elder Chen did not attempt to conceal his alliance with the Prime Minister, the former Minister of Justice, and the Minister of personal. His involvement in triggering a rebellion and framing the four Military Families that were once the pillars of the country can no longer be hidden. However, I think he miscalculated in allying with the Prime Minister. What I find more astonishing than anything else is he actually left letters he wrote in his own hand in possession of the Prime Minister." Elder Wang said.

"What if he thought that the Prime Minister was disposing of the letters? Isn't that the unwritten agreement among schemers? I personally believe that he assume the letters were being destroyed. Had he know the Prime Minister was keeping his letter, I firmly believe he would have eliminated Prime Minister Peng." The Grand Price said.

"I agree," Lady Wǔ Gāng Huā said. "That is why we were never able to catch him. He was well known for leaving no evidence behind."

"The Prime Minister is known for killing with a borrowed knife. For some reason, I am starting to think that the rebellion and the conspiracy to frame the rebellion on the four martial families was Elder Chen's idea, and Elder Chen used the former Prime Minister to carry it out. It really breaks my heart that he was so successful." Elder Wang looked at the Emperor and sadly said, "I really wish that I had listened more closely to you during that time."

"I still feel that we are missing many pieces of the puzzle," Wang Fèn Yǒng said in his normal cold voice. Everyone's eyes turned to Wang Fèn Yǒng as he began speaking. "I feel Elder Chen should be interrogated forcefully. I also feel that Elder Chen was the one behind the Prime Minister. I feel that Elder Chen pushed Prime Minister Peng to instigate the rebellion and frame it on the four martial families. Elder Chen was the one who promote the Prime Minister to power. Before that no one even knew of the Prime Minister." Wang Fèn Yǒng cold voiced reasoning began to change the atmosphere in the Emperor's work studio.

"The Prime Minister deliberately colluded with Prince Jing and other outside forces over a long period of time. Why? What was his relationship with Prince Jing? Did Elder Chen know of this as well? Was Elder Chen also involved with selling out the country to outside forces?" Wang Fèn Yǒng words started to make everyone think more in-depth into the matter.

"The question I am interested in having answered is Why? Why bring the Prime Minister into power? What was Elder Chen's price for giving Prime Minster Peng his power? Was it the destruction of the four families? What was the grudge that the Prime Minister had against the four families that he allowed Elder Chen to wield him as the knife that destroyed the four families. I can't help but feel we are missing a deeper, darker picture of the unholy alliance between the Prime Minister and Elder Chen." Troubled expressions appeared on the faces of everyone at the questions Wang Fèn Yǒng asked.

"Knowing that Prime Minster Peng and Elder Chen had a previous alliance, I am all the more convinced that Elder Chen also knew what was going on with Veiled Mountain. He owned it after all. If he was aware all along that mean, he deliberately sold the mountain. No one can convince me that Elder Chen didn't know what the result would be if he sold the mountain. He broke his alliance with Prime Minister Peng by selling the mountain. The selling of the mountain is what triggered everything. I want to know why." Wang Fèn Yǒng concluded.

A deep dark silence reigned in the Emperor's work-study as everyone began thinking deeper into the whole matter.

A short while late, Elder Wang looked at the Emperor, "Your Majesty, I ask that you grant me permission to interrogate Elder Chen and his sons until I get the answers to those questions. This is something we need to know. It would bode ill if we unknowingly step on any landmines that Prime Minister Peng left behind and that Elder Chen will leave behind." Elder Wang said in a gloomy, grim voice.

"Granted," The Emperor responded.

"Good" Elder Wang said, "I will sure to make a production of asking for your permission once again later on in court in front of the nobles and officials."