The revitalization of the Tang Dynasty began with the Ganlu Incident.

Chapter 101: A Big Fish Emerges

As the Lunar New Year approaches, the inner palace of the Zichen Palace remains brightly lit late into the night.

"Everyone, based on the information we've gathered so far, the incident outside the Waiting-for-Leaks Courtyard was definitely not instigated by Du Cong."

Qi Baozhen stood to the side, respectfully handing over the secret report in his hand, and said.

"This servant sent people to carefully investigate the backgrounds of these censors and the list of their associates. They discovered that long before Du Cong entered the capital, they had already begun to secretly collude and lobby officials in the capital to oppose the Shence Reforms."

Li Ang sat on his throne, frowning as he looked at the several secret reports that had been delivered to him, and couldn't help but nod slightly.

That makes sense.

It should be noted that even someone like Li Deyu, in the early days after returning to the capital, stayed obediently in his own residence, at most visiting old friends and colleagues to learn about the situation in the capital.

Taking rash action without fully understanding the situation is definitely not the composure a mature politician should possess.

Although Du Cong was a relative of the emperor, he had been working in the officialdom for many years. The fact that he caused such a big incident as soon as he returned to the capital must have been due to some hidden story.

"So, Guo Zhonggong was the mastermind, and Du Cong was just an accomplice, right?"

Li Ang pondered for a moment, then asked.

If this wasn't something Du Cong wanted to do, then it could only be Guo Zhonggong, another key figure in the incident.

Actually, there were signs of this from the very beginning.

After all, these censors were colluded with by Guo Zhonggong. Although they were acting under Du Cong's name, if Guo Zhonggong himself was unwilling to do it, Du Cong would never have forced him to do it, given his dual status as Empress Dowager Guo's nephew and imperial son-in-law.

However, because Guo Zhonggong's official rank was much lower than Du Cong's, even Li Ang subconsciously overlooked this point.

But if that's the case, then things are probably even more serious.

Because Guo Zhonggong also had no reason to obstruct the implementation of the Shence reforms, unless... he was also acting under someone else's orders.

"How's the investigation at Xingqing Palace going?"

Li Ang asked the question, his tone unusually cautious.

If possible, he really didn't want to be enemies with the original owner's grandmother, who was also the Empress Dowager who had served several emperors in the harem.

Fortunately, Qi Baozhen's answer this time did not turn out in the worst possible way.

"Reporting to everyone, there are no problems at Xingqing Palace. I sent someone to investigate and found that Liang Chengmin has left the palace twice in recent days. Once was to meet with Minister Linghu Chu on behalf of Xue Jiling, and the other was when Princess Qiyang returned to the capital and summoned Her Highness to the palace."

"Apart from that, he never left Xingqing Palace in private again, and the Empress Dowager did not send anyone else to contact the ministers of the outer court."

"As for the Guo family, they have sent several letters of greeting to the palace these days, but the Empress Dowager has not replied..."

After hearing this, Li Ang finally felt a little relieved.

As long as Empress Dowager Guo herself doesn't get involved, things aren't too bad.

However, once this concern was resolved, the problem returned to square one.

Guo Zhonggong was merely a junior official in the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. Why would he take such a huge risk to interfere with such a major policy as the Shence Reform?

Li Ang lowered his gaze and looked at the secret report in front of him, his eyes quickly settling on a name.

"Guo...Zhongwen?"

Qi Baozhen lowered his head, his voice tinged with hesitation, and said, "Reporting to everyone, it is indeed General Guo Zhongwen of the Right Shence Army. According to the information we have found so far, he is involved in several major cases, including embezzlement of military supplies and illegal lending."

"These censors usually interacted with him frequently. In the days before Du Cong returned to the capital, Guo Zhongwen met and talked with Guo Zhonggong several times. Soon after, Guo Zhonggong contacted those censors and visited Du Cong after he returned to the capital."

"Judging from these signs, it is very likely that Guo Zhongwen was the one who instigated Guo Zhonggong."

This is really bad news...

Guo Zhongwen, Guo Zhonggong's elder brother and Empress Dowager Guo's favorite nephew, once falsely claimed the status of the eldest son and inherited the title of Duke of Taiyuan. Later, due to the accusation of the censor, his title was revoked and he was almost imprisoned and punished.

At that time, it was Empress Dowager Guo who personally intervened to plead for him, pardoning his crime and allowing him to return to officialdom. He was appointed as a military advisor in the Jingzhao Prefecture, and later served as a prince's attendant, general of the Right Jinwu Guard, and other positions. He is currently the general of the Right Shence Army.

As Li Ang silently reviewed Guo Zhongwen's resume in his mind, he felt a headache coming on, but at the same time, many of his long-standing doubts were finally resolved.

As a mere Vice Minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices, Guo Zhonggong had no reason to obstruct the reform of the Shence Army. However, Guo Zhongwen was different; he was in the Shence Army himself and appeared to be deeply involved.

Therefore, he had every motive to do something underhanded behind the scenes.

At the same time, the series of strange actions of Empress Dowager Guo and Du Cong can be explained.

As a descendant of the Guo family, and given his own lack of integrity, Guo Zhongwen certainly wouldn't dare to act on his own. That's why he sent his younger brother, Guo Zhonggong, the consort of Princess Jintang, to intervene.

With the protection of his status as the imperial son-in-law, even if the matter were exposed, Guo Zhonggong would certainly not be severely punished.

Moreover, because Guo Zhonggong's official rank was not high and he had no connection with the Shence Army, even if the investigation traced back to him, people would subconsciously feel that he was being used by someone.

Not to mention, the two brothers even dragged Du Cong down with them.

No wonder Du Cong was so dissatisfied with Empress Dowager Guo during this audience.

He must have thought that Guo Zhonggong and the others had initially implicated him at the behest of Empress Dowager Guo, only to discover at the last minute that he was merely a scapegoat who had been tricked.

Most importantly, regardless of whether Empress Dowager Guo knew about this beforehand, she did indeed abandon Du Cong in order to protect Guo Zhongwen and push him out to be the "mastermind behind the scenes".

It's unclear what role Princess Qiyang played in this process, and why the couple, who have always had a good relationship, would have such a big conflict over this matter.

Regardless of the circumstances, it should be certain that Guo Zhongwen is the real mastermind behind it all.

Although the matter was clarified, the problem actually became even more complicated.

Putting aside Guo Zhongwen's status as a relative of the imperial family, the presence of Empress Dowager Guo, a figure of great importance, is also involved.

The confession at Xingqing Palace was clearly an attempt by Empress Dowager Guo to make Du Cong take the blame and completely extricate Guo Zhongwen from the matter.

Now that everything has been settled in front of Empress Dowager Guo, if Li Ang insists on further investigating, it would undoubtedly be disrespectful to Empress Dowager Guo.

In addition, the Guo family itself had been cultivating its influence in the court for many years, with its disciples, old friends, and descendants spread throughout the court. Although Guo Zhongwen was not the head of the Guo family, he was still a key figure.

Moreover, Guo Zhongwen himself is also connected to the Imperial Guard system, so taking action against him would likely cause quite a stir.

Leaning back in his chair, Li Ang pondered intently for a moment. His thoughts were somewhat complicated. After a moment's hesitation, he put down the secret report in his hand and asked.

"Has the Jingzhao Prefecture investigated and reported Guo Zhongwen's case involving embezzlement and private lending?"

"This..." Qi Baozhen shook his head: "Replying to everyone, no."

Upon hearing this, Li Ang closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed himself down before speaking.

"Send men to summon Prime Minister Li Deyu, Prefect of Jingzhao Xue Yuanshang, Liu Hongyi, and Yang Qinyi!"