Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

Chapter 249: Prepare to deceive people

"Master He? Master He?"

Seeing that He Peng's face looked strange, Chu Ning narrowed his eyes and a cold light flashed across them.

The craftsman who made the repeating crossbow was under the supervision of He Peng. If it was really this person who passed on the method of making the repeating crossbow, they would be able to follow the clues and catch the murderer behind the scenes.

When He Peng came to his senses, his face was full of panic, cold sweat was pouring down, his hands and feet were cold, and a chill rose from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.

"Pfft!"

He Peng suddenly knelt on the ground, wiping the cold sweat from his right hand, and said in a trembling voice: "Your Highness, this matter... Please allow me to report this matter in detail."

"Oh? Details?"

Chu Ning raised his eyebrows and became interested: "I wonder when I can scare Lord He into this state?"

He Peng explained with a wry smile: "This matter started when Your Highness made the crossbow. After the 3,000 craftsmen lent to Your Highness came back, eight of them disappeared one after another!

These eight people just happen to be able to make a process for the manufacture of repeating crossbows, but I was worried that Your Majesty would blame me at the time, so I did not report the matter.

Now that I think about it, someone must have deliberately captured those eight craftsmen and asked them to make the crossbows, and then used them to shoot and kill the Great Zhou soldiers last night, and put the blame on Your Highness."

As soon as these words came out, Chu Ning's face became extremely gloomy, like the prelude to a storm.

Although he didn't say anything, He Peng, who was kneeling on the ground, felt an invisible pressure, and cold sweat immediately soaked his back.

The atmosphere in the hall was weird.

He Peng was worried that Chu Ning would blame him, so he knelt on the ground and trembled.

Chu Ning had a cold face and his eyes flashed with coldness. It was unknown what he was thinking about.

After a moment, Chu Ning glanced at He Peng and snorted coldly: "In order not to take responsibility, Lord He almost killed me!"

"Please forgive me, Your Highness. I have absolutely no intention of targeting you." He Peng was panicked, and the sweat on his face kept dripping to the ground.

Although he didn't believe Chu Ning would dare to kill him, given Chu Ning's character, if he really wanted to kill him, he would definitely suffer physical pain.

Fortunately, at this moment, Zhao Yu's voice came from outside the palace: "Your Highness, the Grand Duke of Jin wants to see you."

What does Yang Xingye want to see me for at this time?

Chu Ning was a little surprised, but still said loudly: "Let Prince Consort Yang come in."

After saying that, Chu Ning glanced at He Peng who was still kneeling on the ground, and said in a cold voice: "You should immediately tell Lord Ling, the Minister of Justice, about the disappearance of the craftsman. I will come to you after I finish dealing with things here."

"I obey your command." He Peng breathed a sigh of relief and quickly stood up and left.

As soon as he left, Yang Xingye came in from outside the hall.

"I have met His Royal Highness the King of Chu!"

"Prince Yang, there's no need to be so polite. Come, serve the tea!"

Chu Ning and Yang Xingye exchanged polite words and then took their seats.

Without waiting for Chu Ning to speak, Yang Xingye bowed and said, "I came here to bid farewell to His Royal Highness the King of Chu.

The masks have been counted, and our delegation has packed their bags and will leave for home today."

As soon as these words came out, a strange look flashed in Chu Ning's eyes.

Yang Xingye and Princess Gaoping are both my agents, and they are also my partners in the facial mask business.

Now that Princess Gaoping has just been killed, Yang Xingye can't wait to leave. It is impossible to say that he is not a suspect.

Killing Princess Gaoping would allow Yang Xingye to obtain the facial masks in Princess Gaoping's hands. With more facial masks, he could sell them for more silver after returning to the State of Jin.

Moreover, once Princess Gaoping dies, from now on I can only do business with Yang Xingye!

Thinking of this, Chu Ning suddenly smiled and said, "Prince Consort Yang has obtained so many facial masks, it is only right that he should return to China early to sell them.

However, Prince Consort Yang already knows that Princess Gaoping was killed last night. This prince is responsible for investigating this matter. No one can leave Kyoto before the matter is thoroughly investigated. "

Yang Xingye was stunned.

Then reacted.

Chu Ning doubts himself!

"Your Highness, do you think that I killed Princess Gaoping?"

Yang Xingye's face darkened, and his tone was somewhat unfriendly: "You don't want me to leave, so is Your Highness still trying to take me to the Ministry of Justice?"

Being suspected for no reason, Yang Xingye felt extremely upset.

Chu Ning noticed Yang Xingye's displeasure and a hint of doubt flashed through his mind.

Could it really not be this person who did it?

However, although Yang Xingye is a pretty good person, he was born into a business family after all, so he must be able to hide his expressions and pretend easily.

It is possible that this person is deliberately misleading me!

Chu Ning rolled his eyes, chuckled and soothed, "Prince Consort Yang, don't be angry. I am not targeting you alone. All envoys are not allowed to leave at this moment!

But don't worry, my father has given me half a month. If I can't find out by then, I will be punished. Then Prince Consort Yang can leave on his own."

"Half a month?"

Yang Xingye's expression softened and he said, "If you only wait for half a month, this prince consort is not unacceptable, but there is one condition, I hope Your Highness will agree to it."

Chu Ning grinned: "Just say it!"

Yang Xingye said calmly, "If we find the murderer of Princess Gaoping, we will definitely find the lost facial masks. I hope Your Highness can sell the masks to me then!"

"This……"

Chu Ning's face showed a tangled look, his brows were furrowed, and he said in a deep voice: "After all, the lost mask was bought by Princess Gaoping. It would be inappropriate to sell it to Prince Consort Yang, and it would be difficult for me to explain to the Queen of Great Zhou.

However, I can assure you that another batch of facial masks will arrive in half a month, about 10,000 bottles, and I will sell them all to Prince Consort Yang at that time."

In order to keep Yang Xingye, he had to spend a lot of money.

Fortunately, the facial mask business with Yang Xingye is profit-sharing, so even if Yang Xingye sells it, I can still get a share of the money.

The most urgent task is to stabilize this person first!

As long as Yang Xingye agreed to stay, the other envoys would definitely not dare to leave Kyoto City at this time.

When Yang Xingye heard that there were 10,000 bottles of facial masks, he hesitated for a moment and nodded, saying, "Since Your Highness is so sincere, I will wait for another half a month!"

After saying this, Yang Xingye stood up and saluted: "I will go back to the posthouse to give orders. Goodbye!"

"I will not send Prince Consort Yang off. Zhao Yu, please help me loosen up Prince Consort Yang."

Under Chu Ning's instructions, Zhao Yu took Yang Xingye out.

Chu Ning was the only one left in the hall, lost in thought.

After a moment, Chu Ning suddenly asked towards the back hall: "Wanying, who do you think is the murderer behind this?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Wanying walked out slowly from the back hall.

A trace of worry appeared on her delicate face. With a sigh, Shen Wanying shook her head and said, "At present, the prince's suspicion can be ruled out."

After a pause, she sighed and said, "Judging from the fact that the other party wants you to fight the prince, it is most likely one of the sixteen princes!

However, we cannot rule out the possibility that those envoys would also want you to fight the prince."

Chu Ning nodded slightly, a cold light flashed in his eyes: "No matter who it is, I must find him out!"

"Come here, immediately pass on my order that all envoys are not allowed to leave Kyoto. Also, send someone to monitor their every move around the clock!"

After hearing this, Shen Wanying looked surprised.

"Once this order is passed down, do you know that all the envoys will report you to the emperor?"

Chu Ning grinned: "I just want to see their reactions. Of course, what's more important is whether the other princes will take any action."

This time, he wants to use himself as bait!

I haven't cheated anyone for a long time. Do these people really think that I am easy to bully?