Traveling through the emperor, overthrowing the empress dowager at the beginning

above the hall.

The imperial guards stepped forward and took Qi Gongtai away.

"Prime Minister!"

Qi Gongtai shouted as he was about to be taken away.

Yang Dechang immediately stood up.

"Your Majesty, Minister Qi is likely unaware of this matter. I have worked with him for many years and know that he is loyal and upright. He has always enforced the law impartially and would never be involved in plundering the people."

"Oh, Prime Minister Yang, whether it is related or not, we will know after the imperial guards interrogate him."

Ye Chen smiled coldly. Even if he was unaware, he would be judged as incompetent.

But it's much better than confessing guilt.

Yang Dechang was trying his best to protect Qi Gongtai.

"Your Majesty, Minister Qi is, after all, an official appointed by the imperial court. Furthermore, arbitrary torture could be seen as forced confession. Minister Qi has served three dynasties and has always been diligent and hardworking. Even if he has no merits, he has certainly made great contributions."

Yang Dechang said again.

"Oh, what's the matter, Prime Minister Yang? Those miners suffered so much, and the dead were unaware of their own suffering. There are more than one mass grave in the Qinling Mountains. So many wronged souls, can a little hard work offset them?"

Ye Chen snorted coldly and slammed the dragon table.

"Go and dream."

Hearing this, a sharp look flashed in Yang Dechang's eyes.

"Your Majesty, ignorance is not to blame. If you impose a heavy sentence on Minister Qi just because he was ignorant, wouldn't that be inappropriate?"

Yang Dechang asked again.

"Oh, what's the matter, Prime Minister Yang? You are speaking so strongly for Qi Gongtai. Could it be that this matter is also related to you?"

"Could it be that you were the one who ordered the looting of the people of Gyeonggi to become miners?"

Ye Chen stared at Yang Dechang and asked.

Upon hearing this, Yang Dechang's face darkened.

"Your Majesty, this matter has nothing to do with this old minister."

"Then shut up!"

Ye Chen didn't give any face at all.

Yang Dechang's eyes became even more sinister.

"Aside from the Minister of Justice, all the officers in the Beijing Camp are also involved. It's time to reorganize this Beijing Camp!"

Ye Chen then continued.

It was like dropping a bombshell.

The whole court was in uproar.

"Your Majesty, this matter should have nothing to do with the Beijing Camp!"

Yang Dechang spoke in a calm tone, and was not surprised at all when facing Ye Chen's pursuit of responsibility.

"Every officer in the Beijing camp is loyal to the emperor and the country, abides by the law, and is loyal to Dayu. There is absolutely no reason for them to do such a illegal thing!"

After Yang Dechang finished speaking, many officials present nodded in agreement.

Ye Chen took in all of this scene, but he didn't care.

He also knew that the officers in the Beijing camp were all from wealthy and aristocratic families, and they had close ties with the officials in the capital.

"What a loyal man, what a law-abiding man."

Ye Chen narrowed his eyes and looked at Yang Dechang, saying, "Come here, bring Cao Tao up to me!"

Hearing this, Yang Dechang turned his head to look.

Soon, he saw Cao Tao, with shackles on his hands and feet, walking into the hall step by step.

Cao Tao was limping when he walked at this time. He was already injured after being beaten with a stick.

At this time, his hair was disheveled and he was wearing prison clothes, looking extremely miserable.

"You, you? You are the emperor?!"

As soon as Cao Tao entered the hall, his eyes widened

In his sight, the figure sitting on the dragon throne was not unfamiliar to him at all.

The commander of the imperial guards, who he had thought he could control at will, was now wearing a dragon robe and sitting on the dragon throne, exuding majesty and dominance from head to toe.

Cao Tao was shocked.

And in shock, his body began to tremble involuntarily.

"Pfft!"

Cao Tao fell to his knees, feeling that something was wrong.

Seeing this, Ye Chen asked calmly, "Cao Tao, do you admit your guilt?"

"I, I, I."

Cao Tao couldn't even finish a sentence for a moment. After all, he was captured by Ye Chen. Now he found out that Ye Chen was the emperor. Wouldn't everything he had done before be equated with regicide?

This is a serious sin!

"Cao Tao, this matter is of great importance and may involve your entire family. You must answer seriously!"

Yang Dechang's voice suddenly appeared.

His tone remained calm.

Cao Tao calmed himself down.

"Yes, yes, the emperor can't cover everything now. With Prime Minister Yang here, there's nothing to be afraid of."

Cao Tao looked up at Ye Chen cautiously.

"Your Majesty, I, your servant, am wronged!"

Hearing this, Ye Chen raised his eyebrows and asked, "Cao Tao, what's wrong with you?"

"Your Majesty, I, I am not aware of this. I only sent people to patrol the Qinling Mountains. Yes, patrolling, because bandits often appear in the Qinling Mountains, so I did this!"

Upon hearing this, Yang Dechang calmly bowed and said, "Your Majesty, Cao Tao is the legitimate son of Duke Fuguo, and has always been loyal to his country. The Duke has led troops stationed in the southern border for a long time, and has made great contributions."

"I, this old minister, also feel that General Cao would never do such a thing."

Hearing this, Ye Chen narrowed his eyes, but he understood that Yang Dechang was reminding him.

Cao Tao's father controls a large number of troops. It is not allowed to put Cao Tao in jail as long as Cao Tao does not plead guilty without sufficient evidence.

"Oh, Cao Tao, the Imperial Guards captured quite a few prisoners on the Qinling Mountains. Many of them are from your Beijing camp. Would they have done this without your approval?"

"You dare to say they were just conducting patrols? You dare to say you didn't know anything?"

Ye Chen's tone turned cold.

Even at this point, Cao Tao still dared to quibble.

"This this."

Cao Tao was sweating profusely for a while.

"Your Majesty, I have received news that someone is pretending to be a soldier from the Beijing camp and causing trouble in the Qinling Mountains. This is indeed a serious crime, but it has nothing to do with General Cao, and General Cao is indeed unaware of it."

Yang Dechang said again.

"Yes, Your Majesty, I was unaware of that. Those captives were not soldiers from my Beijing camp, absolutely not!"

Cao Tao said immediately.

"fart!"

Ye Chen's voice was like thunder, and the aura of an emperor emanated from his body, captivating everyone.

He stared into Cao Tao's eyes and said word by word, "Don't the Beijing troops have a roster? Can't I find it?"

"Besides, Cao Kun is your brother, right? How dare you say he's not from the Beijing Camp?"

Hearing this, Yang Dechang gave Cao Tao a look.

Cao Tao swallowed his saliva. Although he was terrified, he still replied, "Your Majesty, my useless brother has lacked discipline since he was a child. He must have done these things in private!"

Hearing this, a gleam of light flashed in Ye Chen's eyes.

He suddenly realized that the confessions made by Yang Dechang and Cao Tao last night seemed to be an attempt to distance Cao Tao from Cao Kun.

This is sacrificing the car to save the king!