Transmigration: Space-Aided Rise to Power and Prosperity

Chapter 1165: Chapter 1001: Citywide Manhunt

"Knock, knock, knock!" "Knock, knock, knock!"

A series of urgent knocks echoed through the tranquil Imperial City just before the impending dawn.

The people inside were awakened by the fierce knocking. A woman pushed the man sleeping soundly beside her, "Go see who it is?"

The man was woken up and, very reluctantly, got up and put on his clothes. He picked up a newly lit oil lamp and prepared to open the courtyard gate.

"Who is it?" he yawned, feeling quite annoyed.

Someone coming to knock at this hour? Isn’t it almost dawn? Can’t it wait until it’s light out?

He pulled open the door bolt and as soon as he opened the door, he was immediately taken aback. He couldn’t believe his eyes and rubbed them before taking a closer look, and then his legs began to tremble.

"Officer, officer! This... this..." The man stammered, feeling his knees go weak. If he hadn’t been holding onto the door frame, he would have almost knelt to the ground.

By the faint light of the oil lamp, the man saw four or five officers standing outside the door, each with a saber and a fierce expression.

The man could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground. He hadn’t expected to see these soldiers at the crack of dawn, before sunrise, when he opened the door.

He recognized the clothes these people were wearing. He had joined the crowds from afar during previous family investigations led by high-ranking government officials, so how could he mistake them?

Among them, an officer held a dossier and loudly addressed the man, "Are you the head of the household, Chen Erniu?"

When Chen Erniu heard his name, he nodded hastily, "Yes! Yes!"

"Household head Chen Erniu, family of three, spouse Wang Cuihua, eldest son..."

"Get your family out here, stay in the courtyard and undergo our inspection. Hurry up, don’t waste our time," the officer ordered Chen Erniu sternly.

Chen Erniu was still in a daze, feeling extremely anxious.

The officer seeing this, yelled at him loudly again, which finally brought Chen Erniu back to his senses. He quickly got up and ran into the house.

This scene was happening simultaneously in many homes across the Capital, turning the tranquil Imperial City into a bustling hub, as if an awakened giant.

A carriage was parked at a street corner in the South City, driven by a teenager of about seventeen or eighteen.

"Master! Would you like to go back and rest? Staying up all night is exhausting, even for a body of iron," Ming Yan said, turning back towards Gu Chengyu.

Gu Chengyu rubbed his forehead and snapped out of his deep thought.

"Just wait here! Any movements, they can report to me at once."

Gu Chengyu’s presence here was naturally related to the Crown Prince’s order. The Crown Prince had entrusted the search operation to him, and he had no choice in the matter even though this was not typically within the jurisdiction of a Dali Temple official.

Once the Crown Prince issued an order, he naturally couldn’t refuse.

The Crown Prince allocated a portion of the guards from the Military and Commander’s Departments to him; these people were temporarily under Gu Chengyu’s command.

He also pulled out two officials from the Dali Temple to assist him. These two were acquaintances, one being the Right Temple Minister Jiang Shaohua and the other the Left Temple Minister Peng Fang.

Gu Chengyu couldn’t help but sigh at the changing tides. Previously, Jiang Shaohua and the Deputy Commander from the South City Military Department, Ying Xuan, had searched his residence over the imperial examination fraud case.

Now, it was his turn to lead them to search others’ homes and issue orders. It just goes to show, life is unpredictable!

Never do things too decisively, who knows what the future holds?

These people had already been assigned by Gu Chengyu to start working as soon as they arrived.

Gu Chengyu shifted his thoughts to the matter of the assassins. A search like this might yield some results, but it would undoubtedly consume a lot of time. If the news leaked and those people fled, it would complicate the search and capture.

But Gu Chengyu’s intention was not to find the assassins; rather, it was to verify whether his thoughts were correct.

He wanted to see how many nefarious characters had visited the Capital in recent days.

What exactly were these people, hidden within the Capital, planning? As for the assassins, Gu Chengyu had a different idea.

Isn’t Xue Miao still in custody? Although he wondered if Xue Miao was still useful. Considering Da Xing’s bold recent actions, it’s likely they’ve made significant progress in their deployments.

Could their influence have already penetrated various parts of the court? Is Xia Qing the only person colluding with Da Xing?

Thus, the task of capturing the assassins was crucial. If they could extract any information from these individuals, Dayan wouldn’t be in such a passive situation.

Gu Chengyu’s idea was to rigorously interrogate Xia Qing, who undoubtedly knew many insider details. Unfortunately, the Crown Prince had different plans for Xia Qing and was hesitating at the moment.

If Da Xing slowly corrodes the court from within, will it be too late when the collapse begins? Internally dismantling them increases the chances of victory considerably.

Add to that a coordinated internal and external attack, and by then, Dayan would truly be in peril!

A sudden flash of inspiration struck Gu Chengyu’s mind. Given Da Xing’s frequent activities within Dayan’s territory, what about the borders? Are there anomalies compared to before?

A border conflict might be imminent!

With this thought, Gu Chengyu felt a bit restless. But if he reported it, would the Crown Prince and the ministers believe him? That was still uncertain.

Moreover, the border is not thousands of miles away from the Capital. Even if there were anomalies, how much time would it take for the dispatched people to relay the message back?

For now, he could only wait for the Master Brother’s reply. Despite his urgency, Gu Chengyu had no choice but to await news from Yin Kun.

...

"Miss, there are officers outside going door to door, inspecting every house. Do you think they’ve discovered we’re in the Capital? Could they be coming for...?"

Mrs. Tan heard the commotion outside and, taking a bold risk, opened the courtyard gate to observe the situation outside.

When she heard that personnel from the Military Department were conducting inspections, Mrs. Tan was so frightened that she immediately retreated indoors to report to her mistress.

Upon hearing this, Liu Su’er also felt somewhat nervous. However, thinking about it more, she realized that the incident had happened over a decade ago, and they hadn’t acted rashly since arriving in the Capital, so how could the officers be after them?

Therefore, these individuals going door to door likely had nothing to do with them. She connected it to the Emperor’s sudden death yesterday, perhaps related to that event.

In truth, she had felt a sense of relief despite being shocked by the Emperor’s sudden passing. Awaiting the new Emperor’s ascension finally offered her some hope.

"Indeed, miss, these people don’t seem to have good intentions. Could they have already detected our presence?" Uncle Qin shared similar worries, feeling somewhat panicked.

"They probably aren’t here to capture us, Uncle Qin and Mrs. Tan, don’t worry. Stay calm to avoid revealing anything. We should cooperate with their inspection and, under no circumstances, act rashly."

After reassuring the two, Liu Su’er adjusted her attire.

Her eyes glanced at the floor tiles beneath the footing by the bedside, seeing nothing unusual, she then shifted her gaze.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

"Open the door quickly! Military Department inspection!" a voice commanded loudly along with a series of rapid knocks.