Chapter 1285: Chapter 1284: Guess, Guess, Guess, Guess, Guess
"The Crown Prince wishes to see you..." the butler whispered softly in the Prime Minister’s ear.
The Prime Minister frowned slightly, "Tell him..." He paused, changing his mind, "Arrange for someone to watch him, don’t let him leave the prison, and don’t let him contact the outside world. Apart from special occasions, there’s no need to contact me regarding him."
The Prime Minister was very clear about what the Crown Prince wanted to do.
The Emperor is still undergoing surgery; the Crown Prince’s immediate emergence is definitely not to visit his father but for the throne, or rather, for freedom.
No Emperor serving a sentence means the Empire can’t be without an Emperor. If the Emperor dies, as the first in line to succeed, the Crown Prince will naturally ascend to become the new Emperor.
Then he can pardon himself, after all... he still has that little bit of power.
However, the Prime Minister doesn’t want the Crown Prince to emerge at this time, as it would cause unforeseen changes to many plans. Therefore, the best solution is to keep him imprisoned in the jail.
Don’t let him die, don’t let him speak, and don’t let him die.
After resolving this minor issue, the Prime Minister asked, "How is His Majesty doing?"
The butler didn’t answer immediately; he needed to think about how to properly answer this question while clearly expressing what he wanted to convey.
About ten seconds later, he responded to the Prime Minister’s question with another fact.
"I saw that those palace doctors have gathered many experts from outside, the specific situation is still unclear."
A hint of understanding flashed in the Prime Minister’s eyes; the Emperor might not wake up.
He rubbed his temples, waved the butler away, and walked back to his seat to sit down again.
The room was filled with many officials, and if the butler said the Emperor was not doing well, whether or not he spoke the truth, such words are highly taboo.
The Imperial Family could leverage the butler’s phrasing to attack the Prime Minister, throwing mud at vested interests, which might cause the situation to reverse.
Thus, the butler’s response was clever; it seemed like he said nothing, yet he said everything, leaving no room for anyone to trouble him or the Prime Minister and many others, as he only stated facts.
"Sorry, something came up that delayed us. Where were we..." the Prime Minister glanced at the documents on the table, "Oh, has the Federation fleet returned?"
He had just talked with the Federation’s diplomatic envoy, and both sides shared a common desire to stabilize the current political situation in Gafura. After refusing the Federation’s offer to help the Prime Minister resolve the current crisis, the Prime Minister personally sent the envoy away by car.
In the process, he demonstrated Gafura’s strong desire for independence and autonomy and showcased the iron-blooded spirit that Gafura people should possess.
"We do not fear starting a war with the enemy..." was half a sentence the Prime Minister stated to the Federation envoy.
Now, more than half an hour has passed; considering the time, the message should have arrived.
The military representative stood by the door, whispering to a soldier outside. When the Prime Minister asked the question, he immediately gave a direct answer.
"Their fleet has turned away, but their speed isn’t very fast. We have maintained a safe distance with them until they were far enough..."
The military representative’s words slightly relieved the Prime Minister, "Now the next question, have we caught the person we’re supposed to catch?"
The Head of the Police Department looked awkward, compared to police; perhaps the Federation people somewhat underestimate this profession...
It’s understandable because the Federation’s police indeed is not a strong or positive institution.
But Gafura’s police aren’t, the Police Department has many subdivisions, from those handling public security to internal police and secret police... It’s an institution where power is somewhat distorted.
It exists not because of its management system or Gafura’s outstanding security system, purely because it is a country based on power.
Or rather, a country based on nobility.
As long as the Head of the Police Department isn’t nobility, regardless of the power given to him, he can only be the nobility’s dog.
Of course, these are all things of the past; after the constitutional monarchy is reformed, the first to be dismantled will be the Police Department.
This also makes the Prime Minister look at the Head of the Police Department with unfriendly eyes, as people in this position know too many dirty things. When people’s power gets expanded, he will become dangerous.
If not considering the bigger picture, the assassination of the Emperor would be very beneficial to dismantling the Police Department.
Under the unsettling gaze of the Prime Minister, the Head of the Police Department wiped the sweat off his forehead, "We have found the person who introduced the assassin to become a cleaner, we are digging further, as for the assassin’s identity..."
"We suspect it’s fake."
Then the Prime Minister saw a dossier, about a mentally unstable and reclusive person with teaching experience in the Amelia Region.
But it’s precisely this experience that made the Prime Minister a bit confused, could it be revenge from Amelia’s anti-government militants?
It’s not entirely impossible, those anti-government militants have been repeatedly swept, plus Lynch’s group is shrewd.
They frequently set traps to lure socially unstable individuals to join the resistance, then kill them completely clean.
Now Amelia can stabilize, not only because the locals are tired of protracted conflicts with no positive returns, but also because those troublemakers have basically been eliminated.
This is not a simple term, it implies that at least tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of people, under intentional or unintentional guidance, were labeled as anti-government militants and executed.
Among these people, it’s not impossible for an assassin to suddenly appear.
"Regardless of whether this clue is true or false, pursue it, have Amelia’s people cooperate, and continue to track other leads."
The Prime Minister first arranged some tasks, then his tone became slightly stern, "It’s been several hours since His Majesty was assassinated, yet we still don’t know the assassin’s identity, his whereabouts, or if he’s still here."
"I’m very disappointed in your work, Mr. Minister."
The Police Department Chief wanted to argue, what the hell does this have to do with him?
Well, it has a bit to do with him, he’s the one to bear all responsibility for the consequences, but when there are benefits, he’s also the first to enjoy them.
The profits and risks in this world are often proportional, for the most part.
Full of helplessness, he could only give a sentence of apology in the end.
The Prime Minister waved his hand, "I don’t need ’sorry’, I need to see progress in solving the case, I hope next time I ask you this question, you can give me some good news, now go do your work."
He already decided to remove the Chief, and at this moment, it’s necessary to let the other party feel some pressure.
After the Chief left, the Prime Minister made many work arrangements again, the current situation in the Imperial Capital is fairly stable.
People in the room left after receiving their tasks, becoming fewer and fewer, until only he was left.
He turned his head to look at the bright sunlight outside the window, countless images flashed through his mind, who exactly... did this?
A figure appeared in his mind, haunting, unable to be dispelled.
He hesitated a bit and picked up the phone.
About ten minutes later, Lynch appeared in the office.
"I heard you were very anxious to see me." Lynch was quite relaxed, different from most Gafura people who would exhibit pessimism or seriousness.
The smile on his face made the Prime Minister very displeased, during a time considered as national mourning, he actually had a smile!
No matter the reason, at this moment, in his heart, Lynch’s suspicion intensified slightly.
The Prime Minister first invited Lynch to sit down, then handed him a Kleve, "Every Moment, I’ve heard this is one of your companies too?"
"I’m just a shareholder!" Lynch corrected the other’s statement, twisted the integrated pure silver packaging pen holder, and poured out a Kleve.
Simply snipped and lit with a torch.
"Very nice!" He slowly exhaled smoke stirred in the air like a blender.
After the smoke, a lot of aromas lingered.
Mainly the unique scent of nuts and tobacco, with a hint of sweetness, these top-grade Kleves are all seasoned by top-tier experts.
Each top-grade Kleve tastes different, because every guest who can enjoy these has a custom flavor.
This prompted Lynch to take a second inhalation, like sipping a mouthful of water, enveloping the smoke in his mouth.
Unlike smoking, each has its own interest.
"People say you’re very smart, I asked others, they all think so." The Prime Minister first gave Lynch a compliment.
Lynch was quite thick-skinned in accepting it, "Thank you, I think so too."
The Prime Minister was momentarily stunned, nobility is very arrogant, but this arrogance would also exhibit a kind of "arrogant humility", no one would be as shameless as Lynch.
Even the jesters need to care about their face to some extent!
In the Prime Minister’s heart, Lynch’s suspicion again increased slightly.
He came to his senses and asked an interesting question, "Then can you tell me, what do you think was the motive behind the assassin’s act towards His Majesty?"
Lynch exhaled smoke, casually looked at the Prime Minister, "You shouldn’t be asking me this question, and I shouldn’t be answering it."
"But on account of you praising my wisdom, I can offer some of my views."
"If there’s anyone in the world who wishes Gafura would fall into such trouble..." Lynch chuckled, "...I think everyone would think so."
"Gafura has been magnificent for too long, it’s now a new era, your stage should draw to a close!"
