The Forbidden City and the Imperial City are not the same place.
The Imperial City is large; the Forbidden City is small.
The Forbidden City is a city within the Imperial City.
Throughout the Great Ming dynasty, only the Cabinet had its offices inside the Forbidden City.
The Supervising Secretaries of the Six Offices and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices were located outside the Forbidden City, yet still within the Imperial City.
The offices of all other government agencies were situated entirely outside the Imperial City.
Faced with Liu Wenyao's inquiry, Li Banghua was momentarily stunned.
After a brief calculation, he said, "There were forty-one officials at today's morning court session. If we wish to keep all of them inside the Imperial City overnight, we need to find a spacious and enclosed room. I've thought about it, and both the offices of the Six Offices and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices should do."
Before Liu Wenyao could respond, Li Banghua asked with a frown, "What are you trying to do? Detaining officials of the Great Ming is a capital crime of the highest order. When the time comes, let alone me, even Your Majesty will not be able to protect you."
Chapter 379