Soon, the yamen runners brought over a table, followed by a pile of fruit, tea, and snacks. Although the presentation wasn't as good as what Prince Chen's mansion had, it was still passable. Ouyang Yue grumbled somewhat unsatisfiedly, which made Yu De and the others feel even more frustrated. This was naturally incomparable to what Prince Chen's mansion had served. Who would eat such things in the courtroom? Even though the Crown Prince was in charge of this case, Yu De had only prepared some tea.
This time, Yu De was much more cunning. He directly ordered his men to test the poison on Ouyang Yue in front of her, rendering her speechless. Sure enough, the process went very smoothly. Ouyang Yue didn't utter a sound. Even after the constables left, Ouyang Yue's expression remained indifferent. She picked up a glass of warm water, took a sip, and then ate a piece of square cake in small bites, her eyes narrowed in a look of utter satisfaction. It must be said that these tea cakes together really did emit a particularly fragrant aroma. The constables on both sides couldn't help but swallow their saliva, feeling hungry themselves. Yu De and the other two in the hall, seeing Ouyang Yue eating with such relish, also felt a strange unease in their mouths.
Baili Cheng looked at Ouyang Yue with a cold face and said, "Princess Consort Chen really has a lot of demands. Now that the case is officially being heard, I hope you will stop doing anything useless. Whatever you want to do, let it be what it is. This case will continue to be heard."
Ouyang Yue glanced at Baili Cheng and continued eating. Yu De coughed and asked, "Princess Consort Chen, please answer this: what is your relationship with Lin Yingying, the concubine of the Crown Prince?"
Ouyang Yue swallowed the square cake in her mouth, took a sip of tea to moisten her throat, and said, "As for the relationship, it's neither good nor bad."
Mu Liquan continued, "It's hard to say whether it's good or bad. Then why did Consort Lin write a letter to Princess Chen? Moreover, the words and actions in the letter are very intimate. Obviously, this is not your first time meeting, and you have many secrets." As he spoke, Mu Liquan waved his hand, and someone brought over a letter for Ouyang Yue to see.
Ouyang Yue gave only a glance and said indifferently, "Oh, so this is Consort Lin's handwriting. This is the first time I've seen it." With that, she waved her hand and said to the yamen runner beside her, "Hey you, bring me another pot of water."
The constable glanced up and, seeing that no one was paying attention to him, naturally followed Ouyang Yue's instructions and went to carry out his duties. After returning, he tested the water jug inside and out for poison before Ouyang Yue poured herself some water and drank it. She did so with complete naturalness, as if the interrogation hall were her own backyard.
Mu Liquan sneered: "Does Princess Chen want to deny it? Look at this letter. If you don't admit to recognizing Consort Lin's handwriting, surely you can recognize the handwriting in your own letter..." Mu Liquan was about to order someone to show the letter to Ouyang Yue when he discovered that Ouyang Yue was completely silent, leaning her head to the side and asleep in her chair!
Mu Liquan sneered. This was clearly an attempt to avoid the topic, and Ouyang Yue was clearly feeling guilty: "Someone, go and wake up Princess Chen."
"No! Just don't disturb Princess Chen and wake her up!" Yu De said immediately. Ouyang Yue's identity was extraordinary, and this woman was extremely cunning. If they really gave her a handle, they would be in trouble before Ouyang Yue was even convicted. Obviously, Mu Liquan had also thought of this. Although his expression was not good, he did not refuse Yu De's words.
Two constables immediately came over and whispered, "Princess Consort Chen, please wake up!"
Ouyang Yue did not react at all.
Mu Liquan said coldly, "No, the voice is too soft. Make it louder!"
"Princess Consort Chen, please wake up!"
Ouyang Yue still did not react.
"The sound is still too soft, louder!" Mu Liquan shouted uncontrollably.
"Princess Consort Chen, wake up!" The constable raised his voice, but since he couldn't touch Ouyang Yue or get too close, it probably wouldn't have much of an effect on her. In any case, she still didn't react.
"Keep shouting loudly until Princess Chen wakes up!" Mu Liquan yelled.
"Princess Consort Chen, wake up!"
"continue!"
"...Wake up!"
"...Louder!"
Before long, the only sounds in the hall were Mu Liquan's screams and the loud shouts of the constables, their necks bulging and their faces red from yelling. Their voices rose and fell, and by the end, they were hoarse and seemed to have a strange quality to them.
As Baili Cheng listened, his brows furrowed. He glanced at Mu Liquan's flushed face and the constable's expression, and a scene flashed through his mind. He immediately turned away and said coldly, "Go and get the gong. Since Princess Chen is sleeping so soundly, how can we wake up the things on the side?"
Immediately, someone brought over a gong and struck it near Ouyang Yue's ear. Just as they were about to strike it a second time, Ouyang Yue's ear twitched slightly, and she blinked and slowly opened her eyes, seemingly waking up in a daze. She looked at everyone in the hall with a puzzled expression and said, "Oh," "Why is this princess here?"
Ning Baichuan, who had been silently standing to the side, couldn't help but say, "Princess Consort Chen, have you forgotten? This is the main hall of the Dali Temple. The three of us are currently investigating whether you poisoned Consort Lin of the Crown Prince's residence."
Ouyang Yue gave an "Oh," then said strangely, "What does her death have to do with me, Princess Consort? Perhaps she did too many bad things and was punished by Heaven, or maybe she was killed by someone close to her. She was a concubine of the Crown Prince's household, you know. How could I possibly have the ability to kill her? Did you really think the Crown Prince's household was so easy to enter?" Suddenly, Ouyang Yue said strangely, "Oh dear, the Crown Prince's sister-in-law absolutely did not mean to mock you. Although your Crown Prince's household was destroyed by that guy named Tie Que, and you've now returned to the East Palace, your sister-in-law absolutely did not mock the incompetence of the Crown Prince's household." "This villain succeeded, causing Your Highness to lose all face!" She then stroked her chin hesitantly, saying, "My lords, what do you think of this matter? Since this Tie Que harbors such resentment towards the Crown Prince, didn't he also send someone to kill Consort Lin before? After all, he even bombed the Crown Prince's residence. Could he have secretly entered the residence, murdered Consort Lin, and then framed me, the Princess Consort, to sow discord between the Crown Prince and Prince Chen? This villain has such a vicious mind! My lords, you must catch this murderer to bring justice to Consort Lin and restore face for the Crown Prince!"
Judging from her appearance, her face was flushed with anger and she looked indignant. She really looked convincing. For a moment, Yu De and the other two almost believed Ouyang Yue's words. Ning Baichuan and Mu Li had both witnessed Ouyang Yue's cunning and naturally understood that she was just making excuses for herself. Yu De nodded slightly, "It's not entirely impossible."
“Isn’t that right? Lord Yu is truly wise and capable. I, the princess, think so too.” Ouyang Yue nodded earnestly.
Mu Liquan sneered: "Princess Consort Chen's method of shifting blame is truly brilliant. However, it's a pity that Consort Lin not only collected your correspondence but also Prince Chen's letters. Moreover, the events in Consort Lin's last letter coincided with other events from different years, indicating that these letters were related and interconnected. This also shows that you were in constant contact. In the last letter, Consort Lin also said that she had discovered Prince Chen's private manufacturing of weapons and raising of an army, and that he was planning to do something detrimental to the Crown Prince. Consort Lin wanted to confront you about it, but she died not long after. Does Princess Consort Chen think there's such a coincidence? It's probably because Princess Consort Chen knew about this and conspired with Prince Chen to kill her to silence her."
Ouyang Yue yawned slightly and said, "This whole thing is just nonsense made up by Lord Mu. It's a joke! You say it's okay for the Prince to privately manufacture weapons and raise troops? Who gave you the audacity to slander the Prince? What is your purpose in maliciously framing my Prince and trying to put him in an unjust position? Does the court support a bunch of corrupt officials like you? Such a big problem has happened at the Crown Prince's residence, and you can't find a way to help solve it, but you want to put the Crown Prince and the Prince in an unjust position and make them brothers turn against each other. Where is your so-called evidence? Privately manufacturing weapons and raising troops sounds nice, but show me the evidence. Otherwise, I, the Princess Consort, will sue you for abusing your power for personal gain and maliciously framing him. I will definitely sue you until you, Mu Liquan, have nothing left!"
Mu Liquan blushed as he was spoken to, but his eyes were fixed on the Crown Prince. Baili Cheng's face was ashen. Most of the solid evidence they had previously presented was destroyed, and the evidence was insufficient. He had previously discussed with Mu Liquan and Ning Baichuan whether they could use coercion and intimidation to force Ouyang Yue to reveal the source of the problem. However, after all that, Ouyang Yue was as slippery as a fish and as cunning as a fox. They had no good ideas after all that, and it seemed that doing so now would not be easy.
Baili Cheng tapped the back of his chair. Mu Liquan looked at him, then turned to Yu De and said, "Lord Yu, it's getting late. Why don't we adjourn the court session and continue tomorrow?"
"Very well." Yu De slammed the gavel and adjourned the court.
Normally, the Dali Temple takes a long time to handle a case, and it is rare to be able to finish the case in one or two days. This involves not only collecting evidence of the criminal's crimes, but also evidence of the criminal's own confession. Since the cases involve royal relatives and important officials of the court, this time is also necessary.
After the court session ended, Mu Liquan and Ning Baichuan secretly went to see the Crown Prince. All three of them looked rather grim. After a moment of silence, Ning Baichuan suddenly said, "Your Highness, why don't we just use torture tomorrow to force Xuanyuan Yue to commit a crime?"
Baili Cheng frowned, and Namu Liquan remained silent for a moment before saying, "You saw how Xuanyuan Yue was today. If we really dare to make a move, wouldn't that give her something to hold against us?"
Ning Baichuan sneered: "The handwriting on the evidence is that of Xuanyuan Yue and Prince Chen. They can't mistake that. Even if they want to deny it, as long as they are convicted and the evidence is handed over to the Emperor, they will definitely suffer. However, we should gather more evidence so that the Emperor can't forgive them. Tomorrow, we can call Prince Chen to the court. We can then separate them for trial and try them, and then we can trick them."
Baili Cheng thought for a moment and said, "Lord Ning means to imprison them separately, and then use the evidence to imply that the other party has already confessed, so that they can kill each other."
Ning Baichuan smiled and said, "Your Highness is indeed brilliant. I only had this idea, and Your Highness immediately came up with the whole plan. I admire you."
Seeing this, Mu Liquan secretly resented Ning Baichuan. This Ning Baichuan was quite the smooth talker. His daughter had just married Prince Sheng and become his princess, yet he was still entangled with the crown prince. Was he trying to have his cake and eat it too, and then see who was more capable and who he was with? What a clever idea! Who would like such a fickle behavior? He might not even know how he died in the end.
Ning Baichuan understood the reasoning behind this, but choosing sides now was still somewhat risky. Moreover, both the Crown Prince and Prince Sheng needed him, and that was his bargaining chip. Since he had this chip, he naturally had to make good use of it.
Baili Cheng wasn't thinking about any of that at the moment. He squinted and thought for a moment, then said, "Alright, this is a good plan. As long as we break them down, they won't be able to resist confessing! Let's do it this way! You guys go and handle it!"
"Yes, Your Highness." Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan acknowledged and withdrew.
As Baili Cheng watched the two leave, a cold smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
However, after the two were ready, just as they were about to make their move the next day, Ouyang Yue suddenly started complaining of stomach pain during the court session. Yu De and the others had no choice but to call the imperial physician to examine Ouyang Yue. The result was that Ouyang Yue was perfectly healthy in every way, but the problem was that she kept complaining of stomach pain. What could they do?
Ning Baichuan coldly looked at the old imperial physician in front of him and said, "Imperial Physician Wang, have you taken a good look? If Princess Chen is fine, why is she constantly complaining of pain? Are you sure her body is alright?"
Mu Liquan also said, but his voice rose a few decibels as he said, "Yes, Physician Wang, have you taken a good look? If there are no problems, we can proceed directly to court. This case is of great importance, and we absolutely cannot allow those people to pretend to be crazy and fool us. Even if they manage to fool us today, what about the next two or three days? I have plenty of time to waste here and will definitely bring those audacious villains to justice."
"Ouch! Ouch! My stomach hurts, my child, please don't let anything happen to you!" The only answer they received was Ouyang Yue's painful cries from inside. Jiang Li's voice, filled with such agony, was truly heartbreaking and seemed completely genuine.
Baili Cheng sat to the side and sneered, "Only someone who is truly unwell can shout so loudly. Since you can shout so loudly, it means you still have energy. I think this case should not be delayed any longer. Let's begin!"
"Ah! It hurts! Child, someone wants to kill you! Oh, it hurts so much! It hurts so much! Child, remember this well: whoever tries to kill you today, when you really die, I will become a powerful ghost and haunt them every day to settle accounts. I'll scare them all to death and torment them to death before I'm satisfied! These people are not good people. They want to harm you, and you must kill them all!" Ouyang Yue shouted and screamed in the room, her words filled with the most curses imaginable.
The imperial physician, Wang, was already an old doctor, and he would be able to retire to his hometown in two years. He didn't want to be unjustly dragged into this struggle. He wiped his sweat and said, "Although I found that Princess Chen's pulse was relatively stable, she is, after all, involved in this big case. Sometimes, illness is caused by mental illness. Now that she is locked up here every day in fear, it is possible that Princess Chen's fear is causing the baby to be unstable. So now... now it is best to be cautious."
Baili Cheng stared coldly at Imperial Physician Wang: "Oh, didn't Imperial Physician Wang just say that Princess Chen was fine and that the pregnancy was stable? If it's stable, why would she be so afraid? After being an imperial physician for so many years, if Imperial Physician Wang can't even accurately diagnose this, then he's probably done being an imperial physician."
Physician Wang was sweating profusely. This matter truly put him in a dilemma. If all the imperial physicians hadn't gone out today, he wouldn't have gotten involved in this mess. Was this something a human being would do? If he said there was nothing wrong, he would offend Princess Chen and the Chen Prince's residence and the Princess's residence. If he said there was something wrong, he would offend the Crown Prince. Neither of them were people he could afford to offend.
Seeing that Imperial Physician Wang's face had changed drastically, turning deathly pale and dripping with sweat, and that he looked as if he might faint at any moment, Yu De couldn't bear it and said, "Your Highness, since the Prince of Chen's residence is so uncomfortable, this case is not urgent. Let's wait another day. If the Princess of Chen really harms the fetus in her womb because of this, it concerns the royal offspring, and I'm afraid none of us here can bear the blame."
Baili Cheng's face was extremely cold. He snorted and left angrily. Yu De was right. The case was still under trial. Ouyang Yue was not a criminal. Moreover, the death of Consort Lin was a serious crime of treason, which also concerned the royal offspring. That was why Ouyang Yue was arrested. Otherwise, it would not be so easy to bring a princess to be questioned. Before the case was decided, Ouyang Yue's safety was also very important.
Ning Baichuan and Mu Li were both in a bad mood. They gritted their teeth and left, thinking that they would definitely get their revenge tomorrow.
On the third day, Ouyang Yue claimed to have an upset stomach and refused to cooperate with the investigation, rolling around in pain.
On the fourth day, he did attend court, but claimed to have a terrible headache and a completely muddled mind, unable to understand what was being said. In the end, he even fainted, causing chaos throughout the Dali Temple. Of course, the case was never solved.
These past four days have been incredibly exhausting for Yu De, Ning Baichuan, and Mu Liquan, as if they've been through a near-death experience and then come back to life. Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan had already devised a plan to deal with it, but Ouyang Yue simply wouldn't cooperate. Before the trial could even begin, she dragged the court into a rage, making it impossible to proceed with the trial. This damned woman has so many tricks up her sleeve, changing them every day. Just when they've made all the preparations, they discover there's always a backup plan waiting for them. This case is more tiring than the cases they've handled in the past three years; it's physically exhausting and mentally exhausting as well.
Yu De felt his hair had turned white. He thought to himself that after finishing this case, no matter what the final result was, he would definitely avoid Princess Chen, that jinx, from the future!
On the fifth day, just as Baili Cheng decided to tie Ouyang Yue up and interrogate her, the door opened. Ouyang Yue stood in the doorway, full of energy. Seeing Baili Cheng and the three officials leading a group of guards and constables, looking like they were about to take her to the execution ground, she giggled, "Oh dear, I'm really troubling you, my royal brother and the three officials. Look at my body, it's really not good. But there's nothing I can do about it. Pregnancy and childbirth are a life-or-death struggle for women. Ten months of pregnancy is the most arduous thing in the world. When you go back, you must give my regards to the old lady in the manor. Tell her that I admire them very much. Pregnancy is not something that ordinary people can endure. Women suffer a lot. You three are not women, so you naturally cannot understand."
Ning Baichuan gritted his teeth, his eyes almost bulging out, but he couldn't utter a single word of rebuke. If he were to criticize Ouyang Yue at this moment, it would be fine to say she disrespected women, but to say she respected her own mother who gave birth to her would make him seem unfilial and cold-blooded.
Baili Cheng's face turned ashen: "Princess Consort Chen has been making a scene for days now, shouldn't we get down to business?" Baili Cheng's forehead bulged slightly, clearly he had reached his limit. Ouyang Yue also nodded knowingly, "Today I am in good health and will definitely be able to help the three of you solve this major case."
The group then headed to the main hall. Yu De, Ning Baichuan, and Mu Liquan were feeling rather frustrated. This case was handled so humiliatingly. They all felt like they had been played by Princess Chen the whole time. It could be called the greatest tragedy in the history of the Three Judicial Offices!
The trial officially began, and Yu De naturally launched into another long speech, explaining everything involved in the case. Several major crimes were brought up, and if Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen were found guilty, they would be in dire straits.
Ouyang Yue sat down in the chair, put down her teacup, and said, "Oh, please trouble Lord Yu to bring the evidence for me to see. I haven't been able to see it a few days ago because I wasn't feeling well."
The evidence was directly handed to Ouyang Yue. Yu De wasn't worried about Ouyang Yue tearing it up; they had all seen it before and it was considered witness testimony. Ouyang Yue's willingness to tear it up on the spot showed her fear, which was enough to convict her. Ouyang Yue carefully examined the letter in her hand, a cold smile appearing in her eyes. The other side should be taking action soon. She slammed the letter on the table with a "bang": "Lord Yu, this handwriting is not my handwriting at all. What evidence is this? This is clearly a malicious frame-up!"
Baili Cheng and the others were all shocked!
At this moment, in the Imperial Study of the palace, after Baili Zhi had consulted with the Emperor, Emperor Mingxian summoned him and asked, "What is it that you are in such a hurry to enter the palace and attack me?"
Baili Zhi respectfully said, "Father, I have brought two people with me."
"Oh, who is it?" Emperor Mingxian asked in confusion.
Baili Zhi bowed and said, "This is someone who intends to frame a member of the royal family for the heinous crime of treason!"
Emperor Mingxian's brow twitched: "You're not talking about the person who framed the seventh prince and his wife, are you?" The major events that have happened recently are Lin Yingying's death and Ouyang Yue's affair.
Baili Zhi looked up and said, "Exactly!"
☆、239, it's time to settle scores!
Emperor Mingxian paused for a moment, glanced at Baili Zhi, and said, "Are you so sure I will intervene?"
Baili Zhi respectfully replied, "Father is naturally a kind and magnanimous person. If he knew that my seventh brother had been framed, how could he not care? I have no doubt about this."
Emperor Mingxian looked at Baili Zhi with a half-smile and waved his hand, saying, "Bring him in."
Baili Zhi responded, and soon a guard led two men dressed in gray into the main hall. They kept their heads down the whole way, not daring to raise their heads even once. Emperor Mingxian snorted and said, "Just the two of them?"
Baili Zhiwei turned slightly and said, "Father, these two are just ordinary commoners, but their family backgrounds are quite extensive."
"What's the origin of this relationship?"
Bai Lizhi recounted earnestly: "The ancestors of these two men had both served as officials in the imperial court, but that was all in the past. After their ancestors, the family's fortunes steadily declined. To survive, they tried many methods. One of them was named Li Quan, and the other Wang Hai. Their ancestors invented a skill for quickly studying and copying calligraphy. Originally, their ancestors only intended to use this skill to imitate the calligraphy of their predecessors in order to get closer to them. Although this skill was passed down, they gradually lost their way and abandoned their ancestors' grand ambitions, instead taking up the business of writing for others. By chance, someone learned about their skill, and their reputation gradually grew. In recent years, many people have asked them to copy things. Some want to take the opportunity to copy the calligraphy of great calligraphers to show off or resell, while others directly ask them to study the handwriting of certain people and copy it for them. In the past few years, they have copied at least a hundred letters for various purposes. Helping or harming people is of no concern to them. As long as they are paid, they don't care what kind of handwriting the copy is."
Li Quan and Wang Hai trembled as they listened. Baili Zhi had already thoroughly investigated beforehand to find them, and his account was almost entirely accurate. Moreover, Baili Zhi had already dealt with them before coming here, so they were now like grasshoppers tied up and unable to jump around.
After listening for a while, Emperor Mingxian understood Baili Zhi's meaning and looked at Li Quan and Wang Hai in a deep voice: "Is what Prince Zhi said true?"
"Yes...yes, Your Majesty..." Li Quan stammered, his face pale.
"Hmph! Since you have repeatedly forged and copied letters for others, there must have been harmful things involved. Do you know that this is a sin!" Emperor Mingxian snorted coldly. Even if he didn't like Baili Chen, he was still his own flesh and blood. How could he let these wicked people wrong him and harm him?
Li Quan and Wang Hai knelt down with a thud, their bodies trembling like sieves: "We...we are guilty, please...please forgive us, Your Majesty."
"Your Majesty, I have no choice. I need to eat. I have no other skills. This is all I know. I don't want to do this either, Your Majesty."
Emperor Mingxian snorted coldly and said directly, "Then tell me, has anyone recently made a copy on behalf of someone else?"
"without……"
"Tell the truth!" Baili Zhi suddenly shouted.
Emperor Mingxian glanced at Baili Zhi indifferently: "I'm in charge here, so Third Brother, you don't need to say anything more."
Baili Zhi quietly took two steps back, but his eyes were fixed on the two survivors, Li Quan and Wang Hai, making them break out in goosebumps and their lips tremble even more. Seeing this, Li Hai, sweating profusely, said, "Your Majesty, I just remembered something. A few days ago, someone brought two letters and asked me and Li Quan to imitate them."
Emperor Mingxian took a sip of his tea and asked, "Oh, what kind of letter is it?"