Baili Cheng was overjoyed. His father's assurance clearly showed his dissatisfaction with Baili Chen's actions. This was understandable; for the Crown Prince to suffer such humiliation, even being injured or killed during the bombing of the Crown Prince's residence, would be a disgrace to Emperor Mingxian. Most importantly, Jiang Qi, Jiang Xuan, and the Miao Jiang Holy King were all in the capital. If word got out, it wouldn't be good for Emperor Mingxian, so he would naturally be very concerned. However, if they found out that Baili Chen had indeed acted desperately and bombed the Crown Prince's residence, it would be much more effective in investigating Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen's alleged rebellion. Then, even if they wanted to deny it, it would be difficult for them!
However, the incident investigated by Emperor Mingxian five days later was unacceptable to Baili Cheng.
That red-clad man, Tie Que, actually existed. It wasn't until the case was investigated and announced to the court, and the court ordered his arrest, that Baili Cheng suddenly remembered who Tie Que was.
This ironclad post originally belonged to the Commandant of the Central Army, who held military power and resided in the capital. At that time, the Crown Prince had just received Emperor Mingxian's permission to enter the court and participate in government affairs. It was during this period that a severe drought struck the south, causing widespread crop failure, while bandits and thieves seized the opportunity to wreak havoc. The people of the south were suffering terribly, with countless displaced people and widespread disaster. Naturally, the court had to send relief grain. The Crown Prince, having just assumed power, was eager to demonstrate his abilities and thus took on this important task. Distributing relief grain should have been a simple matter for the Crown Prince; he only needed to give the order, and his officials would naturally carry it out. However, a major error occurred at this crucial juncture.
When the disaster relief grain and silver were distributed, someone naturally took charge of delivering them. Tie Que, the Commandant of the Central Army, was in charge of this important task. However, when he delivered the disaster relief grain and silver to the disaster area, he found that the grain was not new, the disaster relief silver was adulterated with water, and the amount of money was also incorrect. Tie Que was a tough guy and a very upright person, so he reported the matter to the authorities. However, given the various circumstances surrounding this, how could the truly corrupt officials let Tie Que off the hook? They turned the tables on him, accusing him of embezzling relief supplies en route and bribing numerous people. Their accusations were so compelling that Tie Que could barely refute them. This was Bai Li Cheng's first major undertaking after entering the court, and it had escalated to this point. Bai Li Cheng, eager to make a name for himself, was naturally furious and ordered Tie Que's arrest. Tie Que, however, seized the opportunity and fled, intending to do something to clear his name. This only fueled Bai Li Cheng's anger, who then ordered the arrest of Tie Que's family members to force him to confess. But with orders from above, the truly corrupt officials didn't want Tie Que to reappear. His escape made it easier for them to pin the crime on him. So they resorted to a vicious scheme, poisoning over a hundred members of Tie Que's household in prison; not a single person survived except Tie Que himself. Later, it was said that Tie Que had embezzled for many years, and his family had enjoyed the spoils. They all committed suicide out of fear of punishment. At that time, the imperial court ordered the pursuit and killing of Tie Que, but Tie Que seemed to have vanished into thin air. In the end, the matter was left unresolved.
Unexpectedly, Tie Que has reappeared after so many years, and he has returned with a heart full of revenge, specifically to kill the Crown Prince and target the Crown Prince's residence!
Although the appearance of Tie Que was too coincidental with the time of Ouyang Yue's arrest, there was a reason and evidence to support the claim that Tie Que was indeed seeking revenge for the Crown Prince's case from years ago. There was no evidence to show that Tie Que had any connection with the Prince Chen's residence, the Princess's residence, or the like. After investigation, it turned out that such coincidences do happen in this world. Tie Que came to take revenge at this time and coincidentally burned down Baili Cheng's Crown Prince's residence, destroying the evidence.
But the matter didn't end there. The investigation into Tie Que's embezzlement of relief funds was led by Baili Cheng. Tie Que fled, and while the relief funds were recovered, half of them disappeared. Those involved at the time assumed Tie Que had hidden them. However, it seemed illogical that he would seek revenge years later. If he had indeed embezzled the relief funds, the Crown Prince's investigation would have been perfectly normal. Since he had broken the law, the original investigation was not wrong. If Tie Que had kept the money all these years ago, he would have long since settled down and started a new family. Why would he risk his life to kill the Crown Prince? Not to mention that the Crown Prince is the heir apparent of the country, and how many powerful people protect him, how could he be so easily assassinated? For example, this time, Tie Que's sudden appearance caught the Crown Prince off guard, and even the Crown Prince's residence was blown up, but the Crown Prince was still alive and well. Under normal circumstances, there would be no one who would just come to die like this, right?
However, Tie Que's arrival, filled with resentment, inevitably raises suspicions about whether his embezzlement of disaster relief funds back then truly occurred. Otherwise, it's difficult to explain his unwavering determination for revenge. Two memorials were submitted to the censors, both criticizing the Crown Prince's arbitrary handling of Tie Que, which resulted in the deaths of over a hundred innocent people. The memorials directly accused the Crown Prince of being too hasty and failing to conduct a proper investigation, leading to this injustice. They even suggested that the burning and bombing of the Crown Prince's residence was a fitting punishment. Although the censors used more subtle language, drawing parallels to the past, that was essentially the gist of it.
If the Crown Prince had investigated properly back then, perhaps this wrongful conviction wouldn't have happened, and today's events wouldn't have occurred. The Crown Prince must take full responsibility for what happened back then.
Of course, some people felt that the Crown Prince had made a mistake in handling the case, but Tie Que was so audacious as to lead people to burn down the Crown Prince's residence and assassinate the Crown Prince, which was treasonous and deserved to be killed. The two sides argued endlessly. Originally, the Crown Prince wanted to use this to implicate Baili Chen, but in the end, he directly implicated him.
Baili Cheng was extremely aggrieved, more so than he had ever felt in his life. He was the direct victim of this whole affair. The Crown Prince's residence was burned down, if not completely destroyed, and rebuilding it would take at least eight months. Now, he could only return to the Eastern Palace, not only without implicating Baili Chen and the others, but also unearthing a wrongful case from many years ago. Baili Cheng had already become indifferent to the matter of Tie Que. Back then, he was eager to atone for his mistakes, so he hastily concluded the case. In retrospect, there were many suspicious points, but since he was the one who handled the case, and being young and inexperienced at the time, he thought that once he had concluded the case, there was no possibility of him overturning it—wouldn't that be a slap in his own face? Even if Baili Cheng were in this situation now, he would have made the same mistake.
But he was too young back then. At least he failed to do the necessary follow-up work, such as letting Tie Que back out and ruin his plans. Therefore, Baili Cheng knew that Tie Que was innocent, and the more he investigated, the worse it would be for him. He clearly had enough evidence to convict Baili Chen of treason and immediately seize the Chen Prince's mansion. Now, before the trial even began, he was already overwhelmed with problems. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the Sun family directly pressured the censors who were on good terms with them to submit memorials, seemingly intending to have Emperor Mingxian use this as a pretext to depose him as crown prince. The court was in an uproar, while the matter of arresting Tie Que remained unresolved. And no one mentioned anymore that Baili Cheng had originally intended to use this to implicate Baili Chen and his accomplices because they felt guilty. After all, there was no evidence; what could they do even if it was just a coincidence, or even if they suspected something?
Evidence? Without evidence, it's all just empty talk.
The infuriating thing is that Baili Chen has lost all the evidence he prepared long ago. Now, all that's left is the public trial, hoping to find a breakthrough from Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue's own words. Baili Cheng's remaining evidence consists only of the forged letters between Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen, and the letters from the deceased Lin Yingying, which he had placed with the Dali Temple long ago. Because this evidence concerned Baili Chen's alleged treason, Baili Cheng was extremely careful, fearing it would be destroyed before the final trial. He had hidden it very well and was supposed to be safe, but who would have thought he'd fall into such a trap? The enemy had calculated his every move at that moment. The Crown Prince is now filled with resentment; why didn't he send all the evidence directly to the Dali Temple? Then everything would be fine.
Although the court was in an uproar over whether Baili Cheng had neglected his duties, Emperor Mingxian finally spoke. He stated that Tie Que, as a royal subject, should have gathered evidence and appealed to the emperor if he had been wrongly accused, rather than burning down the Crown Prince's residence and attempting to assassinate him. Under these circumstances, even if Tie Que had a grave injustice, he had still violated a royal taboo and was guilty of a capital offense. Emperor Mingxian ordered Tie Que's arrest, and Emperor Mingxian ignored Baili Cheng's suspicions that Baili Chen had orchestrated the incident.
Baili Cheng was so angry he almost vomited blood, but being in the palace did have some advantages, namely, it made it easier for him to see Fenyan.
That night, in a dark chamber in Liuhua Palace, Baili Cheng and Fenyan sat facing each other with dark faces. Fenyan spoke with a fiery temper: "Your Highness was too impulsive at the time. You should have realized that it was a trick by the other party. How could you have gone to find evidence and handed it over to them? This is now very detrimental to our grand plan."
Baili Cheng's expression was naturally not good either. He sneered, "Oh, if it were you, wouldn't you have done the same as me back then? Don't try to accuse me here. We are just business partners. I was the one who found all that evidence. You only provided a fake manuscript by Ouyang Yue. You have benefited greatly from this. Now you want to push everything onto me?"
Fen Yan looked at Baili Cheng with a sullen face. What she said was true, and besides, Baili Cheng was now furious at losing both of his children. He resented Fen Yan's suggestion even more. Fen Yan hadn't known that Consort Zhang was also pregnant, but after the Crown Prince went to examine her, the news naturally spread. Fen Yan still resented Baili Cheng for keeping it from her, but seeing his current state, she couldn't say anything. She took a deep breath and said, "So, what does the Crown Prince plan to do about this? This matter was originally a sure thing, but now there's a high chance of things changing. The chances of us using this opportunity to harm them again are slim. We must seize this opportunity."
Baili Cheng took a deep breath. Although he harbored resentment towards Fenyan, things had come to this point, and now was not the time for them to break up. The important thing was to work together to solidify Baili Chen's rebellion, and then find an opportunity to deal with Fenyan later. He thought for a moment and said, "Those manuscripts and Lin Yingying's letter are evidence. At worst, we can fabricate more false evidence later. This matter concerns the important matter of rebellion, and Father has always been very averse to it. As long as we stir up this mess and make Father hate Baili Chen, we are not afraid that Father will not issue an edict to punish him."
Fenyan thought for a moment and said thoughtfully, "Yes, we were originally very confident in this matter and were not afraid that the Emperor would not convict Baili Chen and Xuanyuan Yue. Now the evidence is a bit less, but the Emperor has severely punished every traitor in recent years. As long as we seize this point, we can increase our efforts in the case and force Baili Chen and Xuanyuan Yue to confess their crimes, which will achieve the same goal."
Baili Cheng nodded: "That's right." He squinted at Fenyan as he spoke, and saw that Fenyan was wearing a pink silk dress. The dress was loose, but she was sitting there gracefully, exuding a bright and alluring aura. Baili Cheng smiled strangely, "So in order to capture Father's heart, you will have to work harder next time, Fenyan. You must make Father wary of the Chen Prince's Mansion."
Fen Yan smiled and said, "Of course. No matter how many unexpected things happen in this matter, our goal is the same: to ensure that Baili Chen and Xuanyuan Yue can reach paradise as soon as possible."
Baili Cheng thought to himself, "This woman is truly ruthless." Previously, Fen Yan had almost ruined Ouyang Yue's appearance. Baili Cheng was always chivalrous, though ruthless, he appreciated beautiful women. He had always admired Ouyang Yue, and he wouldn't have dared to harm her if it weren't for his own grand ambitions. Fen Yan's ability to obtain Ouyang Yue's manuscript and use it to forge evidence proved the rumors of their friendly relationship were true. Fen Yan's current status was undoubtedly related to Ouyang Yue's help. Yet, in the blink of an eye, she could bring herself to kill Ouyang Yue. This woman was exceptionally ruthless. However, a lingering doubt remained in his mind: "It seems Fen Yan harbors extreme hatred for Xuan Yuan Yue. I want to know why?"
A dark glint flashed in Fenyan's eyes, but she smiled faintly and said, "Your Highness, as Empress, we don't need to be hypocritical anymore. Aren't we all just trying to survive? I didn't want to fight for this position at all, but Xuanyuan Yue forced me into it. She taught me the meaning of this struggle. She once said that as long as we achieve our ultimate goal, we should use everything we can. I just listened to her and did as she said. If anyone is to blame, it's Xuanyuan Yue's nature. She's too ruthless and cruel. She has already made too many enemies and is already burdened with sins. This is just the cycle of karma. It's just that she's not a good person."
Baili Cheng smiled meaningfully. Whether Ouyang Yue was a good person or a bad person was not important to them. He didn't care that Fen Yan's words were clearly a lie: "I'll be leaving first."
"Respectfully seeing off the Crown Prince." Watching Baili Cheng leave, Fen Yan revealed a cold smile: "If you want to use me, you'll have to pay a price. It's fortunate that Consort Zhang is dead, otherwise I would have had to eliminate her personally. It's truly a stroke of luck. Now Emperor Mingxian only has the Crown Prince, the Third Prince, the Fourth Prince, the Seventh Prince, and the Ninth Prince left. Apart from the Crown Prince and the Seventh Prince, who are worth competing with, the others are unlikely to succeed. Now that the Crown Prince is at odds with the Chen Prince's Mansion and the Princess's Mansion, it would be good if this matter ultimately benefits the Chen Prince's Mansion. If it doesn't lead to a life-or-death struggle between the Crown Prince, Baili Chen, and Ouyang Yue, it would be even more beneficial to me. Then I could reap the rewards. If they all die in the end, then the throne will belong to the prince in her womb! Hehehe, hahaha, hahahaha!"
Fen Yan laughed out loud, her voice both arrogant and chilling.
Inside the Da Gan Kingdom's post station, Jiang Qi and Jiang Xuan sat facing each other with somewhat unpleasant expressions. After a while, Jiang Xuan couldn't help but say, "Elder brother, what do you think we should do now? What case did Xuan Yuan Yue get involved in that he was imprisoned by the Dali Temple and we're not allowed to visit him."
“It must be a very important matter. The Dali Temple has always been in charge of matters concerning the royal family and relatives. Because many cases are handled by the Dali Temple, many details are not disclosed to outsiders. Moreover, Emperor Mingxian ordered the three judicial departments to conduct a joint trial, and the Crown Prince is supervising the case, so it must be a major case,” Jiang Qi explained.
Jiang Xuan couldn't sit still any longer: "This won't do. The source of this jade pendant has been cut off at the Ning family. I just came up with a way to make the eldest and second branches of the Ning family fight each other, so that the Ning family will never have a peaceful day. I also sent people to interrogate Ning Shi, but there is still no news. If we can't find this jade pendant at the Ning family, we will have to look for Xuan Yuan Yue. She can't die now, otherwise the clues will be cut off."
Jiang Qi frowned and said, "That's true, but when the Dali Temple handles cases, we, as foreign envoys, will certainly not be allowed to attend the trials. Moreover, it's not appropriate for us to get involved in this matter, otherwise the people of the Great Zhou Dynasty will think that we have ulterior motives, or that we are colluding with the Prince Chen's Mansion. We are not afraid of these things, but if someone finds a handle against us, the people of the Prince Chen's Mansion will die sooner, and we will have done more harm than good."
Jiang Xuan gritted her teeth: "Xuan Yuan Yue is really despicable. I still haven't found out how much she knows about this jade pendant. Otherwise, what does her death have to do with us?"
Jiang Qi squinted: "Xuanyuan Yue and Baili Chen are not fools, but rather very shrewd. Although we don't know what the connection is, the Crown Prince's residence was bombed and many shops in the capital were burned down. There must be some reason for this."
Jiang Xuan was taken aback: "Your Majesty, what do you mean?"
"Let's wait and see. When Xuanyuan Yue is really in trouble, it won't be too late for us to make a move. I'm quite intrigued by Xuanyuan Yue. If the timing isn't wrong, such an extraordinary woman would be suitable to be my beloved wife and a strategist for my ascension to the throne!" Jiang Qi's eyes narrowed, and Jiang Xuan was taken aback, her mind filled with complex emotions. Suddenly, she sneered, "Brother, don't be too happy yet. Being caught by the Dali Temple, and with Emperor Mingxian ordering a joint trial by the three judicial departments, means that even without evidence, Xuanyuan Yue and Baili Chen will have a hard time escaping punishment once the Dali Temple has taken action! This shows that Emperor Mingxian is at least somewhat wary of them. If the Emperor of Great Zhou is wary of them, they won't escape death sooner or later!"
Jiang Qi fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.
At this moment, the Dali Temple officially began its trial of the case between Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen!
☆、238、A Tragic Story of Three People!
In the court of the Dali Temple, three seats were arranged normally. The Dali Temple Minister Yu De sat in the center, with the Minister of Justice Mu Liquan on his left, and the Imperial Censor Ning Baichuan on his right. At the lower left was Bai Shicheng, the supervisor appointed by Emperor Mingxian. He was wearing a prince's robe and had a dark face as he looked at the gate. Several guards followed behind him, and the other yamen runners lined up on both sides, holding long sticks that were stuck to the ground.
Yu De glanced at Mu Liquan and Ning Baichuan, and the three nodded slightly. Yu De then slammed his gavel and said, "Bring the suspect, Xuan Yuan Yue, along!"
"mighty!"
"Thump, thump, thump!" The long sticks held by the constables on both sides struck the ground repeatedly, producing a deafening, intimidating sound.
Ouyang Yue was led to the main hall by two constables. Apart from the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, everyone else was somewhat surprised to see her. Compared to the other prisoners, even if they cleaned themselves up, their dishevelment and fatigue were still obvious. In contrast, Ouyang Yue was dressed in a long, flowing robe with gold-embroidered lotus leaf trim, with jade rings hanging on both sides, jingling as she walked. Although her hair was simply tied in a bun, a jade hairpin was placed across it. Her beautiful face had a faint smile on it since she entered the hall. There was no trace of dejection or unease, not even a hint of fear. She was confident and radiant. Although her steps were slow, her demeanor was steady and commanding, as if she had not appeared as a prisoner, but as a general inspecting his troops.
Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan couldn't help but frown, looking at Yu De with questioning eyes. Yu De had already anticipated this and was mentally prepared, so he didn't look at the two of them, but just sat upright. After all, he was the presiding judge today!
Ouyang Yue stopped and first bowed to Baili Cheng, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
Baili Cheng frowned as he looked at Ouyang Yue. With a quick glance, he saw Mu Liquan, the Minister of Justice, shouting angrily, "How dare you! In the main hall, why don't you, as a prisoner, kneel! Kneel!"
Ouyang Yue raised her head, glanced at the three people in the hall, and sneered: "How dare you not kneel before me, the Princess Consort! Guards, give each of you thirty strokes of the cane!" Ouyang Yue retorted angrily, which shocked everyone in the hall.
Yu De reacted quickly, immediately standing up, stepping off the desk, and bowing to Ouyang Yue: "This humble official, Yu De, greets Princess Consort Chen."
Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan both looked quite displeased, even glaring angrily at Yu De: "Lord Yu, what are you doing? As a prisoner, how can she be entitled to be knelt before by court officials?"
Before Yu De could speak, Ouyang Yue's cold voice rang out: "Prisoner? Lord Li is really good at spouting nonsense. I remember that it was the Crown Prince who came with the Emperor's decree to arrest someone, but it was only for assisting in the investigation. How could the Emperor have divorced me on behalf of the Prince? I am still the First Lady. You lowly officials of the third rank dare to make me kneel down. In your eyes, there is no me, no Prince, and no Emperor. Are you all plotting a rebellion?!"
"Nonsense!" Ning Baichuan immediately shouted to stop him, "Princess Consort Chen, please forgive me. It is the standard procedure for this prisoner to kneel and listen to the interrogation. I am just following the rules. There is absolutely no intention of treason as you say. On the contrary, it is Princess Consort Chen who keeps talking about treason. Are you judging others by your own standards?" Ning Baichuan's eyes widened like bronze as he observed the expression on Ouyang Yue's face. Not only him, but the others were also like this.
Ouyang Yue sneered, "Oh, so this is where the rules are? Then I, the Princess Consort, would like to ask, who set these rules for trials? The Ancestor? Did the Ancestor stipulate that once you enter the various trial halls, you can all be disrespectful, disregarding the royal family and even a princess consort, forcing a princess consort to humiliate herself by currying favor to facilitate your investigations? The rules set by the Ancestor are truly interesting, even sacrificing self-respect. May I ask how many wrongful convictions the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate have handled over the years..." Ouyang Yue had just finished speaking when she suddenly widened her eyes and nodded repeatedly, "Oh no, no, no, it's not about handling wrongful convictions. I really shouldn't say such things here. Even if I, the Princess Consort, think this way, it's not appropriate to say it out loud, isn't it? That would be too disrespectful to the three of you. What I really want to say is, how many brilliant cases have you handled over the years, and how much the people love and respect you?"
Yu De, Ning Baichuan, and Mu Liquan all changed their expressions. These words were clearly full of sarcasm. If they really didn't want to say it, they wouldn't have said it. It was clearly meant to ridicule them.
Yu De coughed and looked at Ning Baichuan, Mu Liquan and the other two, saying, "My lords, why don't you pay your respects to Princess Consort Chen?"
In fact, Ning Baichuan wasn't wrong. Giving the prisoner a hard time as soon as they arrive is a way to instill fear in them and get the truth out of them more easily. This is what is usually done at the beginning of an investigation, and it is indeed a rule. However, this is only a rule that is tacitly accepted by colleagues, and it is not necessarily feasible for everyone. They are also aware of this.
Moreover, this is only a trial, no formal verdict has been reached yet. Ouyang Yue is merely assisting in the investigation; she cannot be considered a criminal. Naturally, she won't pay them any attention. However, they had considered this beforehand. Ouyang Yue is indeed of noble status, and if they couldn't intimidate her from the beginning, the case wouldn't be easy to handle. Furthermore, Ning Baichuan, Liao Mu, and Li Quan harbored a desire for revenge. Unfortunately, if they encountered ordinary women from the inner quarters, they might actually be intimidated by them, but is Ouyang Yue an ordinary person?
Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan had dark faces, but they still obediently went to pay their respects to Ouyang Yue: "Your humble servants Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan greet Princess Chen."
Ouyang Yue, supporting her belly with one hand and her lower back with the other, smiled at Baili Cheng and said, "Your Highness, standing must be tiring. The little one inside is also making a fuss, kicking my belly hard. If you keep standing like this, I'm afraid you won't be able to hear the whole trial. I'm fine, but if anything happens to the child, the people in court will be too guilty to bear the charge of disrupting the royal offspring."
Baili Cheng smiled coldly, but his lips twitched: "What are you all standing there for? Hurry up and offer Princess Chen a seat!"
Mu Liquan quickly summoned someone to prepare a chair. Ouyang Yue, leaning on her back, glanced down at the stool and looked at Mu Liquan: "Lord Mu, why don't you sit down and see if this chair is comfortable?"
Mu Liquan was taken aback and said inexplicably, "Princess Consort Chen, there's no need for you to be so polite. This humble subject still has to investigate the case."
Ouyang Yue curled her lips into a smile: "This princess isn't being polite at all. I just want Lord Mu to try out this chair. If someone puts something dirty on it, I'll be guilty of a terrible sin if I miscarry. So, Lord Mu, please sit down first. Even if there are nails or poison on the chair, I can at least take someone down with me when I die, hehehe." Ouyang Yue laughed innocently and amusingly, like a mischievous big child, but it made Mu Liquan break out in a cold sweat. Was this damned Ouyang Yue threatening him or cursing him? He felt a chill run down his spine, how utterly despicable!
Mu Liquan said with a dark face, "Princess Chen, you can rest assured. This is the Dali Temple. How could they do such a thing as you described? Why are you so afraid that someone will harm you? As the saying goes, if you have a clear conscience, you have nothing to fear. Your Majesty, you are so paranoid that you feel you have done something wrong, which is why you are afraid."
Ouyang Yue smiled and said, "A guilty conscience? Let me think about it." After a while, Ouyang Yue suddenly struck her right palm with her left fist, and a crisp sound rang out in the hall. Ouyang Yue said, "Lord Mu, you ask a good question. I do have one."
"Huh?" The three presiding judges, Yu De and Baili Cheng, were all taken aback. Who would have thought that Mu Liquan's strange talk could actually uncover what wrongdoings Ouyang Yue had committed that were related to this case? But Ouyang Yue replied with utter helplessness, "To be honest, I've done quite a few wrongdoings." Yu De, Baili Cheng, and the other two judges were stunned, staring blankly at Ouyang Yue. Had she lost her mind? If she really told them, although it would save them trouble, they didn't believe Ouyang Yue would actually tell them…
Ouyang Yue stretched out her hand and slowly counted on her fingers, saying, "The so-called equality of all living beings and their spirituality, from childhood to adulthood, how much meat and how many living beings have I eaten? Even after I became pregnant, I ate at least one pig, one cow, and one sheep, not to mention countless fish and plants. Even flowers and plants have spirituality, and I have no idea how much more so when I capture live animals. Alas, isn't this a guilty conscience?"
“That doesn’t count! They’re all beasts, how could they bear to do anything wrong?” Mu Liquan said with a stern face.
Ouyang Yue sighed, "There's one more thing I feel guilty about. When I was brought to the main hall just now, I cursed the three officials in my heart. Since Lord Mu said that the beastly thing doesn't count, then I have no guilty conscience. Someone, come and try out the chair." Ouyang Yue waved her hand, looking relieved and without any psychological burden.
Those in the courtroom, especially the three presiding judges sitting in the main hall—Yu De, Ning Baichuan, and Mu Li—all wore dark, brooding expressions. Ouyang Yue, while seemingly innocent, had simultaneously insulted them, labeling them as animals. And this wasn't something they had started; accusing Ouyang Yue of insulting court officials was baseless. She hadn't named anyone, and the words weren't even hers. Admitting it would be tantamount to shamelessly admitting to being a beast. What a sharp tongue! She could insult without uttering a single vulgar word, yet leave people utterly frustrated.
Ning Baichuan and Yu De glared at Mu Liquan with displeasure. "You say you have a grudge against Ouyang Yue? Everyone knows that. You come here looking for trouble, but didn't you think of your excuses beforehand? You've dragged everyone else into this mess and they're being called beasts. In all these years as the presiding judge, we've never been insulted like this. Even the most arrogant and conceited royal relatives and nobles wouldn't dare speak to them like this. When they petition the Emperor for a verdict, your words will greatly influence Emperor Mingxian's final decision. Who would do that? Really…"
Yu De waved his hand: "Quickly check the chair for Princess Chen, make sure to check every corner carefully."
"Yes, sir." Two constables immediately came over to inspect, and just as they were about to leave to report back, Ouyang Yue suddenly said, "Wait, I don't think this chair is suitable."
Yu De was taken aback: "Has Princess Chen noticed anything wrong with this chair?"
“Of course, I don’t like this color. Sitting on it will put me in a bad mood, and a bad mood will affect my concentration during the trial. If I end up saying something incoherent, it won’t help the case or assist the three officials in their investigation,” Ouyang Yue said earnestly.
Yu De was taken aback: "Aren't the chairs all the same color?" But a bitter feeling welled up inside him.
Ouyang Yue frowned at Yu De, looking at him with an expression that suggested he was beyond redemption: "Lord Yu is really... Of course it's different. In the Prince Chen's residence, I, the Princess Consort, have my own exclusive chair. How can it be the same as other chairs? If it were the same, how would it highlight my status as the Princess Consort? Go and exchange it quickly." She waved her hand, looking impatient.
One after another, the yamen runners brought in a few more chairs.
"The left leg in this picture is clearly shorter than the other three. What if I, the princess, fall while sitting down?!"
"This won't do, I hate to look at it!"
"No, no, the color is too dark, it's even more depressing than the first one."
"What is this? You brought a porcelain chair. It's so cold. Are you trying to freeze me to death sitting on this cold porcelain chair?"
"no……"
After looking at seven or eight chairs, Baili Cheng, Yu De, Ning Baichuan, and Mu Liquan all had dark faces. Ouyang Yue finally stared at a mahogany chair and said, "After looking at them all, this one is alright. Let's just make do with it."
Now you're making do with what you did before? This is clearly the first chair you've ever seen that you said was no good!
Everyone was extremely frustrated. The constables who had been busy all day because of Ouyang Yue were also complaining inwardly. Why was this Princess Consort Chen so difficult to serve? It was as if she was born to torment people. His arms were so sore...
Ouyang Yue finally sat down, satisfied. However, the atmosphere in the hall was rather heavy. The constables stood quietly to the side with their heads down, even breathing very lightly, for fear that a powerful official in the hall might cause them trouble. The three officials' sullen expressions were truly unpleasant.
"Bang!" Yu De slammed the gavel down and glared at Ouyang Yue, saying, "Princess Consort Chen, today I am here at the Dali Temple with Censor-in-Chief Ning Baichuan and Minister of Justice Li Quanmu. This is to inform you that this case is extremely important. It concerns whether you murdered Consort Lin Yingying, the concubine of the Crown Prince, and whether you murdered the unborn child in her womb. It is a matter of great importance concerning the royal bloodline. I hope Princess Consort Chen will cooperate fully. If there is any disrespect during this process, please forgive me."
"Alright, now I'll ask you, what is the relationship between Princess Chen and Consort Lin of the Crown Prince's residence?"
Ouyang Yue hesitated for a moment without speaking, but simply raised her head and sat with her hand raised. Yu De was stunned and asked, "Princess Consort Chen, just answer. Why is that?"
Ouyang Yue nodded and said, "Oh, it's like this. Lord Yu, you are asking me a question. As a matter of courtesy, I shouldn't interrupt you. So I'm just showing you my hand."
"What does Princess Consort Chen want to say?"
Ouyang Yue seemed a little embarrassed. Her face flushed slightly, and she sighed, "To be honest, my appetite has increased since I became pregnant, and now I'm so hungry that I really don't have the mind to listen to your questions, Lord Yu. When I'm hungry, my mind doesn't work well, and I can't think of anything. Please forgive me, Lord Yu."
Yu De smiled, but the smile looked extremely forced: "Then what does Princess Chen think?"
"Gurgle~" Just then, a growling sound of hunger suddenly came from the hall. Ouyang Yue looked embarrassed and sighed, "This princess has no choice. At times like this, it's really beyond my control. I hope the Crown Prince and the three officials won't laugh at me. It's just that the baby in my belly is hungry. I'm not hungry."
Yu De's lips twitched. Was there a difference? No, was this the topic to be discussed in the main hall? Yu De's face darkened, but he had no choice but to wave his hand and say, "Prepare tea and fruit for Princess Chen."