Wang Hai thought for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, I don't know what is written on it. This person is very strange. This is not the first time Mingyi has asked me to imitate. Every time he comes to ask me to imitate, he doesn't ask me to write a letter directly. He just asks me to write a part according to the distance and interval of the writing."
“Your Majesty, yes, I have also received letters like this from this person several times. Each time, the letters that he asked me to imitate were not complete. It seemed as if some words and phrases were deliberately omitted, and they were all fragmented,” Li Quan continued.
"Oh, there are such strange people. What did he ask you to write down? Maybe he can say it out loud."
Li Quan and Wang Hai exchanged a glance, then furtively looked up at the imposing Emperor Mingxian sitting above them, before gritting their teeth and speaking. Li Quan and Wang Hai were hardly morally upright people. Over the years, because of their skill, many people had hired them to forge letters, thus framing countless innocent people in the inner quarters. They had felt guilty, but then they thought, they were merely hired hands; they weren't the ones truly harming others, so why should they feel guilty? They could only blame the unlucky people, or the ruthless nature of their enemies. These forged letters mostly involved the schemes of the women in the inner quarters. They would get a few letters from someone, analyze them, and then write a few seemingly romantic love poems to ruin a woman's reputation. Over time, they became numb to it.
However, the person who made the two of them forge documents was really strange. He gave them two or more documents and only asked them to write part of the contents of the letter. The other blank spaces were filled in by someone else, so they didn't know what was written in the letter. But the money that person gave them was very generous. Li Quan and Wang Hai also took advantage of this to each get a beautiful concubine and live a good life. So they had a deep impression of these people. They even remembered the contents of the letters they were asked to write.
However, the person who paid a hefty price naturally had conditions: they couldn't divulge the information, and not even a second person in the world could be mentioned; otherwise, death would be the only punishment. When the person killed two more people in front of them as a warning, Li Quan and Wang Hai dared not have any other thoughts. Although they were extremely curious, they never dared to ask the person for the contents of the letter. But just a few days ago, when they had arranged to go on a family trip, they were suddenly attacked as soon as they left the capital. Their entire family was wiped out, leaving only the two of them. The main target of those people was actually them. During the chase, the two of them vaguely realized that they had been targeted because they had written half a letter for that mysterious person, and now those people wanted to kill them to silence them.
Li Quan and Wang Hai were quite shrewd, having spent so much time in the capital, they were skilled at escaping. They managed to escape, but were now alone and penniless. So, they had a bold idea: to go home first. They still had some property and silver hidden there, and even if they had to escape, they had to get it back. However, when they quietly returned home, they were suddenly surrounded by people brought by Baili Zhi. They were asked to cooperate and reveal the contents of a letter. Naturally, the two dared not, but Baili Zhi's actions were even more ruthless than those who had asked them to forge letters. The two were tortured by Baili Zhi in various ways for three whole days before they finally couldn't hold back and blurted out the contents, which led to their visit to the Imperial Study today.
So the two of them felt no pressure and readily agreed.
Emperor Mingxian sent someone to bring blank paper to the two men. After they wrote their answers, they presented the paper to Emperor Mingxian for his review. Emperor Mingxian smiled as he looked at the paper and then burst into laughter: "Excellent! There are indeed many extraordinary people in this world, and there are even people with such abilities." However, although Emperor Mingxian was smiling, his expression was quite cold and stern. Li Quan and Wang Hai did not dare to look at him and kept their heads down in silence.
Baili Zhi glanced indifferently at Li Quan and Wang Hai: "Father, I suspect that the incriminating evidence against my seventh brother and his wife was maliciously fabricated, written by these two. It cannot be considered evidence at all." Regardless of whether the letter was real or fake, the fact that Baili Zhi had found two people capable of such thorough handwriting analysis made even the genuine letters from Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen that the Crown Prince had obtained seem questionable. Emperor Mingxian was no exception, and he sneered inwardly.
“However, Third Prince, there are clearly several blank spaces in this letter, which do not specify who is being referred to, nor do they contain the evidence you mentioned.” Emperor Mingxian handed the paper to Baili Zhi. Baili Zhi raised an eyebrow upon reading it, thinking to himself that the Crown Prince was indeed very cautious.
It turned out that Crown Prince Baili Cheng had Li Quan and Wang Hai write the letter, each writing half. However, the letter was still incomplete, with about seven or eight blank spaces on the paper. Some places that should have been names, and some places that should have contained treasonous words, were not written. If that was the case, it really couldn't be considered evidence. Baili Zhi shook the paper and said, "I ask you, with your forgery skills, can you write these places with the same handwriting as on the paper?"
Wang Hai said in a low voice, "Your Highness, although I cannot guarantee it completely, it is at least 80-90% accurate."
“That’s what I meant too,” Li Quan quickly replied.
Baili Zhi stepped forward and said, "Very well, then write in the blank space as I say."
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
"The first Prince Chen's residence!"
Wang Hai's hand visibly trembled, but he still pretended to be calm and took a few deep breaths. Now that things were like this, if they didn't do a good job, they would die even faster. Moreover, Baili Zhi had promised them that he would send people to protect them and help them leave after the deed was done. Although Li Quan and Wang Hai found it hard to believe whether Baili Zhi was telling the truth or not, at least it could delay their death. Maybe if they did a good job, they would have a real chance to live. Now they had no choice but to take a gamble.
"The second place is where Prince Chen and Princess Chen are... the third place..."
"The last charge: treason!"
"Tap." Li Quan took over the pen now, but he couldn't be as calm as Wang Hai, or rather, Wang Hai couldn't write with such composure. But he still gritted his teeth and finished writing what Baili Zhi had asked for. After reading the whole thing, the two of them felt a chill in their hearts and immediately understood why they had been chased. Even though they had only written half of the letter and hadn't written the important parts, it was still a matter of great importance.
Baili Zhi personally handed the paper to Emperor Mingxian. Emperor Mingxian looked at it calmly, but a spark was clearly flashing in his eyes—a spark of anger! Baili Zhi said, "Father, please take a look. Is this the same evidence that the Crown Prince presented before?"
Emperor Mingxian suddenly raised his head, looked at Baili Zhi, and after a long while slowly said, "Almost the same."
Bai Lizhi sneered: "Then that evidence is fake!"
Emperor Mingxian waved his hand, first ordering Fu Shun to take Li Quan and Wang Hai away. Seeing Baili Zhi's unpleasant expression, he said, "Although you can prove that this letter may be forged, it doesn't mean that the letter the Crown Prince has is fake."
Baili Zhi nodded and said, "Father is right, but that doesn't mean what the Crown Prince brought is true. This matter is of great importance, and it also involves the princes. Father is the first emperor, so he can't be careless. This is a matter of great importance concerning the royal offspring. Even if there is doubt, shouldn't the offspring be the priority?" Baili Zhi said helplessly, "There were originally nine princes. How many are left now?"
Emperor Mingxian shuddered, frowned, and remained silent.
Meanwhile, in the Dali Temple, ever since Ouyang Yue slammed the evidence on the table and shouted that it was fake, there had been no one speaking in the hall for a while. After a while, Mu Liquan said, "Princess Chen's trick of denying everything is not bad, but the method is too low-level. Do you think I will believe it?"
Ouyang Yue said dismissively, "What does it matter to me whether Lord Mu believes it or not? I'm just stating the facts."
Ning Baichuan laughed: "The so-called facts of Princess Chen are just empty words. This letter is indeed from Princess Chen's hand, and there is no way to fake it."
Ouyang Yue sneered, "That only shows that Lord Mu and Lord Ning are too ignorant. Don't they know that there is such a thing as forging letters? After all these years as a border official, you're only a third-rank official?" Ouyang Yue mocked without hesitation. Mu Liquan and Ning Baichuan both let out a sinister smile. They had long been enemies with Ouyang Yue, and now it wouldn't hurt to create more enmity. Just for the fact that Ouyang Yue had toyed with them for five days, they would never let Ouyang Yue go!
Yu De, however, was the most composed. As the presiding judge and a man of Emperor Mingxian, he was not influenced by personal feelings in this case. He said, "Princess Chen means that someone imitated your handwriting in this letter to frame you. Do you have any evidence to prove that it is a forgery?"
Baili Cheng looked at Ouyang Yue, his eyes slowly narrowing. Ouyang Yue, however, said calmly, "This imitation of my and the Prince's handwriting is perfect. The imitator's skill is so high that it's indistinguishable from the real thing. If I hadn't been certain that I hadn't thought of this letter, I would have been fooled."
Upon hearing this, Baili Cheng curled his lips into a cold smile, clearly indicating that Ouyang Yue had no evidence.
Ning Baichuan sneered: "After all this talk, Princess Chen still has no evidence to prove your innocence. So it's a pipe dream to deny it with just your words. Princess Chen, you'd be wise to tell the truth and confess your guilt as soon as possible. This will not only save you from suffering, but also make things easier for me."
Mu Liquan grinned menacingly at Ouyang Yue: "Princess Consort Chen, stop struggling. Just confess your guilt. Actually, it doesn't matter if you don't confess. We already summoned Prince Chen for questioning yesterday, and he has already admitted that he had ulterior motives and intended to rebel. It's not only useless for you to stubbornly resist here, Princess Consort Chen, but it probably won't do you any good either."
Baili Cheng also chimed in at the opportune moment: "That's exactly right. Princess Consort Chen, you are carrying the royal heir, the Emperor's grandson. The Emperor is always lenient and loving. Even if he doesn't care about you, he will care about you. If you tell the truth, I can plead for you before the Emperor. He will definitely protect the child in your womb and even ensure that the child grows up safely."
Ouyang Yue sneered inwardly, but glanced at the three men indifferently and said, "Oh, you two are really capable, making my prince admit to those fabricated crimes. Do you think you're so audacious as to torture the prince? It seems that after I leave, I will definitely report to my father and convict you of a serious crime of disrespecting the royal family and the prince!"
Mu Liquan completely ignored Ouyang Yue's last-minute struggle and coldly said, "Stop talking nonsense. This case has been investigated for so long, and I have already gathered a lot of evidence. Even if you don't admit it, the crime of treason committed by the Prince Chen's Mansion will definitely be established. This is your chance to take the blame and make a contribution. If you don't seize this opportunity, you and the child in your womb, along with everyone in the Prince Chen's Mansion, will be executed!"
"Ugh!" Ouyang Yue suddenly groaned, clutching her stomach and turning pale.
Baili Cheng and the others assumed Ouyang Yue was faking it, and their faces showed mockery. At this point, there was no point in pretending anymore.
After taking several deep breaths to calm herself down, Ouyang Yue reached out and stroked her belly, saying reassuringly, "Don't worry, Mother is fine. I promise those who dare to hit or kill me will die before me." As she spoke, Ouyang Yue's movements became gentler, and her complexion improved considerably. Everyone looked on with great suspicion, but the next moment, Ouyang Yue raised her head.
Ouyang Yue's expression was calm, so calm that not a ripple appeared. Even her eyes were unmoved, eerily calm as a stone thrown into water that wouldn't even cause a splash. Yu De felt his breath catch in his throat. This Princess Consort of Chen...
Ning Baichuan's eyes narrowed, but at that moment a commotion suddenly broke out outside. Then a constable rushed in and knelt down, saying, "It's terrible, sir! The Princess's Mansion and the Prince Chen's Mansion have sent a large number of people to break into the Dali Temple."
"What!" Yu De's heart tightened. He still remembered the scene when Princess Shuangxia led a large number of people into the prison to kill people. It was truly ruthless. However, he did not expect that Princess Shuangxia would be so audacious as to lead troops to rush in during the joint trial of the three judicial departments. Even if this was not treason, it was still treason!
Baili Cheng sneered, "Good thing you came. When a dog is cornered, it will jump over the wall, but that would be an even greater crime."
Soon the noise outside grew louder, and Baili Chen and Xuanyuan Chaohua led their chosen group in, followed by a group of people, both men and women, but they were not soldiers, which meant something entirely different.
Upon seeing this, Yu De frowned slightly: "Prince Chen, you brought so many people to the Dali Temple. I wonder what your intention is?" As long as he didn't bring soldiers, at most he could accuse Baili Chen of causing a disturbance at the Dali Temple. Therefore, Yu De had long given up on pursuing the matter, thinking that he wouldn't be able to find out anything anyway.
Baili Chen looked at Ouyang Yue, who was sitting quietly to one side. Seeing that her expression was very calm, he strode towards Ouyang Yue and said, "Your Highness has suffered. You've lost weight."
Ouyang Yue looked pitiful: "Your Highness, if you hadn't come soon, I would have been tortured to death by them. They even tried to torture me before, and they said they would abort my child. I was so scared." She patted her chest lightly as if she had just survived a disaster.
"How dare you! Anyone who dares to harm a royal heir deserves death!" Baili Chen's expression tightened, his brows furrowed, his eyes fixed on Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan, before finally glaring coldly at Baili Cheng.
Ouyang Yue pointed with her slender hand: "Look, it's Lord Ning and Lord Mu. They were shouting so fiercely just now, saying that my child and the Prince Chen's mansion would be executed together. It was really scary."
Xuan Yuan Chaohua strode forward. Seeing that Ouyang Yue looked thinner but in good spirits, clearly not having suffered much, he felt relieved. He then coldly looked at the three officials sitting in the main hall: "If I'm not mistaken, the Emperor has ordered the Three Judicial Offices to jointly investigate this case. Lord Yu, Lord Ning, and Lord Mu are jointly investigating the case under the supervision of the Crown Prince. But you only have the right to investigate cases, right? When did you become so powerful that you can decide the life and death of the Princess Consort? What great power you have! Lord Yu, the Emperor once stated that you would have full authority over the outcome of this case. You don't even need to report to the Emperor for review, yet you have such great power that you dare to kill the Princess Consort at will?!"
Xuan Yuan Chaohua's words were like pearls, leaving Yu De and the other two speechless. The so-called joint trial by the Three Judicial Offices only dealt with major cases. The Three Judicial Offices had the right to investigate, but absolutely no right to make a final decision. This was because such major cases were of immense importance and involved a wide range of people; ultimately, the Emperor had to make the final decision. The Three Judicial Offices' maximum power was to investigate the case thoroughly and then write down their opinions. Whether the Emperor listened was up to him. There might only be one case a year where the Three Judicial Offices jointly tried, but in eight or nine out of ten cases, the Emperor would not heed their findings. The final decision-maker was never the Three Judicial Offices; they were not qualified to make it!
Yu De quickly apologized, "Your Highness, please forgive me. I never said such a thing."
Mu Liquan was stunned. Looking at Yu De's expression, he gritted his teeth and said, "Why should Lord Yu be afraid? Is Prince Chen's forced entry into Dali Temple a sign of a guilty conscience? Moreover, Prince Chen is involved in the serious crime of treason. The evidence is conclusive, and it is time to arrest him."
Baili Chen sneered, "Who dares to touch me!" Baili Cheng was about to speak when Baili Chen waved his hand, and Leng Sha came out from behind, holding a large wooden box and handing it over. Baili Chen waved his hand, "Take this and show it to Lord Yu."
Leng Sha immediately stepped forward and handed it to the messenger. Yu De opened the box in the hall, which was full of neatly arranged books. Yu De had doubts, but Baili Chen said, "Lord Yu, these are clearly the handwritten notes of the King and Queen over the years. Some of them are even marked with the date. They are genuine handwritten letters from the King and Queen."
Yu De paused, understanding Baili Chen's meaning. He took out a book and began to examine it, his expression growing increasingly serious. After checking three or five books, Yu De put down his book. Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan also looked at it, and finally revealed a cold smile. Yu De said, "Prince Chen, the handwriting on this is exactly the same as the handwriting on the physical evidence we brought before. What is Prince Chen trying to prove?" Presenting this evidence only further proves that the letter is undoubtedly genuine.
Baili Chen smiled faintly: "You're wrong! Lord Yu can take a closer look at the first two notes from three years ago. Can you see any problems?"
Yu De studied it carefully for a while, and was about to shake his head when he suddenly paused: "These two handwritten notes are completely different in paper."
"That's right. It's because there was a shortage of paper in Yangcheng during that period in the capital. Many people who were used to Yangcheng paper switched to Wencheng paper, so the paper was completely different. And which city's paper is the one that Lord Yu De is holding? I remember that in the latter half of the year, we used Wencheng paper the whole time. Even I couldn't use Wencheng paper back then. I doubt there were any Yangcheng paper left that I could use up in five fingers." As he spoke, Baili Chen glanced at Baili Cheng seemingly casually. Baili Cheng was taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered, his expression remaining unchanged.
Baili Chen's lips curled into a smile, and he couldn't help but glance at Ouyang Yue again: "There's one more thing, Lord Yu, please take a close look at the letters between me and the Princess over the past two years. Read every single word carefully, without missing a single one!"
Yu De was puzzled, but Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan also took it very seriously. This was about dealing with Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue, and they dared not underestimate it.
The three of them stared at it for a long time but still couldn't figure it out. Baili Chen shook his head and said, "They still handle cases like this? I wonder how many wrongful convictions they've handled. No wonder there's a gloomy atmosphere in this Dali Temple. Maybe there are some lingering ghosts." Although Baili Chen's voice wasn't loud, everyone in the hall could hear him clearly.
Some of the more timid constables rubbed their arms, feeling even colder after what Prince Chen said.
Yu De and the other two twitched at the corners of their mouths. This Prince Chen and Princess Chen really were alike; their mouths were so foul, could they really be that scary? Yu De took a deep breath. Over the years of handling cases, he still valued evidence, and he wasn't so guilty. After a moment, he realized what was going on: "Please enlighten me, Prince Chen."
Baili Chen sighed and explained helplessly, "Alright, I'll kindly tell you. Look closely at the clouds, moon, blue, and numbers like one, two, three on the book. Did you notice anything? At the end of each stroke, isn't there a small black dot? Look closely, and you'll see it's the mark of a small flower. That's Princess Chen's. But I drew leaf marks at the ends of those strokes. This is a writing style that my wife and I later adopted. All our writing has this pattern on it, precisely for the purpose of forgery. I didn't have this habit in previous years, but now I have. Have you three seen it clearly? The handwriting on the evidence we presented earlier has these marks. What else could these letters be but forgeries!"
Yu De stared intently at Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue's letters for a long time, then looked at the evidence, and sighed, "There really isn't anything on this evidence!" Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan, their faces ashen, had also noticed it. Of course, there was also evidence from a long time ago, before Baili Chen added those anti-counterfeiting patterns to the letterhead, which was sufficient evidence. But there was none from recent years either, which explained the problem. All of Baili Chen's booklets contained patterns, which meant it was his writing habit. This was common sense; a person wouldn't use two different patterns in their letters, regardless of who they were addressed to, unless it was intentional. Otherwise, that possibility was nonexistent. One could say that Baili Chen deliberately wrote it that way on the evidence, which was one possibility, but such speculation was purely conjecture and didn't qualify as evidence.
Baili Cheng's brow twitched. Yu De had already sent someone to compare the evidence with Baili Chen's letter. Upon seeing it, it was indeed as Baili Chen had said. Baili Cheng's face turned ashen. Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue were so cunning; they had even added patterns to their writing. Moreover, those patterns were extremely small, almost invisible unless one looked closely. They were so small that one could almost mistake them for marks left by the tip of the pen at the end of a stroke. The return strokes in the letter he imitated were almost identical to Baili Chen's handwriting. However, no one had examined it closely enough to see that they were not return stroke marks but tiny patterns. The comparison immediately revealed the problem: this evidence was forged and could not be used as evidence at all!
Baili Cheng felt like his heart was on fire. If he hadn't still had a sliver of reason that prevented this fire from burning away his rationality, he would have crumpled the things into a ball and thrown them at Baili Chen. It turned out that Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue had known all along that their evidence was flawed, yet they had deliberately delayed them for so long without making a sound. Baili Cheng suddenly felt like he was being played like a monkey.
In truth, Baili Cheng was furious. Otherwise, he would have realized that even if Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue knew the evidence was flawed, Baili Cheng still possessed the most crucial evidence: correspondence from several years ago, forged shop records, and Baili Chen's account books. Otherwise, Baili Chen wouldn't have gone to such lengths to burn down the shops and bomb the Crown Prince's residence to gather evidence. Even if Baili Chen had changed his handwriting habits in the past two years, people might still say he deliberately used his old handwriting for convenience. They couldn't take that risk. If Emperor Mingxian found out about the forged evidence and became wary of it, it was hard to guarantee that he wouldn't consider killing them.
In reality, even in this case, both sides have their own version of events, and everything depends entirely on Emperor Mingxian's whim. He can decide who lives and who dies at his whim. If he believes the evidence, Baili Chen will face certain death; if he doesn't, the Chen Prince's mansion will remain unscathed. Frankly speaking, the reason this case has become such a large-scale trial, involving the joint investigation by the three judicial departments and the Crown Prince's supervision, is simply to appease the Crown Prince's anger by the tragic death of Lin Yingying while pregnant. This doesn't signify that Emperor Mingxian's final decision has been made.
After much deliberation, Yu De said, "This matter is of great importance. Lord Ning and Lord Mu, please come with me to the palace to explain this to the Emperor and see his opinion before making a decision."
"Yes, Lord Yu is right." At this point, what else could Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan say? They were just thinking about how to phrase their words so that the Emperor would accept the evidence. Baili Cheng sneered.
Yu De and the other two quickly entered the palace and went straight to the Imperial Study to request an audience. Emperor Mingxian immediately put down his memorials and met with them. The three then explained the case in detail, pointing out that Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan's reports were clearly biased, implying that Baili Chen's claims were just a pretext and that he truly intended to rebel and should be executed. They also pointed out that Ouyang Yue was guilty of accomplice and should be executed as well. After talking for a while, they strangely found the atmosphere in the Imperial Study to be very odd. Emperor Mingxian stared at them expressionlessly, which immediately frightened them into silence.
Emperor Mingxian wrote "not guilty" on the memorial with a stroke of his pen and handed it to Yu De: "Princess Consort Chen suffered some hardships in helping you handle this case. Fu Shun, please issue an edict to reward Princess Consort Chen as compensation."
Yu De and the other two were greatly alarmed. Emperor Mingxian not only selectively believed Prince Chen, but even went so far as to make this kind of compensation. It was clear that he had some intention of currying favor. This was to tell outsiders that he was wrong before, and that the joint trial by the three judicial departments might have been a mistake.
The three left somewhat absentmindedly, each lost in their own thoughts. Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan were particularly struck by Ouyang Yue's threatening and abusive remarks towards them in the lobby earlier.
When Baili Cheng received Emperor Mingxian's decision, his face turned ashen. He hadn't expected his father to dote on Baili Chen so much that he would resolve such a matter of treason so casually. Did he really not dare to believe that Baili Chen was now powerful enough to actually rebel? This was completely unlike his father's style!
yes!
If Emperor Mingxian had encountered such a situation when he was young—no, it could be said that many emperors would have chosen the idea of "better to kill a thousand innocent people than let one guilty person go free"—and punished the guilty severely. Emperor Mingxian was a firm believer in this principle. When he seized the throne with great difficulty, there was even a rebellion by a barbarian king. Emperor Mingxian deeply hated those who held great power and had ulterior motives. At that time, Emperor Mingxian also handled several major cases involving the execution of entire families. Some of the evidence was even somewhat far-fetched, but he still handled them, all because he did not want to let any guilty person go free.
Baili Cheng had a lot of evidence in his hands. If that evidence had actually been presented, Baili Chen would have been doomed. Unfortunately, the evidence was destroyed, and the other evidence was somewhat far-fetched. Although Emperor Mingxian hated those with ulterior motives, Baili Chen was his own son. Moreover, with Emperor Mingxian's wisdom, how could he not see that the Crown Prince was involved? The struggle between the two princes required Emperor Mingxian to maintain a good balance, otherwise, if the balance was broken, things would get out of control.
Lin Yingying's death also meant the loss of Emperor Mingxian's grandson. Although Emperor Mingxian harbored deep resentment, he placed even greater importance on the child in Ouyang Yue's womb. This had nothing to do with his feelings for Baili Chen; what he cared about was his grandson. Once one died, he would not allow a second to die. Even if he knew that Baili Chen might indeed have problems, without clear evidence, Emperor Mingxian would not easily execute Baili Chen, just for the sake of his grandson.
An old man's mind can be strange at times, especially since this old man is an emperor. Sometimes his thoughts are completely different from others. Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue only grasped Emperor Mingxian's thoughts. After destroying the evidence, and with Baili Zhi having found a forger beforehand, Emperor Mingxian had a 90% chance of letting the case be closed hastily.
Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen left triumphantly under the watchful eyes of Baili Cheng and Yu De. The latter, standing in the main hall of the Dali Temple, all looked displeased. Yu De felt a surge of emotions; he felt like he'd been played for a fool by Prince Chen and his consort, only to be laughed off in the end. This was truly unpleasant. Yu De recalled that when he first took on this case, he was merely ordered to investigate. Yet, in this case, he had been intimidated by the Crown Prince, intimidated by Princess Shuangxia, and manipulated by Princess Chen. What had he done to deserve this? He really wanted to find a corner and cry his heart out. In all his years as the Dali Temple official, not a single case had ever made him feel so frustrated that he wanted to weep.
From now on, I will definitely avoid Princess Chen, that jinx!
After Ouyang Yue returned to the Prince Chen's residence to rest for a day, Yi Li and Baili Chen went to the palace early in the morning. There was still a big show to be performed today. Ouyang Yue and Baili Chen were the kind of people who would make him feel frustrated, so of course, he said "no" to the answer!
After the morning court session, Emperor Mingxian went to the Imperial Study to review memorials as usual. However, just as he sat down and opened the first memorial, a heart-wrenching cry suddenly came from outside: "Father, you must do justice for your daughter-in-law!"
Emperor Mingxian's hand holding the pen even trembled slightly. In the imperial study, because Emperor Mingxian had long ago ordered that no loud noises should disturb his work, the imperial study was usually very quiet. Even if someone wanted to see Emperor Mingxian, a palace servant would have to come and announce it, and then it depended on Emperor Mingxian's mood. How could such wailing and shouting disturb Emperor Mingxian? Emperor Mingxian's face immediately darkened, and he slammed the pen on the table with a "bang". Fu Shun was a perceptive person. Seeing Emperor Mingxian's displeasure, he immediately walked out of the imperial study. But when he saw the person outside the imperial study, his expression was a little strange.
But then they saw that Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue were both dressed in formal attire. The two were kneeling on the ground, but Ouyang Yue was a little exaggerated. She was kneeling on a soft and large futon, and Baili Chen had to support her. She looked weak and was shouting loudly, with tears streaming down her face as if they were free.
Fu Shun's forehead throbbed as he said, "Prince Chen and Princess Chen, do you know what's going on here? His Majesty is in the Imperial Study reviewing memorials. It's not appropriate to make noise at this time. Please come back another time."
Ouyang Yue raised her tear-streaked face to look at Fu Shun without saying a word, tears streaming down her face. The silent tears were all the more heart-wrenching, and even Fu Shun felt a pang of unease. Just then, another palace servant came out. The servant glanced at Prince Chen and Princess Chen, and whispered something in Fu Shun's ear. Fu Shun waved his hand and said, "Prince Chen and Princess Chen, His Majesty invites you in."
"Ouch, my leg hurts." Baili Chen helped Ouyang Yue to her feet, but the latter was extremely weak and leaned against Baili Chen, trembling as she followed him inside. Fu Shun was very surprised; she really didn't seem to be faking it. Was Princess Chen really uncomfortable or was she just pretending?
As soon as she stepped into the Imperial Study, Ouyang Yue's legs trembled. Baili Chen quickly caught her, but Ouyang Yue burst into tears, crying out, "Father, please save your daughter-in-law! I've been wronged! Someone wants to harm the child in my womb! Father, if you don't like me, just deal with me! Let those people bully me, disregard the royal family, and even try to harm the royal offspring. Anyway, I can't protect the child in my womb in the end, so I might as well be executed by you. That way, I'll die a worthy death!"
Emperor Mingxian's face darkened upon hearing this: "What nonsense are you spouting? What do you mean I want to harm you? Who wants to harm the child in your womb? You're talking nonsense, what kind of talk is this?"
Ouyang Yue was already crying her heart out, and Baili Chen's eyes were also red: "Father, it was you who personally ordered the three departments to investigate the Princess Consort, especially Mu Liquan and Ning Baichuan. They said that they wanted the Princess Consort and the child in her womb to die a terrible death."
Emperor Mingxian's lips twitched slightly as he looked at Baili Chen and Ouyang Yue's tearful appearance. It was clear that they intended to settle scores later, and surely this settlement wouldn't only involve Ning Baichuan and Mu Liquan!