Chapter 475: Bad News
Obviously, no one was going to believe such an explanation.
Xu Fengchi said, "So, you admit this Jade Pendant is yours?"
Xiao Chengxuan’s eyelid twitched violently. It felt as if something was lodged in his throat, and he couldn’t utter a single word.
He suddenly realized—’I’ve been set up!’
’If I admit it’s mine, it’ll be impossible to clear my name!’
Sure enough, Su Wei continued his questioning. "You say you lost this Jade Pendant a long time ago. Do you have any proof?"
Xiao Chengxuan’s jaw tightened. He was filled with a grievance he couldn’t express.
He vaguely felt as if an invisible hand was manipulating everything, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
Taking a deep breath, Xiao Chengxuan said coldly, "That was so many years ago. Wouldn’t it be stranger if I *did* have proof? The palace is crowded with all sorts of people. It’s not impossible that someone picked it up and sold it outside the palace walls!"
He scanned the room, his gaze lingering for a moment on Fan Chengzhuo, the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, who was seated in the center.
"I’d like to ask a question myself. What reason would I have to collude with those Southern Hu Blade Men?!"
A dead silence fell over the room for a moment.
Fan Chengzhuo stroked his beard and spoke in a meaningful tone. "Gentlemen, it is not my intention to be partial, but his question is not without merit. If we were to convict someone based solely on a single testimony and a Jade Pendant, wouldn’t that be a mockery of justice?"
Xiao Chengxuan was a Prince!
Moreover, he was the most favored one!
No matter how you looked at it, he had no motive to do such a thing.
But...
"Then what do you have to say about Xu Jie’s death?"
Su Wei abruptly changed the subject.
Xiao Chengxuan was stunned. "What did you say? Xu Jie is dead?!"
He truly didn’t know about this.
Xu Fengchi stared intently at his face, not missing the slightest change in his expression.
Fan Chengzhuo explained, "He died suddenly yesterday. By the time the prison guards found him, his body was already stiff."
Xiao Chengxuan could hardly believe it. He had fallen to this state because of Xu Jie’s betrayal, and before he could even figure out how to get revenge, the news of Xu Jie’s death arrived.
His first reaction was a sense of satisfaction, of catharsis!
But he quickly realized something was wrong—’With Xu Jie dead, many things can no longer be proven!’
More importantly, by asking this now, wasn’t Su Wei implying that Xu Jie’s death was also related to him?
Xiao Chengxuan was furious. "What does his death have to do with me! I haven’t taken a single step out of Chengxin Lake, and I only just learned of his death today. Why are you asking me about it?!"
Su Wei’s lips curled. "Many things can be done without leaving your home, and certainly without getting your own hands dirty, can’t they?"
"Su Wei! Don’t you dare slander me!"
Veins bulged on Xiao Chengxuan’s forehead. Pointing a finger at him, he snapped,
"I have no idea how he died! Stop trying to sling mud at me!"
The atmosphere grew extremely tense.
Xu Fengchi suddenly said, "Ultimately, Mr. Fan is the most knowledgeable about this matter. Mr. Fan, why don’t you take over the questioning?"
Fan Chengzhuo felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles.
Xu Jie had died in the Ministry of Justice’s prison. As the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, he could not escape the charge of dereliction of duty, no matter what.
That wasn’t even the worst of it. More critically, he was a protégé of Jiang Zhao Yuan, which made him a firm member of Xiao Chengxuan’s faction!
Everyone would think he had a hand in this!
Fan Chengzhuo felt truly wronged and utterly stifled—because Xu Jie’s death was just too bizarre!
When he first heard the news, his initial reaction was to assume Xiao Chengxuan’s people had done it.
Killing someone to silence them. It couldn’t be simpler.
But now, he realized something was wrong: Xiao Chengxuan genuinely seemed to have no idea about it.
If this really wasn’t Xiao Chengxuan’s doing, then things were a lot more troublesome!
’—This is a clear attempt to frame Xiao Chengxuan!’
Fan Chengzhuo was now caught between a rock and a hard place.
He couldn’t openly side with Xiao Chengxuan. But with Xu Fengchi on one side and Su Wei on the other, both watching him like hawks, the slightest misstep would solidify the accusations against the prince.
How would he survive in court after that?
Fan Chengzhuo closed his eyes and took a booklet from his sleeve.
"This is the investigation file on Xu Jie’s death. He was murdered."
Xiao Chengxuan’s heart sank to the pit of his stomach!
...
「Yaohua Palace.」
Consort Ru knelt on a prayer cushion, her hands clasped together, but her heart was in turmoil, unable to find peace.
She had woken up this morning with a sense of foreboding, as if something terrible was about to happen.
So, without even eating breakfast, she had come here to kneel and pray.
A familiar voice came from outside the door.
"Mother, your daughter has come to see you."
Consort Ru didn’t move.
After a moment’s wait, the door was pushed open from the outside.
Xiao Lansi walked in, her steps extremely light.
She first knelt beside Consort Ru before whispering coaxingly, "Mother, I heard you haven’t eaten all day. How can your body take this? I’ve prepared some bird’s nest porridge for you. Please have some."
Consort Ru slowly opened her eyes. Her usually well-preserved face was noticeably haggard, and her eyes were faintly bloodshot, clear signs of a poor night’s sleep.
"I have no appetite."
Xiao Lansi sighed softly.
"You can’t go on like this."
Consort Ru looked at the bowl of porridge, her eyes turning red. "Cheng Xuan is being interrogated by the Ministry of Justice today, isn’t he? I’m afraid he won’t even get a hot meal."
Xiao Lansi hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping herself.
’At a time like this, what does one meal matter?’
’Or does she really think that with Fan Chengzhuo there, Cheng Xuan will surely get through this?’
’How naive.’
Unaware of her daughter’s thoughts, Consort Ru saw her silence and asked, "Right, how are things over there?"
She furrowed her brow, still feeling indignant.
"I don’t know what those people are thinking! Did they really think they could frame Cheng Xuan with just any random Jade Pendant? It’s despicable!"
She and her son might be in a difficult position now, but they couldn’t be bullied so easily!
To dare to use such a laughable trick!
Consort Ru secretly clenched her handkerchief, suppressing the resentment welling inside her. "If I ever get the chance, I will hunt down every single one of those villains and have them torn limb from limb!"
They would make those people pay a hundredfold for the suffering they endured today!
However, after she finished speaking, Xiao Lansi remained silent beside her.
Consort Ru finally sensed something was amiss. She glanced at her daughter, asking with some confusion, "Lanxi, why do you have that expression?"
Xiao Lansi bit her lip, as if finding it difficult to speak.
Finally, she said, "Mother, there’s something I haven’t told you. Please don’t be alarmed when you hear it."
The uneasiness in Consort Ru’s heart grew stronger. Her heart began to beat violently, THUMP, THUMP, THUMPING against her chest.
She asked, "What is it?"
Tears welled up in Xiao Lansi’s eyes, and her voice choked with emotion.
"At the joint hearing of the Three Judicial Departments... the Jade Pendant found on the Southern Hu Blade Man... was confirmed to be Second Brother’s! He’s been thrown in prison, pending further investigation!"