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However, considering Princess Ning’an was also the Emperor"s younger sister and one of the suspects behind the scenes in this case, her concern seemed quite reasonable.
If Princess Xinyang were here, she would probably be even more concerned about the progress of the case.
Thinking like this, Eunuch He respectfully answered her question, "They know. Since the Heavenly Music House case caused such a stir in the city, it"s hard for the Ministry of Justice"s actions to be concealed. There are always people trying to find out something from the Ministry of Justice. Heavenly Music House is no exception. They even sent a maid with some snacks to visit the suspect."
Princess Ning"an asked, "What"s her name?"
Eunuch He glanced at Princess Ning"an in puzzlement, then at the Emperor"s face, which showed no signs of evasion. Since the Emperor was indulgent with Princess Ning"an, Eunuch He dared not disrespect the princess.
Eunuch He said, "It seems her name is Ling"er, just like the tinkling of gem-pendants? Or is it Ling’er which means water caltrops? Anyway, that"s about her name."
Ling"er. It was Hua Xiyao"s personal maid.
Princess Ning"an asked again, "What did they talk about?"
Eunuch He replied, "This servant is not sure. The maid begged to speak with Hua Xiyao alone, and Minister Xing agreed."
……
At the end of the corridor in the Ministry of Justice"s prison was a separate cell. Unlike the usual cells, it was more like a solitary chamber, with an extra iron door and two st.u.r.dy guards.
Burning braziers hung on the walls of the corridor, casting flickering flames onto the expressionless faces of the guards, adding a touch of solemnity and authority for no reason.
The door to the cell was tightly locked, everything seemed peaceful, but little did anyone know that inside the cell, the suspect had already caused a commotion.
Hua Xiyao was tied to a chair, her hands and feet bound with ropes.
Xiao Heng hadn"t lied.
Hua Xiyao had indeed awakened, and Ling"er, the maid from Heavenly Music House, had indeed visited.
She brought a bowl of "final meal" for Hua Xiyao.
Hua Xiyao sneered, "Do you think I would suspect the Young Owner just because you bribed a maid to poison me under the young Owner’s name? How naive!"
Xiao Heng neither confirmed nor denied, looking at her noncommittally, "You trust your Young Owner so much, but do you know if your Young Owner trusts you the same way?"
Hua Xiyao laughed until her body trembled, "Lord Xiao, Sir Zhuangyuan, I don"t know how to address you. Anyway, do you really think the Young Owner would fall for it? You"re underestimating the Young Owner too much! Ever since you fabricated the confession letter under the name of Bai Kun, the Young Owner knew you were setting a trap! Because, under the Young Owner’s command, there is no one named Bai Kun! Your little tricks can only fool the people of the capital, but as long as I don"t reveal the Young Owner’s ident.i.ty, you can"t frame the Young Owner!"
Xiao Heng"s expression remained unchanged by her words, "Bai Kun is fake, but you, Hua Xiyao, are real."
Hua Xiyao"s smile faded, and she said coldly, "So what? I won"t confess! I won"t betray the Young Owner!"
Xiao Heng retorted, "Does it matter whether you confess or not? If there can be one Bai Kun in this world, there can be a second one."
Hua Xiyao furrowed her brows, "What do you mean?"
Xiao Heng stopped there, adjusted his wide sleeves, and pressed a mechanism at hand, slowly opening the stone door.
He took out a confession letter from his pocket and said, "Bring this to the palace. This is Hua Xiyao"s confession."
Hua Xiyao"s expression changed, "You!"
Xiao Heng said lightly, "Handwritten."
Hua Xiyao trembled with anger, "You"re framing me! Again! Don’t you have any new tricks, Lord Xiao? Is this all you"ve got?"
"It doesn"t matter if the methods are old or new, as long as they work." Xiao Heng handed the confession letter to the guard beside him, "Take this to the palace and tell His Majesty that Hua Xiyao has confessed."
Hua Xiyao cursed, "Despicable! If you have the guts, just kill me! Otherwise, once His Majesty interrogates me, I will say that the confession letter was written by you!"
"In that case, let"s make a bet. You won"t live to the moment when His Majesty interrogates you…" Xiao Heng raised an eyebrow, his gaze gradually cold, "The murderer is not me."
The guard was a trusted confidant of Minister Xing. After receiving Xiao Heng"s instructions, he immediately went to the palace.
The guard didn"t have a token pa.s.s to enter the palace and had to report and wait for the Emperor"s permission to be escorted inside.
The guard saluted, "This subject has come to report to His Majesty. I am here to deliver a confession letter, the culprit from Heavenly Music House has confessed!"
With the Heavenly Music House case causing such a stir, Xiao Heng and Minister Xing"s repeated visits to the palace made it obvious to even fools that His Majesty attached great importance to the case.
The palace guards dared not delay and quickly sent someone to deliver the message to the imperial study.
The young eunuch reported back to Eunuch Wei at the imperial study.
Eunuch Wei bowed and entered the imperial study, reporting, "Your Majesty, the culprit from Heavenly Music House has confessed."
The Emperor was excited, "Really?"
Eunuch Wei replied, "Yes, the Ministry of Justice’s people have delivered the confession letter, right at the palace gate, claiming it to be Hua Xiyao"s handwritten confession."
Princess Ning"an asked, "It’s not fake, is it?"
Eunuch Wei said, "It can"t be fake! When the Heavenly Music House"s top courtesan faked her death, Hua Xiyao, as a suspect, gave a statement at the Ministry of Justice at the time, so her handwriting is known!"
Princess Ning"an"s hand squeezed the handkerchief tightly.
The Emperor was excited, "What are you waiting for? Announce it quickly!"
Eunuch Wei was also excited and smiled, "Yes! This servant shall go personally!"
Princess Ning"an"s eyes flickered, she put down her half-drunk tea and said to the Emperor, "Since imperial brother has important matters to attend to, I"ll take my leave first."
The Emperor patted her hand indulgently, saying, "You don"t need to leave. You can stay and listen to the case with me."
Princess Ning"an"s eyelashes trembled slightly, "But... isn"t that inappropriate?"
The Emperor said, "What"s inappropriate about it? You are Zhen’s sister and the imperial princess of the State of Zhao. Since this case is related to an imperial princess of the State of Zhao, you have the right to listen. If Xinyang were here, even if Zhen drove her away, she wouldn"t leave."
Xinyang was someone who wore her ambitions openly on her face. If she wanted to interfere in politics, she would; fortunately, her ambitions didn"t lie there. She did intervene in politics a few times but found it uninteresting, ultimately going home to take care of her son.
It was a bit of a distance from the imperial study to the palace gate, and Eunuch Wei"s pace wasn"t fast. If the side paths were taken, the confession letter could definitely be intercepted before Eunuch Wei could get it.
Princess Ning"an wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief and looked at the gradually darkening sky, saying, "At this hour, Xian"er should be looking for me."
"He"s not a three-year-old child, does he still need to look for his mother at night?" The Emperor didn"t particularly like that remnant from the previous dynasty, but considering Princess Ning"an"s feelings, he didn"t show too much dislike for Huangfu Xian, "I"ll go with you to see Xian"er later. I"ll arrange for a sedan chair. It will be quick!"
On such a cold day, how could he let Ning"an walk back alone?
Princess Ning"an started to frequently switch hands while holding the cup to drink tea.
"Are you that thirsty?"
"A little."
After drinking three full cups, Princess Ning"an said to the Emperor, "Your Majesty, I think I’ll have to..."
Before she could finish the words "use the restroom," Eunuch Wei entered with a delighted expression, "Your Majesty! The person has arrived!"
The Emperor said seriously, "Come in!"
Eunuch Wei led the guard into the room.
The guard handed over the confession letter with both hands.
Eunuch Wei reached out to take it.
"Let me do it." Princess Ning"an stood up, went around the desk, and took the letter from the guard.
The capital during the first month was still cold. Two braziers were burning in the imperial study, and one of them was near the Emperor"s side.
As Princess Ning"an walked towards the Emperor with the confession letter, her foot suddenly tripped, and she exclaimed in alarm, falling forward!
The confession letter in her hand also flew out, landing perfectly into the brazier!
Between the confession letter and Princess Ning"an, of course, the Emperor chose to save Ning"an. How could he bear to let Ning"an get hurt?
The Emperor quickly stood up, and his strong right arm caught Ning"an.
At the moment Ning"an was caught, she heaved a long sigh of relief. Leaning in the Emperor"s arms, she panted slightly and said guiltily, "I"m so sorry, imperial brother, I lost the confession letter."
The Emperor raised an eyebrow and smiled at her, "Look!"
Ning"an turned her head and saw it instantly!
The Emperor"s left hand accurately caught the confession letter!
The Emperor: Thanks to often playing leaf cards with imperial mother, my left hand is quite dexterous!Raz P."s Thoughts
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