In the prison cell, Xuancheng, who had been tortured until he was covered in blood, trembled in fear. Just as Cui Xun had predicted, he had no desire to die. After enduring three days of torture, on the fourth day, he finally broke. If there were a purgatory on earth, it would certainly be found in the Investigation Department.

Xuancheng shuddered as he looked at the young man before him, beautiful enough to have eyes like autumn waters and bones like jade. The young man was wrapped in a black crane-patterned robe, his complexion sickly pale and frail. Anyone seeing him for the first time would think he was merely a refined, sickly young master from a noble family. But in Xuancheng’s eyes, he was a malevolent spirit that crawled up from hell—no, even more terrifying than that!

The young man’s slender fingers methodically turned over dozens of long nails on the wooden table. Each nail was about two inches long, with sharp tips gleaming coldly. The jailer fawningly said, “Young Official, after just two nails were driven in, he started screaming that he would confess.”

Remembering the cruelty of the torture he had just endured, Xuancheng’s legs trembled uncontrollably. The young man glanced at him, then mockingly curved his lips and said calmly, “Xuancheng, I’ll ask one question at a time, and you will answer. If there’s even half a word of falsehood, I’ll drive all these remaining nails into your bones.”

How could Xuancheng dare not comply? With tears and snot streaming down his face, he said, “Please ask, Young Official. I will certainly tell everything I know without concealing anything.”

This interrogation lasted throughout the night. The next day, as dawn broke in the east, Cui Xun left the Investigation Department and headed toward Daming Palace.

On his way to Daming Palace, Cui Xun encountered Shen Que.

Although Shen Que had been ordered by His Majesty to be confined to his residence, he had left his manor with great fanfare under the pretext of taking his new wife back to her family. Upon seeing Cui Xun riding toward Daming Palace, Shen Que smiled contemptuously and, gripping Ah’man’s hand, pulled her down from the carriage with him.

He dragged Ah’man along as he looked up at Cui Xun on horseback and sneered, “Cui Xun, today is Ah’man’s third day of marriage and her return to her natal home. Though she has lost her brother, there are still some relatives in the Sheng family. I just took her back, and those relatives were endlessly grateful, saying Ah’man had extraordinary luck to marry me, Shen Que, even as a concubine. As her old acquaintance, shouldn’t you congratulate her?”

As he spoke, Ah’man bit her lip, her eyes revealing hints of humiliation and anger. She tried to break free from Shen Que’s grasp, but his arm was like an iron vise, holding her tightly. She could not escape.

Cui Xun coldly regarded the deliberately provocative Shen Que as if looking at a dying man. After a moment, he gave a slight laugh and, ignoring Shen Que, squeezed his horse’s belly. The horse slowly moved past Shen Que and continued forward. Shen Que was stunned, then flew into a rage of humiliation: “Cui Xun! I know you’ve captured Xuancheng, but hmph, even if Xuancheng confesses, nothing will happen to me! If you want to bring me down, try it in your next life!”

Cui Xun couldn’t even be bothered to look at him, merely wearing a contemptuous smile as he rode away with the military officers from the Investigation Department. It was like Shen Que had punched through cotton. Furious and frustrated, he failed to notice that Ah’man had finally broken free from his grasp. She snorted, “Shen Que, does this give you any satisfaction?”

Shen Que came to his senses and angrily said, “You worthless woman, you dare mock me too?”

Ah’man looked at him fearlessly: “Cui Xun doesn’t care for me at all. Using me to anger him is a miscalculation on your part!”

Shen Que sneered, “Let me tell you, even if I’ve miscalculated, don’t hope that I’ll spare you!”

Upon hearing this, Ah’man neither cried nor begged for mercy. Instead, she looked at Shen Que’s handsome but savage face with contempt: “Shen Que, even if you won’t spare me, what can you do? A man like you who vents his hatred by tormenting a woman—even if you kill me, I’ll still look down on you!”

Shen Que flew into a rage. He raised his hand, about to slap Ah’man, but she showed no fear. She taunted, “Go ahead and hit me! That’s all you’re good for now—taking your anger out on me!”

Her spirit was as fierce as fire, her eyes filled with defiance and resilience, her lips curled in a cold smile. Shen Que recalled the day he had forcibly taken her—she had stared at him just like this. She hadn’t cried, made a scene, or begged for mercy. She had just fixed her eyes on him. That night, though she was the one who had been violated, he was the one who had been defeated.

He knew that in this lifetime, he would never be able to conquer her.

Shen Que was so angry that his teeth audibly ground together, but in the end, that slap never came down. He turned and boarded the carriage, then ordered the driver to leave, abandoning Ah’man alone on the street.

Cui Xun entered Daming Palace. He did not go to the court assembly but went directly to Penglai Hall, where he presented Xuancheng’s confession to the Empress Dowager behind the pearl curtain. The confession was tens of thousands of words long. The Empress Dowager remained silent as she read it. Penglai Hall was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Only after she had read every word of the confession did she throw it to the ground, her heaving chest betraying her contained anger.

Cui Xun spoke first: “Empress Dowager, Xuancheng has confessed that it was indeed Shen Que who colluded with Jiang Liang to steal Your Highness’s elm and pheasant feather fan from the palace and use a cat ghost to harm Your Highness. After Jiang Liang’s plan failed, it was again Shen Que who hid Jiang Liang in the Duke’s mansion to avoid capture by the Investigation Department. Additionally, Shen Que had also asked Xuancheng to perform rituals to take Your Highness’s life, but Xuancheng’s magical arts were insufficient, which is why Shen Que’s scheme was not successful. For each of these matters, there is both witness testimony and physical evidence; Shen Que cannot deny any of it.”

The Empress Dowager forced a few words through clenched teeth: “I have not treated Shen Que poorly.”

Cui Xun replied, “The Empress Dowager has indeed treated Shen Que very well, but Shen Que likely cannot forget the deaths of Lady Shen and Shen Rong, and therefore harbors hatred toward Your Highness. No matter how generously Your Highness treats him, he will not feel the slightest gratitude.”

Behind the pearl curtain, the Empress Dowager remained silent for a long time. She knew that what Cui Xun said was true. After a while, she finally said through gritted teeth, “I knew Shen Que hated me, but I did not realize his hatred ran so deep that he would risk having his property confiscated and his life forfeited just to harm me.”

Cui Xun prostrated himself on the ground and said calmly, “Shen Que’s plot to harm the Empress Dowager is supported by irrefutable evidence. According to the law, he should be executed. I request the Empress Dowager’s decree.”

After he finished speaking, the Empress Dowager hesitated to respond. Cui Xun knew that she was probably still mindful of her sisterly bond with Shen Que’s mother. So he continued, “Empress Dowager, I have one more matter to report.”

“What is it?”

Cui Xun took out the voodoo doll from his sleeve and had a eunuch present it to the Empress Dowager. “This was found during a search of Shen Que’s residence. It was used for witchcraft to curse Princess Yong’an.”

Upon hearing the words “Princess Yong’an,” the Empress Dowager’s body violently trembled. She took the voodoo doll and looked at the long silver needles inserted into it. Her fingers slowly clenched, and her eyes revealed signs of fury. However, her facial expression showed no particular surprise, as if she had long known of the existence of this voodoo doll.

Cui Xun raised his eyes and glimpsed the Empress Dowager’s expression through the swaying pearl curtain. This further confirmed his suspicions. He continued, “Empress Dowager, the brocade worn by this voodoo doll is from thirty years ago. Thirty years ago, Shen Que had not yet been born, so this doll should have no connection to him. However, it was found in Duke Shen’s mansion. Even if it has no relation to Shen Que, it must be related to someone else in the Duke’s household.”

The Empress Dowager’s chest heaved violently. She spoke angrily, “Cui Xun, what exactly are you trying to say?”

“I dare to speculate that there is more to the deaths of Lady Shen and Shen Rong, and that this mystery is connected to Princess Yong’an.”

As soon as he finished speaking, the Empress Dowager shouted, “Cui Xun, this is not a matter for you to concern yourself with!”

“Indeed, this is not a matter for me to intervene in.” Cui Xun remained neither servile nor overbearing. “But if the Empress Dowager is unwilling to execute Shen Que while allowing him to continue harboring hatred toward you, such an approach will surely lead to endless troubles. The cat ghost incident may repeat itself. If the Empress Dowager does not care for her own life, does she also not care for the thirty years of effort by the Late Emperor and yourself?”

At the mention of “thirty years of effort,” the Empress Dowager was momentarily stunned. Cui Xun continued, “The Taichang Reforms benefit both the country and its people. Now, the court, led by Lu Yumin and Pei Guanyue, intends to abolish these reforms, reducing Your Highness’s thirty years of painstaking work to ashes. Is Your Highness truly willing, for the sake of one Shen Que, to hand a blade to Lu and Pei, allowing the Great Zhou to return to a state where ‘the upper class has no commoners, and the lower class has no noble families’?”

The Empress Dowager bit her lip and remained silent, clearly engaged in an intense internal struggle. Cui Xun lowered his gaze and delivered another piercing statement: “The current state of the empire was bought with Princess Yong’an’s life. Empress Dowager, would you let Princess Yong’an die in vain?”

Upon hearing these words, the Empress Dowager suddenly stood up and shouted, “Cui Xun! Do you wish to die?”

Cui Xun’s expression remained calm. “The Empress Dowager may kill me; my death is of no consequence. But Princess Yong’an must not have died in vain.”

“Cui Xun! What exactly do you want to achieve?”

“The Empress Dowager is mindful of Lady Shen and doesn’t wish to kill Shen Que, but keeping him alive will bring countless troubles. Your Highness may not consider yourself, but you should think of the reforms and Princess Yong’an. If there is more to the deaths of Lady Shen and Shen Rong, please explain it to Shen Que. If he repents and no longer harbors hatred toward Your Highness, you need not kill him. But if Shen Que remains obstinate, Your Highness does not need to spare him.”

After saying this, Cui Xun fell silent. Behind the pearl curtain, the Empress Dowager gripped the voodoo doll tightly. Several rusty silver needles pierced the doll’s heart. After a long while, the Empress Dowager slowly said, “Cui Xun, you are right. Even if my sister’s kindness to me is as heavy as a mountain, Mingyuezhu must not have died in vain. Today, I will tell Shen Que the whole truth. If he still hates me after that, then even for my sister’s sake, I cannot spare her only son.”

The Imperial Guards brought Shen Que in, and the Empress Dowager also invited the Longxing Emperor to attend. The Emperor sat in the main seat, while the Empress Dowager had removed the pearl curtain and sat beside the Longxing Emperor.

From her position, the Empress Dowager could easily see the Emperor’s expression. The Emperor was visibly nervous. He was twenty-three years old, with features very similar to Li Ying’s—both possessed the same refined, otherworldly elegance. His personality tended toward gentleness and timidity. The common people evaluated him as extremely benevolent and filial, saying that if he had even half the ruthlessness of the Late Emperor, the current court politics would not still be half in the Empress Dowager’s hands.

The Longxing Emperor asked quietly, “Mother, why did you summon me to Penglai Hall?”

The Empress Dowager glanced at him and replied casually, “It’s nothing significant. I’m just judging a case and thought my son should hear it too.”

The Emperor immediately fell silent. The Imperial Guards had already brought in Shen Que and forced him to kneel. Shen Que knew he faced disaster, but his expression remained extremely arrogant. The look he gave the Empress Dowager had lost the respectful facade he usually maintained and was replaced with contempt and mockery.

Seeing his demeanor, anger rose in the Empress Dowager’s heart. She threw the confession in her hand to the ground and demanded, “Shen Que, how do you explain this?”

Shen Que glanced at the document and immediately recognized Xuancheng’s signature on it. He didn’t even bother to pick it up before admitting, “That’s right, I did it.”

Cui Xun stood beside Shen Que. “So, you admit that you colluded with Jiang Liang to harm the Empress Dowager using a cat ghost?”

Shen Que replied straightforwardly, “I admit it.”

Upon hearing this, the Longxing Emperor rose in alarm: “Shen Que, why would you do such a thing?”

“Why…” Shen Que looked at the Empress Dowager with bone-deep hatred in his eyes. He laughed and said, “Your Majesty asks me why? If someone killed Your Majesty’s mother and Your Majesty’s sister, wouldn’t Your Majesty also seek revenge?”