◎Luo Wanqing, Greets Your Majesty◎

With Xie Heng’s words, the guards no longer dared to block them. Everyone was overjoyed and followed Xie Heng’s magnificent procession forward.

This was the first time these commoners had entered the palace. They looked around excitedly yet nervously, following Xie Heng’s group ahead.

When they reached the entrance of the great hall and saw the dragon patterns carved on the white jade stone steps and the soldiers standing on both sides, these commoners couldn’t help but quiet down.

Luo Wanqing carried Zhang Yiran, following behind Xie Heng as they ascended the steps. Upon reaching the front of the hall, Xie Heng didn’t pause his steps. Holding the blood letter, he strode forward with large steps and declared loudly: “Your subject, Xie Heng, on behalf of Censor Zhang Yiran and the Luo clan of Yangzhou, requests an audience with Your Majesty to seek justice in the great hall.”

With these words, Luo Wanqing carried Zhang Yiran and followed Xie Heng into the hall. Li Zong looked at Zhang Yiran being carried in, as well as Jiqing standing to the side, and couldn’t help but frown.

Xie Heng led everyone in bowing to Li Zong. The commoners, being in such a place for the first time, were frightened and hastily kowtowed.

Li Zong looked at the dark mass of people filling the great hall, tapped on the table, and said carefully: “Beloved Minister Xie, why did you bring so many people to court? And what happened to Censor Zhang?”

“Reporting to Your Majesty,” Xie Heng straightened up and spoke in a steady tone, “Lord Zhang believed the Luo family case still had grievances awaiting trial, so he beat the drum at Shuntian Prefecture to proclaim his innocence. However, he was blocked by Zheng Bikui, who publicly assaulted a court official and even attempted to damage the Dengwen Drum to prevent Censor Zhang from filing his complaint. Your subject, hearing of such a tragic case, felt indignant and thus brought Lord Zhang and related witnesses to court, requesting Your Majesty’s clear judgment.”

Hearing these words, Li Zong felt quite a headache. He raised his hand to his forehead, suppressed his anger, and tried to remain calm: “Wasn’t the Luo clan case already concluded? What is Zhang Yiran still complaining about?”

“Because Lord Zhang believes this case has not yet been closed. He was wrongfully imprisoned and feels unwilling to accept this.”

“Then what about Zheng Bikui?” Li Zong looked up at Zheng Bikui kneeling on the ground, his voice turning a few degrees colder: “Zhang Yiran filed a complaint—why did you get involved?”

“Your Majesty, patrolling the Eastern Capital is the duty of the Sixteen Guards. Your subject also heard that someone was causing trouble at Shuntian Prefecture, so I went to investigate. I saw Inspector Liu Xiniang from the Supervision Department wearing coarse hemp mourning clothes, making a scene at the entrance of Shuntian Prefecture. When your subject engaged with Inspector Liu, Zhang Yiran suddenly arrived with people, helping Inspector Liu confront the officers. He even knocked down the Dengwen Drum himself.” Zheng Bikui became more agitated as he spoke, raising his head: “Then, Inspector Xie suddenly rushed over and publicly assaulted your subject and the Southern Office officers. Please, Your Majesty, uphold justice for the Sixteen Guards!”

“Uphold justice?” Hearing this, Xie Heng stood up and turned to look at Zheng Bikui, but said: “You mean to say that you knew full well this was Fourth Rank Inspector Liu Xiniang from the Supervision Department, a court official, a minister directly under Your Majesty, yet you still dared to fight with her, and now that you’ve injured someone, you want Your Majesty to uphold justice for you?!”

Zheng Bikui froze at this scolding, only then belatedly realizing that no matter how lowly Liu Xiniang’s origins, she was still an official of the Supervision Department.

Seeing that he only now understood, Xie Heng sneered: “Zheng Bikui, you truly have quite the audacity!”

“Your subject had no such intention,” Zheng Bikui quickly recovered, looking up at Li Zong, hurriedly saying: “Your Majesty, your subject would naturally never casually fight with someone from the Supervision Department. It was truly because Liu Xiniang was bullying others with her position, causing trouble at Shuntian Prefecture, that your subject was forced to act.”

“What trouble did I cause?” Luo Wanqing turned to look at him, speaking coldly: “Going to Shuntian Prefecture is causing trouble?”

“If you weren’t causing trouble, why were you dressed like that?” Zheng Bikui quickly replied: “Zhang Yiran went to file a complaint because he felt he was wrongfully accused. So what were you doing there?”

“I…”

“She came to help me.”

Zhang Yiran spoke with difficulty, interrupting everyone’s words.

Li Zong raised his eyes and saw Zhang Yiran struggling to crawl up from the stretcher. He painfully supported himself and kowtowed to Li Zong. Seeing that he still didn’t forget court etiquette at this time, Li Zong’s expression softened slightly, then heard Zhang Yiran say: “Your Majesty, your subject knows that Your Majesty has closed the Zheng case, but your subject must seek justice for the Luo family. Some days ago, Your Majesty had Lord Song and Minister Xie witness a private trial of the Luo family case. However, witness Jiqing was unexpectedly poisoned, so Your Majesty judged that your subject was falsely accusing the Zheng family. Your subject refuses to accept this.”

Zhang Yiran paused to catch his breath, and after a long while, he continued: “Now that Jiqing has recovered from his injuries, your subject humbly requests Your Majesty to retry this case.”

Hearing this, everyone looked at each other. Zheng Pingsheng’s face showed coldness as he glanced at Li Guiyu standing not far away. Li Guiyu coughed lightly, and Wang Shenfeng sensed something, looked back, thought for a moment, then bowed and said: “Your Majesty, the court is not child’s play. The Luo clan case has been tried again and again. A mere civilian case—by what right should the court expend so much manpower and resources? This old minister believes this case should be transferred to the Ministry of Justice for review according to regulations.”

Li Zong listened without speaking, only tapping the table in thought.

Song Xichao looked around and saw that many civil officials seemed dissatisfied. After thinking for a moment, he looked up at Li Zong and said slowly: “Your Majesty, the Luo clan case has been tried repeatedly, all because the results have never been able to convince the people. According to precedent, when the Dengwen Drum is beaten, Your Majesty must also hold court. Since so many commoners happen to be here today, why not thoroughly settle the Luo family case once and for all, making right and wrong clear?”

“Lord Song speaks truly,” Xie Heng spoke up, leaving no room for compromise: “Moreover, aside from the Luo clan case, Zheng Bikui blocked people from seeking justice, publicly damaged the Dengwen Drum, and attempted to harm court officials. Each of these matters also needs to be clarified.”

“Lord Xie speaks too severely.” Zheng Pingsheng couldn’t listen anymore and spoke coldly: “Though my son was impulsive, he’s not someone who can’t distinguish right from wrong. I fear someone deliberately lured him into a trap with malicious intent.”

“Minister Zheng, rest assured. I grew up with Young Master Zheng and understand his nature quite well. Today, I specifically brought commoners who witnessed the entire process,” Xie Heng turned to look at Zheng Pingsheng, speaking quite considerately: “Just to avoid misunderstanding, Young Master Zheng.”

“You…”

Hearing the word “nature,” Zheng Bikui knew Xie Heng was insulting him and immediately tried to stand up, but was pressed down by Zhuque, who shouted: “Don’t move around!”

“Xie Heng,” seeing this, Zheng Pingsheng finally couldn’t help but speak coldly: “Control your people. My son is the commander of the Southern Office Sixteen Guards. Don’t go too far.”

“He is currently a suspect. Though not yet convicted, he should still behave properly. Minister Zheng should discipline him well and not let him think the whole world is the Zheng family’s backyard where he can run wild.”

“Enough,” Li Zong raised his hand to his forehead. “Since so many people have come, this case indeed should have a conclusion. Zhang Yiran,” Li Zong looked up at Zhang Yiran. “Last time, you already presented physical evidence, but your evidence could only prove that no evidence of Luo Qushu’s salt smuggling can currently be found. Do you have other proof?”

“Your Majesty,” Zhang Yiran breathed lightly and said slowly, “The evidence Minister Zheng submitted about the Luo family has now been verified—witnesses are either dead, fled far away, or simply don’t exist in this world. Isn’t this suspicious? Most importantly, Jiqing, the secretary of Prefect Zhou Chun who handled the case at that time, can testify that Luo Qushu’s confession was forged on Minister Zheng’s orders.”

“Jiqing…”

Li Zong tapped the table, glanced at Xie Heng, and suppressed his emotions: “Where is Jiqing?”

“This commoner is here.”

Jiqing hastily knelt, trembling all over.

Li Zong observed him and said methodically, “Is what Lord Zhang said true?”

“It… It’s true.” Jiqing didn’t dare raise his head, forcing himself to speak with a trembling voice: “This commoner can testify that at the time, Luo Qushu kept refusing to confess. So, Prefect Zhou found this commoner and had me forge a confession. This commoner knew this was a matter of life and death, so I advised Prefect Zhou against it and didn’t dare write it. Prefect Zhou then told me this was personally ordered by Minister Zheng. This commoner was cowardly and also feared future retribution, so I convinced Prefect Zhou to go to Minister Zheng and obtain a personal jade pendant as proof.”

As he spoke, Jiqing took out the jade pendant from his sleeve. He gradually calmed down during his testimony, raised his hands to present the jade pendant, and said solemnly: “Afterward, this commoner forged the confession and joined Prefect Zhou in trying the case, forcing Luo Qushu to press his handprint to obtain the confession. Not long after, I heard that… Luo Qushu committed suicide in prison, and then the Luo family was exiled and died on the road to Lingnan. Since then, this commoner has been unable to sleep day and night, always feeling tormented by conscience. When I met Lord Zhang… knowing I was guilty, I reported this.”

Hearing these words, everyone looked at each other, but Zheng Pingsheng laughed: “Casually stealing a jade pendant to frame me, Jiqing, the people behind you have good methods indeed.”

Jiqing’s body trembled. Zheng Pingsheng turned to look at Jiqing, examining him: “You’ve talked for so long, but besides this jade pendant, what other evidence do you have?”

“Isn’t this jade pendant enough?” Zhang Yiran looked up coldly: “The case you handled has no ironclad evidence to prove Luo Qushu was guilty…”

“But you can’t prove he was innocent either!” Zheng Pingsheng interrupted him: “At least when I handled the case, I found private salt in his house. Lord Zhang, you casually find someone with one of my jade pendants to accuse me—isn’t that hasty? Moreover, you’re not just accusing me, you’re also accusing the Third Prince. What kind of gentleman is the Third Prince? He voluntarily suffered humiliation at the border for the country back then. How dare you make groundless accusations?”

“I’m not being groundless,” Zhang Yiran became somewhat agitated: “It’s the testimony of local officials. The Third Prince frequently visited the prison at that time…”

“I was trying to help Uncle Luo.”

Li Guiyu’s voice seemed somewhat weary. He sighed and said helplessly, “I couldn’t believe Uncle was such a person, so I repeatedly wanted to ask Uncle for the truth, but I never expected it would cause Lord Zhang such misunderstanding.”

“That warehouse storing private salt was always under your management!” Zhang Yiran immediately said, “Luo Qushu had never engaged in salt smuggling before. Just as you recovered your memory and reunited with Miss Zheng, did he go to smuggle salt?”

“I can’t understand it either.” Li Guiyu seemed to be recalling: “Lord Zhang, besides Jiqing, do you have no other evidence?”

“Isn’t Jiqing enough?”

Zhang Yiran frowned: “You’ve seen the case files, you’ve seen the Yangzhou officials’ statements, you’ve seen the review of past cases. This case had problems from the very judgment…”

“Does Lord Zhang have only Jiqing as ironclad evidence?”

Li Guiyu continued pressing, and Zhang Yiran pursed his lips. After a long time, he finally said: “Luo Qushu was literate, but the confession only has a handprint, which is enough to confirm what Jiqing said.”

“Why would Lord Zhang say this?” Li Guiyu looked surprised: “I knew Uncle Luo for five years, and I never saw him write.”

“He was literate,” Zhang Yiran knew these words lacked force, but still insisted: “In Yangzhou, I found prayer ribbons he wrote at the Moon Elder Temple.”

“Prayer ribbons aren’t necessarily written by the person himself,” Li Guiyu shook his head. “There are scholars at the Moon Elder Temple entrance who specifically help write. If Uncle Luo were literate, I really couldn’t understand why he never signed any contracts for so long.”

This question stumped Zhang Yiran, and Zheng Pingsheng’s eyes finally showed some amusement.

Li Guiyu said considerately: “Lord Zhang, perhaps you already had a conclusion in mind, so you were influenced in advance. When looking at evidence, you may have lost impartiality?”

“I…” Zhang Yiran didn’t know how to refute for a moment, struggling: “I’m not…”

“Lord Zhang, besides Jiqing, do you have any other direct evidence?” Seeing Zhang Yiran becoming flustered, Li Guiyu continued pressing: “If there’s only Jiqing, what if he’s deceiving you?”

“I’m not!”

Hearing this, Jiqing shouted urgently, panicking: “Your Majesty, honored lords, I’m not! I swear on the lives of my entire family that every word I said is true! The Third Prince is the culprit,” Jiqing looked at Li Guiyu and immediately said: “Some days ago, I had already left the Supervision Department, but the Third Prince found me. He threatened me to make me falsely accuse Lord Zhang. When I refused, I was poisoned in the palace…”

“I threatened you?” Li Guiyu frowned, seeming puzzled: “Secretary Jiqing, why did you leave the Supervision Department?”

Jiqing froze. Li Guiyu continued: “You left the Supervision Department because you didn’t plan to testify, right? Since you weren’t planning to testify, if I were truly the culprit, why would I find you again and ask you to falsely accuse Lord Zhang? Shouldn’t I have let you run as far away as possible?”

“You people are ruthless…”

“Secretary Jiqing,” Li Guiyu’s expression grew somewhat cold: “There are still laws in this world. Even as a prince, I’m bound by them. Why would I do something so counterproductive? Moreover—”

As Li Guiyu spoke, his gaze moved from Zhang Yiran to Luo Wanqing: “Lord Zhang, why would you be in the Supervision Department when handling this case? The Supervision Department seems very concerned about this case indeed.”

With these words, he was implying that the Supervision Department was the mastermind behind this case.

In an instant, all the recent commotion seemed to have a reason. Without the Supervision Department, where would such resources come from?

If the Supervision Department was the one pulling strings behind the scenes, the truth of this case became questionable. All officials became cautious, and Jiqing also sensed the changing winds, frantically shaking his head: “No… It’s not like that… Inspector Liu was just helping… What I said is true, all true!”

“Then why didn’t you speak before, wanting to leave the Supervision Department, but now you’re speaking?”

Li Guiyu said, looking at Zhang Yiran: “Moreover, Lord Zhang, you should know from handling cases that evidence cannot stand alone. You’re right—everything is too coincidental. All previous witnesses cannot be found, and just as Miss Zheng found me, the Luo family had problems. If I weren’t a party involved, I would also find it too coincidental. But I happen to be—”

Li Guiyu showed some regret on his face and said seriously, “So I must tell Lord Zhang that coincidence is not evidence. Now, in this case, ultimately, Lord Zhang’s only evidence is just Jiqing. But people can lie. Can Lord Zhang guarantee this person has no other motives? Everyone may not know Secretary Jiqing, but I’ve heard something about him in Yangzhou. Secretary Jiqing has always been someone who can be bought with money. For two taels of silver, he could be bought to persuade victims whose land was seized to give up their appeals. He’s eloquent, and there’s no wrongful case in Yangzhou City that he can’t settle. Can the words of such a person be trusted?”

As Li Guiyu spoke, Jiqing’s entire body stiffened. He seemed to remember what he had done, tears streaming down his face. He didn’t know how to argue and could only frantically shake his head: “No… what I said is true… It’s true…”

“He might have taken money from someone, or he might have been coerced. Lord Zhang, if you can’t produce other evidence…”

“He has other evidence.”

Before Li Guiyu could finish speaking, Luo Wanqing suddenly spoke.

Hearing this, Li Guiyu turned around and met Luo Wanqing’s gaze. He saw Luo Wanqing staring at him and said calmly, “Your Highness, this case is not based on isolated evidence. I can also testify.”

“Inspector Liu!”

Hearing this, Zhang Yiran urgently spoke. Luo Wanqing ignored his dissuasion and said seriously, “I can testify that Luo Qushu was literate. That prayer ribbon was written by him.”

“You’re testifying?”

Zheng Pingsheng sneered: “Who are you? What qualifies you to testify?”

Luo Wanqing didn’t immediately respond. All eyes were focused on her. She stared intently at Li Guiyu standing not far away, watching his seemingly expectant expression, and finally clearly realized.

He was waiting for this moment.

From when she returned to the Eastern Capital, from when they met again, the palace banquet request for investiture, deliberately showing her their marriage contract…

Everything, piece by piece—he was waiting for this moment.

He wanted her to know that she had no choice but to reveal her identity, and then let her know that if she revealed her identity, she would be the Princess of Guang’an in life and death.

He thought this way, he could make her shut up.

Or perhaps, if she didn’t shut up, it would also be as he wished.

She slowly clenched her fists, but a smile was on her face.

She raised her eyes and looked at Li Zong on the high seat: “Your Majesty, when Commander Zheng asked me earlier why I wore mourning clothes to Shuntian Prefecture and whether I was causing trouble, your subject had not yet responded. Now that I have the opportunity, I can speak. This mourning attire I wear is for mourning my deceased father.”

“Deceased father?” Li Zong was somewhat confused: “What connection does your father have to this case?”

“Reporting to Your Majesty, your subject’s father is the party in this case, Luo Qushu.”

At these words, the entire hall erupted in shock. Li Zong cried out in amazement: “What did you say? Luo Qushu is your father?!”

“This commoner, daughter of Luo Qushu, Luo Wanqing,” Luo Wanqing lifted her robes and knelt on the ground, declaring loudly: “Greets Your Majesty.”

Author’s Note:

[Mini Theater – Today’s Team Battle]

Zheng Pingsheng: “My son has already taunted to start the team fight, damage dealers quickly follow up.”

Li Guiyu: “Move aside, I’m using my ultimate.”

Zhang Yiran: “Low health, requesting help.”

Jiqing: “Low health, requesting help.”

Li Guiyu: “Surrender quickly, no need to waste time.”

Luo Wanqing: “Heh, you’re not the only one with an ultimate. Zhang Yiran, Jiqing, step back and watch my damage output. Where’s the young master? Where is he?”

Li Guiyu: “No one will help you, Miss. Give up.”

Luo Wanqing: “I will persist and fight you to the very last moment!”

Li Guiyu: “Then try it.”

Three minutes of chaotic battle.

Wang Shenfeng: “Li Guiyu, our base is being backdoored!!!”

Battle ended:

Xie Heng: Gold-tier jungler, carried top lane

Xie Heng: “Don’t think I don’t exist just because I talk little, okay? Typing in public chat is just a strategy to attract your attention.”

The female lead’s case will end tomorrow.