Lu Jin’s eyes widened in surprise as he snatched the confession letter and read it carefully.
In Squire Wang’s confession letter, he claimed that his only son Wang Kun’s fondness for young male servants and children had reached the point of obsession. Several incidents of harming people outside had already occurred, forcing him to dispose of those male children.
Now Wang Kun was becoming increasingly uncontrollable. Squire Wang feared that once the authorities learned of this, it could no longer be concealed. His only son Wang Kun promised that as long as his father could provide him with enough children for his use, he would stop causing trouble outside.
So Squire Wang used Prince Liang’s banner to make those people wholeheartedly find children for his son to bring into the residence. Now that the matter had been exposed, he was too ashamed to live in this world. He left this confession letter and died to atone for his crimes.
After reading the confession letter, Lu Jin sat behind his desk in silence for a moment.
The Wang family’s death seemed too convenient—just at this critical juncture, they suddenly developed a conscience and confessed their crimes? An entire family committing suicide?!
No matter how great their crimes, they weren’t so severe as to require the death of an entire family. Why would Squire Wang lead his whole family down this dead end?
Lu Jin thought for a moment and handed the confession letter to his subordinate: “Find someone to examine this handwriting—see if it belongs to this Squire Wang!”
When the news reached the Crown Prince’s residence, the Crown Prince, who was reclining against cushions, eating grapes while reading memorials, was so shocked he immediately sat up from the couch: “What? Confessed and committed suicide?!”
“In response to Your Highness, that’s correct!” The subordinate reporting back was so frightened that he lowered his head in response.
Old Fang, who had received the news, lifted his long robe’s hem and approached the pavilion with ice placed at its four corners. He waved for the Crown Prince’s guards to withdraw, then bowed deeply to the Crown Prince: “Your Highness, it seems this matter… either His Majesty wants to protect Prince Liang, or Prince Liang has available people we don’t know about who disposed of the Wang family!”
The Crown Prince gritted his teeth: “I truly underestimated Prince Liang.”
After careful consideration, Old Fang said: “If Prince Liang has people we don’t know about, this matter becomes very troublesome. If His Majesty acted to help…”
“If Imperial Father acted, it’s even more troublesome!” The Crown Prince was angry. “That thing, Prince Liang! Imperial Father protects him like this!”
“If His Majesty acted to protect him, that would indicate… Prince Liang’s elixirs were indeed refined for His Majesty!” Old Fang comforted the Crown Prince to sit down and said in a low voice: “Look, His Majesty ordered the Patrol Battalion to surround Prince Liang’s mansion, but didn’t order a search! Now, Prince Liang’s mansion is not only protected by hidden guards but also surrounded by the Patrol Battalion. If someone wanted to enter Prince Liang’s mansion to search for evidence, it would be extremely difficult. Even if someone wanted to repeat the same trick and set fire to Prince Liang’s mansion to expose his elixir refinement, there would be no way to do it!”
How could the Crown Prince not know this?! The Imperial Father was ostensibly monitoring but protecting Prince Liang.
Seeing the Crown Prince’s irritated expression, Old Fang quickly added: “Actually, His Majesty protecting Prince Liang is also a good thing. This shows His Majesty is willing to protect his sons. You are the Crown Prince, His Majesty’s most beloved son… If you ever make mistakes in the future, His Majesty will protect you too!”
The Crown Prince knew these were Old Fang’s words of comfort, but his emotions still calmed down slightly. He exhaled deeply and looked at Old Fang: “Does Old Fang have a plan in mind?”
“The man from the couple who beat the Dengwen Drum to accuse Prince Liang and the Wang family of Nine Curves Alley couldn’t withstand the beating and died! Now only a woman remains. That woman went to see the children rescued from the Wang family of Nine Curves Alley but didn’t see her two sons. Thinking her children had burned to death in the Wang family’s courtyard, she fainted on the spot! If at this time someone told that woman… her sons might be in Prince Liang’s mansion, what do you think… would she go to Prince Liang’s mansion to make trouble? Would she want to go into Prince Liang’s mansion to search? After all… Prince Liang’s mansion is her last thread of hope!”
The Crown Prince was stunned upon hearing Old Fang’s words and looked at him.
“In this matter, His Majesty’s intention should be to conclude it with the Wang family of Nine Curves Alley, which is why he’s blocking any investigation of Prince Liang’s mansion! But what if Your Highness happened to encounter this woman outside Prince Liang’s mansion begging to be allowed in to look? Your Highness, being benevolent, couldn’t bear the woman’s tearful pleas and was unwilling to let your brother be suspected, so you brought this woman into Prince Liang’s mansion—first to visit your brother, second to prove Prince Liang’s innocence!”
The Crown Prince’s spine straightened slightly, his eyes brightening as if he found this feasible. But thinking of the Emperor’s stern gaze, he leaned back against the cushions: “But if Imperial Father blames me…”
“Your Highness! If His Majesty blames you, you can completely pretend ignorance. You only pitied that woman and wanted to clear your brother’s name! Who knew Prince Liang had done such things! Furthermore… regarding refining elixirs for His Majesty, if Prince Liang can refine elixirs for His Majesty… why can’t you refine elixirs for His Majesty?”
The Crown Prince’s palms tightened. But this matter of refining elixirs… violated ancestral teachings.
“Prince Liang can win His Majesty’s favor by refining elixirs. You are already His Majesty’s most beloved son. If you refined elixirs for His Majesty, wouldn’t His Majesty love you even more?” Old Fang lowered his voice and, after carefully choosing his words, continued: “Your Highness need not worry about ancestral teachings. Ancestral teachings were established by emperors! The current emperor is His Majesty! The future emperor is you! What do you have to fear?”
The Crown Prince, encouraged by Old Fang’s words, nodded and gained confidence, making his decision: “Very well, Old Fang, please make the arrangements! I’ll have Quan Yu come dress me. Oh… and call the Crown Princess, bring some pastries. The Crown Princess and I will go see this brother who should already be frightened and at a loss!”
Bai Jinxiu sat restlessly. She had heard that the woman who beat the Dengwen Drum had lost her husband, but among the children rescued from the Wang mansion in Nine Curves Alley, she couldn’t find her two sons. She had now gone to make trouble at Prince Liang’s mansion gates.
But her people really couldn’t enter Prince Liang’s mansion—the Patrol Battalion surrounded it from outside, and imperial hidden guards protected it from within. Now, Bai Jinxiu didn’t know what had happened to those children, and her heart was filled with anxiety.
Yinshuang, who had returned carrying a jar of pickled vegetables, had the small kitchen cut a small dish for Bai Jinxiu. The kitchen woman, thinking Bai Jinxiu had eaten little today, also made a bowl of chicken soup with thin noodles for Yinshuang to bring in. Seeing Bai Jinxiu seemed restless, Yinshuang placed the black lacquered gold-decorated square tray on the round table and called out: “Second Miss, pickled vegetables! And noodles!”
Bai Jinxiu felt anxious and restless, but didn’t want to show it in front of Yinshuang and worry her. She supported herself on Cuibi’s hand and sat down on the soft couch by the window, smiling: “Mm, smells quite fragrant. Yinshuang, you eat the noodles for me! I’m not hungry right now! Bring that dish of pickled vegetables over—I’ll have a bite. I was just craving this flavor.”
Cuibi smiled at Yinshuang, brought over the pickled vegetables, placed them on the small table, and handed chopsticks to Bai Jinxiu.
Yinshuang glanced at the noodles in the bowl, picked it up, and walked toward Bai Jinxiu’s direction. She placed the noodle bowl next to the pickled vegetables and said seriously to Bai Jinxiu with a straight face: “Can’t substitute!”