There was a hint of mist in Chu Li’s eyes as his cool gaze swept over everyone before finally landing on Mu Yunjin.

Ding Xian, standing behind Chu Li, immediately understood and brought a chair from the side, placing it next to Chu Li. With a smile, he looked toward Mu Yunjin, “Third Miss, please sit.”

Seeing this, Empress Dowager Zheng frowned and spoke with displeasure, “Li’er, this matter concerns a human life and is of great importance. You mustn’t be willful.”

“What’s the issue? We can’t produce any evidence at the moment, and who can prove that the murderer is Yunjin? If it turns out that it wasn’t Yunjin, wouldn’t she be exhausted from standing all this time?” Empress Qin glanced at Empress Dowager Zheng, then gave Mu Yunjin a meaningful look.

Mu Yunjin understood and, without hesitation, walked over and sat down on the chair.

After sitting, Mu Yunjin tilted her head to look at Chu Li, pursing her lips. She hadn’t expected Chu Li to speak up for her—it was truly beyond her expectations.

In the interrogation chamber, Mu Yunjin and Chu Li sat side by side, their extraordinarily beautiful faces complementing each other, creating an indescribable sense of harmony.

Empress Dowager Zheng was filled with anger but could not express it. She glanced in Su Biqing’s direction.

Su Biqing, catching Empress Dowager Zheng’s gaze, pursed her lips and spoke loudly, “This matter concerns the reputations of my two daughters. Whatever the case, I request Minister Chen to investigate thoroughly and clear Yunjin and Lingzhu’s names.”

…

…

Hearing Su Biqing’s words, Wei Hanqiao immediately felt uncomfortable. She glanced sideways at Su Biqing, “Are only your daughters wronged? My son lost his life for no reason—is he not wronged?”

“Minister Chen, please seek justice for this humble woman!” Wei Hanqiao cried out.

Minister Mu, who had been listening to the interrogation with a furrowed brow, also sighed heavily. This incident had suddenly involved three of the Mu family’s children, making the family a laughingstock while leaving the identity of the real murderer unclear.

Chen Pu also felt helpless. Recalling the strange poisoning case at the Mu mansion not long ago and looking at the current situation, he couldn’t help but think that this grand mansion was truly tumultuous.

“Didn’t the coroner just say that Yiyang was strangled with a thread? Why don’t we start investigating from that angle? As a brother, I don’t believe that Yunjin, a frail young woman, could kill a full-grown man.” Mu Yunhan, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke up for Mu Yunjin.

Hearing Mu Yunhan’s words, Chen Pu nodded and turned to the two coroners, “Based on your years of experience, can you determine what type of thread was used?”

“I’m afraid we would need to collect various threads and compare them one by one to conclude,” one coroner replied.

Upon hearing this, Chen Pu nodded.

Soon, guards had collected nearly a dozen different threads. The two coroners took them and began comparing them one by one against Mu Yiyang’s corpse.

Mu Yunjin leaned back in her chair, arms crossed, without a trace of fear in her eyes. Instead, she impatiently crossed her legs and looked in Su Biqing’s direction.

A woman’s heart is the most poisonous. This woman was truly ruthless, even taking someone’s life. She would truly stop at nothing to achieve her goals.

Su Biqing also looked toward Mu Yunjin. Their gazes met midair, both revealing a sense of satisfaction.

This time, Mu Yunjin, you won’t escape even with wings.

……

About half an hour passed, and the two coroners were still carefully using the threads to examine Mu Yiyang’s wound.

The weather was stuffy, and in the interrogation chamber, almost everyone was becoming impatient.

Just as the atmosphere was becoming gloomy, two guards hurriedly walked in from outside, holding a middle-aged man on either side.

“Reporting to Your Honor, this man was lurking suspiciously outside for a long time. When we approached him to question him, he stuttered and couldn’t speak clearly. Seeing his suspicious behavior, we arrested him.”

After these words, everyone looked toward the detained middle-aged man.

Upon seeing the people in the interrogation chamber, the middle-aged man fell to his knees with a thud. His gaze wandered, then moved toward Mu Yunjin, paused for a moment, then quickly looked away, his expression evasive.

This scene was visible to almost everyone present.

“Who are you? Why were you lurking suspiciously outside the Court of Judicial Review?” Chen Pu looked at the middle-aged man and asked loudly.

Hearing this, the middle-aged man trembled slightly and spoke with his head lowered, “This humble one was just passing by, just passing by…”

“Passing by?” Empress Dowager Zheng picked up the conversation, “Then why do you seem so guilty?”

“Empress Dowager Zheng, this is the Court of Judicial Review. The matter of investigating cases is not something that you, a person from the deep palace, should interfere with!” Empress Qin, unable to stand it any longer, glared at Empress Dowager Zheng.

Empress Dowager Zheng returned a white-eyed glare to Empress Qin and laughed coldly, “Likewise.”

Chen Pu felt embarrassed again. Just as he was about to question further, he saw that the middle-aged man seemed to be trembling severely while kneeling, occasionally lifting his head to look at Mu Yunjin.

Could it be…

“Guards, search him!” Chen Pu immediately ordered.

At his command, several guards ran over, pinned the middle-aged man to the ground, and began searching every corner of his body. A moment later, they found a strand of black silk thread in the man’s belt.

Upon seeing the black silk thread, everyone looked at the middle-aged man.

The coroner immediately came over, took the black silk thread, sniffed it gently, and then his expression darkened. “Bring a bowl of clear water.”

Soon, a guard brought a bowl of clear water.

The coroner took the water and then threw the black silk thread into it, gently swirling it. In an instant, traces of blood began to seep out, and the originally clean, transparent water suddenly turned somewhat crimson.

“Ah! So it was you who killed my son! You murderer, I will chop you into pieces to pay for my son’s life!” Wei Hanqiao immediately lunged forward, beating the middle-aged man.

The middle-aged man covered his head, constantly dodging.

At this moment, Su Biqing also walked over and, without any regard for her image, began hitting and cursing the middle-aged man, “Tell me, why would you harm my second son for no reason?”

“It seems the criminal has turned himself in. According to our Western Yuan country’s law, those who commit murder or arson are subject to waist-chopping punishment, to serve as a warning to others!” The Fifth Princess laughed coldly as she spoke.

Upon hearing the words “waist-chopping,” the middle-aged man immediately opened his mouth wide, then frantically kowtowed to Chen Pu and the others, “It’s unjust, it’s unjust! This humble one was just momentarily bewitched, taking money to do someone else’s bidding!”

“Taking money? Who was so cruel as to have you harm my son?” Wei Hanqiao stopped, tears streaking her face.

The middle-aged man paused, licked his lips, his gaze shifting uncertainly, afraid to speak.

“Not talking, huh? Guards, drag him away and execute him by waist-chopping immediately!” the Fifth Princess continued.

At her words, several guards approached, making as if to drag away the middle-aged man.

“No, no, no, I’ll talk, I’ll talk!” The middle-aged man trembled violently, then turned sideways and pointed at Mu Yunjin, “It was, it was the Third Miss who instructed me to do this.”

……

From the moment the middle-aged man entered and gave her that meaningful look, Mu Yunjin knew that this person’s appearance outside the Court of Judicial Review was no coincidence.

As soon as that blood-stained silk thread appeared, Mu Yunjin knew that this accusation against her was about to come from this man’s mouth.

“Third Miss? Was it the Third Miss who instructed you? Do you have evidence that it was the Third Miss who instructed you?” Wei Hanqiao exclaimed in surprise. Although she also suspected Mu Yunjin, earlier Mu Yunjin had repeatedly demanded evidence, making it impossible to do anything against her.

Hearing this, the middle-aged man suddenly burst into tears, wiping his eyes, “My name is Du San. I have elderly parents and young children, and my whole family depends on me to survive! But I’m a useless person who only knows how to gamble, and I’ve accumulated a mountain of debt. Last time, when my mother fell ill, I took the money meant for her treatment, thinking I could turn my life around with one more bet, but unexpectedly, the Second Young Master won it all from me, principal and interest.”

“Later, I begged the Second Young Master to spare me, to leave me some money for my mother’s treatment, but not only did he refuse, he also had me beaten. A few days later, my mother died from her illness, so I harbored resentment against the Second Young Master, always looking for an opportunity to teach him a lesson…”

“Until a few days ago, Third Miss Mu came to find me, promising that if I successfully killed the Second Young Master, she would give me a large sum of money, ensuring my prosperity for the rest of my life. I was momentarily bewitched, so I…”

The middle-aged man didn’t continue. After wiping his tears again, he cried out, “Please spare me! All of this was done at the Third Miss’s instruction. She is the mastermind! I was merely blinded by money. Please have mercy on me!”

After speaking, the middle-aged man stopped, then took off his shoe and pulled out a jade hairpin from his sock, “This is the deposit the Third Miss gave me, saying that after the deed was done, I would receive my full reward.”

……

Upon seeing the jade hairpin, Mu Yunjin frowned slightly, her heart sinking a little.

This hairpin was indeed hers. It seemed she had carelessly lost a hairpin without even realizing it.

In the hall, upon seeing the hairpin, Empress Qin’s expression also darkened, her heart skipping a beat as she looked toward Mu Yunjin with disbelief.

Could it be that she had misjudged this person?

Empress Dowager Zheng gave a cold sneer, “This hairpin looks familiar. Empress Qin, isn’t this the one that the late Emperor bestowed upon you?”

For the first time, Empress Qin was left speechless by Empress Dowager Zheng. She bit her lip and looked at Mu Yunjin with anger, “Mu Yunjin, you’d better explain this clearly.”

Most of the people present had initially harbored some doubts about the matter, but upon seeing the jade hairpin, they were almost certain.

With both witness testimony and physical evidence present, it was now a fact that Third Miss Mu had hired someone to commit murder.

Suddenly, the focus of so many scrutinizing gazes, Mu Yunjin felt annoyed. In this life, what she hated most was being falsely accused of murder.

If she, Mu Yunjin, wanted to kill someone, why would she need to be secretive or use someone else’s hand? The accusation of hiring an assassin was the greatest insult to her as a top special agent.

Chu Li glanced sideways at Mu Yunjin. After seeing the jade hairpin, he pressed his thin lips together, his brow slightly furrowed, a hint of contemplation in his crystal-clear eyes.