By the time Officer Zheng arrived, his face was already ashen with despair.

Once he arrived, he didn’t bother explaining himself at all—he went straight to confessing his guilt.

“Everything… it’s all this subordinate’s fault. This subordinate held a grudge against Feng Jiu’er and wanted her dead as quickly as possible!”

“Why did you want to get rid of Jiu’er?” Mu Mu stepped forward, glaring at him, fury burning in his eyes. “Is there someone behind you, pulling the strings?”

He was just an officer—what grudge could he possibly have against a new student? Besides, Jiu’er belonged to the Dragon Martial Academy; she wasn’t even a student of the Imperial Guard Academy at all!

Mu Mu knew very well that someone was clearly behind him—Jiu’er herself had said so.

But for now, without proof, he couldn’t bring himself to say it aloud.

Officer Zheng gave him an indifferent glance, then ignored him entirely, lifting his head instead to look at the Ninth Prince seated on the jade chair.

“Your Highness, this subordinate… this subordinate wanted… wanted to silence her permanently!”

With a crack, something struck Officer Zheng’s temple. The force behind it didn’t seem great, but the internal energy carried within it was overwhelming.

He rolled across the floor twice before barely managing to stop, sprawled on the ground with a gaping bloody wound at his temple—a sight gruesome enough to make anyone flinch.

“Your Highness, Your Highness… this subordinate knows his wrongdoing! This subordinate truly knows his wrongdoing!”

Sprawled on the ground, his blood and qi roiling, Officer Zheng suddenly opened his mouth and spat out another mouthful of fresh blood, his state utterly wretched.

But at this moment, no one dared step forward to help him up, because it was the prince himself who had thrown that cup.

Who would dare to help someone the prince had wounded?

“Why did you frame Feng Jiu’er?” Yu Jingfeng stared at him and asked coldly.

“Because… because Feng Jiu’er, she… she… ruined my affairs.”

Officer Zheng took a deep breath, and only after some effort did he manage to calm his roiling blood and qi a little.

“She… she… exposed Yue’er’s secret affair with me. I… I wished I could…”

A new cup had appeared in the Ninth Prince’s hand. For some reason, the moment everyone saw him holding the cup, the words about wanting to flay Feng Jiu’er alive and tear her bones apart stuck firmly in their throats, unspoken.

There was a pervasive feeling that anyone who dared speak ill of Feng Jiu’er in front of the Ninth Prince would end up dead without even a whole corpse left behind.

Why did such a feeling exist?

Officer Zheng didn’t dare continue in that vein, and instead said, “This subordinate and Zeng Lanyue… we were mutually in love. But this subordinate… this subordinate already has a wife.”

“Yue’er was willing to follow me without any name or status, yet because of Feng Jiu’er…”

“When the assassin inspection took place, it had nothing to do with Feng Jiu’er at all—it was Zeng Lanyue herself who, to avoid exposing her own affair, would rather die than submit to the inspection!”

Huo Yan stared at him and snorted. “What does this matter have to do with Feng Jiu’er?”

Many people in the Dragon Martial Academy were naturally aware of this affair, but as long as a mutually consensual relationship like this remained undiscovered, those in charge generally didn’t bother interfering.

After all, military life was dreary and difficult. If subordinates truly fell for one another and reported to their superiors wishing to be together, as long as it didn’t violate military discipline or cause any ill effects, the higher-ups would generally consider granting permission.

But a clandestine affair carried out in secret was naturally subject to punishment once exposed—otherwise military discipline would lack rigor and fail to command respect.

Although Officer Zheng already had a wife, in this era it was perfectly normal for a man to take multiple wives and concubines.

Because she feared exposure, she had actually preferred to slit her own throat rather than submit to inspection—Zeng Lanyue’s behavior was rather bizarre indeed.

Officer Zheng said, “Because of Feng Jiu’er, Yue’er nearly died. I harbored resentment in my heart, and that’s why I framed Feng Jiu’er.”