Jinyi Spring

Duke Ming and Ming Shanyue stepped forward, clasped their hands and bowed.

The Duke of Ming's face flushed red, and his voice trembled. "Your Majesty! Your humble brother is upright and honest, loyal and filial. Since entering the court, he has been conscientious and diligent, never daring to overstep the bounds in the slightest. He would never do such a disloyal and unjust thing! This nun is talking nonsense. She must be acting under someone's orders to frame your humble brother!"

Ming Shanyue followed closely behind, "Your Majesty, please be wise! Someone must have bribed this wicked nun to frame my uncle! I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Xiao Henian stepped forward abruptly, flicked his sleeves, and spoke in a loud voice.

"Your Majesty! My sister has been virtuous and reasonable since childhood. After becoming a nun, she has devoted herself to Buddhism and strictly adhered to the rules—she would never do such a shameless thing! It is clear that someone is framing her, not even letting her rest in peace in death!"

Cixi knelt on the ground and wept, her voice broken and intermittent, "This humble nun dares not lie... This humble nun is only guessing... Oh, and yesterday afternoon, some worshippers outside the door were discussing that the General is returning to the capital, and the Empress Dowager is going to bestow a marriage upon him. The nun was very depressed, just sitting there in a daze..."

Xue Jicheng seemed to remember something and hurriedly said, "Your Majesty, I once heard the guards mention that a nun had indeed inquired about the Ming general's whereabouts in private. At the time, I thought it was just idle talk among monks and didn't pay any attention. Now that I think about it..."

Commander Xie thought for a moment and then chimed in, "I also heard the guards mention this matter. At the time, I reprimanded her and told her to warn that the nun, since she had already become a nun, should be free from worldly desires and not inquire about outside affairs."

Minister Xue's eyes flickered slightly, and he slowly added, "Lord Xiao, if we're talking about who can pass items to Nun Qingxin... inside and outside the nunnery, it seems that only you are the one."

After he finished speaking, the Imperial Study fell silent for a moment.

Two inexplicable objects, a series of seemingly plausible but ultimately contradictory statements, and several witnesses whose accounts corroborate each other.

One link after another, and the chain was set in motion. To the Xue brothers' surprise, Commander Xie, the emperor's confidant, also indirectly testified.

These things were enough to remind the person behind the Dragon Case of those long-buried old stories.

Those things had been buried for over a decade. Now, these few things have gently stirred them up again.

Only Qin Wang knelt there quietly.

He didn't look at Minister Xue, Commander Xie, or anyone else. He simply kept his eyes down, his expression eerily calm. The surrounding clamor seemed to exist behind him, separated by an invisible barrier.

Emperor Jianzhang's face was so dark it looked like it could be wrung out of water; the sadness he had just felt had vanished.

His lips twitched slightly, and his voice carried a hint of coldness, "Running out of the nunnery in the middle of the night, do you know someone is about to return to the capital?"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Xiao Henian, then suddenly reached out and grabbed the jade paperweight from the table, throwing it fiercely at him.

The paperweight hit Xiao Henian's shoulder with a dull thud and rolled to the ground.

"You still have the nerve to come here and cry before me?"

Emperor Jianzhang's voice was not loud, but it was chillingly cold. Every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth.

"How dare you help the Xiao family and secretly exchange tokens with Ming Changqing!"

Xiao Henian suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot and veins bulging on his forehead. Ignoring the pain in his shoulder, his voice was hoarse, almost a roar.

"Your Majesty! I have never done anything so immoral! My sister... my sister died such a tragic death, why tarnish her reputation after her death? She is no longer here, Your Majesty!"

Emperor Jianzhang grabbed the undergarment and jade pendant and threw them hard on the ground. "The evidence is overwhelming, how dare you deny it!"

The undergarment fell to the ground, sprawling into a pale mess. The jade pendant rolled twice before settling beside the king's knees.

The Imperial Study was completely silent.

Everyone was staring at the two objects on the ground. No one spoke, and no one dared to move.

Just then, Qin Wang moved. He crawled forward on his knees, bent down, and picked up the two items one by one, holding them in his hands. He first looked at the undergarment, then examined the jade pendant. His fingertips gently caressed the patterns on the jade surface, as if confirming something.

Then, he kowtowed deeply, looked up and said, "Father, please forgive me. These two items belong to your son."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone was shocked.

Minister Xue's pupils constricted sharply, and his expression changed drastically. "This..."

Xue Jicheng blurted out, "A silver tongue!"

The loyalist ignored them, gazing at the high-ranking man behind the dragon throne. Father and son, their eyes locked in silent confrontation, stood a few steps apart.

“In May of this year, when I went to the nunnery to visit my mother, I secretly took these two items with me.”

Qin Wang's voice was steady and slow, "These are old clothes that I used to wear close to my body, and these are jade pendants that I often wore when I was young. I folded them in the clothes that Xie made for my mother and presented them to her together."

He paused, tears welling up in his eyes again. "I heard from my aunt and uncle that she misses me terribly, which has caused her to be depressed for years, unable to sleep at night, and emaciated. I want to use this method to comfort her and let her know that although I cannot visit her often, I always think of her."

As he spoke, he unfolded the undergarment and held it above his head.

"If Father Emperor does not believe me, you can compare the sizes. This undergarment is indeed mine."

Minister Xue shook his head, bowed, and clasped his hands, saying, "Your Highness, this size is also suitable for me. Several other officials in this room can also wear it. Your Highness's words cannot be taken as fact."

Qin Wang continued to hold up the undergarment, turning the right lapel over to reveal the inner hem.

"Father, please look here."

All eyes fell on it, and there was an inconspicuous little opening on the inner edge of the right hem, just big enough to fit a jade pendant.

Qin Wang gently probed the small opening with his fingertip and compared it.

"The small opening here was specially made by the Xie family. It was to hold this jade and prevent it from slipping out and getting lost."

He then held up the jade pendant. "My wet nurse once said that this jade pendant was given to me by my mother when I was one year old. She hoped that I would have good fortune and a smooth life."

“This jade pendant was part of my mother’s dowry and was brought into the palace from the Xiao family. My wet nurse is still in the mansion, and there are some old people in the palace who can testify to this.”

The Imperial Study was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The fire in the charcoal brazier crackled once, then fell silent again.

All eyes were on the Prince Qin, then on the two objects, then on Empress Dowager Cixi, and then slowly on the person behind the dragon table.

Minister Xue and Xue Jicheng exchanged a glance, their faces turning ashen.

Although I didn't get a close look, I'm already certain that they were set up.

I don't know where things went wrong. Was it because the Xia family had already switched them before giving them to them, or was it a spy within the Flying Eagle Guard, or perhaps Cixi's doing...?

But now that things have come to this, they dare not say that Qin Wang was lying, nor dare they say that those two items were not given to Qingxin Fagu by Qin Wang, but were brought in by them.

The most important thing now is how to shut Cixi up. (End of Chapter)