The abstinent and powerful minister is cold and aloof during the day, but he adores her in his dream

Chapter 257: Another Twist
As if oblivious to the ambiguous atmosphere in the carriage, she sat down directly on the cushions. "Your Highness, could you give me a ride?"

Princess Chang Le's lips twitched, amused and exasperated. "You've already sat down here, and you still ask this question? If I told you to get down, would you have?"

“Your Highness is a good person.” Ouyang Zhenzhu looked at her sincerely.

Princess Chang Le: "..."

She snorted coldly, suppressing the urge to have Ouyang Zhenzhu thrown off the train. She sat up straight and asked, "You're not just here to hitch a ride with me, are you? What other purpose do you have?"

Ouyang Zhenzhu immediately sat closer to her, trying to ingratiate herself, and began to massage her legs and shoulders. "Your Highness, please speak to the Emperor on her behalf. Wanwan couldn't have killed anyone. If you can explain Wanwan's situation to the Emperor, this case can be resolved quickly, and Wanwan won't have to suffer like that anymore."

Upon hearing this, Princess Chang Le brushed her hand away and scolded, "Do you think the law is a joke? Is it really that simple? Lu Zhan can just go and plead with my father, the emperor. He has made so many contributions; my father will surely give him face."

But he didn't do that, did he?

Ouyang Zhenzhu choked for a moment, then said indignantly, "Lord Lu is just too strict and too pedantic."

"Leaving aside Lu Zhan, let's talk about your brother. He is the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, but he won't even grant you permission to visit Zhiwan at the Court of Judicial Review." Princess Chang Le glanced at her sideways.

"They're all birds of a feather!" Ouyang Zhenzhu said angrily.

Princess Chang Le gave her a sharp rap on the head, saying, "I think you're the blockhead."

Ouyang Zhenzhu rubbed her forehead. "Just talk, why are you hitting me?"

Princess Chang Le leaned against the carriage wall and remained silent.

Ouyang Zhenzhu looked depressed.

The carriage fell silent, with only the sound of the wheels rolling on the ground.

Shen Longjin put down his book and broke the silence, "This case was not complicated at first, but it became complicated because it involved matricide. Now the whole capital is paying attention to this case. In addition, someone is spreading rumors that Miss Zhi is the real culprit, and Lord Lu, in order to protect Miss Zhi, has pinned the crime of matricide on Miss Lu Si."

At this juncture, if Lord Lu were to make even the slightest mistake, not only would his official career be ruined, but Miss Zhi would also be unable to clear her name of guilt.

"The person behind this is truly despicable and despicable! And Lu Lan, I never realized before that she was so heartless and cruel, not only murdering her own mother but also framing Zhi Wan!" Ouyang Zhenzhu was extremely angry.

“I heard from your brother that Lu Lan was tortured in the Dali Temple’s iron prison, but she still stubbornly refused to admit that she killed her birth mother and kept shouting that it was Zhi Wan who killed her,” Princess Chang Le said. “It is truly remarkable that a young girl could endure the torture in the Dali Temple.”

"Hmph, her stubbornness is useless; it can only buy her time. Once we find her personal maid, everything will be resolved," Ouyang Zhenzhu said resentfully.

Princess Chang Le nodded. "I hope there won't be any trouble in this matter." After saying that, she kicked Ouyang Zhenzhu. "Sit further away. I need to lie down for a while."

Ouyang Zhenzhu had no choice but to sit on the other side.

Princess Chang Le lay down, her head brazenly resting on Shen Longjin's lap.

Upon seeing this, Ouyang Zhenzhu's eyes widened. Princess Chang Le was truly corrupt.

Besides, she's right here, doesn't she feel embarrassed?

It seems that the rumors circulating outside were not unfounded and did not slander Princess Chang Le.

She truly deserves the title of a womanizer.

Shen Longjin remained calm. He picked up his book and continued reading.

Under the deep darkness of night, two riders galloped along the official road.

It was Lu Zhan and Jiang Shi.

During the day, Lu Zhan sent out a large number of people to search for Huan'er, but to no avail. He suspected that Huan'er had returned to her hometown, so he decided to go to Huan'er's hometown to find her in person.

Fortunately, Huan'er's hometown was not far from the capital. The two of them rode at full speed and arrived in the middle of the night.

Late at night, when all the villagers were fast asleep, the two men entered the village and knocked on the door of the nearest house.

"Brother, do you know which household Chen Gensheng's family lives in?"

The villagers, awakened by the noise, grabbed brooms and stared at the two men warily. "Who are you?"

“We are government officials,” Jiang Shi said, taking out his token. Upon hearing this, the villager quickly put down his broom. “This humble one did not know you were officials. Please forgive any offense we may have caused.”

"It's alright. Please, sir, lead us to Chen Gensheng's house," Lu Zhan said.

“Chen Gensheng’s house is at the end of the village, which is quite far from here. I’ll take you there right away,” the villager said hurriedly.

To save time, Lu Zhan had Jiang Shi ride a horse to lead the villagers, while he rode behind on horseback.

"How did a fire break out?" The villager suddenly pointed towards the end of the village and exclaimed in horror, "That...that looks like Chen Gensheng's house."

Lu Zhan also saw the firelight, his expression changed drastically, and he spurred his horse, galloping towards the end of the village like an arrow.

Jiang Shi didn't dare to delay and quickly led the villagers to follow.

"Help! Help! There's a fire!" the villagers shouted at the top of their lungs.

In the still of the night, the villagers rushed out of their doors, grabbed buckets of water, and ran toward the flames that were shooting into the sky.

When Jiang Shi arrived with the villagers, he saw his young master pick up a bucket of water, pour it over his head, and then rush into the fire.

"Your Highness—" Jiang Shi roared, jumped off his horse, and followed suit, rushing into the fire.

"Quick, quick, put out the fire!" The villager shouted as he saw that nearby houses had heard the commotion and rushed over.

In an instant, the villagers rushed to fetch water to put out the fire.

……

The capital city, Dali Temple.

Just as dawn broke, Zhiwan woke up.

After dinner, she sat at the table, pressing her twitching eyelids, feeling very uneasy.

Before long, a constable came and gave her a set of blood-stained clothes. "Minister Ouyang asked me to bring these to you, young lady. Please change quickly and come with me to the Hall of Justice."

Zhiwan took it with a puzzled look.

Thinking that Ouyang Lei wouldn't do such a thing for no reason, and must have a purpose, he endured the smell of blood and changed his clothes.

Then, she followed the yamen runner to the Dali Temple's Hall of Witnesses.

As she followed the bailiffs inside, two rows of bailiffs stood on either side of the hall, each holding a stern rod. The entire hall was incredibly imposing and intimidating.

Ouyang Lei, who is usually gentle and mild-mannered, sat behind his desk with a serious expression, without a trace of a smile.

Lu Lan lay sprawled on the ground, covered in blood.

He smiled strangely as he saw her come in.

Despite her intense disgust for her, Zhiwan remained calm and averted her gaze.

"Bang!" Ou Yanglei picked up the gavel and slammed it down heavily, his voice deep and resonant, "Who is below?"

This was the first time Zhiwan had been to such a place. Seeing this spectacle, her heart tightened, and she slowly knelt down. "This humble woman, Zhiwan, greets Your Excellency."

"On July 29th, which was yesterday, Xu Yumei was tragically killed in your boudoir. Someone has accused you of murdering Xu. Is this true?" Ouyang Lei asked in a businesslike manner.

Zhiwan shook her head. "My lord, I am innocent. I did not kill Xu Yumei. This is a frame-up."

"What evidence do you have to prove that you didn't kill anyone?" Ouyang Lei continued to ask.

“I have witnesses. My maid, Shuang’er, was with me at the time, and she can testify that I didn’t kill Xu Yumei. There’s also Lord Chen, who can testify for me. The coroner determined that Aunt Xu died around 1:15 AM, and at that time, I was talking to Old Madam Lu in her Fushou Hall. My aunt was with me then, and she can also testify for me. I simply didn’t have time to kill her,” Zhi Wan said calmly.

"Bring the suspect, Shuang'er!" Ouyang Lei raised his voice.

Upon hearing the word "suspect," Zhiwan's heart sank.