Killer Queen: Tyrant, prepare to die!

Mo Shisan entered the hall upon hearing the call.

He was followed by four Nightblade guards, each carrying a heavy sandalwood box.

"Your Majesty, Your Highness," Mo Shisan knelt and bowed, "the evidence for the accusations made by Prince Jing is here."

"The first box contains copies of all the letters exchanged between General Xiao Jue and the Empress during the war in the Northern Border, totaling thirty-seven letters."

After joint verification by the Ministry of War and the Cabinet, all reports were military intelligence briefings and tactical discussions, with not a single private word spoken.

He opened the first wooden box, took out a thick stack of letters, and presented them with both hands.

Xuan Ying took the letters, unfolded several of them in front of everyone, and read them aloud:

"Your Majesty's Imperial Decree: The cavalry on the left wing of the Northern Desert have made unusual movements, and it is suspected that they intend to bypass Black Wind Valley."

Your Majesty, I have already ordered General Wang's troops to rush to our aid. Please, Your Majesty, coordinate the supply of provisions…”

"To the Night Phoenix Maiden: An envoy from the Snow Eagle Tribe of Xiling has secretly sent word that he is willing to exchange a thousand warhorses for salt and iron in the trade."

Whether this matter is feasible or not, we beg Your Majesty to make a decision…

"Your Majesty: Last night's surprise attack was successful, and three thousand enemy soldiers were captured."

However, the army is running low on wound medicine. We earnestly request Your Majesty to quickly allocate five hundred bottles of wound medicine…

Every word and phrase concerns matters of great importance to the military and the nation!

After Xuan Ying finished reading the letter, he passed it on to several Grand Secretaries and Ministers for review.

Upon closer inspection, everyone nodded in agreement—the handwriting was indeed Xiao Jue's own, and the content was perfectly within acceptable limits.

Even the titles were very formal, from the initial "Empress" to the later "Miss Yehuang" and "Your Highness the Empress," all of which were respectful titles.

"This..." A censor who had just been shouting "colluding with a foreign general" blushed.

"This is indeed military communication..."

Shen Qingci sat upright on the imperial steps, his expression calm: "Your Highness Prince Jing, would you like to inspect it yourself?"

Look how tenderly my love is with General Xiao Jue!

Nangong Shuo gritted his teeth and remained silent.

"The second box," Mo Shisan continued.

"Since its establishment, Tingfenglou has assisted the imperial court in solving seventeen major cases."

Records of meritorious service and rewards, and imperial edicts of commendation personally approved by His Majesty.

The second wooden box was opened.

Inside were neatly arranged files, each stamped with a vermilion official seal:

"In May of the third year of Jinghe, Tingfenglou received a tip that the smuggling salt case in Jiangnan had been cracked, with 500,000 catties of smuggled salt seized and 29 officials involved."

He was awarded five thousand taels of silver and bestowed with a plaque inscribed with "Loyal and Righteous Investigator."

In August of the third year of Jinghe, Tingfenglou assisted the Ministry of Justice in capturing the notorious bandit "Yizhenfeng" and rescuing sixteen kidnapped women and children.

A reward of three thousand taels of silver.

"In the twelfth month of the third year of Jinghe, Tingfeng Tower discovered that the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Revenue had embezzled funds for river works, and the evidence was conclusive."

He was awarded eight thousand taels of silver and granted the title of "Sixth-Rank Investigator" to Mo Shisan.

……

Each and every case, including the time, place, details of the case, and the reward, is crystal clear!

Furthermore, it contains a personal annotation by Nangong Ye:

"Tingfenglou is loyal and diligent in serving the country, which greatly pleases me. I hereby order the Cabinet to discuss and reward him."

"Mo Shisan is capable of great things and can be given a real position."

"The person recommended by the Empress is indeed a man of extraordinary talent."

Black ink on white paper, bright red annotations!

"This..." Prince Su, Nangong Lie, looked tremblingly at the files, his old face flushed red.

"These things... I, your humble servant, was completely unaware of..."

"Prince Su is unaware that His Majesty ordered these cases not to be made public for the time being, in order to prevent the officials involved from resorting to desperate measures."

Shen Qingci said calmly,

"But the cabinet, the Ministry of Justice, and the Court of Judicial Review all have records."

If the prince does not believe it, he may request to see it at any time.

Nangong Lie opened his mouth, but ultimately lowered his head in dejection.

"The third box,"

Mo Shisan's voice echoed throughout the hall.

"All tax ledgers, employee lists, and charitable donation records of Jinxiufang from the first month of the third year of Jinghe to the present."

The third wooden box was opened.

The account books inside were piled up like a small mountain!

Qian Sihai strode in from outside the hall, knelt down, and reported:

"Your Majesty, since its opening, Jinxiu Workshop has paid a total of 1,876,500 taels of tax!"

"The company employed over 6,400 people, including weavers, embroiderers, dyers, shop assistants, and bodyguards!"

"Last year, when there was flooding in Jiangnan, we donated 500,000 taels of silver and 100,000 shi of grain."

During the war in the North, we donated 200,000 cotton-padded clothes and 300 cartloads of medicinal herbs.

The Beijing Orphanage and Almshouse have been donating a fixed amount of five thousand taels of silver every month for one year and three months!

He looked up, his eyes red-rimmed.

"The Ministry of Revenue has records of all of these!"

In the three prefectures and fourteen counties of Jiangnan, the number of weaving households, dyeing workshops, and carriage and horse shops driven by Jinxiu Workshop was no less than ten thousand!

"To feed the people, it's far more than 100,000!"

"And what His Highness Prince Jing called 'monopoly'—"

Qian Sihai suddenly turned around and pointed at Nangong Shuo.

"May this humble subject ask Your Highness!"

During the drought in Jiangbei last year, your "Wantong Money Shop" raised the price of grain from 1.2 taels per shi to 3.5 taels per shi!

Three times as much!

"The cargo ship of 'Sihai Shipping,' which you control, sank in the East China Sea last June."

You only compensated each of the thirty-seven crew members on board with ten taels of silver!

Their families are still weeping and pleading outside the Jingzhao Prefecture government office!

"The eight major cloth shops in Jiangnan that you colluded with drove the Liu family of five, a small weaver in Suzhou, to their deaths last year—"

"It's because Mr. Liu refused to sell your cloth shop the secret technique of 'double-sided embroidery' passed down through generations!"

Qian Sihai burst into tears:

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! I have evidence of all these things!"

There are witnesses and physical evidence!

Now that Prince Jing wants to discuss justice—

"This humble subject also dares to implore Your Majesty to seek justice for those people who were forced to their deaths!"

"You...you're spouting nonsense!" Nangong Shuo roared.

"Whether it's slander or not, an investigation will tell."

Shen Qingci said softly,

"Didn't His Highness Prince Jing just say he wanted to investigate? Then let's investigate together."

Investigate Jinxiufang, as well as Wantong Money Shop, Sihai Shipping Company, and the Eight Great Cloth Shops of Jiangnan.

She looked at Nangong Ye: "What does Your Majesty think?"

Nangong Ye gave her a deep look and slowly nodded: "Granted."

"Mysterious Shadow".

"Your subject is here!"

"Send more people to investigate, including the Prince Jing's residence."

"yes!"

Nangong Shuo trembled violently and almost lost his balance.

It’s over.

He knew it was over.

Those things can't withstand scrutiny.

"As for the Crown Prince—" Shen Qingci's voice drew everyone's attention back.

She slowly stood up, walked down the steps, and went to the center of the hall.

All the officials held their breath.

"Prince Jing said that the Crown Prince possesses supernatural abilities and can read people's minds."

She glanced around, her voice cold and clear.

"Then I would like to ask you gentlemen—"

"Which of you has personally witnessed the Crown Prince 'reading people's minds'?"

No one answered.

"Which of you has personally heard the Crown Prince reveal the secrets in your hearts?"

Still silent.

Since neither is available,

Shen Qingci said calmly,

"Then where does this talk of 'eerie' come from?"

Could it be—based solely on a few rumors and a few notes that appeared out of nowhere?

Are we really going to condemn a three-year-old child as a "monster"?

She turned around and looked at Nangong Ye:

"His Majesty."

Nangong Ye got up and walked to her side.

The two stood side by side.

"In the twelfth month of the third year of Jinghe, a blood test was conducted at the Imperial Ancestral Temple to verify kinship, witnessed by officials and members of the imperial family."

Shen Qingci spoke each word carefully.

"Crown Prince Nangong Yue is His Majesty's direct descendant."

Does anyone have any objections to this?

No one dared to answer.

"Since his birth, the Crown Prince has been benevolent, filial, and intelligent."

He could recite poems at two years old, and understood arithmetic at three; he treated palace servants well.

Protect small animals, help elderly people who have fallen, and comfort crying children.

She paused, then her voice suddenly turned sharp:

"Such a prince—simply because he was a little smarter than ordinary children."

Just because he can be close to birds and beasts, he has to be labeled a "monster"?

So, they're going to have a high-ranking monk "exorcise" them?!

"I'd like to ask—"

She suddenly looked at Nangong Shuo, her eyes flashing with a cold light like swords:

"Is His Highness Prince Jing so eager to convict the Crown Prince because he is truly worried about a 'monster bringing disaster to the country'?"

"Or is it because the Crown Prince is too clever, so clever that... he can see through your shady schemes?!"

"You—!" Nangong Shuo's eyes were bloodshot.

"As for 'divine blessing'..." Shen Qingci suddenly smiled.

That smile carried a faint, almost pitying, mockery.

"During the war in the North, the Crown Prince was able to foresee the attack of eagles, helping the army turn defeat into victory."

"Several times there have been conspiracies in the palace, but the Crown Prince was able to sense the danger in advance and save me and His Majesty."

"These are things that all of you gentlemen here have probably heard of, haven't you?"

She said slowly:

"If this is called 'monsterism,' then I would rather there be more of this 'monsterism'!"

So that there will be less intrigue and scheming in the imperial court!

So that this country and its people may enjoy more peace and stability!

"His Majesty--"

She turned to face Nangong Ye and bowed respectfully.

"In my opinion, the Crown Prince's abilities are neither demonic nor evil, but a blessing from Heaven!"

"This is an auspicious omen bestowed upon the Nangong family by Heaven, recognizing His Majesty's diligence in governing and his love for the people!"

Nangong Ye reached out and helped her up.

Then, he looked at the officials, his voice solemn:

"What the Empress said is also what I think."

"Crown Prince Nangong Yue is my eldest son, a treasure bestowed upon the Nangong family by Heaven."

"From this day forward, anyone who dares to say that the Crown Prince is 'monstrous'—"

His gaze, sharp as a knife, swept across the hall:

"This will be considered treason!"

The hall was deathly silent.

The kneeling officials were now ashen-faced.

They knew it was over.

It's completely over.

Nangong Shuo stared intently at the Emperor and Empress, then suddenly, he smiled.

That smile was twisted and crazed.

"Good...good 'blessing from heaven'..." he hissed.

"Since Your Majesty says so, your humble servant... has nothing to say."

"but--"

He suddenly looked up, a final glimmer of light flashing in his eyes:

"Your Majesty, I have one last question!"

"Your Majesty, Empress, you keep saying that the Crown Prince is the chosen one—"

"Then do you know where the true Imperial Seal of the Nangong Clan is?!"

His voice suddenly rose, like the howl of a vengeful ghost:

"The late emperor once said before his death that only the one who truly possesses the Imperial Seal is the one to whom Heaven has ordained!

The real imperial seal had already been buried with the late Empress Dowager Duanhui, and the trail had been lost!

He pointed at Nangong Ye and laughed wildly:

"The imperial seal His Majesty is using now—is a fake!!"

"An emperor using a fake imperial seal, and a crown prince possessing 'extraordinary' abilities—"

"What right do you, Emperor and Empress, have to sit on this dragon throne and phoenix seat?!"

The words fell.

The entire hall—

Outrage!

---

[Author's Note]

My darlings! Was chapter 173 enjoyable?! (Slams table and asks wildly)

When Prince Jing played his final trump card, my scalp tingled as I wrote this! The Imperial Seal was fake?! Then where is the real one?! Did the late Empress Dowager take it to her grave?! How do we break this deadlock?! (So anxious I'm spinning around in circles)

The author, who's been writing all night, has gone mad.

While writing her rebuttal, I was thinking to myself: "Sister is so cool! Sister is beating me up!" (Just kidding!)

When I wrote about Bao'er being called "weird," I was furious!!! Our Bao'er is clearly an auspicious omen! A gift from heaven!

When I wrote Prince Jing's final roar, "The Imperial Seal is fake!"—I almost smashed my computer!!! (Computer: ?)

Now the question is:

1. Where exactly is the real jade seal? (I bet five cents it's with that "golden bird" that Bao'er can sense!)

2. Does Prince Jing have any other plans? (This man is truly terrifying when he goes crazy!)

3. Did Nangong Ye's mentality collapse when he heard that the imperial seal was fake?! (Tyrant, tremble!)

My darlings, quickly place your bets in the comments!

Type 1 if you guess the whereabouts of the real imperial seal!

Type 2 if you guess Prince Jing has another conspiracy!

Feeling sorry for Yezi for a second, I typed 3! (Although he deserved it!)

Today's big bonus:

If this chapter gets over 500 likes, I'll add an extra 174 chapters tonight! (I'm going to kill my liver!)

The most popular guess in the comments section will have a special surprise in the next chapter!

If any reader sends me a "Master Certification" or an "Inspiration Capsule," I'll release a double update tomorrow! (Begging for food!)

A final, desperate plea: My darlings, don't let the book sit unread! Check it out every day! The plot is insane! Frenzy! Push it forward! Every comment, every like, every little gift from you is the driving force behind the author's all-nighters and back-to-back work! (crying while clinging to someone's leg)

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