After my father was sent to marry into the princess's household, I became the darling of the en

After intercepting Lian Jiliang and Liu, Xiao Jingchen did not make a foolish mistake this time.

The lesson of being suspected by his father in court was still fresh in his mind, and he knew very well that he could not personally rush to the front at this moment.

To avoid Xiao Jingyu's persistent pest, he secretly delivered the person and the prepared evidence to the residence of Chen Huainian, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, overnight.

Then, he deliberately found a pretext to argue with Xiao Jingyu in order to divert his attention.

Chen Huainian was a cunning old fox who was good at smoothing things over; he did not form factions or take sides in the court.

Only if this Minister of the Court of Judicial Review personally reports the matter will the emperor not suspect that it is a power struggle among the princes.

Interrogation was conducted overnight, and verification was repeated.

Three days later, the net was finally cast across the Golden Palace.

……

early morning.

Civil and military officials lined up on both sides, dressed in their court robes, with jade tablets held high on their chests.

Emperor Xiao Chengyu sat on the dragon throne, his expression unchanged, and was about to begin discussing matters.

"Your Majesty, I have important matters to report."

Chen Huainian, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, stepped forward from the crowd, holding a ceremonial tablet, and bowed deeply in respect.

The emperor slightly raised his hand: "Minister Chen, please speak."

"Your Majesty, Lord Lian Jiliang has been safely found."

These words immediately sparked a murmur of discussion in the court.

The emperor's gaze sharpened: "Where is he?"

"He has been placed in the Dali Temple." Chen Huainian said calmly, "I questioned him overnight, and Lord Lian said that he was kidnapped by a group of masked men a few days ago. Later, when the guards changed shifts, he broke free of his ropes and hid in a manure cart leaving the manor, and thus escaped by sheer luck."

"However, it was a dark and windy night, and the exact location of the thief's manor has not yet been determined."

The emperor's face darkened.

Under the emperor's very nose, a high-ranking official was kidnapped; this was a slap in the face to imperial power.

"Chen Huainian, I order you to continue the thorough investigation and bring this mastermind to justice!"

"I obey your decree."

Standing in the ranks of princes, Xiao Jingyu's face was ashen.

He never expected that Lian Jiliang would fall back into the hands of the Dali Temple!

He subconsciously glanced at Xiao Jingchen, who was not far away.

But the third brother remained calm, staring straight ahead, as if all of this had nothing to do with him.

Is it unrelated to him?

Just as Xiao Jingyu was secretly plotting how to make amends, Xiao Jingchen took a step forward unhurriedly.

"Father, I have something I would like to ask Lord Chen to discuss as well."

The emperor glanced at him and said, "Speak."

Xiao Jingchen cupped his hands and said, "Your subject believes that the matter of Lord Lian being kidnapped is probably not an isolated case, but is closely related to another major case."

The emperor frowned slightly: "Another major case?"

Xiao Jingchen did not answer directly, but turned to look at Chen Huainian and nodded slightly.

Chen Huainian sighed helplessly. He knew that he could no longer ignore the case of the Dengwen Drum.

This hot potato, in the end, had to be presented to the emperor by him.

"Your Majesty, what the Third Prince said is true. Along with Lord Lian, a woman named Liu was also found."

"Several days ago, Liu beat the Dengwen Drum to accuse the Marquis of Weiyuan, Qin Feng, of murdering her husband, Qian Ping. It was during the investigation at the Dali Temple that she and Lord Lian were kidnapped."

The emperor on the dragon throne leaned slightly forward.

"Murder? Qin Feng killed his own staff member?"

"Exactly." Chen Huainian took out a silk handkerchief from his sleeve and held it up with both hands. "And the motive for the murder was to completely bury a shocking secret."

He unfolded the handkerchief, and inside lay a jade pendant.

The jade plaque is crudely carved, with a menacing wolf's head engraved on the front, and several small characters below it.

Helian Shuang.

Turn it over and you'll find an intricate totem seal.

The emperor's pupils suddenly contracted.

He recognized the seal.

In the skin-changing case that Xiao Changgeng solved, the Northern Di spies who were lurking in Dayong territory had tokens carrying this totem symbol.

That was the emblem of the Northern Di royal court.

At the very front of the military ranks, Xiao Mingyue merely raised her eyelids slightly upon hearing this, her gaze sweeping coldly over the jade token.

It was indeed an item from the Northern Di royal court.

But it doesn't matter, they had already planned it.

The emperor's voice had turned icy: "Where did this jade pendant come from?"

Chen Huainian said, "I humbly request Your Majesty to allow Lady Liu to enter the palace to present her case."

The emperor nodded. "Summon Lady Liu to the palace!"

The palace doors opened, and two bailiffs from the Court of Judicial Review escorted a simply dressed middle-aged woman inside.

Liu looked haggard, with dark circles under her eyes, clearly having suffered a lot in the past few days.

She knelt on the gold-brick floor, kowtowed, and said, "This humble woman, Liu, greets Your Majesty."

"Raise your head," the emperor said. "Tell me everything you know, in detail."

Liu slowly straightened up and spoke in a trembling voice.

"The woman's husband, Qian Ping, is a staff member of Marquis Weiyuan, Qin Feng. He has been by Qin Feng's side for more than 20 years since Qin Feng was stationed in the Northwest."

The court was completely silent.

Qin Feng's face flushed red, and he angrily retorted, "You... talking nonsense!"

How could he possibly admit it! The matter from back then has been completely resolved, and there's no evidence anyway, so he will absolutely not admit it.

But a cold, sharp gaze shot over.

Xiao Chengyu's face was icy cold. "Lord Weiyuan, when I question Liu Shi, I will naturally give you the opportunity to defend yourself."

The meaning is clear: shut him up.

Qin Feng's face was ashen, and he stared at Liu Shi with a gloomy gaze.

The emperor saw all of this and looked at Liu encouragingly: "Continue."

Liu nodded and said:

"When Helian Shuang was about to give birth, there were no midwives in the army, so a civilian woman delivered the baby herself. It was a boy."

"But then one day, Helian Shuang suddenly disappeared. The Earl ordered that no one should mention this matter, or they would be severely punished."

She didn't finish her sentence, but everyone understood what she meant.

That woman is dead.

No one noticed that Xiao Jingyu clenched his fists in the crowd.

The emperor's face darkened: "Where is that child?"

Liu shook her head: "According to what my husband said, after Qin Feng returned to the capital, he secretly raised the child in a manor outside the city and forbade anyone to visit. After that... the child disappeared without a trace."

She looked up, her eyes filled with fear.

"Not only that, but those who knew about Qin Feng and Helian Shuang's affair have disappeared one by one over the years. Some say they died of illness, some say they went missing, and some say they were killed by bandits..."

"But the woman's husband knew in his heart that those people had all been silenced."

In the end, only the woman's husband knew about it.

The hall was so quiet that even breathing could be clearly heard.

The emperor slowly spoke: "So you suspect that Qin Feng, like he eliminated those others, also eliminated Qian Ping?"

Liu kowtowed repeatedly, her voice mournful and stern.

"Your Majesty, please understand! A few days ago, General Qin Lie returned to the capital, and my husband has been living in constant fear ever since. He said that someone is following him and that we should prepare to flee for our lives."

"But the next day, he went out and never came back!"

"Having nowhere else to turn, this woman found this wolf-head jade pendant, along with several letters written by the Earl, in a hidden compartment in her husband's study!"

Chen Huainian took out a stack of yellowed letters from his sleeve at the opportune moment and presented them with both hands.

"Your Majesty, I have compared the handwriting and it is indeed the work of the Earl of Weiyuan. The letter clearly mentions that Helian Shuang is pregnant, and the wording is intimate."

The emperor took the letters and read them one by one, his fingers tightening their grip.

He was familiar with the handwriting on the letter; Qin Feng had used the same bold and powerful handwriting in the military reports he had submitted years ago.

And the contents of the letter…

"Shuang'er is pregnant, my heart is filled with joy..."

"This matter must never be revealed. Our son will surely be of great use in the future..."

The emperor closed the letter and slowly raised his head.

The entire court was in an uproar.

The whispers were like boiling water, impossible to suppress.

"The Earl of Weiyuan actually had an affair with the royal family of the Northern Di?!"

"Where is that illegitimate child? Could it be... could it be that one from the Princess's residence...?"

"Colluding with the enemy and betraying the country—this is tantamount to rebellion!"

The discussions surged like boiling water, and countless gazes, filled with shock, suspicion, and disdain, fell upon Qin Feng.

Qin Feng felt his blood run cold.

His legs were stiff, and large beads of cold sweat rolled down his forehead, soaking the stand-up collar of his court robe.

Fear gripped his neck like a giant hand.

But in his mind, the image of Xiao Changgeng's cold, eagle-like eyes and his threatening suggestion from the teahouse a few days ago flashed uncontrollably.

Yes, Xiao Changgeng told her to deny everything, and he would find a way to deal with the rest.

The Princess's residence will definitely protect him! They absolutely must protect him!

The emperor's icy gaze pierced down like a sharp sword, making it hard to breathe.

"Qin Feng."

The emperor's voice wasn't loud, but it instantly silenced the entire Golden Palace.

All eyes turned to Qin Feng.

Qin Feng's Adam's apple bobbed, and he finally stepped out of the train with stiff steps, kneeling on both knees.

"Your subject... Your subject is here."

"The evidence and witnesses are all there." The emperor looked down at him, his gaze chilling with murderous intent. "What else do you have to say?"

Qin Feng suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and roared at the top of his lungs.

"Your Majesty! I am innocent! I am utterly innocent!"

He pointed at Liu on the ground, gritting his teeth.

"This wicked woman is spouting nonsense and making things up! I don't know any Northern Di women, let alone any illegitimate children!"