Princess, something terrible has happened! The prince consort has attempted suicide again!

Seeing that the situation was not good, Qian Deming began to consider retreating.

As long as I get out safely, I can always find a way to rescue my son in the future.

But Zhang Xiaomeng came back at this moment and called out to him, "Minister, don't be in such a hurry to leave."

As they spoke, at Wang Dongjian's signal, the Imperial Guards blocked the gate tightly.

Even the guards that Qian Deming brought were taken into custody to prevent them from having any opportunity to tip off others.

Qian Deming's heart sank, but he maintained his official demeanor and rebuked, "How dare you! I am a high-ranking official, and even the Embroidered Uniform Guard has no right to stop me. Get out of my way at once!"

Zhang Xiaomeng said, "Didn't your son just say that you embezzled public funds? Of course, you should be detained and thoroughly investigated."

"Nonsense! This is just my son's wild talk; how can you take it seriously?"

Qian Deming quickly gave Qian Youkang a wink, signaling him to change his tune immediately.

Even if his son is confused, he should understand that these words are enough to overturn the entire Minister's mansion.

To everyone's surprise, Qian Youkang stood tall and spoke frankly, "Father, I have always kept your teachings in mind: honesty is the foundation of being a person. Everything I said just now is true."

Qian Deming was so angry he almost vomited blood.

What an idiot!

"Your Excellency, look, your son has already confessed, so why don't you confess too?" Zhang Xiaomeng said with a smile.

"I have always been honest and upright. It must be you who bewitched my son! Kang'er, don't be afraid. With your father here, no one can threaten you."

Qian Deming gave Qian Youkang another meaningful look, his eyes conveying a warning.

Qian Youkang ignored him and shook his head, saying, "No one threatened me. I have just realized my mistake and don't want to make the same mistake again."

"The traitor!"

Qian Deming flew into a rage and shouted angrily, "How could I have given birth to such a traitorous brat like you!"

Zhang Xiaomeng said sternly, "Qian Deming, confess and you'll be treated leniently. You'd better tell the truth, and I might be able to plead for you before the Emperor. Otherwise, no one can save you!"

"That's all just this unfilial son's one-sided story. He wants to convict me. Unless you produce evidence, he won't be able to do so."

Qian Deming quickly calmed down.

As long as you stubbornly deny it, they have no evidence and can't do anything to you.

"Do you have any evidence?" Zhang Xiaomeng asked Qian Youkang.

"What evidence could he possibly have? He already said it was just unintentional rambling, and you still took it seriously."

Qian Deming was no longer flustered.

This is something so important that no one else knows about it except him.

To everyone's surprise, Qian Youkang nodded. "I have it. I know where the evidence is."

"Quickly! Where is it?" Zhang Xiaomeng asked hastily.

"You unfilial son, shut up!"

Qian Deming could no longer bear it and stepped forward to slap his unfilial son.

But Zhang Xiaomeng stopped him, teasingly saying, "If you're upright, why should you be afraid of what he says?"

"you!"

Qian Deming clenched his fists, ready to explode.

However, seeing the Imperial Guards watching him menacingly, he held back.

Qian Youkang took a deep breath and boldly said, "The evidence is the account book, which is hidden in the secret compartment on the second shelf of the leftmost bookshelf in my father's study."

"You unfilial son! You unfilial son! I'll beat you to death!"

Qian Deming could no longer restrain himself and, abandoning all decorum as a minister, rushed forward without regard for anything else.

But he was a civil official, and was easily subdued by Wang Dongjian.

"Let me go! Wang Dongjian, you dare to lay a hand on me, believe me or not I'll report you to the Emperor!" Qian Deming struggled desperately, as if he had lost his mind.

Wang Dongjian teased, "Minister Qian, if you have nothing to hide, why are you so agitated?"

"Let's go! We'll go to the Minister's residence now and find the account books."

At Zhang Xiaomeng's command, he escorted Qian Deming and led the Imperial Guards in a grand procession toward the Minister's residence.

As for those gamblers, they were all handed over to Lin Youwei to deal with.

Before long, they arrived at the Minister's residence and barged in.

The guards inside the mansion wanted to step forward to stop him, but Qian Deming subtly raised an eyebrow and gave them a look.

Upon seeing this, the guards immediately withdrew and retreated to the sides, allowing the crowd to advance unimpeded.

Throughout the journey, apart from his earlier rage, Qian Deming remained silent, seemingly resigned to his fate.

However, a barely perceptible sneer appeared at the corner of his mouth.

As Qian Youkang had said, Wang Dongjian indeed found a pile of account books in a hidden compartment of the bookshelf.

Zhang Xiaomeng glanced through the account book casually, then held it up and asked, "Qian Deming, what do you have to say now?"

To everyone's surprise, Qian Deming remained calm and composed, saying, "Zhang Xiaomeng, do you even know how to read accounts? Take a good look. What detail in the records proves that I have embezzled funds?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Yi immediately picked up the account book and examined it carefully, her brows slowly furrowing.

"How is it? Isn't it different from what you expected?" Qian Deming puffed out his chest, his previous impulsiveness gone, as if he had everything under control.

"There's nothing wrong with the accounts."

As soon as Feng Yi finished speaking, the atmosphere in the study froze instantly.

Wang Dongjian's expression turned solemn, his fingertips tightened slightly, and a sense of crisis rose in his heart.

"Did you hear that? I told you it was just my unfilial son's careless remark, but you insisted on making a mountain out of a molehill. Zhang Xiaomeng, you've arbitrarily framed a second-rank official of the court and abused your power. I will definitely impeach you. And you, the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Black Phoenix Guard, colluded with Zhang Xiaomeng to secretly detain me and forcibly break into my residence. I will make you pay the price!"

Qian Deming once again displayed his official arrogance, pointing at everyone and venting all the humiliation he had just suffered.

Wang Dongjian felt a little panicked.

He slandered a second-rank minister and even led people to break into his home. If this matter were reported to the emperor, he would definitely be in deep trouble.

"What should we do?"

He asked Zhang Xiaomeng in a low voice, his tone unease.

Zhang Xiaomeng patted his shoulder to comfort him, "It's just a small matter, the real show is yet to come."

Is this a small matter?

If things go wrong, all of them could be punished.

Wang Dongjian was secretly anxious.

Zhang Xiaomeng maintained a smile throughout, and said calmly, "Minister, aren't you celebrating too soon?"

Qian Deming felt a strange tightness in his heart when he saw his smile.

I have a feeling this kid is up to no good.

"What do you mean? Are you trying to force a confession out of me?" Qian Deming sneered, speaking provocatively, "Go ahead and try if you dare."

"I'm a civilized person, I wouldn't resort to violence." Zhang Xiaomeng looked at Qian Youkang, "The time has come to uphold justice even against family ties."

Qian Youkang looked down at his own wounds, then at his father's ashen face. After a brief hesitation, he was finally overcome by his will to survive and limped forward.

"Father, you deliberately hid these account books here to cover your tracks."

Qian Deming's heart sank suddenly, and a chill ran down his spine.

He never expected that this rebellious son, who only knew how to have fun, would be so aware of the trap he had secretly set.

Qian Youkang continued, "You must be wondering how I know. I accidentally discovered that you had a copy of 'The Tale of Yu Niang,' and you often hid in your study reading it, completely engrossed in it. I originally planned to sneak a peek when you weren't looking. But you hid it extremely well, and I couldn't find it even after searching the entire study. As a result, I stumbled upon your secret."

He finished speaking in one breath and pointed to a vase on the bookshelf.

"Turn it."

Feng Yi immediately pressed down on the vase and gently twisted it.

Rumbling--

The bookshelf moved slowly to the side on its own, opening an entrance.

Inside was a secret room filled with several boxes of gold and silver jewelry, rare treasures, and a stack of account books.

Qian Deming's face turned deathly pale, and he stood frozen on the spot.