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

"How dare you!"

Wang Dongjian shouted sharply, his aura fierce and intimidating.

"Qian Deming has embezzled millions of taels of public funds for personal gain. The evidence is irrefutable, and his crimes are unforgivable! Anyone who dares to obstruct our investigation will be executed without mercy!"

The Imperial Guards immediately formed a square formation. Although they were unarmed, their aura of killing intent, honed through years of bloodshed, instantly overwhelmed the armed guards of the Minister's residence.

"My master holds an important position. Even if he makes a mistake, it is not something you can deal with at will."

Madam Chen pointed at Zhang Xiaomeng, gritting her teeth, "He dared to kill my master, he must atone with his death! Otherwise, don't even think about leaving!"

No need to guess, it must have been Qian Youkang who told them. That kid is probably on his way to report them right now.

Zhang Xiaomeng was secretly pleased.

This trick worked perfectly; the death penalty was assured.

But Wang Dongjian waved his hand dismissively, speaking with righteous indignation: "Absurd! Prince Zhang is of pure and virtuous character, fair and selfless, and deeply favored by the Emperor. How could he act so recklessly? Qian Deming was clearly killed by your son, Qian Youkang, who framed Prince Zhang. His intentions are despicable!"

"nonsense!"

Madam Chen refused to believe it: "My son is respectful and filial, how could he kill his father?"

Wang Dongjian sneered, "He betrayed his own father to protect himself, which allowed us to collect evidence so easily. You call that filial piety?"

Madam Chen's expression changed drastically, and she shook her head repeatedly, "Impossible! How could my son do such a thing?"

"If you don't believe it, Qian Deming will find it even more unacceptable. He was so angry that he wanted to kill Qian Youkang on the spot to vent his anger, and we couldn't stop him. In the chaos, Qian Youkang cruelly murdered Qian Deming, which is outrageous."

Wang Dongjian pointed at Zhang Xiaomeng, his tone carrying a hint of respect.

"Knowing he had committed a heinous crime punishable by death, he pleaded with Prince Zhang for help. Our Prince Zhang, being kind and benevolent, could not bear to see him go and decided to let Qian Youkang go, taking the blame upon himself."

As he spoke, his face turned angry and resentful.

"Who knew that Qian Youkang, in order to clear his name, would tell you that it was Prince Zhang who killed Qian Deming? If I'm not mistaken, he's probably already at the prefectural office filing a complaint. That ungrateful bastard is simply inhuman!"

After hearing the account, Chen could no longer remain calm. Her face turned deathly pale, and she murmured, "How could this happen..."

The guards in the mansion looked at each other, their imposing manner noticeably weakening.

However, Madam Chen immediately reaffirmed her stance, questioning, "This is all your side of the story. I believe Kang'er wouldn't do such a thing."

Wang Dongjian cursed, "Ignorant woman! If Prince Zhang hadn't let him go, would Qian Youkang have escaped right under our noses? Or did Prince Zhang deliberately send him to Gao Fa? Would you have done that?"

This rhetorical question completely shattered all of Chen's resistance.

Yes, what kind of logic is there in the world to deliberately let witnesses escape after committing a crime, just waiting to be caught?

Chen was struck dumb, her mind went completely blank, all her strength drained away, and her body slumped backward.

The maidservant beside her hurriedly helped her up and comforted her repeatedly.

"The traitor! The traitor..."

She burst into tears, overwhelmed with grief.

Wang Dongjian looked at Zhang Xiaomeng with a smile on his face, as if he were asking for credit.

Zhang Xiaomeng was furious. Who the hell told you to talk nonsense!

Just as he was about to explode, Wang Dongjian waved his hand and laughed, "Young Master Zhang, there's no need for thanks. This was your plan. You could have resolved it yourself without my help. I just had a good talk, and I should thank you for giving me this opportunity."

I thank you, you old man!

Only now did Zhang Xiaomeng understand what Wang Dongjian meant when he said, "I understand, we will definitely cooperate with you."

God's comprehension ability.

Now Chen dared not obstruct them any longer, and even begged Zhang Xiaomeng to show mercy and spare the Minister's Mansion.

Zhang Xiaomeng was now in a state of agitation and gave an impatient snort, "Qian Deming is corrupt and lawless, and Qian Youkang murdered his father and framed someone. The Minister's mansion is just waiting to be raided."

Having said that, he ordered the Imperial Guards to carry the boxes and swagger out of the Minister's residence.

Chen and his servants were left behind, their faces filled with despair.

As soon as Zhang Xiaomeng stepped out of the Minister's residence, he saw Lin Youwei rushing over with a group of yamen runners.

Zhang Xiaomeng asked, "Lord Lin, what brings you here?"

Lin Youwei first glanced at the chest full of silver, then bowed respectfully.

"I was worried that Your Highness wouldn't have enough manpower, so I came to help after dealing with those gamblers. Now it seems that it was all for naught."

Wang Dongjian laughed heartily, "Lord Lin, with Prince Zhang taking charge, there won't be any trouble."

"Your Highness is exceptionally capable; I admire you greatly."

Lin Youwei echoed in agreement, then asked, "By the way, before I came here, Qian Youkang went to the Ministry of Justice to report that Zhang Shizi had killed Minister Qian. I have detained this man; what should be done with him?"

"Don't listen to his nonsense. He killed the man. Does Lord Lin understand?"

Wang Dongjian gave him a wink, and Lin Youwei immediately understood, nodding in agreement, "I know what to do."

Zhang Xiaomeng felt powerless; these guys were really seasoned veterans of the officialdom.

If that's the case, then let's keep making trouble.

So he adjusted his mindset and put Lin Youwei in charge of presenting the embezzled money to the emperor.

Lin Youwei ordered his men to open the box and examine it. Suddenly, they discovered an old, thread-bound storybook among a pile of account books, titled "The Tale of Yu Niang".

Lin Youwei said with disdain, "Qian Deming, as the Minister of the Court, actually possesses forbidden books. It is an insult to literature."

Zhang Xiaomeng recalled Qian Youkang's words: it was because of this storybook that he discovered Qian Deming's secret of hiding stolen money.

He couldn't help but ask curiously, "Lord Lin, what kind of forbidden book is this?"

Lin Youwei said, "These are obscene books that are unbearable to look at. They are relics from the previous dynasty and are offensive to public morals, which is why they were designated as banned books."

Wang Dongjian joked, "I didn't realize Qian Deming had this kind of hobby."

Zhang Xiaomeng was puzzled.

It was just a pornographic book; even if it was a banned book from the previous dynasty, Qian Deming didn't need to hide it so well.

He even deliberately tucked it inside the account book, indicating that the book was just as important as the account book.

He became interested. "Lord Lin, let me take a look."

Lin Youwei advised, "Young Master Zhang, this is a forbidden book. It is inappropriate to read it in public."

"It's alright."

Zhang Xiaomeng snatched the storybook and, ignoring the stares of others, began reading it on the spot.

The book is filled with vulgar and erotic descriptions, and the content is ordinary and unremarkable.

But the further Zhang Xiaomeng flipped through the pages, the more he felt something was wrong.

On several pages, there were very faint traces of pine soot ink in the upper right corner.

There are only two types of marks: tiny ink dots and thin, elongated ink lines.

Moreover, the arrangement is neat and orderly, with varying lengths.

This is by no means a random scribble or annotation; it is a highly systematic coding system.

Zhang Xiaomeng was shocked, and a huge wave of emotions surged in his heart.

Morse code!

It's a binary dot-stroke encoding that only modern people can understand!

How did Morse code exist in ancient times?

Is it just a coincidence?

Zhang Xiaomeng controlled his emotions and prepared to study it slowly when he got back.

So he closed the book and said, "I'll take this book."

Lin Youwei said with difficulty, "Young Master Zhang, the imperial court has issued an order that forbidden the private possession of prohibited books."

Wang Dongjian also kindly advised, "Young Master Zhang, if you have any needs, I can take you to the Jiaofangsi (a brothel), which is much more enjoyable than watching this stuff."

Zhang Xiaomeng rolled his eyes at him and insisted, "I just like watching. You can report me if you want."

As he spoke, he stuffed the books into his pocket right in front of them.

Wang Dongjian and Lin Youwei exchanged glances, naturally not wanting to offend their future son-in-law over a vulgar book, so they had no choice but to give up.

Immediately, Lin Youwei ordered his men to carry the boxes back to report.

Wang Dongjian, standing beside him, asked, "Young Master Zhang, what are we going to do next?"

Zhang Xiaomeng narrowed his eyes slightly, a smile playing on his lips. "Naturally, I will continue my duties, searching for criminals, Liu Wanfu."