With her deceased husband as her dowry, would Your Highness dare to marry her?

The King of Liang's smile faded, and he stared intently at Pei Jinxuan. "Nephew, that's a good question. I'd also like to ask, with all your refusals and protections, are you acting in accordance with the law or out of personal favoritism?"

The two were evenly matched in their argument. The three court officials were also caught in a dilemma.

Zhao Duan, the censor, simply took out a folding book and a pen. He licked the tip of the pen with his tongue to get some ink on it and began to write.

Suddenly, there was a commotion outside the door. It was Sun Huaiyi's attendant again. He rushed over and almost tripped at the door.

This is really adding to the chaos while I'm already busy.

Sun Huaiyi, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, slapped his forehead, closed his eyes, and wished he could just die like that.

"What is it now?"

The attendant knelt down with a thud. He looked at Zhao Fugui, then at his master, his face contorted in a grimace, unsure of where to begin.

Pei Jinxuan said gently, "My lord, please don't panic. Just say what you need."

The attendant bowed, his voice trembling, and said, "My lord, a male corpse just floated up on the lake. His face is identical to Zhao Fugui's. The constables found his identification document on his person, which says...it's Zhao Fugui!"

"What?" Sun Huaiyi's voice trembled. "Two Zhao Fuguis?"

The King of Liang was even more shocked, and his face immediately darkened. He looked at Pei Jinxuan.

Pei Jinxuan smiled and raised her eyes, staring straight at him, as if to say: Will you accept this move or not?

King Liang remained silent.

After all, a murder case had occurred, and Sun Huaiyi, the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, sternly asked, "Has the coroner examined the male corpse in the lake?"

The attendant replied, "I examined him before coming to find you, sir. There were no injuries on his body; he had fallen into the lake and drowned after drinking. Several constables were initially tasked with carrying the body back to the Dali Temple, but it was none other than the Grand Princess who discovered the body. She specifically requested that you investigate thoroughly, which is why I came to find you."

Upon hearing this, Sun Huaiyi flew into a rage, slammed his fist on the armrest, and loudly demanded, "Who exactly is this person below? State your name!"

"I...I...I am Zhao...Zhao Fugui, a commoner..."

Zhao Fugui was clearly feeling guilty.

Sun Huaiyi glared at him, slammed his hand on the armrest, and demanded sharply, "Are you really Zhao Fugui?!"

"This humble subject...this humble subject..."

Cold sweat poured down Zhao Fugui's forehead. He bowed his head and kowtowed, stealing glances at the King of Liang's expression.

King Liang's face was clouded with rage, his gaze sharp as awls, fixing "Zhao Fugui" firmly on the ground. The chill in his eyes seemed to warn: if you utter a single wrong word, you won't leave here alive today.

Zhao Fugui was well aware of Prince Liang's methods. Before coming to Prince Jing'an's residence, Prince Liang repeatedly instructed him that no matter what happened, he must firmly maintain his identity and not let it slip. Otherwise, not only him, but also his elderly mother, wife, and children would be buried with him.

Thinking of his elderly mother's full head of white hair, his wife sewing clothes under the lamp, and his child who was not yet three years old, Zhao Fugui went all out and slammed his head heavily against the ground, once, twice... until a pool of blood stained the ground before he stopped.

"I am Zhao Fugui, a commoner from Shengzhou!" he declared resolutely, his voice growing louder and louder.

Sun Huaiyi pressed further, "Where is your passport?"

"This humble citizen..."

Zhao Fugui's eyes darted around, and a sudden inspiration struck him. He quickly said, "As I just said, when I left the post station, a strong man beat me black and blue. How could I dare to go back? My travel documents and travel expenses are all left at the post station. If you don't believe me, sir, feel free to ask him."

As he spoke, he glanced at the King of Liang, seemingly casually. Seeing that the dark aura on the King of Liang's face had dissipated somewhat, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Upon hearing this, Sun Huaiyi looked at the other two officials. Zhou Jin from the Ministry of Revenue and Zhao Duan from the Censorate both nodded slightly, seemingly finding the explanation reasonable.

"That makes it even stranger."

Pei Jinxuan spoke slowly, making Zhao Fugui's heart jump back to his throat. He stood up, walked to Zhao Fugui, and stood precisely between him and the Prince of Liang.

Zhao Fugui panicked even more when he lost sight of the Prince of Liang, and his breathing became disordered.

Pei Jinxuan looked down at him, a faint smile playing on her lips. Her gaze was as if she were looking at an ant, someone she could crush with a mere lift of her foot.

Zhao Fugui, stared at so intently, trembled with fear. To avoid Pei Jinxuan's gaze, he repeatedly kowtowed, crying out his innocence, "Your Excellencies, I am truly wronged! I beg you, Your Excellencies, to do me justice!"

Pei Jinxuan sneered and said, "The scar on your forehead doesn't look like a burn."

"How could that be? It was clearly burned!"

"How was it burned?"

"When I rushed into the fire, a bundle of burning straw fell on my head, burning not only my face but also my hair and clothes."

"Really?" Pei Jinxuan lowered her eyes, her gaze falling on his scalp. "Then why are there no burn marks on your scalp?"

Zhao Fugui was stunned, and even stopped breathing.

"That is...it is..." he stammered, his gaze unconsciously drifting behind Pei Jinxuan, but the figure of the Prince of Liang was completely blocked, and not even a corner of his clothes could be seen.

"Say it again what you wrote on that complaint."

Zhao Fugui felt as if he had been granted a pardon. He hurriedly wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, closed his eyes, and began to recite. The King of Liang had previously shown him the petition and instructed him to memorize everything in it, which he remembered perfectly.

"This humble citizen, Zhao Fugui, is from Shengzhou. I am over twenty years old and the third child in my family. I used to..."

"Stop," Pei Jinxuan interrupted softly. "Zhao Fugui is illiterate. You speak so eloquently, it sounds like you're reciting from a book."

As she spoke, Pei Jinxuan leaned down slightly, her peach blossom eyes curving upwards, and said with a slow and steady smile, "If you were really Zhao Fugui, you would only use your usual coarse language to recite that petition, instead of reciting it word for word."

"this……"

Zhao Fugui's lips were pale, and he couldn't squeeze out a single word.

Pei Jinxuan's smile vanished, his gaze suddenly sharpening. "Who exactly are you?"

"I...I..."

Zhao Fugui's face turned pale instantly. He could no longer pretend, and he collapsed into a lump of mud as if his bones had been removed.

However, in the blink of an eye, "Zhao Fugui" suddenly sprang to his feet, his eyes wide open like copper bells, pointing at the ground and screaming in alarm, "Snake! Snake!"

Pei Jinxuan quickly looked in the direction Zhao Fugui pointed, and saw more than ten thumb-thick green snakes swimming close to the ground, flicking their tongues, heading straight for Zhao Fugui.

Pei Jinxuan drew his dagger from his waist with a backhand motion, the blade flashing as it sliced ​​the approaching green snakes in half. The final slash plunged straight into the head of the leader snake, the tip of the blade sinking an inch into the ground.

"Guards! Seize this swindler!"

Pei Jinxuan issued the order.

The manager immediately led his men forward and bound "Zhao Fugui" hand and foot. In desperation, "Zhao Fugui" struggled desperately, screaming, "Save me... Liang... Liang..."