Did the Seventh Prince attend court today?

Noticing Xu Zheng's gaze, the Gu brothers kept their eyes down and dared not make a sound, completely losing the arrogance they had shown when they first arrived.

"I...I don't know. The man who gave me the silver was wearing a straw hat and a mask." Recalling Gu Cheng's sinister and vicious gaze, Li Gou didn't dare to raise his head and told a lie through his teeth.

It seems we won't get any information out of them.

Xu Zheng shook his head, took a stick from the divination tube and threw it down, saying, "Accomplice to evil, defame others, sentenced to thirty strokes of the cane, to be carried out in court!"

Li Gou was dragged away, and soon a pitiful scream came from outside.

After interrogating Li Gou, Xu Zheng turned his gaze to Gu Zheng and said unhurriedly, "I've heard that Second Young Master Gu has evidence to prove Miss Shen's innocence. Is this true?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yanran looked at Gu Zheng in shock, and Gu Cheng was also filled with disbelief.

Gu Zheng clenched his fists, and under the gazes of his brother and Liu Yanran, he cupped his hands and said, "Reporting to Your Excellency, this junior does indeed have evidence..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xu Zheng angrily said, "Knowing and failing to report is an even greater crime! Guards, drag him away and give him thirty lashes!"

Gu Zheng was dragged away by the yamen runners before he could defend himself.

[I've been fed up with this scumbag for a long time. Well done, Lord Xu, you really helped this young lady get her revenge!]

The Pixiu was so happy that it danced with joy.

The presence of deer was also unexpected.

[This Xu Zheng is really interesting. No wonder he went head-to-head with the Third Prince later. He's truly unafraid of offending people; he'll beat up the young master of the General's Mansion without hesitation.]

Xu Zheng proudly raised his chin after receiving the praise. Even knowing his fate, he would never bow down to evil forces!

Shen Yuyao cast a grateful glance at Xu Zheng. This was the first time in her life that someone had stood up for her and defended her. Her eyes welled up with tears.

Not long after, Gu Zheng returned to the courtroom with a cold face. Although he tried his best to hide it, his limping gait still betrayed his disheveled state.

With a gloomy face, Gu Cheng grabbed Gu Zheng's wrist as he passed by and whispered, "We're in the same boat."

"Brother, you should take care of your woman first." Gu Zheng shook off his brother's hand, his gaze piercing Liu Yanran like a sword. Liu Yanran was so frightened by his sharp gaze that she took a step back and hurriedly avoided his eyes.

Gu Cheng seemed to sense something and was about to ask for details when Xu Zheng, who was sitting upright in the hall, patted the gavel and said, "Whispering is not allowed in the courtroom."

Gu Zheng composed himself and cupped his hands, saying, "This junior dares not deceive you, sir. Yesterday, I accidentally saw Liu Yanran's maid, Bitao, buying medicine at a pharmacy. I was puzzled, so I asked her a few questions and learned that Bitao was buying arsenic. Moreover, she had also bought sleeping pills the day before the incident."

"Nonsense! So what if Bitao bought arsenic and sleeping pills? What does that prove?! Couldn't those drugs be used to poison rats?" Gu Cheng glared at her, instinctively defending Liu Yanran.

"Don't worry, brother." Gu Zheng chuckled. "Later, I followed them and found that Bitao gave the arsenic to a beggar and ordered him to take Li Gou's life."

Then Gu Zheng took out a paper package and a packet of powder from his pocket. "These are the snacks Liu Yanran gave to Yuyao on the day of the incident, and this is the sleeping potion that Bitao bought at the pharmacy. You'll know the truth as soon as you see it, sir!"

Xu Zheng nodded, signaling the yamen runners to present the evidence.

Unexpectedly, he had such a trump card up his sleeve. Gu Cheng's eyes widened in fury, his former brotherly affection completely gone. He gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, fine! You really are my good brother!"

"Brother, you flatter me." Gu Zheng remained calm and handed the evidence to the yamen runners. He lowered his voice and said to his elder brother, "You forced me to do this. If Liu Yanran hadn't wanted Yu Yao dead, I wouldn't have gone to this point. You broke your promise first."

Gu Cheng, who knew nothing about Liu Yanran's actions, looked at her in shock. Liu Yanran shook her head repeatedly in denial, and her tearful appearance once again made Gu Cheng waver.

A deer picked at its ear; this dog-eat-dog drama is really entertaining.

[Gu Cheng doesn't seem stupid, so how did he get so easily fooled by Liu Yanran? Could it be because of that so-called life-saving grace? If that's really the case, I wonder how Gu Cheng will react when he realizes he's mistaken his benefactor.]

Hearing this, Shen Yuyao was filled with suspicion. What life-saving grace? When had Liu Yanran ever saved Gu Cheng? Could it be the time five years ago?

She quickly came to her answer and couldn't help but let out a cold laugh.

The bailiffs handed the evidence to the clerk, who carefully examined the sleeping pills in the snacks and the powder in the paper packet. After a moment, the clerk nodded and said, "It is indeed the same drug."

Xu Zheng nodded and then instructed the yamen runners to bring the snacks to Shen Yuyao for identification.

Shen Yuyao nodded and said, "These are indeed the pastries that Liu Yanran gave to me that day. Liu Yanran said that they are a specialty of Jiangzhou and are rarely seen in the capital. She made them especially for me."

Xu Zheng asked sternly, "Does Miss Liu have anything to say?"

Liu Yanran, with tears welling up in her eyes, pressed her cheeks and said, "The truth will be revealed when Your Excellency brings Bitao here for questioning. I have a clear conscience."

Xu Zheng gave the lead constable a wink, and the constable immediately went to arrest Bi Tao.

You Lu looked at Liu Yanran. As expected of a woman who could catch the Third Prince's eye, compared to the impetuous and arrogant Gu brothers, she was more calm and composed, and also more ruthless. She had already arranged her way out.

[It seems this time it's impossible to bring down the Third Prince. Liu Yanran has already sent word that Bitao will take all the blame upon herself when she arrives, clearing everyone else of any wrongdoing.]

Gu Er knew Liu Yanran's methods, which is why he dared to leave behind evidence. The evidence he left could only prove Shen Yuyao's innocence; it couldn't uncover the real culprit. This was his way of securing his own escape route.

Youlu shook his head and sighed inwardly.

Upon hearing this, both Xu Zheng and Shen Yuyao's expressions darkened.

Are we just supposed to let these culprits go unpunished?

[But thinking about it, it makes sense. If the Third Prince were so easy to deal with, the Star Lord of Fate wouldn't have sent me to reverse the fate of Dayong. Fortunately, although I didn't kill him in one blow, I still managed to skin him alive. Without Shen Yuyao's dowry and with his subordinates disloyal, the Third Prince's path to the throne will be much more complicated.]

The road ahead is long and arduous; let's take it one step at a time.

Xu Zheng felt much more at ease. Even if he couldn't completely eliminate the Third Prince's henchmen, it was still a good thing to alienate them.

After Bitao was brought in, she indeed took all the blame, just as Youlu had said. She claimed that she was in love with Gu Cheng and that's why she framed Shen Yuyao. After confessing, she even committed suicide by hitting her head against a wall in court.

With Bitao dead, the trail went cold. Xu Zheng, constrained by Gu Cheng and the others' status, couldn't do anything to them and could only swallow his anger. He punished the two of them with a beating for Liu Yanran's poor management of her servants and Gu Cheng's attempt to protect the criminal by listening to one side, thus closing the case.

You Lu and Shen Yuyao were exonerated and released in court.