Zu An frowned: "What kind of carriage is it? How grand is it? What features does it have?"

The old woman said blankly, "It's magnificent, how would I know how to describe it?"

Zu'an instructed his men to go back and find someone skilled in drawing to communicate with the old woman and try to draw the carriage to see if they could find any clues.

Then he asked her some questions about the daily life of the Hua family mother and son, and then asked her to leave.

“Wait a minute,” Zuan suddenly had a thought, “when did their family’s life start to improve, when you said she started wearing gold and silver?”

The old woman stopped and thought for a moment before replying, "About a year ago, I don't remember the exact date, but it was no more than a year and a half ago."

Zuan fell into deep thought. It seemed that Xinrui had been bribed by a mysterious person a year ago. This plan was really far-reaching.

"Where is Xinrui's hometown?" Zu'an asked.

"I think it's Cao County," the old woman replied.

Zu An nodded, confirming that it matched the records of the Imperial Household Department. He immediately instructed his men to send someone to Cao County to investigate whether they had recently returned.

It's important to understand that everyone in this world has a strong attachment to their hometown, and if they were to leave on their own initiative, they would subconsciously choose their hometown.

Of course, there is a high probability that their personal freedom has been restricted, and they may not even be alive anymore.

This kind of investigation is simply to leave no possibility unexplored.

Upon returning to the embroidered pavilion in the palace from Xinrui's home, Shi Jun was already waiting there.

As soon as I entered the cell, I heard his angry roar coming from inside:

"You bastards, do you even know who I am?"

"Do you know who my father is? My father is the Grand Marshal of the current court..."

...

"Stop wailing and howling. Even if your dad is Li Gang, it won't help," Zu An interrupted directly. This guy was the most enthusiastic in leading people to catch adulterers before. Besides Xin Rui, he was the most suspicious person.

Upon seeing Zu An's attire, Shi Jun's pupils contracted. Having spent many years in the palace, he naturally knew what a gold-plated embroidered-clothes envoy meant.

However, thinking of his father, his brothers, and the Shi family's influence in the court, he calmed down a little: "May I ask what crime I have committed? What evidence do you have to arrest me and bring me here for interrogation? I want to see my father."

Zu An snorted: "Everyone who comes here says he's innocent, but unfortunately, things often don't go as planned. Tell me, why did you frame the Crown Princess?"

He didn't even mention his own name, after all, in the eyes of all parties, Zu'an was actually insignificant, and this time it was mainly aimed at the Crown Princess.

Shi Jun shouted, "Everything I said before was true. I have never wronged the Crown Princess!"

"You scoundrel! The Grand Master of Ceremonies has personally proven the Crown Princess's innocence. Are you questioning his integrity?" Zu An slammed his gavel.

Shi Jun looked somewhat bewildered: "I don't know why the Grand Master said that, but I really did see her with Zu An that day."

Thinking back to how badly this guy had chased him that day, Zu'an felt a surge of annoyance: "This guy is dishonest, use torture!"

"Yes!" The embroidered-robed messengers beside him had no qualms. They were fearless and fearless. No matter who the civil and military officials were, they would all suffer a lot if they came here. What was a mere Yellow Gate Attendant?

Shi Jun panicked: "I'm innocent! Why are you hitting me? You're trying to force a confession out of me!"

Zu An picked at his ear, looking impatient, but soon the sound of whipping and Shi Jun's screams rang out, and his expression brightened up.

"You've been tortured into confessing, I'm going to sue you!"

"I want to file a complaint against the Emperor! You have abused your power!"

"My father will not let you get away with this!"

Anger from Shi Jun: +888 +888 +888...

Zuan said coldly, "Looks like we haven't beaten you enough."

That scoundrel deliberately made things difficult for him at the palace gate. If he hadn't had so many trump cards, he probably would have been tricked to death by this guy.

Later, he even framed him and the Crown Princess. If he succeeded, he would have committed a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of his family. So why would he be polite to this guy now?

At first, Shi Jun cursed angrily, but soon he ran out of strength and began to plead:

"Please, please stop hitting me..."

"Fine, I'll talk, I'll talk!"

...

Zuan said disdainfully, "I thought you were some tough guy, but you're just a coward."

A hint of resentment flashed in Shi Jun's eyes. He thought to himself, "So what if you're a gold medal envoy? Once I get out of here, I'll make my father kill you!"

Anger from Shi Jun: +999+999+999...

Seeing the anger level in the background, Zu'an sneered inwardly, but didn't expose it. He gestured for the others to leave first, and then asked, "How did you and Xinrui meet?"

“Xinrui?” Shi Jun’s pupils shrank, but he quickly regained his composure. “The head maid of the Hundred Flowers Palace? I’ve been going in and out of the palace for many years, so I have some impression of her, but we don’t have much interaction and I can’t say I know her.”

Zuan said, "Okay, then let's keep fighting."

While beckoning his men in, he said, "Young Master Shi, the Embroidered Robe Envoy has many different kinds of tortures. Anyway, we have enough time to try them on you one by one."

He had originally planned to use the tortures he had seen in TV dramas and novels to scare the other party, but after learning about the tortures used by the Embroidered Robe Envoy, he decided not to embarrass himself. This was the real professional; he could teach you what it meant to truly suffer a fate worse than death.

"No!" Shi Jun's eyes were filled with terror. He had been in the palace for many years, so how could he not know about the Embroidered Robe Envoy's methods? Let alone trying them one by one, he would be completely ruined.

"I said..." He had just started to speak when suddenly the door was kicked open with a bang.

Immediately afterwards, a terrifying pressure spread out: "Who dares to harm my son!"

---

The line for the COVID-19 vaccine today was absolutely packed! I waited for hours, but thankfully there were several pretty young ladies in the queue, so it wasn't too boring...

With the pandemic worsening overseas and outbreaks reported in various places, and the eventual reopening of borders, everyone should get vaccinated if possible.

That's all for today. I'll finish the next chapter tomorrow.