Chapter 51: Conclusive Evidence

When Ji Linyou realized the question was directed at him, he immediately replied, "I did lead the troops on patrol that night."

"The soldiers who were patrolling with you at the time all confirmed that you saw a figure resembling the Prince of Screaming Vulture during your patrol, and that was why you left your group to follow him?"

Seeing that they had already figured everything out, Ji Linyou could only answer truthfully, "Indeed, I followed Prince Mingjiu and saw him sneak into the princess's residence. Fearing he might cause trouble, I followed him in. I witnessed the entire process of him beheading a horse and scaring the princess."

"Well, did you see him stealing the jewelry?"

"No, I was in a hurry to return to the team. After seeing Prince Screaming Vulture place the horse's head next to the princess's pillow, I left immediately. I don't know what happened after that."

The Minister of Justice asked the Princess's commander, "As the commander of the county, you should know what happened in the palace that day."

"Yes. That day, the princess woke up and saw the horse's head beside her pillow. She was terrified. The palace immediately checked the patrol that night and found that the incense burner in the palace had been laced with drugs. Therefore, the thief... When the Uighur prince sneaked into the princess's palace, everyone in the palace was asleep, so the prince was able to pass through unimpeded."

"It's just a shabby princess's mansion. This prince can go there whenever he wants. Why would I have to put you through such a stunt?" Ming Jiu was furious, feeling completely embarrassed. "I've never even heard of that thing. Open your eyes and see. That brat, Meng Lanxi——"

He raised his hand and pointed at Meng Lanxi in the hall, angrily saying: "Look carefully, he is the one hiding in the house every day doing those despicable things!"

The messenger wiped his sweat and translated: "She's not a bitch, she's just a disgrace..."

Meng Lanxi, however, was not at all afraid of Mingjiu's fiery glare. She simply sighed and said, "I don't think Prince Mingjiu would cause trouble or steal, but the incense I made was indeed stolen, and the footprints the thief left in my residence happened to be the prince's. Isn't that a bit too coincidental?"

Upon hearing this, the Dali Temple Minister immediately asked Cui Fufeng, "Master Cui, what happened to the theft of the incense?"

Cui Fufeng opened the file he brought and recounted in detail the incident of his previous investigation in the backyard, the discovery of the theft in Yilan Pavilion, and the verification of footprints.

Everyone in the hall was silent, their eyes filled with thought.

The Minister of Justice asserted, "It seems Prince Mingjiu had planned this crime long beforehand. Meng Lanxi of the Changhua Palace is an expert in making incense and medicine. He had the 'Mengchenhan' he prepared for his mother, but it was stolen during the incident, leading to clues pointing directly to Prince Mingjiu. And when the prince caused trouble at the Princess's Mansion, he used the 'Mengchenhan' to succeed. And, most coincidentally, the gold-foiled bead flower that appeared on Prince Mingjiu's body also contained 'Mengchenhan' powder!"

Hearing him putting all the suspicion on himself, Mingjiu was furious, but his poor Chinese could not support his defense, and a long string of Uighur words suddenly rushed out of his mouth.

Cui Fufeng had learned Uighur language, so Ling Tianshui, who had been in the northwest for a long time, was naturally familiar with it. When Qiandeng was learning Kucha language as a child, he also learned Uighur language, so he could understand the general meaning.

But because the crowing eagle only uttered curses, the messenger lowered his head, and those who could understand chose to remain silent.

Seeing him raging in the courtroom, the three judges, due to his status, did not forcefully stop him, but simply watched. Once he had finished venting his anger and stopped cursing, the Minister of Justice spoke calmly, continuing to recount the case: "In summary, considering all the current evidence, the judges of the Ministry of Justice have determined that the truth of the Qujiang Pond case has been revealed."

Screeching Vulture was furious: "Where is the truth? Where is the white? You are blacker than crows!"

"The prince killed the horse first, then caused trouble later, thinking no one would notice. Unexpectedly, he ran into the Grand Princess of Gao State at Qujiang Pond the next day. The princess saw the gold-foiled pearl flower you carried and recognized it as something lost in the palace. She then discovered that the man who had sneaked into the princess's residence that night was Prince Mingjiu. To cover up his crime, the prince pretended to return the flower, but secretly hid 'Dream of the Slumber' inside it. After the princess took the flower back, the drug stained her hand, and with the flower pinned in her hair, she inevitably inhaled the poison, becoming dazed. So you took advantage of this opportunity to lure her to the edge of the pond and push her overboard!"

"What? I have time to do all this nonsense. Why don't I just kill her when I sneak into the princess's mansion?"

The Minister of Justice had clearly figured out the whole story. Upon hearing this question, he immediately shouted, "Because the prince was caught by Shangluo when he went out that day. If the princess had died that day, everyone would know it was you who did it! So you had no choice but to devise another plan, to scare her first and then return. And Shangluo's subsequent disappearance was also because he discovered your whereabouts. You were trying to cover up your crime, so you eliminated him!"

Mingjiu had never suffered such an injustice before. He was so angry that his mouth and nose were wheezing. Finally, he remembered the important thing and pointed at Qiandeng, angrily saying, "That day is Xianzhu's birthday! I'm roasting a whole lamb for her. Who has time to kill people?"

This was known to all the young men, and Cui Fufeng publicly confirmed it: "That day, we celebrated the County Lady's birthday at Qujiang Lake. Prince Mingjiu was late because he got lost, but he did run into Meng Lanxi along the way. They weren't near Qichun Pavilion, where Princess Gao was staying. After we reunited, he went to the river bend and personally roasted a lamb for the County Lady. Judging by the timing, he certainly didn't have time to kill anyone."

"Who says you can't kill people when roasting a whole lamb?" The princess's commander turned to the palace guards and asked, "Chai Er, isn't your hometown close to the Uighurs? Last time, how did you roast the lamb?"

The guard immediately stepped forward and replied, "When I was back home, I saw that the locals didn't keep the lamb over the fire the entire time to save firewood. When it was half-cooked, they would wrap the lamb in large leaves and bury it in the charcoal ashes, allowing the residual heat to cook it through."

"Can it be cooked thoroughly if left unattended over a charcoal fire?"

"Yes, it will even be more tender and delicious than roasting it over fire."

"It seems you can leave while the whole lamb is being roasted," the Minister of Justice concluded, then turned to Qian Deng. "Princess Lingling, after the incident, you were deeply involved in the case because you suspected the murderer was in your backyard. People from Princess Gao's residence also confirmed that you went to Qujiang Lake to inspect the crime scene after the incident. So, did you ever inspect the place where the lamb was being roasted that day?"

Qiandeng recalled the situation by the river that day and nodded.

"Xianzhu!" Mingjiu saw that she wanted to speak but hesitated, and immediately became anxious, "Tell these bastards, I didn't kill anyone, I didn't steal anything, I was wrongly killed!"

He was wronged, anxious and confused, and didn't know how to defend himself. He could only stare at Qian Deng, believing that she would be able to help him clear the charges.