Chapter 401 The Real Culprit

Everyone knows that the current emperor is deeply in love with the empress and also shows great favor to the emperor's father-in-law.

The emperor was adamant, so they had no choice but to turn to Prime Minister Meng, who was usually easy to talk to.

To clear themselves of suspicion, the last person even went so far as to implicate the Meng family, assuming that the Emperor would not make things difficult for the Empress's family. Since the Meng family, who had invited them, was unharmed, there was no reason for them, the invitees, to be made things difficult.

These words made Meng Xingyuan's brow twitch.

He rushed over to plead for mercy, but before the emperor could even speak, those he was trying to save stabbed him in the back.

A few of the more astute suspects also felt that what this person said was inappropriate, so they gently nudged him from behind, and the man immediately covered his mouth and dared not utter another sound.

Wen Zhiming smiled silently, a slight upturn at the corners of his lips.

"Does Lord Meng think what they said makes sense? The Empress's incident happened at your residence, and these people were invited by you. According to them, the people of the Meng residence, especially Lord Meng, are more suspicious."

He spoke in a gentle tone, but his words carried a hidden warning.

Although Meng Xingyuan has the flaw of being soft-hearted and unable to make sense, he is most adept at reading people's expressions and moods.

Upon hearing this, it was clear that Wen Zhiming was angry.

Wen Zhiming and he were ostensibly ruler and subject, but in reality, Wen Zhiming treated him with the same affection as a father and son. This was the first time Wen Zhiming had expressed such dissatisfaction with him.

When the emperor is angry, corpses will lie scattered for miles.

At this moment, he clearly felt the aura of a king and the intimidating power of a ruler from Wen Zhiming.

Meng Xingyuan was well aware that if he spoke up for these people now, he would not only fail to save them, but would also ruin the entire Meng family.

Wen Zhiming was furious. If he went against him now, even if Wen Zhiming wouldn't take his life for the sake of his daughter Meng Lingge, he would inevitably suffer some hardship.

He's an old man, he shouldn't make things difficult for himself.

Thinking of this, Meng Xingyuan swallowed all the long-winded words of advice he had prepared on his way here, looked around at the suspects, and said with his head down.

"Your Majesty, this old minister has indeed failed in his duty of oversight and is willing to accept punishment. However, the suspect's plot to murder the Empress, resulting in the death of the Crown Prince, is a heinous crime of treason and assassination of the heir apparent, which undermines the foundation of the nation. If such a villain is not brought to justice, the consequences will be endless, like releasing a tiger back into the mountains. The entire Meng family is cooperating fully to investigate this case, which is of utmost importance. I support Your Majesty's use of torture to find the mastermind behind this as soon as possible."

The suspects were utterly shocked.

Meng Xingyuan had clearly come to plead for them, so why did he suddenly switch sides after being questioned by the Emperor?

The old man was afraid of getting implicated, so he ran away really fast.

If their only savior has been abandoned, aren't they doomed to die?

Only Wen Zhiming smiled calmly, his eyes undisturbed.

The person most hurt by this incident was his wife, Meng Lingge. Meng Xingyuan, as Meng Lingge's father and directly involved in the matter, not only showed no remorse or guilt, but also came to plead for the suspect when his son-in-law was advocating for justice for his daughter.

How foolish.

If my wife knew, she would surely be heartbroken.

This really made him angry and disappointed.

If Meng Xingyuan hadn't been sensible enough to realize his mistake and turn back from the wrong path, he would have definitely taught his father-in-law a lesson.

"Is that so?" Wen Zhiming said calmly, "Didn't Lord Meng just say that they were honest and law-abiding, and innocent and wronged? How come they've now caused endless trouble and let the tiger return to the mountain?"

Meng Xingyuan blushed deeply with embarrassment.

“This old minister misspoke earlier. After a night of interrogation, not a single person has confessed, which is enough to prove that these people are stubborn and disregard the law. Their unity and consistent statements suggest they may be a group, and they should be subjected to severe torture to find the mastermind.”

The suspects stared wide-eyed, hardly believing their ears.

Where are the reinforcements we were promised?

Why does it look like they've come to take their lives?

Seeing that Meng Xingyuan already knew the seriousness of the situation, Wen Zhiming guessed that he wouldn't be soft-hearted and used as a pawn again anytime soon. So he stopped making things difficult for him.

Meng Xingyuan's problem can be addressed later; the priority is to interrogate the criminals first.

"I will deal with Lord Meng's oversight later. Now, please wait aside and assist me in finding the mastermind. This is a matter of great importance and cannot be delayed."

After speaking, Wen Zhiming glanced at the suspects again, his gaze settling on the two people with unusual expressions from before.

"Hang them on the rack first."

The two suspects were so frightened that they trembled and immediately knelt down.

"Your Majesty, spare my life! I'm innocent! I know who the real culprit is..."

Wen Zhiming sat down on the chair brought by the jailer, slowly sipping his tea, his gaze sharp and iron-like as he looked up.

"explain!"

The two men exchanged a glance, and one of them, as if having made up his mind, pointed to the person on the rack and said.

“The real culprit is Meng Xixian. Yesterday, we saw that the area ahead was crowded, so we slowed down. But Meng Xixian kept urging the people in front to hurry up. We were standing right behind Meng Xixian, a step or two away from him, and no one touched him. Yet he fell down for no reason, knocking the people in front of him to the ground. The people in front were too dense to avoid, so he just kept bumping into them, which is how he injured the Empress.”

Another person nodded in agreement, saying, "After the incident yesterday, he even threatened us with his eyes..."

Upon hearing this, Meng Xixian struggled frantically on the rack.

"Nonsense! I've said it countless times, I was pushed down. You're trying to get yourself off the hook by randomly pointing to someone else as the culprit. I refuse to accept this. Why me?"

He was the person Meng Lingge specifically requested to be interrogated rigorously, so his injuries were the most severe.

He was on the verge of death on the rack, seemingly lifeless, but upon hearing someone accuse him of being the murderer, he instantly flew into a rage and became extremely agitated.

This makes it seem even more suspicious.

Wen Zhiming glanced at him indifferently and continued to ask the two people kneeling on the ground.

Why didn't you say so yesterday?

One of them pointed at Meng Xixian and whispered, "We saw him fall, but we have no evidence that it was intentional. He's a very difficult person to deal with and very vengeful. If this has nothing to do with him, and we've offended him, he'll definitely keep retaliating against us."

Another person said, "We'd rather be beaten than offend him. But the Emperor is going to use extreme punishment, and we're really scared. That's why we dared to risk offending him and tell the truth."

Wen Zhiming nodded slightly upon hearing this. While things remained quiet and calm on this side, Meng Xixian was already screaming in terror.

"It wasn't me, I didn't do it. I was pushed down, you're framing me! I'm innocent, I'm innocent!"

At this moment, Meng Xingyuan, who had been listening attentively all along, frowned and couldn't help but walk towards Meng Xixian.

"How is it you? I don't recall inviting you. How did you get into the Meng residence? Who brought you in?"