Chapter 126 Our Xin'an people are the most filial and sensible.
Upon hearing that he wanted to test her bloodline, Princess Xin'an froze, feeling a chill run down her spine. She panicked but dared not speak.
Xu Zecheng, who was standing to the side, frowned and questioned, "What does Lord Bai mean by this?"
"Haven't I made myself clear enough?"
"The Prince and Princess are right here. How dare you, Lord Bai, speak like this in front of them? You are not only humiliating the County Princess, but also humiliating them!"
"Is a bloodline test really an insult?"
"Doesn't that count? Or does Lord Bai think that the Prince and Princess will mistake their daughter for someone else?"
“Lord Xu is quite adept at sophistry,” Bai Xiuming said, looking at Xu Zecheng who was arguing with him. “Guards, gag him.”
"You dare! You're just a mere fourth-rank official..."
Before Xu Zecheng could finish speaking, the Imperial Guards had already stepped forward and gagged him. As a scholar who was powerless, he was no match for these Imperial Guards who were skilled in martial arts. He struggled for a few moments before being pinned to the ground.
He knelt on the ground, his brand-new official robes stained with wine that someone had spilled earlier, quickly becoming soaked.
Upon seeing this, the Princess of Xin'an's weeping ceased completely.
She sat there frozen, her body trembling involuntarily, with only one thought in her mind: It's over!
Bai Xiuming didn't even glance at her, and ordered the other imperial guards, "Go and invite the Director of the Imperial Observatory. Also, go to the Mingjing Division and find Feng Yang. Have him bring Jiang Yan into the palace."
He paused for a moment, then continued, "I heard that Vice Minister Xu and the Princess of Xin'an have a daughter. Go to Vice Minister Xu's residence and bring their daughter into the palace. Have someone guard the Vice Minister's residence and not allow anyone to enter or leave before I give the order."
"yes."
The three imperial guards dared not delay and turned to leave Yongshou Palace.
"No!" Seeing that Bai Xiuming was even going after her daughter, Princess Xin'an no longer cared about covering her face with her hands. She lunged forward, trying to grab the hem of his robe, but he dodged her.
She fell heavily to the ground, still pleading, "No, please let Bao'er go. She's still young, she doesn't understand anything."
By this time, almost everyone in the hall who was not involved had left, and the noise gradually subsided, making her voice even clearer.
When Prince Ying'an, who was being stopped by the Imperial Guards, heard the name "Bao'er," he was almost certain that the speaker was his daughter.
Ignoring the imperial guards' attempts to stop him, he tried to go that way. Princess Ying'an even slapped one of the guards blocking her way and angrily shouted, "Get out of my way!"
The imperial guards dared not harm the two men, and could only endure the beatings and kicks before they managed to stop them.
Originally, the Crown Prince of Ying'an also wanted to go up and help his parents, but his wife forcibly pulled him back, which prevented the situation from getting out of control.
The Crown Prince's wife looked toward the source of the voice and recognized it as her sister-in-law's voice.
More precisely, it was the voice of her sister-in-law after she injured her voice. When she first married the prince, her voice wasn't like this. Later, when Xin'an returned from Jiaozhou, he said she had been injured, and that's when her voice changed.
She had vaguely heard someone mention monsters, and her face fell as a terrifying thought suddenly crossed her mind.
She remembered that a long time ago, the Crown Prince had told her privately that Xin'an seemed to have become a different person after returning from Jiaozhou. His tastes had changed a lot, his personality had changed, and he had become more filial and sensible. He also knew how to respect and love his elder brother, and he also asked her to have more contact with him.
Actually, she also felt that her sister-in-law's changes were too great at that time, but no one in the household thought it was inappropriate. She was not familiar with Xin'an before and had never thought about it deeply.
But now, thinking about it again, I feel a chill down my spine.
Princess Xin'an's pleas did not move Bai Xiuming in the slightest. Before long, the Director of the Imperial Observatory, who had not yet left the palace gates, was invited back.
The supervisor, accustomed to grand occasions, was only slightly surprised when he saw the face of the Princess of Xin'an up close. He then asked Bai Xiuming, "What brings you back here?"
"Could you please check her bloodline?"
The supervisor raised an eyebrow, reached into his sleeve, and quickly pulled out a black jade plate.
This jade plate was similar to the white jade plate he had used before, but it only had one groove. He stepped forward, took some blood from the Princess of Xin'an's hand, and dripped the blood into the groove.
After the jade plate absorbed the blood, a layer of red light appeared in the innermost compartment, and then it went out.
The supervisor's expression instantly turned extremely serious. He said to Bai Xiuming, "This person has no royal blood."
Bai Xiuming nodded, not surprised by the result.
He spoke again: "Does the Princess of Xin'an have anything to say to me now?"
Princess Xin'an's teeth chattered. Just as she was about to speak, she heard Xu Zecheng beside her making rapid whimpering sounds.
She turned her head and saw Xu Zecheng staring intently at her. The words that were about to come out were swallowed back down.
Bai Xiuming did not stop the two from exchanging glances. Seeing that she did not speak, he was not in a hurry. He had someone invite the supervisor to rest aside and continued to wait in the hall.
Within half an hour, Feng Yang brought Jiang Yan, whom he had specifically requested, to the Yongshou Palace.
Upon seeing Bai Xiuming, the two respectfully stepped forward and bowed.
Before Bai Xiuming could speak, Jiang Yan asked, "What are your orders, sir?"
Bai Xiuming raised his chin, gesturing for him to look at the Princess Xin'an on the ground: "Go and see what's wrong with her face."
Jiang Yan squatted down, not at all frightened by the terrifying appearance of the Princess of Xin'an, but instead approached her with great interest.
Princess Xin'an was startled by his gaze and tried to shrink back, but was held down by the imperial guards on either side.
Jiang Yan touched Princess Xin'an's face. At this moment, her face was divided into two layers. The outer layer was flesh-colored and should have been flat against the whole face, but for some reason it had shrunk.
After the flesh-colored layer shrank, the red flesh behind it was revealed. It seemed to have grown a membrane on it, so no blood seeped out.
Jiang Yan took out a palm-sized bone knife from his waist pouch. He pinched Princess Xin'an's face with one hand to prevent her from moving, and with the other hand, he quickly made a cut on her flesh-colored face.
Surprisingly, his knife couldn't cut anything.
He then changed two more knives before finally managing to cut off a small piece.
Jiang Yan ignored the Xin'an County Princess's screams, which sounded like a pig being slaughtered, and examined the small piece of skin over and over, even dripping several unknown liquids onto it.
Then, he picked up the fallen face and examined it carefully before letting go.
The Imperial Guards standing nearby watched him chuckle strangely as he touched the fallen face, their hair standing on end, and their awe of the Mingjing Division deepened.
About the time it takes for an incense stick to burn has passed. Jiang Yan stood up excitedly and said to Bai Xiuming, "My lord, I have finished the inspection."
"explain."
"I believe the skin on this person's face is very likely the legendary 'snake skin'."
None of them had ever seen Weishe, but Weishe was recorded in the records of the Mingjing Bureau.
Seeing Bai Xiuming nod, Jiang Yan continued, "This person has marks on her face from bone shaving, so she must have had her face reshaped. After her entire face was shaved off, a layer of 'weishe' skin was applied, and then a new face was applied. This 'weishe' skin is very magical; it can make the face skin fit perfectly. Unless the face skin is torn off, no one can notice anything unusual."
Although Jiang Yan had never witnessed the face transplant firsthand, he described the entire process accurately.
"Is that all?" Bai Xiuming seemed unsatisfied with the answer.
Jiang Yan hurriedly said, "I have also discovered something strange. The book records that Wei She was an ancient deity whose body could remain incorrupt for ten thousand years after death. Logically speaking, even if this skin is cut off, it should remain fresh. However, I have found that the skin seems to have dried out."
He then added, "It was because the skin dried out and lost its activity that the face that was originally glued on fell off."
"Air-dried?" Bai Xiuming suddenly narrowed his eyes. "What can make snake skin air-dried?"
"This... I don't know either," Jiang Yan said, feeling quite ashamed.
"Do you think..." Bai Xiuming paused slightly, "...would Blackfire Stone work?"
Jiang Yan was taken aback, then pondered for a moment, before a look of excitement slowly appeared on his face: "Your idea is quite unique, sir."
He excitedly spun around on the spot: "Black flint has water-absorbing properties, which should allow the corpse to dry quickly. This method seems feasible, but I need to test it again to confirm."
Bai Xiuming looked down at the pitiful face of the Princess of Xin'an, but what appeared before his eyes was A Chan's self-righteous little face.
She really dares to say she'll dry clothes.
Standing to the side, Feng Yang saw his master suddenly chuckle. The smile was so dangerous that it sent a chill down his spine, and he quietly took a step back.
"Feng Yang".
“My lord…” Feng Yang bowed carefully.
"Go and get him some black flint."
"yes."
Before Feng Yang could think further, he accepted the order and left quickly. As soon as he stepped out of the palace gate, the Imperial Guards brought in Bao'er, the daughter of Princess Xin'an and Xu Zecheng.
Bao'er looked like she had just been crying; her eyes were still red, and she looked rather pitiful.
When Princess Xin'an saw that her daughter had really been brought over, she began to struggle again, and even Xu Zecheng looked in the direction of his daughter.
Bai Xiuming said to the supervisor, "I need to trouble you again."
The supervisor used the same method to test Bao'er's blood again, and the jade plate, just like before, only flashed once before going out.
"She is not of royal blood either."
Bao'er sobbed, still not understanding what this meant.
After verifying their bloodlines, Bai Xiu ordered the Imperial Guards to watch over the family of three separately, and then led the Supervisor towards the Prince of Ying'an's family.
Upon seeing Bai Xiuming, Prince Ying'an had no time to react. Instead, Princess Ying'an abruptly stood up, pointing at him with an unfriendly expression, and said, "Bai Xiuming, don't think that just because His Majesty is backing you up, you can do whatever you want. I..."
Before she could finish speaking, Prince Ying'an pulled her back down to sit.
Princess Ying'an glared at Prince Ying'an, but Prince Ying'an coldly rebuked her, "Shut up!"
In all the years of their marriage, Prince Ying'an had never treated her like this before, and Princess Ying'an was stunned.
Although Prince Ying'an was somewhat pathetic at home, how could a prince who could live a decent life in the capital not have any plans in mind?
Knowing the fates of Prince Kang and Prince Shun, he naturally knew who he could offend and who he couldn't. Even if the person in front of him was a junior, he had to bow his head when necessary.
Bai Xiuming did not argue with them and said to the supervisor, "I would like to trouble you to first examine the bloodline of Prince Ying'an and his son, and then examine whether the princess and the county princess of Xin'an are related by blood."
Just as Bai Xiuming had said, after verifying the bloodlines of everyone in turn, the supervisor said, "The identities of Prince Ying'an and his son are normal, and Princess Ying'an and Princess Xin'an are not related by blood."
"Thank you for your help, Supervisor. Please wait here for a moment."
The supervisor knew he was going to report to the emperor. The fewer people involved in such matters, the better. He waved his hand and said, "Go ahead."
Bai Xiu ordered the Imperial Guards to escort Prince Ying'an and his family to wait outside Changqing Palace, while he himself stepped into Changqing Palace.
The banquet ended hastily, and the Empress had already returned to her palace. Only the Emperor and Prince Ming were playing chess in Changqing Palace.
Upon seeing him enter, the emperor put down his chess piece and asked, "How is the investigation going?"
Bai Xiuming stepped forward and bowed, saying, "It can be confirmed that the Princess of Xin'an is not of royal blood, nor is she the illegitimate daughter of the Princess Consort. She used extreme means to change her face and replace the real Princess. Xu Zecheng, the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, should be her accomplice, but the two of them have remained silent and unwilling to cooperate."
The emperor slammed his hand on the chessboard, scattering the pieces: "Confusing the royal bloodline and plotting against the royal family, those two have some nerve!"
He pointed at Bai Xiuming and said, "No matter what method we use, we must pry them open their mouths. I want to know exactly how they replaced the person, whether someone was behind it, and the real Xin'an. Whether she is alive or dead, we must find out her whereabouts."
"Yes," Bai Xiu replied, then said, "Your Majesty, the Prince of Ying'an and his family are waiting outside the palace. Shall we summon them in for questioning?"
The emperor said coldly, "Very well, I was just wondering how they could be such parents, not even realizing their own daughter had been switched."
Soon, the Prince of Ying'an and his family were summoned in.
The whole family seemed very silent, clearly still reeling from the truth they had just learned about their bloodline.
After bowing and greeting the emperor, Prince Ying'an heard the emperor ask him, "Does Prince Ying'an know that the current Princess Xin'an is not your biological daughter?"
Prince Ying'an lowered his head and stammered, "I just found out."
"Where is Princess Ying'an?"
Princess Ying'an, her eyes red with tears, said, "Your Majesty, has something gone wrong? Our Xin'an is the most filial and sensible. She comes back to visit me and the Prince every month, and she brings back good things to the Prince's residence. She has never done anything to harm us. How could she not be my daughter?"
After saying that, she nudged Prince Ying'an beside her: "Say something!"
After a long silence, Prince Ying'an nodded.
In their eyes, Xin'an was truly an excellent daughter, and there was nothing to criticize about her.
Princess Ying'an's words only earned her a cold laugh from the Emperor: "Is Princess Ying'an questioning the results of the Mingjing Division's investigation?"
"This humble woman dares not, but... what if something really goes wrong?"
She could clearly sense the emperor's displeasure, yet she still forced herself to speak. Xin'an had once knelt and prayed at the temple all winter for her sake; how could such a filial child be a lie?
"Bai Xiuming, what do you say?" the emperor asked.
Bai Xiuming looked at Princess Ying'an, a half-smile on his face, and said, "Princess Ying'an and Princess Xin'an truly have a deep mother-daughter bond. But has the Princess ever considered what would have happened to your replaced biological daughter if nothing had gone wrong?"
Princess Ying'an's expression froze.
"It seems you haven't considered it." Bai Xiuming's gaze swept across her face, then landed on the Crown Prince and his wife behind her. "Your Highness, do you think your sister has been switched?"
The Crown Prince of Ying'an's lips trembled, and he was speechless for a long time.
Instead, it was the Crown Prince's wife who stepped forward under Bai Xiuming's gaze. She first bowed respectfully to the Emperor, and then said to Bai Xiuming, "Lord Bai, I heard that Xin'an's face has completely fallen off. Is this true?"
"It's true. What does the Crown Prince's wife want to say?"
The Crown Prince's wife's face paled. She could feel the gazes of her father-in-law and husband behind her, as well as her mother-in-law's unfriendly look. If they were to feign ignorance today, it would surely anger His Majesty.
If His Majesty is truly enraged, he will not hold back against these members of the imperial clan.
She could only ignore the gazes from the side and said, "I am not very familiar with Xin'an, but I have noticed her changes. After she and Xu Zecheng were transferred to Jiaozhou and returned to the capital, she was almost a different person."
"Explain in detail, what has changed?"
The Crown Prince's wife took a deep breath and recounted, "Her taste in food and her voice have changed. Her relationship with Xu Zecheng has also improved, and she has become more gentle and sensible. Just now, Father and Mother were not lying. Xin'an is indeed extremely filial to them, and she is even gentle with the servants in the Prince's mansion. Almost no one in the Prince's mansion has a bad word to say about her."
"What was the former Princess Xin'an like?" Bai Xiuming asked again.
The Crown Prince's wife hesitated for a moment before saying, "In the past, she was arrogant and domineering, acting without considering the consequences, always causing trouble and making my mother angry. The county princess was good to her husband, but she didn't think much of me. Before leaving the capital, my mother even had a fight with her because she wanted to leave Che'er in the capital."
After hearing these words, even the emperor couldn't help but point at Prince Ying'an and his wife and said, "Are you blind? Such an obvious flaw, don't you see anything wrong with it?"
Princess Ying'an whispered in defense, "But... but there are reasons for all of Xin'an's changes."
The emperor no longer wanted to listen to her. He said to Bai Xiuming with a stern face, "Go and tell the Director of the Imperial Observatory to conduct a thorough investigation of the entire royal family. If anyone is found to have confused royal bloodlines or impersonated someone else, they shall be dealt with for treason."
"yes."
"As for you..." The case had not been investigated and the emperor had not yet decided how to deal with them. He only said, "Until the matter is investigated, no one is allowed to leave the palace."
After Bai Xiuming and the Ying'an Prince's family left Changqing Palace, the emperor's good mood was completely ruined.
He said to the Ming King, who had remained silent, "Do you think they really didn't know their daughter had been switched?"
King Ming chuckled and waved his hand, sending the chess pieces back to their original positions. "That's not important. What matters most to them is that Xin'an is what they want."
The emperor snorted coldly: "In their mouths, the original Xin'an was bad in every way. Now it seems that at least that Xin'an was genuine, unlike them, who are extremely hypocritical!"
When Bai Xiuming walked out of Changqing Palace, the snow outside was already covered with a thick layer.
The Prince of Ying'an and his family had not gone far. He stood at the palace gate, gazing at their backs for a moment, then turned back to Yongshou Palace and gave a few instructions.
As the Prince of Ying'an and his family walked out of the palace, they ran into the imperial guards escorting Princess Xin'an and Xu Zecheng.
Seeing them looking over expectantly, the imperial guards beside Princess Xin'an suddenly turned to the side, grabbed her hair, and forcibly lifted her face so they could see clearly.
Then Princess Ying'an screamed and fell straight down.
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