The case of Prince Jing's treason was finally investigated and the guilt of the people involved was determined.

Song Qianfan was stripped of his title and given a cup of poisoned wine. King Jing was accused of mismanaging his son, so he was ordered to return to his fiefdom of Suzhou the following year and not to leave without an imperial decree. King Jing's wife doted on her son excessively, so she imprisoned him in Kaishan Temple and allowed him to practice Buddhism with his hair untied for three years, praying for the court and the people of the world.

The Yu family was suspected of treason, and the traitor Yu Ting had been executed. Considering that his relatives were unaware of the incident, the Yu family was spared the death penalty and exiled to Qingzhou.

Mei He, the Minister of Personnel, took advantage of his position to accept bribes repeatedly. He was also in cahoots with the criminal Song Qianfan, deceiving the emperor and committing crimes. His crimes were unforgivable and he was immediately executed. The Mei family’s property was confiscated and the Mei family house was taken back.

Other relevant persons will be convicted at the discretion of the court.

The imperial edict sentencing Su Juan had been issued, and most people thought that since he had lived in Prince Jing's mansion for a period of time and had been taken care of by Prince Jing and his wife, she might spare his life. However, they did not expect that she would not show him any mercy at all. Even Prince Jing and his wife were ordered to return to their fiefdom and practice in Kaishan Temple respectively.

Seeing how cruel Su Juan was, no one in the capital dared to come and plead for anyone.

In the prison of the Ministry of Justice, the poisoned wine bestowed by the old emperor had been delivered for a long time, but Song Qianfan still refused to drink it and shouted that he wanted to see Su Juan.

The people below were at a loss and had to ask Yu Zhong whether they should report the matter back to Princess Jinyang. Maybe there would be some clues that could help solve the case.

Yu Zhong went to the prison alone. The once glorious Prince Jing was now in prison, a prisoner in a miserable state, but he still looked domineering.

"Song Qianfan, what else do you have to say?"

Song Qianfan's face was livid, and he wanted to make a final struggle, "This prince won't tell you, you let Su Juan come to see me!"

Yu Zhong looked indifferent, "His Majesty is about to anoint her as the Crown Princess. She has no time to care about a prisoner like you. She gave you poisoned wine to leave you with an intact body, which is already a respectable gift to you."

The implication was that Song Qianfan should not be so shameless.

Song Qianfan gritted his teeth and said, "Who do you think you are? How dare you shout in front of this prince?"

"Let Su Juan come over! I'll only talk to her!"

At this moment, Yu Zhong looked at the person in front of him and felt really sorry for Su Juan. How could she have ended up with such a person in the past? He did not repent even when he was about to die. He was extremely stupid.

"His Majesty has stripped you of your title in the Jingwang Mansion. The Jingwang Mansion no longer has a prince. You are now just a dying man."

Just a few simple words made Song Qianfan so angry that his eyes widened and he started cursing.

Yu Zhong turned a deaf ear and waved his hand, signaling the people behind him to step forward and subdue the man to the ground. The eunuch from the palace was also stunned for a moment, then hurried forward with the poisoned wine.

Several people in the prison saw with their own eyes that this Dali Temple Chief, who was always known for his gentleness, held the wine glass and poured the poisoned wine into Song Qianfan's mouth.

After a while, Song Qianfan, who was shouting and cursing just now, died of poison in an instant, with his eyes wide open.

The eunuch was secretly shocked. After all, he was the son of Prince Jing. His Majesty only gave him poisoned wine because he wanted to save Song Qianfan's dignity. However, Lord Yu directly drank the poisoned wine. He was not afraid of being hated by Prince Jing and his wife, or being held accountable by His Majesty.

After all, he was planning to go back to the palace to report.

Yu Zhong said in a low voice, glancing at the eunuch, "He's just a death row prisoner, why would you alarm the palace?"

This eunuch was also a man who knew how to read people's faces. Anyway, Song Qianfan was already dead, so it didn't matter how he died. After saying goodbye to Yu Zhong, he went straight back to the palace to report.

Su Juan was a little surprised to learn that the man died because Yu Zhong had forced him to drink poison. Song Qianfan was going to die sooner or later, and if he kept dragging it on, the old emperor would lose his patience, and he would die once his head was chopped off.

So no matter how much Song Qianfan clamored to see me, I didn't go to see him.

She frowned, "Why would Yu Zhong go looking for this bad luck?"

Shen Ruhui smiled and dropped the chess piece in his hand onto the chessboard. "Why did Lord Yu go looking for this bad luck? Your Highness, don't you understand?"

Su Juan was puzzled, "What should I understand?"

Shen Ruhui said slowly, "His Majesty is about to enthrone you as the Crown Princess, and will soon choose a husband for you. Everyone in the capital knows that many aristocratic families are eyeing your position as the husband."

After Shen Ruhui's explanation, Su Juan had a rough idea in her mind, "You mean, Yu Zhong is also interested?"

Shen Ruhui nodded, "It should be."

Su Juan frowned. Yu Zhong had now solved two major cases in a row. He would surely have a better future when he was rewarded for his merits. Why did he have to wade into this mess?

Between the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple and the Emperor's Husband, even a fool would know which one to choose.

Shen Ruhui explained, "The Yu family was once a famous aristocratic family in our dynasty. Later, they were demoted because of mistakes, and the entire family was not allowed to enter the government for three generations. The Yu family also declined because of this. By the time of Yu Zhong's father, three generations had passed, but the family had been in decline for hundreds of years. It was not easy for the children of the family to enter the government and revive the Yu family."

"The Yu family only has Yu Zhong, who was promoted to work at the Dali Temple because he was good at judging criminal cases. Previously, the Ministry of Justice's Lou Shiye got into trouble and implicated most of the Ministry of Justice. There was no one else available at the time, so Dou Yan recommended Yu Zhong to His Majesty. Because he handled the case well, he was promoted to the position of Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple. Otherwise, he would not have reached his current position even if he had wasted another 20 years."

From Yu Zhong's perspective, what he wanted was not the honor and disgrace of one person, but the entire Yu family.

Even if he worked in the Dali Temple for many more years, he would not be able to expand his network of contacts in the capital, and it would be difficult for the Yu family to return to the capital. However, if he could gain the favor of Princess Jinyang and become the emperor's husband, once Su Juan ascended the throne, he would be the future empress, and the Yu family could enter the capital, and the children of the family would have a way out.

Shen Ruhui did not point out the following, but Su Juan also understood it.

Yu Zhong wanted to revitalize the Yu family. He knew in his heart that his position as the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple was an exceptional promotion, and it would be difficult to move up further, almost impossible within ten years. But if the Yu family and the Crown Princess were tied together, those who were watching their own business would weigh their pros and cons.

Seeing that Su Juan was thinking a lot, Shen Ruhui smiled and said, "You have the Duke's Mansion behind you. His Majesty will definitely not choose a noble family to choose a husband for you. There are only a few suitable people of the right age in the capital."

"Liu Xuan is good, but he is responsible for the prosperity of the Liu family. If he wants to gain a foothold in the former dynasty, he will have no chance with you."

Shen Ruhui's words were clear, and he also wanted Su Juan to understand it better. After all, he could also see that the atmosphere between the two of them, even though they had never said it out loud, actually there was some goodwill in their hearts.

Hearing this, Su Juan stroked the chess piece with his fingertips and said in a deep voice, "I haven't thought about what you said."

After all, I never thought about getting married from the beginning to the end.

Shen Ruhui told the truth, "But His Highness is about to be canonized. Whether it is voluntary or forced, he will eventually get married."