South of the city
Chu Yuning lived in a dilapidated old courtyard.
The two small gold bracelets he brought with him when he came to the capital had long been spent. He didn't have much money, so he could only rent a small room in this old courtyard in the south of the city and wait for the results of the imperial examination.
The hut was dilapidated, with only a bamboo bed that creaked and groaned when you lay down, making it very uncomfortable to sleep on.
Therefore, Chu Yuning doesn't usually stay indoors much. Besides, he spends his days making friends and going out early and returning late, so he doesn't have time to stay indoors.
So much so that when the soldiers found a blood-stained night clothes under his bed, he looked like he'd seen a ghost.
"Tell me, did you steal the things that went missing from the Crown Prince's residence?"
The soldiers held long swords, their sharp tips pointing directly at Chu Yuning's brow.
It was as if if Chu Yuning dared to lie, the sword in his hand would plunge into Chu Yuning's head and rip out his brains.
Chu Yuning's face turned pale, and her shoulders trembled uncontrollably.
He had no time to think about how the clothes ended up in his house; he could only shout at the top of his lungs, "I don't know what you're talking about! These clothes aren't mine! I've never been to the Crown Prince's residence! You've arrested the wrong person!"
"Tell the truth!"
The soldier kicked Chu Yuning, knocking him to the ground.
These soldiers in the capital were all promoted from the military camp and had practiced martial arts for many years. With one kick, Chu Yuning immediately vomited blood.
Chu Yuning clutched her chest, her back arching in pain, and a fine layer of cold sweat appeared on her forehead.
But he stubbornly denied it: "These clothes are not mine. I have never worn these clothes. I have never been to the Crown Prince's residence, and I have no idea what you are talking about!"
When Wang Shaoyin arrived, Chu Yuning had already been beaten for quite some time.
But he still stubbornly refused to admit that the black robe was his.
Wang Shaoyin stood with his hands behind his back, glancing down at Chu Yuning with disdain in his eyes.
He spoke a few words to the officers and soldiers beside him.
The officers and soldiers immediately went over and pulled off Chu Yuning's clothes.
"Reporting to you, sir, there is no knife wound on his shoulder blade."
Chu Yuning straightened her clothes, just about to breathe a sigh of relief, when she heard Wang Shaoyin say, "They must be accomplices of that thief! Take them back and interrogate them severely!"
"I'm not an accomplice! I was framed!" Chu Yuning tried to protest his innocence, but the soldiers didn't give him a chance and dragged him away without any mercy.
Wang Shaoyin stepped out of the dilapidated hut.
Actually, when he came in, he felt that Chu Yuning was not the thief, because the thief was highly skilled in martial arts, while Chu Yuning was just a weak and frail scholar.
There were no signs of knife wounds or poisoning on his body.
But no matter what, he has to give the Crown Prince an explanation tonight.
With such a large-scale search of the city, surely they can't fail to catch even a single person!
After taking Chu Yuning back to prison, Wang Shaoyin went to the Eastern Palace to report back.
His father, Wang Ming, the Minister of Revenue, was also in the Crown Prince's study at that moment. When he learned that the missing items were his correspondence with the Crown Prince, he was so anxious that he was covered in sweat and paced back and forth.
Xiao Yuncheng was annoyed. "Enough! Stop spinning me! You're making my eyes dizzy!"
Minister Wang immediately stood up obediently, but his hands, hidden in his sleeves, unconsciously clenched.
The crown prince selling official positions might at most earn him a few words of criticism from the emperor, but if he uses the opportunity to amass wealth, even if all the money is eventually sent to the Eastern Palace, he will still face the death penalty.
Moreover, the letter also mentioned his daughter and the daughter of the Shen family.
If this matter were to be exposed, it would not only incur the jealousy of the Shen family but also attract considerable criticism, making it difficult for him to maintain his position in the court in the future.
Upon seeing his son return, Minister Wang immediately rushed forward and asked, "Have you caught the man?"
Wang Shaoyin knelt on the ground and bowed to Xiao Yuncheng. "We didn't catch the thief, but we caught his accomplice."
He paused for a moment, then said, "That thief was poisoned by the Crown Prince's Seven-Step Fall. Even if he escapes, without the antidote, he will die soon. Your Highness and Father need not worry."
"How can I not worry? His life is not important, whether he lives or dies is irrelevant, what is important is that what he has must not fall into the hands of anyone in the court."
Minister Wang slapped the back of his hand and said angrily, "Have you found those letters? Have you destroyed them?"
Wang Shaoyin shook his head: "...Not yet. But I will torture his accomplices severely to find out the whereabouts of the letter as soon as possible."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuncheng finally lost his patience and cursed, "Useless."
Seeing Xiao Yuncheng's anger, Minister Wang and his son immediately held their breath, bowing their heads lower than each other, afraid that Xiao Yuncheng's anger would extend to them.
Xiao Yuncheng was very displeased. The thief came alone without a single soldier and easily entered his study.
This made him feel that all the soldiers he had raised were just freeloaders!
If word got out, people would think that his Crown Prince's residence was an inn, where anyone could come and go as they pleased.
This is absolutely ridiculous!
Xiao Yuncheng grew angrier the more he thought about it, and with a flick of his sleeve, he knocked all the writing implements, paper, and inkstones off the table.
An inkstone slammed heavily onto Magistrate Wang's shoe, hitting his big toe, which was suffering from paronychia, causing him to shudder in pain.
But no matter how painful it was, he could only endure it.
He limped forward and advised, "Your Highness, please don't be angry! Now that things have come to this, we should think about who in the court is targeting His Majesty so that we can make arrangements as soon as possible and be more vigilant in the future!"
Xiao Yuncheng leaned back in his chair and raised his eyelids slightly upon hearing this: "Minister Wang, who do you think is trying to harm me?"
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