Chapter 147 Damn traitor, die!
"What a vicious method!"
"As fine as a hair, yet harboring deadly intent, this is truly unprecedented in our Great Chu..."
"How did these illicit items from Southeast Asia end up in the hunting grounds? And who was able to place them under the Crown Prince's saddle without anyone noticing?"
The crowd discussed amongst themselves, exchanging bewildered glances, their eyes revealing surprise and speculation.
The emperor's face was so dark it could drip water. He looked at Shen Guangnian, suppressing his anger: "Has it been found out who did this?"
Shen Guangnian bowed and replied, "Your Majesty, this old servant has inquired and found that the only person on night duty the night before the hunt was a young eunuch named 'Xiao Zhuozi'."
Shen Guangnian raised his hand and waved it. A moment later, two imperial guards escorted two eunuchs in.
One of them was pale and trembling uncontrollably; it was Xiao Zhuozi.
The other person was Eunuch Li, the chief eunuch of the Imperial Horse Stables.
Upon seeing this scene, Xiao Zhuozi was so frightened that he knelt down and begged for mercy: "Your Majesty, spare my life! This servant...this servant only went to the outhouse that night, and really didn't see any strangers approaching. This servant doesn't know anything, I'm innocent, Your Majesty."
"You insolent brat!" a hot-tempered military officer immediately shouted sternly.
"Could it be that this ox-hair needle grew legs and got onto the Crown Prince's horse? It's clearly your dereliction of duty that allowed the thief to take advantage of the situation!"
"Your Majesty, in my opinion, they will not tell the truth without severe torture."
Eunuch Li knelt down with a thud. "Your Majesty, this old servant has been in charge of the Imperial Horse Stables for many years and has always been conscientious and diligent. That night, we did indeed strengthen our guard. This old servant... this old servant does not know why there was a mistake. I beg Your Majesty to investigate thoroughly!"
Xiao Zhuozi cried and begged for mercy, kowtowing several times: "This servant is just a lowly night watch eunuch. Even if I had a hundred lives, I wouldn't dare to harm His Highness the Crown Prince!"
"General Meng is mistaken."
Chu Yan stepped forward at the opportune moment, saying, "Torture and forced confessions can easily lead to injustices. These two are just palace eunuchs. Even if someone is behind them, they may not dare to reveal the truth."
Afterwards, Chu Yan looked at the two kneeling men and said in an exceptionally gentle tone: "You two don't need to be afraid. Think carefully, did you see any unusual people or things that night?"
Upon hearing this, Eunuch Li's body stiffened almost imperceptibly, and he subconsciously glanced in the direction of Prince Cheng. As if afraid of something, he quickly looked away.
"No, no..." Eunuch Li replied, shrinking his neck.
Chu Yan caught his expression and a cold smile appeared on his lips: "Eunuch Li, speak freely. Today, the Emperor and all the civil and military officials are here. You only need to report the truth, and I guarantee that no one will make things difficult for you."
Eunuch Li was taken aback, his eyes flickering as if he were weighing his options.
Finally, he suddenly kowtowed to the ground, crying out, "Your Majesty! This old servant remembers! That night, Prince Cheng's guard, Wang Hu, came by and said that His Highness would be using the golden saddle he brought for the hunt the next day. He asked this old servant to go to the storeroom to look for it for a while. This old servant dared not neglect his duty and left for a short while..."
These words immediately caused an uproar inside the tent.
"Stop spouting nonsense!" Prince Cheng roared in fury, leaping from his seat. "When did I ever send anyone to retrieve any golden saddle! You eunuch, how dare you frame a prince in front of His Majesty and all the officials!"
"Speak! Who ordered you to do this?"
Eunuch Li trembled with fright, but still forced himself to answer, "Every word I have said is true. If there is even a single falsehood, may I die a horrible death."
"This old servant remembers clearly that Guard Wang has a scar on his left eyebrow bone, and I would never mistake him."
At this moment, Minister Du, who belonged to the Third Prince's faction, stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, Eunuch Li may have some memory errors, but what he said is not entirely impossible. After all, the Imperial Horse Stable is not an ordinary place. If there is no legitimate reason, why would Guard Wang go there? It does raise suspicions."
"Furthermore, as Chen Zhangyin just stated, that 'hair needle' is a rare item from the South Seas, not belonging to our Great Chu. And all the civil and military officials know that His Highness Prince Cheng has always been fond of collecting overseas treasures, and his mansion is filled with countless treasures from the South Seas. In terms of familiarity with items from the South Seas, I'm afraid no one present can rival His Highness Prince Cheng..."
This is almost an accusation naming names.
The Prince of Cheng, who was called out, was taken aback at first, then flew into a rage.
"Bullshit!"
"You, Du Kuan! My collection of trinkets is merely a personal hobby; how dare you make veiled accusations and slander me like this?"
Officials belonging to the Cheng King's faction also stepped forward to support him: "Your Majesty, what Minister Du said is purely far-fetched. According to this logic, there are many Southeast Asian items sent as tribute from various places in the Palace Treasury. Does that mean that every single one of them is a suspect?"
Furthermore, it would be far too frivolous to pin such overwhelming evidence of plotting against the crown prince on a prince based solely on the vague testimony of a eunuch!
How can such one-sided statements be considered evidence? This is clearly an attempt by someone to use this case to frame and exclude others.
For a time, the officials from both sides inside the tent argued incessantly, creating a chaotic scene.
"Enough!"
The emperor, who had been observing coldly, slammed his hand on the table, instantly silencing all other sounds.
He looked at Shen Guangnian with a livid face, "Besides the eunuch's testimony, is there any other evidence?"
Shen Guangnian bowed and said, "Please excuse me. This case is of great importance, and this old servant dares not make a conclusion based solely on one side of the story."
He straightened up, his gaze sweeping over the slightly relieved Prince Cheng and the smug-looking Third Prince, and slowly said:
"Following the trail of the tiger, this old servant discovered that the beast did not accidentally wander into the hunting grounds, but was deliberately driven from the depths of the Western Mountains to His Highness's route."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone held their breath.
Immediately afterwards, Shen Guangnian raised his hand to signal, and soon the Imperial Guards escorted two men dressed as beast tamers, their faces ashen, into the tent.
"These two are Du Meng and Zhao Qing. They have already confessed that it was they who planned the timing and route in advance to drive the tiger into the dense forest of the hunting grounds."
Both men had injuries on their faces, clearly indicating that they had suffered before.
As soon as they entered the tent, the two began to cry and beg for mercy: "Your Majesty, spare us! Your Majesty, spare us!"
Before the torture even began, Du Meng burst into tears, crying, "It's...it's His Highness Prince Cheng! His Highness Prince Cheng forced us to do this! He arrested my family members and said that if we didn't comply, he would...take their lives. I had no choice!"
Zhao Qing trembled beside him, "His Highness Prince Cheng... he has always loved collecting rare and exotic animals. He keeps many birds of prey and strange beasts in the backyard of his mansion. He... he has been secretly having us train tigers for a long time, saying... saying they have a great use for them. We had no idea they were meant to disturb the Crown Prince. If we had known, we wouldn't have dared to do it even if we had a hundred lives!"
"You...you..."
King Cheng's face turned ashen as he stared at the two traitors, his chest heaving with rage.
The next second, he did something crazy that surprised everyone.
With a clang, he drew the sword from a nearby imperial guard and, before anyone could react, plunged it into Du Meng's chest with a thud!
"Damn traitor, die!"
"puff!"
Du Meng immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, which splattered everywhere. Several officials nearby couldn't help but collapse to the ground, their legs giving way. They stared at Prince Cheng in disbelief.
Upon seeing this, Zhao Qing's pupils dilated tenfold instantly, and she retreated in fear.
"No, no! Your Highness, spare me! Your Highness, spare me... *splat*!"
King Cheng had no intention of letting him go. With a swift movement, his blade fell. All the onlookers saw was a flash of cold light, and in the next instant, Zhao Qing, clutching his bleeding throat, collapsed to the ground with a thud. He twitched twice and quickly died.
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