Lonely Letter replied, "After interrogation, Shen Zhao has proven to be innocent, which fully demonstrates that those accusations are all fabricated. What crime do you want me to convict him of?"
Ning Ruoxue shook her head: "Elder Dugu, do you really not understand what I mean?"
Dugu Xin: "I am merely enforcing the law impartially and have no intention of trying to understand the sect leader's meaning."
Ning Ruoxue was speechless. This Dugu Xin was a real thorn in her side, a stubborn fellow who wouldn't listen to reason. Keeping him around would only bring trouble.
"Alright, you may leave now. We'll discuss Shen Zhao's matter after Bai Chuan's wedding."
Unexpectedly, Dugu Xin asked in return, "What else does the sect leader intend to discuss with Shen Zhao?"
I find Shen Zhao to be an upright person, not someone who is treacherous, so why do I get the feeling that the sect leader has a great deal of prejudice against him?
Ning Ruoxue: "Is Shen Zhao an upright person? Elder Dugu, you couldn't have been deceived by his appearance, could you?"
Dugu Xin's expression also darkened: "Sect Master, as an enforcer of the Public Hall, I have always been fair and impartial in my dealings."
At today's public trial, Shen Zhao faced difficulties from several sides, but answered them with ease. On the contrary, those who asked the questions made a complete fool of themselves and lost all face.
"If you say that, are you implying that I've abused my power and bent the law?"
Ning Ruoxue's eyes turned cold: "Insolence, Elder Dugu. I will let this matter slide for now because you are my elder, but after the Baichuan wedding, Shen Zhao must be re-examined, and I will personally preside over the trial!"
Dugu Xin's lips twitched, and he could only lower his head and reply, "Yes."
After Dugu Xin left, Ning Ruoxue's eyes turned extremely cold.
"I will never let anyone who hurts Ah Feng get away with it!"
A faint mark appeared on Ning Ruoxue's forehead, indicating that her soul had been unknowingly imprinted with a slave mark.
...
"His Majesty is inside. Please go in yourself."
Shangguan Qiuyue led Shen Zhao to a quiet and elegant courtyard and stopped.
Looking at the well-appointed courtyard before him, Shen Zhao couldn't help but sigh that the difference in status between people could be discerned simply from the arrangement of their residences.
Ordinary cultivators who come to attend the wedding stay in ordinary rooms, but those with power and status in the Nine Realms naturally have a special room.
Composing himself, Shen Zhao stepped into the courtyard, walked around a garden, and entered an open room.
At this moment, Yu Xiyan had changed into a snow-white glass silk dress, with her long, jet-black hair. She was sitting by a stone pond inside the house, revealing her delicate, jade-like hands, gently stirring the water in the pond.
The light streaming through the window made her stunningly beautiful face appear even more sacred and inviolable.
Shen Zhao admitted that Yu Xiyan's beauty could make people's hearts flutter at any time.
Just thinking about everything she had done to him in these nine lifetimes made Shen Zhao feel a chilling wind blowing through his bones, as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
"You've arrived."
Yu Xiyan smiled gently at Chen Zhao, her eyes filled with tenderness.
Something is wrong, absolutely wrong.
This is not the Yu Xiyan I remember.
Shen Zhao began to have doubts.
In his memory, Yu Xiyan always looked at him with an air of superiority, her eyes filled with either disgust or vigilance, as if he were a wolf in sheep's clothing. How could she possibly look at him with such a strange gaze?
That tenderness in his eyes only appeared when he looked at Raymond Lam.
"What do you want with me?"
Yu Xiyan got up and walked towards Shen Zhao, carefully examining him.
As she looked at it, tears welled up in Yu Xiyan's eyes, and a strong sense of guilt and regret rose in her heart.
What a wonderful man! Why did I hurt him so badly in my past life?
The thought of Shen Zhao dying in front of her, that incredibly insane scene, made her heart ache as if she were suffocating.
She suppressed the urge to cry, silently took out a jade seal from her storage bag, and asked in a trembling voice, "Can it be repaired?"
Shen Zhao raised an eyebrow when he saw the imperial seal.
This is the Imperial Seal of Mountains and Rivers, the national treasure of the Yintian Dynasty.
In his previous life, Shen Zhao exhausted all his efforts to repair the Mountain and River Seal, which had been dim for a hundred years. He even upgraded the Imperial Seal to a superior imperial artifact, thereby increasing the fortune of the nation.
Shen Zhao was naturally very familiar with this item.
However, even after repairing the imperial seal, he still couldn't earn Yu Xiyan's respect.
He wanted to refuse outright, but suddenly Shen Zhao seemed to have thought of something and immediately nodded in agreement.
"Um."
Shen Zhao responded.
He wanted to replicate the imperial aura effect of the Mountain and River Seal to prepare for the future entry of the Nine Netherworlds into the mortal realm, and...
The Buddhist kingdom has been corrupted!
"how long."
"It could take as little as three months, or as long as half a year."
"good."
The atmosphere inside the room was oppressive.
Just as Shen Zhao put away the tattered imperial seal and was about to leave, Yu Xiyan couldn't help but voice her question: "Why did you leave on the day I ascended the throne?"
Shen Zhao clenched his fist around the imperial seal and lowered his head, saying, "I don't understand what Your Majesty is saying."
Yu Xiyan: "Even now, are you still going to lie to me, Shen Zhao?"
Shen Zhao sighed and slowly asked, "Then does Your Majesty think that someone as humble as me is worthy of the noble status of royalty?"
Yu Xiyan: "What makes you unworthy? Shen Zhao, do you know how much trouble your silent departure has caused me?"
"Your Majesty's troubles are insignificant compared to the rest of your life. I am but a passerby. If there is nothing else, I shall take my leave."
"Stop right there! I won't let you leave!"
Yu Xiyan immediately stopped Shen Zhao and mustered her courage to look at him intently.
"Shen Zhao, tell me the truth, why did you leave me!"
"I believe that Your Majesty and I are not a good match. Marrying Your Majesty would only hinder your future. Rather than suffer together in the future, it would be better for one of us to step aside."
Your Majesty dislikes others controlling your life, and so do I.
I believe this is the best outcome for both Your Majesty and me; at least we won't have to torment each other anymore.
After hearing Shen Zhao's words, Yu Xiyan felt even more distressed.
"No, that's not right, it's not like that. If that's really what you think, why did you help me so much? Innate Dao Body, Ancient Dragon Essence, the floods in the seven southern states..."
The war against Northern Mang, the threat from the Zhenbei Army, and now the Imperial Seal—one thing at a time, one event at a time, you have been tirelessly helping me behind the scenes.
"Are you really as happy as you say you are?"
Shen Zhao's expression darkened, and he said solemnly, "Your Majesty, if you believe that what I've done is to attract your attention, then I can tell you with absolute certainty..."
You're wrong. Feelings are feelings, and the fate of the nation is the fate of the nation. These two things should never be confused. Everything I've done has never been for His Majesty's sake.
It's simply that, as someone from a lower social class, I'm doing everything I can to help those in need, that's all. Please stop overthinking it!
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