In the deepest part of the imperial prison, a long-lasting and inhumane torture was taking place.
Liu Ling was chained to the wall.
The Jinwu Guards did not torture him.
Instead, he was forced to keep his eyes open day after day, night after night, and watch with his own eyes his wife, children, and close relatives being cut into pieces and tortured to death.
Killing is not the end of the world.
However, the long and cruel Lingchi is a torture that is like being in the eighteen levels of hell for both the person being punished and the people watching.
At least there is still a time for the prisoners to be freed.
However, as an observer of the execution, Liu Ling felt the torture was endless and would never end.
The rebels were basically wiped out.
Emperor Wende fulfilled his promise and captured Liu Ling's wife, children, subordinates, and teacher...
Let Liu Ling see with his own eyes how they die in front of him!
If they are just rebelling, just kill them with one blow, quick and easy, without them having to suffer.
Emperor Wende did have some magnanimity.
However, Liu Ling was the mastermind behind the Empress Dowager's poisoning, so how could Emperor Wende let these rebels die so easily?
Not only will he be cut into pieces, but he will also be executed by slow slicing.
After Liu Ling's men died one by one, there were still 108 kinds of torture waiting for Liu Ling.
Emperor Wende said in person that the hatred for killing one's mother is irreconcilable.
This hatred must be washed away with blood.
Then, Liu Ling can only wait for a life worse than death!
When the executioner raised the sharp knife and prepared to attack Liu Ling's favorite son, the son, who was crying silently with his mouth blocked, looked at Liu Ling in fear.
His eyes were filled with help!
"Stop, all of you stop."
Liu Ling, whose mouth was not blocked, finally gave up resisting.
"Everything is my responsibility. You can kill or chop them up as you wish. But don't torture them. They have nothing to do with this."
Upon hearing this, Wei Zhong, the leader of the Jinwu Guard, laughed heartily.
He stood up from his chair and walked over to Liu Ling. "Do you think you have the right to bargain? Get started!"
With one word, the executioner made the first move and cut off the first piece of flesh from Liu Ling's son's arm.
“Woo…”
Liu Ling's son could not make any sound and could only scream.
Liu Ling's eyes were wide open. "Stop, stop! If you want to kill him, give him a quick death. Don't you want to capture Su Wenzhi? I know where Su Wenzhi is hiding. Stop, stop now!"
The executioner had already cut off the second piece of meat, the third piece of meat...
The movements are skillful and orderly.
It's like creating a piece of art.
It's so scary.
Liu Ling's son was so scared that he shit and peed everywhere.
There was a foul smell in the imperial prison.
Wei Zhong waved his hand and the executioner temporarily stopped the execution.
"Where is Su Wenzhi?"
Liu Ling gasped rapidly, "She is in Jiangnan. Concubine Su left her people and money in Jiangnan. She must have fled to Jiangnan."
Wei Zhong scoffed. "I thought you'd come up with something useful, but it turns out it's all just old-fashioned stuff. Didn't anyone tell you that Su Wenzhi is dead? The grass on her grave is already a foot tall."
"How is that possible?" Liu Ling couldn't believe it.
Wei Zhong said seriously, "Thinking you could escape with your life while being pursued by the Jinwu Guards is simply wishful thinking. You fools underestimated the Jinwu Guards, and this is what you're getting yourself into today."
Liu Ling stood there in a daze.
Wei Zhong waved his hand, and the executioner continued to cut human flesh.
Liu Ling yelled, "Stop, stop!"
Wei Zhong said impatiently, "What else is going on? If you don't explain it, I'll have the executioner cut your son five thousand times before he'll be killed."
Liu Ling's son fainted from fear.
Liu Ling was sweating profusely. "Aren't you curious about how Chen Lu knew Su Wenzhi? Let me tell you, the two of them knew each other long before Prince Zhao forced the emperor to abdicate. At that time, Chen Lu didn't even know Su Wenzhi's identity."
Wei Zhong sneered, "Chen Lu and Su Wenzhi are both dead, so there's no point in you saying this."
Liu Ling seemed to be afraid that Wei Zhong would not believe her, so she shouted, "Su Wenzhi gave birth to a son for Chen Lu, and Zhou Yi is just an insignificant person that Chen Lu used to cover up the truth."
Wei Zhong narrowed his eyes and stared at Liu Ling like a poisonous snake.
"Everything I said is true. It's all true. When I approached Chen Lu and Su Wenzhi about something, I made sure to thoroughly investigate their situation beforehand. They hid it from everyone, thinking they could get away with it, but they had no idea that I saw everything."
Wei Zhong smiled grimly, "How dare you call yourself the king? Attack!"
The executioner acted decisively and cut off two pieces of flesh from Liu Ling's son.
Liu Ling's son was awakened by the pain.
"Common people, common people! I am a commoner, not a prince. Let them go, they have nothing to do with this matter."
"Whether it matters or not is not up to you to decide. Where is the son Su Wenzhi gave birth to for Chen Lu?"
"It's in the Xinmin County government office."
Wei Zhong narrowed his eyes immediately. Could it be that Chen Min and Gu Yu were involved? From Gu Yu, it could be linked to Madam Zhao, and even the Crown Prince.
This is a big case!
Wei Zhong became excited.
Then he heard Liu Ling say, "After Su Wenzhi gave birth to a son for Chen Lu, she had her trusted nanny take the child, disguise herself, and apply to work as a cook at the county government office. No one would doubt that the cook's child was Su Wenzhi and Chen Lu's son. They all thought it was the cook's biological son. But I couldn't hide this from them."
Wei Zhong frowned. "You mean Chen Min and Gu Yu were kept in the dark and knew nothing?"
Liu Ling nodded, "As far as I know, that's indeed the case."
Wei Zhong snorted coldly and turned to leave the imperial prison.
Wei Zhong arranged for people to spy on Xinmin County and investigate the cook in the county government office.
There are several cooks in the county government office, and two of them take care of the children.
There is only one person who meets the physical characteristics.
Wei Zhong was sitting in a teahouse opposite the county government office, and he saw with his own eyes the cook taking a little boy of four or five years old out to buy groceries.
The little boy was a little dull and well-behaved, not at all as naughty as other boys of his age.
The cook seemed very worried about the child and kept giving him instructions over and over again.
Wei Zhong asked the people around him: "Do they look alike?"
"He doesn't look much alike, but his mouth and chin are particularly like the late Prince Consort Chen. Brother and sister Chen Lu and Chen Min both took after Princess Huyang's appearance and don't resemble the Chen family. This child, on the other hand, looks especially like a member of the Chen family."
"Are you sure?"
"I can confirm this."
Wei Zhong couldn't help but wonder, "This child looks so much like Prince Consort Chen, how could Chen Min really not recognize him?"
The subordinate said: "When Prince Consort Chen died, Chen Min was still a child. And Prince Consort Chen has been dead for more than ten years, so it is possible that he is not recognized."
Wei Zhong nodded. "Let's not worry about Chen Min for now. I'll keep a close eye on the cook and her child. I won't let them off the hook. I'll go to the palace and report this to His Majesty. Please make the final decision."
"I obey your command!"
Wei Zhong did not dare to hesitate and hurried into the palace to meet Emperor Wende and report the situation.
Upon learning that Su Wenzhi and Chen Lu actually had a child, who was already four or five years old, Emperor Wende was extremely furious.
"Chen Lu is so bold! He actually dared to play tricks on me and take advantage of my kindness. He deserves death."
Emperor Wende was very angry.
For the sake of Huyang, he was more tolerant of Chen Lu.
However, he did not expect that Chen Lu would dare to take advantage of his kindness and tolerance to deceive the world.
Zhou Yi and the baby in Zhou Yi's belly were all concocted by Chen Lu to fool people.
From the beginning to the end, Chen Lu was using Zhou Yi as a shield to cover up the real truth.
Bang!
Emperor Wende slammed his fist on the table. "That explains why Chen Lu was so willing to obey Su Wenzhi's orders, running around for her and preparing the poison. This traitor, this evil creature, I shouldn't have saved his life back then. He should have been beheaded along with the Chen family."
Emperor Wende was furious, his eyes red, "Is Chen Min implicated?"
Wei Zhong hesitated for a second. If he had nodded, it would have been another big case.
But at the last minute, he changed his mind and decided to tell the truth. "It seems that Chen Min and Lord Gu are both in the dark and don't know that the county yamen cook's child is Chen Lu's son. However, the lower half of that child's face is said to look like Prince Consort Chen. But Chen Min didn't recognize the child, which is a bit strange for me."
Emperor Wende took a deep breath and said, "Let's investigate this matter thoroughly. I want to know whether Chen Min and his wife were involved in this matter."
"I obey your command!"
Wei Zhong bowed and retreated.
Chang En personally escorted him out of Xingqing Palace.
"How dare I trouble Eunuch Chang to send me off?" Wei Zhong was a little frightened.
Chang En looked at him and waved his hand, and all the eunuchs retreated ten steps away.
"Master Wei, please walk with us."
Wei Zhong's heart skipped a beat and he followed Chang En closely.
Chang En smiled and said, "Master Wei didn't pick a big case lightly, which is a good move!"
Wei Zhong broke out in a cold sweat.
"Could it be that Your Majesty..."
Chang En reminded him subtly, "Some things cannot be touched. If you touch them, you will die. Your Majesty has a different temperament from the late emperor. Lord Wei, do you understand?"
Wei Zhong bowed and said, "Understood!"
"It's truly remarkable that His Majesty has allowed you to serve in the Jinwu Guard for so many years. So don't start a major case lightly, especially without any evidence."
"Remember the teachings of my father-in-law!"
"Excellent! Go ahead and get to work. Get to the bottom of this case and make sure there are no more mistakes."
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