Cui Mingyue was reprimanded by General Cui and was filled with anger. She left the general's mansion and went straight to Princess Rongyang's mansion.

Princess Rongyang is afraid of heat, so she goes out to escape the summer heat at this time every year. Although the princess's mansion is without its owner, it is still bustling and hot, and everything is in order.

Princess Rongyang hates everything lonely.

"Big girl——"

Cui Mingyue ignored the servants from the princess's mansion who were bowing to her and ran all the way back to Jiaoyue Residence.

Princess Rongyang and General Cui did not live in the same place. Cui Mingyue spent most of her time in the princess's mansion, and her residence was renovated in an exceptionally exquisite manner.

At this time, the bright moon was in the center and the flowers were in full bloom. Cui Mingyue ignored these rare flowers and plants that were rarely seen outside and rushed directly to the back.

At the back, a small area was separated by a fence, and two sika deer were lying inside.

"Open the door!"

The maid guarding there immediately opened the wooden door.

Cui Mingyue walked in.

When the two sika deer saw Cui Mingyue coming in, they shrank back.

Cui Mingyue pulled out the whip wrapped around her waist, swung it out with a beautiful and sharp whip flower, and whipped the deer hard.

The deer did not run away, but endured the whip docilely, letting out a low mournful cry from its throat.

Cui Mingyue whipped the deer more and more fiercely, and soon the two deer's bodies were covered with whip marks.

The maid guarding the gate couldn't bear to look at the deer's tearful eyes, so she lowered her head quietly.

Cui Mingyue continued whipping until one of the sika deer fell down, then he stopped, threw the whip away and walked out.

"Pack up." Cui Mingyue said lightly as she passed by the maid.

The maid hurriedly said, "Yes."

Cui Mingyue glanced at the maid coldly: "Watch your mouth."

"I know."

Cui Mingyue returned to her room and drank a cup of scented tea. Only then did she feel better. She raised her hand to look at the red marks on her fingertips and bit her lip slightly.

After all, beating a deer is not as satisfying as beating a person.

When she was a child, she accidentally saw her mother whipping a maidservant with a whip. She was frightened at the time, but after seeing it more often, she felt that her fear was ridiculous.

After all, those servants were no different from cattle and horses, and were not even as valuable as deer. But people could talk, and she still wanted a reputation.

Cui Mingyue thought of her father's scolding and became annoyed again.

My brother's leg was broken, but my father didn't care. He even said that my brother should have been taught a lesson long ago. It was obvious that my father didn't want to make things difficult for the son of the Earl of Dongping.

No, it should be said that the father did not want to embarrass Su's son.

Cui Mingyue had some vague knowledge of her parents' past, but she learned more from Princess Rongyang, so she naturally regarded her mother Su as a vixen who deserved to be killed.

"Jiang Zhan, just wait." Cui Mingyue murmured.

The case of the drowning of the Minister of Rites' grandson Jinshui in the river had been brought to the attention of the Emperor and had become a matter of particular concern throughout the capital. Everyone was waiting for the prefect of Shuntian to catch the eunuch who set the fire and find out who this daring murderer was.

But this time people were destined to be disappointed, as Lord Zhen, who was a master at solving cases, failed to solve the case this time.

In Shuntian Prefecture, Zhen Shicheng was sorting through piles of case files.

These case files are all about the situations of Yang Shengcai and other three people over the years. After reading these case files, Zhen Shicheng couldn't help but sigh that it was really not easy for someone to come and settle accounts with these little bastards now.

As for solving the case? Difficult!

He had originally planned to start with the people who rented the boat on the day of the fire, but after sending his subordinates to investigate, they found nothing, so this clue was lost.

Although there was no substantial progress, Zhen Shicheng could sense from his experience that things were not going as planned. It was as if an opponent hiding in the dark had guessed his plan long ago and blocked all the loopholes.

It's really interesting.

After flipping through the case file, Zhen Shicheng stood up and walked out, taking a stroll to calm his mind.

"Father." The young man's clear voice came.

Zhen Shicheng stopped and looked at his eldest son, whom he had not noticed for a few days.

Hey, this kid looks better. It seems he has recovered from the last blow.

The slight sense of guilt that Zhen Shicheng had felt a few days ago suddenly disappeared, and he asked, "Didn't you go out today?"

Zhen Heng smiled and said, "The exam is coming up soon, so I won't go out. How is the progress of father's case?"

"No progress." Zhen Shicheng said casually.

Zhen Heng's smile froze.

The tone in which his father said there was no progress seemed too righteous, and he didn't know how to start the words of comfort he had prepared.

After taking a closer look at Zhen Shicheng's expression, Zhen Heng gently advised, "Don't worry, father. I believe that with your ability, you will definitely get to the bottom of this matter."

"That's about it for the case."

Zhen Heng paused again, and advised carefully: "Father, don't take it to heart. Sometimes human power is insufficient. It's not your fault."

Zhen Shicheng glanced at his son and said, "Why are you worrying about this? Why don't you go and study?"

Who is the father and who is the son?

Zhen Heng's mouth twitched slightly, thinking about the time he accidentally saw his old father frowning a few days ago. He silently swallowed his anger and said comfortingly: "Father, I know that you can't solve the case and I feel bad, but--"

"But what? Who said I feel bad when I can't solve the case?" Zhen Shicheng frowned and looked at his son. "Why are you so nagging at such a young age?"

Can a little girl like this? It is said that nowadays little girls are attracted to those handsome boys who are quiet and cool.

"A few days ago, my son saw you sighing at the moon——"

Zhen Shicheng stroked his beard and said, "Well, I was worried that if I solved the case, I would be hard-pressed to put the murderer on death row, but deliberately not solving the case was not in line with my principles."

Now, he can finally answer to his conscience that he was indeed not capable enough to solve the case.

Zhen Heng: "..." Where is the impartiality you promised? Is his father a fake?

"Go review your lessons!" Zhen Shicheng yelled.

Zhen Heng rolled his eyes and hurried away.

Zhen Shicheng shook his head and walked back with his hands behind his back.

My son is still too naive. The laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty are not fair and impartial, let alone humans.

The case was delayed until August, when Zhen Shicheng, under pressure from various forces, openly reported to Emperor Jingming that the case could not be solved.

Memorials impeaching Zhen Shicheng for his poor handling of the case flew to Long's desk like snowflakes.

Emperor Jingming threw a pile of memorials on the table and sneered: "Are you going to take off your title as Shuntian prefect just because you can't solve a case? There are countless unsolved cases in the world. If that's the case, those officials should all be fired!"

The chief eunuch Pan Hai listened silently and secretly shed tears of sympathy for the prince.

The emperor was so angry at these blind people that he was about to vent his anger on the crown prince. Who made it possible for the grandson of the Minister of Rites to be the crown prince's brother-in-law?

When the court was held the next day, a historian stepped out and angrily accused the Shuntian prefect of sitting idle, saying that a simple arson case had become an unsolved case. Then several people stepped out to impeach Zhen Shicheng.

Emperor Jingming listened calmly and asked the people who stood up in a good mood: "The Shuntian prefect is an important position and cannot be replaced. I wonder who among you is willing to take over this position and take over the case of the fire on the painted boat?"