Zhen Shicheng calmly withdrew his gaze and said to the lined-up Jinwu Guards: "Please recall the anomalies that occurred after the hall went dark. Let's start with the first person. Remember, you can tell us anything you think is abnormal, even if you are wrong."
Emperor Jingming spoke at the right time: "Wang Hai, tell them to cooperate with Master Zhen."
After hearing Emperor Jingming's words, the Jinwu Guard, who was the first in the team, began to rack their brains to come up with ideas for what they had noticed.
Zhen Shicheng listened carefully, but did not find any valuable information.
Soon he asked Jiang Zhan.
Jiang Zhan cupped his hands and said, "Sir, I was guarding near the entrance of the main hall. It was hard to see when the main hall suddenly became dark. I may not be feeling right..."
With Jiang Zhan's qualifications, it was not his turn to serve in the palace, but Wang Hai knew that Emperor Jingming liked people who were pleasing to the eye, especially in such a grand occasion. If he saw an ugly person at first sight, it would be a nuisance to the emperor, so he swapped Jiang Zhan with another person.
"Just say it." Zhen Shicheng said calmly, thinking that I have been paving the way for you for so long, why don't you just tell me now.
Jiang Zhan said hesitantly, "It was a bit chaotic in the palace when it got dark. I felt that Tongze had been away for a while——"
Zhen Shicheng interrupted Jiang Zhan and said, "Since you can't see, how do you know that Tongze has been away for a while?"
Someone whispered, "It is said that some warriors can sense the aura of people nearby. I didn't expect this Jinwu Guard to be such an expert."
Jiang Ancheng stroked his chin and thought: His son is not that kind of person.
Jiang Zhan quickly gave the answer: "This is my first time to serve in the palace and I have no experience. I was suddenly plunged into darkness and couldn't help but call that fellow Ze several times, but he didn't respond. I thought he shouldn't be around, otherwise why didn't he say anything?"
Everyone: “…” That really makes sense.
"Who is that Tongze?" Zhen Shicheng asked.
Jiang Zhan looked at the Jinwu Guard who was wearing old clothes.
Zhen Shicheng looked over and asked, "Is it him?"
Jiang Zhan nodded.
"Can you tell me where you went when you left?"
The Jinwu Guard looked innocent: "I didn't leave. I'm right here."
Zhen Shicheng pointed at Jiang Zhan and said, "If that's the case, why didn't you say anything when he called you?"
The Jinwu Guard said solemnly, "I am just following my duty. As a Jinwu Guard, if I lose my balance when encountering an emergency, how can I protect you? At that time, everyone is in a panic. What if someone does something bad and slips away? That's why I dare not be distracted, and I can't let anyone know where I am, so that I can pay attention to all kinds of abnormalities."
Zhen Shicheng raised the corner of his mouth.
This Jinwu Guard is really good at speaking.
He looked at Jinwuwei, and Jinwuwei looked at him as well, and their eyes met in mid-air.
An old piece of clothing and a fellow's guess are certainly not evidence.
At this time Jiang Zhan suddenly asked: "So this is why you didn't respond?"
Jinwuwei nodded: "Jiang Er, you are still a newcomer, it is normal that you don't understand these things."
Jiang Zhan raised his eyebrows and said, "I am a newcomer, but I haven't finished what I just said."
Jin Wuwei looked at him expressionlessly.
"Master Zhen, I called out to him but got no response, so I groped my way towards him. Then I felt something brush my leg, and soon the hall became bright."
"What was it like?"
"He is indeed in the same place, just a few steps away. What makes me feel strange is the thing that brushed against my leg——" Jiang Zhan looked at the man, his sword-like eyebrows slightly frowned, "It's quite soft... Sir, can I go to the door to take a look?"
After getting Zhen Shicheng's nod, Jiang Zhan walked quickly towards the gate.
Everyone's eyes were following him.
The door of the hall was closed, with layers of curtains hanging on both sides. At the moment, there were several guards standing guard there to prevent anyone from slipping away.
Jiang Zhan walked over, looked around, and reached into the floor-length curtain.
After some groping, he stood up and found something in his hand.
When everyone saw what he was holding, their faces suddenly changed: it was a crumpled piece of clothing, blue and black, with a faint golden pattern.
Jiang Zhan walked towards Zhen Shicheng holding the ball of clothes.
"Is this the uniform of the Jinwu Guard?" Zhen Shicheng asked Wang Hai, the commander of the Jinwu Guard.
At this point, Wang Hai no longer cared about the fact that the murderer might be among the guards under his command. The most important thing was to find the murderer as soon as possible and make amends.
He nodded immediately: "It's the clothes of the Jinwu Guards."
"That is to say, someone took off this dress in the dark and hid it..." Zhen Shicheng shook out the clothes, examined them carefully, and found a small blood stain on the front of the clothes.
The clothes were blue-black in color, and the blood stains were actually not noticeable, but Zhen Shicheng had dealt with murder cases countless times, so he could tell at a glance.
Zhen Shicheng held up the clothes and said, "The murderer was a meticulous person. Although he stood to the side of Prince An to avoid the blood spurting out when he assassinated him, he was still worried that blood would splash onto his clothes, so he wore two identical clothes. After the crime, he quickly took off the outer clothes and hid them, and then he was flawless."
Zhen Shicheng stared at the Jinwu Guard and shook his head: "What a pity, there is no perfect crime in this world. As long as it is done, there will definitely be clues left behind--"
Jinwuwei looked extremely unhappy and suddenly flew towards Zhen Shicheng. However, he was pulled back after his feet flew into the air.
Jiang Zhan rode on him, slapped him twice with all his strength, and said angrily: "Are you addicted to killing people? You even dared to touch Lord Zhen!"
In terms of Kung Fu, he was no match for this Jinwu Guard, but he won by striking first and knocking the man unconscious with his random punches.
By the time the King of Guards reacted and prepared to fight back, the tips of several long swords had already pierced his limbs.
"Spare his lives!" Zhen Shicheng shouted, his voice drowning out the screams of the Jinwu Guards.
Several guards who took action looked at Wang Hai, the commander of the Jinwu Guard, and Wang Hai looked at Emperor Jingming.
Emperor Jingming looked at Jiang Zhan deeply before saying, "Ask first."
Emperor Jingming had deeply experienced the frustration of finally finding a person, but seeing him die before he could even be questioned.
Wang Hai immediately stepped forward and picked up the Jinwu Guard.
"Take him to the back hall for questioning. Minister Zhen, Commander Wang, Commander Han...all of you come here, and the rest of you stay in the hall for now." Emperor Jingming said, and walked to the back with his hands behind his back.
Several people who were named immediately followed, leaving the ministers dumbfounded.
They also want to hear why Prince An was killed. The emperor was too cruel!
When they arrived at the back hall, Emperor Jingming signaled to Wang Hai that he could ask questions and went to the inner room.
The sounds of torture could be heard from time to time, and Emperor Jingming frowned as he waited for the result.
Two quarters of an hour later, Wang Hai walked in with a face full of shame and reported: "Your Majesty, that boy is a stubborn person. It may take some time to get the answer from him..."