The palace servant showed a hesitant expression, and then said awkwardly: "The servant initially identified it as the prince, but..."
The palace servant paused, looking somewhat embarrassed, before finally speaking, "It's just that the Emperor had the servant punished, and after that, he insisted that the murderer was you, the Crown Princess. It was you, the Crown Princess, who set him up to play a trick on you, and he deliberately targeted the Prince."
Ni Yueshan was a little surprised. He thought that the emperor would let this servant bite other people and then close the case.
"So, Father, do you plan to hold me accountable?"
The palace maid lowered her head and responded, "Your Majesty believes in the Crown Princess. Why don't you find a way to investigate the truth and clear yourself of the injustice?"
Ni Yueshan's eyes flickered. This required her to find evidence to prove that others were guilty, otherwise she would be the sinner.
"What about this servant? Where is he being held?"
"After being tortured, the man couldn't bear it and bit his tongue to commit suicide!"
Ni Yueshan chuckled. This result was really surprising.
"My message has been delivered, I will take my leave."
After her father-in-law left, Ni Yueshan withdrew his gaze.
When Qingdie found Duan Gouqiong and Shao Lecheng, they had already found some clues, but she didn't expect that Ni Yueshan had already investigated the matter neatly.
The two rushed back to the hunting ground and asked Ni Yueshan who the murderer was.
"What!" Duan Gouqiong looked at Ni Yueshan in surprise, thinking that this was too outrageous.
Shao Lecheng remained silent.
Ni Yueshan could only helplessly say: "In the end, the one who will be punished will be either me or the prince."
"This is impossible! How could you assassinate your own mother?" Duan Gouqiong immediately denied the confession.
"So Father gave me the opportunity to continue investigating! Produce other evidence!"
Duan Gouqiong asked hesitantly, "Then how do you plan to investigate? Everyone is dead!"
Ni Yueshan was still thinking when a servant came over and reported, "Crown Princess, Madam Zhai requests an audience."
When Madam Zhai came, Duan Gouqiong and Shao Lecheng obediently avoided her.
When Madam Zhai saw Ni Yueshan, she bowed obediently and then asked, "Crown Princess, I'm here to inquire about the murderer who murdered my son!"
Ni Yueshan turned her head and responded, "Madam, do you want to hear the result of that servant's confession, or do you want to hear the truth?"
Mrs. Zhai frowned and finally responded, "The result."
"I am the murderer."
These four simple words made Mrs. Zhai look at her in surprise.
After a long while, Madam Zhai asked, "Why did you kill my son? Because of such a small matter? Did you really kill my son? Why weren't you arrested by the emperor?"
She became agitated and picked up something nearby, ready to throw it at Ni Yueshan. Shao Lecheng, who had been hiding behind the screen, strode over and shouted angrily, "Please calm down!"
Madam Zhai's eyes were red as she sneered, "Calm down? How can I be calm? You're the one who killed my son! Get out of my way!"
Her struggle and anger were so weak in front of Shao Lecheng that they could be ignored.
"The Crown Princess carries royal blood! If you hurt her, your entire family will be buried with her!"
Duan Gouqiong walked out slowly from behind the screen.
Mrs. Zhai's original irritability gradually calmed down.
Ni Yueshan then said, "Whether you believe me or not, I am not the murderer. I am still thinking about how to investigate the truth, but I haven't found a way yet."
Ni Yueshan lowered his head, his brows tightly furrowed.
Mrs. Zhai swung her arms fiercely, then glared at Ni Yueshan hatefully and walked out.
After she left, Shao Lecheng spoke up, "Yueshan, what are you doing? Wouldn't it be better if you just said that the boy committed suicide?"
Ni Yueshan remained silent. Duan Gouqiong sighed, "We found out in town that there's a family that's been dealing in snakes for years. They just moved away the day before yesterday. No one knows why, but I think there's something fishy about them! How about we send someone after them?"
Ni Yueshan shook his head: "It's useless. What crime have they committed by selling snakes? The one who harmed people is Jing Chengzhi!"
"So what should we do? Just because the Emperor hasn't declared you the murderer yet doesn't mean he'll still be suppressing you in a few days?"
Ni Yueshan remained silent and said nothing.
Duan Gouqiong said to Shao Lecheng, "Forget it, let's go and let her calm down first."
Duan Gouqiong dragged Shao Lecheng outside, and Shao Lecheng finally spoke: "Pull me away and let her calm down? This is not your style."
Duan Gouqiong said helplessly: "How about we learn from the emperor?"
Shao Lecheng asked suspiciously, "What do you mean?"
*
"Meet the Emperor, Father."
In the emperor's tent, Duan Gouqiong bowed politely.
The emperor stood in front of the table and said, "Get up!"
"Thank you, Father. I have something good for you."
"What is it?" The emperor walked towards his seat and sat down. The eunuch standing next to him stepped forward and took the item from Duan Gouqiong's hand.
Duan Gouqiong said, "My father originally asked the princess to bring it to Canglie. Later, my father gave me another one, but I think that my father's things should be returned to him."
The eunuch handed the two boxes to the emperor. The emperor lowered his eyes to look at them. The eunuch opened the box and a sheepskin scroll lay quietly inside.
The emperor frowned, then smiled and asked, "What do you want?"
"Your Majesty is truly clever. He knew at once that this subject was seeking permission."
The emperor seemed very patient and asked, "What permission?"
"I want Father to falsify the servant's confession. The Crown Princess is pregnant and shouldn't be overworked. She has done me a favor, and I want to help her resolve her troubles!"
The emperor asked sullenly, "You are asking me to deceive the ministers and shield the suspect!"
"Father, this is clearly a trap! Who would hurt their own mother? It doesn't make sense! This is definitely a frame-up!"
"Even if I believe her, there is no evidence to prove her innocence. How can I protect her?"
"Father, if you don't announce the servant's confession, who will know it's the Crown Princess?"
Duan Gouqiong blinked at the emperor, hoping for his cooperation. The emperor's face was gloomy. The eunuch beside him coughed and whispered, "Your Majesty, Princess Gouqiong is right. The Crown Princess is pregnant now, how can she work so hard? I believe we will find out who the murderer is later, but we can't let the Crown Princess get exhausted before then!"
"Yes, Father, can you please...change the servant's confession?"
Even though Duan Gouqiong was asking the emperor to lie, he did not feel guilty at all. He just looked at him with great anticipation, hoping that the emperor would nod.
Ni Yueshan was still racking his brains over how to investigate the truth when Duan Gouqiong came over happily.
"Princess, I have good news and bad news. Which one do you want to hear first?"
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