"Dad, save me, save me!" Liu Jieshu struggled and shouted as he was being taken away.
"Shu'er, don't be afraid, your father will definitely save you." Lord Liu chased after him anxiously, trembling, but was stopped by the soldiers.
When Liu Jieshu arrived at the Dali Temple prison, he was put on a rack and tied up. He asked fearfully, "What are you going to do?"
"See those instruments of torture? We will use them one by one to torture you until you tell the truth." Pei Chen pointed to the instruments of torture hanging on the wall.
Branding irons, hooks, shackles, bamboo clamps, steel needles... each instrument of torture was large and thick, and covered in bloodstains; just one look at them could scare a grown man to death.
“My father fought alongside the Emperor, and I myself passed the imperial examination with flying colors. You cannot abuse your power against me.” Liu Jieshu trembled as he looked at the instruments of torture.
“Liu Jieshu, we found a piece of unburned paper in your room. Based on its contents, we now reasonably suspect that you are involved in the death of Qiuju from Baihua Pavilion. Therefore, we are not going to use torture on you, but rather, according to the law, we are using torture to extract the truth from you. This is reasonable and legal.” Yun Qingran’s voice arrived before she did.
After hearing Yun Qingran's words, Liu Jieshu lowered his head, concealing the panic and fear in his eyes. He hadn't expected that they could find out about his relationship with Qiu Ju. He had always concealed his identity when he went to Baihua Pavilion.
“Princess Rongchang, Your Highness the Prince of Beihan, Lord Jiang, I did know Miss Qiuju and we were together for a while, but I got tired of her and broke off all contact with her. I really had no knowledge of her death, and it had nothing to do with me.” Liu Jieshu looked at the three people who walked in with a wronged and innocent expression.
Yun Qingran looked at Liu Jieshu. This guy had just arrived and immediately claimed that he did know Qiu Ju, then quickly distanced himself from Qiu Ju's death, leaving no one with any evidence against him. He was a smart and decisive man, not easy to deal with.
However, she's best at dealing with tough nuts to crack!
Yun Qingran remained silent, walked quietly to the wall, and threw a branding iron into the blazing charcoal fire beside her.
Liu Jieshu shuddered as he watched, swallowed hard, and asked, "Princess Rongchang, what are you doing?"
"Can't you tell? I'm going to heat it up and brand you." Yun Qingran stood by the charcoal fire with her arms crossed, quietly watching the branding iron gradually turn red, her tone very light.
Liu Jieshu tensed up all over. If that branding iron were on his body, his flesh would be cooked, and he would be in excruciating pain.
“I’d rather die than live in humiliation,” Liu Jieshu said, pretending to bite his tongue to commit suicide.
As an official appointed by the imperial court, if he died in prison, Yun Qingran, Jun Molin, and Jiang Yunqi would all be held responsible, so they certainly wouldn't let him commit suicide.
"It would be better if you died. We'll just say you committed suicide out of guilt." Yun Qingran chuckled, seemingly not caring at all whether Liu Jieshu had committed suicide or not.
Liu Jieshu: ...Why are you so stubborn?
“Lord Liu, you know what the Dali Temple is. It’s the most strict and impartial place. Once you’re in here, you won’t get out without getting to the bottom of things. You should confess sooner rather than later to avoid physical punishment,” Jiang Yunqi advised Liu Jieshu.
A look of despair crossed Liu Jieshu's face. He knew his fate the moment he was arrested, but he still wanted to give it a shot.
"Liu Jieshu, we are both officials of the imperial court. You instructed Qiuju to frame my elder brother, which is punishable by death according to the law. You cannot escape this punishment. But have you thought about your family?" Yun Qingran looked at Liu Jieshu with a deep gaze.
"What do you mean?" Liu Jieshu suddenly became agitated. "This has nothing to do with my family. They are innocent. Don't touch them."
"Your family is innocent, but aren't my father and elder brother innocent? Why are you trying to hurt my elder brother?" Yun Qingran glared at Liu Jieshu and asked in a firm and resounding tone.
Looking at Yun Qingran, who resembled an angry little lion, Liu Jieshu's momentum waned. He asked, "Princess Rongchang, what exactly do you want me to do?"
"It's simple. I want you to confess honestly. If you do, we won't pursue the Liu family. If you don't, then you can expect the Liu family to pay with their lives. I, Yun Qingran, mean what I say." A thin, bloodthirsty smile appeared on Yun Qingran's lips.
“Yun Qingran, you are just a minor princess, while my father is a meritorious official who fought alongside the emperor. Who do you think you are? Do you think you can deal with the Liu family?” Liu Jieshu said defiantly.
"Try it if you don't believe me!" Yun Qingran parted her red lips slightly and slowly uttered these five words.
The murderous intent that flashed in her eyes was like a sharp piece of ice, piercing Liu Jieshu's eyes and causing him to break down mentally.
Liu Jieshu gritted his teeth, hesitated for a long time, then closed his eyes and finally admitted, "Yes, that's right, I tricked Qiuju into framing Yun Qingbi."
"Pei Chen, put him down, give him paper and pen and let him confess and sign it," Yun Qingran said to Pei Chen, who was standing to the side, as she lowered her arm.
"Yes, Miss Yun." Pei Chen immediately had Liu Jieshu put down.
Jun Molin and Jiang Yunqi watched from behind, their gazes filled with admiration and affection for Yun Qingran. They had thought that with her father and brother imprisoned, she would become vulnerable. They had been prepared to do everything for her, but unexpectedly, she had doubled her efforts and didn't need anyone's help at all. They could only silently play the role of background figures.
Liu Jie wrote down the entire process of his crime, then signed and fingerprinted it. After the ink dried, Pei Chen handed the confession to Yun Qingran with both hands.
She took it and read it. In the confession, Liu Jieshu admitted that he was jealous of his superior Yun Qingbi and therefore seduced the love-struck Qiu Ju to help frame Yun Qingbi.
The process of framing him was as follows: First, he bribed a servant of the Yun family to place a note on Yun Qingbi's desk that said Qiu Ju, the girl from Baihua Pavilion, was a member of the Heavenly Demon Sect. Then, he devised a plan to have Bicao snatch a coupon for Baihua Pavilion. He knew that Bicao was illiterate and would definitely show the coupon to Yun Qingbi. He understood Yun Qingbi's stingy nature and believed that with this huge coupon, Yun Qingbi would definitely go to Baihua Pavilion.
Then, they had someone lie in ambush so that Yun Qingbi would knock him unconscious as soon as she arrived at Baihualou and send him to Qiuju's room. Then, Qiuju, who was obsessed with love, did not hesitate to have herself tortured in order to help her lover frame her boss. She left herself with her last breath and locked the door from the room, creating the illusion that there were only two people in the room and that Yun Qingbi was the only one who could have killed her.
"The whole case is intricately linked; it's truly fascinating." Yun Qingran sighed as she looked at the confession, her tone a mixture of mockery and sorrow.
The most pitiful one here is Qiuju, who cruelly sacrificed herself for the one she loved.
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