In the prison cell, Hua Yuhe remained defiant, refusing to admit any collusion with Nan Fangnan, only saying that it was a place of pleasure and not asking where the customers came from.
Murong Xingchen sneered and said, "Since that's the case! Then don't blame me for not being chivalrous. Someone, bring up the fried dough twists and let Manager Hua try them."
"You dare! You have no evidence to prove that I colluded with the remnants of the previous dynasty, yet you dare to use torture. I'll go to Chang'an and sue you!" Hua Yuhe was a little flustered! But in her heart, she was convinced that the other party wouldn't dare to do anything to her.
"How do you, a brothel madam, know that Nanfang Nan is a remnant of the previous dynasty? Did I say that?" Murong Xingchen's eyes were cunning.
"You! You dare to trick me?" Hua Yuhe was merely stalling for time. From the moment the investigation began until now, Lord Liu hadn't come to turn the tide, making her uneasy. Nanfang Nan had once said he would never abandon her life or death. Had things changed in Lin'an?
"So what if I'm deceiving you? As far as I know, you not only collude with the remnants of the previous dynasty, but also have connections with the Japanese. Do you know that colluding with the Japanese is punishable by death for three generations of your family!" Murong Xingchen has already obtained the confession, and whether Hua Yuhe confesses today or not will not change the situation.
"Hahahaha, if you want to condemn someone, you can always find a pretext. Since Lord Murong wants to punish me, then whatever you say goes. This little woman is all alone and has long been used to being bullied by you! Enough nonsense, how much money do you want!" Hua Yuhe still didn't believe that the Murong family would dare to openly challenge her. Did they think Murong Qingyun would just ignore it? It's just a matter of demanding from above and below, I'll give it to you, why make such a big deal out of it?
"How dare you slander me! I'll make sure you die knowing why!" Murong Xingchen roared in fury. His first major case had been met with disrespect from a courtesan. He ordered the guards, "Bring those girls up!"
Soon, several girls were brought up. These girls were none other than Hua Yuhe's most trusted confidantes, who knew most of her affairs.
Upon seeing them, Hua Yuhe's face turned deathly pale, and she collapsed to the ground. She knew the secret could no longer be kept. Two hours had passed since Hua Manlou was shut down. Her friends through official channels hadn't intervened, nor had Master Nan; for now, she could only protect herself.
So before any torture was even used, Hua Yuhe confessed everything, but she also dragged Murong Qingyun into the mess!
The discovery of this bombshell news was unexpected for Murong Xingchen. He had always admired his uncle and couldn't tell who was telling the truth!
"Stop making baseless accusations! My uncle has spent his life on the battlefield, fighting for the Emperor in the south and north. When would he ever have met a woman like you who is fond of pleasure? Guards, give him twenty strokes of the cane as a warning to others."
The Murong family is incredibly powerful and influential; their fame is known throughout the country! Moreover, the Emperor trusts them so much that he even entrusted them with the minting and circulation of silver. This shows just how much the Emperor values them! This woman actually wants to destroy the Murong family; she deserves to die!
Hua Yuhe, her mouth bleeding from the beating, lay sprawled on the ground, yet she chuckled, "What? Lord Murong, of noble lineage, dare not believe your ancestors were immoral? Using a weak woman like me to offend you! What ability do I have to know the Japanese? Do I know why our coastal defenses are suffering repeated defeats? Because someone leaked the information to the Japanese in advance! Guess who that person is?"
After saying that, Hua Yuhe burst into laughter, but her heart was filled with bitterness! After struggling for so many years and trying to please so many people, she hadn't escaped any of the suffering she deserved! Life was truly a joke.
Murong Xingchen roared, "Enough! I will verify everything you've said. If I find any falsehoods, I will not let you off!"
"I'm afraid you don't have the guts to investigate! I want to see whether your Murong family is loyal or treacherous!" After saying that, he laughed maniacally again.
Several of his trusted confidants were so frightened that they kowtowed repeatedly!
Murong Xingchen lost his composure. "Take them away! Take them all away! Keep them under strict guard!"
The group was thrown back into prison. Before Murong Xingchen could recover from the shock, a servant rushed in to report, "Second Young Master, the Master wants you to go home immediately."
A bad feeling arose in his mind, and he didn't dare to think about it any longer, so he hurried home!
The air in the Murong mansion was thick with tension, as all the highly respected elders were present. Upon seeing Murong Xingchen enter, the head elder rebuked, "How dare you come back? You've ruined the entire family!"
Several old men scolded, "Murong Feng, look at the good sons you've raised! They're either philandering scoundrels who are morally corrupt, or ungrateful wretches who turn on their own people! I really doubt if you're even a member of the Murong family."
Murong Xingchen understood about 80-90% of what was going on and couldn't help but suspect that what Hua Yuhe said might be true.
"Father! Uncles and elders! I have urgent business to attend to. What is it that you urgently need to see me about?"
Several uncles sighed in anger, putting pressure on Murong Feng.
Murong Feng looked troubled, but still spoke up, "Chen'er, His Majesty has ordered you to take over Lin'an and investigate the matter of Nanfang Nan. Why didn't you mention it to the family?"
"Father, how did you know I was investigating Nanfang Nan?" Murong Xingchen understood everything now. He had only issued a warrant for Wu Tongling's arrest, and outsiders should not have known that Nanfang Nan was involved. How did his father and uncles know?
"This," Murong Feng was taken aback at first, then explained, "There are no secrets in the world. The Emperor summoned you before dawn, and as soon as you took over Lin'an City, you immediately shut down Hua Manlou! Why didn't you inform your family?"
"Father, I'm doing this for His Majesty! Our Murong family will always be loyal to His Majesty! What's wrong with what I'm doing?"
The uncles sighed and blamed Murong Feng, saying, "We've finally managed to gather enough jade pendants. If we find the treasure box, we can achieve great things in a year or two. But your son has brought trouble to the Murong family. What are we going to do about this?"
"What jade pendant? What fire? Hua Manlou has already confessed to colluding with the Japanese and the remnants of the previous dynasty! What does this have to do with the Murong family? I don't understand what my uncles are accusing me of!" Seeing his father embarrassed, Murong Xingchen disregarded the order of seniority and stood up for his father.
This infuriated the uncles even more, who glared at each other and said, "Murong Feng, you always said that Chen'er was too young to participate in the family's development, and you kept him firmly under your wings. Now look what's happened! This reckless fellow has ruined so much for us. While you can still cover for him, you'd better make him clean up his mess!"
"Exactly! A mere kid is nothing to worry about! Don't let him ruin important family matters!"
"Now is a critical moment, you need to think this through!"
"Take care of yourself, farewell!"
The uncles and elders left angrily after saying their piece.
The father and son remained. The father looked worried, while Murong Xingchen was completely bewildered. He asked with concern, "Father, have my uncles gone mad? This is a major case that the Emperor is investigating. Why are they blaming me?"
Murong Feng forced a smile and said to Chen'er, "Since your elder brother was crippled, I've been heartbroken and neglected you. I love you too, and I've kept many important things from you, not letting you participate. You'll understand my feelings later. Come, it's almost lunchtime, shall we have a simple meal together?"
"I'll listen to Father," Murong Xingchen readily agreed.
After the two left the hall, Sima Rushuang came out from behind the curtain, her face serious.
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