032. Retracting a confession

The two did not fall into the flower bed, but both fell on the gravel road in the aisle. Rong Se was stunned for a moment before he reacted. He lay on Liang Shenyu and hurriedly got up. He saw Liang Shenyu frowning and touching the back of his head. When he fell, Liang Shenyu lay flat on the ground. Rong Se fell in his arms. He was dizzy for a moment and then came to his senses. Seeing the situation, he was a little panicked and reached out to help Liang Shenyu.

"Marquis Dingbei...? How are you?"

Liang Shenyu sat up with his force, bent one leg and covered his head to hide his dark expression.

Just now, the thought of holding someone in my arms flashed through my mind.

Liang Shenyu remained calm, as if he had paused for a moment, then raised his head and smiled bitterly: "My Lord, why is it so?"

Rong Se sat on the side, hesitant to speak for most of the day, and lowered his eyes slightly after hearing the voice. After a long while, he said, "Don't touch me suddenly in the future, but from behind."

Liang Shenyu looked at him quietly.

He remembered that it was the same as last time. He reached out his hand from behind and Rong Se reacted strongly. At that time, he thought that this person was too guarded, but this time he found that Rong Se's reaction was more like a subconscious reaction. He was so sensitive to touch, especially the touch from behind, that he subconsciously chose to counterattack.

Rong Se avoided Liang Shenyu's seemingly gentle but actually deep gaze and stood up from the ground. The rain had stopped, but both of them were covered in mud. Rong Se sighed, "Can you get up? You need to change into another set of muddy clothes."

Liang Shenyu also stood up and waved his hand to indicate that he was fine.

The two were covered in sweat, especially Liang Shenyu, whose clothes on his back were soaked. They went to the Canglan Warm Pavilion one after the other to bathe and change clothes. Rong Se waited for Liang Shenyu to come out before entering the warm pavilion. The wet and hot air hit their faces, with a faint cool fragrance.

Rong Se suddenly froze.

He started to think uncontrollably about all sorts of things. When he fell just now, he didn't get hurt anywhere because Liang Shenyu not only cushioned his back, but also held him in his arms.

It was a protective gesture.

After hesitating for a while, he pursed his lips. What's so scary about his own bathroom?

However, he couldn't help his thoughts, he couldn't help but let his wild thoughts run wild. The warm water washed over him, and his entire body turned red, even his ears and the back of his neck were stained with bright red. He looked like a piece of gorgeous jade, breathing heavily. He turned around for a moment, and saw his own blurry and red figure in the mirror. He was stunned and stood there.

What follows is a kind of shame that is too secret to be spoken of.

Rong Se lowered his head in a hurry, his whole body was hot.

"Don't let your imagination run wild..."

"Amitabha."

"Infinite Heavenly Lord."

"My heart is as still as water."

"Be free and do nothing."

Rong Se muttered.

Facts have proven that when people are really anxious, they will worship any god or Buddha.

When Rong Se came out of Canglan Nuan Pavilion, he was not calm. Instead, because of the surging emotions for a while, his eyes subconsciously avoided Liang Shenyu when he saw him.

Liang Shenyu looked at the spring water between his eyebrows that had not completely faded away, raised his eyebrows slightly, and suppressed those bad thoughts imperceptibly. He felt a little regretful, but still looked like a humble gentleman.

"Thank you, Your Majesty. I..."

Before he could finish his farewell speech, Yun Chu came in hurriedly from outside and leaned over to report: "Your Highness, the gangsters who caused trouble in Fusheng Building have changed their confessions."

Rong Se's mind was completely free of thoughts at this moment. His face darkened: "Hasn't Yu Qingzhou already made a verdict? How can he change his confession after the verdict has been made?"

Yun Chu said, "After Yu Qingzhou reviewed the case, the other five temple officials had to sign it before it could be considered a final case and then handed over to the Ministry of Justice. That's where the problem came from."

There were a total of six assistant ministers in the Dali Temple, one of whom was named You Changjin. The problem was with him, as he refused to sign the case file, which led to a retrial. During the retrial, several ruffians all changed their testimonies, claiming that they had not received any instructions from anyone and had never committed any crime. They only flirted with the young lady in the street and did not do anything else.

In this way, no matter how heavy the sentence is, it will not be heavy enough.

Rong Se was so angry that his face turned blue. He said, "Prepare the car. I will go to the Dali Temple to see how this Lord You is confusing right and wrong!"

Yun Chu and Liang Shenyu were both stunned.

"My Lord." Yun Chu hesitated, "You want to come in person?"

"What?" Rong Se was frightened, but he was willing to take risks and remained calm in the face of major issues. "Yu Qingzhou worked for me, and now his sister has been wronged. Can't I help her?"

Yun Chu was slightly startled, then nodded: "I understand, Your Majesty, please wait a moment."

Yun Chu went to prepare the car. Liang Shenyu walked closer and laughed softly, "Your Majesty treats your subordinates so well? But what about Yu Qingzhou..."

"I know everything." Rong Se glanced at him, "I am pleased."

The smile on Liang Shenyu's face faded.

He frowned slightly and felt a little irritated because of this statement.

It was Yu Qingzhou who helped ruin his plan. He is a traitor, so why should he be kept around?

Liang Shenyu also felt that he was being unreasonable. After all, how to deal with Yu Qingzhou was the Regent's own business. Why should he worry about it?

Besides, he was an accomplice in this matter.

But he just couldn't understand why Rong Se showed leniency to Yu Qingzhou and even stood up for him openly now.

Rong Se didn't know what Liang Shenyu was thinking, let alone how far he had gone. In the original novel, the Yu Qingzhou siblings died a pity. In fact, it was this pair of siblings that started him changing the plot of the original novel.

As long as they are alive and well, it proves that the plot of the original novel can be changed. What's more, Fushenglou is his own restaurant, and Yu Qingmei was also implicated by him, so she can't just stand by and watch.

People must have a clear conscience to feel at ease.

Yun Chu quickly prepared the carriage, and Liang Shenyu took the opportunity to say goodbye. Rong Se got on the carriage and headed straight for the Dali Temple.

In the court, the four hooligans didn't seem to have suffered any crime. Two temple officials were sitting in the jury seats. The young official who looked serious was Yu Qingzhou, a scholar. You Changjin, who was sitting next to him, was in his forties. He stroked his bulging belly with his broad palm and snorted, "This official thinks the case is clear. The rape of a woman in the street was nothing more than a misunderstanding. Lord Yu, why did you have to go to the wire?"

Yu Qingzhou looked unhappy. Just as he was about to retort, a report came from outside: "The Regent has arrived——"

Everyone present was stunned and stood up to greet him.

Rong Se came in, dressed in gorgeous clothes, he put his hands in his sleeves and said coldly: "Okay, everyone get up."

The judge immediately ordered: "Quick, let the prince sit down!"

Immediately, a clerk brought a chair and Rong Se sat on the high seat, holding his posture very steadily. He looked at You Changjin who was sitting with Yu Qingzhou with an expression that was difficult to tell whether he was happy or angry.

He heard the man's words while still outside, and sneered, "Lord You, I heard that you feel this case is unjust. Tell me in front of me where the injustice is."

How could You Changjin not hear the tone of Rong Se's accusatory tone? He broke out in a cold sweat. He did not expect such a case to alarm the Regent. He smiled apologetically and said, "These four people just smashed a restaurant to seek trouble. They just disturbed Lord Yu's sister. How can they be charged with rape?"

The four people were also fearless at this moment and echoed one after another.

"That's right, sir. I am innocent. I just got drunk and smashed a few tables and chairs in the store. I didn't mean to do anything else."

"Yes, yes. Besides, she was dressed like a scholar, and the brothers thought she looked friendly, so they invited her to have a couple of drinks. Who knew she was actually a woman?"

"That's right. A woman doesn't stay at home to learn housework, but runs away on her own. Who can you blame?"

"Maybe she is not careful enough and is out here to meet her lover!"

"I am innocent, sir!"

"Bang--"

The loud noise suddenly interrupted their chattering and the courtroom was suddenly so quiet that only the sound of breathing could be heard.

Rong Se threw the tea and the teapot together to the ground. Looking at the broken porcelain pieces all over the floor, You Changjin's heart trembled.

"Well said."

Rong Se gritted his teeth in anger and sneered, "They seem to be quite reasonable, Lord You, you haven't investigated the case, how can you conclude that they are wronged?"

You Changjin wiped the sweat from his forehead and stuttered: "This... this, your servant, your servant saw that there is no victim in the file..."

"No victims?" Rong Se slammed the table. "Doesn't the smashed restaurant count? Or does the woman they flirted with and raped in the street not count? What, they are innocent just because they didn't succeed? If someone hadn't stopped them that day, would you, You Changjin, still say today that she, a girl from a good family, took the initiative to seduce these rogues?"

You Changjin was so angry that he dared not utter a word.

Rong Se turned around and looked at the group of rogues who didn't understand the situation. "Why don't you look at your own faces in the mirror? You are good at spreading rumors, but you dare not take responsibility. What does it have to do with you that she disguised herself as a man to go out for dinner? She went to dinner in a dignified manner, but you dogs tarnished her reputation? Forget it. I think there is no need to try this case any further. Just execute her with a cane."

Rong Se's scolding was not very aggressive, but given his status, he was obviously angry. You Changjin said nothing, and the judge did not dare to disobey him. He kept saying, "Yes, yes, yes, your Highness is right, but is this... against the rules?"

"Rules?" Rong Se felt relieved when he saw them all acting like quails. He said slowly, "Am I not following the rules?"

The four of them then realized that Rong Se had the final say. They lost their previous arrogance and kowtowed to beg for mercy.

Rong Se looked at them coldly and sneered: "Now you know how to beg for mercy? Aren't you quite righteous and confident?"

One person said timidly: "We didn't do anything to that woman...it's not a crime punishable by death!"

"Your crime is not punishable by death?" Rong Se said with a fake smile, "You bullied women, smashed up wine shops, and used all your strength to bully the weak. You keep making excuses for yourselves, but it's clear that you still think you are innocent. You changed your confession in court, and I think someone gave you the confidence. But I tell you, today I am here, even if the emperor himself comes, no one can save you."

Rong Se spoke arrogantly, and the more he spoke, the more timid You Changjin became, not to mention the four hooligans who thought they had a way out. They all stood there dumbfounded, and then kowtowed and admitted their mistakes.

Rong Se was unmoved and looked at them coldly, "Don't feel wronged. What I am doing now is what you did. What you can do, I can't do."

It's just a matter of who has the bigger fist and who has more power. They act recklessly relying on their greater strength than women. So why can't he use the power in his hands to make them suffer?

There is no point in reasoning with a shameless person.

Rong Se clenched his hands lightly.

He holds the power.