Chapter 209 Scapegoat
The third young master of the Sun family?
Lu Zhiran was not very familiar with the Sun family and was unable to identify this person for a moment.
"I originally wanted to walk around the hunting grounds to trace the origin of these two tigers, but the Sun family stopped me. As a result, I didn't find any other useful clues."
Lu Zhiran had no intention of blaming him.
"You've done very well."
If the Sun family had something to hide, they would naturally not let her investigate.
However, the Sun family could stop Shuanghua, but they could not stop the emperor's people.
Even if nothing is found, the Sun family was negligent and cannot escape responsibility.
But Lu Zhiran still underestimated the viciousness of human nature.
The next day, the king's uncle Sun Chenghai brought Sun Jingxuan to the palace to apologize. Not only that, they also brought the culprit of the case.
Sun Chenghai knelt and pleaded guilty, "Your Majesty, this hunting trip was due to my son's negligence. He failed to take adequate precautions, causing the princess to be attacked by a tiger. He is to blame and deserves death! I have thoroughly investigated this matter and discovered that it was man-made, and the true culprit is none other than Sun Muzhi, the son of the third branch of the Sun family."
"This boy was born with extraordinary strength. He has been violent, brutal, and aggressive since childhood. In the past, relying on his innate strength, he has repeatedly ventured into the mountains to shoot and kill wild beasts. This time, the princess was attacked because he acted recklessly and provoked the tiger. Now that he has been seriously injured by the tiger, he has reaped the consequences. I have brought him here to the emperor's disposal!"
Emperor Defeng's gaze fell on the man lying on the stretcher, his face pale and his life or death unknown, his expression gloomy.
Seeing that Emperor Defeng did not speak for a long time, Sun Chenghai felt a little uneasy.
He scolded Sun Jingxuan, "You rebellious son, what are you still standing there for? Hurry up and apologize to the emperor!"
Sun Jingxuan kowtowed heavily, his voice trembling.
"It was my negligence that led to this catastrophe. I failed to take good care of the princess and restrain my cousin. I deserve death!"
When Emperor Defeng thought of what he heard in Xiyan Palace, a chilling feeling lingered around him.
Was this really done by Sun Mu?
Or is it Sun Jingxuan who is crying wolf?
Even though he had not yet verified the matter, a seed of doubt had already been planted in his heart, and the more he looked at Sun Jingxuan, the more he disliked him.
"You are indeed to blame. Baozhu is still unconscious, so you should kneel here and pray for her. If anything happens to Baozhu, I will not forgive her!"
After saying this, Emperor Defeng turned around and left.
Sun Chenghai and his son Sun Jingxuan knelt in the hall, while Sun Muzhi was still lying on the stretcher, with no one paying any attention to him.
The father and son looked at each other, and both felt a strong sense of unease in their hearts.
Sun Jingxuan's palms were covered in cold sweat. He didn't expect that Xiao Baozhu would be injured so seriously.
If she really had an accident, I'm afraid that Sun Muzhi, the scapegoat, would not be enough to calm the emperor's anger, and even the queen would become alienated from them.
I don't know how long I knelt before someone finally came to deliver a message.
"Lord Sun, Young Master Sun, the Emperor invites you both to the Imperial Study for an audience."
Their legs had become numb from kneeling for a long time, and they forced themselves to stand up and head towards the imperial study.
When they arrived at the imperial study, the father and son knelt down again, and Emperor Defeng had no intention of calling them up.
Emperor Defeng sat on the dragon throne, and his tone of voice showed no emotion.
"You said that the tiger's attack this time was caused by Sun Muzhi, the son of the third branch of the Sun family?"
Sun Chenghai nodded repeatedly, "Your Majesty, you may not know that although this child is nominally the son of the third wife, he is not actually of the Sun family bloodline. Instead, he was picked up by my third brother's wife. It was only because my third brother died young and there was no one to carry on his family that this child was registered under the name of the third wife."
"This child has had bad behavior since childhood and is difficult to educate. This is why he has caused such a terrible disaster. As the head of the Sun family, I have failed to fulfill my responsibility to educate him. I cannot escape the blame. Today, I am willing to take the blame on his behalf. Please punish me, Your Majesty!"
Sun Chenghai spoke sincerely and looked extremely remorseful.
Emperor Defeng looked at Sun Jingxuan and said, "You were at the hunting ground when the incident happened. Tell me, is this true?"
Sun Jingxuan lowered his head and replied respectfully, "Your Majesty, it was indeed he who acted so violently and bravely that he attracted the tiger. The guards can also testify that he was present when the princess was attacked."
Emperor Defeng's eyes grew even colder. "I heard that this incident was caused by that kid from the Jiang family shooting the young tiger."
Sun Jingxuan's expression froze, and cold sweat broke out on his palms unconsciously.
"He was trying to protect the princess, so he had no choice but to shoot the tiger cub. He was attacked by the tiger and lost an arm."
Sun Chenghai also quickly said: "The bottom line is that Sun Muzhi brought the tiger into the hunting grounds. He is the real culprit."
Emperor Defeng clapped his hands and shouted angrily, "This is absolute nonsense!"
Sun Chenghai and Sun Jingxuan were shocked and their faces turned pale.
"Jiang Zelin caused trouble, but you've made him a hero. Sun Muzhi single-handedly saved Baozhu and Hanyi, but you've made him a scapegoat. Do you really think I'm old and blind enough to let you deceive me?"
Just now, Emperor Defeng's confidant brought back the latest news, and the truth was exactly the same as what Ye Hanyi had said before!
These daring creatures actually dared to plot against Baozhu, and afterward pushed a member of the Sun family who was not considered a member of the Sun family to take the blame in order to escape the blame.
They are so bold as to dare to bully the emperor like this!
Feeling the wrath of Emperor Defeng, the father and son of the Sun family could not help but start shaking.
Of course they knew that this was risky, but the emperor had always been lenient towards the Sun family in the past, so they couldn't help but feel lucky and thought they could get away with it this time.
Moreover, Sun Muzhi did have a bad reputation before, so it was only right to pin this crime on him.
He is not the true blood of the Sun family, so the Sun family will not suffer any loss if he is sacrificed.
The only thing they miscalculated was that the emperor would find out the truth so quickly.
The crime of deceiving the emperor is not something they can afford.
They kowtowed hurriedly, "Your Majesty, we are wise. We would never dare to deceive you... I think there is some misunderstanding. Jingxuan didn't see this with his own eyes. Everything was told by the guards. I think they were deliberately misleading..."
Since the emperor has already found out about this matter, if they still want Sun Muzhi to take the blame, they will be blatantly fooling the emperor, and their end will only be more miserable.
Sun Jingxuan was so frightened that he completely forgot how to react.
Sun Chenghai poked him secretly, and he woke up as if from a dream and spoke haltingly.
"Yes, yes, it must be those guards who are talking nonsense. I have misunderstood you. I did not intend to deceive Your Majesty. Please forgive me."
Emperor Defeng looked at the father and son with coldness in his eyes.
"So, you just believed the guards' one-sided story, didn't verify it, and then reported it to me? Is this your attitude towards apologizing?"
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