Drunk Bamboo

In the jail cell of Jiangbei County Yamen, Hua Qinfeng and Zhang Xinghe were interrogating a black-clad assassin who was captured last night.

Of the twenty or so assassins, only three were left alive. They either committed suicide like Wang Qingming, or died from severe injuries.

Chaoyang interrogated them overnight, detained them separately, and kept a close eye on them at all times, trying to keep them alive and pry open their mouths.

Wang Qingming had no idea what kind of magic potion he had given them, but they didn't utter a single word throughout the entire night.

Wang Qingming's residence was searched, but no evidence was found, and the letter that Xie Yuzhu mentioned was not found either.

This person is really cautious.

Hua Qinfeng lost his patience and roared, "I'll give you a chance to tell the truth. Wang Qingming has committed suicide out of fear of crime. Do you still want to go with him?"

The man spat out a mouthful of blood and said nothing.

Hua Qinfeng really wanted to slap him.

Zhang Xinghe held Hua Qinfeng and looked at him sharply: "It's a hard bone."

Hua Qinfeng sat down angrily and turned his head away, thinking out of sight, out of mind.

How can you be so confident when you have done something wrong?!

That Wang Qingming was still grinning even when he died. How could that noble man in Zhongdu have the ability to make them so loyal? !

Zhang Xinghe looked at Captain Sun and said, "Captain Sun, torture me."

When County Magistrate Hu learned about this, he fainted on the spot and has not woken up since.

The only one who can take responsibility is the captain of the police, Sun Yong.

Wang Qingming arranged almost all his confidants around him, including servants in the county government, detectives who investigated cases, and jailers. Wang Qingming almost turned the entire county government into a private villa. The prisoners in the jail were "bandits" and the people in the county government were "assassins." This elaborate design took a lot of time to achieve.

Almost indistinguishable from the real thing.

Sun Yong looked at his former good brother Zhang Tian kneeling in front of him, covered with scars. He went from being a county constable to the murderer who assassinated the crown prince overnight.

Unbelievable and full of anger.

Sun Yong's eyes were bloodshot. Until now he could not accept that the person he trusted the most, Wang Qingming, was the mastermind behind the hijacking of the silver.

"Was it really done by Wang, Wang Qingming? Hijacking government silver, setting up an ambush, and assassinating the prince! Did you do all these?!" He grabbed Zhang Tian by the collar, roaring and shouting.

"How can a fool like Hu Guo be the magistrate of a county! If there was no County Magistrate Wang, what would Jiangbei County be like now?" Zhang Tian gritted his teeth and said fiercely.

"But the government silver you hijacked was used to build dams! You should know how important dams are to the people on both sides of the river! You have been to my hometown, Yuzhen, and you have seen what a village submerged by floods looks like!"

"County Magistrate Hu has done something wrong, and he should be punished. You hijacked the government silver and harmed the prince and the crown prince. Where did you put the people who were affected by the disaster? Why did you do this?"

A trace of guilt flashed across Zhang Tian's eyes: "I, we are sorry for those people."

Soon, without even a trace of guilt, he said with a grim face, "Lord Wang said that when you do great things, there will be sacrifices. As long as the prince loses the emperor's favor, the position of crown prince will belong to the nobleman in Zhongdu. That incompetent emperor is almost dead. Only if the nobleman succeeds to the throne will there be hope for the country and the people! Only then will there be true peace and prosperity for the country and the people in the future!"

"Crazy, Zhang Tian, ​​you are crazy..." Sun Yong stepped back repeatedly, unwilling to accept this cruel reality.

Zhang Xinghe took the opportunity to ask: "Who is that noble person?"

Zhang Tian raised his head: "I won't say anything."

Hua Qinfeng suddenly stood up, his eyes were cold and his tone was heavy:

"They robbed the government silver, killed the prince, and even wanted my life. If the prince and I both died in Loushan, there would only be one prince left in Zhongdu City who could inherit the throne. If you don't tell me, won't anyone know?"

Zhang Tian stared in silence.

"Imprison him, never let him see the sun, live in darkness forever, and die of old age."

Leaving these words behind, Hua Qinfeng's slender figure walked out.

Chaoyang followed orders.

Zhang Xinghe followed closely behind.

After Hua Qinfeng walked out of the cramped cell, he looked up at the vast blue sky.

The sun was dazzling, the white clouds were floating, there was a gentle breeze, and the birds were singing. He squinted his eyes and watched for a while, until his chest felt open and comfortable, then he withdrew his gaze.

Zhang Xinghe stood in front of him, staring at him for an unknown amount of time.

Hua Qinfeng had a cold face. Apart from official business, they were outsiders. He never had a good face towards outsiders.

That's why people who are not familiar with him are afraid of him when they see him, so he is called the living devil.

"Your Highness, did you mean King Wen? How should Huizhongdu explain this to His Majesty?"

"We can't get a confession out of him. The original letter Yuzhu mentioned has not been found. The bandits are all sentenced to death. The killer is dead but his identity is unknown. The only female killer who might be alive is missing. The assassins are all from the county government. All of this can be said to be the work of Wang Qingming's madness. Where is the evidence pointing to Zhongdu? Even Han Jian didn't get even a single piece of his sleeve stained. How can we expose the person behind him?"

Hua Qinfeng looked at Zhang Xinghe, his eyes asking knowingly, "Who doesn't know that my father favors me? Without solid evidence, he won't believe it."

Zhang Xinghe looked slightly stunned: "Since Your Majesty can see everything clearly, why didn't he do anything before? And now he is willing to tell everything?"

"If I had heard what Zhang Tian said in the past, I would have beaten him up and would not have thought of King Wen at all, or would not have dared to think of him. But just now, although I was angry, I kept thinking about what Zhang Tian said in my mind, and suddenly the shadow of King Wen appeared."

Hua Qinfeng paused and said, "I can't escape anymore. I should accept the reality."

Because he didn't want to get hurt, nor did he want Xie Yuzhu to get hurt.

Zhang Xinghe's sharp eyes suddenly flashed, and he pulled out a piece of paper from his arms.

"This is the tattoo on Wang Qingming's left arm. It was usually covered with fake skin to avoid being discovered. The coroner discovered it during the second examination of the body."

"Red flowers? Is there anything special about them?"

"This flower is called Lycoris radiata. Because of its fiery red color, it is also called the Red Lotus." Zhang Xinghe looked at Hua Qinfeng and said word by word, "The Red Lotus is the sacred flower of the Nanjiang tribe."

"Nanjiang tribe... Imperial Concubine..." Hua Qinfeng's eyes were dark.

Is even the Nanjiang tribe involved in the court disputes?

"Are you going to tell Father?"

"As the prince said, the time has not come yet." Zhang Xinghe folded the paper and put it in his arms.

Zhongdu City

King Feng fell off the cliff safely, and also found 100,000 taels of official silver, which helped him to wipe out the bandits, a great achievement.

The news had spread before Xie Yuzhu returned to Zhongdu.

As soon as Gu Suiyi entered the city gate, he was caught by the Gu family guards who had been waiting there early and was taken back to the marquis's mansion alive.

Before leaving, he looked at Xie Yuzhu with a sad face, hoping that she could do something.

Xie Yuzhu spread her hands, feeling helpless, and gave him a look that said "I wish you all the best".

Before leaving, he did not forget to remind him: "Hurry up and do your job."

"Princess! Princess..."

Gu Suiyi shouted miserably, Xie Yuzhu shook his head and sighed softly.

"If you want to do something in the future, tell the Marquis. He may not stop you."

After saying that, the two walked in opposite directions.