The cruel little princess

Wu Siqi was deliberately delaying Prince Rui to prevent him from following the girl. He might have been cleared of his wrongdoing, but he'd turned against her. If he were to then forcefully take her, he'd be throwing her into a fire pit! So, Wu Siqi feigned ignorance and kept Prince Rui. His eyes shone with cunning, as if he'd already seen through Prince Rui's inner thoughts.

"Your Highness Prince Rui, I wonder when you came to Chunmanlou?" Wu Siqi gestured to the clerk beside him, asking him to come over and record it so that it could be used as evidence in court later.

His Royal Highness Prince Rui's voice was very righteous at first: "Didn't I tell you already?!" But when he saw Wu Siqi seriously gesturing to the clerk to prepare to record, his tone softened unconsciously, "I... came here after the morning court."

Wu Siqi continued to ask: "Then, what exactly is the purpose of His Royal Highness Prince Rui coming here?"

"Oh, Mr. Wu, it seems to me that you did this on purpose!" His Royal Highness Prince Rui was a little annoyed, but he didn't dare to get angry. He could only lower his voice and say, "What do you think a man can do in Chun Man Lou? Am I here to work? Which man doesn't come here to find a girl to talk to, drink, chat, and sleep with?!" At the end of his words, His Royal Highness Prince Rui's voice became lower and lower, almost becoming a whisper, "Mr. Wu, don't play dumb with me! Don't tell me you have never been to Chun Man Lou!"

"Your Highness, I have indeed been to Chunmanlou, more than once." Wu Siqi answered righteously.

"I've always said it, no man can resist the temptation and not cheat. Since you've been here, why are you asking me?" His Royal Highness Prince Rui thought secretly in his heart, and added: Of course, except for fools like Lao Jiu who don't understand romance and are not interested in women.

"Your Highness, I have indeed been here, but not for drinking and having fun or spending the night with women. I came here to investigate a case," Wu Siqi explained seriously.

After hearing this, His Royal Highness Prince Rui was speechless for a moment:... Very good, no need to say more.

"Is it over yet? I feel the need to invite the imperial physician to my house to check my pulse again! If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave!" His Royal Highness Prince Rui said angrily. He was secretly furious, feeling like a dragon trapped in shallow waters, a tiger in plain sight, being teased like this. I've only become his lackey, relying on his father's slight affection for Concubine De. What's so arrogant about this? Humph! When he... achieves his great goal, it will be time for revenge! He'll be in big trouble then! Just wait and see!

"Since His Royal Highness Prince Rui is not feeling well, please go back home first! If you still have any questions in the future, I will definitely visit you!" Wu Siqi said seriously.

"No need for that. If there's anything else, I'll send someone to pass on the message! Don't be so arrogant, Wu!" His Royal Highness Prince Rui said, flicking his sleeves and walking away without a glance back. Humph! Everyone knows you're the Minister of Justice. Normally, we're not related at all, and even sworn enemies because of Old Nine. Your sudden visit would surely lead everyone to suspect something the prince has done!

Over there, Wu Siqi sent yamen runners to escort Shen Youyou back to the mansion, but how could Shen Youyou let them have their way? If they really followed her back to the Shen mansion, everyone would know tomorrow that the young lady of the Shen family had been dressing up as a man to visit a brothel. This would not only damage her own reputation, but also her father's reputation. So, when Shen Youyou and Chuntao passed by a clothing store, they looked at each other. Chuntao immediately understood what she meant and said embarrassedly: "Sir, do you remember that the lady asked you to buy a handkerchief to take back with you before you left? If you don't buy it, I'm afraid I won't be able to explain to the lady when I go back..."

Shen Youyou immediately agreed, "Yes, yes, Xiaochun, it's a good thing you reminded me. If I had returned empty-handed, Mother would have definitely blamed me! Let's go, let's go pick out a handkerchief for Mother!" After saying that, Shen Youyou turned to look at the two yamen runners and said politely, "Could you please wait here for a moment, Master and I will be back soon."

When the two yamen runners heard that he was going to buy a private item like a handkerchief, they naturally understood that it was inconvenient to follow him, so they nodded in agreement and stood at the door waiting patiently.

Shen Youyou and Chuntao walked into the shop and headed straight for the ready-to-wear section, picking out two simple outfits in elegant colors. After paying, they immediately changed into their new clothes, discarding their old ones. Shen Youyou then took out some more silver and handed it to the shopkeeper, solemnly instructing her, "Don't tell anyone about our purchases here!"

The female shopkeeper nodded repeatedly, indicating that she understood. Shen Youyou then walked out of the shop with peace of mind. Chuntao followed closely behind her, and once they were out of the shop, they quickly left in their separate ways.

Meanwhile, the two yamen runners who were tracking them had been waiting outside for a long time, but they still hadn't seen Shen Youyou and Chuntao emerge. Anxious, they didn't care about anything else and hurried into the clothing store to ask the female shopkeeper if she had seen the two young men come in to buy handkerchiefs. The female shopkeeper, having received the money, naturally wanted to keep their secret, so she flatly denied it, repeatedly claiming she hadn't seen them.

The two yamen runners still refused to give up and searched the shop again under the pretext of investigating a case. However, they found nothing and could only return to the yamen to report unwillingly.

Meanwhile, His Royal Highness Prince Rui went home in a huff, thinking that he would be out of trouble. After all, he had made everything clear in Chun Man Lou, and he had suffered such humiliation! However, His Royal Highness Prince Rui underestimated the speed of gossip. During the morning court the next day, the Imperial Censor made a remonstration: "After the court was dismissed yesterday, His Royal Highness Prince Rui went to Chun Man Lou to indulge in debauchery in broad daylight and was involved in a murder case. It is said that the deceased was a prostitute who was disemboweled and died on the bed. The fetus that was already formed in her belly was pulled out. His Royal Highness Prince Rui was also drugged and thrown on the bed! The murderer was extremely cruel. This matter has spread widely and caused panic among the people. Please understand, Your Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, Prince Rui's eyes widened, wondering how this could be possible? He was clearly the victim! But he couldn't refute it, because the story had already spread throughout the capital, and he had no way to defend himself.

Upon hearing this, the emperor's face turned pale with rage. He slammed the throne and roared, "Rebellious son! Rebellious son!" He pointed angrily at His Royal Highness Prince Rui, his eyes filled with disappointment and anger. His Royal Highness Prince Rui lowered his head, not daring to look at the emperor.

The emperor said angrily: "I have been too indulgent to you in the past. I didn't expect you to do such a shameful thing! Now there is even a murder case. It really brings shame to the royal family!" His Royal Highness Prince Rui was trembling with fear and knelt down to beg for mercy, but the emperor did not buy it.

Afterwards, the emperor turned to the other ministers and sternly ordered them: "I give you five days to arrest the real murderer and bring him to justice! If you fail to complete the task, bring his head to me!" The Minister of Justice and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court knelt down to accept the order, saying that they would solve the case as soon as possible.

Finally, the Emperor glared at His Royal Highness Prince Rui once more, then stormed off. He was left kneeling on the ground, bewildered. He didn't know how to face the situation, and could only silently pray that the real culprit would be apprehended soon to prove his innocence.