A crown princess who doesn't do infrastructure construction isn't a good doctor.

In the afternoon, as everyone was wondering whether the literary gathering would continue, Kong Wen and his group sent someone to deliver a message, summoning several academy administrators and people from Zhiyuan to the council hall.

"Ladies and gentlemen, after investigation, we have learned the reason why our friend Song Jun was injured."

"really?"

Upon hearing this, several people turned their gaze to Duan Shunjia, who had been identified by Song Jun earlier.

Seeing this, Duan Shunjia realized that no one had come to find him earlier, and he felt that he had found a scapegoat, so he glared back at them one by one.

Seeing Duan Shunjia's self-righteousness, the others looked away, though their faces showed some disdain.

"Your Excellency, please tell us the result quickly to avoid further panic."

Those who knew it was none of their business urged Kong Wen to speak quickly.

Kong Wen did not speak afterward, but Kong An did stand up.

"Actually, the investigation process was not that complicated, and we did not have to put in much effort, because one of our horse breeders from Hongde witnessed the whole incident from the side of the scene."

As soon as Kong An finished speaking, a middle-aged man walked out from the side. He was the horse breeder Kong An had mentioned. Xia Yuanzhou glanced at him and realized that this was the same horse breeder who had spoken to him that morning.

Thinking about it, Xia Yuanzhou felt a little uneasy, surprised and happy. After a brief conversation, he felt that the horse breeder should be a very nice person, but after all, he had only known him for a short time, so he was not 100% sure.

Fortunately, the horse breeder did not disappoint him. After the proper greeting, the horse breeder said, "During each race, to ensure safety, we will observe the surroundings without affecting the race, in order to prevent the horses from being startled and causing injury to people due to unexpected reasons."

Hearing this, Duan Shunjia, who assumed there was no one else around and that Kong An was just trying to scare him, was extremely panicked. The middle-aged man beside him also turned slightly, frowning and asking, "Didn't you say there was no one else around?"

Duan Shunjia shook his head slightly, on the verge of tears. Was he supposed to say that he hadn't checked carefully at the time because he was a little flustered?

Then, Duan Shunjia's eyes couldn't help but show a hint of panic and a threatening look as he tried to stop the horse breeder from saying anything more.

However, the horse breeder seemed not to notice Duan Shunjia's threat and continued, "This morning I clearly saw Young Master Song drive his horse at an extremely fast speed towards a densely wooded area. When I was about to warn him, I saw that he was followed by that person."

As he spoke, the horse breeder pointed at Duan Shunjia.

"The young master drew his bow and aimed at Young Master Song. As soon as the arrow was released, Young Master Song fell off his horse and was injured."

Upon hearing that someone had testified, the men from Zhiyuan began to look at Duan Shunjia with hostility.

Xia Yuanzhou said in a deep voice, "This can be considered murder. We won't settle this privately. We'll go to the government today. We would appreciate it if you could do us the trouble of being a witness for us."

As the horse breeder nodded, Duan Shunjia tightly gripped the arm of the middle-aged man beside him, shaking his head and begging him to help him quickly.

The middle-aged man was also surnamed Duan and named Duan Hong. He was one of the four heads of Shenglin Academy besides the headmaster, and also Duan Shunjia's uncle.

Duan Hong's mind raced, and he said, "Wait a minute, Master. Just now, I overheard you mentioning that you seemed to know the injured people from Zhiyuan Academy. Is that true?"

The horse breeder, though puzzled, answered truthfully, not knowing why Duan Hong asked such a question.

“I chatted with Mr. Song a few words during their pre-match preparations, but we only met today.”

"That's where the problem lies."

After listening to the horse breeder's explanation, Duan Hong felt more confident.

“If you say you know him, then there is a suspicion of bias. If you are trying to find someone to take responsibility for Song Jun’s injuries, then there is a possibility of perjury. Therefore, your testimony cannot be considered valid.”

Upon hearing this, the Kong family members, including those from Zhiyuan, all frowned.

“My master said that he and Song Jun only met today and had no prior interaction. If it weren’t true, why would he come here to say this?”

Hearing Xia Yuanzhou say this, Duan Hong smiled calmly.

"That's hard to say. We don't know if you two just met today. And even if you go to the Dali Temple, you still won't be able to settle anything based on just his words."

As he spoke, Duan Hong looked around at the people and said, "Besides, young friend Song is now on the verge of recovery. If all else fails, our Shenglin will provide him with the medical expenses. In any case, it will be a good deed for our Shenglin. Everyone here should have achieved some success in their careers. There's no need to dwell on this matter. Otherwise, if we continue to entangle ourselves, it won't be good for either of us."

Leaving aside Zhiyuan and his group, Kong An was also furious.

"Hey Duan, are you trying to threaten people at Hongde today?"

Duan Hong bowed slightly and said, "I wouldn't dare. Hongde is a place that students from all over the world want to come and study. We in Shenglin also treat Hongde with the utmost respect. We are eager to learn from them, so how could we do anything rude here? I just wanted to remind a few young and impetuous friends. After all, we have been through it all, and we have to remind them how to conduct themselves. This is also our responsibility as teachers."

"We don't need it yet..."

Xia Yuanzhou was about to retort when Gu Huaiyuan stopped him.

"We understand. Today, we do not have enough evidence. Thank you for your hard work, Grand Master, Headmaster Kong, and Supervisor. We also apologize for the trouble you all went to in our case."

Gu Huaiyuan greeted everyone present with great courtesy. Then Kong Wen announced that the afternoon would be a break and the literary gathering would continue tomorrow. Everyone was free to take a stroll around the neighborhood today, and then they dispersed.

"Are we just going to let this go?"

Back in his room, Xia Yuanzhou angrily slammed his fist on the table, nearly knocking over the teacups.

Gu Huaiyuan steadied the teacup with quick reflexes and gave Xia Yuanzhou a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder.

“Sheng Lin has the Duan family behind him. If we continue to entangle ourselves, it will not be good for Zhiyuan. Without concrete evidence to bring him down, we cannot act rashly.”

Xia Yuanzhou pursed his lips.

"It's all about power. Power overshadows everything. If this continues, how will we ordinary people survive?"

Seeing that Xia Yuanzhou was about to cry from grievance, Gu Huaiyuan sighed and gently hugged Xia Yuanzhou in his arms.

"We will definitely find a way."

Xia Yuanzhou was somewhat comforted, but after his emotions calmed down, he belatedly felt a little embarrassed. Seeing the other people who shared a room with them watching the two embrace as if it were nothing unusual, he gently pushed Gu Huaiyuan away a little.