Yi Yuan cast a nonchalant glance at the people beside him. His jet - black eyes slid past Shen Zhou, who stood silently beside Yan Zhongyi without saying a word. Suddenly, a murderous intent welled up in him.
"Minister Wu," Yi Yuan said, but his eyes were fixed intently on Shen Zhou. "Their lives aren't worth my personal effort."
"You..."
Yan Zhongyi was so angry that he was nearly foaming at the mouth. But given Yi Yuan's noble and arrogant demeanor, he couldn't refute him. Just as he was holding back his anger, Lin An said:
"My lord, since they claim that the mansion was built for the refugees, then why did they forcibly seize civilian farmlands and buy civilian girls by force? Why was it so elaborately decorated and magnificently built? My lord, since you've sent people to investigate in Tanzhou, you must have seen that imposing mansion stretching for miles. Its scale definitely doesn't match that of a place built for refugees."
"Even if we were to give them the benefit of the doubt,"
Mian Xiao glanced at the people kneeling on the ground. A flash of mockery crossed her face as she continued:
"Even if the mansion was built for the refugees, why were there no refugees living in it? We still have witnesses in prison. My lords surely can't just listen to one side of the story. If Shen Bianhuai was not corrupt, where did the money for building the mansion come from? Can we be sure that the Yan family's ledger is genuine?"
"What do you mean?!"
Yan Zhongyi got even angrier. If he dared not speak against Yi Yuan, he dared to retort Mian Xiao! He stood up indignantly and shouted:
"Whose ledger could be more genuine than mine? Who do you think you are?! How dare you..."
"Minister Yan,"
Seeing that an argument was about to break out, Wu Xianrui was about to maintain order when suddenly a sweet female voice came from outside:
"I have new evidence to present."
Everyone was stunned. Yi Yuan suddenly turned around and locked eyes with Ye Xi's autumn - water - like eyes from afar.
Looking at each other from afar, it truly felt as if they had been separated for three long autumns.
Shen Zhou seemed to be nailed to the spot. He wanted to see how Ye Xi was doing, but he didn't dare to turn his head. He could only stiffen his neck and try his best to suppress the surging remorse and longing in his heart.
Wu Xianrui also knew Ye Xi. He had a deep impression of this outstandingly beautiful woman from the Qingyun Competition. Glancing at Yi Yuan, whose eyes seemed glued to Ye Xi in the front, Wu Xianrui waved his hand, signaling the official guards at the door to let her in.
"What new evidence do you have?" Wu Xianrui asked.
Walking into the middle of the hall, Ye Xi gave Yi Yuan a smile, signaling him to be at ease. Then she curtsied gracefully and said:
"My lord, I heard that you've obtained two ledgers and can't tell which one is genuine.
As she said this, she took the booklet from Ling Yan's hand and handed it to the waiting official guard. Then she continued:
"What a coincidence. I also have an account book here. It records the truth about Yan Yifan's bribes and embezzlement. Every entry can be verified. Please take a look, my lord."
"What?!"
Yan Zhongyi was shocked. His suspicious and shocked eyes stared straight at the booklet.
No wonder his dear younger brother claimed to be ill and didn't come, leaving such a good opportunity for him. It turned out that he had lost this real ledger and was sent here as a scapegoat!
He really regretted it now, but since things had come to this, Yan Zhongyi was in a hurry to rack his brains for a way to defend himself.
Above, Wu Xianrui, Su Zhongjie, and Xie Huaiyue were already passing the ledger around and looking at it. Comparing the two, the truth was immediately revealed. But it was also necessary to send people to verify. Wu Xianrui slapped the gavel heavily and shouted:
"Someone, go and verify according to this account book!"
"My lord,"
Unable to stop them, Yan Zhongyi could only nervously bring up something else:
"No matter what the account book says, Prince Yu'an committed murder and killed a court official. This is a fact. An eye for an eye is only natural. Can Prince Yu'an be exempt from punishment just because of his high status? My lords can't openly show partiality to the royal family!"
As he said this, he even pulled at Shen Zhou:
"Mr. Shen, say something. Lord Shen died in prison without a clear explanation. As his second elder brother, are you also afraid of Prince Yu'an and dare not seek justice for him?"
After Yan Zhongyi's words, he had offended everyone present. Wu Xianrui was about to speak with a dark face when Shen Zhou calmly pulled open his corner of the clothes, bowed, and said:
"My lords haven't reached a conclusion yet. Mr. Yan is being a bit too hasty. Moreover, all of you my lords were personally appointed by His Majesty to jointly try this case. I believe that you will be fair and just."
"You..."
Yan Zhongyi was left speechless, his face flushing red.
Above, Wu Xianrui slapped the gavel with a "crack" and said in a deep voice:
"The autopsy results of Yan Yifan and Shen Bianhuai have already come out. Both of them had their necks wrung. But last night, the coroner found fragments of human flesh and blood under their fingernails. I and the other two lords have carefully examined Prince Yu'an and his two bodyguards, and there isn't a single wound on them. It's obvious that the murderer is someone else."
"Yan Zhongyi,"
Wu Xianrui's sharp eyes shot directly at Yan Zhongyi, whose face had turned pale:
"If you still have doubts, I can examine you on the spot. How about that?"
"No, no need."
Yan Zhongyi waved his hands repeatedly, sweating profusely. He didn't dare to be examined again.
"Since the murderer is someone else,"
Ye Xi leaned closer to Yi Yuan and said calmly:
"And the characteristics are so clear. The person who could enter and leave the Supreme Court of Justice without being noticed must be one of their own people."
"You're right,"
Xie Huaiyue adjusted his sitting posture. His voice was so solemn that it seemed to drip water:
"Last night, I received the news and immediately ordered a thorough investigation. It was indeed a prison guard who was on duty in the prison. But after the murder, the prison guard made an excuse to go back and visit his mother and fled. Now we're still searching for him."
"Damn it! How dare he cause trouble under my nose... Ouch!"
Xie Huaiyue angrily slapped the wooden chair, which pulled at his wound and made him suck in a breath of cold air. He then gritted his teeth and said:
"Causing trouble under my nose! When I catch him, I'll surely tear him to pieces!"
Just as he finished speaking, an official guard rushed in with a happy look on his face, shouting:
"My lord, we've caught Huang Liu!"
Then, several other official guards in the same uniform came in, dragging in a rough - looking man who was tightly bound and in a sorry state.
This was really just what they needed!
Xie Huaiyue immediately stood up. Sucking in cold air and cursing, he endured the pain and walked down from his seat.
"Good boy,"
Xie Huaiyue slapped Huang Liu with a "crack", knocking him to the ground with a "thud":
"What did I ever do to you? Why did you do such a thing!"
"Look at what you've done to me! Tell me, why did you do this? Who was your mastermind?"
It was the first time Ye Xi had seen Xie Huaiyue so angry. She quickly stepped forward and pretended to support him while quietly trying to get closer to Huang Liu to read his mind.
But she still had an injury on her hand. It was inconvenient for her to support Xie Huaiyue, let alone get close to Huang Liu. Before she could even touch him, Huang Liu wriggled on the ground and knelt a few feet away from her and Xie Huaiyue. He kowtowed and cried:
"My lord, spare my life! Spare my life! I was just temporarily blinded by greed. I took the silver from the subordinates of Prefect Pan. It was all Prefect Pan who told me to do this. My lord, spare my life, spare my life!"
"Prefect Pan?"
Ye Xi frowned:
"Who is this Prefect Pan?"