Chapter 89: This Humble Official Su Seconds Lord Pei’s Motion

“This is impossible!”

Xie Lanqing was the first to react, standing up hurriedly. “How could I possibly let my son become an assassin?! Your Majesty, please see clearly!”

“Oh,” Pei Wenxuan, seeing Xie Lanqing stand, chuckled. “Lord Xie seems quite spry. Standing up so quickly?”

“You jest, Consort,” Li Rong glanced at Pei Wenxuan. “Lord Xie’s injury is to his abdomen, not his legs. Why wouldn’t he be able to stand? Lord Xie, don’t be anxious. Let me explain slowly.”

With that, Li Rong used her fan to lift Lin Feibai’s face, addressing the crowd. “Take a close look. Don’t this young man’s features bear some resemblance to Lord Xie’s?”

No one dared to speak. Li Ming examined closely and noticed that Lin Feibai’s eyes were ideed strikingly similar to Xie Lanqing’s.

In his youth, Xie Lanqing had been a renowned handsome man in Huajing. Though age had dulled his looks, Li Rong’s remark prompted the crowd to recall his youthful appearance and scrutinize Lin Feibai. For a moment, no one dared to respond.

“Is this why Your Highness claims this assassin and Lord Xie are father and son?” Su Rongqing suddenly spoke up.

Li Rong was surprised. She hadn’t expected Su Rongqing to interject at such a moment. Turning to meet his gaze, she saw his eyes were cold, as if he were suppressing something. Those icy eyes, like a vortex, seemed to conceal a myriad of emotions. Li Rong paused, captivated by his gaze, until Pei Wenxuan coughed lightly. She snapped back, smiling. “Of course, it’s not just because of that. This matter began over half a month ago when the Consort was attacked.”

“When the Consort was attacked, I had a disagreement with Deputy Director Su Ronghua of my department. He questioned Deputy Director Shangguan’s use of torture on Chen Guang. That same day, under Deputy Director Su’s supervision, I personally interrogated Chen Guang. After his confession, I received a threatening kite with the word ‘Stop’ written in cinnabar. That afternoon, someone attempted to assassinate the Consort. They injured him, but the blade wasn’t poisoned, clearly meant only to intimidate me. Deeply unsettled, I ordered a thorough investigation.”

Li Rong gestured, and Shangguan Ya stepped forward, holding the kite they had received. She respectfully continued, “By Your Highness’s order, I investigated this item and found the cinnabar used on it came from Huiming Pavilion, a shop in the capital that sells to nobles. I reviewed their accounts for the past six months and found twenty households still had cinnabar in stock, including the Xie residence.”

“But Lord Xie had no apparent connection to this case,” Li Rong continued. “So I didn’t suspect him at first. Clearly, someone wanted me to stop investigating, especially regarding Chen Guang. But my sense of justice compelled me to press on, despite the risks. As days passed, my unease grew, so I decided to lure the culprits out. I deliberately spread word that I’d be traveling with the Consort, setting an ambush at Butterfly Gorge with myself as bait. We captured several assassins, including this young man, Lin Feibai.”

Li Rong paused beside Lin Feibai. All eyes turned to him as she calmly said, “Upon investigation, we learned Lin Feibai is the deputy leader of the Seven Stars Hall, the top assassin organization in the martial world. The Seven Stars Hall is known for its flawless record but avoids targeting nobles for self-preservation and longevity. The Chen family alone couldn’t afford to hire Deputy Leader Lin, so I began to suspect someone else was behind them. During Lin Feibai’s interrogation, I found something on him.”

Li Rong crouched down, using her fan to tug at Lin Feibai’s collar. He grabbed her fan, furious. “What are you doing?!”

“Don’t be hasty, Young Master Lin. Don’t you want to know the truth?”

Lin Feibai hesitated. Li Rong slid her fan inside his collar, pulling out a necklace. “Does anyone recognize this?”

As the necklace was revealed, expressions shifted. Every noble family had distinctive items to identify their kin in case of accidents—often small, portable objects like tattoos in northern families or jade pendants and necklaces in southern ones.

These items typically bore the family crest and a name. Commoners might not recognize them, but nobles studied inter-family relations and were well-versed in crests.

Now, as the intricately carved magnolia pendant of Kunshan white jade appeared, the crowd’s expressions changed.

“Where did you steal this?!” Xie Lanqing panicked. “How do you have such a thing?”

Lin Feibai remained silent, his face pale. Li Rong smiled, flipping the pendant to reveal the character “Qing.”

“Coincidentally, I’ve seen a similar necklace on a Xie family member, which caught my attention. Lin Feibai resembles Lord Xie, this jade pendant serves as evidence, and the cinnabar ties back to Lord Xie. I couldn’t help but suspect. So I investigated Lord Xie’s past and discovered that, in his youth, he had a romantic affair that caused a citywide scandal. Lord Xie loved a martial artist woman, but his family disapproved and arranged his current marriage. On his wedding day, this woman, wielding a sword, cut off his ceremonial cap and left.”

“I also checked the founding of the Seven Stars Hall, established two years after this affair, one year after Lin Feibai’s birth. So I fabricated a claim that I knew the Seven Stars Hall’s location, telling Lin Feibai it was within Xie territory. His shock confirmed my suspicions.”

Li Rong set the necklace down and stood, smiling at Xie Lanqing. “This explains why the Seven Stars Hall, which avoids noble affairs, acted. Its leader is the martial artist woman who loved Lord Xie. I speculate it went like this: In youth, Lord Xie loved this woman, but family opposition prevented their union. She left, pregnant with Lin Feibai. After his marriage, Lord Xie found her, offering protection and helping her establish the Seven Stars Hall. For reasons of her own, she refused to be his concubine or let her child return to the Xie family. She raised Lin Feibai in the Seven Stars Hall as her successor, and Lord Xie, for some reason, agreed.”

“Nonsense!” Xie Lanqing shouted, clutching his wound. Li Rong tapped her fan against her palm, smiling. “Whether it’s nonsense, a test will tell. Someone, bring clear water!”

Li Rong called out, and Xie Lanqing’s face turned grim.

Lin Feibai sat dazed. Soon, a servant brought a bowl of clear water. Li Rong turned to Xie Lanqing. “Lord Xie, as Minister of Justice, you know the blood test. Shall we try?”

Xie Lanqing stared at the water, silent. Li Rong looked at Lin Feibai. “Young Master Lin?”

Lin Feibai seemed lost. Shangguan Ya sighed beside him. “Traveling thousands of miles to Huajing, pregnant and unwed, abandoned, cutting the groom’s cap on his wedding day, then living alone for nearly twenty years—how pitiful, how tragic. As her son, don’t you feel any sorrow for your mother?”

“Lord Xie,” Li Rong pressed, “are you hesitating because it’s inconvenient to move, or because you don’t dare?”

Xie Lanqing remained rigid. Suddenly, Lin Feibai stood, walked to Li Rong, and slashed his finger with a blade. Blood dripped into the bowl. He looked at Xie Lanqing coldly. “Come here.”

Xie Lanqing didn’t move. Lin Feibai repeated, “Lord Xie, come here.”

Hearing the warning in Lin Feibai’s tone, Xie Lanqing stiffened but finally stood. He walked stiffly to the table, hesitating to extend his hand. Seeing his reluctance, Lin Feibai grabbed Xie Lanqing’s hand, swiftly cut his finger, and squeezed the blood into the bowl amid Xie Lanqing’s cry.

The two drops of blood spread in the water, met, and slowly merged.

Watching the blood fuse, Xie Lanqing panicked. “Impossible! Someone’s framing me! Your Majesty, I request another test, another—”

“What’s left to test?” Pei Wenxuan laughed. “Lord Xie, is the jade pendant fake? Are Lin Feibai’s eyes fake? Or is the blood in this bowl fake? You attempted to assassinate the Princess, colluded with your son to frame her, and now, instead of confessing to seek His Majesty and Her Highness’s mercy, you dare to argue and defy the law. I wonder who gave you the audacity to disregard His Majesty, the law, the order of ruler and subject, and the principles of heaven and earth!”

“You slanderous brat!” Xie Lanqing roared, pointing at Pei Wenxuan. “It’s you, instigating Her Highness to do these chaotic things, colluding with assassins and bribing palace staff to frame me! I’ve served the court for thirty years, dedicating myself to the nation and the Emperor, yet today I’m slandered by these two youngsters. I beg Your Majesty to see the truth!”

“Father,” Li Rong, hearing Xie Lanqing, knelt and bowed respectfully. “I beg Your forgiveness.”

“What are you apologizing for?”

“I know I’ve been reckless these days, causing trouble for Father.”

“Handling these two cases has implicated many noble families, including two Xie family members among the condemned. Father allowed me to take these cases, surely under great pressure. I investigated knowing I must be prepared to face life and death. Countless times, I thought it might be better for me not to pursue this. As a woman, I could live peacefully at home, raising children, cherished by Father and my husband, enjoying a stable, prosperous life—better for me and for Father.”

“But I couldn’t bear it. I couldn’t bear to see the Qin family wronged or the nation’s military funds eroded by corruption. So I stepped forward. As a princess, supported by the people, I cannot wear fine silks and ignore the silkworm farmers. This path is arduous, and I feared Father would face too much pressure, so I never reported the obstacles I encountered.”

Li Rong’s voice grew hoarse. “Lord Xie, a pillar of the court, has done much good. If he made things difficult for me, I shouldn’t confront him so harshly. But I…” Li Rong choked up. “I had no choice. I can risk my life, but the Consort is innocent. Today, I don’t seek to punish Lord Xie for the assassination or slander. I only hope the lords can seek justice for the Consort. The attack on him deserves an explanation. Bullying me is one thing—I provoked Lord Xie—but what about the Consort?”

By the end, Li Rong was in tears, appearing utterly desperate.

“Your Highness,” Xie Lanqing panicked, “you’re a princess investigating the Qin and military funds cases for the nation’s good. How could I dare to obstruct you, let alone assassinate or slander for it?”

“Then is she framing you?!” Li Ming roared. Seeing Li Rong kneeling, pleading hoarsely, the frustration of being suppressed by these old ministers for over a decade surged within him. Anger flared as he recalled Xie Lanqing’s claim that Li Rong colluded with palace staff and thought of the white jade magnolia hairpin on Hua Le’s head. He felt Xie Lanqing wasn’t just bullying Li Rong—he was trampling on him.

“She’s a princess,” Li Ming pointed at Li Rong, “my eldest daughter, the Empress’s legitimate daughter! You repeatedly claim she’s framing and scheming against you. A girl not yet nineteen, scheming against a seasoned court veteran like you, who’s been in power for over thirty years?!”

“Your Majesty, please calm down,” Xie Lanqing knelt, pleading. “There are many misunderstandings.”

“Misunderstandings? What misunderstandings? You think I wouldn’t dare touch you! Without evidence, I’d swallow my anger, but now the evidence is clear. Take your misunderstandings to prison! Guards!” Li Ming shouted, “Drag him to the Censorate for Pei Wenxuan to handle!”

“Your Majesty…” Jiang Zheng, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, spoke urgently. “Pei Wenxuan is the Princess’s Consort…”

“What? You can act without caring about family ties, but I must avoid suspicion? Let Pei Wenxuan handle it!” Li Ming roared. “Anyone who says another word will be dragged down with him!”

The crowd exchanged glances. Pei Wenxuan stepped forward respectfully. “Your Majesty, please calm down. It’s inappropriate for me to handle this. Let it return to the Ministry of Justice.”

“Return to the Ministry?” Li Ming sneered. “Who there dares to try him?”

“I recommend someone,” Pei Wenxuan said calmly. Li Ming softened. “Speak.”

“Pei Liming, Vice Minister of Justice. He’s my uncle, upright and just, experienced in handling cases, and well-versed in the law. I recommend him, setting aside personal ties.”

Li Ming fell silent, glancing at Su Rongqing. By rank, Su Rongqing, as Left Vice Minister of Justice, was more suitable than Pei Liming. But sending the case back to the Ministry without Pei Wenxuan’s kin handling it risked Xie Lanqing’s case being buried. Yet assigning Pei Liming directly might upset the Su family. As Li Ming hesitated, Su Rongqing stepped forward, respectfully saying, “I concur. I believe Pei Liming is the most suitable choice.”

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