Gao Ying held her sword as she stood in front of Wu Zetian. She repeated the Crown Prince's words to Wu Zetian without missing a word.
Wu Zetian raised her eyes and calmly glanced at her. She asked, "Is that all?"
Gao Ying replied, "Yes! The Crown Prince said that he was framed and could not defend himself. He only asks Your Majesty to be merciful and demote him to a commoner so that he can spend the rest of his life in the mountains. If Your Majesty does not agree … "
Wu Zetian lowered her eyes and asked coldly, "What if We do not agree?"
Gao Ying said in a low voice, "The Crown Prince said that he would rather die than bear the name of being unfilial for attempting to kill his own mother. Then, he is willing to die to prove his loyalty!"
Wu Zetian was silent for a moment. Then, she suddenly laughed softly. "Haha, this son of ours …"
Gao Ying didn't know why Wu Zetian was sighing. She didn't dare to continue and stood with her hands at her sides. Wu Zetian was silent for a moment before sighing softly. "It has been hard on him. This son of ours has always been weak, but now he finally has some courage."
It could be seen that Wu Zetian's expression was one of admiration. She stood up from the couch and said, "Forget it! As a son, he doesn't want to bear the name of killing his own mother. As a mother, how can I bear the crime of forcing my own son to die? Come, We will go see him and see what our Crown Prince wants. "
Wei Tuan 'er wanted to say something to stop her, but when she saw that Shanghai Wan' er had already stepped forward to support Wu Zetian, she swallowed the words that were about to come out of her mouth. She also quickly stepped forward to support Wu Zetian. At the same time, she quickly signaled to one of the Crown Prince's trusted eunuchs.
Eunuch Jing hurried over to the Crown Prince Palace after receiving the message from the young eunuch. Unfortunately, even he couldn't enter the Crown Prince Palace now. No matter how he tried to persuade Lan Yiqing, Lan Yiqing just stood in front of the palace with his arms crossed. He didn't shake his head or nod his head. There was a sweet smile on his face, making it hard to be angry.
The official was so anxious that he scratched his ears and cheeks, but there was nothing he could do. Right at this moment, the little eunuch who brought the news gently pulled the corner of his clothes and sent a look into the distance. The official turned his head to look and saw the Emperor's yellow silk umbrella cover slowly moving over from the distance. He could only give a dejected sigh and left unhappily with the little eunuch.
In the Political Affairs Hall of the Eastern Palace, Lai Junchen was so engrossed in asking questions about the case that he forgot to eat or sleep. He didn't even eat a few bites of lunch. Just from this action, it could be seen that he was really diligent in political affairs.
"There is a limit to my patience. If you still refuse to confess, I will continue to torture you. Even if you die, you will be charged as accomplices to the rebels, and your families will be implicated as well. You better think carefully! "
Lai Junchen's dark and cold gaze swept across the faces of the Eastern Palace servants, who were covered in cuts and bruises. Finally, it landed on the three servants whose willpower was already wavering. He pointed at one of the three and said, "Interrogate them one by one. Leave one behind. Take the others away first and let them reflect!"
Lai Junchen knew that the three of them had already developed a fear of punishment. However, with so many of their companions in front of them, everyone was gritting their teeth and holding on. Thus, they could not immediately make the decision to betray their master. If only they were left in front of them, a little torture and intimidation might be enough to force them to confess.
Just at this moment, a loud shout suddenly came from the front of the hall. "Get out of the way! I want to see the Deputy Prime Minister. I have something to say! "
Lai Junchen raised his head and saw a thin man wearing a green robe rush in from the entrance of the hall like a gust of wind.
The Political Affairs Hall of the Eastern Palace was very spacious. Four yamen runners stood to the left and right of the door. They had not expected that someone would dare to barge in. When they realized that someone had forced their way in, it was too late to stop them. The green-robed man pushed aside one of the runners in front of him and rushed into the hall.
The Eastern Palace servants kneeling in the hall all turned their heads to look. They saw that this person was the musician of the Eastern Palace, An Jinzang. An Jinzang glanced at Lai Junchen. He bent down and pulled out a sharp dagger from his boot. Lai Junchen cried out in shock, "Assassin!"
The four martial arts masters that Lai Junchen had hired with a lot of money were standing to his left and right. Seeing the commotion, two of them immediately flashed to his side. The other two leaped to the table and pulled out their knives to point at An Jinzang.
An Jinzang held the knife in his hand but did not rush forward. Instead, he raised his voice and said in a clear voice, "Why not? Deputy Prime Minister Lai, the Crown Prince is loyal, filial, and benevolent. He has no intention of rebelling! Deputy Prime Minister Lai, how can you bear to use torture to frame me? I am a musician of the Eastern Palace. The affairs of the court have nothing to do with me. But I really cannot bear to see the Crown Prince be framed and killed! "
He raised the dagger and shouted loudly, "Wei Tuan 'er coveted the position of the Crown Prince's consort. She begged the Crown Prince but failed. She harbored hatred in her heart and decided to take revenge. The Crown Prince is innocent! The Crown Prince's consort and Concubine Dou are also innocent! I am willing to cut open my stomach and dig out my heart to show my sincerity for the Crown Prince! "
An Jinzang finished speaking and waved his knife to cut open his own abdomen. Blood spurted out. An Jinzang ruthlessly cut open his own abdomen horizontally. This person was really a ruthless person. After one cut, he did not stop. He made another vertical cut from his lower abdomen to his chest. His entire body was immediately stained with blood.
Even though Lai Junchen was used to seeing criminals mutilated and mutilated, he had never seen someone treat himself so ruthlessly. For a moment, he was stunned.
An Jinzang was a musician of the Palace. The musicians of the Palace were all the best singers in the world. Their voices were very penetrating. An Jinzang also timed it well. He waited for Wu Zetian to enter the Eastern Palace. The moment she arrived, he rushed into the Political Affairs Hall to commit suicide.
His cry was sorrowful and powerful. Not a single word was missed by Wu Zetian's ears. Wu Zetian was about to rush to the Crown Prince's palace when she suddenly heard this cry. She couldn't help but turn around and rush to the Political Affairs Hall.
Wei Tuan 'er framed the Crown Prince's consort and Concubine De. She also framed the Crown Prince. She never thought that there would be a day when she would be framed. She heard someone shouting that she coveted the position of the Crown Prince's consort. She flattered the Crown Prince but was rejected. That's why she wanted revenge. She couldn't help but be angry and anxious.
Although the Crown Prince was noble, the Crown Prince's consort would be the future Empress. It was a position that all the women in the world dreamed of. But who would be willing to be the Crown Prince's consort for a precarious Crown Prince like Li Dan? She, Wei Tuan 'er, would covet the position of the Crown Prince's consort, which had little hope!
Wei Tuan 'er was so angry that her face turned red. She wanted to explain, but when she saw Wu Zetian walking quickly towards the Political Affairs Hall, she knew that if she was too impatient, she would appear guilty. She could only force herself to endure. But no matter how much she wanted to act as if she had a clear conscience, her expression appeared unnatural.
An Jinzang's decisive and terrifying method of cutting open his chest and abdomen frightened everyone in the hall, especially the three eunuchs who originally had the intention to confess. As soon as they heard Lai Junchen's order to bring the other eunuchs away, they secretly let out a sigh of relief. As long as they were not in front of them, they did not have to bear too much guilt. Now that they saw An Jinzang's magnificent feat, they were truly stunned.
Loyalty and filial piety were the noblest qualities of this era. In their hearts, being a loyal and devoted servant was the greatest value in their lives. Today, a musician who could not have been implicated in this case had stood up and died for the Crown Prince. He had done what they should have done, but they had not. They could not help but feel ashamed.
Lai Junchen was stunned for a while before he swallowed and shouted, "This person … this person must be the Crown Prince's death warrior. He is using this action to exonerate the Crown Prince. Guards! Drag him away! This official will not let this affect my work … "
Just as he said this, a loud shout came from the entrance of the hall, "His Majesty has arrived!"
Following the voice, Shangguan Wan 'er and Wei Tuan' er supported Wu Zetian and walked into the hall. Behind them, many palace maids and guards followed.
Lai Junchen was shocked. He quickly left the table and prostrated himself on the ground. "Subject Lai Junchen greets Your Majesty …"
Judge Wang Deshou and the officials of the Censorate all bowed to Wu Zetian. The eunuchs of the Eastern Palace who were being interrogated suddenly saw the Emperor arrive and were immediately stunned. When they saw the officials of the Censorate bowing to the Emperor, they unconsciously turned around and wanted to kowtow to the Emperor.
But when they turned around and were about to kowtow, one of them suddenly had a stroke of luck. Perhaps it was because An Jinzang's heroic feat had raised his courage, and he suddenly wailed, "Everyone, the Crown Prince is wrongly accused, this servant is wrongly accused!"
Once this person started, the dozen or so servants immediately cried and kowtowed. "Everyone, the Crown Prince does not have any rebellious intentions, the Crown Princess does not have any rebellious intentions! Lai Junchen used torture to force us to confess to crimes that did not exist. Everyone is wise, please help the Crown Prince, please help nubi! "
Wei Tuan 'er was a female official second only to Shangguan Wan' er in the inner palace. Under her power, no one dared to follow up on An Jinzang's topic. But right now, they were in Lai Junchen's hands. Since they had no way out, they might as well use this rare opportunity to bite him.
Lai Junchen gritted his teeth in hatred. But with his status, he could not argue with the eunuchs. He could only kneel on the ground and not speak.
Wu Zetian looked at An Jinzang who was lying on the ground. Seeing his intestines protruding from his body and the terrible state, she couldn't help but be moved. She sighed softly and said in a deep voice, "This is a loyal servant. Use zhen's imperial carriage to carry him to the Imperial Hospital. zhen wants him alive!"
After Wu Zetian gave the order, people immediately ran outside and carried Wu Zetian's step-carriage in. They carefully carried An Jinzang, whose intestines were protruding and breathing weakly, up and hurriedly left.
Hearing Wu Zetian's order, Lai Junchen couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. But he was still kneeling on the ground and didn't dare to raise his head. He only saw a corner of the dragon robe appear in his line of sight. Under the dragon robe was a pair of feet. So he lowered his head even more humbly.
Wu Zetian's gaze swept across the servants who were covered in wounds and had bloody fingers. Then she looked at Lai Junchen kneeling at her feet. She sighed and said, "Lai Junchen, you … have failed to live up to zhen's trust!"
Lai Junchen originally wanted to argue, but the thought only turned a few times in his mind. Thinking of how Wu Zetian had addressed him, he swallowed his words and corrected himself, "Yes! This subject … is guilty! This subject was anxious to solve the case and used rough methods. I have failed the emperor's expectations. Your Majesty, please punish me! "
Wu Zetian didn't pay attention to him. She only looked at the puddle of blood on the ground. She stood there blankly for a moment before she turned and walked out. Shangguan Wan 'er glanced at Wei Tuan' er on the other side. She saw that Wei Tuan 'er's originally pretty and bright red face was now as pale as paper.
…
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