The second watch arrived.
"Then, then it could also be that she took off her shoes and went in barefoot," Cui Yun did not give up and tried to push this matter onto Yu Shu, but her eyes revealed some panic.
Zhan Xueyuan felt depressed. Looking at Cui Yun, her emotions were extremely complicated. On one hand, she hoped that Yu Shu had stolen her Tian Yu, but on the other hand, she was afraid that she had wrongly accused the wrong person and let the real thief steal her treasure.
"Then do you want me to take off my shoes for you to see if my feet are clean?" Yu Shu said mockingly.
This caused Xue Rui to look at her disapprovingly. With him here, who would dare to ask her to take off her shoes, who would dare to look?
"There's no need for such superfluous actions." Xue Rui moved his gaze onto Cui Yun and said coldly, "There's no need for you to quibble. According to my deductions, you ought to have been planning something when Young Miss Zhan placed her Heaven Jade beneath her pillow. At that time, you seized the opportunity when she was unprepared to take it away from her right before her eyes, then you went out with her and left Yu Suanzi alone in the rear courtyard to push the matter onto her."
"Daren, don't wrongly accuse me," Cui Yun was so anxious that her face turned red. "According to what you said, then why should I drag Xue Yuan to visit the garden with Yu Suanzi?"
"Because you knew that I wouldn't go with you," Yu Shu said.
"That's not me!" Cui Yun stomped her feet hard under everyone's questioning gaze and said angrily, "If you don't believe me, you can search my room. Otherwise, let Xue Yuan search my body. If he can find Tian Yu, I will kill myself here!"
"Yun Yun, you …" Zhan Xueyuan had already suspected Cui Yun, but seeing her so confident, he could not make up his mind.
"Xue Yuan, it really wasn't me!" Cui Yun grabbed Zhan Xueyuan's hand and was so anxious that she was about to cry.
This was Huazhen Garden, and she was a student that had been chosen to participate in the ancestral worship ceremony. If she was convicted of theft, with so many pairs of eyes watching, it would not be easy. Not to mention how she would be dealt with after the ancestral worship ceremony, if this matter were to spread, her reputation would be ruined. It would be a problem whether she could continue to stay in the Taishi Library.
Zhan Xueyuan couldn't bear to do it, but for the sake of her family jewels, she couldn't let the thief off. Thus, she lowered her head and said in a muffled voice, "Then let me search."
Cui Yun's shoulders trembled, and she finally let go of her hand. She said indignantly, "Okay, okay, then you guys search, search!"
"That's not necessary. You won't be able to find anything from her." Xue Rui said coldly. Under the puzzled gaze of the others, he put his left hand into his sleeve, took it out and handed it to Zhan Xueyuan.
"Is this Tianyu?"
On his palm, there was an oval green stone with eight claws and a fine silk thread tied to it. It was the Heaven Jade that Yu Shu had seen on Zhan Xueyuan's neck a few days ago.
"My Heaven Jade!" Zhan Xueyuan let out a sharp cry of pleasant surprise and was about to pounce over to grab it, yet Xue Rui easily dodged to the side and turned to say to her. "This rock was fished out from the shallow waters of the lake when the 13th Princess was playing in the garden in the afternoon. According to my knowledge, Yu Suanzi hasn't gone to the lake. Young Miss Zhan, can you tell me who threw it there?"
Zhan Xueyuan's body shook, and she slowly turned her head to look at Cui Yun, whose face was red. Her chest rose and fell, and she gritted her teeth and growled, "So it was really you!"
Although the few people present didn't have brains, they weren't fools. When they heard this, they could already distinguish between right and wrong.
"Oh — —" Yu Shu dragged her voice and walked to Xue Rui's side. She turned her head to look at Zhan Xueyuan and Cui Yun, and said with a fake smile, "Now I understand. Miss Cui's move is really brilliant. First, you stole Zhan Xueyuan's Heaven Jade under her eyes, and then went in and out with her, looking for an opportunity to throw it away. In this way, you can frame me, and also not arouse suspicion. Even if you are investigated, there is no real evidence. But the bad thing is that you are unlucky to have met the wise and powerful Lord Xue. This little trick can't hide from Lord Xue's discerning eyes."
When Xue Rui heard her last sentence of praise, he almost couldn't hold back his laughter. He turned his body and put his hands behind his back. From the view of others, he held a few of her fingers and held them gently, not saying a word.
Even if the Thirteenth Princess didn't find this stone and hand it over to him to find its owner, he would still think of a way to protect Yu Shu's reputation.
What Yu Shu said just now was what everyone present was thinking.
"It wasn't me, it really wasn't me …" At this point, Cui Yun still wanted to quibble, but she didn't have the confidence. Her words and actions were powerless, and she couldn't be trusted.
Lord Wang said angrily, "Cui Yun, you still won't admit it! Do you really want this official to report this matter to the Great Tipping Point and punish you right now!? "
Other than Yu Shu, Lord Wang should be the most furious person present when such a shady matter happened in Huazhen Garden. It should be known that before the end of the ceremony, these six people were temporarily under his control. If anything went wrong, he would also have to bear a part of the blame. Cui Yun was stared at by several pairs of fierce eyes, especially under Zhan Xueyuan's murderous gaze.
Cui Yun was glared at by several pairs of eyes, especially by Zhan Xueyuan, who looked like he was going to devour her. Cui Yun could not bear the pressure. She knew that the evidence was irrefutable. If she continued to quibble, the situation would only worsen. So she shrunk her shoulders and cried, "I, I didn't do it on purpose. At first, I just wanted to play a joke on Xueyuan, so I took her Heaven Jade. Who knew that when I was walking by the lake, I accidentally lost it. I was afraid that she would cut off all ties with me, so I hid it from her. Seeing that she was suspicious of Yu Suanzi, I took advantage of the situation. I didn't do it on purpose.
As she spoke, she actually knelt in front of Zhan Xueyuan in front of everyone, grabbed the hem of her clothes, and begged.
Such a change was unexpected. The original theft and framing was instantly twisted into a joke by her, but she cried so miserably that no one could tell whether it was real or fake.
As long as Zhan Xueyuan, the owner of the lost Heaven Jade, did not pursue the matter, it would not be difficult for her.
Yu Shu narrowed her eyes, and a cold light flashed across them. She thought to herself, "I misjudged. This seemingly inconspicuous Cui Yun is not someone who is easy to deal with."
Zhan Xueyuan was not a person with a heart of stone. Previously, he was angry because of the loss of Heaven Jade, and also because he found out that Cui Yun had used and betrayed him. But now that Heaven Jade was found, looking at Cui Yun's pitiful face, and thinking of the days since she came to the capital, the two of them could not help but soften.
"Xue Yuan, it's all my fault. I beg you, don't blame me. I didn't steal your Heaven Jade. I didn't do it on purpose. Can you forgive me? I don't want to be treated as a thief, I beg you …"
Zhan Xueyuan turned his head, clenched his fists, and said in a low voice, "Don't cry, I won't pursue this matter."
"Xueyuan," Cui Yun raised her head, and was about to rejoice when she heard a sneer behind her, "If you don't pursue this matter, I won't let you go."
Zhan Xueyuan looked at Yu Shu blankly, and suddenly remembered their previous agreement about the ten slaps —
"Yu Suanzi, it's all my fault. I'm willing to take your slaps on behalf of Xueyuan."
Cui Yun's brain was fast enough. She took the blame, and Zhan Xueyuan's original anger towards her was immediately reduced by half.
However, Yu Shu was schemed against and almost suffered a great loss. Would she let the two of them go so easily?
"Zhan Xueyuan," Yu Shu simply called his name at this moment, and pointed at Cui Yun who was kneeling on the ground shamelessly, "Do you really want her to take the slaps on behalf of you?"
Zhan Xueyuan's expression struggled for a moment, and then nodded his head lightly, as a tacit agreement.
"Alright, I'm not unreasonable. Since both of you are willing, then these ten slaps, you can split it equally, each of you can take five slaps." Yu Shu waved her hand, pretending to be generous.
Zhan Xueyuan and Cui Yun's expression twisted at the same time, and wanted to say something to resist, but they did not know where to start. After all, they were the ones in the wrong, and with Xue Rui by the side, they could not deny it even if they said it to the end of the world.
"If you want to hit, then hit, don't talk so much nonsense." Although Zhan Xueyuan knew that he had wronged Yu Shu, but he did not change his hatred towards Yu Shu, and because of this, he hated her even more.
Yu Shu curled her lips and smiled, "There's no hurry, we still have to attend the ceremony tomorrow. My hand is strong, and if I slap your faces swollen, how are you going to meet people tomorrow, just owe it first, and we'll talk about it when we return to the capital."
She loved to slap people's faces in public, and there were only a few people here, how could it be enough? If she wanted to slap their faces, she would have to find a good day.
Zhan Xueyuan and Cui Yun's hearts trembled, and after thinking about it, they understood that Yu Shu wanted to leave it for the future to humiliate them in public.
Yu Shu saw the worry on their faces, and the gloominess in her heart dissipated. She quietly squeezed Xue Rui's warm palm, and in the next moment, she heard Xue Rui say, "The situation is urgent, this official will not report this matter for the time being, but you have disturbed Huazhen Garden, and this matter cannot be tolerated. After the ceremony, Official Wang and I will report the matter to the Head Supervisor, and ask him to make a decision."
Cui Yun's face turned pale, she did not expect that after she escaped one calamity, there would be another one.
This time, Zhan Xueyuan did not speak up for her, and she could not even protect herself, so why would she care about these two people? They deserved their bad luck. She did not know what the relationship between Xue Rui and Yu Shu was, but based on their malicious slander of Yu Shu, how could Xue Rui let them go so easily?
"Official Wang, you stay and teach them, so that they do not cause trouble tonight. I still have something to do, so I will leave first."
Xue Rui let go of Yu Shu's hand, and gave the Sky Jade to Official Wang, and slowly walked out of the door. When he was at the door, he stopped and turned his head slightly. It seemed like he did it unintentionally, but it was noticed by those who were observant.
Yu Shu secretly laughed, and said to Official Wang, "I will send off Official Xue."
"Okay, you go first." Official Wang was grateful to Xue Rui for helping him solve a problem, so he was happy to have someone pay attention to him.
Thus, Yu Shu followed Xue Rui's footsteps, and the two of them walked out of the courtyard one after the other. Little Jizi carried a lantern and followed them.
They left behind a group of people who were destined to have a sleepless night.
The night was dark, and the shadows of the buildings by the lake gradually faded.
Eunuch Qiu stood outside a curtain with his back bowed, reporting in a low voice what had happened in the southwest side courtyard in the evening to his master.
After a while, he heard a comment from behind the curtain, "According to what you said, that Yu Suanzi is not a good-natured person."
Eunuch Qiu listened carefully, trying to figure out Imperial Concubine Xue's tone. It did not sound like she was displeased, so he carefully said, "Fortunately, she has a temper, and managed to control those unruly people. Otherwise, we would not know the outcome of tonight's matter."
"Haha."
Eunuch Qiu heard this chuckle, and immediately knew that he had not misunderstood.
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