nashuaworldcup Chapter 400 Interrogation (3)
Chapter 400 Interrogation (3)
Li Zhilan suddenly stood up.
She knew about the first two things, but what was the relationship between her and Shen Fuhan's second brother?
She doesn't even remember this person!
"Lord Shen, you really know how to spout nonsense," she sneered. "But I'm not afraid. Investigate if you will. If you've wronged me, you'll have to atone with your death!"
In this poisoning incident, Wen Ruohuan was already a scapegoat, and the blame couldn't be traced back to her. As for the Xie family of Jinzhou, so many years have passed, what evidence could there possibly be?
Li Zhixu was unsure who to believe, but the scales in his heart were unknowingly tipping towards Shen Fuhan.
As the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, he was always fair and just, and he would never expose a princess of the country without solid evidence.
His elder sister, however, did not seem to be as arrogant and domineering as he had imagined.
But what exactly is the matter concerning Shen Fuhan's second brother?
He asked in confusion, "Minister Shen, what exactly is this second brother you're talking about?"
Li Zhilan also looked over with a stern face.
She believed she had been good enough to the Shen family. She treated even his grandmother, who came from the countryside, with respect. She had never criticized the third Miss Shen who eloped with someone; on the contrary, she admired her quite a bit.
As for Shen Fuhan's second brother, she only had a vague impression that he was sickly and died young, and she had never met him!
Shen Fuhan clenched his fist before speaking calmly.
"Nine years ago, my second younger brother, Shen Fufei, went out alone and was kidnapped. The Shen family searched for three days before finding him on the outskirts of the capital and announced that he had hanged himself."
Li Zhilan sneered, "What, Lord Shen, are you trying to say that his death is related to me?"
"The day we found Fufei was the third day of the seventh month of the sixth year of Yongchun," Shen Fuhan stared intently at her, "From the first to the third day, the gates of the Princess's residence were tightly closed. Does the Princess still remember what you were doing those days?"
Li Zhilan frowned and said, "How could I possibly know about something from so long ago..."
She paused, then suddenly remembered that there was indeed such a thing.
She had a fight with her husband, and to spite him, she sent her guards to the streets to find a young and handsome man.
She quickly found one whose appearance and figure suited her taste, but he looked somewhat sickly.
She didn't care much about that; after all, she was wearing coarse clothes, so it was obvious that she came from a poor family.
After she's done playing around, give him some money to treat his illness, and he might even thank her.
She hadn't expected the person to be so weak, and she couldn't bear to waste such a handsome appearance. After much thought, she forced him to take the medicine.
He survived until the following night, but died.
At that time, she did not have the power and influence she has now, so she was naturally afraid and ordered the guards to throw her into the wilderness.
After a few days without hearing any bad news, she simply forgot about the matter.
I never imagined that the man was actually Shen Fuhan's younger brother!
What a coincidence!
She became increasingly certain that Shen Fuhan had been deliberately getting close to her all along, and that the vague things he said to her were all just to deceive her!
"Does the Princess remember?" Shen Fuhan's voice trembled slightly. "Is there such a thing?"
"I was just thinking that you've really gone to any lengths to frame me," Li Zhilan said coldly. "I have never done such a thing!"
“Your humble servant naturally understands the principle that words are not enough to prove anything.”
Shen Fuhan stopped arguing with her and bowed respectfully to the emperor.
"Your Majesty, please investigate this thoroughly!"
Li Zhixu nodded and said, "Of course I will investigate. This matter should have been entrusted to you, but you are too deeply involved and you need to recuperate. So let the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review investigate it personally."
Shen Fuhan said, "Yes, Your Majesty, I will hand over all the evidence to Lord Li."
“As for Princess Yongzhen,” Li Zhixu turned to Li Zhilan, “she should stay at the princess’s residence for the next few days and not go out unless necessary.”
This was the result of his careful consideration. He believed that since there was no doubt about her innocence, he could not easily convict her, and confinement was the best outcome.
But for Li Zhilan, this was tantamount to losing power.
She said incredulously, "Your Majesty, you really don't trust me?"
“Princes are subject to the same laws as commoners, and princesses are no exception,” Li Zhixu said indifferently. “If my elder sister is innocent, I will naturally compensate you doubly.”
Before Li Zhilan could reply, he said, "Someone, escort the Princess back to her residence!"
These words were like a bucket of cold water, soaking Li Zhilan and extinguishing the anger that had been burning in her heart.
She knew that nothing she said would make a difference; it would only make the emperor more suspicious.
She adopted a forlorn expression and gave a self-deprecating laugh: "Everyone says the royal family is heartless. I didn't believe it at first. I always thought that you and I, as siblings, were different, after all, we had shared joys and sorrows."
“We grew up together. You know I’m willful and can do outrageous things, but I never cross the line. I never thought that we would eventually drift apart, unable to withstand the provocation of a few words from others.”
Li Zhilan looked at Li Zhixu with tears in her eyes.
"Brother, I'm leaving now. There are too many people in the harem who care about you, so I won't say anything more to you. I just want to tell you one thing: I will always be the sister who protected you when you were young."
After saying that, she walked away calmly without looking back.
Li Zhixu's expression shifted, and he murmured, "Sister..."
Shen Fuhan glanced at Li Zhilan's back and scoffed inwardly.
What's the point of saying all this? Once the truth is found, at most these words will save her life.
But he won't let her go.
He caught a glimpse of Wen Ruohuan moving towards Wen Jiayue out of the corner of his eye. He immediately snapped out of his daze, stepped forward, and stood in front of Wen Jiayue.
Wen Ruohuan was stunned for a moment, then readily agreed, "Brother-in-law, I was really forced, please save me!"
Shen Fuhan glanced at her disdainfully, without uttering a word.
She boldly grabbed the hem of his shirt, but before she could speak, Shen Fuhan said coldly, "Let go."
Startled, she quickly withdrew her hand and exclaimed in panic, "Brother-in-law..."
Shen Fuhan said, "Put Miss Wen in jail and keep her under strict guard!"
Wen Ruohuan sat dejectedly on the ground, then looked at Wen Jiayue with hope.
"Sister, save me! Sister, it's me, Huan'er! I've been clinging to you since I was little, Huan'er. You know, I really didn't do this willingly!"
Seeing that she was still pretending, Wen Jiayue said with disgust, "I've known for a long time that you're eyeing my brother-in-law."
Wen Ruohuan froze, her blood running cold, and stared at her with a pale face.
When did that bitch Wen Jiayue find out? How could it be? How could it be!
She disguised herself so well, there was no way she could have discovered it!
"Sister, you've misunderstood me," Wen Ruohuan hurriedly explained. "There must be some misunderstanding. Did Shen Funian say it? Don't believe her slander!"
“Whether it is slander or not, I can tell for myself,” Wen Jiayue said, looking at the Emperor. “Your Majesty is the same; you can distinguish right from wrong and will not be misled.”