Xiao Jinyu gave a cold laugh, not loosening his grip in the slightest on the bloodstained dagger in his hand. "His guilty conscience... As the acting Minister of War, two years ago when the incident occurred at the Imperial Examination Hall, that memorial accusing me of twice privately releasing Ashina Suwu and Du Li—you wrote it in the name of the Ministry of War without the Minister's knowledge, didn't you? All to ensure the Emperor would throw me into the Heavenly Prison, then bribe Tan Zhang to lock me in that specific cell. After that, you persuaded the Emperor to release me under the pretext of taking the blame yourself, only to have yourself imprisoned in that same cell to secretly destroy any evidence Prince Ning Xiao Heng might have left behind before his death. Am I right?"
Xue Rucheng stood pressed against a wall, frowning deeply. He remained silent, neither nodding nor shaking his head. Chuchu felt a chill in her heart. "Your Highness, he... he even helped Emperor Renzong capture Qin Luan. Why would he need to destroy evidence for him?"
"Not destroying evidence for Qin Luan, but for himself..." Xiao Jinyu finally shifted his sharp, blade-like gaze from Xue Rucheng to the calligraphy scroll beside him. "Sir, there's one thing you didn't bungle in the cases of Yun Yi and Xiao Heng... Those forged letters of treason written in Xiao Heng's calligraphy and style—they came from your hand, didn't they? Framing Xiao Jue, then after his release from prison, placing him under strict surveillance to prevent contact with the outside world, using his handwriting to correspond with Ashina Turo, and even forging the Emperor's handwriting to order the Imperial Guards to monitor my every move in Liangzhou military camp—all your handiwork, correct?"
In her astonishment, Chuchu glanced at Xue Rucheng's right wrist, still bleeding profusely, and suddenly understood why Xiao Jinyu had specifically cut that spot.
Xue Rucheng's brow remained tightly furrowed as he stayed silent for a long while. The person on the beam above grew impatient. "I can confirm it's true. That calligraphy beside Grand Tutor Xue... yes, that one normal people can't read a single character of... looks exactly like my old man's handwriting. Even the signature and seal are identical. He even drew those little flowers—must have been quite the effort for Grand Tutor Xue..."
The beam-dweller continued, barely containing laughter, "But Grand Tutor Xue, you overthought this. My old man's calligraphy and paintings in recent years do often have these little flowers—sometimes one, sometimes two, even three or four, never in fixed positions. But that's because of the stray cat my son brought home. Whenever the old man writes or paints, that cat jumps on the desk and loves dipping its paws in the inkstone then stamping them on the paper. The old man can't react fast enough, so paw prints on his work are common. Who told him to spoil my son so much? He won't even scold the stray cat my son brought home, and he's too proud to admit it. He insists on tracing the paw prints to look like intentional paintings, telling outsiders it's some new 'plum blossom signature' he created... Once when I was writing something for His Highness at the old man's desk, that cat stamped two paw prints on my work too. So His Highness has known about this for a long time."
Finally unable to contain himself, the beam-dweller floated down, face twitching with suppressed laughter. Pointing at the three small plum blossoms distributed in the blank spaces around the calligraphy, he looked at Xue Rucheng's ashen face and said, "Grand Tutor Xue, take a look yourself. For a cat to make prints like the ones you drew, it would have to stand pigeon-toed while twisting its waist doing the splits, with one leg lifted. What did that cat ever do to you to make you torment it like this?"Chu Chu stared at the plum blossom prints on the paper, mentally tracing their shape. The imaginary cat in her mind indeed tumbled into an ungainly sprawl before it could even attempt a split.
Xiao Jin Yu let out a silent, self-mocking sneer. "Had I not noticed these three plum blossoms earlier, I might truly have been swayed by your words, Master... I must blame myself for failing to uphold your teachings, allowing personal bias to exclude you from this case all along. Whenever I recall how you daily reviewed and corrected mine and Xiao Jue's assignments in the palace, I should have realized that the only person capable of perfectly imitating Xiao Jue's handwriting and speech patterns would be you."
Xue Rucheng remained silent for a long moment before shaking his head with a light sigh, his gaze calm as he regarded Xiao Jin Yu. Still speaking unhurriedly, he said, "Your Highness must not forget... today is this old man's wedding day. Ming'er has returned as well."
Jing Yi frowned, momentarily puzzled by Xue Rucheng's meaning. He reached out and patted Xue Rucheng's shoulder. "Your Highness, though I possess no martial skills, this man can only speak now, not act. If you wish to apprehend him, I can still take him back... I believe our dynasty's laws contain no prohibition against arresting a groom."
Xiao Jin Yu watched Xue Rucheng's impassive face intently, slowly shaking his head. "Shi Niang and Xue Ming... I presume both are already under his control. Shi Niang has resided in your estate for over a year. Your choice of this auspicious day for marriage likely serves purposes beyond taking a wife?"
Xue Rucheng lowered his head with two heavy coughs. "You understand me well, Your Highness... Whether this old man marries Shi Niang matters little. What matters is having a plausible reason to invite Your Highness and the Imperial Concubine to visit my humble abode and reminisce..."
Slowly straightening from his leaning position against the wall, Xue Rucheng's face remained expressionless except for the slight furrowing of his brows from suppressed pain. "I had Eunuch Qi remind Your Highness that rather than concerning yourself with those long reborn into new lives, you should pay more attention to the half-dead around you. Unfortunately, Your Highness wouldn't listen..."
Xue Rucheng sighed softly. "If you wish to spare Shi Niang and Eunuch Qi's sister from suffering, leave before the other guests arrive. Return to the Royal Mansion and discuss matters thoroughly with the Imperial Concubine. There's no need for Your Highness to trouble Lord Jing to search my humble home. Though modest, I remain confident in my ability to conceal a person or two... I've grown weary of these endless days of sweeping courtyards and maintaining appearances. I hope Your Highness will grant me this."
Glancing down at his blood-soaked sleeve, Xue Rucheng frowned. "I shall contemplate this stab wound carefully as well."
Having spoken, Xue Rucheng began moving slowly toward the door. Xiao Jin Yu merely watched in silence. When Xue Rucheng reached the doorway, he turned to glance at Jing Yi, who stood with crossed arms in his original position. With a faint, almost imperceptible smile, he said courteously, "Lord Jing, might I trouble you to open the door for this old man?"
Jing Yi looked toward Chu Chu and Xiao Jin Yu, then glanced at the tightly shut wooden door. "Wait. I'll see His Highness and the Imperial Concubine down first."
"By all means, Lord Jing... The auspicious hour remains distant. This old man is in no hurry."
Jing Yi helped Chu Chu and Xiao Jin Yu down through the window, escorting them all the way to the Prince An Manor carriage waiting at the back gate. Showing no intention of returning to open the door for Xue Rucheng, he took up the reins and urged the horses forward.
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