Zu An sighed. “Sir Murong, could it be that you think I dare to falsify his majesty’s intent? This is something easily confirmed. I was summoned to the imperial study as soon as I left the Eastern Palace.”

Murong Tong’s breathing stopped. In their opinion, there was indeed no one who dared falsify such a thing. That was a crime punishable by clan eradication!

Jiang Boyang flipped through the files in his hands and said with a nod, “There was indeed such a matter.” It was clear that he had already gathered all types of information before arriving here.

Then, his tone changed. “But this can only prove that you carried out a secret mission after you left the imperial study. No one knows what you did afterward. There were quite a few people who saw you together with the crown princess, your clothes messy… Ahem, how do you plead in response to this accusation?”

“Complete nonsense! Absolute slander!” Zu An appeared to become a bit worked up. “It’s one thing if you slander me, but you dare slander the incorruptible crown princess?! How dare they even have such thoughts? May I ask Sir Jiang who the ones that slandered us are?”

Jiang Boyang cleared his throat. “Whether it’s slander or not, we’ll naturally investigate that. However, I can’t tell you their identities.”

Zu An said, “I’ve always been a benevolent person, and I always attract the fondness of others. I really can’t think of who would frame me…”

“You always attract the fondness of others?” Murong Tong sneered. Did this kid have a misunderstanding about him?

Zu An suddenly realized something. “Ah, I remember. I believe Sir Murong lost your position because I was attacked as soon as I arrived in the capital. If there really were anyone who would want to frame me, then I fear…”

Murong Tong was so angry smoke almost came out of his head. “Little bastard, are you saying that I framed you?!”

You have successfully trolled Murong Tong for +668 +668 +668…

Zu An shrugged. “I didn’t say it, you did.” He thought to himself that even though that kid Murong Qinghe was also a bit rash, she was still probably more cool-headed than this old fart.

Jiang Boyang quickly said, “Sir Murong, please don’t be so impatient.” Then, he turned to Zu An. “You really are an annoying troublemaker. You’re affecting our handling of this case.”

Zu An replied, “Sir Jiang is wise; I was merely trying to analyze the motives of those who are trying to harm me. I can tell from Sir Murong’s straightforward nature that he clearly wasn’t the one who did this.” Murong Tong finally calmed down a bit after being praised that way.

Zu An continued, “By the way, I remembered something. This morning, I seem to have offended the Huang gate’s Shi Jun. He kept making things difficult for me, so I couldn’t help but use my palm to ‘express myself’ to his face. He even ended up dropping his pants for some reason. His younger brother Shi Kun also has a grudge against me, so if there really is someone with the motive to harm me, then he’s definitely a top suspect.”

Now, even the Imperial Director whose eyes were half closed in repose couldn’t help but widen his eyes. You used your palm to ‘express yourself’ to Shi Jun’s face? Who the heck says that?!

Jiang Boyang’s eyes narrowed. “I didn’t mention Shi Jun’s name. Why did you immediately suspect that it was him? Speak, is it because you saw him when he barged in on you and the crown princess?”

Zu An looked completely shocked. “It really was that kid? I was going to say that fella clearly looked like the bad sort. So it really was him!”

Murong Tong shouted, “You should just stop there! The fact that you mentioned him means that you’ve already practically confessed to this.”

Zu An sighed. “Sir Murong, you used to be a Security Officer. This situation should be something super easy for you to figure out, right?

“My moral standing might not be too great, so it’s excusable for there to be some misunderstanding here. But who is the crown princess? She was born from an influential clan, and she’s always maintained an excellent bearing. She carries the grace of the future empire’s mother! Do you really believe that this type of woman would do anything with another man?

“That’s why this matter is clearly slander! Not only does the one who framed me bear animosity towards me, they don’t care about offending the crown princess either. If you think about this, the only one whom the crown princess and I both have a grudge against is the Shi clan. After all, it was because of Shi Kun’s bet with me that he ended up indirectly dying by the crown princess’ hand.”

Murong Tong’s expression sank. “All of these are merely your own speculations. Do you have any proof?”

“Nope.” Zu An shook his head. “I’m merely speaking my thoughts. Whether it’s really true or not, this is something you all need to investigate.”

Murong Tong sneered. “Since there’s no proof, then you’re just uttering nonsense. The Shi clan is part of the eight ducal clans. Do you know what kind of crime slandering such great officials would entail?”

Zu An’s expression grew cold as well. “No matter how great the Shi clan is, are they greater than the crown princess, greater than the royal clan’s dignity? The one behind the scenes have already clearly expressed their intent to humiliate the royal clan. You didn’t investigate this, but instead insist that the crown princess really did something illicit. I have reason to suspect your motives!”

Murong Tong was furious. “You bastard! Do you think I wouldn’t dare to kill you?”

You have successfully trolled Murong Tong for +876 +876 +876…

Zu An said with his head high, “Can it be that Sir Murong wants to extract a confession out of torture? I, Zu An, am an iron-willed man down to my bones! My dignity cannot be corrupted by wealth and honors; I will absolutely not slander the crown princess.”

“Your dignity cannot be corrupted by wealth and honors?” Murong Tong laughed out of anger. “Even someone like you is worthy of speaking such words? Fine, I want to see just how tough your bones are! Bring someone here to start the torture!”

Zhen Xueyi coughed. “Sir Murong, please don’t be so impatient. What Zu An said might not be entirely without reason. Even if he confesses under torture, we still won’t be able to convince the masses.”

Zu An sighed inside when he heard those words. The reason he had spoken such words was because the emperor would definitely not let that happen without doing anything. This Imperial Director was definitely someone from his faction, so he wouldn’t let King Qi’s faction act recklessly.

Of course, if he had guessed wrong, he would have just taken the beating. The Phoenix Nirvana Sutra was a technique that could be improved by getting beaten anyway.

“In all my years of investigating cases, I’ve learned that talk is useless against people like him. They have to be beaten into submission.” Murong Tong harrumphed. He looked toward the Commandant of Justice. “Boyang, what do you think?”

Jiang Boyang said, “I agree with Sir Imperial Director’s opinion. What Zu An has said isn’t entirely without reason. We can indeed start our investigation from that angle.”

Murong Tong’s expression turned blank. He thought to himself, Hey, which side are you even on? He knew that Jiang Boyang was always an upright and inflexible man. Was this guy really being a problem at such a critical moment? This was the perfect moment to take advantage of. King Qi might cry if this chance wasn’t used, right?

Zu An was also surprised. He hadn’t expected Jiang Boyang to speak out for him. He thought that this fellow would target him because of Cheng Xiong’s case.

With two out of three sharing an opinion, there was nothing Murong Tong could do. He could only allow the other two people to ask some insignificant questions. Then, they decided to continue their investigation from Shi Jun’s side.

They eventually got up to investigate other clues, but Jiang Boyang deliberately stayed at the very back. His expression was a bit strange as he examined Zu An.

Zu An could tell that this guy had something he wanted to ask him, but he was confused. I don’t even know this guy, so why would he help me?

Jiang Boyang nodded and said, “No wonder Luofu always praised you before, and she even entrusted me with the task of saving you. Now that I’ve met you, I see that you really are slick-tongued, but you aren’t a bad person deep down. Furthermore, you’re quite brave. She didn’t judge you incorrectly.”

A list of names flashed through Zu An’s head. Who is Luofu? Wait, his surname is Jiang… “The gorgeous principal? So you’re father-in-law… Ahem, you’re the gorgeous principal’s father?” He blurted out.

“Gorgeous principal? Father-in-law…” Jiang Boyang’s eyes flickered. His expression became dangerous when he looked at Zu An. “Indeed, Luofu is my daughter. Back then, she didn’t want to become the crown princess and left home alone, heading to Brightmoon City. Now that I think about it, that was a good thing, or else she would be the one caught up in this matter.”

Zu An was shocked. That gorgeous big sis with the amazing legs had almost become the crown princess? Um, wait, no. It’s because she didn’t want to become the crown princess that she ran away. Otherwise, the current Bi Linglong wouldn’t be there.

He quickly snapped out of his daze. “So you were actually my elder! Back then, Brightmoon City’s big sis principal treated me really well. I didn’t expect to have elder’s help too! Looks like we share some karma after all.”

Jiang Boyang harrumphed. “There’s no need for you to thank me. Back then, when his majesty wanted your method of immortality, Luofu wanted me to save you, but I was powerless to do so. I didn’t expect you to actually survive that ordeal.”

Zu An chuckled. “Even so, I’m grateful for big sis principal’s kindness. Also, elder, didn’t you end up helping me this time anyway?”

Jiang Boyang said indifferently, “I’m not helping you, but rather just judging the matter as it stands. There are indeed many points of suspicion in this matter.”

After saying so, he turned to leave. But after taking a few steps, he suddenly frowned and stopped. He lowered his head and smoothed out the corner of his jacket, which had become a bit creased from sitting. A hint of joy appeared on his face again when he saw his orderly uniform. Then, he continued to walk outside. Zu An even noticed that every single step he took was the exact same distance.

Soon afterwards, a jailer brought Zu An back to the prison room, where he sat there quietly pondering.

Things were getting more and more interesting. He had thought that the Jiang clan was an inseparable part of King Qi’s faction, but now, that might not necessarily be the case.

Perhaps the Jiang clan might be more partial toward King Qi normally, but in the end, Jiang Boyang had still chosen to deal with matters impartially. No wonder the emperor had agreed to putting him in charge of this case.

Furthermore, from what he had seen today regarding the relationship between the nine ministers, Zu An realized that he had misunderstood something.

The crown prince’s faction and King Qi’s faction looked irreconcilable from the outside, but they had many personal friendships between them. Perhaps there would be a chance to exploit this in the future…

Time quickly passed. The next morning arrived, unbeknownst to Zu An. A jailer came and said, “Sir Zu, someone has come to visit you.”