Evidence, What Crime Is It to Slander Ninth Royal Uncle

The greed in the Emperor's eyes was so obvious that Serena would have to be blind not to notice. He wanted to snatch away this command medallion just as he once seized the Phoenix Empress Hairpin. The Emperor was dreaming—she’d only let him get away with that kind of thing once, never again.

Serena gripped the command medallion and stepped back, her face wary. "Emperor, this medallion in my hand is absolutely genuine. I promised Ninth Royal Uncle that when he returns, I’ll give it back to him. He also said that, unlike the Phoenix Empress Hairpin, this medallion doesn’t need to be enshrined before the memorial tablets of the late Emperor and Empress."

Serena’s words were so blunt that even the Emperor’s thick skin couldn’t hold up in front of all the ministers. He coughed awkwardly, unable to hide his embarrassment.

"Since the medallion is real, let’s leave it at that." As Emperor, he had to maintain his dignity. No matter how much he wanted to snatch the medallion from Serena, he couldn’t show it at this moment.

"Thank you, Your Majesty." Serena bowed again and, right in front of the Emperor, hung the medallion back around her neck.

The Lyndarian envoys, seeing Serena was prepared, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. They’d much rather deal with the Emperor of Eastlyn than take the trouble of escorting Serena back to Lyndaria.

Unable to get the medallion, the Emperor wouldn’t let Serena off easily. He went straight to the point: "Serena, I summoned you to the palace today to question you about the tragic death of the Princess Consort of Chun."

"The Princess Consort of Chun’s tragic death? What does that have to do with me?" Serena once again played the innocent.

In truth, she really was innocent. Everyone here knew it better than ghosts, yet they all lied with open eyes, trying to pin the crime on her. Shameless, every last one of them.

For something like this, the Emperor just needed to set the stage—he didn’t have to get his own hands dirty. Once he’d opened, the Minister of Justice took over, saying, "How is it unrelated to you? Everyone knows you and the Princess Consort of Chun had a falling out. You caused her to miscarry before; now that she’s dead, you can’t escape responsibility."

"I caused the Princess Consort of Chun to miscarry? Sir, I don't understand what you're saying. When was the Princess Consort ever pregnant?" Serena kept playing dumb, and the Lyndarian envoy, seeing this, silently cursed that things were going wrong.

Sure enough, the Minister of Justice said, "On the day your parents were buried, the Princess Consort of Chun kindly attended the funeral, but you insulted her repeatedly, forcing her to kneel and apologize to you, which caused her to miscarry on the spot."

"The day my parents were buried? I remember that was last winter, and the Princess Consort of Chun only married Prince Chase this spring. How could she have had a child? How could she have miscarried? Sir... you'd better watch your words. If word gets out that the Princess Consort was pregnant before marriage and brought someone else's child into Prince Chase's house, won't Prince Chase become a laughingstock?" Serena knew they had no real evidence and were just using her old feud with Princess Yara as leverage.

If that's all they've got, she wasn't afraid at all.

"I'm an insider? What insider am I? Sir, could you be more clear? I'm not that smart, I don't get it." Serena closed her eyes, looking thoroughly impatient. "Sir, stop dredging up old stories to make things up. You say I'm involved in the Princess Consort of Chun's death—how exactly am I involved?"

Serena’s sarcastic, confrontational tone remained. "What exactly am I supposed to know, sir? If you want to accuse me, at least make sense."

No longer entangled in the miscarriage issue, both the Eastlyn and Lyndarian sides breathed a sigh of relief—after all, that kind of scandal was too humiliating.

The Minister of Justice wiped the cold sweat from his brow and continued, "Serena Feng, you had motive to kill the Princess Consort of Chun, you had reason, and you have the skills. That day at the city gate, you took down over ten strong men, so you clearly have the ability to kill her."

"So, just based on that, you all believe I killed the Princess Consort of Chun?" Serena asked, laughing.

If you're going to fake a case, at least be professional about it—get some witnesses, some hard evidence, so I can't talk my way out.

"Of course not. We also found Princess Yara's suicide note and one of your surgical instruments in her room." The Minister of Justice looked smug as he had the eunuch bring forth the evidence.

A letter and a bloodstained scalpel.

No need to even look at the letter—it's easy enough to forge something like that. As for the scalpel, Serena really couldn't remember ever losing one...

Seeing Serena momentarily distracted, the Minister of Justice grew smug. "Serena Feng, do you admit your guilt?"

"Admit guilt? Admit what guilt?" Serena pointed at the items on the tray, her voice cold and mocking. "Just these two things, and you're certain I killed Princess Yara? Sir... why don't you try it yourself? Unless you cut the throat with this tiny scalpel, no matter how you stab, it wouldn't kill someone instantly. And Princess Yara had guards—it's not like they'd just stand there." Meaning, if she wanted to kill with that scalpel, it would be impossible.

Such a tiny scalpel!

"I never said Princess Yara died by this scalpel," the Minister of Justice replied, feigning depth and wisdom.

"Then how did Princess Yara die?" Serena asked, genuinely curious.

"Poison. Princess Yara died of poisoning, and the one who poisoned her was you, Serena Feng. You held a grudge over her ruining your engagement and reputation, so you secretly plotted to take her life."

The Minister of Justice spoke with absolute certainty, then painted the crime scene: "On the day of the incident, Princess Yara met you in private. You seized the opportunity and poisoned her. The poor princess only wanted your forgiveness, but you, with a heart as venomous as a snake, used the moment to kill her."

He spoke as if he'd witnessed it himself.

Clap, clap, clap... Serena applauded several times. "Brilliant, truly brilliant! I never knew you could write plays, Sir. This script is impressive—too bad you have no real evidence."

A private meeting means no witnesses. As for poison... she's a doctor; no one would believe she couldn't get her hands on it.

Not bad for a fake case—they've considered every possibility.

"This scalpel and Princess Yara's suicide note are the evidence. Serena Feng, you are the murderer—confess!" The Minister of Justice bellowed, putting on an air of righteousness.

Usually, when he used this trick, guilty or not, suspects would be scared into confessing. Unfortunately...

Serena didn't care at all. She stepped forward, fiddling with the scalpel on the tray, a cold glint in her eyes. "Sir... whose blood is on this scalpel?"

"Of course it's Princess Yara's," the Minister replied without hesitation.

"Is that so?" Serena flicked the scalpel onto the floor. The droplets of blood splattered, bursting instantly...

The crowd jumped in fright. The chief eunuch stepped forward to scold Serena for her insolence, but Serena raised her voice even louder: "Sir, next time you fake evidence, at least put in some effort. Princess Yara has been dead for days—if this scalpel really had her blood, it would've dried long ago. How could it still be so fresh? As for the suicide note..."

Serena grabbed the suicide note and slapped it against the Minister of Justice's face. "If you died, Sir, I could have someone write as many notes as you wanted. For all your illegitimate children and mistresses outside, I'd send each a unique version—no need to repeat myself."

"Serena Feng, how dare you!" The Minister's face twisted with rage at being humiliated in public. "Serena Feng, you slander a court official—do you know what crime that is?"

"Then what crime is it to slander Ninth Royal Uncle?" Serena shot back, undaunted, her momentum undiminished...