"I... this..." Eunuch Qiang was momentarily speechless.
At this, Ye Qingcheng raised an eyebrow and looked at Eunuch Qiang smugly, "So? If you really heard me talking to the Nine-Tailed Fox, then you are also something unclean. If you say you didn't hear it, then you shouldn't wrongly accuse me."
Shangguan Hong, hidden in the shadows, curled his lips and snorted, "Not bad."
Meanwhile, Eunuch Qiang was speechless for a long time. His face turned red, and he stammered, unable to speak.
The Prefect of the Capital glanced at him listlessly, "Eunuch Qiang, say something. What you just said, you weren't lying to this official, were you?"
Eunuch Qiang was startled, "Absolutely not!"
"Then explain how you heard the voice of that Nine-Tailed Fox?" Ye Qingcheng asked again.
"This, this..." Eunuch Qiang was cornered and his mind raced. He said, "This cannot be explained clearly, but it only means that you cannot be identified as a demoness. Your killing of that family outside the city is irrefutable evidence. I believe the Prefect's discernment is sharp and he will not let any murderer go unpunished."
"That is indeed very true," the Prefect nodded with satisfaction.
Now, it was Ye Qingcheng's turn to be speechless.
She indeed had no way to prove that she hadn't killed those people, and all the evidence that had appeared so far pointed the finger at her without exception.
On the other hand, the only person she could count on, Xiao Wangye, seemed to have disappeared.
Ye Qingcheng felt a little dejected. She lowered her head, refusing to speak further.
The Prefect continued, "Ye Qingcheng, you are implicated in the case of murder and heart extraction outside the city. The evidence is conclusive. I hereby sentence you to temporary detention in prison, and you will be beheaded at noon five days from now!"
To Ye Qingcheng's surprise, the onlookers outside erupted in cheers, even applauding as if a great sinner or criminal had truly been executed.
Ye Qingcheng was escorted into the prison by several guards. It was the same old place; she could practically recognize the way herself.
"Why aren't you resisting like last time?" one of the guards couldn't help but say as he locked the cell door.
"Huh? Are you talking about me?" Ye Qingcheng blinked and looked up at him.
"Who else would I be talking about? You were locked up here last time too, weren't you? You said it wasn't you then," the guard replied.
Ye Qingcheng sighed, "You wouldn't understand."
Before, it was because she knew Xiao Wangye would definitely come to save her. But this time, as she was being taken away, he had only shown a look of indifference, saying nothing and doing nothing.
Without Xiao Wangye, and with the Prefect above absolutely convinced she was the killer, and with her spiritual power gone, her escape routes were almost completely blocked.
She believed she had no other way but death, so what was the point of struggling?
Therefore, she gave up.
As Ye Qingcheng leaned against the wall contemplating life, the guard who had originally locked her in the cell returned, opened the cell door, and said, "Your luck is truly amazing."
"Didn't the Prefect say you would be beheaded in a few days? What's this? You can't resort to torture, can you!" Ye Qingcheng said righteously.
"Miss, you are overthinking things. We would not resort to torture, especially since you are a woman," the guard said with a smile.
"Then what's going on?" she asked with a bewildered expression.
The guard smiled and said, "It's like this, a man who claimed to be the murderer just came to surrender himself, saying he was the one who killed those people outside the city. After an interrogation, the Prefect determined that it was indeed his doing, and you, Miss, are innocent."
Ye Qingcheng frowned and couldn't help but mutter, "Why is this happening so coincidentally?"
"Stop talking. This cell is not suitable for a lady like you. Hurry up and get out. A young master is waiting for you outside the door," the guard said.
"Then... thank you."
Ye Qingcheng sincerely thanked him, smiled, and walked towards the outside of the prison gate.
To her surprise, the person waiting outside the gate was not the one she had hoped to see, but Shangguan Hong.
Shangguan Hong stood outside the prison gate, bathed in the brilliant golden sunlight, which made him somewhat dazzling.
He looked at the somewhat haggard Ye Qingcheng before him, as if he had something more to say to her. However, upon seeing him, she seemed a little disappointed, and he didn't know what to say.
For a moment, Shangguan Hong also hesitated.
Ye Qingcheng narrowed her eyes and shifted her gaze away from him.
"Young Master Shangguan, why are you the one to pick me up?" she asked.
Shangguan Hong smiled and said, "Naturally it's me. Didn't I tell you? With me around, Miss Qingcheng can avoid a lot of torment and suffering. I will protect you."
She shrugged, "I wasn't encountering any torment or suffering in the first place. Thank you for your concern, Young Master."
She had expected to see Xiao Wangye, so when she realized the person waiting for her outside the gate was not whom she had in mind, she couldn't help but feel a little unhappy.
At the same time, she couldn't help but wonder, why didn't he come?
"By the way, Miss Qingcheng, do you know why you were released from this prison?" Shangguan Hong broke the silence, finding a casual topic.
"Yes, the real killer came to confess his crime," she replied absentmindedly, glancing around as she spoke.
Shangguan Hong could vaguely guess the reason for her distraction. If it wasn't related to Xiao Wangye, what else could it be?
He felt displeased, but his expression did not betray it.
"It seems someone spoke. That man said he was an old acquaintance of the family, but they had a dispute over land. He went to their house to reason with them, but was instead insulted by his friend. In a fit of rage, he developed murderous intent. As for the act of extracting the heart... he said it was a momentary impulse, and he himself couldn't explain why."
As he spoke, he observed Ye Qingcheng's expression inadvertently.
As expected, Ye Qingcheng listened intently and frowned, falling into a brief moment of thought.
This so-called murderer seemed a bit strange. Ye Qingcheng, relying on her intuition, could vaguely guess that there was something unusual about this person's identity, meaning he might not be the so-called killer at all.
Thinking this, she glanced at Shangguan Hong.
In that fleeting glance, Ye Qingcheng saw Shangguan Hong's slightly upturned lips.
He was smiling, and it seemed to be a rather smug smile. This smile lasted only a very short time, and perhaps even Shangguan Hong himself didn't notice it.
But Ye Qingcheng saw it.
Her brow furrowed even tighter. Vaguely, Ye Qingcheng suspected that this so-called murderer might have been sent by Shangguan Hong.
She could actually feel a certain affection from Shangguan Hong towards her. For him to do something like this to save her, it would be a lie to say she wasn't moved at all.