"But I didn't kill anyone, I didn't." Ye Qingcheng shook her head.
"It's no use telling me this. Please, Miss Qingcheng, accompany me to the yamen. Once we're there, you'll have plenty of opportunities to explain yourself," he said.
After speaking, he turned to Xiao Wangye for his opinion. "Regent, do you object to me taking Miss Qingcheng with me?"
Ye Qingcheng also turned her head and glanced at Xiao Wangye.
Xiao Wangye, however, remained expressionless and said nothing.
Judging by his demeanor, he tacitly agreed to let the soldiers take her away.
She felt a prickling sensation in her eyes, as if her last hope had vanished. Her body felt hollowed out, and she staggered when she stood up, nearly falling.
If Xiao Wangye didn't believe her, she truly saw no reason to persevere.
"Miss Qingcheng, please."
Ye Qingcheng forced a bitter smile, stepped out of the pavilion, and left without looking back.
After she left, Xiao Wangye frowned, his gaze fixed on the direction of her departure. When no one was looking, he silently clenched his fist within his sleeve.
No one could decipher the expression on his face.
Ye Qingcheng entered the yamen for the second time. This time, she was forced to kneel before the Prefect and undergo a joint trial.
"Ye Qingcheng, do you confess to murdering the Zhao family?" the Prefect asked from his high seat, his tone laced with feigned authority.
Ye Qingcheng refused to bow her head, maintaining her proud posture. She raised her face to look at the Prefect. "I told you, I didn't kill anyone!"
The Prefect sneered. "We have witnesses and physical evidence, Ye Qingcheng. Are you still quibbling?"
As he spoke, someone carried forward the clothes Ye Qingcheng had worn when she left the Prince's manor.
Upon seeing the clothes, Ye Qingcheng's pupils dilated, leaving her speechless.
The clothes had been soaked in horse blood and human blood that day. Ye Qingcheng had hastily changed into another set and hidden the bloody ones in a cave. She had no idea how these people had found her clothing.
"These are the clothes you wore when committing the crime, aren't they?" the Prefect gloated, looking at her.
Ye Qingcheng bit her lip and continued, "It's just a piece of clothing. I said I didn't kill anyone!"
Seeing her stubbornness, the Prefect let out a cold snort. "Furthermore, we have eyewitnesses who can testify to your movements from the moment you left the Prince's manor until you entered that household. Ye Qingcheng, you cannot escape! If you do not confess quickly, be warned that I will resort to torture!"
She knitted her brows and scanned her surroundings.
"Ye Qingcheng, are you looking for your Regent?"
The Prefect sneered. "Last time, the evidence was insufficient. But this time, the evidence is conclusive. Even the Regent cannot save you! Moreover, it seems the Regent no longer wants you, especially after learning of your identity."
Ye Qingcheng glared fiercely at him. "Putting on an act! Tell me, what is my identity?"
"Still trying to quibble? Guards! Bring in the witness from the palace, Eunuch Qiang." The Prefect shouted loudly.
"A witness from the palace? Qiang, Eunuch Qiang?" She was startled.
A moment later, a eunuch, whose face seemed somewhat familiar, entered the court, bowed to the Prefect, and then stood beside Ye Qingcheng.
The Prefect said, "Eunuch Qiang, tell us what you witnessed."
Eunuch Qiang glanced at Ye Qingcheng, his expression betraying a hint of fear. "Reporting to your honor, a few days ago, Jiangxi presented a nine-tailed fox to His Majesty. His Majesty planned to use it for a ritual to pray for divine protection. On the day of the ritual, this Miss Qingcheng entered the palace with the Regent. However, instead of attending the ritual properly, she went off alone to see the nine-tailed fox hidden within the palace."
"Did she merely look at the nine-tailed fox?" The Prefect's eyes narrowed into slits as he smiled.
"This Miss Qingcheng, in that room, seemed to be conversing with the nine-tailed fox. And from the looks of it, quite earnestly," Eunuch Qiang said.
At this, Ye Qingcheng's eyes widened abruptly, and she looked at Eunuch Qiang in disbelief.
She had indeed spoken with the nine-tailed fox named Cai Wei in the palace. But how could anyone else know about this?
"Very well, the truth is now out," the Prefect declared. "Ye Qingcheng, you are a fox demon! You are the female ghost of Langshi Ridge, and the perpetrator of these murders!"
"Young Master, all arrangements have been made."
"Are you certain everything is in order?" His voice, unlike its usual gentleness, was calm and cool, with a hint of ruthlessness.
It was Shangguan Hong.
He stood in the shadows, in a place Ye Qingcheng could not see. In the court, almost no one noticed his presence, and even if someone did, they would only catch a glimpse of a blurred figure.
Hearing his question, the servant standing behind him chuckled. "Yes, there will be no problems. Eunuch Qiang has accepted the money, and we hold many of his secrets. If this matter isn't handled well, even if he doesn't die, his shameful secrets will be exposed, and he'd wish for death."
Shangguan Hong displayed a subtle, enigmatic smile, so faint it was almost imperceptible.
"After this is done, there will be ample rewards," Shangguan Hong spoke again.
At this moment, he was entirely unlike his usual persona as the Prince's strategist. He was calculating, confident of victory, and believed failure was impossible.
His gaze lingered on Ye Qingcheng, his eyes holding a hint of amusement and speculation.
He was genuinely curious about this woman's identity.
Meanwhile, Ye Qingcheng was completely unaware of any of this. Facing the so-called testimony of Eunuch Qiang, after a brief moment of surprise, she gradually regained her composure.
After all, she had lived for decades as Ye Qingcheng. Could such a situation truly stump her?
If she were to be defeated here, wouldn't she be ridiculed by those in the heavens?
After a moment of thought, Ye Qingcheng spoke, "You are Eunuch Qiang, correct?"
"Yes," Eunuch Qiang replied with a smile, believing victory was already in his grasp.
"Oh, Eunuch Qiang," Ye Qingcheng smiled back. "Actually, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you. They concern the matter of the nine-tailed fox."
Eunuch Qiang's expression changed slightly. He turned to the Prefect seated on the dais. "My Lord, what do you think about this..."
The Prefect shifted his posture with interest, becoming even more intrigued by the unfolding events. Disregarding Eunuch Qiang's hesitant expression, he said to Ye Qingcheng, "Continue. What questions do you have?"
Ye Qingcheng smiled and said, "It's like this. Earlier, Eunuch Qiang said he saw me conversing with the nine-tailed fox, which is quite strange."
She paused, then stood facing Eunuch Qiang and asked clearly, word by word, "Eunuch Qiang, if you could hear me conversing with the nine-tailed fox, then you must also be able to hear the fox's voice. It is strange, how can you hear a demon's voice?"