About an hour after Xie Ansheng tried the eighth prince Li Xian, the Great Zhou Emperor Li Ji, who was playing chess with Prime Minister Yingong in the Xiyuan Garden of the Imperial Palace, received the interrogation process of the case recorded by Zuo Cheng Zhou Yi from the Great Prison Temple.

In addition to Duke Yin, Duke Liang Qiu and Kong Wen of the Great Prison Temple were also here, and when they saw the Son of Heaven holding the transcript of the trial, they laughed, and everyone was quite puzzled.

After a long time, Li Ji, the Son of Heaven, nodded, and said with a smile, "Okay, okay, this Xie An does have some ability!" ”

Liang Qiugong, Yin Gong, and Kong Wen glanced at each other when they heard this, and they were a little anxious in their hearts, after all, Xie An was the junior they valued.

Needless to say, Duke Liang Qiu and Duke Yin are his second grandson-in-law, and for Kong Wen, an old man who no longer has any relatives, Xie An is the junior who inherits his mantle, and it is not an exaggeration to say that he takes care of Xie An as a grandchild, after all, he loves Xie An who values love and righteousness.

"That kid, didn't make any trouble, did you?" After all, it was Kong Wen who couldn't hold his breath and asked first.

"Hehehe......" Li Ji, the son of heaven, smiled, raised his hand and handed the chapter recording the trial process to Kong Wen, Kong Wen respectfully took it, took it carefully, only looked at the ground and smiled, nodding frequently and saying good.

"What's written on it?" may have known Kong Wen for a long time, and Liang Qiugong didn't care about anything, so he hurriedly snatched the piece in his hand and watched it with Yingong.

Glancing at Liang Qiugong angrily, Kong Wen shook his head, and said to the Son of Heaven, "In the final analysis, it is Your Majesty's discerning eye, and when the old minister first saw this son, he couldn't see that this person had such ability...... Your Majesty is wise! ”

"Hahaha!" Li Ji, the son of heaven, laughed when he heard this, and then, the smile on his face gradually receded, stood up, and looked at the willow tree with the first buds in the distance with his hands behind his back. Said melancholy, "I ...... I don't believe that the eighth child would do such a thing......"

At this time, Liang Qiugong and Yingong had already roughly watched the interrogation process, and when they heard what the Son of Heaven Li Ji said, Liang Qiugong smiled and said, "Your Majesty, rest assured, that kid will definitely try his best to wash away the stigma for His Royal Highness Li Xian......"

"Of course that kid will," Li Ji, the Son of Heaven, smiled and said bitterly. "The beauty of the eighth adult, giving up the woman who has been longing for many years to that kid, how much favor is this?"

Although the Son of Heaven was joking, there was no light-hearted tone in his tone.

See here. Yin Gong stepped forward and said softly with relief, "Didn't Your Majesty expect this kind of thing?" ”

Hearing this, the Son of Heaven Li Ji opened his mouth, looked at Yingong blankly for a while, nodded and laughed at himself, "Yes." The message is right! - In the royal family, the most people in the same room and cannibalism are such things, I have long expected them......" Speaking of which. He sighed and said bitterly, "As a father, I should stop it." But as a monarch, I can only stand by and watch......"

Liang Qiugong, Yin Gong, and Kong Wen were silent when they heard this.

They knew the meaning of the words of Li Ji, the Son of Heaven. It's nothing more than that this son of heaven can't meddle in the fight between the sons, in the final analysis, there is not much difference between the princes and the Southern Barbarians raising Gu, survival of the fittest, weak flesh and strong food, only the strongest prince is qualified to shoulder the Great Zhou Dynasty, and the rest is just a stepping stone on his way to the throne.

What a bloody truth?

Looking at the willow tree in the distance and standing for a long time, Li Jichang, the son of heaven, sighed and muttered, "Everyone in the world is very intelligent, but this time, the prince's city is not shallow...... I am both happy and sad to give birth to such capable sons......"

"Your Majesty......"

"Eighth child, after all, the gentleman is too heavy, it is not as ruthless as the prince, this time he was framed like this, I am afraid it will be difficult to turn over......"

As if he heard the unbearable words of the Son of Heaven Li Ji, Liang Qiugong persuaded softly, "Your Majesty, don't worry too much, take care of the dragon's body...... According to the granddaughter of the old minister's knees, this time, the grandson-in-law of the old minister will definitely protect His Royal Highness Li Xian......"

"Hehehehe......" The Son of Heaven Li Ji smiled slightly, without commenting on praise or criticism, looking at his expression, he didn't seem to care about Li Xian's life and death, but only the three old men who saw him and revealed their true feelings did they know the hidden secrets.

The matter of seizing the heir is the most dangerous, and it is also the most bloody and tearful......

"Come, keep playing chess! - Which Aiqing is in turn? Oh, by the way, forget about Kong Aiqing......"

When Kong Wen heard this, he deliberately blew his beard and glared, and said dissatisfiedly, "Your Majesty said this, the old minister doesn't like to hear it!" ——Lao Chen has been practicing hard these days, and his chess skills have made great progress! ”

Knowing the courtier's good intentions, the Son of Heaven laughed, pretended to be surprised and said, "Oh? Is there such a thing? - In this way, I don't want to see if Kong Aiqing has made great progress! - Please! ”

"Your Majesty, please!"

- At the same time, the Great Prison Temple -

After the preliminary trial of Li Xian, Wen Qin escorted Ji Hong from Guanglu Temple to the Great Prison Temple according to the agreement, and saw that Ji Hong was covered with bruises, most of which had been beaten several times, but looking at Ji Hong's complexion, there should be no big problem.

This is also thanks to Wen Qin's presence in the Great Prison Temple this morning, and he has never returned to Guanglu Temple, otherwise, Ji Hong is afraid that he will have to shed his skin if he does not die.

The arraignment of Ji Hong was still in the Great Prison Temple, and the hall was still set up as when Li Xian was interrogated, but this time, Xie An did not ask too many questions, but invited Meng Rang, the imperial historian of the Imperial Historical Observatory, and Wen Qin, the Qing of Guanglu Temple, to interrogate together.

After all, since last night to early this morning, Ji Hong has been with Xie An, Liang Qiuwu, Xun Zheng and others, so that Xie An and others are not easy to ask, so as not to be caught by the crown prince Li Wei's side, saying that he intends to protect the criminals.

Don't think that the people on the prince's side won't do this, they even dare to frame and frame Li Xian, the dignified Eight Sages King, and still care about Xie An?

It is worth mentioning that maybe he had some doubts about Li Xian's smudged underwear, Wen Qin seemed much calmer this time than before, and did not beat Ji Hong to vent his anger like he had beaten Li Xian before, which made Xie An a little surprised.

“…… Returning to all the adults, the villain is finished, if there is a lie, heaven and man will poke together! It took more than half an hour for Ji Hong to tell everything he knew.

Imperial Historian Meng Rang was originally the person of the Eighth Emperor Li Xian, and he was eager to clear his name for Li Xian, and now he was appointed by Xie An as the interrogator of this hall, so he naturally cherished this opportunity, therefore. When Ji Hong finished speaking, he took the lead in asking, "Ji Hong, you keep saying that you didn't commit murder in Baihualou last night, is there any evidence?" ”

"Yes!" Ji Hong nodded, arched his hand and said, "According to the testimony of the wine concubines in Baihualou, the murderer committed murder at two o'clock, but at that time. Zai Xia is waiting with Xie Shaoqing, Xun Qing and Xie Shaoqing in the Great Prison Temple to find news from the Eastern Army looking for His Royal Highness Li Xian, how can they kill those women? ”

Meng Rang was overjoyed when he heard this, looked back at Xie An and Xun Zheng and said, "Lord Tingwei, Lord Weiwei." What the suspect said, but is it true? ”

Xie An and Xun Zheng nodded.

Seeing this, Meng Rang was about to speak, when he suddenly heard Xu Zhi, the secretary of the ministry, say in a strange voice, "Doctor Meng's words are inappropriate!" -- Xie Shaoqing and Master Xun are the presiding judges and jurors in this case, and according to our Da Zhou criminal law, they are not allowed to testify on behalf of others. lest the trial be unfair......"

As soon as the words fell, Sun Xiangyu, the eldest in the auditorium, stood up and chuckled, "What about the slave family?" - The slave family and the dancing sister are neither the chief judge of the court. is not a juror, can he testify for Ji Hong? ”

Originally, it seemed that the eldest grandson Xiangyu interjected rashly, and like a juror like Xu Zhi. has the right to drive out the eldest grandson Xiangyu for the crime of disturbing the court, but Xie An, the presiding judge who is not easy to mess with, is here. No one dared to object to this.

In the end, Xie An felt that something was wrong, slapped the shocked wood, and said embarrassedly, "That...... Who is the noisy person in the hall? ”

Although everyone knew that this was a routine matter, everyone in the hall still felt amused when they heard Xie An's question.

There are husband and wife, and they ask who the woman is?

Rao is eldest grandson Xiangyu also felt funny, forced to hold back the smile in his heart, walked to the hall with broken steps, winked at Xie An, and said with a flattering face, "Master Mingjian, the little woman has the surname of the eldest grandson, and her name is Xiangyu ......."

I have to say that the eldest grandson Xiangyu's flattering eyes made Xie An really unbearable, coughed, and gestured to the imperial historian Meng Rang with his eyes.

Meng Rang understood, got up and arched his hand to the eldest grandson Xiangyu, then sat down again, and asked, "Miss eldest grandson, this official asked you, what Ji Hong said just now, but is it true?" ”

Deliberately teasing Xie An with his gaze, the eldest grandson Xiangyu giggled, nodded and said, "Every word is true!" ”

The implication is that Miss Changsun can testify on behalf of the suspect that the person who killed a woman in the Qinglou in the Baihua Building was not Ji Hong, and the murderer ordered someone else...... Can? ”

"Naturally!" The eldest grandson, Xiangyu, smiled and bowed his head.

Meng Rang nodded when he heard this, looked back at Xie An and said, "Chief Judge Qi, the lower officials think that there are many suspicious points in this case!" ——As Ji Hong said, he didn't go back with His Royal Highness Li Xian last night, and although His Royal Highness Li Xian said that Ji Hong has always been with him, the lower officials decided that there must be a thief who pretended to be Ji Hong, deceived His Royal Highness Li Xian, and committed these two murder cases, in order to blame His Royal Highness Li Xian's master and servant! - The lower official finished speaking......"

"What do you think about this?" Xie An questioned the seven jurors.

As soon as the words fell, Xu Zhi sneered and said lightly, "Absurd! ”

The eldest grandson Xiangyu's eyes narrowed when he heard this, and he said unhappily, "What does Xu Shangshu mean is that the little woman intends to shield people?" ”

Xu Zhi's face was stunned when he heard this, how could he not know the ability of the woman eldest grandson Xiangyu, if he was hated by this woman, it would really be not enough for ten lives, but then again, he was always the juror of the case, and the eldest grandson Xiangyu was just an observer, how could he show weakness?

And Xie An obviously knew this powerful relationship, and he was shocked and scolded, "Above the court, no noise!" - Now that you've finished asking, stand down! ”

It's not that Xie An helped Xu Zhi out of the siege, the problem is that Xu Zhi, as a juror this time, has a lot of power, if he is ruthless, the governor Sun Xiangyu will be guilty of contempt of the court, and he will give her twenty battles, Xie An will not even have a reason to stop it.

In the future, the eldest grandson Xiangyu will take revenge on Xu Zhi in the future and not to mention, just for now, Xie An doesn't want his beloved woman to suffer from this flesh and skin for no reason, so he pretended to scold and asked the eldest grandson Xiangyu to return to the auditorium, which seems to be giving Xu Zhi a step down, but in fact, it is just to protect the eldest grandson Xiangyu.

"Shh The eldest grandson Xiangyu pursed her lips secretly, and glanced at Xie An as if she was resentful, but with her wisdom, she obviously knew the stakes of this matter, so she didn't say anything more, and obediently returned to the auditor seat and sat down.

Seeing the eldest grandson Xiangyu obediently go back, Xie An breathed a sigh of relief and saw all this. Ruan Shaozhou smiled slightly, continued Xie An's questioning, and said, "This official thinks that what Dr. Meng said is extremely true, and there are indeed many doubts in this case!" ”

"This government seconded it!" Weiwei Siqing Xun Zheng also said helpfully.

Since then, regarding the question of whether Li Xian and Ji Hong are guilty, the entire eight trial officials have their own opinions. Among them, Li Zhao, the secretary of Zongzheng Temple, Wen Qin, the secretary of Guanglu Temple, Chu Xi, a scholar of the Diange University, and Xu Zhi, the secretary of the Ministry of Officials, insisted that Li Xian and Ji Hong's master and servant were responsible, while Xie An, as well as Xun Zheng, the secretary of the Weiwei Temple, Meng Rang, the imperial historian, and Ruan Shaozhou, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, were skeptical about this.

I have to say. If it weren't for Xie An being the chief judge this time, I am afraid that he would not be able to wait for the second trial of Li Xian.

Perhaps, this is also the reason why Li Ji, the son of heaven, appointed Xie An to preside over this case, in order to balance the forces of the two sides, neither the crown prince Li Wei nor the eighth prince Li Xian.

It was finally delayed until lunchtime. Xie An dismissed the court, and ordered Ji Hong to be temporarily imprisoned in the Great Prison Temple, and then instructed the officials in the official office to prepare meals. entertaining these big figures who are jurors and observers, after all, Li Xian will be tried again in the afternoon.

While eating, Xie An noticed that there was something wrong with the expression of Guanglu Temple Qing Wenqin, and sometimes looked at the table of the crown prince Li Wei and the fifth prince Li Cheng with strange eyes. Seeing this, Xie Anxin knew his name. This Wen Qin, most of whom was suspicious of the crown prince Li Wei and his brothers after listening to the confessions of Li Xian and Ji Hong.

Therefore, Xie An sat quietly beside Wen Qin with the dishes and chopsticks, and asked intentionally or unintentionally, "Isn't Lord Wen thinking that the food in my Great Prison Temple is not delicious?" ”

At that time, Wen Qin was staring at the prince Li Wei and others who were laughing at another table with suspicious eyes, and suddenly heard Xie An's question, he was stunned for a moment, and then he came to his senses, barely showed a smile, shook his head and said, "Xie Shaoqing misunderstood, this mansion is just thinking about something that doesn't matter......

"For example, His Royal Highness Li Xian's motive for killing Brother Ling?" Xie An said with a smile.

"What?" Wen Qin was stunned and looked at Xie An in confusion.

Seeing this, Xie An smiled slightly, lowered his voice and said, "Indeed! ——His Royal Highness Li Xian lost the bet with the official, was depressed, went to Baihualou to get drunk, and then went to Lingdi's mansion to drink, got drunk, and killed someone...... It makes sense! - It's just a bit far-fetched, isn't it? - Getting drunk doesn't necessarily mean you miss someone, does it? ”

"......" glanced at Xie An deeply, Wen Qin frowned and said, "Xie Shaoqing's words mean something......

"Hehehe," seeing that Wen Qin seemed to have heard something, Xie An no longer beat around the bush, and said in a low voice, "Actually, in this kind of case, if you want to find the real murderer, you just need to speculate on his motives...... Master Wen thinks that who will profit the most because of this incident? ”

Wen Qin subconsciously glanced in the direction of the two brothers of the crown prince Li Wei, frowned and said, "Impossible!" ”

"That's ......" Xie An thought for a moment and said in a low voice, "In this Jijing, Master Wen has heard of any alien who is proficient in disguise techniques?" ”

"......" Wen Qin's face changed slightly when he heard this, he opened his mouth, and after looking at Xie An deeply for a long time, he frowned and said, "This mansion doesn't know what Lord Xie is talking about!" ”

Hearing this, Xie An's face turned straight, and he lowered his voice and said, "Actually, Master Wen already has some clues in his heart, right?" - Do you really not know the truth, or are you afraid to learn the truth? ”

"Xie Shaoqing!" Wen Qin's eyes narrowed, and there was a bit of anger in his eyes.

Seeing this, Xie An knew that if he continued to talk about it, he was afraid that Wen Qin would turn his face on the spot, thought about it, and said, "I heard that in the Wen family, the only thing that General Wen Dong has not severed the relationship with is Lord Wen's brother, General Wen Dong, who really trusts Lord Wen......" Saying that, Xie An patted Wen Qin's shoulder, stood up, and returned to his seat with dishes and chopsticks.

Looking at Xie An's departing back, and then at his nephew Wen Qiu, who was lowering his head and picking up rice next to him, Wen Qin silently picked up the teacup and took a sip, and glanced deeply at the crown prince Li Wei at the other table.

The eldest grandson, Xiangyu, obviously noticed Xie An's actions, and when he saw him coming back with dishes and chopsticks, he lowered his voice and asked, "How?" ”

Xie An shook his head and said, "Looking at his appearance, it seems that he doesn't know...... Oh, by the way, he seems to be beginning to suspect that it was the crown prince Li Wei......"

Hearing this, the eldest grandson Xiangyu frowned and said, "In short, we must first find a time to wash up the evidence for the crybaby...... Ann, you have to think of a way, the second trial in the afternoon, and delay it again! ”

Xie An nodded, and then asked Fei Guo and the others to prepare the meal, and then called Wen Qin, Meng Rang and others to go and deliver the meal for Li Xian, after all, Xie An didn't want Wen Qin to suspect that he was having an affair with Li Xian.

In this way, a group of people came to the prison in the Great Prison Temple, and saw that Xie An personally came to deliver food for the eighth prince Li Xian, and the jailer guarding outside the prison was stunned, and said in confusion, "Didn't the lord have asked someone to deliver food to His Royal Highness Li Xian just now?" ”

"When?" Xie An's face was inexplicable.

"It's just now, probably a hundred rest......"

"Huh?" Xie An was stunned, looking back at the generals behind him, all the generals looked at each other and shook their heads.

Suddenly, Xie Anxin chuckled, secretly screaming that something was wrong, pushed away those jailers, and ran to the airtight stone prison in the depths in a few steps.

"Your Excellency!" A jailer guarding outside the stone cell knelt down and saluted Xie An.

But at the moment, where could Xie An still take care of him, under the puzzled eyes of Wen Qin, Meng Rang and the generals of the family, he knocked on the iron door of the stone prison, and shouted, "His Royal Highness Li Xian? His Royal Highness Li Xian? ”

After shouting a few times and not responding, Xie An's face changed greatly, and he reprimanded repeatedly, "Quick, open the stone prison quickly!" ”

"Yes!" When the jailer heard this, he hurriedly opened the iron door of the stone prison locked with iron cables.

As soon as the iron door opened, Xie An and the others hurriedly rushed in, and when they saw the scene inside the prison, their faces changed greatly.

I saw that the throat of the eighth prince was cut by a sharp blade, and he fell to the ground, and the throat wound was bubbling with bubbles, and his whole body was twitching.

In his right hand, he held a dagger covered in blood......

Damn it!

With a curse in his heart, Xie An stepped forward a few steps, pressed Li Xian's neck with both hands, turned around and shouted, "Quick! Bring gauze, honey, and rice milk! - In addition, call the imperial doctor of the Tai Hospital to come over, right away! ”

"Yes!" was drunk by Xie An, and the generals reacted and hurriedly ran out of the prison.

Looking at Li Xian, who was in danger due to poor breathing, Xie Anxin secretly blamed himself for his negligence.

In addition to blaming himself, Xie An did not forget to look at this airtight stone prison, but unfortunately, except for him and Li Xian, there was no one else in the prison......