After the milk ball arrived, the father who had no heirs had a string of good luck.

Prince Chen refused to budge: "Mother, why are you in such a hurry? The matter has already happened, so why not find out the reason? If this dancer has any misunderstanding about the Crown Prince, it would be good to clear it up in time."

"Very well, I will listen to your advice!" The emperor, who was just worried about not being able to find fault with the crown prince, sat on the high seat, and all the civil and military officials calmed down.

The grand birthday banquet instantly turned into an interrogation scene.

The emperor raised his hand and said, "Speak, tell me everything. I want to hear why you tried to assassinate the crown prince, and why you insulted him after the plot was exposed."

Tears welled in the dancer's eyes. Now that things had come to this, she no longer hid the truth and recounted everything in detail: "My daughter is Liang, named Aning. I lost both my parents when I was young and lived with my older sister and brother-in-law. However, our family was poor, and my sister had to support me and pay for my brother-in-law's education, so she entered the Baixiang Pavilion to sing."

"Bai Xiang Lou?" Prince Rui frowned slightly. "Isn't that a brothel?"

"Yes... Although my sister was trapped in the mire, she always thought of my brother-in-law, and only sold her art, not her body. My brother-in-law knew her hardships and never despised her. He only wanted her to pass the imperial examinations as soon as possible so that my sister could enjoy a better life. Who knew..."

At this point, Liang Aning looked at the Crown Prince with resentment: "Who knew that my brother-in-law would fail the imperial examinations time and time again? At first, he thought it was because he wasn't knowledgeable enough, so he studied even harder. But this year, when he failed again, he learned by chance that his exam paper had been used by the second-place candidate in this year's examination, a guy named He Yaozu!"

He, who had been keeping a low profile, turned pale and lowered her head even further.

"Nonsense!" A flicker of panic crossed the Crown Prince's eyes. "I have always been in charge of the provincial examinations. How could I possibly deceive my superiors and do something so absurd? Don't you dare make false accusations!"

"Hahaha..." Liang Aning laughed mockingly, "Your Highness the Crown Prince is truly eloquent. Unfortunately, my brother-in-law investigated thoroughly and obtained evidence, but before he could even go to the palace to lodge a complaint, he drowned in the moat. The Shuntian Prefecture said he drank too much and accidentally fell in—how could that be? My brother-in-law never drank a drop of alcohol, how could he have been drinking? My sister, upon learning of his death, was devastated and, taking advantage of my inattention, also threw herself into the river. You, Situ Xiao, you killed my sister and brother-in-law, you ruined my family!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Prince Rui was in charge of Shuntian Prefecture, and when he heard that this matter had involved his territory, he immediately objected: "Don't talk nonsense. I have never heard of such a thing in Shuntian Prefecture under my jurisdiction."

Liang Aning smiled sadly: "Of course I trust His Highness Prince Rui, but can His Highness guarantee that your men will only listen to you?"

"This..." Prince Rui choked.

With so many people in Shuntian Prefecture, he certainly couldn't guarantee it!

"Nonsense! This is slander! Slander!" The Crown Prince became agitated upon hearing there was evidence: "Father, how dare a lowly servant girl slander me? Her crime deserves death!"

"That's right!" The Empress echoed calmly, "Any Tom, Dick, or Harry dares to accuse the Crown Prince, and will attempt assassination at the slightest disagreement. This lowly servant's words cannot be trusted."

"He Yaozu? Isn't he the nephew of the Lady of Yong'an Marquis?" Tang Rui tilted her head and asked curiously.

When her name was called, Ms. He shrank back in fright, her face turning even paler.

Tang Rui then looked at Liang Aning: "Hey, big sister, you said you have evidence, where's the evidence?"

The Crown Prince angrily retorted, "Zhaohua, shut up! You have no right to speak here!"

Tang Rui, startled, hid behind her father, only sticking her head out: "I was just curious, Uncle Crown Prince, why are you in such a hurry?"

"The evidence is here!"

As Liang Aning reached into her robes, the Empress suddenly shouted, "Watch out! She has hidden weapons!"

Upon hearing this, the Imperial Guards who had been guarding Liang Aning didn't even have time to look closely and reflexively swung their swords at Liang Aning's head.

Just as Liang Aning was about to die on the spot, Situ Che appeared like a ghost next to the Imperial Guard and grabbed his wrist in time.

At this moment, Liang Aning also took out a notebook, which was not a hidden weapon at all.

The Imperial Guard who had nearly killed someone in the palace turned pale and quickly knelt down: "Your Majesty, please forgive me, this humble servant..."

"I know!" The emperor glanced coldly at the empress, noticing the disappointment in her eyes that she hadn't yet managed to conceal.

Oh…

This woman is getting bolder and bolder; she actually dared to kill someone in front of him and all the civil and military officials to silence them.

The emperor turned his gaze to Chen Defu: "Bring me that manuscript."

"Yes!" Chen Defu quickly went down and personally presented the letter.

The emperor opened the letter, and his gaze froze instantly.

The first page shows a name written in blood, along with the year the person took the imperial examination and how they ultimately failed.

Further down the list, the same thing happened. Some students even persisted, feeling they shouldn't have failed the exam, and secretly investigated, which ultimately brought disaster upon their entire families.

Moreover, several letters written in blood were also found in the journal; they were the last words of the students who had been silenced.

What the emperor found most unbelievable was that local officials in remote towns were openly buying and selling official positions.

All of this silver flowed into the Empress's palace through the Yong'an Marquis's residence!

Liang Aning kowtowed three times to the emperor, tears streaming down her face, "Your Majesty, please be wise! These are all scholars who participated in the imperial examinations, whose exam papers were taken by others, and who failed. My brother-in-law spent three years collecting this evidence, but unfortunately, he didn't even have time to present it to Your Majesty before... Waaah... I beg Your Majesty, please do justice for my brother-in-law, and for these countless scholars! They did nothing wrong; they only wanted to rise above their circumstances, to serve the court and Your Majesty. They shouldn't have ended up like this!"

The crown prince turned pale and his legs gave way, causing him to collapse to the ground.

Lady Yong'an felt her vision go black and was so frightened she almost fainted.

"emperor!"

He knows his own son best; the crown prince has essentially confessed without being asked.

The Empress could no longer remain calm and spoke urgently, "Perhaps this is a forgery. The Crown Prince is the most filial and obedient; how could he possibly do such a thing?"

"Look for yourself! After you've read it, tell me whether it's real or fake." The emperor ignored the empress and threw the notes in front of the crown prince.

As luck would have it, a gust of cold wind swept by, and the pages of the notebook turned rapidly. Each page seemed to contain a vengeful spirit with bared fangs, demanding the prince's life!

The crown prince screamed in fright and retreated repeatedly: "It wasn't me, it wasn't me! I've been framed! I didn't kill you! Don't come looking for me!"

Whether it was from being terrified or not, a liquid oozed from under the prince's buttocks, filling everyone's nostrils with a foul stench!

emperor:"…"

Civil and military officials: "..."

"Ew~" Tang Rui covered her nose, looking disgusted. "Uncle Crown Prince, Zhao Hua doesn't wet his pants anymore, why are you still wetting yours?"

The crown prince, filled with shame and anger, roared, "Shut up!"