Your Highness, your wife has had her virginity mark applied and married someone else.

As the central court of judgment, the Dali Temple's temporary prison cells were also decorated with carvings of mythical beasts such as the Bi'an and Xiezhi.

Being stared at with angry glares, the atmosphere was gloomy, oppressive, and suffocating.

But what suffocated Shen Mingshu the most was Wei Ziye following behind her.

She stopped, turned around, and asked impatiently, "What are you doing following me?"

Wei Ziye said calmly, "Now that I have suppressed the case, I must provide a perfect answer. Otherwise, how can I explain it to the Empress Dowager?"

Shen Mingshu sneered: "Do the Imperial Guards even need to answer to the Empress Dowager?"

"The Emperor's benevolence and filial piety are a model for the world." Wei Zichen stared at Shen Mingshu and added meaningfully: "Not like someone else."

Shen Mingshu: "..."

Soldiers: "Young Master, Miss Shen the Fifth is almost here."

At the end of the passageway was an open space planted with towering ancient trees. The leaves rustled in the wind, and occasionally the sound of chains could be heard from the distant prison cells.

The officers and soldiers opened the prison cell.

Although Shen Yangjue was unharmed, her hair was disheveled, her clothes were dirty, and she was huddled on the straw bed in a sorry state. Her gorgeous clothes made her look even more like a madwoman.

Upon seeing Wei Ziye, she was initially delighted and stood up, hurriedly straightening her clothes. However, after Shen Mingshu followed her in, all her movements and expressions froze.

This look of bewildered flattery and uncontrollable resentment appeared on his face at the same time, a ferocious and awkward expression that successfully amused Shen Mingshu.

"Sister, there are no outsiders here, why are you pretending?"

"Shen Mingshu! What are you doing here!" Shen Yangjue finally couldn't control her resentment towards Shen Mingshu and coldly rebuked her.

Shen Mingshu glanced at Wei Zixie quietly, slightly curled her lips and said, "The case is under review."

"Guards, drag him to the torture chamber for treatment."

Shen Mingshu imitated Wei Ziye's speech, and the officers and soldiers first looked to Wei Ziye for instructions.

Before Wei Ziye could even nod, a shadow guard appeared silently, bypassed the soldiers, dragged Shen Yangjue, and took him to the torture chamber.

The officers and soldiers retreated in shock: "This...this—"

Wei Ziye was also caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the shadow guards. If they attacked, he could not guarantee that he would not be injured!

"Don't worry." Shen Mingshu looked at Wei Ziye, whose face was tense, with indifference: "He is considered half of the emperor's people, so it's not breaking the rules."

Wei Ziye was surprised that Lu Yanzhi would give the Shadow Guard to Shen Mingshu. After realizing that he was serious, his face darkened even more.

Shen Mingshu ignored him and ordered the shadow guards: "Shen Yangjue has repeatedly violated the law and disregarded the people's trust. Give her fifty lashes to teach her a lesson."

"Yes!" The shadow guard was fast; before Shen Yangjue could even shout, two whips had already struck her stomach.

"what!"

A scream rang out, and Shen Yangjue's clothes tore open, revealing her cracked skin underneath.

The officer's face paled, and he hurriedly advised, "Miss Shen, why don't I do it instead?"

One lash from the shadow guard is equivalent to five lashes from him. A strong man might still be breathing after fifty lashes, but Shen Yangjue would be crippled after fifty lashes, let alone the fact that it was the shadow guard who did it!

Shen Mingshu ignored the soldiers and turned to Wei Ziye, urging, "Ask away! What are you standing there for? Are you waiting for a corpse to give you an answer?"

Wei Ziye: "..."

"Shen Mingshu! You abused your power for personal gain! You used torture! I'm going to sue you... Ah!"

Shen Yangjue screamed and cursed as a whip lashed her cheek, causing it to bleed profusely and leaving her completely disfigured.

Shen Mingshu was quite satisfied with the shadow guards' method and decisiveness, and looked innocently at the soldiers: "Isn't it normal to give someone a good beating before starting a trial?"

The officers hesitated and said, "That...that might be a local government regulation."

"Really?" Shen Mingshu raised an eyebrow in realization. "So I should have gone directly to the Dali Temple to sue her for grinding my mother's bones to ashes?"

Wei Ziye's heart skipped a beat, a bitter taste rising in his throat, and his voice was hoarse and dry: "When?"

Shen Mingshu didn't look at him, her gaze fixed on the soldiers: "I'm asking you, the Dali Temple is under the central government. If I had come to file this complaint three years ago, skipping ranks, would I have been exempted from the fifty strokes of the cane?"

Screams and oppressive force struck simultaneously, and the officers and soldiers retreated tremblingly, their faces filled with terror: "Your subordinate... Your subordinate didn't know either."

Shen Mingshu scoffed, "I really hope you know something, otherwise, I wouldn't have had to do it myself, don't you think?"

The officers and soldiers nodded hurriedly: "Yes, yes, it's my fault for being incompetent. I'm sorry to have troubled you, Miss Shen."

"You're slandering me..." Shen Yangjue was numb from the beating, but she gritted her teeth and continued to argue, "You didn't... uh! You have no evidence!"

"Otherwise..." Shen Yangjue's lips curled into a cold smile, "Otherwise, why wouldn't the yamen handle this case!"

Shen Mingshu raised her hand, and the shadow guard immediately stopped moving.

Shen Mingshu stepped forward with a blank piece of paper. "There's no more physical evidence, of course, but you can confess and receive leniency."

When the blank paper was handed to her, Shen Yangjue realized that Shen Mingshu was trying to force her to sign it, so she spat at her fiercely.

"I didn't do it! I won't draw it!"

Spittle splattered onto the blank paper. Shen Mingshu lowered her eyes and chuckled incomprehensibly. She slowly placed the blank paper on the table, her expression remaining calm.

"In that case, you'll have to wait until the paper dries before signing."

As Shen Mingshu stepped back, the shadow guard's whip lashed out again.

The wound, now healed and no longer numb, caused Shen Yangjue to scream in pain, shouting without regard for her image.

"Wei Ziye! Are you really just going to stand by and watch?! If you don't save me, Master and the Empress Dowager will not let you off the hook!"

Looking at the coldness on Shen Mingshu's face, Wei Ziye probably already knew what Shen Mingshu was going to do.

As expected, Shen Mingshu was not afraid at all and calmly gave her analysis.

"I once wondered, how did such a mysterious healer, who neither saves the masses nor does he do charity, come to have this title?"

"Now that I think about it, this supreme glory can only be bestowed by the supreme person."

Shen Yangjue was trembling all over from the pain, and blood dripped from her mouth, falling to the ground with each drop.

Yet he still threatened, "Therefore, the Empress Dowager will not let you off..."

"But what if I could replace you?"

Rather than waiting for Wei Ziye to reveal the truth about her body, Shen Mingshu would rather give herself to the supreme ruler of the world.

In this way, she will gain more and sacrifice less.

Shen Mingshu raised her hand, giving her another moment to catch her breath, and stepped forward with the still-damp blank paper.

"Big sister, if you sign the confession, I'll let you die knowing the truth, okay?"

Shen Yangjue hung her head weakly, her face and body covered in wounds, making her unrecognizable from her previous appearance.

She didn't even bother to look up at Shen Mingshu's words, confident that Shen Mingshu wouldn't dare kill her, at most she would just use her to vent her incompetence.

Once she gets out, she'll definitely repay me a thousandfold.

He personally devoured her flesh and blood, making her and her foolish mother watch helplessly as their own flesh and blood gradually turned into cannibalistic worms!

Finally, it devoured all of its own flesh and bone! It died in excruciating pain!

"Hahaha--!"

The more Shen Yangjue thought about it, the more pleased she felt, and she even had the energy to laugh out loud.

"Shen Mingshu, you really should have come to see your mother's terrified and desperate expression on the three nights before you left the Shen residence!"

With a "thud," a dagger plunged deep into Shen Yangjue's eye.

Ruthless and decisive! Everyone only saw a flash of cold light and had no reaction!

Shen Mingshu's soft voice was like a devil's whisper.

"Since you saw it for me, I will gouge out your eyes as a way of repaying you."

"how?"