I play the role of Jiajing in Zongwu: What crime have I committed?

Zhuo Dingfeng forcefully twisted his body, his Longquan sword drawing a crescent arc in front of him.

clang!

The next second, the incoming arrow was shattered.

Just as he was still in shock and doubt, a second cold light tore through the night sky.

This arrow was faster and more deadly than the previous ones.

But whether the arrow missed or for some other reason, the target became Xiao Jingxuan.

"Your Highness, be careful!"

Zhuo Dingfeng stared at the trajectory of the arrow, his eyes widening in fury.

He roared and lunged forward, trying to save Xiao Jingxuan's life.

But in the end, they were half a step too slow.

puff!

The second arrow grazed Xiao Jingxuan's throat, and the violent energy exploded like a bomb.

Blood and flesh flew everywhere from his neck, as if a large chunk had been ripped out.

Even the cartilage in the throat was exposed to the air.

Blood gushed out immediately.

All of this happened in an instant.

Apart from Zhuo Dingfeng, the others were not at the required level and didn't even have time to react, let alone see the trajectory of the arrow.

The next second, Xiao Jingxuan felt a sharp pain in his throat.

He stared wide-eyed in disbelief, his hands frantically trying to cover his throat, but he couldn't stop the gushing blood.

"Heh...heh..."

Then, Xiao Jingxuan pointed at Zhuo Dingfeng, wanting to say something, but could only let out a strange gasp.

Finally, he fell straight off the horse.

Upon seeing this, Zhu Qi put away his longbow and turned to leave.

A moment later, it was as if the night wind had blown his figure away.

Zhuo Dingfeng was also stunned for a moment.

When he awoke with a start, he looked back at where the arrow had come from, but there was nothing there anymore.

Who?

Who wants to kill the Crown Prince?

They even went so far as to have a grandmaster secretly intervene.

A question popped into Zhuo Dingfeng's mind.

Everyone on the battlefield saw that the prince in front of Zhuo Dingfeng had fallen off his horse.

They all stared wide-eyed.

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

All sounds of fighting on the battlefield came to an abrupt halt.

"Your Highness...Your Highness, you killed His Highness?"

The commander of the Left Guard of the Eastern Palace was the first to react. He trembled all over, both shocked and furious.

As soon as he said this, everyone's eyes were focused on Zhuo Dingfeng.

The grandmaster, holding the Heavenly Spring Sword, stood before the prince's corpse.

It looks like he killed the crown prince himself.

Then, a murmur of discussion arose like a tide.

The crown prince has not yet been deposed, so Zhuo Dingfeng killing the crown prince would be tantamount to a subject murdering his ruler.

Zhuo Dingfeng was speechless when he heard these words.

He looked down at the prince's body, which had stopped convulsing, and then looked in the direction from which the arrows had come.

His face immediately turned ashen.

The only way to clear his name is to capture that Grandmaster.

So he forced himself to calm down.

The scene of that deadly arrow piercing through the air kept replaying in my mind.

Carefully discern the energy clinging to the arrow.

After thinking it over, he realized that this energy did not belong to any of the grandmasters he knew.

It wasn't either of the two royal retainers who besieged Yue Xiuzhe that night.

So who exactly wanted to frame him?

Zhuo Dingfeng unconsciously clenched his fists.

Inside the Wanshou Palace, just after Xiao Jingxuan died, the sound of reward echoed in Zhu Houcong's mind.

[A prince died during the Jiajing reign. Imitate Jiajing +3, reward: Immortal Lotus Pill]

???

Zhu Houcong was stunned at first, and then his heart suddenly started pounding.

An overwhelming surge of joy welled up inside me.

There actually was a reward!

He originally just wanted to give it a try.

But to my surprise, the reward was actually triggered.

Moreover, it is a golden elixir that has never appeared before.

KFC has released a new product?

Thinking of this, he quickly glanced at the annotations.

【Immortal Lotus Pill: Made from the true essence of lotus seeds and lotus flowers from He Xiangu. If a pregnant woman takes this pill, she will surely conceive a child with exceptional talent, excelling in both literature and martial arts, and possessing extraordinary brilliance】

Zhu Houcong's eyes flashed with surprise when he saw this.

Has it turned into a system where having many children brings many blessings?

Killing a prince actually rewards you with this type of elixir.

Since the annotation specifically notes "exceptionally gifted," the offspring conceived after taking this elixir must be extraordinary.

He immediately thought of Yuwen Nian.

After nearly half a year of continuous efforts, Yuwen Nian is now pregnant.

This golden pill is just right for her.

After all, he was her first biological son, so naturally he had to be wise and powerful, and his actions were in accordance with her will.

With the death of Crown Prince Xiao Jingxuan, this bloody palace coup finally came to an end.

The four guards of Tengxiang disarmed and detained all six officers of the Eastern Palace, awaiting their fate.

Meanwhile, Zhuo Dingfeng, carrying thorns on his back, dragged his heavy steps to the front of Wanshou Palace.

He knelt at the foot of the white marble steps, his forehead pressed against the cold ground.

"Your Majesty, I deserve to die a thousand deaths. I failed to protect the Crown Prince, resulting in His Highness being harmed by a treacherous villain..."

Not long after, the sound of porcelain shattering could be heard from inside the hall.

Then came Zhu Houcong's heartbroken voice.

"My Jingxuan!"

After a long while, the heavy palace doors slowly opened.

Zhu Houcong walked out with faltering steps, his eyes bloodshot.

The next second, he personally bent down and helped Zhuo Dingfeng up.

"Rise, my dear minister."

"They're all saying that you might have killed Prince Bay, but I know you wouldn't do such a thing."

Zhuo Dingfeng was shocked to hear this; he had thought Zhu Houcong would blame him.

did not expect…

A feeling of deep emotion welled up within me.

"Your Majesty is wise. It was indeed not me, but another Grandmaster who secretly intervened."

Chapter 133 Prince Yu Regent

The next day, the entire city of Jinling was in an uproar.

News of the crown prince's rebellion and subsequent murder spread like wildfire to every corner.

What's even more shocking is that the murderer is very likely the current commander of the patrol battalion, Grandmaster Zhuo Dingfeng.

At this moment, the court officials looked at each other, finding themselves in an unprecedentedly awkward situation.

In ordinary times, such a treasonous act as murdering the crown prince would surely provoke the officials to their deaths in remonstrance.

But last night, it was the Crown Prince who started the rebellion.

The rights and wrongs of the matter left the officials at court momentarily at a loss as to how to conduct themselves.

Censor Li Xian secretly slipped his left hand into his right sleeve, inside which was a memorial impeaching Zhuo Dingfeng.

But he hesitated to hand it over.

At this moment, he secretly glanced at his colleagues beside him and found that several of them were also hesitating, holding their memorials.

An eerie silence fell over the entire court.

At this moment, the Crown Prince's tutor was so angry that he blew his beard and glared at the officials who had submitted memorials.

He dragged his aching back and slowly stepped out of line.

This injury was caused by those thirty strokes of the cane.

"Your Majesty, even if the Crown Prince has made a mistake, it should be judged by the court, not by private punishment."

"Zhuo Dingfeng's act of regicide is clearly a heinous crime."

Then he directly read aloud the chapters in the Spring and Autumn Annals about the crime of regicide in the Fengtian Hall.

Only then did he shout out in righteous indignation.

"If this scoundrel is not punished, where is the law of the land?"

"Your Majesty, please uphold justice and punish accordingly!"

Immediately, a chorus of discussions arose in the imperial court.

On the throne, Zhu Houcong covered his face with his sleeve, his shoulders trembling uncontrollably.

As everyone could see, the once incomparably majestic emperor was now in tears.

Xiao Jinghuan, Xiao Jingting, and Xiao Jingyan looked at each other in bewilderment.

According to regulations, princes are not allowed to participate in court discussions, but last night's palace coup was no small matter, and the two were exceptionally allowed to enter the palace.

Seeing Zhu Houcong so heartbroken, Xiao Jingting quickly stepped forward and knelt down beneath the steps.

"Father, please accept my deepest condolences and take care of your health!"

He said with a choked voice.