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

"Did you order the Money Gang to carry out the bombing?"

Who is pulling the strings behind all of this?

Mei Changsu's eyelashes trembled slightly, but he remained silent, as if he were ignoring Yan Que's questioning.

Silence was his only answer.

"Great! Excellent!"

Yan Que, enraged, laughed instead, and suddenly raised his hand, lashing out with two more vicious whips.

The sound of skin being torn apart was particularly jarring in the dimly lit torture chamber.

Mei Changsu groaned, cold sweat beading on his forehead, but he still clenched his teeth tightly.

Yan Que threw down the whip, turned around and walked towards Prince Yu, who was watching coldly from the side, and said in a stern tone: "Your Highness, if we continue like this, we will only be wasting time!"

"In my opinion, we should just use severe torture. First, pull out his fingernails, then smash his teeth!"

"I'll see how long he can keep up this stubbornness!"

Prince Yu glanced at Yan Que and said calmly, "No, wouldn't that be forcing a confession out of us?"

"If he can't hold out and starts making baseless accusations, and then confesses, should we believe him or not?"

How could he dare to actually allow Yan Que to use extreme punishment on Mei Changsu?

If this person cannot withstand the torture, he will make wild accusations while in a state of delirium.

Giving statements that are detrimental to oneself would be a losing proposition.

The current political situation is very favorable, and most of the officials in the six ministries have already sided with him.

The Crown Prince's faction suffered repeated defeats and was on the verge of being overthrown by their own forces.

At this critical juncture, we must not allow any unforeseen complications to arise.

Upon hearing this, Qi Min, the Minister of Justice, immediately stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said, "Lord Yan, this matter requires careful consideration."

"Look at this man, he's barely breathing and at his last gasp. If we subject him to further torture, I'm afraid he won't survive."

"If the prisoner dies suddenly, how will we explain this to His Majesty?"

Zhu Yue, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, chimed in at the opportune moment: "What Lord Qi said is absolutely right."

"This case involves a wide range of issues. It would be unfortunate if the clues were lost due to excessive torture."

Yan Que's cold gaze slowly swept across the three faces.

Prince Yu's faction has been hindering him at every turn since the beginning of the trial, and they are still preventing him now.

The anger that had been simmering inside him for so long was about to erupt.

Snapped!

Just then, a crisp sound of teacups clinking together rang out.

Cao Zhichun, with his delicate fingers raised, slowly sipped his tea without even lifting his eyelids.

"My lords, we've been here for quite some time."

He blew on the tea foam, and his tone suddenly turned cold.

"If we keep dawdling like this, His Majesty might get displeased."

Upon hearing this, the torture chamber fell silent.

Immediately afterwards, Cao Zhichun slammed the teacup down on the table, his high-pitched voice carrying an air of unquestionable authority.

"I believe Lord Yan is right; we should proceed with the severe torture!"

He glanced at the crowd with a sinister look.

"If you all still want to play house here, I won't play along."

Upon hearing this, Prince Yu's face suddenly turned extremely gloomy, almost as if it were dripping with water.

But Cao Zhichun didn't even give him a second glance.

This eunuch from the Eastern Depot always obeyed only the one in the study.

Let alone a prince, even if the crown prince were here, he would still not give him any face.

They are just princes and crown princes, not emperors!

"Guards! Initiate the torture!"

"Pull out all ten of his fingernails, one by one!"

Upon hearing this, the agents of the Eastern Depot immediately stepped forward, grabbed iron pliers, and pinned down Mei Changsu's hands.

"Wait a minute!"

It's too late, but it's soon.

Prince Yu suddenly slammed his hand on the table and stood up. The yamen runners from the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple immediately surrounded the Eastern Depot agents.

Suppressing his anger, Prince Yu turned to Cao Zhichun and bowed, saying, "Eunuch Cao, could you grant me another day to speak with Mei Changsu alone?"

"If he still doesn't speak by this time tomorrow, I will not stop him and will allow him to be dealt with as he sees fit. What do you say?"

Cao Zhichun narrowed his eyes, his gaze sweeping back and forth between the faces of Prince Yu, Qi Min, and Zhu Yue.

Seeing the three men colluding and constantly obstructing him, he had no choice but to back down.

"Very well, we'll give Your Highness face."

"If there are still no results by this time tomorrow, gentlemen, please don't blame me for being ruthless!"

After saying that, Cao Zhichun snorted coldly and left with the Eastern Depot agents.

The heavy prison door slammed shut with a clang.

Princess Nihuang has also secretly bribed a member of the Eastern Depot who is in charge of executions.

He constantly relayed news of Mei Changsu's situation in prison to her.

Upon learning from him that Mei Changsu had endured torture and was on the verge of death, he was extremely anxious and restless.

Just now, the messenger hurriedly delivered the latest news.

It is said that Cao Zhichun will use severe torture tomorrow, determined to pry open Mei Changsu's mouth!

After reading the note, Nihuang's expression changed drastically, and she immediately spurred her horse and headed straight for the Su residence.

"Li Gang, you were the one who asked me to link Mei Changsu and Prince Yu together, but now that the case has reached this point, we'll have to use torture tomorrow."

As soon as she entered the room, she grabbed Li Gang's sleeve and said urgently.

"Given Mei Changsu's health, he definitely can't withstand this. You must think of something quickly!"

Li Gang was at a loss for what to do.

Before leaving, the sect leader instructed that the matter of the Black Fire must never be easily revealed.

But now that the sect leader is on the verge of death, should we continue to hide it?

Just then, Lin Chen, who had a somber expression, suddenly spoke up.

"Li Gang, speak!"

"Mei Changsu has been plotting for over a decade, but his grand plan has failed; he absolutely cannot die like this!"

Li Gang closed his eyes and finally made up his mind.

"it is good!"

He looked at Nihuang and revealed, word by word, that Yan Que had smuggled the gunpowder into the capital.

After hearing these words, Nihuang was completely dumbfounded.

She finally understood why Mei Changsu would rather endure torture than remain silent.

"So, the one who actually planned the bombing was Lord Yan?"

Li Gang shook his head heavily.

"Lord Yan originally intended to use these gunpowder to assassinate the Emperor, but the Sect Master discovered and stopped him in time."

"As for why the Money Gang obtained this batch of gunpowder, and why they used it to assassinate the royal family..."

"I'm afraid only Zhen Ping, who is already dead, would know."

Princess Nihuang frowned, unable to grasp the crux of the matter.

"So how useful is this news to us?"

Li Gang and Lin Chen exchanged a glance and finally voiced their thoughts.

"Princess, there is only one way to save the sect leader using this information."

"What method?"

"Force Yan Que to his death!"

Chapter 95 I gave you a chance but you are useless!

"Forced Yan Que to his death?"

"Exactly."

Lin Chen gently waved his folding fan and said calmly.

"Given Lord Yan's character, if he knew that it was his own smuggled black fire that killed his son and sister, he would certainly not have lived alone."

"More importantly, once he learns that the sect leader sent Zhen Ping to clean up the mess for him, but he mistakenly believes that Zhen Ping is the perpetrator of the bombing."

"They will feel extremely guilty and then take the blame for the bombing to exonerate the sect leader."

Li Gang added.

After hearing these words, Nihuang finally understood.

There is no solution to this case.

Between Yan Que and Mei Changsu, only one can survive.

She took a deep breath and immediately made a decision.

"I'm going to find Lord Yan."

He rode at full speed all the way and intercepted Yan Que before he returned to his residence.

At this moment, her face was solemn and frosty, and her eyes revealed a hint of reluctance.

"Lord Yan," may I speak with you in private?

Seeing that Nihuang's expression was unusual, Yan Que raised his hand to signal his men to step back.

"Nihuang, what's wrong?"

Nihuang took a deep breath, knowing how cruel the truth she was about to reveal would be.

However, in order to save Mei Changsu's life, she chose to tell the truth.

Then, word by word, he recounted how Mei Changsu secretly investigated, discovered the black fire, and sent Zhen Ping to handle the aftermath.

With each sentence he spoke, Yan Que's face grew paler.

After Nihuang explained the whole story, Yan Que was struck dumb, as if by a bolt from the blue.

My mind goes blank.

After a while, he staggered back two steps and crashed heavily into the stone lion.

"What did you say?"

"This...this is impossible..."

Yan Que's face was ashen, his lips trembled, and his expression was one of disbelief.

"It is absolutely true. To protect the Marquis, Mei Changsu would rather endure torture himself than utter a single word."

"If he hadn't been on the verge of death, I wouldn't have..."