My Princess and Crown Prince Are Revived
Chapter 100 The Truth of That Year

Chapter 100: Chapter 100 The Truth of That Year

"I, Liu Cheng, have a clear conscience; I definitely did not poison you!" Liu Cheng was so angry that his beard was bristling.

"Humph, as if you haven’t done any other vile deeds over the years. Even if you swore an oath, I wouldn’t believe you!"

Chu Hesheng had already made up his mind that Liu Cheng wanted to murder him, so he was unwilling to believe anything the other party said.

Emperor Yan Tian just watched the two men with a scrutinizing gaze.

After a long while, he finally spoke coldly to Chu Hesheng, "You just said that the Grand Tutor has done some vile deeds, so what exactly are these deeds?"

Hearing the Emperor’s words, Chu Hesheng seemed to come to his senses a little.

His heart sank several notches.

He had been so furious earlier that he had spoken without thinking, tearing into a quarrel with Liu Cheng.

"Your Majesty, please discern the truth. Your servant has a clean conscience and has done no vile deeds, let alone plotted against General Chu!"

Liu Cheng knelt down and began to loudly proclaim his innocence.

"Oh? Is that so? It seems then that the General has slandered his colleague."

Yan Tian’s gaze shifted from Liu Cheng onto Chu Hesheng.

"Chu, my dear minister, you first plotted against the Princess, and now, you falsely accuse your colleague. The magnitude of your crimes is such that I cannot protect you even if I wished to. The Chu Family—even their heads would not suffice to atone." He spoke with a significant undertone.

Upon hearing this, Chu Hesheng’s head buzzed.

He kept telling himself to calm down, but a voice in his mind was clamoring incessantly—

"The Crown Prince has abandoned you. He’s conspiring with Liu Cheng to silence you by killing you! You’ve served them for half your life, only to end up with your entire family executed..."

This voice made it impossible for him to stay calm. His eyes became bloodshot, and panic began to set in his heart.

Turning back, he even saw Liu Cheng giving him a scornful smile.

He couldn’t contain himself any longer and lunged forward, grabbing Liu Cheng by the throat.

"You cur, you really want to kill this general, you just want me dead!" he roared like a madman.

Liu Cheng was completely dumbfounded.

He couldn’t understand why Chu Hesheng, who had been perfectly calm, now pounced on him like a rabid dog.

The guards came over to separate them.

But to Chu Hesheng, it seemed as if they too were conspiring to harm him.

His eyes grew even more bloodshot, and he quickly knelt down again, starting to kowtow to Yan Tian, "Your Majesty, I must confess. Three years ago, during the floods in Si Province, the National Treasury donated a million Silver Tael for relief efforts, but half of it was embezzled by the Grand Tutor and ..."

He originally intended to say "Crown Prince," but his last bit of rationality controlled his words.

Yan Tian narrowed his eyes, realising there was something off about Chu Hesheng’s current state.

Yet, what Chu Hesheng had said shocked and enraged him.

"Grand Tutor Liu, is there any truth to this?" He turned his head, his chilly gaze falling on Liu Cheng.

"No, it’s not true, Your Majesty, General Chu is framing your servant!" the Grand Tutor trembled as he kowtowed.

Meanwhile, Chu Hesheng was once again losing control.

He continued to speak loudly, "Your Majesty, if you do not believe me, there is still a lot of the silver meant for disaster relief hidden in a secret room in the Liu Family’s residence."

"Chu Hesheng!"

Liu Cheng looked at Chu Hesheng with eyes filled with fury.

"Your Majesty, there is more. Two years ago, the entire household of the Ministry of Justice was executed, also by order of the Grand Tutor. It was because the Minister had discovered the Grand Tutor embezzling tribute silver sent from Jiangnan four years ago..."

"And just last year, during the drought in Jianzhou, he filled his own coffers as well," Chu Hesheng exclaimed as he rattled off several accusations in one breath.

The temperature in the Imperial Study kept dropping, Liu Cheng’s face turned paler and paler, while Yan Tian’s gaze grew darker and darker.

"And many years ago, when Marquis Xu Yuan passed away from illness, Grand Tutor Liu..."

Chu Hesheng was about to bring up this matter again.

But at this moment, Yan Tian spoke first, "General Chu, there is no need to mention this matter. Marquis Xu Yuan was my elder, and I grieved deeply for his passing."

Chu Hesheng was suddenly interrupted, his head throbbing with pain, but a voice in his heart was still yelling at him to reveal everything.

On Liu Cheng’s side, his whole body trembled.

Chu Hesheng had gone mad, surely mad!

Otherwise, why would he expose so many things?

He was involved in them himself!

"Grand Tutor Liu, is what General Chu said true? Have you truly committed so many heinous crimes behind my back?"

Yan Tian narrowed his eyes, and the aura of the Emperor followed.

Liu Cheng was already advanced in age. He had received the Emperor’s trust because he was a veteran minister; in reality, he wasn’t that capable.

Now, frightened like this, he was trembling all over, nearly fainting.

All he could do was to keep kowtowing, "Your Majesty, General Chu is spouting nonsense, there’s absolutely no such thing. Your servant is loyal to you, to the court, and to the people."

He must not admit it! If he confessed, it would be over for him.

But Chu Hesheng was dead set on damning them both to hell, and he continued, "Liu Cheng, do you need me to remind you again? Six years ago, a fire broke out in a temple outside the capital city, and it burned to death the then-princess consort, my legitimate daughter..."

Hearing Chu Hesheng speak of this matter, Liu Cheng’s face completely lost its color.

No, he can’t speak of it!

The things he had done before, at most, would result in his death and the Liu Family’s downfall.

But if this matter was exposed, Shuxin would have to die too.

He had his daughter late in life, with Shuxin being his only child; he couldn’t let her come to harm!

In a panic, Liu Cheng hurried forward, trying to cover Chu Hesheng’s mouth.

But Chu Hesheng was abnormally excited at the moment; he kicked Liu Cheng away and continued, "Everyone thought back then that it was the princess consort who knocked over the candle causing the fire. But in fact, it was your daughter Liu Shuxin who tied her there and then had someone burn her to death. You even personally took care of the aftermath!"

At this moment, several figures appeared outside the Imperial Study and clearly heard this conversation.

Yan Lin’s footsteps halted abruptly, his body swaying.

"Eighth, Eighth Brother..."

Yan Lian stood behind him, calling out anxiously.

But Yan Lin first maintained a cold face, then began to smile bitterly.

He muttered to himself, "So it wasn’t her who knocked over the candle, it wasn’t her abandoning me. Someone was trying to harm her, it was Liu Shuxin who forced her to her death..."

"No wonder she never came back to find me, no wonder she hated the Liu Family so much."

Muttering to himself, Yan Lin’s dark eyes filled with bewilderment and helplessness.

"How helpless she must have been back then, and yet I couldn’t be there to protect her and our child."

"Is it because of this reason she hated me, and therefore she was always unwilling to recognize me?"

Suddenly, Yan Lin realized something.

He turned his head, his gaze sternly fixed on Ziyi, "Ziyi, after she came back, she arranged to meet Yan Jin at Cuiyue Building. Do you remember what Wei Jia said six years ago, right after the incident?"

What did Doctor Wei say?

Ziyi was taken aback but quickly came to his senses; he hastily said, "Doctor Wei said that the staff at Qianling Pavilion told him the princess consort went to Cuiyue Building..."

Yes, that’s right, Cuiyue Building!