Zeng Zheng’s sudden imprisonment silenced the entire court.

Zhang Xuzhi was a close aide to the emperor, and Zeng Zheng was in charge of a major case—under any circumstances, he shouldn’t have been impeached now. Yet Zhang went ahead and did it, and the emperor just happened to accept it, almost as if he’d been waiting for this very excuse to throw Zeng Zheng into prison.

At this point, it was clear to everyone: Prime Minister Zhang had acted on imperial orders. The emperor wanted to move against Zeng Zheng.

Zeng Zheng had worked his way up from a judge in the Dali Court, handling countless cases over the years. He was known for his foul temper and stubbornness, showing no regard for personal connections. Most of his colleagues usually kept their distance. But in terms of character, he was more trustworthy than most. As for investigative ability, even a hundred Li Shengs wouldn’t match one Zeng Zheng.

Now that the emperor had imprisoned him, the case had been handed back to Li Sheng. It made people feel that… the emperor didn’t really care whether the case was solved—he just wanted Zeng Zheng out of the way.

This was a major case—twenty-two lives lost. Who could say whether that single mass grave was the only one? There might be others.

As if confirming everyone’s suspicions, that very afternoon—the day Zeng Zheng was imprisoned—the Dali Court’s You Fu arrived in grand fashion to deliver evidence to Li Sheng of the Jingzhao Office. At the burial grounds, they had discovered many mats used to wrap bodies. Though the corpses were heavily decomposed and damaged, forensic investigators found clear similarities with the twenty-two corpses from the corpse mountain: the same types of mats, the same wrapping methods, the same knotting techniques—all exactly the same.

Judging from the number of mats, there were no fewer than fifty bodies!

Shi Buyu quickly capitalized on the moment, spreading word that the corpses intercepted at the city gates previously had been wrapped the same way and used the same materials.

Once they investigated where these corpses had been buried, it was immediately confirmed: though the bodies had rotted, the mats and wrapping techniques were identical.

This brought renewed suspicion upon Zhu Ling. Many people remembered that Zhu Ling had been protected back then, but the suspicions surrounding him had never truly been cleared. That case had ended unresolved. Zhu had cried out his innocence, but they’d never found out who had tried to smuggle the corpses out of the city. Now that everything seemed connected to this major case, did it not suggest that Lord Zhu remained a suspect?

Li Sheng was already under immense pressure from all sides. Hearing that the old unsolved case was now tied into the current one only gave him a bigger headache.

Advisor Diao proposed a strategy: if Lord Zhu had managed to escape punishment back then, it must be because he had powerful backing. So—arrest him. The people behind him would surely try to protect him again, right?

Li Sheng immediately agreed—why should he shoulder the pressure alone?

Shi Buyu, upon hearing this, laughed so hard he slapped the table. “The flood has swept through the Dragon King Temple—family is fighting family!” Excellent! And then he kept fanning the flames. Even the Yaji gatherings at the Floating Life Pavilion were canceled—everyone was discussing this case instead.

Meanwhile, Yan Shian, accompanied by two friends, went to the Zeng residence. He still had a soft cloth bandaged around his head, looking very much the part of a recent victim.

Perhaps the Zeng household had descended into chaos when Zeng Zheng was first taken, but by now, they had stabilized. Everyone was doing what they were supposed to. Only the head of the household had shifted—from Zeng Zheng to Zeng Xian.

Zeng Xian clearly hadn’t expected the three to visit. His father had obviously fallen out of favor with the emperor, and most people were avoiding him like the plague—even old friends and relatives had quietly begun to distance themselves. The three before him—normally inseparable from each other—weren’t particularly close to him, just fellow students. Yet they had come together at such a critical time.

Zeng Xian couldn’t fathom their purpose, so he asked directly, “There’s much to do at home, I fear I can’t entertain guests. May I ask what brings you here?”

“This Young Master Shian here said that Lord Zeng is a man of integrity and doesn’t deserve such an injustice, so he dragged us along to offer a hand,” Dou Yuancheng replied with a smile, making their purpose clear. “Don’t worry we’ll be in your way and kick us out. The accusations against Lord Zeng are all flimsy—we just need to refute them one by one. Shian, it was your idea. You explain the rest.”

Yan Shian didn’t hold back. He pulled out a scroll from his sleeve and unrolled it. “Take a look—is this the list of charges Prime Minister Zhang brought against Lord Zeng?”

The Zeng family wouldn’t have had much trouble obtaining the charges, but what surprised Zeng Xian was that Yan Shian had managed to get his hands on them. After all, Yan Shian was known for his exceptional talent and humble origins. All their teachers spoke of him with both admiration and regret.

Zeng Xian suddenly found himself thinking more deeply. The fact that Yan had escaped after being kidnapped—was that really just luck? How had his horse so conveniently fallen ill at the exact spot to rouse him awake?

If that were the case…

Zeng Xian stepped forward and read the paper. He nodded—yes, the charges were familiar: factionalism, corruption, dereliction of duty, and protection of criminals. That was everything.

Yan Shian nodded. “Then we’ll start from the top. First—factionalism. If we can prove all of Lord Zeng’s associations were purely for official duties, the charge won’t stick.”

“That one’s easy,” Zeng Xian said, pointing at the remaining three charges. “But these—corruption, dereliction, and protection—will be harder to fight. In any big family, there are bound to be a few rats. If they dig deep enough, no one’s completely clean.”

“Then admit to the small stuff, not the big,” Yan Shian reminded him. “Losing an official title or post—at this point, that might actually be the best outcome.”

Zeng Xian met his gaze. It was true. No one knew what had caused the emperor’s sudden disgust with his father, but if these charges were fully confirmed, the Zeng family would suffer irreparable damage—something they could not afford. In contrast, being stripped of office was far more manageable. It would appease the emperor’s anger and avoid further retaliation.

Zeng Xian now genuinely believed they had come to help. He motioned for the others to leave and asked, “Do you have any leads?”

Zhuang Nan pointed at Yan Shian. “You’ll want to hear it from him. You might be just as good a scholar, but when it comes to this stuff—you’ve got a long way to go.”

Zeng Xian looked at the man he had always seen as his rival. He knew his own flaws—rigid, overly cautious. Ever since his father was arrested, he’d felt trapped, unable to act. If Yan Shian truly had a way out of this—

Zeng Xian stood and gave a deep bow. “If Brother Shian can save my father, the Zeng family will owe you a great debt.”

“What are you doing?” Yan Shian quickly helped him up. “Didn’t you help me when I was in trouble? I’m just returning the favor—it’s nothing that warrants such a big gesture.”

If not for what you did, the Zeng family might not be in this mess to begin with, Yan Shian thought privately. Precisely because of that, he was all the more determined to save Zeng Zheng.

“Plenty of people have benefited from my family,” Zeng Xian said with a touch of sarcasm. “But only you would take something so minor to heart. If we’re lucky enough to get through this crisis, Brother Shian—I, Zeng Xian, will consider you my brother from that day on.”

“We’ve been classmates for years. We’re already brothers—no need for all that,” Yan Shian replied, slapping Zhuang Nan on the shoulder. “Aren’t you going to open the map?”

Zhuang Nan grinned, threw back his cloak, and revealed the map hidden inside. If his father found out he’d brought it out, he’d definitely get a beating when he got home.