Free Web NovelChapter 413: Chapter 413: Eldest Princess
Xie Anbai stopped in his tracks, his brow furrowing slightly.
It was commonplace for his father to lose his temper with him, even resorting to familial punishment. But he had never used such a tone with his elder brother.
’This...’
Just as Xie Anbai hesitated, Xie Anjun fell to the ground with a THUD.
The heavy sound seemed to strike Xie Anbai right in the heart.
"Father, calm your anger!"
Xie Anjun’s voice was suppressed, almost inaudible, but Xie Anbai could still detect the nervousness and terror within it.
Xie Anbai turned his head and glanced in their direction.
...
Inside the study, Xie Pei’s eyes were wide with fury. He stared at the kneeling Xie Anjun with utter resentment, his body trembling slightly with rage.
He pointed a finger at him and cursed hatefully, "You! Do you have any idea how grave a crime this is?!"
Xie Anjun knelt there, cold sweat beading on his forehead despite the freezing weather.
His lips were slightly pale and his eyes were vacant. He was clearly in a panic.
"Father, I... I never expected things to get to this point! Who could have known... who could have known that Xu Jie would be so useless? Not only was his own work sloppy, but he dragged a whole slew of problems into this!"
"You still dare to speak!"
Xie Pei raised his hand high, but just as he was about to bring it down, he worried about attracting the attention of those outside and forced himself to stop.
"What kind of person is that Xu Jie! I told you long ago that man is cunning and treacherous, unfit to be a conspirator! And yet you still associated with him in private! Now he’s been thrown into the Heavenly Prison. If he spills even a single thing, what will you do then?!"
Xie Anjun had been doted on since childhood and had never been reprimanded like this. His heart filled with both sorrow and indignation.
He gritted his teeth. "He wouldn’t dare. He won’t say a single word—"
Xie Pei cut him off coldly. "Don’t you forget, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Justice are holding a joint trial this time! Do you think Xu Fengchi is easy to fool? He lay low for years just to overturn Ye Zheng’s case. The moment he made his move, he brought Xu Jie down! You don’t actually believe that’s all the evidence he has, do you?"
He sneered and snatched up a stack of letters from the desk.
"If Lin’er hadn’t stumbled upon these by accident, I would have never known your relationship with Xu Jie was so close! In just a few short years, you’ve exchanged more than a dozen letters!"
A sense of guilt washed over Xie Anjun. He opened and closed his mouth before finally managing to defend himself in a trembling voice, "Father, th-these are just ordinary letters. I’m sure you’ve already read them. There’s nothing else to them!"
Xu Jie greatly admired Xie Anjun’s writing and had once even paid him a special visit, during which the two got along splendidly.
Later, when Xu Jie went to Sui Nan, it was inconvenient for them to meet, so they began corresponding by letter instead.
Xie Pei had indeed opened and read these letters. On the surface, they did appear to be nothing more than ordinary correspondence between friends. But what kind of man was Xie Pei?
If he couldn’t even spot the trickery in these, he never would have been able to hold on to his position as Marquis Zhongyong for so long.
"Nothing else to them?" Xie Pei sounded as if he’d heard a joke. "You dare say you didn’t take part in any of his schemes?! Especially—"
He took a deep breath and lowered his voice again, each word seeming to be squeezed from between his teeth.
"Especially, the death of Huo Yucheng—"
"Father!"
Xie Anjun’s head shot up, his face a mask of shock and fear.
"I didn’t! I truly didn’t!"
Meeting Xie Pei’s aged eyes, which seemed to see through everything, his heart trembled.
"...A-At least, the matter with the Huo Family truly had nothing to do with me!"
Xie Pei just looked at him, his eyes filled with utter disappointment.
He had always thought this son of his was intelligent, but he never imagined he could be so foolish.
Xie Pei closed his eyes. After a long moment, he asked in a heavy voice:
"In that case, does it have nothing to do with the Eldest Princess either?"
