Free Web NovelChapter 420: Chapter 420: Dead
Hearing that name, Xiao Chengxuan almost thought he was hallucinating.
His eyes widened in disbelief.
The others were stunned as well.
Xie Pei couldn’t help but ask, "Ye Heng? Lord Xu, are you speaking of... the one exiled to Tongbei?"
Xu Fengchi’s expression was calm. "Of course."
’Who else could it be?’
Seeing his confident demeanor, Xiao Chengxuan instantly panicked. Ye Heng truly knew far too much!
But then, another thought occurred to Xiao Chengxuan. ’Ye Heng is already dead!’
’So what was there to fear?’
He lowered his gaze, hiding the turmoil in his eyes, and warily remained silent.
Inwardly, however, he began to relax.
’Xu Fengchi’s move was nothing but a futile gesture!’
The officials in the hall exchanged uncertain glances.
They hadn’t heard that name in a long time. If Xu Fengchi hadn’t brought it up today, many of them would likely have never thought of the man again.
But...
"Ye Heng is exiled in Tongbei, a thousand leagues away. Summoning him back to the Capital City will surely take some time."
Someone couldn’t help but point out.
"So what? The matter is of grave importance. As long as he is brought back for a face-to-face confrontation, we will know the truth!"
What was the difficulty in summoning one man if it meant solving the case?
Emperor Muwu hadn’t expected Ye Heng to be dragged into this matter again either. After a moment of contemplation, he turned his head and asked:
"By my calculations, Ye Heng should have reached Tongbei by now, should he not?"
Standing to the side, Eunuch Li opened his mouth, his expression turning rather awkward.
There was a simple reason for this.
He had previously received news that Ye Heng had died on the road to Tongbei!
But he had never reported it.
Countless people were exiled every year. What was one Ye Heng in the grand scheme of things?
Once such people left the Capital City, nine times out of ten, they never returned. He certainly wasn’t going to waste his breath mentioning it to Your Majesty.
But who could have guessed that after such a short time, it would come up again...
Emperor Muwu noticed his expression and his brows furrowed. "What is it?"
A cold sweat broke out on Eunuch Li’s forehead, but he could only bite the bullet and report the truth. "Your Majesty, Ye Heng... is already dead!"
As his words fell, a hush descended upon the hall.
Looks of astonishment appeared on many faces.
After all, Ye Heng’s case had previously caused a great stir throughout the entire Capital City. Who present hadn’t heard a thing or two about it?
But they never expected the next piece of news about him would be that of his death!
Emperor Muwu clearly hadn’t expected this development either. He was instantly furious. "Why was this not reported to me before?"
Eunuch Li’s face paled in alarm, and all the officials below hastily knelt in unison.
"Your Majesty, quell your anger!"
Eunuch Li kowtowed, his voice trembling slightly. "It is this servant’s fault! I failed to report to Your Majesty in a timely manner! I beg Your Majesty for punishment! But... but Ye Heng truly did die en route, before reaching Tongbei. He really... he really cannot be brought back to life to return to the Capital City and testify!"
Emperor Muwu’s expression was exceedingly grim.
But in truth, he was well aware of how these things worked.
When officials who had erred were exiled, whether they lived or died was left entirely to fate.
As the Emperor, he was already busy enough with his daily duties. Naturally, his subordinates wouldn’t dare disturb him with such trivial matters.
But Ye Heng’s death this time... was proving to be a problem.
Xiao Chengxuan was secretly gloating, thankful that he had dodged a bullet.
’He had always been meticulous. How could he possibly leave loose ends?’
’Ye Heng couldn’t be resurrected, so what Xu Jie had said could never be proven!’
Xu Fengchi’s gaze slowly swept over Xiao Chengxuan.
Then, he lifted his chin and stated, word by word:
"Your Majesty, to this humble official’s knowledge, Ye Heng is not dead. On the contrary, he is alive and well."
The words stunned everyone in the hall!
Xiao Chengxuan whirled around, blurting out in shock, "Impossible! He’s clearly dead!"
The moment the words left his mouth, he realized his loss of composure.
An icy gaze from the Dragon Throne fell heavily upon his shoulders.
Su Wei’s typically unchanging face finally showed a hint of expression as he asked mockingly:
"Your Highness, Prince Qi, why are you so certain? Could it be that you watched Ye Heng breathe his last with your own eyes?"
Xiao Chengxuan choked, momentarily speechless.
Under the watchful eyes of all present, Xiao Chengxuan felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles. He hurriedly explained, "I merely believe they would never dare deceive the Emperor! Since they reported he died on the road to Tongbei, how could that be a lie!"
Su Wei looked as if he’d heard a joke, the corners of his mouth twitching into a smirk.
Xu Fengchi spoke again. "Your Highness, Prince Qi, you are overthinking things. Ye Heng did indeed come close to death, but he was unexpectedly lucky. After being abandoned by his fellow exiles, he was found by a passerby and nursed back to health."
’A passerby? What nonsense!’
’In the tenth month, the road to Tongbei is buried in snow. The cold is bone-chilling, so much so that not even birds or beasts can be found. How could some random passerby just appear out of nowhere!’
’This was clearly a trap, laid in wait for him!’
’Even worse... someone had been secretly tailing Ye Heng since before he even left the Capital City, just waiting for this very moment!’
Xiao Chengxuan’s hands began to tremble.
’Someone had anticipated that he would make a move against Ye Heng. They had laid a trap in advance, and today was the day they would spring it!’
’Such deep cunning, such a devious scheme, such incredible foresight... It was enough to send a chill down his spine!’
Yet at this moment, he was utterly speechless.
’What could he say?’
’His men had confirmed that Ye Heng was dead. How could he be alive now—unless he was a ghost!’
The others in the hall were completely baffled.
One moment they were told the man was dead, and the next he was alive?
And... how did Xu Fengchi know all this?
He’d been in the Capital City the entire time. How could he be so well-informed about events happening a thousand leagues away?
Emperor Muwu’s expression was grave.
By this point, anyone could see that Xu Fengchi had come prepared.
In just ten days, he had not only extracted a testimony from Xu Jie, but had even found Ye Heng to act as a witness!
"Are you certain Ye Heng is still alive?"
Xu Fengchi replied, "This humble official would not dare to deceive the Holy Emperor. Ye Heng is indeed alive, and right now—he is in the Capital City!"
At that, many of the officials gasped.
What Xu Fengchi was implying was clearly—
Everyone fell deathly silent.
A criminal who should have been exiled to Tongbei had reappeared in the Capital City. If Your Majesty were to investigate this, who could possibly bear the responsibility!?
At a time like this, it was best to stay out of it if at all possible.
Xu Fengchi, however, seemed completely unaware of how shocking his statement was. He bowed deeply, kowtowing.
"I beseech Your Majesty to summon the witness, Ye Heng, to the hall for cross-examination!"
