Chapter 502: Chapter 502: Forced Interrogation

Prince Zhuang was furious. So, they didn’t believe his words?

He shoved the steward aside and pulled over a servant, shouting, "Didn’t you see them just now too?"

The servant had a bewildered expression.

He saw nothing but ghosts since, as the steward mentioned, even mice couldn’t get up there, let alone people.

Seeing his dumbfounded look, Prince Zhuang became even angrier and pushed him aside, pulling another one over.

He pulled over more than ten servants, all of whom had been fighting the fire just now; they hadn’t dispersed yet, gathering around. Prince Zhuang refused to believe that no one saw anything.

With Prince Zhuang glaring at them, looking as if he was on the verge of exploding, he grabbed a small, thin servant, clamping his neck with terrifying killing intent in his eyes, squeezing words through gritted teeth: "Did you see it or not?"

The servant felt an overwhelming pressure engulfing him, the grip on his neck growing heavier. He doubted that if he dared to say no, His Highness’s hand would press a bit more, and his neck would break.

The will to live overcame everything at that moment. He hurriedly nodded like pounding garlic: "I... I saw."

"Was it a man and a woman?"

"Y... Yes!"

"Was it Prince Cheng and his wife?"

"Y... Yes!"

"Did you really see them? What were they doing?"

The servant was completely blind. He hadn’t seen anything, but to save his life, he had to nod quickly and agree: "Yes... it was them. One was sitting, one was standing..."

These were exactly the words Prince Zhuang had spoken earlier.

The servant initially thought he’d be dead meat, unsure if Prince Zhuang would kill him with a squeeze. But then he heard Prince Zhuang laugh heartily, loosening his grip and letting him go. Acting like a madman, he exclaimed, "Hahaha! This prince knew it; I am not the only one who saw them. Old Fifth and his wife had been here; they really had been here."

Prince Zhuang told the servant, "Go to the accounts room and collect your reward!"

The servant never expected such a turn of events; overjoyed, he quickly said, "Thank you, Your Highness. Thank you, Your Highness."

Prince Zhuang then addressed the remaining three servants, still not questioned: "Who else saw them?" The three servants hurriedly replied, "We saw them too. It was Prince Cheng and his wife, one sitting, one standing."

"Go and collect your rewards!"

The three rejoiced and happily went to collect their rewards.

The ones questioned earlier couldn’t help feeling both envious and jealous of those winning the rewards.

They hadn’t seen anything, yet they could go collect a reward.

They shouldn’t have told the truth earlier.

But here was Prince Zhuang in a great mood.

If he only saw the letter and note, he couldn’t be sure it was Old Fifth’s doing. Now he was absolutely certain; he had personally seen it. Old Fifth and his wife had come to his home and set his prince mansion on fire.

How ruthless Old Fifth was, to go this far.

No, he had to enter the palace; he had to see his father. He needed to tell him that Old Fifth had returned to the Capital City and was targeting him.

He was clearly the victim.

He only killed one of Old Fifth’s sons, and now his three sons were either dead, injured, or missing. Hidden estates were mostly destroyed, and he had lost his position as Crown Prince.

Was there anyone worse off than him?

Old Fifth must have planned this.

Old Fifth must have targeted him as the Crown Prince.

He must inform his father.

The industries were gone, the house burned, the children gone... these were certainly distressing. But if he could keep his position as Crown Prince, all of this could be sacrificed.

If all of this was Old Fifth’s doing, then all of it was his weapon!

At this thought, Prince Zhuang couldn’t sit still any longer, immediately ordering someone to prepare the carriage to head to the Imperial Palace.

He regretted it immensely.

Previously, he found the Eastern Palace stuffy and inconvenient, so he often stayed at the Crown Prince Mansion outside the palace.

Now, he feared the Eastern Palace might not be available for him to stay at even if he wanted to.

Hearing that Prince Zhuang sought an audience, the Emperor was very angry.

He had just left, and shortly after, he came back again, despite being ordered to stay inside the mansion and reflect. It seemed he ignored his father’s words entirely.

After waiting for a long time, a eunuch came over with a message, saying the Emperor would not see him.

Prince Zhuang was extremely anxious; Old Fifth and his wife had arrived in the Capital City, as he personally saw. His father must be made aware of this plot by Old Fifth, which caused him to lose his position as Crown Prince. He had to expose Old Fifth’s conspiracy to his father.

If he could make his father rescind his decision before tonight, he could keep his position as Crown Prince. All of it rested on whether or not his father would believe him.

How could he not be desperately anxious? How could he not cling to this last straw?

For this reason, a person who usually disdained these messenger eunuchs surprisingly put on a smiling face and said, "Eunuch Li, could you please pass a message to Eunuch Feng for me? Say that I am waiting for him here!"

The decree to depose the Crown Prince wasn’t known to many yet. The little eunuch hesitated briefly, thinking this was the Crown Prince, the future Emperor, and it wouldn’t do to offend him, so he nodded and went to deliver the message.

The waiting dragged on for another half an hour before Eunuch Feng appeared.

Eunuch Feng, with a half-smile, said, "Apologies, being by the Emperor’s side is really time-consuming. I sneaked out during a gap; what does His Highness want?"

A person’s attitude shows how much they value someone, and Eunuch Feng’s attitude was neither warm nor cold now.

Prince Zhuang was angry inside, yet he understood it wasn’t the time for sulking. He immediately put on a face full of smiles, flatteringly saying to Eunuch Feng, "Eunuch, may I trouble you? I have urgent matters to report to the Emperor, matters concerning state affairs. Please, Eunuch, you must help."

Still calling himself His Highness? Eunuch Feng glanced at him, reluctantly saying, "Your Highness, what exactly is this matter? The Emperor is currently upset, and I dare not bother him with trivialities!"

The implication was that if it’s not important, you better stay cool under the sun somewhere else. I’m not someone who comes and goes at your beck and call.

Prince Zhuang, helpless, weighed his options and said, "Eunuch, this is indeed a major issue. I saw Old Fifth and his wife with my own eyes; they appeared in the Capital City and set my Crown Prince Mansion on fire. A Vassal King entering the city without an edict is equivalent to treason. They’re committing crimes in the Capital City; isn’t this a major issue?"

Eunuch Feng glanced at him again, seemingly judging if he was speaking the truth. Seeing that his expression didn’t seem fake, Eunuch Feng pondered for a while, then said, "Alright, I’ll go report this. Whether or not the Emperor will see you, it’s his decision!"

Prince Zhuang said, "I appreciate it, thank you, thank you!"

Seeing his appearance, Eunuch Feng didn’t say much. A Vassal King entering the Capital City without an edict was indeed a serious matter.

After Eunuch Feng left, Prince Zhuang found it hard to sit or stand still, though he was quite confident.

Old Fifth was doomed this time, and his position as Crown Prince should be secure!