“As I was going out, a young guard bumped into me. I had just reprimanded him when Seventh Brother rushed over and, without a word, beat me to this state…” The Crown Prince, emotional, described the incident in detail, wincing and gasping in pain.
Emperor Jingming listened with a cold expression. When the Crown Prince finished, he swept his gaze over the kneeling attendants and eunuchs. “Is this what happened?”
The Crown Prince’s eunuch quickly replied, “Yes, Your Majesty, that’s exactly what happened.”
The guards nodded in agreement, though one Golden Crow Guard hesitated slightly before lowering his head in silence.
The King of Yan striking the Crown Prince was beyond their ability to intervene; Jiang Er’s offense against the Crown Prince paled in comparison.
Having received confirmation, Emperor Jingming asked Yu Jin with fury in his eyes, “Seventh Son, what madness possessed you today?”
Yu Jin adopted an honest expression. “I didn’t recognize Second Brother. From afar, I saw someone bullying my brother-in-law. In a moment of anger, I rushed over and beat him, only realizing afterward it was Second Brother!”
Emperor Jingming pressed his fingers to his brow, asking through gritted teeth, “And what’s this about your brother-in-law?”
Yu Jin quickly pointed to the kneeling Jiang Zhan. “Father Emperor, my brother-in-law is Jiang Zhan, who serves in the Golden Crow Guard. When I arrived, I saw someone stepping on his hand…”
Emperor Jingming’s gaze lowered to Jiang Zhan’s hand, indeed seeing a bloodied and mangled back of the hand.
“Crown Prince, what’s the explanation for this?” Emperor Jingming’s gaze returned to the Crown Prince.
The Crown Prince suddenly felt panicked and hurried to explain, “Father Emperor, I had no idea this man was Seventh Brother’s brother-in-law. Today, as I was going out, this guard bumped into me. He knelt before me to apologize, and I reprimanded him briefly. As I was hurrying away, I accidentally stepped on his hand…”
Jiang Zhan’s lips twitched, but he remained silent.
Yu Jin, however, had no such reservations. He asked in surprise, “Second Brother, does your shoe have nails on the sole? How could an accidental step cause such damage?”
Emperor Jingming narrowed his eyes.
He naturally didn’t fully believe the Crown Prince’s explanation, but for this troublemaker to dare speak up now—did he think assaulting the heir apparent would go unpunished?
“Seventh Son, do you acknowledge your crime of offending the Crown Prince?” Emperor Jingming asked coldly, truly angered.
Yu Jin knelt properly, lowering his gaze. “I know that offending the heir apparent is a grave crime of disrespect, but Second Brother wasn’t wearing his Crown Prince attire today. I didn’t recognize him when I struck…”
“Father Emperor, don’t listen to Seventh Brother’s nonsense. Just because I changed clothes, he couldn’t recognize me? Does that mean if you changed clothes, he wouldn’t recognize you either and might even strike you?” the Crown Prince interjected.
Seventh Brother was trying to claim ignorance as a defense. No way!
Emperor Jingming rarely found himself agreeing with the Crown Prince.
It made sense; Seventh Son’s excuse was too far-fetched. This time, there was no way he could escape punishment.
“Father Emperor, no matter what you wear, you will never crush someone’s hand,” Yu Jin said calmly.
Emperor Jingming raised an eyebrow.
Hmm, that seemed to make even more sense.