At the Law Mansion...
As TanTan arrived at the Law Mansion, she couldn't help remembering one of her mother's favorite television dramas, which she used to watch every weekend.
It was about a righteous judge who solved various cases at a law office. In the drama, anyone who had a grievance or wanted to file a complaint could simply strike a giant drum placed in front of the entrance to seek justice.
Hmm... So the drum is actually a real thing? I always thought it was just some kind of decorative accessory added for the drama...
However, this wasn't the time to satisfy her curiosity about ancient legal traditions.
As soon as they entered the front courtyard, the officers began separating TanTan from the others.
"Wait! Where are you taking them?" TanTan asked curiously.
One of the officers politely explained,
"They will be detained for the time being until Prince Li is ready to begin the investigation."
"What about me? Shouldn't I be detained with them too?"
The officer gave an awkward laugh.
"You're joking, Young Madam! Who would dare put you in jail?"
He quickly corrected himself and continued respectfully,
"No, Sir ManQi has instructed us to escort you to a guest room instead. You can wait and rest there. Please... this way!"
With that, the officer politely led TanTan to a simple guest room inside the mansion.
"XiaoJieee!"
TanTan was surprised to see XiaoRue coming out of the room to welcome her.
XiaoRue looked worried, but TanTan immediately felt relieved to see that she was safe and sound.
At the same time, she couldn't help feeling a little guilty for having left XiaoRue behind at the restaurant.
"I'm glad you're all right, XiaoRue!"
"XiaoRue is glad too, XiaoJie! XiaoRue was so worried about you!"
XiaoRue hurriedly examined TanTan from head to toe, checking whether she had sustained any injuries.
However, her eyes suddenly stopped at the reddish marks around TanTan's neck.
"XiaoJie... Did those bad men hurt you? What are those red marks on your neck?"
The moment TanTan realized what XiaoRue was referring to, her face immediately turned as red as a tomato.
She quickly covered her neck with one hand.
"I-It's... it's nothing!"
Without giving XiaoRue a chance to ask anything else, TanTan hurried into the room.
XiaoRue followed closely behind, still looking rather curious about those suspicious marks.
Meanwhile, in another room...
Prince Li ZhouWei was sitting on a chair while a physician examined him.
Fortunately, the physician's diagnosis wasn't too serious.
According to him, Prince Li had been drugged with a potent aphrodisiac. Fortunately, its effects had been neutralized before causing any serious consequences. He only needed some time to rest and recover.
The physician also advised him to take care of his lower abdomen, which had sustained an injury and was still causing him some discomfort.
After giving his instructions, the physician packed his belongings and left the room.
ManQi, who had been standing nearby, couldn't help feeling sympathetic toward his master.
As a fellow man, he could somewhat imagine how humiliating the situation must have been for Prince Li.
However, there was something he simply couldn't figure out.
How exactly did Master get injured in that particular area?
Was it Lady FengHuang? But why would a woman who was so infatuated with him do something like that?
Or... could it have been HuaMuTan?
ManQi suddenly recalled the possibility.
Wait! Could it be that Young Madam became so jealous and angry with Master that she punished him like that?
Good heavens! That's far too cruel!
His curiosity finally got the better of him.
"Master... may I ask what exactly happened in that room?"
Prince Li remained silent.
There were actually two reasons for his silence.
First, he was simply too embarrassed to answer.
How could he possibly explain that he had almost assaulted HuaMuTan under the influence of the drug, only to end up getting kicked by her?
Just remembering the incident made him want to disappear.
Second, he was still deeply shaken by something the physician had explained.
According to the physician, the aphrodisiac Lady FengHuang had used was a special type of drug that could induce hallucinations. A person under its influence would see the person they loved most or desired most in their heart.
Prince Li had always believed that he loved ShuangAi.
He had admired her for so many years. He had always considered her the woman who occupied the most important place in his heart.
But...
Why on earth had he hallucinated HuaMuTan instead?!
No... No... No... No... No... No... NO!
He vehemently rejected the possibility.
You must be sick, Li ZhouWei! Get a hold of yourself! Remember who she is! She's the woman who destroyed your life! A selfish woman who has spent all these months trying to control you!
There's absolutely no way you could have feelings for her! Absolutely no way!
"Master...? Master!"
ManQi's repeated calls finally broke through his thoughts.
Receiving no response for quite some time, ManQi began to worry that the drug's effects might still be lingering.
"MASTER!"
"Huh?! Ah... Ahem! What did you say?"
Prince Li finally snapped out of his thoughts.
ManQi looked at him with concern.
"We have already detained the people involved. They're waiting in the cells for further investigation. Would you like to begin questioning them now?"
Prince Li paused briefly before asking,
"What about HuaMuTan?"
"She's resting in the guest room, just as you instructed."
From the beginning, Prince Li had never seriously intended to put TanTan in jail. He had merely wanted to frighten her a little and teach her a lesson for causing so much trouble.
"And... is Lady FengHuang conscious already?"
"Yes, she has regained consciousness..."
ManQi hesitated for a moment before adding,
"...Though she seems rather upset."
What ManQi meant was that Lady FengHuang had become hysterical the moment she regained consciousness after being struck.
Inside the prison...
"Aaaagh! Why am I here?! Let me go! Prince Li! Guards! Let me go!!!"
Lady FengHuang's furious shouting echoed throughout the prison.
The prison consisted of two large rooms facing each other. Lady FengHuang was being held in one room, while the bearded man was detained in the opposite one.
Seeing her so agitated, the bearded man couldn't help trying to calm her down.
"Lady FengHuang, please calm down! Everything will be fine!"
"Don't tell me to calm down!"
Lady FengHuang glared furiously around her.
"It's absolutely ridiculous! How could I, Lady FengHuang, possibly end up in such a dreadful place?! Who was responsible for ruining my plan?!"
She began recalling what had happened, growing angrier with every passing moment.
Then, her attention suddenly shifted to another figure in the room.
A woman was standing with her back toward Lady FengHuang, seemingly trying her best to avoid being noticed.
However, that familiar back was impossible for Lady FengHuang to mistake.
"QINGQING!!!"
The woman stiffened.
"Why on earth are YOU here?!"
QingQing slowly turned around and forced an awkward smile at the only blood-related sister she had in this world.
"Hi, Feng Jie..."
Lady FengHuang immediately approached her with an angry expression.
"Don't 'Hi' me! What did you do this time?!"
"Well... please calm down first, Feng Jie. Let me explain our current situation..."
QingQing had no choice but to explain everything, including how they had ended up in the prison and who had knocked Lady FengHuang unconscious.
After listening to the entire story, Lady FengHuang could no longer contain her fury.
"AAAAAGHHH! THAT WICKED WOMAN AGAIN!!! HUA MUTAN!!!"
She clenched her fists in frustration.
"She's always trying to separate me from my Prince!"
Then she turned toward QingQing and glared at her.
"And YOU! This is all your fault! Why did you bring her to my gambling house?!"
"I'm sorry, Feng Jie! But how was I supposed to know she was pretending to be a man just to fool me?! I was only repaying my debt! You're the one who always taught me that I should never leave a debt unpaid, remember?"
"I did! But that woman is an exception!"
"Come on, Feng Jie. Don't be angry, okay?"
QingQing tried to soothe her sister before cautiously adding,
"Besides... don't you think you went a little too far this time? Using drugs on the Prince? Weren't you aware that something like this could happen? Just look at our situation now!"
"My plan would have worked perfectly if that wicked woman hadn't interfered!"
Lady FengHuang stubbornly refused to admit her mistake.
Her original plan had been to make Prince Li lose control under the influence of the aphrodisiac, then take advantage of the situation to make him responsible for what happened between them.
Unfortunately, HuaMuTan had ruined everything.
Deep down, however, Lady FengHuang was beginning to feel frightened.
She knew Prince Li well enough to understand that he wouldn't easily forgive her for what she had done.
The bearded man, who had been listening to their conversation from the beginning, could only stare at the two women in confusion.
"Hey... I don't understand something. Why do you hate that girl so much? She seemed like a nice person to me..."
Unfortunately, neither woman bothered to answer him.
They simply continued arguing as though he didn't exist.
Back in TanTan's guest room...
XiaoRue was still curious about everything that had happened.
After being questioned repeatedly, TanTan finally decided to explain the situation.
However, she deliberately left out certain details, stopping her explanation at the point where she had managed to save Prince Li from Lady FengHuang.
She wasn't particularly eager to explain the embarrassing details of what had happened afterward.
After listening, XiaoRue looked rather thoughtful.
TanTan, on the other hand, had become curious about something else.
"By the way, XiaoRue, do you know anything about Lady FengHuang?"
"XiaoRue doesn't know very much about her, XiaoJie. But after hearing your story, XiaoRue suddenly remembers that you mentioned her name once before..."
XiaoRue tried hard to recall her old memories.
"Ah! That's right! During the Crown Prince's coronation celebration, Lady FengHuang was one of the main dancers!"
"And... what happened afterward?" TanTan asked.
Although she already had a bad feeling about the answer, she couldn't help asking.
"Well..." XiaoRue lowered her voice slightly. "Because she was getting too close to Prince Li, XiaoJie deliberately spilled wine all over her dress and humiliated her in front of everyone. Lady FengHuang was so embarrassed that she immediately ran out of the room!"
XiaoRue finished her explanation in a small voice, cautiously observing TanTan's reaction.
TanTan stared blankly for a moment.
Oh, great... Another one of HuaMuTan's love rivals?
She let out a long sigh.
And this time, I might have caused her a much bigger problem than just ruining her dress...
"XiaoJie, what will happen now?"
TanTan shrugged helplessly.
"I'd like to know that too..."
Actually, as a law student, she was rather interested in discovering how legal proceedings worked in this ancient era.
I wonder how closely their judicial procedures resemble the legal system I know...
Just then, an officer arrived at the guest room.
He bowed respectfully before announcing,
"Young Madam, Prince Li has ordered everyone involved to gather at the courtroom immediately. The investigation is about to begin."
TanTan's eyes immediately brightened.
Oh? A real courtroom investigation?
She couldn't help feeling a little excited.
"All right! Let's go, XiaoRue!"