She Holds the World After Being Reborn
Chapter 162: How Preposterous, Silencing by Murder

Chapter 162: Chapter 162: How Preposterous, Silencing by Murder

Wa Chengnan could not recall just how many forms of torture he had been subjected to, only knowing that the harrowing screams kept erupting from his throat until he could no longer shriek.

The wounds on his body had been crudely treated and were no longer bleeding.

But he knew clearly that this was only to ensure he could stay alive to answer the Emperor’s questions, lest he die prematurely and provoke the Emperor’s anger.

But it might have been better to have died outright.

Wa Chengnan thought such.

Suddenly, he heard a voice, gentle yet chilly and distant. Instinctively, he looked up and saw Yan Wanqing looking down at him.

Princess Anping...

Wa Chengnan recognized her.

Seeing that Wa Chengnan remained silent, Yan Wanqing patiently asked again, "Are you thirsty, would you like some tea?"

Wa Chengnan nodded, his cracked lips indicating his desperate need for the moisture of the tea.

Observing this, Yan Wanqing brought the teacup to his lips; Wa Chengnan tried to use his blood-soaked hands to hold the cup.

"This Commandery Princess will feed you," Yan Wanqing said.

Wa Chengnan, without any thought for gratitude, drank the tea dry from Yan Wanqing’s hand.

After a cup of tea, he felt somewhat relieved, and involuntary tears welled up in his eyes.

Yan Wanqing sighed, setting the teacup back on the table.

"This Commandery Princess knows you were under the orders of the Seventh Prince."

At these words, Wa Chengnan opened his mouth, yet he remained silent.

"It doesn’t matter if you don’t speak. Whether you do or not, His Majesty has his own ideas," Yan Wanqing continued, "All that matters now is whom His Majesty thinks is the mastermind, and thus they will be deemed so."

Facing Wa Chengnan’s silence, Yan Wanqing was not surprised.

"This Commandery Princess knows your heart is filled with doubts, but now there’s only one path for you to take: blame the Seventh Prince, and that’s the only path you can take."

Wa Chengnan shook his head, then he began to shake his head frantically.

He couldn’t blame the Seventh Prince.

The Seventh Prince held the lives of so many from the Wa family in his hands; if he directly revealed this, the next second would see the Wa family’s heads roll.

This was absolutely unspeakable.

"You must be familiar with this item," said Yan Wanqing, pulling a sachet embroidered with a cute tiger head out of her sleeve.

Upon seeing this, the tears in Wa Chengnan’s eyes finally spilled over.

"Commandery Princess... how did you..." How did you acquire it?

His hoarse voice, barely distinguishable, sounded in the quiet room, like stones scraping roughly against the ground.

Yan Wanqing softly sighed, "Everyone has already been moved to a safe place."

Wa Chengnan, lips cracked, stared intently at Yan Wanqing’s face, trying to understand her motives, why she would help him?

Everything that had happened today was unexpected.

The Seventh Prince’s conspiracy was a spur-of-the-moment decision, and Wa Chengnan was recruited hastily.

Then how could Yan Wanqing have managed to get the Tiger Head Sachet from his grandmother ahead of time, and how did she predict that tonight he would fall into such a predicament?

Looking at the seemingly frail woman in front of him, her complexion was very pale, yet those eyes, seemingly indifferent to everyone, hid behind them tumultuous waves that no one had noticed.

They had far underestimated Princess Anping’s strategies, as well as her ability to mastermind.

"You’ve seen it yourself, the Seventh Prince has made you a scapegoat, and the Emperor wishes to hear your testimony from your own mouth—without further concerns, don’t you want to take your revenge on him, Xiao Hongshen, fiercely?" Yan Wanqing gently coaxed.

She pulled the Tiger Head Sachet out from her sleeve, and Wa Chengnan reached out with his maimed limb to hold it.

"...I promised the Commandery Princess to testify against the seventh prince," Wa Chengnan said, "but not for any other reason. I wish to ask the Commandery Princess for one more thing before I die."

"Speak."

"I hope that within her capabilities, the Commandery Princess will protect Li Chengxiang, the eldest legitimate daughter of the Li Family," Wa Chengnan articulated each word.

Yan Wanqing thought his request would concern himself, but unexpectedly it was for Li Chengyuan.

The torture Wa Chengnan had endured had already left him on the brink of death, now merely sustained by some medicinal broth. If his strength gave way, his life would also succumb beyond recovery.

A dying man’s words are good.

Yan Wanqing sighed, "This Commandery Princess promises you."

Upon hearing this, Wa Chengnan visibly felt a weight lift from his heart.

Images of him with Li Chengxiang flashed through his mind, and he continued in his raspy voice, "...She is kind-hearted and no match for that Li Chengyuan. Her life in the Li Family will only become more difficult. It was I who failed to recognize the good from the bad and let her down. It is only natural that she doesn’t forgive me...I don’t bear any resentment towards her in my heart, and I wonder if she will come to see me after I die."

Yan Wanqing felt a pang of bitterness and turned her gaze away.

"You should come with this Commandery Princess to the great hall now, while there might still be time."

Wa Chengnan nodded, and Yan Wanqing pushed the door open, where the eunuch had been waiting for a long time.

Seeing Yan Wanqing emerge, he looked up puzzled.

Yan Wanqing nodded, "Summoned."

The eunuch’s face lit up, "As expected of Princess Anping, truly formidable. The Punishment Department interrogated him in turns throughout the night and got nothing; it took the Commandery Princess just the time of one cup of tea to make him speak."

Not wanting to delay over these complimentary words, Yan Wanqing said, "Please hurry, Eunuch, His Majesty is still waiting."

The eunuch promptly summoned people to drag Wa Chengnan out from inside the room, pulling a long streak of blood across the floor.

Yan Wanqing averted her eyes and followed them.

Inside the great hall, both Prince and Li Chengyuan looked at Yan Wanqing entering, with hostility in their gaze.

At that moment, the Emperor’s face was dark, "Summoned?"

Wa Chengnan bowed his head low on the floor, "This commoner has sinned, this commoner—"

"Father!" Xiao Hongshen suddenly struggled to get off the cushion, nearly tumbling to the floor, terrifying Li Chengyuan who was behind him.

Li Chengyuan hurried to help him up.

The Emperor stared at Xiao Hongshen, his eyes grim, "What is this?"

Xiao Hongshen knelt on the ground, "Your son has something to say."

"Your words can wait." The Emperor waved his hand, shifting his focus back to Wa Chengnan, "You first, who is the mastermind behind this?"

Wa Chengnan’s heart clanged resolutely, and he determined to bow his head to the floor, "To report to Your Majesty, it is the seventh—"

Suddenly, Yan Wanqing’s pupils dilated sharply. An arrow feather mixed with an unstoppable force rushed toward Wa Chengnan on the ground from outside the palace, and before she could act, she saw the arrow pierce through Wa Chengnan’s head, pinning it firmly to the ground!

"Assassin, save the Emperor—!" With the eunuch’s scream, a troop of the Ironclad Army surged into the hall.

The Emperor stood up, pushing away the eunuch in front of him.

He walked over to Wa Chengnan, only to see a pool of thick blood slowly spreading on the floor, approaching his feet.

The Emperor stepped back a couple of steps.

Then, the leader of the Ironclad Army reached out to check Wa Chengnan’s breath, "Your Majesty, he is gone."

The Emperor’s face darkened grimly, and he heavily slammed his hand on the table.

"Investigate! Investigate this! How dare someone commit murder to silence