The whole courtroom went silent as the two royal inspectors reported everything in detail, starting from the town of Maxong where the Meng Clan was extorted to the city of Shangwan where the Sui Clan's Mansion and the city prison tower was decimated.
The third prince finally understood why this eldest brother of his was trying to drag Lu Zhen into this mess. It's because the weapon store owner indeed caused a mess and can be considered a criminal.
So, the crown prince was putting all the other crimes onto him, so that he may escape from any kind of interrogation. Perhaps, the crown prince Shang Zexi would later kill Lu Zhen in the prison and erase this matter for good.
Shang Wei saw the Emperor's facial expression also change to that of a frown. Indeed, he was displeased by the actions of Lu Zhen. But, at the same time, defeating the Sui Clan's Grand Elder with such ease isn't a simple feat.
Wait a second. Defeating Sui Rong with a flying weapon?
The third prince felt a bad premonition.
Just like he feared, the crown prince threw his dice, "Your Majesty, Prince Wei said that attacking Song Yun out of conflict is their personal business. Then, what about the Sui Clan?
Moreover, the weapons that attacked Song Yun and Sui Rong are different. The latter was much powerful. Can such powerful weapons be possessed by an owner of a small weapon store in an alley?
At first, I assumed that he's a spy from the northern Empires who came here with nefarious intentions. But, according to our investigations, he's born and raised here.
And until a couple of months ago, he seemed to be living the life of an average civilian, but all of a sudden, he possessed a wide variety of weapons and a lethal one at that? How is it possible if someone isn't behind him?
And there's also one question that bothers me. How did Lu Zhen know that Song Yue was abducted in the first place?
How did he save her at the exact spot where a member of the Xu Sect is waiting for the two abductors? After all, he was going towards his home. And Hanga district is far away from the lake. These questions are yet to be answered. Only Lu Zhen can give it.
But, let's assume that it's a pure coincidence and he has nothing to do with the Xu Sect or the northern Empire or any kind of hostile forces.
But, even then, we need to put him on trial and formally investigate the origins of his unique weapons. We need to know who the one that manufactures them is.
Is it really the dwarves or is there any other hidden entity that we don't know?
And there's that powerful weapon.
A unique weapon that can fly and injure an Exalt realm expert like Sui Rong, who was even in an advanced stage, I believe such a weapon is useful for the Empire and you should be the one that possesses it."
The Crown Prince turned around the game, not only framing Mark as a criminal but also trying to influence the Emperor with greed for power.
Seeing that the Emperor is actually considering it, the Grand Secretariat then hurriedly voiced out his opinion, "Your Majesty, whatever weapons, this Lu Zhen has, it's considered his personal property. The Imperial palace doesn't have the right to confiscate them, just because it is powerful."
"Who said about confiscating, Grand Secretariat Li?" The Crown Prince appeared to be fully prepared to go all out and gave befitting replies to everyone that tries to come in his way. "If it's a weapon, then, we can buy it. If it is soul-bound, then, we can contact the Heavens sect to get rid of the binding. If Lu Zhen is the citizen of the Empire and is loyal to the throne, then, he should have no problem selling it to us. We can even pardon his crimes for his service to the Empire."
"Pardon?" The third prince fell into thoughts, once again. He couldn't understand the intentions of the Crown Prince. First, he frames Lu Zhen, then, he talks about the might of the weapon, then, he says about acquiring it.
Is his real goal, the flying weapon that he mentioned? Perhaps, he was looking for the manufacturer behind it and wanted to force it out from Lu Zhen? The third prince wondered.
However, the Crown Prince didn't end there. Now that the matter with Lu Zhen settled, he felt like he needed to crush this brother of his, too. He wanted to hit all of his targets at once with a single arrow.
"Your Majesty, now, let me clarify about the other statements that I made. Prince Wei said that I twisted some of the facts with half-truths. He said that I let Lu Zhen get away from the Imperial City and I was irresponsible.
While Lu Zhen indeed get away without alarming us but I was the one who managed to track them down at Maxong town. These two Royal inspectors are the perfect examples." He pointed at them and said, "On my orders, they followed Lu Zhen and his servant in secret and investigated everything."
As the royal inspectors bowed nervously because they knew that wasn't the complete truth, He continued, "As for the so-called constitution, we have Minister Song here. Song Chang recently assumed the position of the minister of Public works as well as the head of the clan. A clan head has the right to think about the well-being of the clan members. And he has the power to override the decisions of all of the clan members.
So, even if the immediate family refuses to prosecute the accused, the clan head can nullify the decision and Minister Song now had decided to prosecute Lu Zhen and bring him to the trial."
As he pointed to the middle-aged man, the latter came forward and bowed, "Your Majesty, Song Yun was a paternal cousin of mine but we are closer than biological siblings. I want justice for Song Yun and the other five clan members who ended up as casualties."
The third prince's face darkened and felt the gazes of the people around him. He indeed made a blunder.
Meanwhile, the Crown prince continued as he pointed to a tall and thin man who was half bald on the front but has a thick and long braid in the back, "Minister Zhang will explain the reason behind the annulment of the engagement between Song Yue and Zhang Kong."
The Minister of Justice stepped forward and bowed, "Your Majesty, we don't what that bastard, excuse me, I mean Lu Zhen did to Song Yue but her visits to his store were too frequent.
And according to my son's statement, Song Yue kept on praising Lu Zhen's appearance as if she was infatuated. How could she talk about a stranger in front of her future husband? Even after her father was sent into a deep sleep, she requested not to prosecute. It isn't anything but ordinary, Your Majesty. We have the laws of adultery only for married couples. So, there's nothing that can be done about her.
The relationship between them is bound to be broken. It was a pure coincidence that my grandfather entered the 7-circle realm. Prince Wei was trying to save the image of his friend."
It was Shang Wei's turn to clench his fist in anger. Lu Zhen was nobody to him and is even an annoyance. If the Crown prince wanted his flying weapon or whatever, it wouldn't matter but Song Yue was different. She is not only his friend but was also like a sister.
He wanted to punch his brother right in the face but controlled his emotions upon remembering that he was in the courtroom.
With a smile on his face, the Crown Prince announced the list of charges, "Hence, it's proved that Lu Zhen is indeed guilty. Your Majesty, I request a formal arrest for Lu Zhen and bring him to a trial for the following crimes.
The attack on Song Yun, the five deaths of the Song Clan members, Four deaths of Meng Clan, eleven deaths of Qian Clan, six deaths of Lei Clan, thirteen deaths of Sui clan, the death of seventy-four prisoners, eight security personnel, the property destruction of Song Clan and Sui Clan, extortion of 10000 gold coins from Meng clan, 10000 gold coins from Qian Clan, 10000 gold coins from Lei Clan, 100,000 gold coins from Sui Clan, alleged relations with Xu Sect, and alleged relations with hostile organizations to the Empire."
The officials in the court were silent, the ministers from Nie Clan, Song Clan, and Zhang Clan were smiling lightly, the third prince was boiling in anger, and the Emperor had a deep frown on his face.
He stared at the third prince, "Do you want to say, anything, Prince Wei?"
Taking a deep breath, the third prince answered, "A criminal will have to be punished, regardless of his/her status. However, if Lu Zhen turned innocent, then, the Crown Prince will be obligated to apologize not only to the prosecuted parties but also to the court officials for misleading the situation.
And one more thing, Your Majesty. I would like to prosecute Minister Zhang for spouting lies in the sacred hall of judgment without any remorse for his actions. Along with him, his son should also be judged. If proven guilty, then, he'll have to resign from his post and if he turns innocent, I will be obligated to not only apologize to him but will also resign from my post."
Shang Wei cupped his fists and bowed to the Emperor, adding a final request, "I call for a public trial."
The third prince's sudden move indeed surprised everyone, including even his father.
The Crown Prince mumbled to himself, "So, you are finally declaring a war against me, huh."
After a brief silence, the Emperor opened his mouth, "very well."
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