The strength on his chest lessened, allowing Qiao Weihai to lift his head slightly and see a faint silhouette outside the door.
It was a slender figure.
A young girl in a cyan dress was slowly walking towards him.
Under the bright lamplight, he saw a face that was still somewhat immature, yet peerlessly beautiful.
A pair of clear eyes looked at him indifferently.
So faint, as clear as water.
It seemed to mock him, and inexplicably, he felt an indescribable emotion.
"Greetings, Your Majesty!" Those present at this moment all knelt and paid their respects.
Regent Xue Wenjie sneered, looking at the girl who was also looking at him.
He scoffed inwardly, indeed, her courage had grown as had her ambitions.
She could not be kept.
Xue Wenjie suppressed all his thoughts and slowly bowed, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"
"I heard the culprit who assassinated Imperial Uncle has been apprehended. Could it be this person?" the girl pointed at Qiao Weihai, who was pinned beneath his foot.
Xue Wenjie nodded, "It is indeed this person. Your subject is currently interrogating his accomplices."
"Then proceed with the interrogation. I wish to hear who dared to assassinate Imperial Uncle, and whether they are not afraid of having their entire clan exterminated?" the girl's tone was icy.
Xue Wenjie chuckled, wanting to see what tricks the Empress would play.
"Your Majesty speaks wisely," Xue Wenjie complied.
The girl turned and surveyed the room. Official Yu stepped forward, "Your Majesty, it would be most fitting for this subordinate to handle this interrogation."
Xue Wenjie snorted coldly.
The girl shook her head, "No, you are not suitable."
Official Yu was taken aback. Looking at the girl, he felt she was somewhat unfamiliar for the first time. Had the Empress come to rescue Qiao Weihai?
"Yan Zhao, you handle it!" the girl said indifferently, glancing at Yan Zhao.
Yan Zhao looked up at the girl, smiling inwardly. As expected, he had been brought here to be implicated.
On one side was the Empress, and on the other, the Regent.
Xue Wenjie looked at the Empress. These past few days, the Empress had not been as dismissive of Yan Zhao as before. Had she accepted Yan Zhao?
He had planned to present Yan Zhao to the palace, knowing that with Yan Zhao's appearance, he would surely move the Empress.
But for some reason, he felt that this deal was a bit of a loss.
This was because Yan Zhao was no ordinary person. He could not fathom what Yan Zhao intended to do, or what he needed.
He had no weaknesses.
A person one could not control was the most terrifying.
"I have never interrogated anyone before. I beg Your Majesty to find someone else," Yan Zhao politely declined.
"I believe you are capable, therefore you are," the girl gave him no chance to refuse.
Yan Zhao knew he could not refuse and thus agreed, "Your subject accepts the order!"
"Criminal, state your name," Yan Zhao said calmly.
Qiao Weihai looked up and his gaze paused slightly upon seeing Yan Zhao. He had once believed his own appearance to be unmatched, but he had never imagined there were people far more outstanding than him.
For some reason, he felt a sense of familiarity, as if he had seen him somewhere before, but he could not recall it for a moment.
"Qiao Weihai."
"Where are you from?" Yan Zhao asked again.
"A native of Dongling Pass."
Yan Zhao glanced indifferently at Qiao Weihai, "Why did you come to the capital?"
Qiao Weihai stiffened, looking up with hatred at Regent Xue Wenjie, and said through gritted teeth, word by word, "You should ask the Regent about this matter. He annihilated the entire Qiao family."
"Imperial Uncle, what is the meaning of this?" the girl asked, looking at Xue Wenjie.
Xue Wenjie snorted coldly, looking at the girl, he said sternly, "Does Your Majesty recall that in the year 166 of the Barren Marsh, the General guarding Dongling Pass, Qiao Daotong, colluded with the enemy and committed treason?"
The girl was startled and thought for a moment, "I do indeed recall. The execution of the entire family was ordered by my Imperial Father."
Qiao Weihai slumped to the ground. He had always believed the Regent had fabricated the imperial decree, but he never imagined it was a real one.
Yan Zhao looked up at the girl. Her gaze was as clear as water.
Open and unreserved.
He seemed to understand the girl's intentions.
"However..." the girl's tone shifted, and she continued, "I recall a sentence in my Imperial Father's imperial decree: 'The innocent children shall not be punished, and thus it was ordered that they be sent to a place of exile.'"
Regent Xue Wenjie now understood the meaning behind the Empress's words.
She was implying that he had shown no mercy?
Upon hearing this, Qiao Weihai's voice trembled, "The Regent did not act in such a manner. He ordered the complete annihilation of everyone, leaving no one alive."
Hearing this, the girl looked at Xue Wenjie and asked, "Imperial Uncle, what is going on?"
Xue Wenjie sneered, "Your Majesty, at that time, someone defied the imperial order. This subject had no choice but to execute them without mercy. Even so, did not one criminal escape?"
At this, Qiao Weihai's eyes turned bloodshot, and he roared, "You are lying! You clearly ordered everyone to be killed. You even ran through my sister-in-law, who was pregnant, with your sword, and she died on the spot."
Recalling the tragic scene of that year, Qiao Weihai couldn't help but close his eyes, his fists clenched.
He was still young then, and he had watched it all unfold, yet he was powerless to change anything.
Now, seeing the murderer sitting right there, he was still unable to do anything?
Helplessness and rage flooded his mind and his entire body.
"Imperial Uncle, you went a bit too far," the girl turned to look at Xue Wenjie, her gaze cold.
Xue Wenjie said coldly, "Does Your Majesty believe a criminal's one-sided testimony? Moreover, this subject was acting under imperial orders back then."
His gaze was arrogant and mocking, as if to say, was it not your Imperial Father who issued the decree?
A powerful pressure emanated from Xue Wenjie's body.
It crushed Xue Zining, making it impossible for her to raise her head.
"Colluding with the enemy and committing treason is a crime punishable by the extermination of the entire clan. Why did you proceed with it if you knew?"
It was then that Yan Zhao spoke.
Qiao Weihai trembled all over, his gaze flickering away slightly.
Although it was a subtle movement, Xue Zining captured it. It seemed the matter was not as simple as it appeared.
"Your Majesty... Your subject has something to say..." Official Yu stepped forward and knelt on the ground.
"Speak," Xue Zining said.
Official Yu said, "Your Majesty, General Qiao's wife is from the Snow Country."
Xue Zining was surprised.
Official Yu continued, "Your Majesty may not know, but when General Qiao was young and leading troops, he was once saved by someone from the Snow Country. That person was the later Madame Qiao."
"What does this have to do with General Qiao colluding with the enemy and committing treason?" Xue Zining asked.
Official Yu glanced at Qiao Weihai, then withdrew his gaze and said, "That year, the Snow Country experienced a blizzard unseen in a hundred years, and countless Snow Country citizens starved or froze to death. Madame Qiao was actually a county princess from a noble family in the Snow Country. Seeing her people suffering immensely, she hoped General Qiao would provide some relief. General Qiao, unwilling to let his heavily pregnant wife worry too much, secretly transported grain to the Snow Country."
"The Prince of the Snow Country wrote a letter of gratitude. It was this letter that fell into the hands of others and reached the capital."
Upon hearing this, Qiao Weihai closed his eyes, unwilling to recall those events.
"Official Yu, what you say is merely one side of the story. I require evidence."
Hearing this, Official Yu looked up and said, "Your Majesty, the maidservant who accompanied Madame Qiao back then is here to testify."