As soon as Song Shiren spoke, everyone knew what was going on. It turned out that these people were all characters who made a living on the streets of Kyoto at night. After Song Shiren's interrogation, these people respectfully confessed that they had seen the Fan manor's sedan chair come out of the Jing Prince's residence yesterday, but it didn't return to the manor. Instead, it went to the west of the city, and then in the middle of the night, it was mysteriously carried back.

Fan Xian narrowed his eyes slightly, watching the scene. He admired the Guo family's ability to gather so many people who had seen him in half a day. Seeing that he wasn't worried, Zheng Tuo became anxious and lowered his voice, saying, "Later, don't admit to anything, just say that these people were bought by the Guo family with money."

Fan Xian sighed and said, "Guo Baokun was indeed beaten, and his injuries are so terrible. Just because he wants to frame me, he's spending money to do so many things? It doesn't make sense." Zheng Tuo didn't expect that the young master would consider things from the enemy's perspective, and was stunned for a moment.

At this time, a hint of mockery appeared on the corner of Song Shiren's lips as he looked at Fan Xian. "Young Master Fan wasn't at home last night? Why are there so many people in Kyoto who saw that you didn't return to the manor? May I ask, Young Master Fan, what exactly did you go to do, prowling the night streets of Kyoto in the middle of the night, that required such sneakiness?"

Mei Zhili, the magistrate of Kyoto, frowned at Fan Xian, watching how he would answer.

Silence filled the courtroom.

Fan Xian sighed, a hint of embarrassment appeared on his face, a sheepish smile of being discovered with a secret. He softly replied, "Last night... I spent the night at Zui Xian Ju."

Everyone knew what kind of place Zui Xian Ju was. Thinking that this young master spent the night in a brothel, it seemed that his furtive behavior had a plausible explanation. The onlookers let out a collective "oh" and burst into laughter, naturally with some jeering remarks about Fan Xian. Hearing this explanation, Mei Zhili breathed a sigh of relief, while Song Shiren still smiled, relentlessly pressing on. "Zui Xian Ju? May I ask, Young Master Fan, do you have any witnesses?"

"Sili Li girl can testify," Fan Xian said awkwardly.

Song Shiren paused for a moment, then suddenly said with a mocking laugh, "Really? But... Sili Li girl has already left Kyoto today and is heading to Suzhou. Isn't this too coincidental? I wonder if someone is afraid that the Li girl will say something she shouldn't."

Fan Xian raised his head, staring at Song Shiren. Only then did he realize that the Guo family had used some means to force that Sili Li girl out of Kyoto. It seemed that the other party had been prepared. Seeing him speechless, Song Shiren was confident and bowed to Magistrate Mei. "The matter is already very clear. Young Master Fan beat someone first and lied afterward. I ask the magistrate to imprison the criminal and await trial."

Zheng Tuo, who had been quiet for a while, suddenly laughed. "How grandly said! Just because our young master went out at night, he has to be saddled with such a big crime?" Song Shiren pressed, "Since Young Master Fan went out, may I ask why you previously said that Young Master Fan stayed in the manor all night?"

Zheng Tuo replied smoothly, "This matter of seeking pleasure with courtesans is never good for one's reputation, so I had no choice but to..." Song Shiren interrupted him with a smile. "Seeking pleasure with courtesans? Where is this courtesan now? Where is the pleasure?"

He cupped his hands to the surroundings and said loudly, "Young Master Guo and Young Master Fan argued fiercely the day before yesterday, and then he was attacked last night. The thief was arrogant and admitted to being Fan Xian. Young Master Fan didn't return all night, but can't explain where he went. May I ask who the real culprit is? Isn't it obvious?"

Mei Zhili coldly looked at this lawyer, thinking that even if you argued until the sky fell, did you really think this was an ordinary criminal case? He couldn't help but look down on this famous eloquent person. He turned and asked, "Fan Xian, do you have any evidence to prove your whereabouts last night?"

Fan Xian thought for a moment and smiled. "Actually... yesterday I was messing around with the Jing Prince's son, I don't know if that counts as a witness?"

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Since the Jing Prince's son was involved, there was no point in trying this case. Mei Zhili, his face dark with anger, called both sides to the front and said a few words in a low voice, then announced that the case was temporarily adjourned. Fan Xian was to stay in Kyoto pending investigation and was not allowed to leave the city. The Guo family naturally disagreed, but they couldn't do anything about the weight of the other party's witness for the time being, so they had to return to the manor and discuss it further. The Kyoto citizens who were watching found that it was such a boring ending, and the families of the Minister and the Vice Minister didn't even cause much of a ruckus before it ended. They made a hubbub and dispersed.

When Fan Xian and Zheng Tuo walked out of the government office, they were surprised to find that Song Shiren was waiting outside for them.

"Young Master Fan," Song Shiren said with a smile and a bow.

Fan Xian didn't know what he meant and returned the bow.

Song Shiren said softly, "The Guo family has been kind to me, so I had no choice but to offend you today." Fan Xian suddenly thought of something and frowned, asking, "Did the Sili Li girl really leave Kyoto?"

After Song Shiren came out of the courtroom, he appeared incomparably respectful towards this young noble. He responded with an "yes." Fan Xian stared into his eyes and asked, "Did you do it, or did the Guo family do it?" Song Shiren was a little surprised and said, "I thought Young Master Fan sent her out of Kyoto... Could it be that you really were at Zui Xian Ju last night?"

Fan Xian said with a wry smile, "Did you really think that I beat Guo Baokun?" At this time, the case was temporarily adjourned, but the two sides were still speaking with some reservation. After a few words, Song Shiren turned around and got into a small soft sedan chair, leaving the Kyoto government office.

Fan Xian looked over there curiously. "He's already offended me, why bother coming to show goodwill?"

"Song Shiren is a smart man," Zheng Tuo said with a smile, shaking his head. "Young Master didn't say in the manor that he was drinking and whoring with the Jing Prince's son. Song Shiren's move almost scared me to death."

Fan Xian smiled. "Everyone knows that the courtroom is just a formality, why be so nervous?"

Zheng Tuo shook his head and sighed, "No matter how this matter develops later, we've completely offended the Guo family."

"We always have to offend someone, might as well pick someone we can afford to offend."

"Young Master, your... reputation for being a playboy and your poetry... I estimate it will spread throughout Kyoto within a day."

"It's my wish, I dare not ask for more."

"Admire, admire."

"You're too kind, you're too kind."

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Deep within the palace, the yellow glazed tiles gleamed golden in the sunlight, and the vermilion high walls gave rise to a sense of oppression. In the garden behind the hall, a kind-faced old lady was listening with her eyes half-closed to what the female official beside her was saying. In front of her were two noblewomen serving her. Strange fruits and vegetables were arranged on the stone table. One of the noblewomen had a dignified appearance, with phoenix eyes and vermilion lips, and her eyebrows and eyes were full of attentiveness and restraint. She peeled a fruit and carefully fed it to the old lady.

"Empress, why is it you?" The old lady opened her eyes and saw that it was her who was handing over the fruit, and said with a smile, "Let the children do these things. You rule the harem and are the mother of the world. How can you be the one to do these things?"

The noblewoman said with a gentle smile, "Filial piety must be fulfilled no matter what."

It turned out that this noblewoman was the current Empress of Qing Yu Nian, so the old lady she was serving was naturally the Emperor's birth mother, the Consort Cheng of the past, and the current Empress Dowager. But no one knew what the identity of the court dress lady sitting next to her was, that she could sit side by side with the Empress.

"No need to read anymore," the Empress Dowager said softly to the female official. "You may all withdraw."

All the palace maids withdrew, leaving only two old nannies. The Empress Dowager closed her eyes and rested for a while, then asked, "Earlier I heard a few poems by that Fan family child, what do you think?"

The Empress said with a smile, "This child doesn't quite understand the subtleties of writing, but it seems good to me."

The Empress Dowager chuckled and said, "It's more than good. That one about envying the fish is fine, but that later one about feeling grief in autumn far from home, how could an ordinary talented person write that... But..." Seeing the Empress Dowager stop speaking, the Empress asked teasingly, "But what?"

The Empress Dowager sighed and said, "It's just that the sadness in the sentences is too heavy, and at such a young age, how can he write such an old man's taste? I'm afraid that child is also a person with little fortune."

Hearing this, another noblewoman who had been silent actually began to sob softly, not knowing what she was so sad about. The Empress quickly comforted her, saying, "The Empress Dowager is just saying that. If that Fan Xian is really unlucky, the Empress Dowager can just pick some blessings from her fingernails and fill him up."

The Empress Dowager was also most annoyed by her crying, and said with a displeased face, "I only gave birth to three children. The Emperor goes without saying. Li Zhi is playful, but he always knows how to enjoy life. But you, girl, you've been crying for decades and still haven't figured it out, really..." After all, she was her own daughter, and her daughter's life was miserable and dependent on no one, so she couldn't say harsh words.

The noblewoman sobbed and said, "My child is already an unlucky person, and the Emperor, my brother, insists on marrying her to that even more unlucky child from the Fan family. What will happen in the future? What if Chen'er's illness doesn't improve?" It turned out that this extremely weak and constantly crying noblewoman was actually Fan Xian's prospective mother-in-law, the Princess, who had never married!

The Empress Dowager finally couldn't help but scold, "The root of Chen'er's illness is because you, her mother, didn't accumulate blessings for her, and now you still have the nerve to say these things! What's wrong with the Fan family's child? As soon as we said we wanted to use him to ward off evil spirits for Chen'er, he brought the child back from Danzhou without saying a word. Not to mention that he is also a pitiful child without a name or status, just for the sake of Fan Jian's loyalty to our royal family, you shouldn't speak ill of the Fan family."

The palace maids had long since withdrawn, leaving only a few old nannies standing respectfully with their hands clasped, as if they hadn't heard anything.

The Empress Dowager's chest heaved up and down with anger. The Empress quickly came up and rubbed her chest. The Empress Dowager took the Empress's hand away and said in a slightly softer tone, "Besides, Chen'er will always have to marry. With her status, the sons of famous ministers and generals in the court, whoever marries her won't necessarily live a good life. This Fan... Fan what's his name?"

The Empress quickly reminded her, "Fan Xian."

"Yes, Fan Xian. You heard earlier, he is indeed a talented child. Matching him with Chen'er is not considered unfair to her." The Empress Dowager took two breaths and said, "And the Emperor has already approved this marriage, what's the use of you making a fuss here with me?"