357: Chapter 356 Acacia

King Haoyue raised his hand to interrupt: "The matter of the sneak attack is basically true. You said you could identify the culprit. How?"

Feng Ming looked directly at Yang Chenyu: "The Imperial City is heavily guarded. The movements of a Ninth Grade expert would certainly be detected by Your Majesty, and an Eighth Grade expert cannot travel through it at will... The only one who could lurk in the courtyard, hide from the Xun Luoyuan, and possess the strength of an Eighth Grade Peak is Deputy Commander Yang."

"Looking at it this way, it is perfectly logical for Deputy Commander Yang to be the true culprit."

"Absurd! You want to convict me based solely on my strength?" Yang Chenyu roared in anger.

King Haoyue also said: "This is merely a speculation. This King wants physical evidence."

"Your Majesty, please look." Feng Ming flicked his sleeve, splashing water directly onto Yang Chenyu.

Yang Chenyu subconsciously wanted to dodge, but was pinned in place by King Haoyue's gaze. After the water fell, a faint glow actually appeared on his hands and feet.

Feng Ming said coldly: "When we first met yesterday, I had already planted Water Glow Powder on you when we shook hands. The marks on your feet speak for themselves. One only needs to compare them with the palm print on the door and the footprints on the ground to know the truth."

Yang Chenyu's expression changed drastically, and he lost his voice in panic: "Feng Ming! Why did you suspect me from the very beginning? This makes no sense! Why?!"

Seeing this, everyone understood what was happening and began to whisper:

"I really didn't expect Deputy Commander Yang to be the one stealing what he was supposed to guard?"

"But it's not that shocking; he used to serve under Prince Zhenwei and had close ties with the Third Prince..."

"Keep your voice down, do you want to die? Your Majesty is still here!"

Feng Ming looked at King Haoyue: "Your Majesty, he has already confessed by his actions. Do I still need to go to my room to fetch more evidence?"

King Haoyue shook his head: "No need."

"However, this King is curious. Why did you target Yang Chenyu in the first place?"

Feng Ming smiled calmly:

"Your Majesty surely already knows the reason, but since you wish to hear it, I shall speak plainly. The opponent's goal was not the drugging itself; the true purpose was to force the Xun Luoyuan and me to be together under the drug's effects, ruining our reputations."

"Of all the women, they chose the Xun Luoyuan. The intention is self-evident."

"In the heart of the Imperial Palace, the only person who could knock me unconscious silently, bring me into the Xun Luoyuan's room, avoid her perception, and not trigger Your Majesty's Qi signature is an Eighth Grade Peak who was already lurking in the villa and held the authority over the guards."

Someone wondered: "What if there was another Eighth Grade Peak in the courtyard?"

Feng Ming's gaze swept across the crowd, and he asked back indifferently:

"Is there a difference between the two?"

Everyone was stunned, looking confused.

Feng Ming said in a deep voice:

"Taking action within the Qunlong Villa and avoiding detection are two different things. As long as someone made a move, with Deputy Commander Yang's cultivation, it would be impossible for him not to notice."

"Yet he had no reaction. There are only two possibilities: either he was the one who did it, or the culprit was one of his people and he intentionally turned a blind eye. Either way, it's enough to prove that Deputy Commander Yang was the one who set the trap."

"Since I was certain he was on the other side, how could I not take precautions in advance?" Feng Ming looked at the marks on the ground and continued: "I applied Water Glow Powder to his hands to confirm if he took action personally; I scattered the powder on the ground to prove there truly was a culprit."

"If the culprit were someone else, there wouldn't be a palm print on the door. Now that the handprint has appeared, the truth needs no further explanation. Even if you refuse to admit it, you cannot escape the crime of dereliction of duty."

At this point, the truth was out.

In the crowd, Lu Qianqian and Zhang Bai were full of amazement, never expecting that Feng Ming had already planned everything step by step.

Zhang Bai sighed inwardly: "No wonder he can get so close to the Xun Luoyuan. Who can match this kind of intellect?"

Lu Qianqian was even more excited: "As expected of the man I have my eye on, he's amazing!"

Feng Ming looked at King Haoyue: "Your Majesty, is the matter clear now?"

King Haoyue nodded slightly. Just as he was about to speak, Yang Chenyu suddenly laughed maniacally: "Feng Ming! Even if you've exposed me, so what?"

"Can you guarantee that you and the Xun Luoyuan are truly innocent? If you were really innocent, why didn't the Xun Luoyuan call for help immediately last night, but instead set up a seal and kept you in her room all night?"

Feng Ming said coldly: "That was to stabilize the situation and wait until dawn to expose your conspiracy in public!"

Yang Chenyu's smile became even more sinister: "No matter how you explain it, the fact that a man and a woman spent the night alone together is an iron-clad fact!"

"I can prove my innocence!"

"Innocence?" Yang Chenyu sneered, "You can prove it to His Majesty, but can you prove it to the people of the world? Once this matter spreads, the world will only believe that you and the Xun Luoyuan have committed adultery. You won't be able to wash away this infamy for the rest of your life!"

"Throw him into the Heavenly Prison!"

King Haoyue ordered coldly, and the guards immediately stepped forward to drag Yang Chenyu away.

Feng Ming hurriedly looked at King Haoyue: "Your Majesty, the Xun Luoyuan and I really..."

Before he could finish, King Haoyue raised his hand to interrupt: "I believe you regarding the matter of being framed, but as for whether you and the Xun Luoyuan are innocent, I will only listen to the Xun Luoyuan's word."

King Haoyue's gaze fell on Xun Luoyuan: "Luoyuan, tell the truth."

Xun Luoyuan lowered her head, bit her lip slightly, and when she looked up, her tone was calm but powerful: "This daughter of your subject dares not deceive Your Majesty. Feng Ming and I... have long since pledged our lives to each other. I am already his."

Feng Ming felt as if he had been struck by lightning. He suddenly looked at Xun Luoyuan, his pupils shrinking as he cried out in shock: "Xun Luoyuan! What are you saying?!"

Feng Ming stared blankly at Xun Luoyuan, his face full of disbelief.

He had gone to great lengths to untangle all the conspiracies and expose Yang Chenyu's plot. As long as the two of them proved their innocence together, the matter could be completely put to rest. But Xun Luoyuan had actually admitted that they had pledged their lives to each other. This sudden reversal caught him completely off guard.

Xun Luoyuan acted as if she hadn't heard him and lowered her head to repeat: "Feng Ming and I have already shared physical intimacy. I am already his. I ask Your Majesty to fulfill our wish for the sake of my father's service in following you back then."

"I didn't! There's no such thing!" Feng Ming spoke hurriedly, looking around at everyone to explain anxiously, "She's lying. The Xun Luoyuan and I are clea—"

"Shut up!" King Haoyue suddenly barked in a deep voice, his tone carrying an unquestionable authority.

Feng Ming looked at King Haoyue, then at the calm Xun Luoyuan, and understood everything in an instant.

The people around had already begun to discuss fervently, their voices rising and falling.

"He was just talking about innocence, but it turns out they had an affair all along. This kid hides things too deeply!"

"The Xun Luoyuan has peerless beauty, and he actually got her. What good fortune!"

"Wait, don't they still have the effects of Entangling Love Threads in their bodies? If they really did the deed, the effects should have dissipated long ago!"

"Entangling Love Threads is a potent Union Wine; who knows if the effects last a long time? Has any of us ever experienced it personally?"

In the crowd, Zhang Bai gritted his teeth and cursed in a low voice: "Feng Ming, you bastard! You won't let go of any of the women I like, and this time you actually took her down directly! You've really got something!"

Lu Qianqian chuckled and teased from the side: "Otherwise, why is he the big brother and you're the little brother? Your tastes are equally good."

"You're still speaking for him?" Zhang Bai looked frustrated.

"Why wouldn't I?" Lu Qianqian's eyes curved into crescents, "If he becomes the Prince Consort, I'll be a close friend of the Prince Consort. In terms of status, I'd be almost the same as the Xun Luoyuan!"

Zhang Bai was left speechless, only able to look depressed, unable to say another word.