The vast interrogation chamber was bathed in a strange, desolate light reflected from its gray walls. A large desk stood in the center, and beside it sat a man dressed in court robes, his expression solemn as he gazed straight ahead.
“Bring in the prisoner,” Mu Xueshi said quietly, his thin lips parting slightly.
Before long, the heavy clatter of leg irons scraping across the floor began to echo through the chamber, growing clearer and clearer. When four or five figures finally appeared in the doorway, Mu Xueshi raised his eyelids slightly and looked over.
“Reporting to Your Majesty the Empress, the prisoner has been brought in.”
“You may withdraw,” Mu Xueshi said.
The jailers bowed and retreated, leaving Mu Xueshi and several guards inside. Mu Xueshi waved to the guards beside him, signaling for them to leave as well.
“Your Majesty the Empress, we cannot casually leave your side. His Majesty gave us strict orders.”
“Then wait outside the door. Without my command, no one is permitted to enter.”
“But…” The guard beside him looked troubled.
Mu Xueshi frowned slightly and said, “Did you not hear me?”
“…Yes.”
Only Mu Xueshi and the prisoner remained in the empty chamber.
“You must hate me terribly, don’t you?” Mu Xueshi asked.
The prisoner continued hanging his head without making a sound.
“Yuwen Tao?” Mu Xueshi slowly called his name.
Yuwen Tao’s shoulders trembled. He raised his scar-covered face and burst into laughter like a hideous monster.
Mu Xueshi was startled.
“What are you laughing at?” he asked.
Yuwen Tao looked at Mu Xueshi with open contempt.
“Mu Linxi became Emperor, and Mu Xueshi became Empress. If Brother Mu knew, who can say how furious he would be? A biological father and son in love, biological brothers paired together—your family truly has no shame whatsoever.”
Mu Xueshi forced himself to remain calm. Yuwen Tao was not talking about him. He and the Third Prince were not related by blood. This man was already at death’s door and merely wanted to vent his hatred with a few vicious words. Mu Xueshi would let him say whatever he wished.
“There is no need for you to concern yourself with my family affairs. You should first confess every crime you have committed.”
“Is there any need for me to confess? Haven’t you already investigated everything thoroughly? You truly suffered, Young Master. Back then, you even bore the blame for me and went to prison. I thought you would follow your father into the grave. Who would have imagined that no matter how profound the love between father and son might be, it still cannot compare with the value of one’s own life?”
After saying this, Yuwen Tao continued sighing dramatically and speaking in sentences Mu Xueshi could not understand, every one of them filled with mockery.
Looking at Yuwen Tao now, Mu Xueshi found it difficult to believe that this was the same honest, upright man he had once seen. He had suspected nearly everyone in Grand Tutor Manor, yet he had never imagined that Yuwen Tao was the murderer.
“Indeed, it is fortunate that I did not die then. Otherwise, the true murderer would have escaped justice. But you truly ought to thank me. Had His Majesty uncovered this case, you would now be suffering a fate worse than death. Since I was the one who discovered the truth, however, you need only confess everything, and I will grant you a swift death,” Mu Xueshi said.
“Do I still need to confess? Have you not already investigated everything?”
“I merely want to hear you say it yourself. Speak all the grievances and resentment you have carried for so many years. Once you reach the Yellow Springs, no one will be there to listen.”
Yuwen Tao gave a cold snort. “If there is anything I regret, it is only that I failed to kill Mu Linxi with my own hands. Even if I become a ghost, I will never let him go.”
Mu Xueshi sighed. “Is that all?”
“What else would there be?” Yuwen Tao said coldly.
Mu Xueshi suddenly took out a memorial tablet from behind him and placed it on the desk, making certain Yuwen Tao could see it clearly.
“This is your child’s memorial tablet. Do you have nothing to say to the child who never had the chance to be born?”
The moment Yuwen Tao saw the tablet, his entire body began trembling. He roared, “Why do you have my child’s memorial tablet?”
Mu Xueshi smiled coldly. “Because you never made one for your child. I had this memorial tablet made.”
Yuwen Tao’s teeth chattered as he stared at Mu Xueshi with bloodshot eyes. “Why pretend to be kind? You know better than anyone who killed my child. Do not commit such acts and defile my child’s memory.”
“I am defiling your child?” Mu Xueshi immediately became indignant. “I acted out of kindness. You and I both know why your child died. But you should understand even better on whose behalf that child died.”
“This is my family’s affair. What does it have to do with you?” Yuwen Tao stared fiercely at Mu Xueshi, his expression full of hatred.
Mu Xueshi drew a deep breath and said, “How could it have nothing to do with me? That child was the result of your affair with Mu Wan’er, and Mu Wan’er was my father’s wife. Even if the child had been born, he would have called me elder brother—not you Father.”
Yuwen Tao breathed heavily, unable to utter a word.
“You should know perfectly well that adultery rarely ends well. Moreover, to allow the two of you to be together, you cruelly murdered so many people. This tragedy was the bitter consequence of your own actions. That child died to atone for both your sins.”
“Stop talking!” Yuwen Tao roared at Mu Xueshi.
Mu Xueshi rose and said calmly, “I admit that I intend to defend His Majesty. But apart from avenging his mother, he never killed anyone unrelated to the matter. And what about you? What about Mu Wan’er? Had Mu Wan’er not encouraged Consort Mu to bring His Majesty into the palace and conspired with her to murder his mother so cruelly, how could she have met with such consequences today?”
“Heh…” Yuwen Tao’s smile overflowed with mockery.
“When it comes to illicit affairs, Mu Wan’er and I cannot compare with you. Had you not seduced your own father, Mu Wan’er would never have endured so many years of loneliness. Had I not cared for her throughout those years, she would never have fallen in love with me. You are the source of all this evil—Mu Xueshi!”
Mu Xueshi nearly lost his footing upon hearing this. What did Yuwen Tao mean by seducing his own father? Could the former Mu Xueshi have…
“Stop pretending. Now that you have the Emperor, you have completely forgotten your own father. You committed so many filthy acts with Grand Tutor Mu in the past. Others might not have known, but how could I not? I once mocked Brother Mu’s taste for committing adultery with such an ugly son. Now I understand—your face was born for depravity…”
Mu Xueshi dropped heavily onto the chair. It took him a long while to recover from Yuwen Tao’s vicious words.
“For all those years, I watched with my own eyes as he neglected Wan’er and ignored Wu Cai’s mistreatment of her. Wan’er and I loved each other for so many years, yet to escape the condemnation of the world, we were never able to remain together. And what of you? You committed acts that brought shame upon you, yet forced others to bear the consequences. Did Grand Tutor Mu not deserve to die? Should he not have returned Wan’er to me?”
After hearing Yuwen Tao’s words, Mu Xueshi suddenly felt a trace of sympathy for him.
“Grand Tutor Mu may have committed wrongs, but none were deserving of death. If he had truly neglected Mu Wan’er all along, he would not have sent Ning Yue specifically to obtain pregnancy-stabilizing medicine for her. And had you not exploited Grand Tutor Mu’s concern for Madam, how could your murder plot have proceeded so smoothly?”
Yuwen Tao said nothing more and remained standing there with a stubborn expression.
Mu Xueshi sighed and looked at him. “There is still something I do not understand. Ning Yue and I… were extremely close. Why would he conspire with you to murder Grand Tutor Mu? And why were you the only person who knew that he had a twin brother?”
Yuwen Tao gave a cold snort. “Aren’t you supposed to possess extraordinary abilities? How could you not even know that your only friend was your father’s murderer?”
Mu Xueshi bowed slightly and said with a humble expression, “I truly require your guidance on this matter.”
“I found both Ning Yue and Ning Yuan when they were young. I raised them and later arranged for them to work in the manor. The same is true of many other disciples in the Qingwen Gang. I took them in and raised them.”
Mu Xueshi finally understood why the assassins he had encountered that night were so fiercely loyal to their master. Yuwen Tao had raised all of them.
“Then how could you bear to kill Ning Yue and Ning Yuan?” Mu Xueshi asked.
Yuwen Tao paused. “To conceal the truth and ensure nothing went wrong, naturally they had to die.”
“You spent so many years raising them solely so that you could exploit them one day?”
Unable to listen any longer, Yuwen Tao said, “If you intend to kill me, then hurry. Why waste so many words?”
You have clearly spoken even more than I have… Mu Xueshi muttered inwardly before handing him the written confession.
“You need only place your fingerprint here.”
Without the slightest hesitation, Yuwen Tao pressed his finger forcefully onto the confession, leaving a fingerprint, then threw it before Mu Xueshi.
Mu Xueshi picked up the confession, his expression gradually becoming solemn.
“By signing this confession, you have admitted your guilt. I did not torture you or force a false confession from you. Everything was done of your own free will. Under the laws of Yunxi, murder is a capital offense. Ordinarily, you would be paraded through the streets and beheaded at an auspicious hour. But out of respect for your profound love for Madam, I will spare you that public humiliation and grant you a swift death here.”
“I need no pity from you. I would rather be beheaded than die by your hand.”
Mu Xueshi’s expression suddenly became incomparably resolute. “You have no choice. You must die here today.”
With that, Mu Xueshi drew the long sword at his waist and rose to walk toward Yuwen Tao.
I do not want to kill you… But if I do not act, the Third Prince will certainly make you suffer a fate worse than death. I released all your disciples, but I cannot release you. For as long as you remain alive, the Third Prince may face the danger of assassination.
I will never allow anyone to harm Mu Linxi in the slightest.
Mu Xueshi swung his sword, but before the blade could fall, Yuwen Tao collapsed to the floor.
In the end, Yuwen Tao had severed his own meridians.
Mu Xueshi sighed. Perhaps this was for the best. He had not wanted to stain his own hands with blood.
…
Suddenly, the door to the interrogation chamber was pushed open. Mu Xueshi turned toward the entrance and saw the Third Prince.
Mu Xueshi panicked and hurriedly sheathed his sword. “Linxi…”
The Third Prince said nothing. He walked directly to Yuwen Tao, nudged the body with his foot, and asked Mu Xueshi, “Is he dead?”
Mu Xueshi gave a soft affirmative sound, then walked to the Third Prince’s side. “I’m sorry, Linxi. I allowed him to die without asking for your permission. I truly did not want to watch another person being tortured. Let him leave this way. I…”
The Third Prince gathered Mu Xueshi into his arms, gently stroked his hair, and said, “Xueshi, thank you.”
Mu Xueshi froze. He raised his head and looked at the Third Prince. “You aren’t angry that I killed him so directly? Haven’t you always hated this murderer deeply?”
“I am thanking you for finding the murderer for me.”
Mu Xueshi smiled. “Now all the burdens in your heart have finally been resolved. You will never need to trouble yourself over them again.”
Elio’s Notes: This is finally over after 10 years! Thanks for reading everyone. Feel free to leave your comments about this story at Novel Updates here.
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