Chapter 137

Ye Fanjing stood at the judge’s bench, clad in a solemn black judicial robe. His face was tense, his brows drawn tightly together. He gripped the gavel in his hand, his gaze unconsciously drifting in a certain direction. His palms were damp with sweat. He had never held a gavel that felt this heavy before.

A dull thud echoed as the gavel struck the desk. The middle-aged man spoke in a grave tone, “Upper District Court Case No. 172 is now in session. I am the presiding judge of this case. Maintain silence!”

As Ye Fanjing’s words fell, the courtroom sank into absolute silence. His gaze quietly swept across the jury, the gallery, and the witness stand before finally settling on the two figures standing directly below him — a short, stout young man, and the other… his own daughter.

Unexpectedly, Ye Zheng appeared to be in excellent condition. There wasn’t the slightest trace of exhaustion on her face. On the contrary, she seemed even more spirited than he, the presiding judge.

At that moment, Ye Zheng turned her head slightly. Their eyes met without warning. Ye Fanjing’s expression stiffened, and he instinctively averted his gaze. Looking toward the center of the courtroom, he noticed several faces that caught him off guard, which only deepened the unease in his heart.

“Defendant Ye Zheng, you’re charged with first-degree murder under imperial law. Do you understand your rights?” he said, deliberately adopting a stern tone.

The young woman in the white robe beneath him gave a small nod. “Your Honor, I understand.”

Ye Zheng slowly lifted her head. Her dark eyes met Ye Fanjing’s, taking in his evasiveness and unease. Long ago, she had taken pride in having a judge as her father. In her eyes, he had once been the tallest and most imposing figure.

But today, even though she stood beneath him, her father no longer seemed towering.

“…Very well. Plaintiff David Green, you may begin your statement.”

Opposite Ye Zheng, the short, stout man with half his face wrapped in white bandages looked seething with anger. His lips moved rapidly as he spoke, “Before this incident, I, like everyone here, could never have imagined that the refined and noble young lady standing across from me could commit such a shocking and horrifying crime!”

A wave of murmurs rippled through the courtroom. This opening statement immediately heightened everyone’s anticipation. Prior to the trial, countless rumors had circulated regarding the details of the case. Today, they would finally uncover the truth.

And judging from the current atmosphere, that truth might be even more dramatic and bizarre than anyone had expected. After all, the mere fact that Saintess Ye Zheng, renowned for her purity and benevolence, had committed murder was already shocking enough.

Sensing the attention from all directions, David paused briefly before continuing, “I’m a researcher at an experimental base in the Western District. When His Highness the Crown Prince’s team was tracking the mastermind behind the Western District incident, they stayed at our base for some time. During that period, Ye Zheng killed three of my colleagues!”

“One died by drowning, and two perished in an explosion. After the base director discovered what had happened, he immediately confined Ye Zheng to a holding room. It was only when the base was attacked by monsters that she managed to escape by sheer luck.”

“The dead can’t speak, but the living must stand up and tell the truth. Ye Zheng, you must pay for your cruel crimes!”

The short, stout man’s voice grew increasingly emotional. Many among the jury and the gallery looked visibly shaken, their eyes fixed on Ye Zheng in disbelief.

Most of them were nobles from the Upper District who had once praised Saintess Ye Zheng at countless social gatherings.

“Your Honor, I have a witness who can testify on my behalf. He’s a knight serving His Highness the Crown Prince and can confirm everything I’ve said.”

Ye Fanjing, seated at the very center, struck the gavel once. “Call the witness.”

A knight clad in a red uniform stepped forward and declared, “I’m a close attendant of His Highness the Crown Prince. Saintess Ye Zheng was indeed detained by Kieran, the person in charge of the base at the time, due to a murder incident.”

Ye Fanjing frowned slightly. “What you’re saying is that the person in charge of the base at the time had already passed judgment on Ye Zheng, yet you can’t prove that Ye Zheng actually killed anyone. Private punishment doesn’t hold any legal validity.”

The short, stout man hurriedly spoke up, “Your Honor, I’ve got other evidence. Please allow me—”

Ye Fanjing abruptly cut him off, “However, this knight of the Crown Prince’s testimony isn’t without significance. Ye Zheng, do you have anything to say about this?”

From the very moment the trial began, Ye Zheng had been standing there quietly, like an ivory-white statue. Only when she heard her name called from above once again did she slowly raise her head and look up.

“Private punishment doesn’t hold any legal validity, but you once taught me that some regions implement special laws. They’re granted legitimate autonomous authority by the empire, and certain cases can only be tried under church law. The person in charge of that base, Ki—”

“Defendant Ye Zheng! Watch your words!” Ye Fanjing seemed to anticipate what she was about to say and sharply cut her off.

Ye Zheng closed her mouth and fixed her gaze on Ye Fanjing with deep, dark eyes. She’d already understood, someone had deliberately instructed Ye Fanjing to minimize any mention of the Western District base during this incident.

Even though exposing the background of the Hope Project base would actually work in her favor.

Ye Fanjing glared at Ye Zheng, drawing in a heavy breath before announcing, “Plaintiff David Green, present your other evidence.”

The short, stout man signaled with his eyes to someone behind him. Immediately, a heavy machine was brought forward, along with several photographs and autopsy reports.

The first photograph showed the swollen corpse of a man. The second was a gruesome blur of blood and flesh that made one’s stomach churn.

“The first is Henry Jones, who drowned. His family is also present here today… I’m sorry, Mrs. Jones. I was powerless to stop any of this at the time.”

Heart-wrenching sobs echoed from the gallery.

“The second photograph shows the two researchers who were blown up by Ye Zheng. They were civilians. Their families couldn’t even be here to witness this trial in person, but I believe they’ll receive a fair outcome.”

David Green, standing at the plaintiff’s bench, first displayed the two photographs to everyone in the courtroom before handing them up to the judge.

“These are evidence photographs left behind at the base. In addition to these photos, there’s also recorded footage.”

“Ye Zheng blew up the two researchers inside a laboratory. That laboratory was specially equipped with a recording device to preserve the experimental process. It captured Ye Zheng’s heinous act!”

Someone inserted a green ore into a square device and activated the bulky machine powered by Aberrant Realm ore. A blurry image was projected into the air above it.

A tall, slender girl in a white dress, her long black hair flowing, stood outside a glass door. She pressed a button, and the two men inside the glass enclosure instantly exploded, blood and flesh scattering everywhere.

Gasps of shock immediately erupted from below. Many covered their eyes.

Although they were nobles of the Upper District, witnessing such a horrifying scene with their own eyes, combined with the earlier tragic yet inspiring accounts of the two civilian researchers’ lives, stirred an unfamiliar sense of empathy toward the very civilians they usually looked down upon. At the same time, the way they looked at Ye Zheng now carried a trace of fear.

Even Ye Fanjing, seated above, revealed a look of discomfort and horror.

All eyes instinctively turned toward Ye Zheng. She maintained her upward gaze, let out a soft laugh, and the sound felt strikingly out of place in the solemn courtroom.

Before Ye Fanjing could rebuke her, Ye Zheng spoke calmly, “Can you prove that this recording is authentic?”

If Ye Zheng hadn’t killed them, she might’ve had no way to refute such a convincingly realistic image. But the truth was, she had indeed killed them.

They hadn’t died in any laboratory explosion at all. One had died from the power of the dragon bone, and the other had likely been transported above the laboratory before dying at the hands of the dragon-boned people. This recording was clearly fabricated.

A recording device required extremely expensive Aberrant Realm ore to function. How could it possibly be activated for something as routine as an experiment?

Moreover, Ye Zheng would never overlook details like this.

“Ye Zheng, are you still trying to quibble even now?” David Green demanded sharply.

“Such a bulky machine, no murderer in their right mind would ignore this particular ‘eyewitness.’ I think you may have misjudged my eyesight.”

“By the way, please summon that knight again. I wasn’t dressed like that on the day in question. Mr. Green, do you usually wear a rather pretty long dress, let your long hair flow freely, and walk in small high heels when you commit murder?”

The short, stout man’s face flushed crimson with embarrassment. Soft, mocking laughter rippled from the seats behind him.

He turned his head resentfully, only to meet a noble face bearing a faint half-smile. He immediately turned back around, awkward and stiff.

Ye Fanjing’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two, as though caught in a fierce internal struggle. He slowly parted his lips and said, “There is indeed a possibility that the footage from the recording device has been falsified…”

“Your Honor, you can invite someone to appraise it. This recording device was produced by the royal factory. Simply ask their personnel to identify it!”

For a moment, every eye in the courtroom converged on the presiding judge. Ye Fanjing had served as a judge for nearly ten years, and he’d always relished moments like this as though the power of life and death rested entirely in his hands, and everyone had no choice but to await his verdict.

But this time, beads of hot sweat had already formed on his forehead. It felt as though an unbearably scorching beam of sunlight was searing into him. He didn’t even need to look up to know exactly whose gaze it was.

Ye Zheng… Ye Zheng… his own daughter!

But things had already reached this stage. What could he possibly do? This David Green had clearly received backing from the imperial family. This was the emperor’s will. Could he really defy the entire nation for the sake of his daughter?

Under the watchful gaze of everyone present, Ye Fanjing struggled to speak. “Someone, go summon the royal factory’s—”

“There’s no need to waste time inviting anyone, Your Honor.”

Ye Fanjing abruptly lifted his head and looked at his daughter, whose expression remained composed. Those clear, mirror-like black eyes held none of the disappointment or sorrow he had imagined. Instead, they plainly reflected his own cowardly and disheveled state.

Ye Zheng gave a faint smile, then turned her head toward a certain spot in the gallery.

“The royal personnel skilled in machinery, the specially appointed consultant of the royal factory, Duchess Qin Lu, is seated right there in the gallery.”

“Duchess, would you be willing to appraise whether the recording is genuine or not?”

The short, stout man stared at Ye Zheng with widened eyes, his hands gripping the documents so tightly they crumpled. He turned his head with a slight tremor and once again met that half-smiling noble face.

The woman with small braids rose from the gallery and walked forward with composed elegance. She lightly patted the bulky machine.

“Oh, I’ve recently been discussing improvement plans for this product with the factory. What a coincidence, wouldn’t you say?”

“Judge Ye, I believe no one here is more qualified than I am to appraise it.”

Ye Fanjing clenched his teeth. He glanced at the pale-faced David Green. No one had expected Qin Lu to appear so suddenly. Not only was she the most suitable person in the entire courtroom to verify the recording’s authenticity, but she was also the most authoritative. He had no grounds to refuse her.

“…We’ll trouble the Duchess, then.”

Ye Fanjing spoke weakly, yet he felt an inexplicable sense of relief rise within him. He cast a glance toward Ye Zheng, a faint trace of hope flickering in his eyes.

His daughter, Ye Zheng, was far more capable than he had ever imagined. He might not be able to become the minister the emperor desired, but at the very least, he could still try to be a good father.

However, Ye Zheng was intently watching Qin Lu as she examined the machine and didn’t spare him even a single glance.

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Authors Note  

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Tomorrow is graduation photo day, so I’ve decided to sleep early tonight…