I woke up as the Villainous Empress

Yang Luoyang: "???"

Yang Luoyang was left bewildered by Zheng Liang\'s unexpected response. He had been waiting for His Majesty to provide judgment and authority to handle the matter, but Zheng Liang\'s ambitious statement took him by surprise.

Yang Luoyang tried to make sense of Zheng Liang\'s statement. He questioned, "Your Highness, I don\'t understand how this matter is related to you. Were you also present at the Spring Festival Carnival last night?

Did you witness something?" His primary goal, however, was to publicly shame Zheng Liang for leaving the palace without informing anyone, including His Majesty, and for withholding information.

Zheng Huang, displeased with Yang Luoyang\'s question, responded with a cold tone, "Why would Zheng Liang be at the Spring Festival last night? He was at the Dragon Pavilion. How could he possibly witness the incident? Please refrain from making baseless remarks."

Yang Luoyang sported a slight smirk on his face as he replied, "Your Majesty, I was merely inquiring if His Highness was present, as there were rumors circulating that some people had seen him at the Spring Festival. It seems those rumors were unfounded. I apologize to His Highness and Your Majesty if my words came across as impolite."

Zheng Liang smiled in amusement as he watched Yang Luoyang play with words. He then turned to Zheng Huang and said, "Your Majesty, Minister Yang is not mistaken. I did attend the Spring Festival Carnival yesterday and indeed witnessed the incident he mentioned."

Zheng Huang frowned, clearly displeased by the revelation. He asked, "If you wanted to attend the carnival, why didn\'t you inform me or seek permission? You\'ve just recovered from your injuries. What if something had happened to you during this outing?"

"I apologize for not informing you in advance. My intention was to bring some joy to Yang Ning, who has been confined to the palace since our return from Xinling City. I wanted to keep the trip discreet to avoid unnecessary attention because I knew it would concern you," Zheng Liang explained honestly.

He didn\'t intend to keep his trip to the carnival a secret, but rather, he wanted to see if Yang Luoyang would discover his secret outing, even when others remained unaware. It was a test to confirm his suspicion that there were individuals closely monitoring his activities. As he had anticipated, Yang Luoyang was the first to uncover the information.

After addressing His Majesty, Zheng Liang turned his attention to Yang Luoyang, who wore a subtle smile on his lips. Zheng Liang asked, "Minister Yang, I\'m surprised that you discovered my secret trip outside the palace, even though His Majesty was unaware of it. How did you come to know about it?

I\'m quite curious." He posed the question straightforwardly, not allowing Yang Luoyang to evade answering.

Yang Luoyang didn\'t flinch at Zheng Liang\'s inquiry and replied, "I had no prior knowledge of your visit. As I mentioned earlier, rumors were circulating about Your Highness attending the carnival yesterday. I only heard these rumors and asked for clarification to dispel any doubts.

Rumors tend to spread rapidly, so it wasn\'t unusual for me to come across this information." He skillfully navigates his way out of the situation.

After responding, Yang Luoyang posed another question to Zheng Liang, "Your Highness mentioned that you witnessed the incident yesterday. Could you provide more details about what you observed last night? This information would greatly assist in our investigation, and I assure you that we will bring justice to Minister Qin and punish the criminal harshly." He spoke with conviction.

Zheng Liang nodded, acknowledging Yang Luoyang\'s clever response and his return question to avoid further inquiries. He decided to play along with his game and responded with a smirk, "Punish the criminal harshly? That\'s interesting. I am also curious to see how you plan to deal with the criminal. Regarding the incident, I did witness it.

However, I am intrigued by how Minister Yang arrived at the conclusion that the person who attacked Minister Qin\'s son was a spy from another kingdom. It\'s quite a serious accusation, after all."

Everyone in the room began murmuring and nodding in agreement at Zheng Liang\'s question.

Yang Luoyang\'s frown deepened as he realized that Zheng Liang was questioning him quite seriously. His initial intention in supporting Minister Qin was to bring him to his side and use this opportunity to earn the authority to investigate the matter deeply from His Majesty.

With that authority, he planned to increase his influence among the other ministers and gain His Majesty\'s trust by punishing the criminal responsible for the attack.

In disguise, he intended to use this authority to find and tamper with evidence from the incident where the royal carriage was attacked and Zheng Liang was injured. However, it seemed that Zheng Liang\'s serious questioning indicated that he might know something about yesterday\'s incident, causing Yang Luoyang to become more cautious.

Yang Luoyang cleared his throat and explained his suspicion, "The last few months have been quite challenging for the royal palace and our empire. We have witnessed many individuals attempting to betray His Majesty for their personal gains." He hinted towards the incident of the Empress\'s involvement in poisoning His Majesty.

Since that matter could not be openly discussed, he reminded everyone about it subtly and continued, "During times of internal turmoil in an empire, external forces often seek opportunities to exploit the situation."

" Given that nobody was able to identify the man who assaulted Minister Qin\'s youngest son last night, and they appeared to be outsiders, I believe they might have been spies from another kingdom who dared to attack Minister Qin as a warning to all of us." He explained the reasoning behind his accusation.

"That is why, Your Highness, if you know anything about the incident, please inform us. I will do everything in my power to bring that criminal to justice and ensure they face harsh punishment, even if it means bringing them before the royal court for all to see," Yang Luoyang stated firmly.

Zheng Liang couldn\'t help but smirk in amusement as Yang Luoyang\'s explanation immediately garnered praise from those in attendance. However, he knew that now was not the time for him to gain the praise and authority he aimed for. After all, the man he was defending was not a victim but a perpetrator.

"Well said. I appreciate Minister Yang\'s dedication to seeking justice for Minister Qin. However, I don\'t believe it\'s necessary to initiate an investigation into this matter. As I mentioned earlier, I was present at the scene yesterday and witnessed everything. I can resolve this matter immediately," Zheng Liang replied with a pleasant smile.

Yang Luoyang frowned, seeing Zheng Liang dampening his plans. "Ah, yes. It would be excellent if His Highness could resolve this matter promptly. Just give me the orders, and I will bring the criminal to the court," he said.

Zheng Liang shook his head. "There\'s no need for that. The \'spy\' you\'re referring to, the one who attacked Minister Qin\'s son and beat him severely, is sitting right in front of you," he declared.

Yang Luoyang furrowed his brow. "Your Highness, I\'m not quite sure I understand your meaning."

Zheng Liang smiled. "Why don\'t you understand? I was rather clear in my statement. The spy you\'re mentioning, who attacked Minister Qin\'s son and left him in a battered state, is none other than myself," he stated.