Chapter 135-The Manga Pariah's Guide to Self-Salvation

"I believe I will receive a fair judgment."

Ye Zheng's answer resounded with conviction. Percy let his thoughts wander; did her "believe" mean she trusted her father as the Emperor suggested, or did she not care who the judge was, believing only that she herself would receive a just verdict?

Because of his special background, Percy did not have a biological father, but before the Blood Flower' Incident, his adoptive parents had given him much care and love, no different from biological parents.

He thought that the Emperor appointing Ye Zheng's father to be in charge of this case might be out of kindness. According to his understanding, the noble factions in the upper district were numerous and divided. If someone who disliked the Sei Curia and the Saintess were to preside over the trial, the situation would only be worse. A biological father would surely help his own daughter.

The Emperor comforted her gently: "Do not be overly worried. There are many circumstances regarding killing, and the situation is not without room for redemption."

"You are not only the Saintess of the Empire but also the daughter of the upper district's High Court Judge. Ye Zheng, perhaps you understand the laws of this country even better than I, the Emperor."

The Emperor laughed heartily and gave Ye Zheng a look full of profound meaning. "I still look forward to your coming-of-age ceremony, Ye Zheng."

"I believe I will not disappoint your expectations."

Ye Zheng lowered her head and replied warmly.

While people were hotly discussing the confusing mysteries behind the West District incident, and various intimidating rumors and conspiracy theories were clamoring, an even more incredible piece of news emerged, shocking everyone—

Someone accused Saintess Ye Zheng of suspecting killing multiple ordinary people in the West District!

Ye Family Villa.

"Tell me, Zhengzheng will be fine, right? You are a judge of the upper district, and also her father. You know better than anyone that Zhengzheng could not possibly kill ordinary people!"

Shu Wan pulled at the man's collar, staring with red eyes. Ye Fanjing was already vexed; he had finally come home to rest for a while only to be questioned. Irritated, he pushed the woman away. Shu Wan stumbled a few steps before barely standing firm.

"What use is my belief? Do you know who is accusing her? People from Duke Green's family. They have both witnesses and physical evidence. If your daughter had killed ordinary people, it would have been easy to handle!"

When Ye Fanjing received the documents and evidence submitted by the other party, he was more shocked than anyone. How could Ye Zheng do such a thing!

She occasionally had big ideas that made even him, her father, feel uncomfortable, but she had always been a smart child. Her gestures and conduct were flawless, a model lady. Not to mention she was now The Godsent holding the Divine Sword, with boundless glory. He, as a father, had always been proud of her.

Regarding the matter in the West District, Ye Fanjing only knew that the wife of the West District's general manager had rebelled, seemingly related to a secret experiment of the Sei Curia. He guessed that Ye Zheng might have been instructed by the Sei Curia and an accident occurred while silencing witnesses for the Sei Curia.

Seeing Ye Zheng's power growing larger, Ye Fanjing felt joy but also had some lingering shadows in his heart. Now he finally understood that the Saintess was always just a decoration with high status but low power. Ye Zheng suddenly gaining glory and power that did not belong to this position was indeed not a good thing!

The urgent task was to appease the Green family. Ye Fanjing thought anxiously. The Emperor's attitude was also very ambiguous. Reasonably speaking, they had agreed in private that Ye Zheng was already considered half a member of the Royal Family. Once the coming-of-age ceremony passed, he would be an open and legitimate relative of the Emperor... Why did this kind of accident happen?

He recalled the scene when the Emperor received him not long ago. The majestic man had his brows locked tight, left him hanging for a long time, and only gave him one sentence.

"Handle it impartially."

Cold sweat broke out on Ye Fanjing's forehead at that moment. The Emperor's vague attitude was like a sword hanging over his head. No matter what move he made next, the sharp sword could pierce his head at any time.

Impartially? What counts as impartial? Ye Zheng really poked a huge hole for him!

He was about to be promoted. If this matter wasn't handled well, he would not only lose his daughter but also his future!

"Ye Fanjing, I see you aren't worried about Ye Zheng at all, nor do you care if she actually killed anyone. You only care if the people Ye Zheng offended will affect your future, right?"

The middle-aged woman's neatly coiled hair was already somewhat messy, and a few strands brushed past her emotionally intense eyes. Ye Fanjing uncomfortably avoided her gaze.

He stiffened his neck. "I am the High Court Judge of the upper district. Even if Ye Zheng is my daughter, I cannot bend the law for personal gain. Do you want me to favor Ye Zheng for the sake of private affection?"

Ye Fanjing roared at Shu Wan. He stared back at her, unwilling to show weakness, already prepared for Shu Wan to kidnap him morally with family affection and fatherly love. This woman wasn't going crazy for the first time. Ten years ago, after that Blood Flower' Incident took away her parents, Shu Wan had also gone crazy at him indiscriminately like this.

He waited for her to become even more hysterical next, but he didn't expect the woman to give him a hateful look and then turn around and leave directly.

Ye Fanjing's expression paused. The chest full of anger and irritability turned into awkwardness the moment the woman turned around.

He looked at his wife's silent back, feeling increasingly anxious in his heart. But he didn't have time to care about her now; he had to test the attitude of the Green family and the Emperor again. Ye Zheng was his daughter after all; naturally, he didn't wish to convict his daughter with his own hands.

After the argument, Shu Wan did not return to her room to rest. She walked alone in the back garden, tucking away scattered loose hair in the gentle evening breeze, and suddenly discovered a white hair of her own.

She plucked that white hair out, staring at the strand on her fingertip, suddenly feeling that the word 'youth' was already very far away from her.

But Zhengzheng was still very young.

She was living the life Shu Wan would have envied when she was young. Thinking that she was her daughter, that envy turned into a kind of satisfaction and anticipation, as if her own youth had not yet ended.

Shu Wan reached out and brushed over the half-withered white flower bushes. The gardener had intended to replace them with new plants, but she stopped him. She told the gardener that the season belonging to this flower had not completely passed yet.

The jasmine flowers, symbolizing beauty, purity, and loyal love, were planted for her by Ye Fanjing many years ago. The flowering period was limited. The jasmine flowers she planted with him back then had long disappeared. At first, she tried to keep them using her ability. Later, for some unknown reason, she no longer had that spare energy and thought.

Shu Wan hummed a song softly. Her fingertips crushed a small, half-withered petal. The petal gradually faded its withered yellow color, and the shriveled edges stretched out again, just as if a bright summer had descended once more.

At the same time, the heavy mud under the flower branches loosened somewhat, seeming a layer thinner. Shu Wan looked down and saw slender branches breaking through the soil, gathering the surrounding mud together, and re-entering the earth after completing the task.

This was her ability [Summer Flower].

S-rank ability [Summer Flower], an ability that several ability academies fought to value many years ago. It could control not only ordinary plants but also mutant plants within the Demonic Domain, and could even utilize the power of plants to achieve more goals, such as parasitizing human bodies, draining the flesh and blood of any living creature...

These days she picked up the habits of more than ten years ago again. This time it was no longer to preserve the "flower of love," but to let Zhengzheng live freely, so that she could rely on her, borrow her daughter's vision, and peek at the scenery of freedom that could never belong to her.

Shu Wan picked a small flower and tucked it behind her ear. The flower did not wilt after leaving the branch, still maintaining the beautiful appearance of its peak blooming period, like a unique hair ornament.

After giving birth twice, her ability level had dropped to A-rank. Coupled with years of neglecting training, her current strength might only be B-rank. These days she repeatedly used the plants in the garden to practice, barely finding back a little feeling.

Recalling Ye Fanjing's self-righteous expression, mouthing words like "justice" and "not bending the law for personal gain," when he wasn't even willing to show a trace of bias towards Ye Zheng in this family that should be most tolerant of true feelings, he had already stood on the opposite side of his own daughter.

Shu Wan's hands wiped her cheeks, rubbing her slightly stiff face, and exhaled a breath. She originally wanted to make a move on Ye Fanjing at Zhengzheng's coming-of-age ceremony.

She had already guessed the transaction Ye Fanjing tried to hide with vague words, which was nothing more than letting Ye Zheng take off the identity of the Saintess and marry into the Royal Family with the halo of The Godsent.

Once, she also thought that was a very good option, but she saw clearly now that doing so would only completely bury Zhengzheng. Her halo, glory, and even ability would be openly stolen, becoming decorations for the Crown Prince's coronation.

Shu Wan had originally planned to arrange things in advance, taking advantage of the complex and chaotic situation at the coming-of-age ceremony to kill Ye Fanjing, and then frame a certain member of the Royal Family, completely disrupting their plans.

But now she couldn't wait for Zhengzheng's coming-of-age ceremony.

She had to kill him now. Shu Wan knew subconsciously that if any accident happened, Ye Fanjing, this guy, would strike even harder as Ye Zheng's father to completely clear his relationship with Ye Zheng!

Shu Wan knew clearly that if she killed him now, she would easily expose herself. But is it possible that this case of murdering a husband could win more time for Zhengzheng?

The woman turned around, quickening her steps toward the house. She needed to ask about the time of the court session and kill Ye Fanjing the day before the trial.

Shu Wan walked too fast with her head down, so she suddenly bumped into a broad chest. She looked up, her expression surprised with a trace of sadness, and asked hurriedly: "Wen De, why did you come? Is it that Zhengzheng she..."

"Her Holiness the Saintess is fine. She is temporarily staying at the Royal Palace. Princess Heath is accompanying her."

Shu Wan smiled bitterly and shook her head. "She's fine, so why doesn't she come back? Did His Majesty detain her? Does he also think she is guilty..."

Wen De was not very good at comforting people and usually didn't talk much, but she had her own way of insightful observation of human hearts. She saw the grief, indignation, and death wish in Shu Wan's eyes at a glance. This would not be what Ye Zheng wanted to see.

She understood why the last thing Ye Zheng entrusted to her was this matter.

"Madam, calm down. Listen to me. Ye Zheng wants me to convey a sentence to you—"

"'Tell my mother, do not worry about me, I will return'... She said, she will return."

"So, you must wait for her."

Shu Wan gradually calmed down under the young woman's firm gaze. Wen De's eyes were extremely peaceful, possessing a convincing power.

The woman took a deep breath, temporarily casting aside the crazy idea from just now. She held Wen De's hand tightly. "Okay, I will wait for her to come back."

"But, if there is any situation, any need, you must tell me, okay?"

Wen De nodded. "Please rest assured, Her Holiness the Saintess is not fighting alone. There are many, many people supporting her and running errands for her."

"She will definitely return."

The Emperor kept Ye Zheng on the grounds of her being an insider of the West District incident, but everyone knew well that the real reason was the accusation and suspicion Ye Zheng carried.

According to procedure, for such a serious case with substantial evidence, the suspect would generally be detained by the Security Bureau. However, the Emperor kept Ye Zheng in the Royal Palace, treating her as a guest. Many people thought this was the tolerance and mercy of the Royal Family, sighing at His Majesty's leniency.

Compared to the Emperor keeping her, the people in the palace were more surprised that Princess Heath stepped forward at this juncture, expressing to the Emperor that she and Ye Zheng were friends and hoping that she could host Ye Zheng.

The Emperor lamented the precious friendship between the two and readily agreed.

Inside a luxurious and comfortable guest room, Ye Zheng was holding a stack of materials, reading with concentration.

The golden-haired girl with a quiet temperament sat beside her, looking at the materials with her. Her gaze glanced at Ye Zheng's calm profile from time to time; Heath's tightly pursed lips revealed worry.

Ye Zheng lifted her head from the documents and laughed helplessly.

"They only accused me of killing three people. Is it because Kiran and that priest responsible for education are from the Sei Curia?"

If it involved Bishops and Priests of the Sei Curia, then it would not be a matter for the upper district court, but for the Sacred Wheel Court of the Sei Curia to adjudicate.

In order to reduce the influence of the Sei Curia in this incident, this second son of the Green family cleverly made a choice to only seek justice for three people.

Two were researchers she encountered when saving Lucy, and one was the nursery supervisor she killed in the base's Back Garden Enclosure.

Ye Zheng raised her eyebrows slightly. When she saw that young Green chose to use these three people to accuse her, Ye Zheng knew that this second son of the Green family was not clear about the process of her killing.

Otherwise, he couldn't have chosen these three people. Although choosing them could avoid the intervention of the Sei Curia to the greatest extent, the problem was—

She didn't kill these three people personally.

Of those two researchers, one died from the Dragon Bone. The Dragon Bone wasn't even implanted by her personally; it was his assistant who was responsible for the implantation. And his assistant was taken by the rising room to the Back Garden Enclosure where the Fallen Breeds were kept; even Ye Zheng didn't know if he was alive or dead.

As for that nursery supervisor, although she fired a few shots at him, he ultimately fell into a stream himself and drowned. Who could prove it had anything to do with her?

"Ye Zheng, I can help you contact the Sei Curia. You are the Saintess. Reasonably speaking, the Sei Curia has the power to intervene in this matter. Maybe they can help you..."

"No need, Heath. Some people in the Sei Curia might be happy to see this happen."

Ye Zheng held Heath's hand, smiling and comforting her: "It doesn't matter. You being able to get these materials for me is already very useful."

Besides the accusation documents, there was also information on the Green family, the personnel moving around recently, and the list for the judge's bench. Heath got it all for her.

Even she couldn't tell that Heath had such connections.

"Not just me."

Heath blinked at Ye Zheng and made a fist behind her head. Ye Zheng recognized she was mimicking a little bun.

This hairstyle was teacher Qin Lu.

Ye Zheng saw it in the materials. As a Duke of the Empire, Qin Lu would also attend this trial, although only sitting in the jury.

"Thank you all."

Ye Zheng revealed a genuine smile. Heath also responded with a smile.

She suddenly realized there was some uneasiness in Heath's smile, seemingly hiding something on her mind. Ye Zheng asked: "Heath, is there any other situation?"

Heath hesitated for a moment but decided to tell the truth.

"Someone is deliberately smearing your reputation, widely publicizing in the Middle and lower districts that you killed two civilian researchers. The discussion caused by this matter has already exceeded the original attention on the West District matter."

A trace of keenness flashed through Heath's slightly melancholy eyes. "Ye Zheng, do you understand what this represents..."

After all, they were still in the Royal Palace where walls have ears, so Heath did not speak plainly.

A trace of dark emotion flashed across the bottom of Ye Zheng's eyes. She finally understood what this matter was targeting.

The Royal Family and Sei Curia disliking her was one thing. In the final analysis, they needed a more controversial matter to divert attention and cover up the Hope Project, and... the Dragon Bone, the Dragon Bone hidden in the West District.

Perhaps this young Green who survived from the base and returned to the upper district accused her spontaneously, only for it to be used by people with ulterior motives to expand the influence. It was also possible that this young Green had been instructed by someone from the very beginning.

The Saintess Ye Zheng with a perfect reputation became the best target to divert focus.

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