12dz Chapter 273 Punishing Li Heng
Chapter 273 Punishing Li Heng
"My lord." The two jailers immediately knelt down upon seeing the newcomer and stammered, "My lord, please forgive us. The extra dishes were bought by us. We did not overstep any bounds."
Gu Chang'an, dressed in a scarlet brocade robe, was particularly dazzling under the torches and oil lamps. He raised his slender hand and said, "Get up. What's wrong with eating? Go out and keep watch."
"Yes, yes." The two got up and were about to leave.
"Wait a minute," Gu Chang'an called out to the two.
The two were visibly flustered, standing there not daring to look up.
"Bring the food out; I can't stand the smell of grease." He raised his hand.
The two men did as instructed with trepidation. After the prison door closed, they stood in the corridor looking at the dishes in their hands, seemingly understanding the adults' intentions. Their eyes lit up with joy.
So the two of them started eating heartily again at the table outside. The adults said that eating was not wrong, but they asked them to bring the food out again, and their intention was quite clear.
Even though the chicken and duck meat had already been served, Gu Chang'an still waved his hand in front of his nose when he smelled the aroma in the evening, as if trying to drive the smell away.
When he was a child, he could only eat fish, not meat. Even vegetables were rare at sea. He loved meat back then. When did he stop liking it?
After the incident at the imperial prison, his body was almost completely ruined, and his stomach and intestines were so fragile that he could only recover slowly. As a result, he now dares not eat any hard-to-digest food at night.
"Gu Chang'an, you're quite pleased with yourself, aren't you?" Li Heng's hoarse voice came through, his throat burned by chili peppers.
Gu Chang'an saw that he had turned around and was still sitting on the ground with his back against the bed.
"Dealing with a piece of trash is nothing to be proud of." Gu Chang'an pulled his thoughts back from the past and looked at him with his dark eyes: "I heard from my subordinates that you want to see me?"
"Heh." Li Heng chuckled dismissively. "I thought you weren't afraid."
"The court meeting tomorrow will determine who will be interrogating you. Once everyone is present, we will meet to discuss the specifics. The interrogation will take at least three days, assuming no one delays the process."
Gu Chang'an asked calmly, "Do you think I'll drag this out?"
Li Heng's pupils dilated. If that were the case, he would have to stay in Dali Temple for at least a few more days before he could see the other presiding judges, who might not care much about his health.
Even if he was unwell, Gu Chang'an would definitely fabricate some illness to cover up the torment he was suffering.
Moreover, after the trial, he will be escorted back to the Dali Temple, where Gu Chang'an will still be in charge.
"If you don't want to talk about it, then you don't have to." Seeing the change in his expression, Gu Chang'an turned to leave.
"You must come back and save my life, or I'll expose you and Shen Li." Li Heng suddenly raised his voice, and after shouting, he felt his throat hurt even more.
"Oh?" Gu Chang'an remained turned to the side, not turning around. "Where's the evidence?"
Knowing he couldn't hide it any longer, Li Heng said, "I've kept all the messages you sent. If you hand them over, don't you think they'll be irrefutable evidence?"
Gu Chang'an raised an eyebrow and turned to look at him: "Threatening me?"
“Yes.” Li Heng said firmly, “You can fight me to the death, after all, there are hardly any messages from you, they are all from Shen Li.”
"Shen Li and the Shen family, do you want to protect them?"
Upon hearing this, Li Heng knew he had secured his position; he had always known where Gu Chang'an's weakness lay.
"Conditions?" Gu Chang'an asked after a moment of silence.
Li Heng smiled, but this time, fearing Gu Chang'an might turn hostile, he refrained from mockery and simply said, "Save my life, whether it's exile or demotion to a commoner, it's fine."
“One life is not difficult, but several lives are.” Gu Chang’an pondered: “Your concubine is carrying your child. You can only choose whether you live or she lives.”
"Me," Li Heng said without hesitation, "She is a member of the Zhou family, and His Majesty cannot keep her and that child."
"What if she doesn't agree?" Gu Chang'an asked.
Li Heng hesitated for a moment before saying, "It's not up to her whether she agrees or not."
"She has no choice?" Gu Chang'an slowly repeated these words.
Fearing he might discover something amiss, Li Heng continued, "If you promise me, I guarantee I'll have someone return those things to you."
"Oh?" Gu Chang'an's expression was playful. "You believe me?"
"You must swear an oath, an oath made by Shen Li, that if you break your promise, she will suffer a terrible death." Li Heng stared at Gu Chang'an, his eyes like those of a venomous snake; he too was waiting for Gu Chang'an to suffer.
"I don't believe you." Gu Chang'an looked at him like he was a clown, and then turned and walked away.
Li Heng froze on the spot, then shouted loudly, "Gu Chang'an, come back here! Are you abandoning Shen Li? You... cough cough cough..."
He coughed from the shock, completely baffled as to what the problem was and why Gu Chang'an had suddenly become indifferent.
Gu Chang'an went out the door, where the jailers were eating and drinking. Gu Chang'an gestured for them not to get up, saying, "He may have suffered some kind of shock. You all take good care of him."
"Yes, sir, please have a safe stay." The jailer agreed.
In prison, anything that doesn't specify the exact method of care, such as feeding them well or letting them go out for fresh air, is considered special care.
They are very good at these things.
Soon, five or six jailers entered the iron cell, and moments later, screams of agony echoed from within.
Just moments ago, Li Heng thought he had the victory in the bag, but now he was hanging upside down from the roof beam, his ankles bound by ropes and covered with prison clothes to prevent any marks from being left.
He was hanging there completely naked, head down, with water on the table below him, which he had to stick out his tongue to drink.
Having just been subjected to the chili water, Li Heng desperately craved some clean water, and with his face flushed red, he licked the little bit of water at the bottom of the bowl.
One of the jailers, indulging in a wicked tactic, unzipped his pants and poured the water over Li Heng's head and face.
Li Heng's eyes widened in anger. He had never suffered such humiliation before, but he was so tormented that he dared not utter a single curse.
"Spineless cowards, lacking backbone in every way." The jailers laughed wildly.
“I thought those of noble birth were something special,” a jailer poked Li Heng with his stick. “Look, it’s not even as big as mine.”
Li Heng was filled with shame and rage, he was determined not to be given a chance, or he would kill everyone here! Everyone!
"Oh, you're not convinced?"
"Let's take it out and give him a bath, so he can see if he's better than us."
For a moment, the enclosed space was filled with mocking voices.
Once Gu Chang'an was out of the prison, he stopped paying attention to what was inside and instead said to Chun Sheng, who was following him, "Send a message to our people in the palace to keep an eye on Zhou Qianqian, and also send my message to Zhao Jing."
His meeting with Li Heng was a test. Now he was certain that the item existed and was in Zhou Qianqian's possession. Otherwise, Li Heng would not have hesitated for a moment when he asked Zhou Qianqian if she would agree.
It should be noted that he did not hesitate when he gave up on Zhou Qianqian.