Her hair was cloud-like and beautiful! She opened her eyes and found herself back in the third year

Chapter 82 Fire at Fanghua Pavilion

Once the drum of petition sounds, no matter is too small.

As the drums began to beat, the once quiet Jingzhao Prefecture immediately became lively.

The Prefect of Jingzhao held court and ordered Fang Shixin to be brought in. Once seated, he asked her, "Who is this person below, and what grievance do you have?"

The Prefect of Jingzhao was about forty years old, with a square face. When he sat upright in the courtroom in his official robes and hat, he exuded an air of authority, truly embodying integrity and uprightness, a paragon of justice.

Upon seeing this, Fang Shixin felt much more at ease and explained the reason for the matter.

"What?" The Prefect of the Capital was stunned, wondering if he had misheard. "What did you say?"

Fang Shixin pleaded, "My lord, Princess Huizhen's despicable behavior is truly excessive. Please, my lord, do me justice..."

Then......

She was kicked out.

He even received a scolding.

"Hey, Miss Fang, are you out of your mind? This is the Dengwen Drum! You dare to beat the drum for your petty matter and even sue the princess? Are you crazy?"

"Why can't the Dengwen Drum be played? Isn't it placed here for people to play?" Fang Shixin's face was ugly. "Besides, what's wrong with me accusing the princess? Does the princess get away with her mistakes? Is there no law anymore?"

"Oh dear, if the princess has really committed a serious offense, the Censorate will impeach her, and His Majesty and the Empress Dowager will make the final judgment. You have such a trivial matter, and you don't even have any evidence. What are you going to accuse me of?"

"And this velvet flower you mentioned, if you sell it today and someone else copies it, and they sell it tomorrow, although it might be a bit unfair to you, it's not enough to go to court!"

Even so, Fang Shixin still felt aggrieved: "But..."

"But what? No buts! Get out of here! If you don't leave, I'll give you a few lashes!"

Fang Shixin was expelled from the Jingzhao Prefecture. As she walked through the imperial city, the cold wind finally calmed her down. After thinking for a moment, she pulled Yun'er and said, "Let's go to the Pingxi Marquis's residence."

"To the Marquis of Pingxi's residence?"

“Yes, Princess Huizhen is difficult to deal with, but if Qin Yizhen were to step in, things would be much easier. Even if we can’t punish her, we can at least make her close down Yachun Pavilion so she can’t compete with us for business.”

Seeing that she spoke with such seriousness, Yun'er couldn't help but remind her, "But Miss, have you forgotten what happened at the palace banquet?"

Fang Shixin was stunned.

Yes, ever since the incident at the palace banquet, she and Qin Yizhen had fallen out. Even when she went to the Marquis of Pingxi's residence to apologize as ordered by the Empress Dowager, she still couldn't see Qin Yizhen.

How could Qin Yizhen possibly help her?

They probably wished she would suffer.

Fang Shixin felt a little regretful. She shouldn't have impulsively drugged Qin Yizhen back then. Otherwise, none of this would have happened. Now, she could go to Qin Yizhen's door and ask for her help.

"What should we do now? Do we really have to lower the price?" Fang Shixin calculated how much money he would lose after the price reduction, and his heart ached as if it were bleeding. He hated Princess Huizhen to death.

Yun'er was also worried, but the reality was staring her in the face: "If we don't lower the price, even more people will want to sell it in a few days, and we'll probably be stuck with it."

Fang Shixin harbored resentment, but unable to think of any other way, he could only compromise and slunk back to Fanghua Pavilion.

However, before the carriage returned to Fanghua Pavilion, they could see flames shooting into the sky and thick black smoke billowing from the pavilion in the distance.

The fire was too big, and no one in the market dared to rush forward to put it out. Everyone quickly moved away, leaving the fire to burn fiercely.

The Fang family's carriage stopped across the street. The coachman said, "Miss, there's a house on fire on the street ahead. We can't go any further."

"Is it on fire?" Fang Shixin stepped out of the carriage, glanced at it from afar, and her expression suddenly changed.

"Is...is that where Fanghua Pavilion is?" Fang Shixin grabbed Yun'er's hand tightly, her heart pounding with panic. "Yun'er, look! Isn't that where Fanghua Pavilion is?"

Yun'er's eyes widened, her face filled with disbelief: "It looks...it looks like Fanghua Pavilion..."

Upon hearing this, Fang Shixin's eyes rolled back and she fainted.

......

When Qin Yizhen learned of the fire at Fanghua Pavilion, she was still in the Imperial Study. Because the matter involved Princess Huizhen, Eunuch De immediately reported it to Empress Dowager Cheng after receiving the news.

"That Fang family girl insisted that Princess Huizhen had sent people to set the fire."

"Impossible." Qin Yizhen didn't believe it. "My elder sister would never do such a thing."

Princess Huizhen sometimes has a particularly annoying mouth. She is arrogant, domineering, and bullies others. She is not a good person. However, as much as she acts foolishly, she would never do something like arson or murder.

Qin Yizhen still believed this.

Even Eunuch De didn't believe it: "This servant doesn't believe that Princess Huizhen could do such a thing either. It's just that before the incident, Princess Huizhen had a dispute with the Fang family's daughter, and Fanghua Pavilion and Yachun Pavilion also had a disagreement over the velvet flower business."

"Logically speaking, Princess Huizhen is the prime suspect. If we cannot clear her name, it will be detrimental to her..."

"Arson is a grave crime." Empress Dowager Cheng frowned. "If she really did it, I won't spare her. If not..."

As Empress Dowager Cheng spoke, her gaze turned cold, and a chill seemed to permeate the solemn and dignified Imperial Study.

Qin Yizhen asked her, "Mother, has my elder sister offended anyone recently?"

"She offends so many people every day, I bet you can't even count them all."

Qin Yizhen: "......"

Indeed, given Princess Huizhen's domineering and arrogant nature, it's no wonder she offended countless people.

After thinking for a moment, she said, "Why don't I go to the Jingzhao Prefecture to inquire about the situation, Mother?"

Empress Dowager Cheng nodded: "Then go and keep a close eye on her, make sure she behaves herself and doesn't cause any more trouble. Also, have the Jingzhao Prefecture investigate this case as soon as possible and bring the truth to light."

"Yes."

Qin Yizhen accepted the order and then led her people out of the palace to the Jingzhao Prefecture.

By this time, a large crowd had already gathered outside the Jingzhao Prefecture, and the arguments taking place in the courtroom could be heard from time to time.

"Who knows if you've offended someone and are being retaliated against? I didn't do anything like that, so don't try to frame me." That was Princess Huizhen's voice.

"If it wasn't you, then who was it?" Fang Shixin questioned desperately, his voice hoarse and sharp. "It was you. It wasn't enough that you stole the velvet flower business; you also wanted to destroy Fanghua Pavilion."

"You think that with Fanghua Pavilion gone, no one will compete with you for business? You're dreaming!"

"I already said it wasn't me!" Princess Huizhen was also angry. She wasn't a good person, but she wouldn't take the blame for something she didn't do. "You should think about who else you've offended besides me."

"Who else could I have offended? Who else could it be but you?!" Fang Shixin suddenly stopped speaking, a sudden thought of someone flashing through his mind.

"No, besides you, there's also Princess Yizhen!"