Chapter 752 – You’ve Been Cursed with Witchcraft (2)
An official stepped forward, echoing, “Children shouldn’t speak of strange forces or supernatural beings. Witchcraft? That’s just laughable…”
At that moment, Liu Zhi, who had been silent, finally spoke, “If witchcraft is just a joke that isn’t worth mentioning, then is it not true that the former Emperor’s second son attempted to murder him with witchcraft and ended up meeting his doom…? Do you think that the former Emperor wrongly killed his own son?”
The supporter’s cold sweat trickled down as he awkwardly retreated.
It’s true that no one thought highly of the former Emperor’s character, but in front of the Young Emperor, none could openly criticize the former Emperor’s actions.
Liu Zhi continued, “Regardless of whether witchcraft exists or not, Lan Ting suspects that Wu Ma Shang, the governor, is under a witchcraft bind. Why don’t we just say it out loud, as she suggested? A simple statement could shatter Lan Ting’s slander. What’s so hard about that?”
Xu Pei, missing the opportunity, chimed in, “Exactly! Can’t Wu Ma Shang and that old woman just repeat it? If they can say it, then clearly Liu Xi is slandering you, and witchcraft doesn’t exist. If they can’t say it… well, that would be interesting…”
Suddenly, everyone’s gaze zoned in on Wu Ma Shang and the old woman.
Their expressions grew stiff, and finally gathering their courage under the watchful eyes, they prepared to speak.
However, no matter how they tried, when one opened their mouth, the other stayed silent — it looked utterly bizarre.
The officials merely watching started to feel uneasy, secretly shifting backwards on their cushions.
After several failed attempts, their faces turned paler.
The crowd, sensing something ominous, felt the atmosphere in the court warp in a supernatural manner.
The audience in the live stream gasped in surprise, having imagined many scenarios but not one of them predicting this twist.
【YinShuiMountain】: Oh my goodness — this is too eerie, I feel my hair stand on end!
【YearsofFragrance】: Strange, why can’t they speak simultaneously?
【PrincessFishBabe】: Wait—let me think outside the box, could it be that these two are actually being controlled by one person?
Jiang Pengji glanced at the live stream, silently chuckling; some of the guesses were getting closer to the truth, but not entirely right.
【Host V】: These two haven’t spoken together since their appearance. Whenever one shows expression, the other remains emotionless. Of course, that’s not solid evidence; the biggest flaw is that when Xu Fei struck Wu Ma Shang with a wooden tablet, Wu Ma Shang didn’t react but the old woman instinctively dodged with her hands covering her face. One is standing, and the other kneeling—there’s hardly a chance that the wooden tablet struck the old woman! So, what is she dodging?
As Jiang Pengji explained, some audience members grasped it, while others remained confused.
【FlowingYears】: To illustrate, have you ever played a video game? You run two accounts to do daily tasks; when you encounter a red name, you frantically try to switch to your fighting account or your healer account for survival, but switching takes time and chaos leads to mistakes. It’s impossible to operate two accounts simultaneously, right? I get it! The streamer implies Wu Ma Shang and that woman are actually one person playing two accounts?
With this explanation, even the slow ones in the audience began to understand, some finding humor in it.
【SnowWashingSword】: Hahaha, this reminds me of the streamer’s request. One speaks in languages from Langya, the other in Zhangzhou dialect—this isn’t just multi-tasking, it’s practically multi-multitasking! The odds of finding someone who can manage that are slim.
Clearly, the person in front of them could not do so.
As the saying goes, “Take advantage of someone’s misfortune,” and adhering to the principle of kicking a fallen dog, Jiang Pengji took a harsh step.
“Your Majesty, I have more charges against Wu Ma Shang for providing false testimony.” Jiang Pengji pointed at the panicked and pale-faced old woman, “This woman claims to be a maid accompanying my deceased mother, but as someone who should be accustomed to hard labor, why do her hands show no calluses and instead seem softer than an infant’s?”
As she spoke, the old woman instinctively raised her hand to look, her palms pure and white.
There were no calluses, not even a mark of labor—just soft, smooth skin.
The officials weren’t blind; prompted by Jiang Pengji’s observation, they noticed this detail and their hearts thumped.
This is… an assassin?
Jiang Pengji arched an eyebrow, placing one hat after another onto the old woman’s head.
“If it was just for me, why would the governor make such a grand effort to find someone to disguise as my mother’s maid?” Jiang Pengji accused sharply, “I worry that this witchcraft business is a setup by those with ill intention, aiming to harm His Majesty and assassinate various ministers…”
The old woman shook with fury, her voice abruptly shifting to that of a young woman, high-pitched and shrill.
“Liu Xi, you wretched harlot!”
No matter how she shouted, several high-ranking officials already cried for help, while Imperial Guards rushed in.
The court descended into chaos; as numerous guards burst in, the old woman, blinded by fury, saw Liu Zhi sitting calmly, unmoving, and an evil thought arose within her. She aimed for Liu Zhi, aiming to kill Liu Xi but also wanting to take out Liu Zhi to vent her frustration.
But before she could act on her intention, a tremendous force struck her abdomen like a mountain.
Her body shot back like a kite severed from its string, soaring two or three yards.
“You wretched lady—”
The old woman’s lip split, spilling bright red blood while the nearby officials shrank into a corner of the court, terrified.
Jiang Pengji stood not too far in front of Liu Zhi, sneering, “First time’s a surprise, second time’s an acquaintance, and this is already the third time.”
At that moment, the old woman heard a warning from the System in her ear.
“Host, Liu Xi is not easy to deal with; grab a hostage and escape quickly.”
The old woman felt enraged, but she also recognized that Jiang Pengji was a tough opponent, and with no desire to die, she could only flee.
She swiped the air, conjuring an exquisitely crafted, shiny long sword out of nowhere, targeting the nearest person.
Her target? Huang Song.
Just as she was about to seize a hostage, someone moved faster than her.
Jiang Pengji picked up a discarded ivory tablet from the ground, predicted the trajectory, and hurled it at the old woman.
With a mighty force fueling it, the tablet rocketed toward the old woman’s legs, waist, left side, throat, and forehead.
Huang Song had already retreated, but he didn’t expect to be so unfortunate.
With the old woman attacking, he had no way to avoid it, merely watching the silver nails rapidly enlarge before his eyes.
Just when he thought he was doomed, the old woman’s body exploded in a spray of blood before him.
In what felt like an instant, he perceived time stretched, clear enough to witness how a complete person turned into a pile of shattered remains.
