Pingjiang had not discovered this place when he first searched the Gu family's residence.
Without anyone to deliver food, many had already given up. Especially the young boys who had come here due to the disaster. They were young and had already endured much, and many fell ill.
With no food delivered, one by one, they began to faint, and even die.
Eventually, even Zhu Zhu began to despair.
She felt that no one would know of this place, and therefore, no one would come to their rescue.
They would likely die silently in this unknown place, and no one would ever know.
Zhu Zhu never expected Mu Changxi and his group to return to this place again!
At this moment, after eating some food, Zhu Zhu was weeping uncontrollably, "Thank you, Your Highness, thank you, Your Highness Consort, for saving our lives!"
She was crying tears of joy, happy for her renewed life.
However, neither Mu Changxi nor Song Chaoyu could feel happy.
The tragic scene in the Gu family's cellar… filled their hearts with endless anger.
Song Chaoyu believed that if Lord Gu were standing before her at this moment, she might not be able to control herself and would kill him instantly!
She asked Zhu Zhu, "You have been here for a full three years. If His Highness and I are to seek justice for you, are you willing to step forward and testify against Lord Gu and his subordinates?"
Zhu Zhu's first reaction was, naturally, fear. Disbelieving fear spread in her eyes, making her appear bewildered.
But soon, she came to her senses.
She understood that if Lord Gu had not "yielded," how could the vast Gu family mansion have fallen into the hands of Mu Changxi and Song Chaoyu?
Having understood this, Zhu Zhu's attitude became resolute, "I am willing! I have been here for three years, and I recognize all those who colluded with Lord Gu on a daily basis. I am willing to identify them!"
Song Chaoyu nodded, then stood up, "If you have finished eating, would you accompany me to see His Highness? Tell him these matters, and he will surely seek justice for you."
—
While Zhu Zhu had revealed the truth of the Gu family mansion's cellar, Mu Changxi had already learned of it from other rescued individuals.
Therefore, when Song Chaoyu brought Zhu Zhu, Mu Changxi understood her intention.
Before Song Chaoyu could speak, he nodded, "Rest assured, I will confront them on this matter until the end. Those children… only twelve survived, and only seven women survived."
Out of more than thirty children, only twelve survived!
Song Chaoyu sighed, feeling that in such circumstances, what did human life even amount to?
Was it treated as insignificant as grass and ants by people like Lord Gu, or was it the will of the people that should support the entire empire?
Song Chaoyu had no doubt that if this continued, the court would likely be "finished."
The Emperor was once called a "wise ruler." When did he begin to slacken and have his eyes blinded?
Seeing Song Chaoyu's furrowed brow, Mu Changxi also felt uneasy.
He stepped forward and comforted Song Chaoyu, "A'yu, it's alright. Everything will get better, and we will make everything better."
We?
Yes.
We!
Song Chaoyu's gaze also became firm, "Yes, and there is the Crown Prince. I believe that in the future, the Crown Prince will surely bring clarity to all of this."
As long as there is hope, it is not too late.
Mu Changxi looked up and seriously at Song Chaoyu, "I think we can probably go and see this Lord Gu now, can't we?"
—
At this moment, Lord Gu was imprisoned in the Haizhou Prefectural Office's jail.
This place, where he had previously imprisoned others, had now become his "destination."
When Mu Changxi and Song Chaoyu arrived, Lord Lei was inside speaking with Lord Gu.
Perhaps it was the sudden arrival of Mu Changxi and Song Chaoyu that caught Lord Lei completely off guard. Hearing the commotion outside, he was startled.
In Song Chaoyu's opinion, even the environment of the Haizhou City Prefectural Office's jail was much better than the cellar where women and children were held.
Seeing Mu Changxi and Song Chaoyu arrive, the person who opened the door quickly bowed to them, "Greetings, Your Highness, Your Highness Consort. Your subordinate… Your subordinate thought that as a colleague of Lord Gu, I came to bring him some food."
Song Chaoyu naturally noticed the food box placed aside, which contained quite a few delicacies!
There were priceless abalone, sea cucumber, and shark fin. It was likely that Lord Gu was the first person to eat so well in prison!
Staring at the food, Song Chaoyu couldn't help but let out a cold laugh, "Lord Lei actually brought such valuable food to Lord Gu. You two lords truly have deep affection! Now that Haizhou City is suffering from disaster, such good things are impossible for His Highness and me to find, yet I see them here!"
Lord Lei and Lord Gu could naturally understand Song Chaoyu's meaning. Lord Lei's smile froze, and he could only respond to Song Chaoyu by bowing, "If Your Highness Consort wishes to eat, I have plenty more at my residence. My wife's younger brother is in this business, so I have many such items. To me, they are truly not worth much!"
His forced explanation only made him appear more guilty.
Mu Changxi also let out a cold laugh, "Since Lord Lei is here, you don't need to leave today. Stay with us, Your Highness has something to ask Lord Gu."
Lord Lei wiped his sweat, cautiously glanced at Lord Gu, and then stood behind Mu Changxi.
Lord Gu had now resigned himself to his fate. He let out a cold laugh, sat cross-legged in the cell, and sneered at Mu Changxi, "Your Highness has already made me a prisoner, yet you still have something to ask me? I have nothing good to answer Your Highness with. Please, Your Highness, do as you please!"
He was openly telling Mu Changxi and Song Chaoyu that he would not cooperate.
Mu Changxi let out a cold laugh, "There's no need for Lord Gu to say anything. Regardless, Your Highness has already sent people to investigate the two cellars beneath your Gu family mansion. Anything else you say will be a mere excuse. I am too lazy to listen to your excuses. Today, I have merely brought people here to recognize your face!"
"Wh-what?!"
Lord Gu never expected that such a hidden cellar could be discovered by Mu Changxi!
He finally couldn't help but show extreme shock, "Impossible, this is impossible!"
A few words had changed his expression.
Song Chaoyu observed that this Lord Gu had no real depth of character.