150, gather evidence in seven days, kill in ten days, Zhao Douan's words strike at the heart.

How to explain?

The expression on Zhou Cheng's face was exceptionally ugly, yet after all, he was an old hand adept at navigating the treacherous waters of court politics.

Based on the dialogue in the painting, although it was clear he was leading the conversation, there was not a single piece of concrete evidence.

In other words, taken individually, each sentence he uttered was unobjectionable—his original questioning of Wang Shan was rational and well-founded.

On the contrary, it was Wang Shan himself who had changed his testimony.

What is commonly known as "the art of speaking" is to not commit to anything concrete in speech, yet the implication beneath relies entirely on the listener's interpretation.

Zhao Douan could accuse him of deliberate leading and insinuation.

But conversely, Zhou Cheng could argue that his questions were nothing more than routine procedure, reasonable skepticism.