Chapter 801: Clues
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Mingzhu’s palms were sweaty. “I didn’t do it!”
Fu Lin waved his hand. “We all know you didn’t, but there’s definitely something fishy going on. Father asked him who was passing messages between him and you. He refused to say and just smiled. Actually, he’s not even keen on entering the court as an official. He’s willing to do something for the Regent and contribute his share of effort.
Father said that it’s fine for the others, but there was nothing wrong with Qiu Jijiu earlier. There was no reason for you to eliminate him. But Fu Zhan said that Qiu Jijiu was killed by him of his own accord. He respected his second uncle. Qiu Zhen, that old thief who only knows how to read sour books, dared to slander his second uncle and the Regent. He even caused his younger brother to be punished by the Regent, breaking his leg. He couldn’t let this go. Anyway, killing one person is a capital offense, killing two people is also a capital offense, so one more Qiu Zhen doesn’t make much difference.”
Mingzhu held her head, feeling a headache coming on. Fu Zhan’s younger brother did indeed have a conflict with Qiu Zhen before. Yuwen Chu also ordered to punish the Fu family’s descendants severely, but breaking someone’s leg was purely accidental. At the time of the execution, the person involved had returned from a wedding feast and had drunk too much, causing his hand to miss. Afterwards, the person received the punishment he deserved. She had investigated it and found nothing untoward, thinking the matter was over. But now, it seemed that the trap had been set long ago.
What she didn’t understand was whether these people wanted to smear her reputation and splash dirt on Yuwen Chu, or if they had other intentions.
“Father asked him again, and he described in detail how he killed the Chief of the Qintian Bureau, Wei Wenlin, Li Xinghan, and Qiu Jijiu. He even described the process of their deaths clearly, not like he was lying. Father found it very tricky and asked me to comfort him while he discussed countermeasures with Grandfather. It happened to be dinner time, and Fu Zhan and I were familiar with each other. So, we had a meal together and talked. I wanted to ask him some useful questions, but halfway through the meal, he died.”
Fu Lin wiped the sweat from his forehead, still trembling at the thought of the scene. “He bled from all seven orifices and died from severe poisoning. Mr. Deng confirmed that the wine glass he used was poisoned. I immediately detained everyone who might have been involved, but one of the maids who delivered the food had disappeared. We’re still looking for her.”
The incident had already occurred, and they had to face it no matter how unwilling they were. Mingzhu took a deep breath, trying to focus. “What about the people in Fu Zhan’s house?”
“They’ve all been placed under guard. Father’s idea is not to act rashly until we know what move the other side will make next. Otherwise, they might be waiting for us to bump into them so they can come out and catch us red-handed.” Fu Lin looked defeated. “It’s all my fault. If I had been more careful, Fu Zhan wouldn’t have died.”
“You stay here. I’ll go and detain those who were close to him. We can surely find some clues.” Mingzhu fanned herself, but she couldn’t dispel the restlessness in her heart. She had originally returned to investigate whether anyone had said anything to Fu Zhan, but Yuwen Chu’s return had delayed her. Hopefully, it wasn’t too late to take action now.
Meanwhile, Yuwen Chu had finished bathing and changed into casual attire. He thought that Mingzhu’s tea should be ready by now, and they could sit together, drink tea, talk, reminisce about the past, and look forward to the future, making their relationship as a couple even closer. Little did he know that the tea was ready, but Mingzhu was not there. There was only Zheng Momo and Su Mei standing nearby. He couldn’t help but ask, “Where is Wangfei?”
Su Mei was about to answer truthfully when Zheng Momo stepped forward with a smile and said, “There’s a trivial matter. Wangfei went to deal with it and will be back soon.”
Yuwen Chu didn’t care much and sat down at the tea table, pouring himself a cup of tea. “You may leave.”
Su Mei followed Zheng Momo out, inevitably blaming her in a hushed voice, “Why did you hide it from His Highness, Zheng Momo?”
Zheng Momo casually smoothed her sleeve, “It was just a trivial matter, wasn’t it? Did I say something wrong? His Highness is busy with countless affairs every day, and it’s rare for him to come home. Bringing up these small matters to bother him would only annoy him.”
That made sense. While Su Mei knew that Mingzhu had actually gone to see Fu Lin, she didn’t understand the intricacies of the situation, so she let it go.
Although Yuwen Chu asked the two of them to step back, they didn’t dare to go far. They stood still in the corridor, waiting quietly for instructions. Suddenly, a little maid named Qingqian rushed over in a panic, her face pale, “Is the Wangfei here?”
Zheng Momo grabbed Qingqian and scolded her sharply, “What are you doing? Have you forgotten your manners?”
Qingqian, frightened, turned pale, “No, no, it’s not that. Sister Su Ju is dead.”
Su Mei’s head buzzed, and without thinking, she rushed towards the back of the room. Qingqian began to cry softly, “It’s so frightening, where is the Wangfei…”
Zheng Momo covered her mouth, her face stern as she whispered, “Quiet! Is this the place for you to cry? Stop your tears and go find the Wangfei!”
Qingqian, with tears in her eyes, was about to run outside when she saw Yuwen Chu walk out expressionlessly from inside, his voice heavy, “What’s happened?”
Zheng Momo and Qingqian both knelt to the ground, neither daring to speak.
Yuwen Chu grew impatient. “Don’t make me ask a second time.”
With tears, Qingqing explained the situation, and Zheng Momo said, “It’s just that Su Ju suddenly… These past few days were fine, and nothing happened. How could she suddenly…”
Before she finished speaking, she saw Yuwen Chu give her a cold glance, and she swallowed the rest of her words.
“Lead the way.” Yuwen Chu took the lead. “Go inform Wangfei to come over. Don’t spread this outside. If I hear a word spreading, I’ll cut off the tongue of the one who speaks.”
Mingzhu received the news shortly after leaving the reception hall, stunned and unable to speak. Compared to the speed and ruthlessness of the other party, she felt more heartache for Su Ju. Donghui and Xia Xue were also a bit overwhelmed, but when they came to their senses, they went to support her. “Wangfei, don’t worry. You’ll know what happened when you get there.”
Zheng Momo, Su Ju, and other senior maids lived in the rear chamber of Donghui Hall, which was relatively independent, quiet, and convenient for the master’s summons. Lower-ranked maids and servants were not qualified to come here, so it was not difficult to block the news.
When Mingzhu entered, Su Ju was already lying on the ground, and Yuwen Chu stood aside with his hands behind his back. When he saw her coming, he nodded. “She hung herself and is already dead. Tang Chunlai will come to examine her to determine if it was suicide or murder.”
Mingzhu’s mind was clear. Su Mei’s sudden death at this moment couldn’t be unrelated to the incident with Fu Zhan. She looked up at Yuwen Chu. “Your Highness, I have something to tell you.”
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