Anyone could tell at a glance—that was Feng Jun’s jade pendant, the one he always kept on him and never took off!
Madam Feng lunged forward and grabbed the scorched pendant, which was barely intact, clutching it tightly as she asked in panic and fear, “Where did this come from? How did you get this jade pendant?!”
The Eldest Princess’s expression darkened further.
She said in a low voice, “It was… found on one of the burned bodies in the rockery. The Princess Consort already had everyone checked—every male guest at the gathering is accounted for, except Feng Jun and Wei Changying… they’re not in the residence…”
Whatever the Eldest Princess said after that, Madam Feng could no longer hear. The moment she heard that the pendant had been found on a corpse, her body gave out and she collapsed backward.
Fortunately, Zhou Wangfei was standing right beside her and quickly caught her—otherwise, that fall would’ve been serious.
Even so, Madam Feng still fainted, overwhelmed by fear and grief.
The Eldest Princess sighed and ordered someone to carry Madam Feng inside. Then she turned to the assembled ladies and said, “Today’s matter will be thoroughly investigated by the authorities. For now, I ask for your understanding—please wait in the flower hall for the outcome.”
What could the ladies say? They all quickly agreed.
Meanwhile, the Eldest Princess hurried to the rockery and asked the Princess Consort, Lu Mingan, “What exactly happened?”
Her expression was grim. “They’re male guests—how on earth did they end up in our rear courtyard?”
The men and women had been entertained separately: the male guests dined in the front courtyard under the Princess Consort’s care, while the women drank tea and watched opera in the back, under the Eldest Princess’s supervision.
By all reason, there was no way the male guests should’ve entered the inner residence. Even if they needed to rest or relieve themselves, it should have been done near the second gate.
So how did Feng Jun and Wei Changying end up here—dead?
It was far too strange.
Lu Mingan snorted, face unsightly. “We questioned the old maid watching the second gate—she confessed to taking silver from Wei Changying and secretly letting him in.”
…
The Eldest Princess was stunned. Her eyes widened in disbelief. “He bribed one of our servants to sneak into the inner courtyard?!”
What exactly was Feng Jun trying to do?
As the two were speaking, the steward came trotting over, looking troubled. “Princess Consort, Your Highness, Madam Feng is here—she insists on seeing the burned bodies with her own eyes.”
Madam Feng’s limbs were trembling.
Feng Jun had been raised by her own hand. Though he was technically a grandson, he was no less than a son to her.
They say youngest sons and eldest grandsons are the darlings of grandmothers. For Madam Feng, Feng Jun was her lifeblood.
She was distraught and had no regard for place or propriety, nor any fear of offending the Eldest Princess or Princess Consort. She kept arguing with the guards of the residence.
When the Eldest Princess came out, Madam Feng completely ignored Feng Caiwei’s attempts to stop her. She rushed forward and cried out, “Your Highness, what is the meaning of this?! A person dies at your residence—what kind of gathering are you hosting here? How could a fire break out like that?!”
Her voice was hoarse and shaking with emotion, her hairpiece slightly disheveled from her struggles.
But this was no time to care about appearances. Madam Feng, sobbing, shoved Feng Caiwei aside: “Go! Go call your grandfather! He came here for a simple visit, and now he’s dead…”
The Eldest Princess frowned and signaled for the guards to let her through. Madam Feng immediately rushed up and pulled off the white cloth covering the bodies.
Just as the steward had said, the bodies were completely charred beyond recognition—there was no way to tell who they were anymore.
Madam Feng clutched her head as pain shot through her skull. She collapsed to the ground, face pale as paper. “My Jun’er… My poor grandson… My poor, poor grandson…”
The Eldest Princess’s expression was equally unsightly. “The authorities have already been notified—they will get to the bottom of this. I also find it strange. All the male guests were in the front courtyard—why would Feng Jun have gone to the secluded rockery in the back?”
Feng Caiwei suddenly remembered what Feng Jun had said before she left the house.
He had been trying everything lately to cheer her up, always promising her a surprise and telling her to wait and see Qi Yuan’s humiliation.
Right.
Qi Yuan.
Qi Yuan!
Though she’d pretended to be indifferent on the surface, she had been secretly watching Qi Yuan’s every move.
Before the opera began today, Qi Yuan had left for a short while.
Where did she go?!
Feng Caiwei suddenly shouted, “It was Qi Yuan! Eldest Miss Qi! She’s the one who got my brother killed!”
The Eldest Princess’s expression turned cold in an instant. “Miss Feng, be careful with your words.”
Madam Feng, her eyes filled with tears, looked at her daughter—grief-stricken, but also puzzled.
How had this matter become about Qi Yuan?
Feng Caiwei looked at the scorched remains on the ground, her emotions finally breaking. Her tears fell in large drops as she said, “It was her. Just now, when we were all in the garden, only she left! She was sneaky—she must have gone to set the fire!”
She knew her brother’s temper. If she was wronged, Feng Jun would surely step in to defend her.
She had been low-spirited for days, and Feng Jun had kept telling her not to worry—he’d make sure Qi Yuan paid for it.
Lately, her brother had been going out more and more, always meeting with Wei Changying.
How could this all be a coincidence?
Even Qi Wang had said it—Qi Yuan was calculating and vengeful, never letting go of a grudge.
It had to be her—Qi Yuan killed her brother!
The accused, Qi Yuan, simply furrowed her brow ever so slightly.
Beside her, Second Madam Qi felt her heart skip a beat.
Could Ah Yuan really have something to do with this?
But Qi Yuan showed not the slightest trace of panic. She raised her brows slightly at Xing Min, the magistrate from Shuntian Prefecture, who had just arrived.
Xing Min coughed lightly. “Miss Qi, were you present at the scene when the incident occurred?”
Qi Yuan shook her head calmly, as if it were the most natural answer. “No, I wasn’t.”
Xing Min asked again, “Is there anyone who can verify that?”
“There is.” Qi Yuan gave a slight smile. “I was only away for a short while—one of the Eldest Princess’s maids can vouch for me.”
Xing Min immediately had the named maid summoned. In a serious tone, he asked, “Can you verify Miss Qi’s whereabouts?”
The little maid’s heart pounded like a drum. Trembling, she nodded. “Y-Yes. I followed Miss Qi the whole way. She never went anywhere near the rockery—she returned shortly after to watch the opera.”
Xing Min glanced at his clerk, who nodded to indicate it had all been recorded.
Only then did Second Madam Qi recover herself, reaching out to grab Qi Yuan’s hand. “Ah Yuan…”
Qi Yuan gently patted her hand in return. “Don’t worry, Second Aunt. I’m fine.”
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