Xiao Jiuyi was about to answer when someone entering behind them cut him off.
A Jinyu Guard stood in the doorway, head bowed, hands cupped, his face hidden beneath the brim of a wrapped hat, and said in a low voice, “Mingzhi greets the Commander. What are the Commander’s instructions?”
Xiao Jiuyi turned, blocking Meng Qianzi’s line of sight exactly.
“Take this Commander’s seal and go to the Censorate to retrieve the case files on the Yangzhou silkworm-farmer case. All of them.”
The man seemed a little surprised, and it was two breaths before he answered, “This subordinate understands.”
Qingzhou came in, opened a standing cabinet, took out an envelope, and handed it to the Jinyu Guard.
The guard and Xiao Jiuyi turned at the same moment, and Meng Qianzi caught a glimpse of his profile that struck her as somehow familiar. She rose abruptly, leaning forward to try to see his face clearly, and nearly knocked over the low table.
Xiao Jiuyi’s brows drew together, and he scolded her, none too pleased, “So careless. Never seen a man before?”
Meng Qianzi flushed red with irritation, but had no choice but to explain patiently, “He looks a bit like someone I know.”
Xiao Jiuyi gave a cold snort. “You still dare to know people?”
Meng Qianzi fell silent at once. He was right, in front of others, she was no longer Meng Qianzi, but a jianghu wanderer in the capital with no family and no friends.
Xiao Jiuyi sat back down at his desk with no expression, picking up a case file at random, his pale lips pressed into a thin line.
Meng Qianzi could clearly sense that his mood right now was foul, and though she found it puzzling, she had the sense not to say anything more.
For a while the atmosphere in the room grew unusually oppressive. Qingzhou found an excuse and slipped out, throwing Meng Qianzi a look on his way out that seemed to say she was on her own now, which only made her more tense.
But she soon found herself absorbed in the Princess of Xiang’s case, and did not notice Xiao Jiuyi resting his chin on one hand, watching her, his gaze unreadable.
Her explanation yesterday had not been entirely airtight, but he did not intend to press the matter further.
Yesterday the Empress Dowager’s expression had been very poor, and the banquet had broken up halfway through. Afterward he had spoken at length with his elder brother the Crown Prince.
Recalling what had happened in Yufu Palace, he still felt a chill of fear looking back on it.
If Uncle had been beaten to death on the spot, under those circumstances, there would have been no way for him to defend himself, whether he had done it or not, and Aunt, under that double blow, would certainly not have lasted long.
Killing Aunt was not the final goal, what they wanted was that seat!
Xiao Jiuyi kept his eyes fixed on Meng Qianzi, his mind racing.
The hard-fought war between Great Qian and North Jin had dragged on for three years, and now, on the very brink of victory, Meng Zheng, however greedy or foolish he might be, would never have colluded with the enemy at this point.
Father Emperor sending the third prince, the Prince of Qin, to the front to take over command from Meng Zheng was clearly handing him a great achievement, what was he trying to accomplish?
Working backward from the enemy’s original plan, once Aunt was gone, the Crown Prince, his elder brother, would lose a powerful supporter, and he himself would surely be so consumed by grief that he could no longer attend to anything else.
The Left Censor-in-Chief, Tian Jichuan, was a man of the strictest, most cautious character, who never took sides, and the only one who had raised doubts about the Meng Zheng case. If his only beloved daughter were beaten to death under such circumstances, given how harshly he judged himself and others, he would at the very least resign, and at worst take his own life in shame.
That way, no one would be left to question or investigate Meng Zheng’s case any further, and the charge of colluding with the enemy would stand uncontested.
By then, no one would say the Prince of Qin had snatched away Meng Zheng’s victory, instead, they would praise him for turning the tide of the war.
What a fine plan, killing three birds with one stone!
It was a pity that Meng Qianzi had appeared out of nowhere and ruined their plan. That vicious old woman must be half dead with fury.
The Prince of Qin’s mother was the Empress Dowager’s niece, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law both women of the He family.
This past year Father Emperor had fallen gravely ill twice in a row, and the He family clearly could no longer sit still.
Only, neither he nor his elder brother the Crown Prince could figure out what Father Emperor meant by this move, what exactly was Father Emperor trying to do?
“Heh…”
Unable to work it out, Xiao Jiuyi gave a silent, mocking laugh. The He family wanted to fight for that seat for the Prince of Qin, but that would depend on whether he, Xiao Jiuyi, was dead or not!
As for the woman before him now, a woman from a household of three generations of generals really was different from those affected, pampered ladies of high birth who spent their lives scheming within their own households.
Her nerve was extraordinarily bold!
She had actually dared feed him that nauseatingly bitter medicine, truly fearless of death!
The thought brought back, unbidden, the lingering warm, soft touch on his lips, and Xiao Jiuyi’s mood turned inexplicably restless. He kicked the desk hard with one foot.
Meng Qianzi jumped at the sudden noise and looked over at him, baffled.
Xiao Jiuyi abruptly stood and strode past, saying coldly as he passed her, “Follow.”
Once outside, Meng Qianzi asked Qingzhou quietly, “What do you think of the Princess of Xiang’s case?”
Qingzhou clutched his head with both hands, his face scrunched up. “My lady, please spare me.” He would rather kill and burn than talk about the case with her, and hurried his steps to catch up with Xiao Jiuyi.
Once in the carriage, Meng Qianzi noticed the man across from her looking even more displeased, and asked carefully:
“Your Highness, is the Princess of Xiang’s body still inside Her Ladyship Consort Chun’s palace?”
Xiao Jiuyi raised his ink-black brows, a faint air of wicked amusement rising on his face. “That’s right. This Prince believes keeping Consort Chun with her will help the investigation.”
Meng Qianzi: “…”
She nearly dug her nails clean through her own palm to keep from throwing a punch at him.
I am truly grateful to your entire family!
Even if Aunt was under suspicion, she was only a suspect, there was no need to torment her like this. This man really did have a cold face and a heart like a demon’s!
She resolved firmly in her heart to find some way to have the Princess of Xiang’s body moved. Her aunt was such a timid person, there was no telling how frightened she must be.
Once inside the palace, the way remained unobstructed as before, but not a few of the palace people they passed showed startled expressions upon seeing Meng Qianzi.
Meng Qianzi guessed they must have noticed her resemblance to her aunt, but did not dwell on it too much, investigating her father’s wrongful case would inevitably expose her to people sooner or later, and Little Prince Yong had already said not to worry about anyone’s suspicions.
She was confident that his three days would stretch on without limit, until the day her father’s name was cleared.
Changting Palace, where Consort Chun lived, was no strange place to her.
Changting Palace sat toward the northern side of Zihuan Palace, separated from the Chrysanthemum Garden by a great lotus pond, with a covered walkway running north to south over the water, a delicate pavilion standing every thirty chi along its length.
It was the height of summer, and as a light breeze passed through, the wind chimes hanging from the pavilion eaves rang out crisp and clear, the whole pond of green leaves rippling, the lotus blossoms swaying gently and sending out waves of subtle fragrance, an elegant atmosphere lingering endlessly.
Who would have thought that in such a beautiful place, such a shocking murder could have taken place?
Meng Qianzi had no heart to admire the scenery, and instead put herself in the killer’s shoes, imagining the escape route the killer would have taken after the deed.
Changting Palace backed onto a slope thick with towering green pines, exceedingly quiet, yet also a spot heavily patrolled by guards.
The Princess of Xiang had died sometime before the middle of the hai hour (9 to 11 p.m.), and night was precisely when the guards were at their most alert, the killer would likely not have chosen to flee into the pine forest behind the palace.
Still deep in thought, she had already crossed the lotus pond and arrived outside Changting Palace.
The whole of Changting Palace had been surrounded by the Imperial Guard, and white gauze hung all over the outside of the hall.
A flare of anger rose in Meng Qianzi’s heart, the mistress of Changting Palace was still alive and well, and yet a scene like this had been staged. It was simply too far!
Xiao Jiuyi stood with his hands clasped behind his back, two chi in front of her, and turned half toward her to say, “The Prince of Xiang is His Majesty’s uncle. He begged the Empress Dowager to let him set up a mourning hall inside Changting Palace, and the Empress Dowager agreed.”
With one sentence, he had shifted the target of the hatred entirely.
Meng Qianzi’s lashes trembled faintly. She wanted to ask whether, if this had happened inside the former Empress’s palace, such a mourning hall would ever have been permitted.
In the end she did not ask, only saying flatly, “If this subject can prove today that Consort Chun is not the killer, this subject asks Your Highness to persuade the Prince of Xiang to move the mourning hall elsewhere.”
Xiao Jiuyi looked at her with indifferent eyes, and had just parted his lips to speak when a shrill, agonized scream rang out from within Changting Palace…