Chapter 239: Case Closed (Two Chapters in One)

The queen originally had sympathy for the two sisters.

As a mother, she feels sympathy when she sees a child whose parents have both passed away and who is left alone.

Therefore, when Princess Jiarou said she wanted to let the two sisters live with her, she readily agreed.

But she never expected that only a year later, Jiarou would return to the palace in person to kick Huixin out.

The Queen knew Jiarou's personality. She was a person who didn't take things to heart. She looked cold and aloof, but she was actually the easiest to get along with.

That's why Jiarou was able to personally ask someone to leave. It shows that what the person being left behind did was something Jiarou could no longer tolerate.

Before the Queen could open her mouth to reprimand her, Princess Huixin had already set her eyes on Princess Jiayi's mansion.

You really know how to pick a place!

The Queen's face was expressionless, and her tone was indifferent: "Jiayi has finally come over the pain of losing her son. You should not let her grieve any longer. After all, you and Xiao Zhen both studied in the palace when you were young. When Jiayi sees you, she will inevitably think of Xiao Zhen. Do you understand what I mean?"

Princess Huixin was startled, but a strange joy welled up in her heart. Aunt Jiayi would think of Xiao Zhen when she saw her? If Xiao Zhen hadn't died, would Aunt Jiayi approve of their marriage?

For a moment, she felt a mixture of sweet and sour feelings in her heart, and her eyes were blurred, which made the queen frown secretly.

She cleared her throat, and Princess Huixin finally came to her senses. A look of sorrow appeared on her face. "If Aunt Jiayi's place doesn't work, then Huixin has nowhere else to go."

The Queen was unhappy in her heart, but she didn't show it on her face: "How could there be no one? I heard from the Imperial Household Department the other day that in three months at most, your Princess Mansion will be repaired and you can move in then. Until then, you can return to the palace and live in your old courtyard. It has been empty all this time."

Return to the palace?

These are the two words Princess Huixin least wants to hear.

It would have been fine if she had always lived in the palace, but she had been out before. The days she spent in Princess Jiarou's mansion were the most comfortable days she could remember, even better than when she was a child in the Eastern Palace.

Living in the East Palace, she would hear her mother's nagging every day. If she was not satisfied, her mother would scold her and her sisters, asking why they were not the emperor's grandchildren and scolding them for being useless...

So she cherishes the days she lives outside, but unfortunately...

No, the Queen means that she will be able to live in her own princess mansion in three months?

Since she is not married and is not a half-monk like Princess Jiarou, why can she set up her own residence?

Could it be that they still want her to get married?

But in three months, where can I find a husband for her?

Could it be that Lin Sen...

How could she have been so careless? Until now, the emperor has not cancelled her marriage with Lin Sen!

Princess Huixin felt a chill run down her spine at the thought. She stared at the Queen in amazement, "Your Majesty said Huixin will be able to open her own residence in three months? Can Huixin open her own residence on her own?"

The Queen smiled and said, "Silly child, how can a princess live in the palace after getting married? Once married, she is an adult and of course she has to leave the palace and set up her own residence."

"But Huixin's marriage, that Lin Sen, he, he..." Princess Huixin's lips trembled. She had done so much, was it all in vain? She still had to marry Lin Sen?

The Queen knew what she was about to say and said coldly, "The Dali Temple is still investigating Lin Sen's case. As long as he hasn't been convicted, he will remain your consort. The Emperor's words are golden, how can they be changed by a tiny matter?"

Princess Huixin didn't know how she walked out of Chaoyang Palace. She was in a depressed mood. When she heard laughter coming from the front, she raised her head and looked in the direction of the sound. She saw several palace maids surrounding a woman and walking towards Jingyu Palace.

From her angle, she could only see the woman's profile, but she still recognized her. It was the Third Prince's Consort Feng Jiahe.

Because of the last incident involving the drum-shaped report, the Third Prince was implicated and has been keeping a low profile recently. Even Feng Jiahe rarely appears in public.

Now looking at Feng Jiahe's relaxed and calm expression, it seems that the wind has changed and the third prince's status in front of the emperor has been preserved.

The third prince, Concubine Qiao?

Princess Huixin's heart moved. How could she forget Concubine Qiao?

Since the queen has no sympathy, there is no need for her to hang herself on the queen's tree.

She grew up in the palace, what is there that she can't see?

Although the queen is nominally the master of the harem, her actual status is awkward.

The empress dowager has no children, while the emperor already has nine princes. If one dies, there are still eight left. It is best for the empress not to give birth to a prince. Once she does, he will be the emperor's youngest son, and he might not live to grow up.

Above the Empress is Concubine Dowager Li, but Royal Concubine Qiao is the Emperor's favorite, equivalent to the Vice Empress in this palace. More importantly, Royal Concubine Qiao has the Third Prince, who is the most favored by the Emperor, the most capable, and the one with the strongest backing among all the princes.

Thinking of this, Princess Huixin no longer hesitated and walked towards Jingyu Palace.

......

The most talked about person on the streets of Beijing now is the future imperial consort Ma Linsen who beats the drum to report his crimes.

Zhao Shiqing walked along the way and heard several versions of the story. When he passed by the inn where he had stayed two days ago, he found that the door of the inn was closed and locked.

Zhao Shiqing was curious and peeked inside through the crack in the door. It was completely empty inside, without even the tables, chairs or benches.

Could it be that Princess Huixin had murdered someone to silence her because of her? Luo Liqiong had only been here for a few hours. Was it really necessary to kill her to silence her?

Thinking of that cute little guy, Zhao Shiqing felt sorry for him. At this moment, a voice shouted from behind him: "What are you doing? Trying to steal something?"

Zhao Shiqing turned around and saw an old lady with a righteous look on her face. She looked down at her clothes. She was wearing a Hangzhou silk gown and didn't look like a thief at all.

"Auntie, I'm not a thief. I'm just curious. Why is this inn closed? I passed by here a few days ago and the door was still open."

Old Lady Zhengyi snorted coldly, "Who knows if you're trying to sneak in and pick the lock? You look shifty and you don't look like a good person. Do you know where we are? This is the capital!"

Well, no need to ask, as soon as she opened her mouth, people knew she was from outside the city.

"Auntie, my grandfather wants to open an inn in the capital. I think this one is good. The size is just right. If his family doesn't want to do it anymore, I will let my grandfather take it over."

Old lady Zhengyi's eyes lit up. It turned out that he was a local rich man from the countryside. He was stupid and had a lot of money, and he actually fell in love with this haunted house!

"His family has indeed quit. They just vacated the house yesterday and sold everything inside. This house won't be resold for a while. By the way, go to the real estate agency at the intersection and ask. They're probably the ones selling the house."

Zhao Shiqing thanked him profusely and ran towards the pawnshop as if he had gotten a great bargain.

Old lady Zhengyi looked at her back as if she were a fool. The last time this inn was bought by a pair of grandparents and grandchildren, and the kid just said that it was his grandfather who wanted to open an inn. It turned out that these days, the ones who are taken advantage of are also the grandparents.

Zhao Shiqing found the pawnbroker and heard her asking about the inn. When she heard that she was from another place, the pawnbroker was very enthusiastic and talked a lot, praising the small building. Zhao Shiqing's mouth twitched. You are amazing to be able to say that a haunted house is a Feng Shui treasure land!

However, she also received accurate information that the young man, the young master of the inn, was still alive and well at least when he left the pawnshop.

Zhao Shiqing felt relieved, as long as he was not silenced.

"Why would he sell such a Feng Shui treasure land? If he doesn't open an inn, he can do some other business."

The broker looked around seriously and said in a low voice, "Sir, to be honest, his family bought the inn through a small account. They are rich, really rich, and they didn't even bargain. So, in my opinion, the young master is probably here to gain experience. His family paid for him to practice, and now that his experience is over, he is going home."

So that's how it is. Zhao Shiqing gave him a thumbs up: "Good vision, awesome!"

After leaving the dental clinic, Zhao Shiqing went to a small courtyard not far away where Luo Liqiong lived.

No one knew when Zhen Wuduo bought this courtyard. That day, Zhao Shiqing said that she had gotten into big trouble again, so Zhen Wuduo gave her the key to the courtyard. Now Wan Ruyi lives here with Luo Liqiong.

Zhao Shiqing brought Ling Bo, who was also dressed in men's clothes, to the small courtyard. It was a courtyard with one entrance. When they moved in that day, the yard was overgrown with weeds, but now it has been cleaned up by Wan Ruyi, and a rose was planted against the wall.

"Aunt Wan, look, what did I bring you?"

Zhao Shiqing and Ling Bo each handed over a basket. In addition to the food prepared by Aunt Ji, there were also a bunch of things that Xiuxiu brought for Wan Ruyi. They were all for handicrafts. Wan Ruyi loved to do these the most.

Luo Liqiong heard the commotion in the yard and came out. Seeing the two young men standing in front of her, she was startled and quickly covered her face with her sleeves and walked into the house. Wan Ruyi hurriedly called her: "No need to hide, this is the Second Young Lady and Ling Bo."

In the past few days, Luo Liqiong has heard Wan Ruyi mention "Second Young Miss" many times, and she also knows that the person who helped her that day was the Second Young Miss Wan Ruyi mentioned.

Unfortunately, after that day, she never saw the second young lady again.

Even the ones who sent her here were Wan Ruyi and the driver Shi Lao Fan.

Hearing that the person in front of her was the Second Young Miss, Luo Liqiong no longer hid, but knelt down and kowtowed: "This humble girl kowtows to the Second Young Miss. I will never forget your great kindness in my life."

She didn't dare to ask for repayment, not because she didn't want to, but because she didn't know if she had the ability to repay the favor. After that incident, she felt useless and like a fool. If the second lady hadn't stopped it in time, the person locked up in jail now would not be Lin Sen, but her.

No, she was probably dead, beaten to death.

How can someone like her have the nerve to say that she can repay a favor?

Zhao Shiqing waved her hand, asked Ling Bo to help her up, and said, "I came to see you because I have something to ask you."

Luo Liqiong nodded quickly: "Second Miss, ask me anything and I will tell you everything."

Zhao Shiqing smiled and said, "You don't even know what I'm going to ask. What if it's something you don't know?"

Luo Liqiong blushed. She was so stupid. She couldn't do things well and couldn't even speak.

"Don't be nervous, have a piece of candy." Zhao Shiqing handed over a piece of crispy candy.

The crispy candy was made of peanuts and sesame seeds, and was fragrant and sweet. Luo Liqiong felt that it was the most delicious candy she had ever eaten in her life. She squinted her eyes in satisfaction, like a little child.

Zhao Shiqing smiled. It’s great to have people with simple minds. After going through so much, they can still have childlike happiness.

After finishing a piece of crispy candy, Luo Liqiong asked, "Second Miss, please ask me. I will tell you everything I know."

Zhao Shiqing nodded. "You said a Luo family steward once came to see you, but he later drowned. Does he have any relatives?"

Luo Liqiong actually knew about this matter: "Yes, the manager's surname was Wang, and his name was Wang Dashun. His wife was sick and had no money for treatment. My father paid for her treatment and not only saved her life, but also allowed her to work in the shop. Although he passed away, his wife and children are still alive. After his death, his wife and children returned to their hometown. His wife also came to the Lin family to look for me, but unfortunately she was stopped by the doorman. I only found out later that Wang Dashun's hometown is in Bo'an, which is said to be not far from the capital."

Zhao Shiqing smiled and said, "Okay, I don't have any other questions. You can live here with peace of mind. As for your children, they will be safe living in the clan."

Luo Liqiong thanked her again. Zhao Shiqing did not stay long. She wanted to send someone to Bo'an immediately to find Wang Dashun's wife and children.

Boan is only about 200 kilometers away from the capital. Zhao Shiqing sent Niu Qiu and Shen Wangxing. The reason for sending them instead of letting the guards go was because these two people looked like ordinary people, unlike those guards, each one more ferocious than the other.

Zhao Shiqing guessed that since Wang Dashun had obtained evidence of the Lin family's embezzlement, then after his death, these evidences would most likely still be in the hands of his wife and children, not to mention that Wang's wife had also contacted Luo Liqiong.

But Zhao Shiqing only guessed half of it. What she didn't expect was that the evidence in Wang Dashun's hand was indeed in the hands of Wang's wife. In addition, they also had evidence that the Lin family murdered Wang Dashun!

Wang Dashun did not fall into the water by himself, but was hit to death by Lin's father with a stone and his body was thrown into the well.

There was an eyewitness at the time, and that eyewitness was none other than the son of Wang Dashun's neighbor. He saw with his own eyes that Lin's father threw the bloody Wang Dashun into the well.

Zhao Shiqing guessed that Lin Sen was a Jinshi, and his case would be under the jurisdiction of the Dali Temple, but the murder case of Lin's father and mother would most likely be dismissed by the Dali Temple.

Therefore, she packed up Wang Dashun's wife and children, along with the witnesses and evidence in their hands, and handed them over to Yan Xia.

Just as she had guessed, a few days later, the Dali Temple really transferred the case of Lin's father and mother to the Ministry of Justice. However, Lin Sen was still imprisoned in the Dali Temple prison, while Lin's parents were transferred to the Ministry of Justice prison.

Yan Xia took the case on his own initiative and completed the trial in just five days.

The Lin family's parents had no evidence to prove that they murdered Luo's mother and could not be convicted.

However, there is solid evidence that the Lin family embezzled the Luo family's assets while managing them. The Lin family must return the Luo family's assets and make up for the profits they have gained from them over the years.

Lin's father plotted to murder Wang Dashun, and there were sufficient witnesses, so Lin's father was guilty of murder.

Since Luo Liqiong and Lin Sen do not have a marriage certificate, they are not husband and wife. Marriage between men and women has nothing to do with each other. As for the two children, they will still be raised by the Lin family.

What’s interesting is that when Lin’s father learned that he was doomed to die, he pointed out Lin’s mother, saying that Lin’s mother had been poisoning her sister for a long time. Although the poison was not fatal, it would cause mental disorder if taken for a long time. Luo’s mother would eventually go crazy because of the poison.

Lin's mother, who was originally going to be acquitted, was directly imprisoned in the death row. Considering that she and Lin's father were husband and wife, the prison warden made an exception and let them be neighbors. As a result, the two fought across the fence every day.

Lin Sen seemed to have nothing to do with these cases, but the Dali Temple had been reluctant to release him.

Luo Liqiong successfully took back the property, and Zhao Shiqing sent Lao Fan to escort her to the Lin family. Just as Zhao Shiqing said, the family that originally adopted the two children found out that Lin's father and mother were going to be beheaded, so they found the patriarch and refused to keep the two children no matter what.

When Lao Fan arrived, the family was surrounding the patriarch and making a big fuss. The two children were scared and huddled aside. Lao Fan claimed to be a distant relative of the Luo family. The patriarch's eyes lit up and he threw the two hot potatoes to him without asking for a penny.

Lao Fan: The silver that Madam Luo gave us hasn’t been taken out yet.

When Luo Liqiong returned to the capital and brought her children to kowtow to Zhao Shiqing, Lin Sen finally got news.

He died in the Dali Temple prison cell.