"This matter is over from now on. Never mention it again! You never think before you act. Who else can you expect to protect you? Remember, no matter what troubles you encounter in the future, please come to me first to discuss solutions. If you continue to act recklessly like you did today, you will never be able to earn my forgiveness!"

After finishing this lecture in one breath, the Duke's wife looked extremely exhausted and waved her hand weakly as a sign of completion. "Amei, take this young lady back to rest."

Hearing this, A Mei responded softly, and silently stepped forward to take the arm of Su Qiulu, who was in extremely complicated emotions.

Before slowly turning around and leaving, Su Qiulu held back her tears, bowed to everyone in the room one by one, and then left this depressing space with heavy steps.

At this time, only the Duke's wife and Wen Zhu were left alone in the Zen room.

After adjusting her sitting position slightly to make herself more comfortable, the Duke's wife took a sip of tea from her teacup and asked, "What exactly happened?"

Wen Zhu, still kneeling on the ground, lowered his head and explained in a low voice, "In the evening, I went outside to ask for divination to resolve my doubts, and happened to encounter the Second Young Master who kept pestering me. He kept pestering me, and I really had no way to get away. So I made up an excuse and told him to go to a small forest near the village and wait."

"I had originally intended to wait until you came out of here to resolve this issue, and I didn't want to trouble you. But unexpectedly, something unexpected happened. I truly have no idea what happened next."

There was a hint of helplessness in Wen Zhu's tone.

Upon learning that Wen Zhu had been staying at Judge Xie's daughter's house the previous night and hadn't returned, the Duke's wife, after a moment's contemplation, frowned and said with evident discontent in her voice, "That unruly son of mine has been taught many times, yet he never learns his lesson. This time, he's gotten himself into trouble again. Could it be that after waiting for me for so long, he became restless and irritable, and got into an argument with someone, leading to someone's death?"

"I really have no idea what happened back then. No one expected such a big commotion to happen near the temple."

As he spoke, Wen Zhu's eyes flushed and tears welled up in his eyes, and he seemed about to cry.

"Okay, get up."

Seeing the sad look on the girl in front of her, the Duke's wife couldn't help but sigh.

A trace of heartache appeared on her face, and she waved her hand gently, signaling Wen Zhu to get up.

At this moment, a loud voice came from outside the door: "Greetings to the Duke and the Crown Prince."

As the curtain was lifted, Duke Anguo and Fu Yu walked into the room one after another.

Their arrival made the atmosphere much more solemn.

Seeing this, the Duke's wife quickly stood up and greeted him anxiously, "Master, it's great that you're here. I was very worried when I heard that Huaichen was in trouble. Fortunately, you came back in time, which makes me feel much more at ease."

Her words were filled with gratitude and uneasiness.

Duke Anguo looked solemn but gently held his wife's hand, motioning everyone to sit down, and at the same time instructed Wen Zhu to prepare some tea to entertain everyone.

"Mother, please don't worry too much. My brother is currently being detained by the government in the capital for investigation. I have already contacted various parties to gather relevant information."

Fu Yu paused briefly before adding to his report, "Just now, when I passed by the scene, I saw some detectives stationed there, but I don't know the specific situation. All I know is that two young men and women have unfortunately passed away."

Duke An Guo was about to pick up the teacup to sip the tea, but after hearing this, he suddenly put the teacup in his hand down heavily, making a crisp sound.

The room suddenly fell into silence, the air seemed to be frozen, so quiet that even the sound of a pin drop could be heard clearly.

Wen Zhu lowered his head, his eyes filled with emptiness, and he stood there like a soulless wooden sculpture, looking helpless and confused.

After a while, there was a sudden sound of hurried and hurried footsteps outside the door.

Soon, a steward hurried into the room and immediately reported the news to Duke Anguo.

Duke Anguo immediately gestured for him to explain the specific situation in detail.

The butler surnamed Wang knelt and saluted, his eyes somewhat evasive, but he still mustered the courage to report to his master: "Your Excellency, the Duke, the Second Young Master has been temporarily detained."

"Why did they lock him up directly? Why was it so urgent? Didn't they say they were just assisting with the investigation?"

Upon hearing this, Duke Anguo immediately stood up from his seat, his tone full of anxiety.

The butler replied, "Master, the man is dead. The woman, though still breathing, identified herself after regaining consciousness, stating that she had stabbed the back of her assailant's hand with a hairpin during her struggle. We subsequently conducted an investigation and discovered a wound on the back of the Second Young Master's right hand that matched the description. Identification confirmed that it was indeed caused by a similar object, a hairpin."

These words exploded throughout the room like thunder, shocking everyone present.

The three people who had been skeptical for a long time now looked extremely serious, and they all showed expressions of extreme horror when they looked at each other.

At the same time, Duke Anguo's body began to shake slightly due to the fluctuations in his heart.

Fu Yu frowned and asked, "Butler Wang, may I ask what my second brother said about this matter?"

"The Second Young Master claimed that the injury on his hand was caused by a scratch from an iron nail."

The room fell into a brief silence again, and no one spoke.

After a long pause, Steward Wang suppressed his uneasiness and continued, "Furthermore, the victim mentioned that he smelled a special fragrance on the attacker at the time of the incident, called 'Lingjun Fragrance.' After a detailed inspection, it was confirmed that this special scent was indeed found on the Second Young Master's clothing. However, the Second Young Master himself insisted that he never used any perfume, and his statement did have some truth to it. According to him, due to his lack of nose sensitivity, he was unaware of the surrounding odors and had no idea where they came from."

"Is there any other circumstantial evidence or eyewitnesses at the scene?"

Duke Anguo's expression was extremely ugly, and he asked while almost suppressing his anger.

"Unfortunately, we haven't found any more clues yet."

Butler Wang lowered his head and responded in a gentle but helpless tone.

At this moment, the usually taciturn Fu Yu suddenly spoke up, "Thank you for your hard work. Please arrange for someone to closely monitor the developments in Jingzhao Prefecture. If there is any new information, please send someone to inform us immediately."

"Understood."