Chapter 174: One Person Missing
The emperor looked at the prince and then at Concubine Shu.
"Qing Yin, then this matter will be fully under your jurisdiction. Pass on my order that the Crown Prince temporarily reside in the Eastern Palace. Before the matter is investigated, you must cultivate your character in the Eastern Palace and are not allowed to go out even a step!"
The prince's face turned pale and the queen closed her eyes slightly.
This is tantamount to house arrest. Although he was not thrown into prison, it is already a severe punishment for a country's crown prince.
What's more, the matter has already been brought to the attention of the previous dynasty, and all the civil and military officials in the palace are still waiting for news.
Presumably, the news that the crown prince was temporarily confined to the Eastern Palace would soon reach their ears.
It's tantamount to great turmoil.
The emperor continued, "Noble Concubine Shu will also temporarily stay in the palace. Everyone in the palace must cooperate with the investigation and must not leave without my permission."
Upon hearing this, Concubine Shu bit her red lips tightly, her eyes turned red, but she stubbornly refused to cry. She bowed to the emperor, turned around and left.
The emperor sighed softly and waved to Eunuch Wei.
Eunuch Wei took two steps forward and bowed beside him.
"Go tell her I will go see her."
"yes."
The emperor's eyes fell on Xianglan and Suzhuo.
"As for them, as well as the people in Yu Guiren's palace, Qing Yin, I'll leave them to you. How to interrogate them and whether to take them to Zhen Qu Tower are all up to you to decide."
"I just want the result."
"I obey the order."
When Xianglan and Suzhuo heard this, their faces turned pale with fright.
Su Zhuo knelt and crawled to the queen's side: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, save this servant."
The Queen was about to speak, but Fu Qingyin said calmly, "Don't worry, Queen. Zhenhua Tower only suppresses treacherous people and guilty people. If Miss Suzhuo has done nothing wrong, she will be sent back to you in one piece in the near future."
Yu Shengsheng lowered her eyes and listened to the subtle meaning in their conversation.
As expected, only those with strong strength have more say.
Even if she is in a high position like the queen, she still has to be tolerant in front of Fu Qingyin.
The emperor glanced at her, and Yu Shengsheng lowered her head even more.
"Yu Shengsheng, you are involved in this and cannot escape responsibility. Considering your assistance just now, I will allow you to assist in this case. Remember, you must obey Qing Yin's orders."
"Yes, I obey your command."
Yu Shengsheng breathed a sigh of relief. At least she wasn't around the Queen and the Crown Prince.
The emperor stood up and said, "I will return to the study first, and the crown prince should go back to the East Palace! As for the queen, I will leave the previous matters to you. I am tired."
The matter was handed over to the Queen to deal with. She had to handle it properly, but at the same time, she couldn't let the news spread and cause a sensation in the city.
The queen had a splitting headache, but she still dragged herself to express her gratitude.
People dispersed in groups, leaving only Fu Qingyin, Yu Shengsheng, and two Red Dragon Guards.
Yu Shengsheng was still kneeling on the ground. Fu Qingyin came to her and asked, "Why don't you get up?"
"Thank you, Commander."
She stood up, her head still bowed.
Fu Qingyin asked: "How do you plan to assist me?"
Yu Shengsheng picked up the remaining things of Xianglan on the ground and said, "Let's start from here."
Fu Qingyin was at ease: "Tell me about it."
Yu Shengsheng held a handkerchief and unfolded it gently. It was made of ordinary silk, with some threads hanging on the edge. There was an orchid on the corner, which was in line with the name Xianglan. The embroidery was quite good.
"This is Xianglan's handkerchief. It's not as valuable as the snow handkerchief the commander picked up earlier."
"However," she paused, "I have seen her by the side of the head maid in charge of Concubine Shu's palace. I think she is favored, and the things she uses should not be too bad."
"But this handkerchief is too old."
"Besides, it's hard to believe her saying that she stole the beads. The Queen's palace is heavily guarded, and those beads were a gift from the Ninth Princess. They are so precious that the Queen must have kept them well. How could she let her steal them so easily?"
"Besides, she is someone close to Imperial Concubine Shu. Imperial Concubine Shu and the Queen have always been at odds with each other..."
Before he could finish his words, Yu Shengsheng suddenly stopped.
She pursed her lips tightly and said, "Commander, please forgive me. I spoke out of turn."
Fu Qingyin straightened his sleeves and said, "It's easy for me to forgive you, but if others or the emperor hears about it, I'm afraid you won't be able to save your life."
"Yes, I will remember the commander's teachings."
Fu Qingyin stretched out his hand. Yu Shengsheng was stunned for a moment, then came to his senses and quickly handed over the handkerchief in his hand.
"What you said does make some sense. I will send someone to investigate." Fu Qingyin glanced at the body on the bed. "How did you know she was pregnant?"
"Ah?" Yu Shengsheng wanted to raise her finger to touch Concubine Yu's belly, but then felt it was inappropriate, so she withdrew her finger.
"Just look at her belly and you can tell."
"Have you ever delivered a baby?" Fu Qingyin was speechless.
"No, I heard it from the midwife when I was in the country. But I have delivered a sheep before."
Yu Shengsheng said seriously: "Sheep and humans are actually not that different."
Fu Qingyin: “???”
There was no way to continue this topic, so he changed it abruptly: "So you think we should start with Xianglan?"
Yu Shengsheng nodded: "Su Zhuo is also fine. She should know about the beads."
Fu Qingyin stared at her with a half-smile: "Do you really want the Queen and the Crown Prince to be unlucky?"
Yu Shengsheng shouted in her heart, "Of course I wanted to," but she held it back.
"Commander, I never dared to think of this."
"Alright, don't pretend in front of me," Fu Qingyin glanced around, "Since you are investigating the case with me, be smart."
After saying that, he turned around and paced around looking for it.
Yu Shengsheng looked at the corner and found the place where the spices were placed. If they were placed in the incense ball, it was indeed possible that they had rolled here.
The queen cannot touch Peony, and she knows this. As Suzhuo said, many people in the palace know this, and it is not a secret.
But the Queen’s headache didn’t seem to be caused by the incense found in Concubine Yu’s palace.
Yu Shengsheng walked to the table and saw a jade bowl on the table with some residual brown liquid in it. She picked it up and smelled it. It should be some kind of hangover soup.
While she was thinking, the Red Dragon Guards had already gathered the remaining people in Concubine Yu's palace and asked them about what happened.
There are not many people in the palace of Concubine Yu. The position of a noble lady requires a certain number of employees to match her. There are few people to begin with, and several of them have died, so the total number of people left is no more than ten.
She glanced outside and saw the remaining few people standing at the bottom of the stairs.
Five young eunuchs and three palace maids.
Yu Shengsheng looked at the three palace maids, suddenly thought of something, and looked at the dead palace maids on the ground one by one.
After reading it, he quickly walked to Fu Qingyin and whispered, "Commander, are all the people here?"
Fu Qingyin nodded: "Not bad."
Yu Shengsheng pursed her lips slightly: "If I remember correctly, there should be one less."
Fu Qingyin raised his eyebrows slightly: "One less? How do you know?"
"Before attending the palace banquet today, I was ordered by the imperial concubine to go to her palace. On the way to the banquet, I was afraid of being late, so I bumped into someone in a hurry."
"She is a palace maid. She said she is from Concubine Yu's palace."
"But I don't see her among them, nor among the bodies lying on the ground."
"Where did she go?"
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