Inside the hall, Lu Xiaoyun, the Duke of Zhenguo, and Lu Yucheng sat down respectively.
Upon seeing him approach, the servant said, "Miss, the Prince, the Duke, and the Young Master are already waiting for you inside."
Zhu Yu tried his best to remain calm and nodded with a smile to the servant.
The servant stiffened. They knew very well what kind of person this young lady had been over the past six months—she was quite formidable. Why was she smiling at him today?
I lifted my leg to step over the threshold, but with a thud, I tripped over it and fell flat on my face.
Qi Yu and Li Feng rushed forward to help him up. Li Feng lowered her voice and said, "Miss, calm down!"
Lu Xiaoyun was completely shocked. Good heavens, is this still the arrogant Zhu Yu from before?
The Duke of Zhenguo frowned. What was wrong with his eldest daughter?
Lu Yucheng's face darkened; he thought to himself, "Look at how worthless my sister is."
Zhu Yu stood up, casually brushed the dust off his clothes, pretending nothing had happened, and first looked at that tall and straight figure.
She wore a clean, deep blue robe with cloud patterns and a dark background, her hair was tied up with a jade crown, her eyebrows were sculpted like swords and slanted towards her temples, and her bright, star-like eyes sparkled with a dreamy look. When she looked at him, there was a faint smile in her eyes.
There was no trace of the murderous aura and coldness that he once possessed.
It turns out that in the past six months, not only had he gotten used to his current identity as a woman, but even those around him had gotten used to "Your Highness Prince An" becoming more and more gentle.
Wow, he's getting better and better looking.
"Greetings, Your Highness Prince An, Father, and Brother." Zhu Yu bowed respectfully to the three of them.
Lu Xiaoyun had never seen him so obedient in front of his father before. She quickly picked up the tea beside her and suppressed the smile on her lips: "Miss Lu, there's no need for such formality."
Lu Yucheng glared at his younger sister. The little girl always knew how to curry favor with their father.
"Xiaoyun, come and sit down. The reason I called you two here today is that His Highness Prince An has something to say to you both."
Zhu Yu's heart skipped a beat, and he secretly glanced at Lu Xiaoyun, only to see her wink at him.
She must have come today to propose marriage to the Duke of Zhenguo.
He was already prepared, so he had to maintain his composure first and then shyly say that since His Highness Prince An wanted to marry his daughter as a concubine, he had to show some sincerity.
The betrothal gifts should be at least twice as much as his brother's, otherwise how can it be proven that "Prince An" is deeply in love with him?
Zhu Yu was getting impatient.
As a result, Lu Xiaoyun said, "Lord Duke, Young Master Lu, I have come today to talk about the accidental death of Madam Lu when she gave birth to Miss Lu."
What? You're not here to marry him?
Wait, she's found out about Madam Lu's death?
He had asked his brother to send people to investigate, but too much time had passed—fifteen years. The people from back then were either dead or scattered. There weren't many secret guards in the mansion to begin with, so investigating these matters was even more hopeless.
A few months ago, the Duke of Zhenguo ordered that Wei's mother be beaten to death. At that time, he was on guard and asked his brother to secretly save Wei's mother.
But little did she know that Wei's mother was a stubborn woman who insisted that she had not been coerced and that she had done it all herself.
As for the death of the late Madam, she insisted that the late Madam died from postpartum hemorrhage during the birth of the eldest daughter, and that the eldest daughter was a jinx.
The next day, when the servants brought her food, she suddenly smashed the bowl and attempted suicide by cutting her neck with a shard of porcelain. Fortunately, she was discovered in time and saved.
But this also damaged her voice, and she could no longer speak. Since Wei's mother was illiterate, she was practically rendered useless.
At the time, her brother wanted nothing more than to kill her, but he was wise enough to keep her alive for the time being.
Killing Wei Mama would be easy, but keeping her alive might still be useful. She's been with Fang for decades and knows too many of her secrets.
He told Lu Xiaoyun about it, and Lu Xiaoyun immediately sent the secret guards of the Prince An's mansion to investigate.
So much has happened during this time, and he hasn't had time to think about it.
Unexpectedly, news has only come now.
“Madam Lu’s death was not an accident, but a deliberate act,” Lu Xiaoyun said.
The Duke of Zhenguo's fingers trembled. Years ago, after his wife became pregnant, the emperor ordered him to go to the southern border. His wife's pregnancy was not good; she often vomited day and night and could not even eat.
But he couldn't disobey the imperial decree, so he had no choice but to leave his wife and four-year-old son in Shengjing.
But to his surprise, a few months later on his way back to Shengjing, he learned that his wife had died from postpartum hemorrhage.
But at that time, it was clearly more than a month before the lady gave birth.
Lu Yucheng jumped up from his chair: "Your Highness Prince An, are you saying that my mother was murdered?"
Lu Xiaoyun nodded: "Not only that, even Madam Lu's two maids who came with her as part of her dowry were murdered."
“That’s right, Madam Lu and those two maids were all murdered.” A gentle voice came from outside the hall.
The group looked up and saw a young man walking towards them, bathed in the glow of the sunset. He wore a moon-white brocade robe, his dark hair was tied up with a jade hairpin, and most of it was loose. He exuded an air of nobility and elegance, with a calm smile in his eyes, both gentle and dignified.
Who else could it be but Zhu Dan?
Zhu Yu's face immediately turned cold. Why is he everywhere?
This is a matter between him and Lu Xiaoyun, and the investigation into Madam Lu's death was something he and Lu Xiaoyun decided on a few months ago. What does it have to do with Lao Wu?
Zhu Yu said coldly, "Fifth Prince, this is a private matter of my Zhenguo Duke's Mansion. It's probably not appropriate for you to interfere like this."
"Oh?" Zhu Dan raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhu Yu. "If that's the case, then why is Fourth Brother here? If I remember correctly, Fourth Brother and Miss Lu have already divorced. It's probably not appropriate for Fourth Brother to be here."
Zhu Yu gritted his teeth, "I need your reminder, I need your reminder! Sooner or later, I will marry A-Yun again!"
"Furthermore," Zhu Dan said, lifting his robe and sitting down opposite Lu Xiaoyun, "the Fang family is suspected of murder, and this matter should be under the jurisdiction of the Jingzhao Prefecture. And this happens to be within my scope of duties."
Zhu Yu took a deep breath. His father's health had been deteriorating lately, and he had become increasingly obsessed with elixirs, handing over most of the government affairs to his fifth son, including the Jingzhao Prefecture.
The Duke of Zhenguo and Lu Yucheng quickly stood up and bowed to him.
The Duke of Zhenguo's face hardened: "Xiao Yun, hurry up and pay your respects to the Fifth Prince!"
Zhu Yu turned his face away and snorted coldly.
Zhu Dan smiled faintly: "It's alright."
The Duke of Zhenguo was also completely baffled. It was understandable that Prince An was investigating Lin's death, since he and Xiaoyun had been husband and wife for a period of time. But why was the Fifth Prince involved?
Zhu Dan smiled faintly: "Lord Duke, three months ago, the Jingzhao Prefecture government arrested a gambler who was causing trouble. This man was addicted to gambling and owed a lot of debts, but suddenly one day he not only paid off all his debts, but also bought a house and land."
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