As soon as Su Xuening said this, everyone turned to look at the corpse on the ground.
Su Xuening squatted down and raised the corpse's chin so that everyone could see the marks on his neck: "If it were suicide by hanging, the rope marks on the neck would not intersect, and it would be a one-time occurrence, with only one mark. But now there are two obvious rope marks on his neck, so he must have been strangled and then faked as a suicide by hanging."
As Su Xuening explained, everyone in the main hall looked at the corpse's neck and indeed saw two rope marks on it.
Cen Jinfeng also saw the two rope marks and solemnly ordered, "Go and call the coroner."
"yes."
The yamen runners responded and soon brought the coroner.
After listening to Cen Jinfeng's instructions, the coroner began to examine the body.
After a thorough examination of the neck and throat, the coroner stood up and reported, "Sir, this person did not hang himself. He was likely strangled and then the act was staged to look like a suicide."
As soon as the coroner's conclusion was released, the people immediately started discussing it again.
"Miss Su was right! This person did not hang himself."
"So this person wasn't the arsonist at all, but a scapegoat pushed out to die!"
"Who exactly would do these things?"
"Who else could be so lawless in the Yong'an Marquis's residence?"
As the conversation went on, everyone turned their attention to Su Renyi.
Su Renyi's face was dark, and he didn't utter a sound.
Su Xuening looked at Cen Jinfeng again: "Sir, this person is not the arsonist at all. Please continue to help my brother and me find the murderer."
A fleeting look of shame crossed Cen Jinfeng's eyes: "I have done my best."
Sensing that Cen Jinfeng's tone was off, Su Xuening frowned.
Xuan Yuan Yu, who had been sitting quietly to the side, stepped forward and said to Su Xue Ning, "The case has been reported, and Lord Cen will find the arsonist. You are still injured, so go back and let the imperial physician take a look at you."
Su Xuening gave Xuan Yuan Yu a deep look, but didn't say anything to him. She looked at Cen Jinfeng and said, "Sir, this body belongs to a servant of the eldest branch of the Su family. Once you have investigated the matter, could you please return the body to my brother and me? Perhaps he died unjustly because of us. We would like to give him a proper burial."
“Okay.” Cen Jinfeng nodded in agreement.
Su Xuening bowed to him and then led Su Yun'an out.
Cen Jinfeng watched the siblings' retreating figures, filled with regret and shame.
After the siblings left the Shuntian Prefecture government office, Su Renyi stepped forward and whispered to Cen Jinfeng, "I am hosting a banquet at Zuihuanlou tonight. I would be honored if Lord Cen would grace us with his presence."
Looking at Su Renyi's meaningful expression, Cen Jinfeng felt a pang of sadness in his heart.
Xuanyuan Yu chased after the siblings.
Feeling Xuan Yuan Yu following closely behind her, Su Xue Ning stopped and turned to bow to him, saying, "Thank you for saving my life, Third Prince. I, Su Xue Ning, will definitely repay your kindness in the future!"
Seeing Su Xuening like this, Xuanyuan Yu quickly helped her up: "Ning'er, I don't need you to repay me, I..."
Just as Xuan Yuan Yu was about to confess his feelings, Su Xue Ning pulled her arm away and looked up to make him look at her face: "As you can see, my face is now disfigured and ugly. I am not worthy of Your Highness. From now on, Your Highness should stay away from me."
Looking at the ugly scar on Su Xuening's face, Xuan Yuan Yu wanted to back down for a moment, but his long-held obsession still controlled him: "Your face... the imperial physician might be able to cure it."
“This is evidence of their crimes, I don’t want to prosecute them.” Su Xuening said silently, then took Su Yun’an’s hand and turned to leave.
"Ning'er..."
Xuanyuan Yu wanted to chase after them again.
Su Xuening turned around impatiently: "Even if my face is completely healed, will the Third Prince marry me as his principal wife?"
“I…” Xuan Yuan Yu seemed not to have expected her to say these things suddenly, and froze instantly.
"You can't!" Su Xuening stared aggressively at Xuan Yuan Yu: "The Third Prince's preferred wife is Su Feiling. Now that you have a chosen one, why bother me? Stop following me!"
Xuan Yuan Yu didn't dare to utter a sound after Su Xue Ning's words, and he didn't dare to follow them after they had gone far away.
Finally realizing that no one was following her, Su Xuening silently breathed a sigh of relief.
Su Yun'an turned around and saw that Xuan Yuan Yu hadn't followed, then looked up and asked Su Xue Ning, "Sister, don't you like the Third Prince?"
"Do you like him?" Su Xuening asked him, looking down at him.
Su Yun'an shook his head without hesitation: "I don't like it."
Although he could tell that the man liked his sister, he was weak-willed and lacked his own opinions. He always listened to his aunt. Not to mention that he couldn't marry his sister as his principal wife, even if she did become his principal wife, he couldn't protect her. His sister would definitely be bullied by his aunt and Su Feiling and their ilk. So it was better not to marry him, even if he became his principal wife.
Su Xuening smiled and patted his head: "It's good that you don't like him. Stay away from him in the future."
"Sister, stay away from him too." Su Xuening didn't think much of it. He was sure he wouldn't be fooled by that person. He was more worried about his sister being deceived by him.
Looking at her well-behaved younger brother, Su Xuening's heart ached again, and she unconsciously tightened her grip on his hand.
In this life, she would never let that person hurt Yun'an, no matter what.
The siblings returned to the Yong'an Marquis's residence and stood together in front of the ruins of Lingxiao Pavilion.
Seeing his house reduced to ashes, Su Yun'an's eyes instantly reddened: "The Lingyun Pavilion, which my father personally designed for me, is gone just like that."
Su Xuening hugged Su Yun'an tightly, feeling sorry for her: "Don't be sad, I'll rebuild it for you in the future."
Su Yun'an let her tears soak into her clothes and said in a muffled voice, "Sister, will Lord Cen uphold justice for us?"
Su Xuening narrowed her eyes and said helplessly in a low voice, "Being in officialdom, I'm afraid he has his own constraints."
From Cen Jinfeng's initial determination to investigate thoroughly to his later commitment to do his best, he had already made his choice.
Everyone says that Zhong is stupid, even Su Renyi probably thinks so, judging from his ugly expression.
But Zhong's goal was achieved: she used A-Quan's death to intimidate Cen Jinfeng, and even the siblings.
With the Zhong family holding absolute power in the Yong'an Marquis's mansion and having such a powerful maternal family as the Minister's mansion as a backing, even if Cen Jinfeng knew that she was the mastermind behind it all, he probably wouldn't dare to really trace it back to her.
Su Yun'an understood Su Xuening's meaning, and frowned, feeling wronged, "So he won't help us catch the bad guys, then why should we report it to the police?"
Su Xuening gently rubbed Su Yun'an's head: "We went to report the case so that the people of Kyoto could see our injuries, know our grievances, and understand the harm those evil people inflicted on us."
In her past life, it was her siblings and their mother who were despised; in this life, she will make them taste the same bitterness of being despised by all.
Su Xuening's eyes shimmered slightly, as if she had come up with an idea: "As for revenge, an eye for an eye is enough!"
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