Chapter 205 Nan Jia is dismembered and goes insane!
Li Qingluo's face turned pale upon hearing this.
Limbs! Six pieces!
Didn't Granny Deng say last night that the body and head would be separated?
She thought only her head had been severed, so how come there were six pieces of limbs remaining?
Although Li Qingluo's expression was not good, she was not frightened and even wanted to go forward to see for herself.
Prince Su extended his sword hilt to stop her: "Have you thought this through?"
Granny Deng also advised her from behind, "Miss, most people would not be able to bear it if they had never seen such a scene before."
“If you don’t go and see for yourself… and then you can’t help but show something, it will be difficult for His Highness.”
Everyone knows that although Prince Su, as the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, is ruthless and cruel in his methods of judging cases, he has never made a mistake.
Moreover, he was incorruptible and impartial, showing no favor to anyone in the entire Liang Dynasty, and no one had ever escaped from his long sword.
This is probably the first time he has brought a woman to a crime scene.
This was also the first time he had brought unrelated people to a crime scene.
That's why the people from the Pei family were so surprised.
Fortunately, Li Qingluo had covered her face today; otherwise, Pei Si Niang and Duke Pei would have been in the crowd. They had seen Li Qingluo at the palace banquet last night and would have recognized her identity long ago.
Especially Pei Si Niang, who recognized Li Qingluo at the palace banquet last night as the person who had come to their Pei State Duke's Mansion with Princess Nanping last time, and naturally informed the Pei family of this matter after returning home.
After learning the truth, many people in the Duke Pei's mansion were furious!
The Pei family of the General's Mansion was the one whom the old Duke had forbade everyone in the Pei family to mention again!
Furthermore, the Pei family is forbidden from ever stepping into the Pei State Duke's Mansion again, and all descendants of the Pei State Duke's Mansion are forbidden from having any contact or interaction with their descendants.
The Duke of Pei's family hated the Pei family of the General's family to the core.
So when they learned that the people from her General's Mansion dared to come to their Duke Pei's Mansion so openly and swaggeringly, the people from Duke Pei's Mansion felt: Isn't this blatant disrespect and arrogance?
If they knew that Li Qingluo would dare to come again without any scruples, they would probably not even care about Prince Su and would come to kick her out.
Li Qingluo was naturally unaware that the Pei family hated her grandmother's descendants so much; she simply didn't want to miss the last chance to see Nan Jia.
She pushed away Granny Deng, her face pale, and bowed to Prince Su: "Your Highness, if I have disgraced you or hindered your business, please leave this place on your own."
Before she could even ask him for anything, he brought her to the Duke of Pei's mansion.
How could she not know the extraordinary kindness that Prince Su had shown her?
Although she didn't know when he found out, he knew about his relationship with Nan Jia, so he was willing to give her face. Naturally, she wouldn't force herself to embarrass him.
Duan Rongshi lowered the hilt of his sword.
"When have I ever thought you were shameful? As long as you don't regret it, it's nothing more than ordinary things."
After saying that, he took the lead and walked forward.
The Pei family had long been forbidden from entering the courtyard.
Although the bolder members of the Pei family gathered at the courtyard gate to watch the commotion, they were just watching.
Li Qinglu showed no trace of grief on their faces, as if Nan Jia's death was nothing more than the death of an ordinary servant girl, causing no ripples in the entire Pei household.
But after a night of heavy snow, many traces had disappeared.
Li Qingluo saw a severed arm stuck upright in a snowdrift under a persimmon tree.
That slender, delicate hand had changed color, clenched into a fist in a gesture of resentment and humiliation, as if it wanted to make one last desperate strike and struggle to survive.
A yellow silk veil still hung on her arm, fluttering in the wind and snow.
Under the eaves on the other side, there was a severed leg...
In the main room is Nan Jia's main torso, with another leg and arm already recovered beside it.
In the withered grass, Aunt Guan sat on the ground, holding a head and singing a lullaby to lull it to sleep.
"Little baby...hey...come out and play with the lights...I don't want your red...I don't want your green...I just want your little candle..."
Li Qingluo turned around and leaned against the wall, her face pale, trying to suppress the urge to vomit. A wave of excruciating pain surged through her heart.
Que'er, who was also wearing a veil, helped Li Qingluo up: "Miss, are you alright?"
Sparrow herself wasn't much better.
Only the worldly-wise Granny Deng didn't feel anything.
Li Qinglu murmured, "This is Nanjia..."
How could she feel nauseous?
Li Qingluo wiped away her tears, her heart aching as if pierced by needles. "I'm fine. Que'er, go and see what's wrong with Aunt Guan?"
Sha Lei came over and said, "Your Highness, this is Aunt Guan, the birth mother of the Twelfth Miss. Since the Twelfth Miss's remains were discovered last night, she has picked up this head and has never let go of it."
A maidservant standing nearby held an umbrella and kept pulling the fur cloak at Aunt Guan's body, her voice already hoarse from crying.
"Auntie, please release the young lady... The officials from the Dali Temple have arrived. With them here, the young lady's injustice will surely be redressed..."
"You are holding this girl like this, and she is restless... Even in death... she will not be able to rest in peace..."
Pei Shierniang's severed head had a peaceful expression on her face, showing no sign of pain, as if she were simply asleep.
Not only that, there seemed to be a faint smile on his face...
Upon seeing this scene, Li Qingluo also felt that it was somewhat eerie and unusual.
Nan Jia's hands were clearly in a struggling posture.
Why is his expression so calm?
Was she murdered in her sleep?
But how did it end up in this courtyard?
After meeting him, Prince Su asked in a cold voice, "Where is Pei Yuan, the Vice Minister of Works, now?"
The clerk stepped forward and said, "Minister Pei went mad last night. After reporting the case to the Dali Temple, he returned still shouting that he wanted to kill everyone in the Pei family to accompany the Twelfth Miss in death. He is still being held captive in the ancestral hall by the Pei family."
Prince Su: "Bring him here! Also, bring Duke Pei, all the male members of the Pei family, and their stewards here!"
The constable asked, "Your Highness, is this...this old Duke...may we bring him along?"
Granny Deng whispered to Li Qingluo, "Originally, before the old Duke died, the current Duke could not inherit the title of Duke. However, three years ago, before the old Duke became more and more confused, he heard that he personally went to the palace to see His Majesty and begged His Majesty to grant a title to his eldest son first."
"This servant only heard that he said he would not live for more than a few months, and His Majesty made an exception for the Pei family because of their past contributions."
"But now another three years have passed..."
"This old servant has also heard rumors circulating that the old Duke ate the flesh and blood of young women in order to prolong his life..."
Li Qingluo: "Where did you hear about this? Even Grandmother doesn't know?"
Granny Deng sighed, "This old servant and Granny Zhang found out about it, how could I dare to mention it to the old lady?"
Therefore, if her grandmother wanted to know about her eldest brother's recent situation, she could simply ask and she would know everything.
But she was afraid to know, so she never asked, deceiving herself.
Upon receiving the order, the officers of the Dali Temple naturally acted swiftly.
Soon, Pei Nanjia's father, Pei Yuan, the Vice Minister of Works, was brought over.
His hair turned white overnight; though he was only in his forties, he now looked like a very old man.
When he saw that Guan was still holding his daughter's head, he immediately went mad again.
"ah--!!"
Pei Yuan ran over and hugged Guan Shi tightly: "This is going to kill us—it's going to kill both of us—Jia'er, Jia'er—!!"
Guan seemed to have finally regained some of her senses, and she nestled in Pei Yuan's arms, sobbing and crying.
"Master, is it the two of us who caused this disaster? It's the two of us who caused this disaster—"
Li Qingluo watched the couple in this state, and her heart felt as if it were being torn apart.
How cruel is God?
What did Nan Jia do to deserve such torture and death?
Li Qinglu clenched her fists and turned to look at all the other male members of the Pei family who had been brought with her.
Since there wasn't enough room in the courtyard, everyone waited outside.
The Duke and the other gentlemen were naturally all dissatisfied.
Some were shouting and asking why they were all brought here, asking what it meant.
Is the Dali Temple questioning whether the masters of the Pei family were the ones who committed the murders?
Sha Lei stepped forward, drew his sword, and pressed it against the old man's neck, his murderous aura palpable: "Whether I killed anyone or not, you all know the answer."
"This is just a routine questioning today. Do you all want to be taken back to the Dali Temple prison to sit for a while before you'll behave?"
"Our Prince is already being polite to you all today out of respect for the Duke of Pei's family. Anyone who dares to cause trouble again will have to resort to the methods that the Dali Temple has always used!"
Who hasn't heard of the infamous King Su, the Yama, the God of Slaughter?
Even the gentlemen of the Duke of Pei's mansion were all sullen and dejected today.
But Prince Su was not in a hurry to interrogate them.
It simply left all the masters, young masters, stewards, and servants standing in the wind and snow.
He then stepped forward to Pei Yuan and said, in a cold and perfunctory manner, "Minister Pei, all that's missing is this head."
Pei Nanjia's body had been pieced together, except for her head, which was still in her mother's arms.
Despite his overwhelming grief, Vice Minister Pei remained somewhat lucid.
He forcibly took his daughter's head and placed it on top of Pei Nanjia's corpse, restoring her to her whole state.
Dr. Du also came along today.
He had been working on detoxifying Nan Jia for days and nights, and finally managed to find a way to cure the poison in Nan Jia's body on his own. But then he was shocked to hear such bad news. How could he not be angry?
So at this moment, Doctor Du and the coroner began to examine the body together.
Dozens of people were gathered around the dilapidated courtyard.
Without Duan Rongshi's orders, they could only stand there quietly.
In the stillness, one can hear the soft rustling of falling snow.
Only the coroner dares to busy himself with all the work...
The men of the Pei family outside the courtyard, including Duke Pei, were all furious.
But the Duke of Pei is now in a state of decline and incompetence, with no soldiers in his household and none of his younger generation pursuing martial arts.
If Prince Su were to give the order, the entire Duke Pei's mansion could be slaughtered in no time.
So even though they were all furious and their faces were ashen, they could only wait quietly.
Finally, Dr. Du and the coroner finished what they were doing.
Doctor Du personally stepped forward and reported, "Your Highness, the deceased is indeed the twelfth young lady of the Pei family."
"She was poisoned before her death, and if she hadn't been given an antidote in time, she would have been dead soon."
"But my subordinates also discovered another kind of Maitreya poison in his mouth..."
Duan Rongshi: "Maitreya's poison? What is this?"
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