Chapter 36. Rong Feng slightly raised his chin...
Rong Feng slightly raised his chin and gestured to the minor official named Lu Anzhi.
Lu Anzhi, who was waiting to the side, received the instruction, took out paper and a charcoal pencil, held the pencil in one hand, hovered it above the paper, and looked up to ask, "Let's start with the fox lantern at the entrance of the Marquis's mansion. Young Master Meng, where did you and Young Master Xie get the fox lantern at the entrance of the mansion?"
After describing the vendor's location to Lu Anzhi, Meng Rui added, "Last night, when Ah Qiong and I parted ways at the entrance of the Marquis's residence, he was carrying that lantern."
Lu Anzhi quickly jotted down notes on the paper, then asked about every detail of the places the two had visited, before finally asking:
Did you encounter anyone special while you were out with Young Master Xie last night?
"No..." Meng Rui shook his head, but a figure suddenly flashed through his mind, and he hurriedly spoke before Lu Anzhi could put away his charcoal pencil:
"Last night, before Ah Qiong and I returned, we encountered a dirty little boy who claimed to have been kidnapped. We wanted to send him to the government office, but the boy wouldn't let go of Ah Qiong."
Just as the stalemate was at its peak, a burly man emerged from the crowd, grabbed the child, and tried to pull him away. The child clung tightly to Ah Qiong, and the guards from the Marquis's residence, worried that Ah Qiong might get hurt, stepped forward and subdued the burly man.
...
The guards and my servant escorted the two of them to the government office. Ah-Qiong then said she wanted to return home, so she got into my family's carriage and went back.
After speaking, Meng Rui turned to look at the faces of everyone present and asked curiously, "Where is that guard?"
A clear, cold, unfamiliar voice came from behind Lu Anzhi: "Not only that guard, but your servant is also still unconscious in the government office."
"What's going on?" Meng Rui looked up at his older brother, then at everyone in the room. No one showed any surprise on their faces; it seemed that he was the only one who didn't know about this.
Rong Feng, who was sitting in the chair, looked away, showing no intention of explaining things to him.
"Last night, Qiong'er did not return to the manor for a long time, so the Marquis's manor sent people to the Meng manor to inquire about the situation. After learning that the Meng family's carriage had dropped her off at the door before leaving, they sent people out to search for her, but they could not find her anywhere, so they went to the government office to report the case."
Unexpectedly, all those left behind in the government office were lying on the ground, their fates unknown. Among them were Sanqi and a servant from the Meng family. After examination, it was discovered that they had been struck by a spell that put them into a coma, but they had not yet woken up, and it was still unknown who was responsible.
Xie Rongjing rubbed his temples and described what had happened in detail.
Seeing the once spirited Rong Jing's face filled with annoyance and weariness, coupled with the word "magic" in his words, a sense of panic swept over Meng Rui's heart. He shrank back behind Meng Si, resting his head lightly on his elder brother's back. Only the familiar scent that reached his nose made his nerves relax for a moment, but his tone was still muffled: "If only I had waited a little longer at the entrance of the Marquis's mansion last night."
Meng Si turned to the side, placing one hand on her younger brother's listless head, and turned to ask Xie Rongjing about the two people he had omitted in his question:
"How are the child and the big man?"
Xie Rongjing half-closed his eyes and shook his head: "Among the unconscious people in the government office, I did not see the child and the big man that Rui'er mentioned."
"Perhaps it was the big man's accomplices who came and rescued the people. As for the child, they took him with them as well," Lu Anzhi, who had already put away his pen and paper, said, offering his speculation.
In the main hall, no one denied or confirmed the speculation. Rong Feng then spoke up:
"Take Young Master Meng and find someone to draw a portrait of the burly man." After giving these instructions, he bid farewell to Xie Zhuo.
"Thank you, sir. I shall take my leave now."
He had just gotten up from his seat when a series of chaotic footsteps suddenly sounded outside, causing him to pause in his steps.
"My lord."
The gatekeeper of the Marquis's mansion led a man dressed in plain clothes into the main hall: "This man found a brocade handkerchief in the alley next to the Marquis's mansion. I thought the pattern looked like the one the young master used, so I brought him in."
The doorman explained in a few words, then stepped aside, revealing the man behind him with his head down.
"This humble subject greets you esteemed gentlemen." Zeng Huimin lowered his head and noticed the fine clothes worn by the people inside the room. Without looking up at their faces, he knelt down to pay his respects.
Xie Zhuo did not make things difficult for Zeng Huimin, exempting him from formalities, and inquired about the important matter:
Did you bring the handkerchief you mentioned?
Zeng Huimin hurriedly took out a cloth and handed it to Wen Feng, who was standing next to him.
Xie Zhuo turned his head and whispered an instruction. Soon after, Sixi came to the main hall carrying a stack of neatly arranged handkerchiefs.
Upon seeing the handkerchief Zeng Huimin had taken out, Sixi affirmed, "Young Master does indeed have a handkerchief with this pattern. It was left in the courtyard by the Heir Apparent after he wiped Young Master's face."
Under everyone's watchful eyes, the handkerchiefs that Sixi brought were examined one by one.
While the people here were comparing the styles of the handkerchiefs, Xie Zhuo seized the opportunity to ask Zeng Huimin when and where he obtained the handkerchief.
After determining the location, Rong Feng assigned people to go into the alley to collect any remaining traces of spiritual energy.
When he was young, a piece of yellow paper appeared out of thin air in Rong Feng's hand. He glanced at it, then closed his hand, and the yellow paper vanished.
Just then, one of the handkerchiefs with the same stripe pattern was picked out and placed together with the handkerchief that Zeng Huimin had brought.
Lu Anzhi, who was helping Si Xi pick out handkerchiefs, asked, "Are you sure Young Master Xie only has one handkerchief like this?"
"Young Master has never liked to carry things with him. He usually brings back his handkerchiefs to the courtyard after he has used them. He only brought back one handkerchief with a scroll pattern around the edges."
"What about Young Master Xie's own handkerchief?" Lu Anzhi asked again, worried that Sixi might have misremembered.
Si Xi spoke earnestly: "Sir, you have also seen the handkerchiefs here. Most of the young master's handkerchiefs have ruyi patterns or persimmon calyx patterns. This is indeed the only handkerchief in the courtyard with scroll patterns around it."
“Then this handkerchief wasn’t lost by Young Master Xie…” Before Lu Anzhi could finish speaking, Rong Feng’s voice interrupted their conversation:
“Since the two handkerchiefs have the same pattern, they must have come from the same piece of cloth. You mentioned earlier that Young Master Xie’s handkerchief came from Young Master Xie, so it’s not hard to guess the owner of the other handkerchief. What do you say, Young Master Xie?”
As soon as she finished speaking, her icy eyes shot straight at Xie Rongjing.
Xie Rongjing, already anxious about Xie Baoqiong's whereabouts, rose from his seat with a displeased expression upon hearing this and met Rong Feng's gaze:
"What do you mean by that, Young Master Rong?"
Xie Zhuo had just finished asking Zeng Huimin his question when he had someone give him some money and send him out, and also sent someone to follow Zeng Huimin.
Turning around, I saw a tense atmosphere inside the room.
"As far as I know, Prince Xie is not Lord Xie's biological son..."
Xie Zhuo walked up to Xie Rongjing, blocking Rong Feng's sharp gaze: "Young Master Rong, be careful what you say."
Lu Anzhi, standing to the side, looked dazed and horrified, feeling as if he had heard something he shouldn't have.
But when he glanced sideways and saw that Meng Rui had the same expression, he breathed a sigh of relief, but not quite. He was still half-hearted because he saw his boss open his mouth again:
"Thank you, sir. I was merely laying out the possibilities."
"It's not uncommon for siblings to turn against each other for fame and fortune in the capital, especially since the Heir Apparent Xie and Young Master Xie aren't siblings." Rong Feng paused, then continued his attack: "Clearly, Young Master Xie is your biological son, or rather, you have a stronger bond with the one you raised."
Lu Anzhi froze. He had never heard Rong Feng say so much at once, but at this moment he wished that Rong Feng would be as taciturn as usual and not utter a single word.
Xie Zhuo met Rong Feng's gaze with a dark look in his eyes: "I know my child's character. There's no need for you, Rong Shaoshi, to trouble yourself with family matters. You've come here today to investigate my child's whereabouts, not to interfere in my family affairs."
Upon hearing this, Rong Feng turned his head to look at Xie Rongjing behind Xie Zhuo:
"Could you please explain, Young Master Xie, why the handkerchief ended up in the alley next to the Marquis's residence?"
Why did Junior Envoy Rong suddenly turn his attention to me?
Rong Feng leisurely sat back down in his chair:
“The alleyway was found to contain the same spiritual energy as the government office. It can be confirmed that the young master Xie lost his handkerchief at the alley entrance. The young master Xie’s handkerchief was also found there. Naturally, I have to try it out on the young master Xie.”
The oppressive air in the room began to circulate again.
"What did Young Master Rong discover?" Xie Zhuo asked.
“Hmm…” Rong Feng pondered for a moment, then deliberately changed the subject: “Testing whether Lord Xie treats everyone equally.”
Xie Zhuo could naturally tell that Rong Feng was deliberately changing the subject because he still had doubts about Xie Rongjing. He scoffed and said, "I thought Young Master Rong was going to say that I was biased towards my eldest son."
After their exchange, Xie Rongjing finally came to his senses and answered Rong Feng's question:
"I was just trying to recall when I last saw the handkerchief with the scroll pattern. The first handkerchief was taken away by Qiong'er a month ago... Thinking back, I haven't seen the second handkerchief with the same pattern for quite some time."
Meng Rui, who had been clinging to Meng Si, poked his head out and reminded her, "Didn't Rong Jing give Qi Gui his handkerchief on his birthday? It seems that after Young Master Qi came over that day, Rong Jing stuffed the handkerchief into Qi Gui's hand."
Xie Rongjing rested his thumb and forefinger on his chin and recalled, "It seems that the handkerchief with the scroll pattern was used that day."
After he finished speaking, his face turned ugly.
Aside from Meng Rui and Rong Feng and Lu Anzhi, who didn't know who Qi Gui was, the others' expressions weren't very good after thinking about it carefully.
Xie Zhuo was the first to ask Rong Feng, "Besides the missing persons report from the Marquis's residence last night, were there any other missing children?"
Lu Anzhi spoke up to answer for Rong Feng: "Only the young master of the Marquis's mansion."
The group breathed a sigh of relief, but Xie Rongjing felt a subtle unease. He summoned a servant and said, "Go to the Qi residence and send someone to ask if Qi..." Xie Rongjing's words suddenly stopped. He didn't know if the Qi residence had any other unknown children like Qi Gui, and naturally didn't know Qi Gui's birth order. "Just ask if Qi Gui returned to the residence last night, and whether he is at the residence now."
Rong Feng stopped him, "Let my men go. They can ride horses and get there faster." Although he didn't know Xie Rongjing's purpose, he had seen the sudden change in everyone's expressions, and coupled with Xie Zhuo's question, he had a bad feeling.
Lu Anzhi accepted the order and rushed to the Qi residence, but he was not the only one who returned; several other figures followed behind him.
Lu Anzhi returned to the Marquis's residence with a grim expression. "My lord, the third young master of the Qi family left the residence yesterday and has not returned since."
"Tsk."
Losing one item and not finding it yet, and now finding out another one is lost, would make anyone unhappy.
Especially Rong Feng and Lu Anzhi, whose burdens suddenly became heavier.
Rong Feng frowned: "What happened?" If the report had been filed in time, the investigation could have started sooner, and more clues might have been obtained. Now it has been brought up by another case, which is somewhat absurd.
Qi Yan, who was following behind Lu Anzhi, had already heard the whole story from the former. Now, he stepped into the main hall against the light and threw his figure in front of everyone: "Speak."
The servant knelt on the ground, looking panicked: "My lords, my young master left home early yesterday morning and has not returned since."
"Anything else?" Qi Yan urged from behind him.
Lu Anzhi quickly took out paper and charcoal pencil, and took the opportunity to divert the family's anxiety: "Young Master Qi, let me ask him."
Qi Yan stood aside with a bad expression, but his eyes were fixed on the figure on the ground.
When did Young Master Qi leave the manor yesterday?
"It was probably around 5:00 AM, uh, no, it should be around 7:00 AM."
Qi Yan's expression grew even more grim: "When exactly?"
"Young Master, Young Master, Young Master didn't say goodbye when he left the manor..." The servant answered tremblingly, noticing Qi Yan's gloomy face, his voice grew weaker and weaker, and finally he simply shut up.
Xie Rongjing, who was ultimately concerned about Xie Baoqiong, kindly advised Qi Yan, "Young Master Qi, why don't you sit down and listen first, so as not to let Qi Yan interrupt and get more clues from the servant?"
Qi Yan stared at Xie Rongjing for a while, then, considering that the latter had also lost a child, he swallowed his barbed words and sat down on the chair that was brought to him.
After the agitated family members were persuaded to leave, Lu Anzhi breathed a sigh of relief and continued to ask, "What brings Young Master Qi out here?"
The servant kneeling on the ground had beads of sweat on his forehead: "This... Young Master would naturally not tell us servants what he's doing." Having found a good excuse, the servant secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Lu Anzhi then asked a few more questions, which the servant either evaded or stammered.
Even when Lu Anzhi took out the brocade handkerchief, the servant's eyes were full of unfamiliarity.
Instead, Qi Yan, who was sitting down to the side, couldn't help but speak up: "I've seen this handkerchief before, Xiao Gui quite...likes it." Qi Yan paused before saying the last three words, and chose to replace "treasure" with "likes".
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Author's Note: Xiao Bao will appear in the next chapter.
Finally finished writing this list! Time to reward myself with a day off tomorrow [doge emoji]
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