Chen Yu remained silent, opened the note, and saw that the evidence was a jade bead, and where the jade bead was hidden.
Prince Jing suddenly realized: The jade bead? It must be the jade bead under the Sixth Prince's jade pendant. Three days ago, he went to Prince Lu's residence to inquire about Grand Tutor Zhang's acceptance of bribes. The Sixth Prince's jade pendant was missing a jade bead. Perhaps the Sixth Prince felt guilty and secretly took off the pendant and stuffed it into his sleeve.
Seeing that King Jing was in a daze, Chen Yu rolled her eyes and began to analyze the case:
"It must have been the Sixth Prince who sent villains to defile Baozhu, hoping to force her to commit suicide. Unfortunately, Baozhu was thinking of marrying the Ancient Locust King and did not take her own life."
Upon seeing Baozhu return to the Wang family, the Sixth Prince killed her. Unexpectedly, Wang Baozhu pulled off the Sixth Prince's jade bead and swallowed it to leave evidence.
If Baozhu's birth mother hadn't cremated her, the evidence would likely never have seen the light of day again.
Prince Jing agreed with Shen Yu's deduction, but remained silent with a grim face. If the Sixth Prince knew that Shen Yu possessed evidence, he would surely eliminate her in secret.
In the case of Zhang Manguan, Shen Yu's visit to Yan Wang's residence had already aroused Yan Wang's suspicion.
To protect Chenyu, Prince Jing tried to crumple the note. However, Chenyu snatched it back and carefully tucked it into her sleeve.
Feeling guilty, King Jing hurriedly left the hall and went into the kitchen...
"Young lady, where are you going?"
Upon hearing Cuiwei's voice, King Jing hurriedly ran out of the kitchen and saw Chenyu about to leave.
He hurriedly chased after her and stopped Chen Yu. "I'm going to Sixth Sister's house to retrieve the evidence. Rong Momo is brewing some tea to relieve the summer heat. Have some and then go directly to Dali Temple to meet me."
At this moment, Rong Momo came over with two bowls of tea. "This tea isn't too hot. Please finish it before you go out, young lady."
King Jing was the first to pick up a bowl and drink it all in one gulp.
Shen Yu picked up the soup bowl, but saw Yan Wang rush in. Before he could even stop, he said urgently, "Quickly come with me to the south of the city to examine the body. Wang Baozhu's birth mother hanged herself."
The three rode their horses to a small courtyard in the south of the city. The people at the gate dispersed, their discussions continuing:
"Sixth Sister's body has already been taken away by the Wang family."
"Alas! Sixth Sister's life is so miserable! Her daughter was murdered, and she went with her."
"But you can't hang yourself."
The body was taken away by the Wang family?
The three hurried to the Prince's Mansion, where they encountered Gu Erlang riding a horse at full speed.
"Hoo..."
Gu Erlang stopped ahead of time and blocked the three of them. "Yan Wang, Seventh Sister, you two are in charge of Wang Baozhu's case. Lord Gu asks you to go to the yamen as soon as possible. The Wang family has accused the steward of the Lu Prince's Mansion of killing Sixth Sister."
What?
Shen Yu stared in disbelief, her mouth agape. Why would Steward Liao kill Sixth Sister? Could it be that he was working for the Sixth Prince? How did the Wang family know that Steward Liao had killed Sixth Sister?
She entered the government office with many questions in her mind and stood at the entrance of the main hall to observe.
Several bailiffs stood on either side, while Wang Baochai stood in the center of the hall, sobbing, "Master Gu, I suspect that Steward Liao has long coveted Baozhu. Last year, he mentioned to the Sixth Prince that he wanted to marry Baozhu, but the Sixth Prince refused. He must have held a grudge, and seeing that Baozhu was about to marry the Prince of Guhuai, he conspired with villains to defile her. The reason he killed Sixth Sister today must be to steal the evidence."
"What evidence is it?"
"It's a bead, the bead on Steward Liao's jade pendant."
This is utterly a lie. Chen Yu stormed into the hall, stood beside Master Gu, glared at Wang Baochai, and asked sharply, "How could Princess Lu know about these things?"
Wang Baochai was taken aback for a moment, then replied to Chen Yu:
"Most of these are just my speculations, Miss Chenyu, please listen to me. The day before yesterday, I noticed that Steward Liao's jade pendant was missing a bead, so I asked him about it. He said that he might have dropped it outside while he was out shopping."
Just last night, my family sent the old steward to Sixth Sister with money for Baozhu's burial. Unexpectedly, Sixth Sister gave the old steward a bead, saying it was found on Baozhu's body. Upon hearing this, I rushed back to my family home this morning, only to discover that the bead was indeed from Steward Liao's jade pendant.
Therefore, I conclude that it was Steward Liao who killed Baozhu.
I rushed back to the Prince of Lu's residence and ordered the arrest of Steward Liao. However, Steward Liao escaped, and shortly after, news arrived that Sixth Sister had committed suicide. The coroner's examination just now confirmed that Sixth Sister had been strangled and hanged from a beam. It must have been Steward Liao who accidentally killed her while trying to retrieve the evidence, unaware that Sixth Sister had already given the evidence to the old steward.”
"Oh!"
Before Wang Baochai could finish speaking, Chen Yu couldn't help but sneer, "Present the evidence."
The yamen runners carried a wooden tray and presented the jade beads to Master Gu. Chen Yu then took the tray directly to the back hall.
Prince Jing had been standing in the back hall. When he saw Chen Yu approaching, he hurriedly went to greet her, took the wooden tray and placed it on the table. He then picked up two pairs of gloves and handed one pair to Chen Yu, saying, "These were sent by the yamen runners. Wear them."
Shen Yu held the two pairs of gloves in her hands, examining them carefully. She chose the pair she thought was clean, put them on, and then picked up the jade bead, smelled it, and murmured, "What kind of incense does the Sixth Prince usually like?"
"The scent of jasmine," Prince Jing blurted out, knowing that the Sixth Prince and Wang Baochai both loved the fragrance of jasmine, as he frequently visited the Prince of Lu's residence.
He put on his gloves, picked up the jade bead and examined it closely, then asked in surprise, "How come this jade bead is the same as the Sixth Prince's jade bead? Do you have Steward Liao's jade pendant?"
"Butler Liao has run away."
"My lord, something terrible has happened! Lord Liao has committed suicide. We chased Steward Liao to the west gate, and he slit his throat. We've brought his body back."
Upon hearing the constable's report, Chen Yu and Prince Jing hurriedly ran to the courtyard.
Shen Yu rushed toward the body of Steward Liao, with Prince Jing following closely behind. Seeing that she wanted to lift the white sheet, Prince Jing stopped her and whispered, "Shen Yu, don't worry about it. Let the coroner examine the body."
“Thank you for your kindness, Prince Jing. Even if the Emperor did not order me to investigate the case, I still want to know the truth, just to give an explanation to the deceased Baozhu and to the people of the capital.”
Chen Yu's stubbornness has kicked in again!
Prince Jing was speechless, only blaming himself for not being able to get Chen Yu to drink the poison when Prince Yan went to see them earlier. If Chen Yu were poisoned and bedridden, the investigation could be abandoned, and the princes wouldn't be offended. Now, he only hoped that the powder in the glove would take effect as soon as possible.
At this moment, Master Gu, Prince Yan, Wang Baochai, and a group of yamen runners gathered around.
When Shen Yu looked around and couldn't find the historian, he ordered the yamen runners to bring over tables and chairs and invite the historian over.
She lifted a corner of the white cloth, revealing Butler Liao's feet and legs, until her waist was exposed. She slowly lowered the white cloth, untied the jade pendant from Butler Liao's waist, and indeed, a jade bead had fallen off.
She placed the jade pendant on a spotless handkerchief, handed it to Prince Jing, and asked in a low voice, "Is it the same?"
Prince Jing understood what Chen Yu meant, and upon closer inspection, he found that Steward Liao's jade pendant was exactly the same as the Sixth Prince's jade pendant.
He nodded to Chen Yu, but a look of worry appeared between his brows. The jade pendant of Steward Liao was exactly the same as that of the Sixth Prince. How could they possibly tell who the real culprit was?
Chen Yu Bu Chou took the jade pendant, walked to Wang Baochai, and handed it to her. "Princess Lu, please verify, is this Steward Liao's jade pendant? What is its origin?"
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