The following day, the Fourth Prince did not stay overnight in the South Courtyard, but returned to the front courtyard. He specifically asked the Crown Prince for a few days' leave, intending to spend some time at the mansion to reorganize, and then began preparations for his trip to Yangzhou.
Lanqin woke up early in the morning and heard from Cui Niang that Doctor Liang had not returned to his room until very late last night. She was also thinking about that matter, so she asked Cui Niang to let Doctor Liang in for questioning.
"Dr. Liang, before you report back to Fourth Master, tell me first, what have you found with that skeleton?" Lanqin asked.
"Reporting to Consort Liang, these skeletons should belong to a woman who was no more than eighteen years old. She was 1.58 meters tall, and her time of death should be less than a year ago, less than two years ago. I examined her hand bones and found some minor deformities. Therefore, I guess she was a maid who did manual labor for a long time. There were no signs of poisoning, and the clothes she wore were probably made of Shu satin, green in color. That's all I can find out," said Doctor Liang.
Lanqin stirred slightly. A year ago? That seemed to be the time when Granny Li's affair was exposed. No one seemed to have died then, only Yan Yu!! And Yan Yu's height should be over 1.6 meters!
"Alright, go and report back to the master like this," Lanqin said to Doctor Liang.
After Liang Youcai left, Cui Niang immediately ordered Si Hua, who was waiting outside, to bring in Lan Qin's breakfast.
As Cui Niang helped prepare breakfast, she said, "My lady, don't worry about anything right now. Just focus on your pregnancy, avoid trouble, and stay out of the way. Giving birth to the baby safely is the most important thing."
Lanqin glanced at her and said, "But I want to stop, but the wind won't let me. Sister Geng said the other day that she noticed something strange about Wu's maid Yunxiang. She said she saw her contacting Lingxiu from Fujin's side behind Wu's back."
Cui Niang paused for a moment, then said, "Does Your Highness mean that Consort Wu's expression was a bit strange that day, as if she was slightly delirious? Could it be that Yunxiang is the Fujin's person?"
Lanqin picked up her chopsticks, shook her head, and said, "We've only discovered this much so far. But thankfully, in a few days I'll take you all back to the villa. Even if she wanted to do something, she couldn't reach that far, could she?"
Meanwhile, after Fourth Master heard Doctor Liang's report, Wu Youcai was also present. In comparison, the clues provided by Doctor Liang were much more certain than his conclusion that it was only a young female corpse.
"I understand. You may all leave. This matter must not be told to anyone else, understand?" Fourth Master sat in the main seat of his hall, being served breakfast by Su Peisheng.
Doctor Liang and Doctor Wu both withdrew, and Fourth Master then instructed Su Peisheng to summon the head nanny for questioning. He wanted to get to the bottom of the matter of the female corpse before he left, otherwise he would not be able to leave in peace.
Doctor Liang and Doctor Wu walked out of the front yard one after the other, heading in completely different directions. However, Doctor Wu called out to Doctor Liang's back, "Brother Liang, may I have a word with you in private?"
Doctor Liang was Lanqin's personal physician, and he was not shown to anyone else in the mansion, nor was he subject to the control of anyone else. He had no good feelings towards Doctor Wu, who was full of hostility towards him as soon as he saw him.
However, he still had basic manners. When Dr. Wu called out to him, he had no choice but to stop and wait for what he was going to say next.
"Brother Liang, are you studying Western medicine?" Dr. Wu asked.
"Yes, is there anything else?" Doctor Liang could tell from Wu Youcai's expression that he shared the same attitude as those old Chinese medicine practitioners who regarded Western medicine as heresy.
"Hehe, Doctor Liang, you'd better be careful. The Emperor has now banned Western churches, prohibited Westerners from proselytizing, and also forbade the Chinese from learning Western medicine from those red-haired devils. You, as the personal physician of the concubine, are actually using Western medicine," Doctor Wu said.
"Thank you for your concern, Dr. Wu. I, Liang, am just a country bumpkin, specializing in treating animals. I am only able to keep you around to offer my humble assistance because of the concubine's kindness. I will be returning to the other residence with the concubine in a few days. Dr. Wu, please continue to treat the masters in this household. Farewell!" Dr. Liang did not want to say another word to Wu Youcai. He was originally devoted to Western medicine, unlike Wu Youcai, whose motivation for studying medicine differed. The former sought to heal the sick and save lives, while the latter was indeed pursuing fame and fortune.
Watching Doctor Liang's departing figure, Wu Youcai, standing under the scorching sun, shot a cold glare into his eyes, then turned and headed towards the main courtyard.
"What did you say? The concubine is going back to her separate residence in a few days?" The concubine was having breakfast when she saw Wu Youcai come to pay his respects so early in the morning, and she knew something was up. She was just about to ask him to talk about the remains, but she didn't expect him to come by himself.
"Yes, this servant heard it from Mr. Liang, who serves the concubine. And this Mr. Liang is quite an eccentric who studied Western medicine. Last night, this servant saw him stroking that skeleton so closely, as if he wasn't afraid at all," Wu Youcai said cautiously, glancing at the concubine. He knew that Doctor Liang couldn't replace him, but he was still uncomfortable that he could provide so many clues, causing him to lose face in front of the Fourth Prince.
"Oh? Western medicine?" The princess asked, a glint of interest in her eyes.
"He said it was the skeleton of a woman who was no more than eighteen years old, about 1.58 meters tall, with slight deformities in her fingers. She was a woman who did heavy manual labor and was wearing women's clothes before she died." Wu Youcai had already forgotten Fourth Master's instructions.
Upon hearing this, Lingxiu trembled slightly, her heart churning with astonishment. Had she not been holding back, she probably would have cried out right then and there.
When Que'er died, she was indeed wearing green clothes. And she was definitely about 1.58 meters tall!
"A cult! He talks as if he's seen the woman's corpse in life. What disgusting heresy!" the Fujin said disdainfully.
"Your Majesty, His Majesty has explicitly banned Western cults, yet this Mr. Liang openly used Western medicine to examine the remains. This is blatant disregard for His Majesty's orders," Wu Youcai further instigated.
"Very well, Doctor Wu, I understand perfectly well. If you have nothing else to say, you may leave," the princess said.
"Yes, this servant takes his leave!" Seeing that the Fujin (wife of the princess) did not want to say anything more to him, Wu Youcai bowed and withdrew.
“My lady, what he just said has further confirmed my belief that the corpse was indeed Que’er. Que’er was wearing green that day,” Lingxiu said to the lady after Wu Youcai left.
"So what if it is her? You don't need to panic, we won't find anything. Even if we find out it's Que'er, it has nothing to do with us," the Fujin said coldly.
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