Chapter 26 Interrogation
"It's unfair! Our tea is absolutely clean!"
When they heard that the kitchen was a suspect, the cooks and the helpers all cried out for innocence, saying that it was impossible for them to poison the tea.
"Yesterday, the county lady arrived, along with the other gentlemen and the people from the Eastern Palace. They were all distinguished guests, so naturally, everyone was extra cautious. Our kitchen specially boiled water and washed and scalded everything. Everyone was very careful, not wanting even the slightest bit of dirt, let alone poison."
Nie Hezheng led people to check the things in the kitchen, and sure enough, everything was cleaned very well.
"Has anyone suspicious entered your kitchen or touched the teapot?"
Cook Ayun said firmly, "No! The kitchen is so small, and with so many guests coming in yesterday, we were so busy that we couldn't even fit in, let alone outsiders!"
Everyone remembered that the county lady had said that when Daimao came in to fetch water, the cooks were indeed busy, so they let Daimao come in and carry the teapot.
If someone in the kitchen did it, how did they know which pot of water Daimao was going to fetch and then poison it?
"Isn't that strange..."
Why did a pot of tea that had no chance of being tampered with become poisonous when it was brought from the kitchen to the room in Jintang?
"Common sense suggests that the Aconitum could not have grown in the kettle on its own; it must have been poisoned. Since neither the person who boiled the water nor the one who delivered it could have been there, I believe someone must have sneaked into the deceased's room and poisoned him. It's impossible that the son of the richest family in Chang'an would have taken poison himself, right?" Nie Hezheng said, and then discussed with Cui Fufeng, "Master Cui, is there a possibility that if Jin Tang had an appointment with someone before the dispute last night, then this person quietly came to his door, and at the appointed time, Jin Tang would naturally open the door and invite him in without alerting anyone else."
Cui Fufeng thought for a moment and looked at Ling Tianshui.
Ling Tianshui said, "That's possible. After all, when I'm asleep, I can't press my ear against the wall to listen to the noise next door. If the other party didn't knock but Jin Tang quietly opened the door beforehand, perhaps I would have missed a subtle sound?"
If this is true, then the scope of this person is narrowed again.
The front yard where Qiandeng and the young men lived was semi-independent on the farm, with thick gates and high walls. After the water was delivered and the gates were closed last night, no other outsiders on the farm could enter.
So first of all, the other party must have been someone who lived in this yard last night, so he had the opportunity to attack in the middle of the night; secondly, he was someone familiar with Jin Tang and had no conflict with Jin Tang, so he would feel at ease to open the door and welcome the thief.
The only people in Zhuangzi who were familiar with Jintang were the other candidates. Among the candidates, apart from Ling Tianshui, Cui Fufeng, and Ji Linyou, Ming Jiu, and Meng Lanxi who had conflicts with Jintang, the only one left was—
Everyone's eyes turned to Xue Xiyang's room.
Just last night, he gloated to the county lady that among all the young men, he was the only one who had no conflicts with Jin Tang. Who would have known that today, this would become a possibility for him to commit the crime.
Of course, the others - Mingjiu, Ji Lin, You Menglanxi, are all suspects in Jintang's death.
Even though she left Chang'an City and was no longer in the backyard of the palace, her husband candidate still got into trouble, and the murderer was most likely the husband candidate.
Qian Deng was in a state of panic. He stared at Jin Tang's body covered in white cloth for a moment, then said to Aunt Xuanji, "Send someone to the Jin family first to inform Jin Baoyi and tell them..."
But how to say it?
Thinking of her previous interactions with the Jin family, and all that Jin Tang had done for her and the Changhua Palace, her throat tightened. After a long pause, she slowly said, "Just say that something's happened to Jin Tang. Have Jin Baoyi come to the farm... and take him back."
Jin Tang's death cast a depressing atmosphere over the entire Zhuangzi.
Seeing that it was already noon, the kitchen sent over lunch, but Qiandeng and the other men had no appetite and only ate a little.
After dinner, Wei Fengyang came to say goodbye to her. He was staying at the manor, so he naturally knew about the incident at the Jintang. He comforted her perfunctorily, then looked at Ji Linyou and asked, "Is the Recorder going to the ruined temple to clean up the bodies of the soldiers and bandits?"
Seeing how eager he was to share the credit, Ji Linyou felt annoyed, but it was inconvenient for him to refuse, so he could only ask Qiandeng: "County Master, what do you think..."
He was one of the main suspects in Jin Tang's death. Qian Deng was about to question them, so he naturally couldn't leave at this time.
After thinking for a moment, she turned to look at Ling Tianshui: "Ling Sijie has close ties with the Imperial Guards. Do you think he could go over and check on the situation on your behalf, and also confirm all matters with Wei Zuoshu?"
Ling Tianshui didn't expect that she would take on work for him, and looked at her with a slightly raised eyebrow.
Qiandeng silently mouthed "Su Yunzhong" to him.
They tracked down the soldiers and bandits and even came here just to confirm whether the person who died in the canal was Su Yunzhong.
On the day he was being escorted from Zhuangzi back to Chang'an City, did he fall off a cliff and die, or did he escape?
Now the other soldiers and bandits are dead, but Feng Yi and Lan Xiurong are still alive. The mystery of Su Yunzhong and the origin of the jade pendant back then all have to start from them, so naturally they have to be investigated thoroughly.
Ling Tianshui turned to Ji Linyou and asked casually, "Shall I go for you?"
"That's fine. The brothers are all familiar with my cousin. It doesn't matter if you go or I go." Ji Linyou agreed immediately and secretly winked at Ling Tianshui, asking him to suppress Wei Fengyang and not let their Royal Guards suffer any loss.
After Ling Tianshui left, Qiandeng and Cui Fufeng tacitly prepared the files and questioned the gentlemen.
Since we are unable to find out how the murderer broke into the secret room and committed the crime, we can only start with the suspects and look for their motives and opportunities to commit the crime.
Because of a dispute last night, Jin Tang lived in the last room in a row of rooms, while the first room after entering the courtyard, which was also the one farthest from Jin Tang, was occupied by Meng Lanxi.
Qiandeng, carrying her brush and ink, knocked lightly on the open door. Meng Lanxi, who was sitting by the window, gazing at the clouds above the treetops outside in a daze, turned her head and saw her coming. She immediately stood up to greet her, her expression somewhat downcast: "County Lady."
Qian Deng didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point, "Because of the Jintang incident, all of you who shared the same courtyard with him are now under suspicion, so Shaoqing Cui and I have to question you as usual."
Meng Lanxi nodded silently and whispered, "Don't worry, County Master. I would never dare to hide anything from you."
"How did you sleep last night after you returned to your room? Did you hear any noise?"
"No. Last night, I was so upset about Bai Bai's incident that I couldn't sleep. Perhaps the county lady doesn't know that after my mother passed away, I no longer have any relatives in this world. Although I'm staying in the backyard of the palace, I can only wait for the county lady to occasionally summon me and see you when she burns incense to help you sleep..."
His words were gentle and soft, but Cui Fufeng's hand that was recording subconsciously stopped and he looked up at Qiandeng.
Sure enough, her expression was fluctuating, and her drooping eyelashes concealed her eyes, but could not hide her gloomy mood.
He had lost his parents and loved ones, and so had she. He even lost his home, all alone in this world, even more helpless and destitute than she was.
He planted flowers and made perfume every day, leading a quiet life, but it was obvious that he did not want to have such a quiet life.
"Until I found Baibai, I healed its wounds and took good care of it. I wiped the dew off every leaf to prevent it from having diarrhea. I cleaned its body dirt every day, hoping that when the county lady felt like petting it, she wouldn't dislike it... But perhaps it was my wishful thinking that harmed Baibai, causing it to be hated by others, and even depriving me of the only way to get closer to the county lady..."
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