Chapter 312 She was the first person to be dragged into the water
"Ma'am, we found the drunk."
Chu Ruohan's eyes lit up: "Where?"
"My people have him under control at the Zuixianlou in the south of the city."
Qin Fang whispered, "But the man was so drunk that he was unconscious. I can't ask him anything."
A decisive look flashed in Chu Ruohan's eyes: "Take me to see him."
Soon, Chu Ruohan arrived at a secluded courtyard in the south of the city in a carriage.
Qin Fang's men have brought the drunkard here.
When I pushed the door open, I saw an old man in tattered clothes slumped in a chair, his face flushed and snoring like thunder.
"Is it him?" Chu Ruohan asked with a frown.
Qin Fang nodded: "Exactly."
"He was drunk in the restaurant, shouting something about Princess Anyang's secrets, and the other guests could hear it clearly."
Chu Ruohan's face was solemn: "Sober him up."
A basin of cold water was poured over him, and the old man immediately woke up and looked around in confusion.
"Where... where is this?" the old man asked in a hoarse voice.
Chu Ruohan was about to start questioning when she saw the old man suddenly widen his eyes and look terrified, as if he recognized something.
"You... who are you? Why did you bring me here?" He struggled in panic.
"Don't be afraid, father-in-law. I just want to ask you a few questions."
Chu Ruohan tried to soften her voice, "Where did you hear those things about Princess Anyang that you said in the restaurant?"
When the old man heard this, he trembled all over, his face full of fear: "I... I don't know what you are talking about! I didn't say anything!"
"Don't try to quibble." Qin Fang said coldly, "So many people heard it."
"No, it wasn't me..." The old man suddenly started coughing violently. "Someone...someone gave me money...and asked me to..."
Before he could finish his words, the old man suddenly covered his chest, his face turned from red to blue, and he curled up in pain.
"Not good!" Qin Fang was shocked when he saw this, "He's been poisoned!"
Chu Ruohan quickly ordered someone to call a doctor, but the old man had already fallen to the ground in pain, with blood starting to flow from his mouth.
"Quick! Dig it out..."
Everyone tried to rescue him in a panic, but they saw the old man twitching in pain, his eyes wide open, blood gushing from his mouth, and he died in the blink of an eye.
The room was dead silent.
Chu Ruohan's face turned pale as she stared at the corpse on the ground.
All this happened so suddenly that she didn't even have time to ask who was behind it.
At this moment, she regretted that she should have brought Dr. Qian with her.
"Madam..." Qin Fang said solemnly, "I'm afraid this old man has been silenced."
Allen Chu bit her lip and said, "He must have been set up by someone. There might be a chronic poison in the wine."
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a sudden noise outside.
"The Jingzhao prefect has arrived!"
Chu Ruohan's heart sank. When she looked up, she saw a group of runners escorting a majestic middle-aged official in.
"Your humble servant Cheng Yuan, the prefect of Jingzhao Prefecture, pays homage to Madam Gu."
Cheng Yuan clasped his fists and saluted, but his eyes swept over the corpse on the ground inconspicuously.
Chu Ruohan managed to remain calm: "Why is Master Cheng here?"
Cheng Yuan looked embarrassed. "To be honest, I received a report that someone has kidnapped an old man and is torturing him."
"I was ordered to come and check, but I didn't expect..."
His eyes fell on the corpse on the ground, and his expression became more complicated.
Chu Ruohan understood something instantly, and her heart went cold.
This was a trap, someone deliberately lured her here.
He used someone else's knife to kill someone, and put the blame of the murder on her head.
"Lord Cheng is wise," Chu Ruohan suppressed the anger in her heart.
"This old man spread vicious rumors about Princess Anyang in the restaurant. I just wanted to find out the truth, but I didn't expect that he might have been poisoned and suddenly vomited blood and died."
Cheng Yuan seemed to have been prepared for this. He shook his head and said, "Madam, you are wrong."
"When this government received the report, the old man was still alive and well."
"Now he's dead in your yard. This... is hard to explain."
Chu Ruohan knew that the situation was not good, but she remained calm.
"Master Cheng, there must be a misunderstanding. I'm afraid there's something else behind this old man's death. I beg you to take a closer look."
Cheng Yuan looked embarrassed. "Since the person has died here, according to the law, I have no choice but to ask Madam to return to the yamen and cooperate with the investigation."
Chu Ruohan sighed inwardly, knowing that resistance at this moment was useless and would only make the situation more complicated.
"Okay, I'll go to the yamen with Master Cheng." She looked up, her eyes determined, "but I must send someone to notify my father first."
Cheng Yuan hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement: "Of course."
Chu Ruohan turned to Qin Fang and whispered, "Go tell my father immediately and tell him that the man is dead and I was taken to the Jingzhao government office. Also..."
She lowered her voice and said, "Send someone to find the Third Prince as soon as possible. He is the only one who can help me at this time."
Qin Fang nodded in acceptance, then turned and left in a hurry.
Chu Ruohan followed Cheng Yuan away. She knew that the conspiracy against Gu Junze had already begun.
And she was the first person to be dragged into the water.
At this moment, Gu Junze's team was galloping towards the capital.
Jingzhao Prefecture Government Office.
Chu Ruohan was taken into a small room specially used for temporary detention of prisoners, and the guard locked the door.
She thought she would be taken to court, but she was actually locked up.
"What's going on?" Chu Ruohan frowned and asked, "Shouldn't you ask questions first?"
The guard outside the door did not answer, but just stood there in silence.
Chu Ruohan looked around and was surprised to find that this cell was completely different from what she had imagined.
The floor was swept clean and even covered with a thin blanket.
In the corner stood a simple but clean bed, with a small wooden table and an embroidered cushion next to it.
What surprised her even more was that there were some exquisite snacks and a pot of warm tea on the table.
Just as she was wondering, a middle-aged man walked in and bowed to her respectfully.
"I am the warden here, my last name is Wang. Madam Gu, please rest assured that you will be well taken care of during this period."
Chu Ruohan narrowed her eyes: "What do you mean? You locked me up, but you treat me so politely?"
The head of the prison said in a low voice, "To be honest, Prince Su has already told us that Madam Gu is pregnant and asked us to take good care of her."
"Prince Su?" Chu Ruohan sneered, "He's really good at acting."
"Madam, please calm down. It's not good to hurt the fetus." Prisoner Wang handed her a cup of hot tea.
"Have some tea to warm yourself up first. A doctor will come to take your pulse shortly."
Chu Ruohan didn't take the tea, but looked at him warily: "What is your purpose in locking me up here?"
"I don't know this." Prisoner Wang said honestly.
"I'm just following orders. But don't worry, ma'am. This cell is specially prepared for you. It's clean and comfortable, and your food and daily needs will be well taken care of."
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