burden
Madam Xiao had also witnessed the dangerous scene just now, and hurried over, clutching her chest: "You two sirs, please be careful, the edge of this pond is very slippery."
At this moment, Shen Wumei remembered to confront him and asked, "What are you doing standing by the pond?"
Zhu Qinghe explained, "I heard that the housekeeper drowned here last night. I wanted to see if there were any clues, but I wasn't paying attention to my footing. It was just a false alarm." She waved her hand with a natural smile, seemingly not intending to pursue the matter.
Madam Xiao breathed a sigh of relief and glared at Qingchen.
She can't even take care of the guests. What's the point of keeping such a useless and stupid girl? It would be better to sell her off as soon as possible and put your mind at ease.
Having learned enough about the case, and given the current situation at the Xiao residence, it was inconvenient to disturb them any further. After a few polite words, the two took their leave.
But Zhu Qinghe still felt that something was wrong, and she was absent-minded the whole way.
Seeing that she seemed distracted, Shen Wumei asked, "Were you frightened just now?"
Zhu Qinghe keenly sensed the concern and gentleness in his words, and was quite incredulous, teasingly saying, "Is it just my imagination? Why does Lord Shen seem unusually gentle today?"
“I never received this kind of treatment when I was still a fortune teller.”
Shen Wumei choked for a moment, her expression unusually lively: "Men and women are different, and things are different now than before."
"I'm fine," Zhu Qinghe said casually, moving on to the main topic. "Did Lord Shen get anything out of his conversation with Madam Xiao in the mourning hall?"
When the case was mentioned, Shen Wumei's expression disappeared, and his brows furrowed slightly. Zhu Qinghe knew in her heart that there must be something suspicious about his appearance.
As expected, Shen Wumei said, "Madam Xiao said there are suspicious points about the steward's death and hopes that the government can help her find the real murderer."
"Butler?" Zhu Qinghe pondered for a moment, subconsciously stroking a non-existent beard on her chin, and began to think seriously.
When they entered the mourning hall, Madam Xiao was so angry that the housekeeper was scolding the second young master that she even slapped him.
Logically speaking, a steward is just a steward. Even if he is highly respected and has been in the mansion for a long time, he is still just a servant who has gained the trust and favor of his master. Why would Madam Xiao make the precious second young master kneel before him? Isn't that too strange?
"You find it strange too, don't you?" Shen Wumei said. "It seems that Madam Xiao values the steward quite a bit."
"The coroner has been instructed to examine the butler's body, and we believe the results will be available soon."
"As for Xiao Yuanzhou, he did indeed die from poisoning. The poisonous peace talisman has been examined, and the poison did indeed come from there."
Zhu Qinghe then belatedly recalled the charges against her, and immediately began to feel a headache: "Young Master Xiao rarely goes out and doesn't even have any enemies. In that case, I, this conman, am really the most suspicious."
“That’s not necessarily true,” Shen Wumei disagreed. “After today’s investigation, the people in the Xiao family are acting strangely and their relationships are complicated. There’s definitely more to it than meets the eye.”
Seeing his confidence, Zhu Qinghe's eyes lit up: "So, Lord Shen has a solution."
Shen Wumei glanced at her: "What is exposed to the sunlight is mostly false. To know the truth behind it, you have to go deep into the dark place."
Zhu Qinghe clicked her tongue and shook her head: "It seems that Lord Shen has a method but is unwilling to tell me. However, it is alright, I can help Lord Shen with a divination."
Shen Wumei watched as she slightly closed her eyes, her fair and delicate face illuminated by the sunlight that occasionally shone through the carriage curtain. Her white men's robes gave her a somewhat dashing appearance, but the two mustaches on her lips were really awkward and looked out of place.
Zhu Qinghe pinched her fingers and muttered to herself. After a while, she suddenly opened her eyes and said in a serious tone, "My lord, the outcome of your actions tonight is uncertain. However, if you have the help of a benefactor, you will surely turn misfortune into good fortune and overcome difficulties."
Shen Wumei: "...Where is that noble person?"
Zhu Qinghe smiled and looked at him: "Far away, yet right before my eyes."
He knew it.
Shen Wumei also started to feel a headache coming on: "Do you know what I'm going to do?"
Zhu Qinghe perked up: "Of course, sir, don't underestimate me. You just want to sneak in at night..."
The rest of her words were automatically silenced by Shen Wumei's intimidating gaze. Zhu Qinghe said ingratiatingly, "I can also help with this matter. Please don't forget me, Lord Shen."
"Besides, this case is also related to me. For the sake of my innocence, I have to go with Lord Shen."
Zhu Qinghe could rattle off eight hundred reasons for Shen Wumei. Shen Wumei helplessly pressed his temples, wondering how he had gotten himself into such trouble.
It was midnight at the Xiao residence.
The last patrol ended, the guard chief looked around, waved his hand, and the guards scattered like birds and beasts to go back to sleep. Not long after they left, two dark figures peeked out from under the eaves of the outer wall.
One of the taller, darker figures made a gesture, then leaped into the courtyard with the agility of a swallow, while the other figure remained perched on the wall, struggling to move its arms.
He whispered in a breathy voice, "My lord, I... I think I'm stuck."
Shen Wumei, who had already fallen into the courtyard: "..."
Where is the benefactor she promised? She's clearly just a burden. He really believed her lies.
After rescuing Zhu Qinghe, the burden on his family, Shen Wumei solemnly formulated the necessary rules for this nighttime activity.
First, Zhu Qinghe is not allowed to speak carelessly.
Second, Zhu Qinghe can only stay within three steps of Shen Wumei and is not allowed to leave at will.
Third, I haven't thought of it yet; I'll think about it later.
Zhu Qinghe knew she was in the wrong and nodded repeatedly. She knew that it was already against the rules for Shen Wumei to bring her here, although based on her observations over the past few days, Shen Wumei wasn't exactly a rule-abiding person either.
However, none of that is the main point. The main point is that she must behave herself on this trip and not cause any trouble for Lord Shen.
After reaching an agreement, the two quietly made their way to the back window of the mourning hall.
Zhu Qinghe reached out to quietly push open the back window, but Shen Wumei pulled her to the side. She looked over in confusion, and Shen Wumei's eyes, visible through the black mask, gestured inside. Zhu Qinghe immediately understood that there was someone inside.
But at this point, who would still be guarding the mourning hall? Could it be the murderer? Zhu Qinghe thought of this possibility and instantly perked up. She held her breath, bent over, and leaned close to the window, carefully listening to the sounds inside.
It was very quiet inside, not a single light was on, and it looked pitch black from the outside. Only by listening carefully could one faintly hear whispers coming from inside.
The voices were too soft, and they were too far apart, so Zhu Qinghe couldn't hear what the people inside were saying at all. She could only vaguely make out that the speaker was a woman.
It's so late, who could it be?
As the two were listening, they suddenly heard a soft scream from inside, followed by the sound of a copper basin being thrown to the ground. It seemed someone had approached the back window, and a clear, frightened female voice came from inside: "Who are you? What do you want?"
Upon hearing the voice, Zhu Qinghe and Shen Wumei exchanged a glance; it was actually Qingchen.
What was she, a mere maid, doing in the mourning hall in the middle of the night? And now it seems there's a second person inside.
Zhu Qinghe looked at Shen Wumei nervously. He gave her a "wait and see" look, so she could only continue to listen to the development of the situation inside the room.
Although Qingchen was frightened, she forced herself to remain calm, staring intently at the figure not far away. The man was burly, and if he was determined, she would surely not escape today. In this life-or-death situation, her mind became surprisingly clear.
She raised her voice and asked, "You were sent by the Madam, weren't you? She finally couldn't resist making a move against me."
The man was indeed sent by Madam Xiao. Seeing that Qingchen had revealed his identity, he was not intimidated and said in a rough voice, "Since you already know, don't make any more futile struggles."
"I'll be quicker, so you won't feel too much pain."
Qingchen shouted, "Don't come any closer! I know Madam's secret. If I die, this secret will be known to the whole world. Do you think you'll have a good ending then?"
The man hesitated upon hearing this. Qingchen saw him pause slightly, then hurriedly ran a few steps, pushed open the back window, and was about to jump out.
She bumped right into Zhu Qinghe, her scream caught in her throat before Zhu Qinghe swiftly covered it. The person behind her, regaining their senses, casually threw a poisoned dart, but Chen Wumei's dagger flew out just in time, deflecting the dart and piercing straight back between the man's eyebrows.
The man never dreamed that he would be killed by his own poisoned dart. He lay on the ground with his eyes wide open, lifeless.
This commotion naturally alerted the guards inside the manor. From afar came the sound of a large group of people rushing over. Shen Wumei sheathed her dagger, turned around, and ordered, "Let's go quickly."
Taking advantage of the fact that the entire Xiao family's attention was focused on the mourning hall, the group took a detour and climbed over the back wall they had come from.
By the time the guards saw the unfortunate assassin lying dead in the mourning hall, the three of them had already left the Xiao residence.
It was too late, so Zhu Qinghe had no choice but to take them to a nearby branch of Sai Banxian.
At this moment, Zhu Qinghe realized that getting the land deed back was a really good decision; it was truly useful in a critical moment.
The old man, rubbing his eyes as he got up to pee, went to the outer room and saw several dark figures. He was so frightened that he forgot he needed to urinate and shouted, "Who are you?"
Zhu Qinghe pulled down her face mask and walked over: "Uncle Mu, it's me."
Uncle Mu recognized Zhu Qinghe and breathed a sigh of relief. Then he looked at them and asked in confusion, "Young Master, what are you doing so late at night? It's kind of scary."
Uncle Mu was an old man who came with Zhu Qinghe's mother as part of her dowry. After her mother passed away, Song Shi came into the family. In order to take over the household smoothly, she whispered in Zhu's ear every day. Before long, she found a pretext to drive all these people out of the Zhu mansion.
However, they remained loyal and never left the capital, keeping an eye on Zhu Qinghe's situation. This time, when she separated from the family and left the mansion, she brought all of them back to help her look after the shop.
In her eyes, the Zhu family was not her home, and the people in the Zhu family were not her relatives.
On the contrary, Uncle Mu and his group were her family.
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