"What?" Fu Ling was shocked: "Crane's Beak Red?!"
"That's right," Yu Xing said. "When we were searching, we found this packet of pure Crane's Beak Red in the lining of a piece of clothing. This kind of top-grade Crane's Beak Red is not cheap, and it's not readily available on the market."
"Impossible!" Fu Ling immediately retorted: "Where did you find this in the Xue family?"
Yu Xing's eyes grew colder. He looked around at everyone, and finally, his gaze fell on Fu Rongxin.
Fu Rongxin felt as if her breathing had stopped.
Yu Xing said, "Based on the items in the house, as well as some signed books and paintings, Taoyao Pavilion must be Miss Fu's residence."
For a moment, Fu Rongxin's mind went blank... The sudden accusation made her whole body seem stiff, and she stood there motionless. There seemed to be something blocking her throat, making her unable to utter a sound.
"No... no!" Fu Ling said sternly, "I don't believe it. This is a frame-up! Rong Xin would never do such a thing!"
"Framed?"
Gao Qingyu, who had been silent until now, was now a little excited: "Master Yu, what I said now must be related to this matter, right?"
He said, "This woman has been having an affair with my brother for a long time. The letters left in the house are proof of this. She must have been shameless and seduced my brother, causing him, a man as infatuated as him, to fall in love with her and insist on taking her in. Since she despised being a concubine, she wanted to avoid being caught trying to seduce other men in the future, so she murdered my brother!"
Yu Xing glanced at him with disgust: "Just present the evidence, and shut up."
The thing about building a toilet in his mouth, who doesn't know what kind of person his brother is, why is he pretending to be a love-sick man now? He is already old and has no idea how many concubines he has taken in, but now he is acting innocent and naive.
At this moment, Fu Rongxin just shook her head in panic, tears falling down: "It's not me... I didn't, I didn't..."
Looking at her, Yu Xing just sighed slightly. Being entangled by this kind of stuff, it is understandable that this little girl was forced into a corner.
But business is business, he said: "Miss Fu, you are the biggest suspect. Please come with us to the Dali Temple. After the investigation is thorough, if you are truly innocent, you will be fine."
Gao Qingnian was really not killed by Fu Rongxin this time, so how could she be willing to be taken away like this?
If she really killed someone, she would try her best to cover it up at this moment, but unfortunately, she was wronged this time.
She only felt boundless grievances and helplessness surging in her, making her seem like she was floating on the current. Even if she tried her best to catch some driftwood, she was powerless.
Seeing Fu Rongxin like this, Xue Zhiyi's eyes felt a little hot.
Fu Rongxin, do you know how it feels to be wronged like this?
Seeing that the people from the Dali Temple wanted to take Fu Rongxin away, Fu Ling naturally refused. She shouted, "You can't take her away!"
Yu Xing felt sympathy for Fu Rongxin. He explained, "Madam Xue, the Dali Temple is also following the law. Please don't stop us."
Fu Ling squatted down and hugged Fu Rongxin, who was already kneeling on the ground in fear. "Are you doing this according to the law? The laws of Dayong state that if the family members of officials of the third rank and above in the imperial court are involved in a case, except for crimes of deceiving the emperor and committing high treason, they can be temporarily detained at home pending investigation. I would like to ask the Dali Temple Secretary, is this law enforceable?"
Yu Xing was stunned: "But my niece can't be considered as Minister Xue's official wife."
Fu Ling gritted her teeth, roaring like a mother animal protecting her cub: "Rong Xin is my newly adopted biological daughter. I am preparing to go through the official paperwork to acknowledge her ancestral roots. She is the legitimate daughter of the Shangshu Mansion. Who dares to touch her?"
Now, even Yu Xing was in a difficult situation. According to the law, Fu Rongxin could indeed stay in the Xue Mansion, but her household registration had not changed, so Fu Rongxin was not considered a legitimate member of the Xue family.
"If Rongxin can really clear the charges, everything will be fine." Xue Zhiyi said suddenly.
Her face was expressionless, and it was hard to tell whether she was happy or sad. She simply looked at the mother and daughter and said calmly, "If this is difficult to clear, I'm afraid Young Master Xue's Spring Examination this year will have been in vain. If he is accused of being the son of the Xing family, I really don't know what to do in the future."
Hearing this, Fu Rongxin clearly felt that Fu Ling's breathing stopped, and was replaced by a slight tremor.
"...Mother?" She said in a daze: "Mother?"
Seeing that Fu Ling didn't respond to her, she hissed, "Mother!"
Yu Xing said, "Madam Xue, if you are truly certain that Miss Fu is your daughter, you can complete the household registration as soon as possible. Once you have the household registration document, I can report to the Dali Temple and have Miss Fu temporarily detained in the Xue Mansion according to the law."
But Fu Ling remained silent, not saying a word, and just let the tears flow.
What should she do? What should she do?
If this was really done by Rongxin, or if there is solid evidence that Rongxin poisoned Gao Qingnian, once she recognizes Rongxin, then her Tingsheng will become the son of the Xing family and will not be allowed to take the imperial examination according to the law.
This year, with the Ministry of Rites' help, Tingsheng will definitely pass the exam. If... if he's labeled as the son of the Xing family, wouldn't that be a waste of effort? And from now on, I'm afraid he won't be able to take the imperial examinations anymore...
She couldn't ruin Tingsheng's future! But Rongxin was also her child, the daughter she had thought about day and night for so many years and finally recognized...
Could it be that after seventeen years of trying to save Rong Xin's life and ward off disaster, she still couldn't ward off the disaster... Could it be that today is the day when the disaster that will make Rong Xin "fall into the quagmire and be ruined" will come true?
Seeing that Fu Ling didn't answer, Yu Xing asked again: "Mrs. Xue, if you are sure that Miss Fu is your daughter..."
"Rong Xin." Fu Ling suddenly spoke, her voice so calm it made people's hair stand on end. "As long as we investigate thoroughly, nothing will happen. Don't be afraid."
"Mother..." Fu Rong's eyelashes trembled, and she felt as if something was being bloody peeled off from her heart.
But Fu Ling didn't dare to look her in the eye again. As if he had made some important decision, he turned to Yu Xing and said, "Sir, there is some misunderstanding here. Whether Rong Xin is the legitimate daughter of the Xue family or not... this matter has not been determined yet."
Every word she spoke seemed to tear a scratch on her heart, piercing her to the bone.
However, she couldn't let Tingsheng be dragged into this.
Only by preserving Tingsheng's future first will she have a better chance to clear Rongxin's name.
This was her only choice.
Her heart is that of a phoenix, nothing will happen to her!
"Miss Fu, please come with us." Yu Xing said.
Fu Rong wanted to say something, but was speechless for a moment. She stared at Fu Ling for a while before a heartbreaking cry burst out from her throat: "No! I don't want it!"
The people from the Dali Temple grabbed Fu Rongxin's arm and tried to drag her up.
But her hands tightly grasped Fu Ling: "Mother!!! Mother, don't you want me anymore!!!"
She screamed as if she was going to bleed, her nails digging into Fu Ling's skin: "Mother!!!"
But Fu Ling just looked ahead, avoiding her sight, and let Fu Rongxin tear her arm, leaving long bloody marks on it.
At the moment when his hands grabbed nothing, Fu Rongxin seemed to watch the last bit of hope being crushed.
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