Chapter 580: You Suspect Me?
Chapter 580: Chapter 580: You Suspect Me?
Shen Ningning retreated behind him. Mo Lingwei lifted the lid, creating a palm-width gap. He glanced inside for just a moment before quickly putting it back down.
He turned back to Shen Ningning. "I think we need to go to the Ministry of Justice and get your second brother."
Lu Shaoyuan, who was standing nearby, froze when he heard this. He then rushed forward and threw open the lid. His face instantly turned pale, and his legs went weak.
His page was submerged in the water vat, long dead.
Shen Ningning then understood that things had gotten serious.
If this wasn’t investigated thoroughly, Lu Shaoyuan would be blamed for two deaths.
So, she immediately nodded, allowing Mo Lingwei to send someone to fetch her second brother.
While they waited for Xie Ming’an to arrive, Lu Shaoyuan was a wreck, his face deathly pale.
Seeing how distressed he was, Shen Ningning suggested he go back to the previous private room to rest.
But Lu Shaoyuan was clearly traumatized. Not only did he refuse to go in, but he was also too afraid to be in a room by himself.
"I feel like there’s no one good around me right now. Except for you, I can’t trust anyone," Lu Shaoyuan said, his voice hoarse. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked utterly haggard.
Mo Lingwei watched him coldly. "I’ve already sent someone to inform your family. I expect your mother and the others will be here shortly."
Shen Ningning thought for a moment. "Then let’s go sit with Lu Shaoyuan in a room. We can wait for my second brother there."
They found a clean private room. As Lu Shaoyuan lay on the bed, he couldn’t stop trembling.
Shen Ningning gave him a little Spiritual Spring Water to drink, and soon after, he calmed down enough to fall asleep.
After Lu Shaoyuan fell asleep, Shen Ningning and Mo Lingwei sat facing each other across a table. They were silent for a long time before Shen Ningning finally spoke.
"Brother, you said earlier that you were out on an inspection tour?"
Mo Lingwei pursed his lips and nodded slightly. "Do you suspect me?"
Their eyes met. His sharp brows knitted slightly, the darkness in his narrow eyes intense.
Shen Ningning said, "It’s precisely because I don’t think you did it, Brother, that I have to ask for clarification."
Mo Lingwei set down his teacup, his gaze turning cold. "Fine. Let’s clear this up now to avoid trouble later. Regardless of what you think, I didn’t do it. I was out on inspection today at the palace’s request."
As the Crown Prince, he conducted a plain-clothes inspection tour once every three months, mainly to survey the city with officials from the Six Ministries and observe the people’s living conditions.
Furthermore, because of his status, very few people knew the specific timing of his patrols.
Shen Ningning listened, feeling puzzled.
"This whole thing is very strange..."
Mo Lingwei came to the same conclusion at almost the same time. "What’s strange is that it feels like someone is deliberately trying to pin this on me."
After he spoke, they both thought of the same person and froze for a moment.
’Could the Emperor have done it?’
Shen Ningning suspected the Emperor because, as a father, if he could beg her to leave Mo Lingwei, he could also harm Lu Shaoyuan to bring her back to Mo Lingwei’s side.
Mo Lingwei didn’t know what Shen Ningning was thinking. He just recalled that the Emperor had been constantly urging him over the past few days to go see Shen Ningning more often.
The Emperor had completely reversed his previous unsupportive stance, even subtly hinting that he would not object if Mo Lingwei wanted to marry Shen Ningning as his main wife.
Mo Lingwei hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but looking back now, everything felt suspicious.
’What on earth is my father planning? Why the sudden change of heart?’
Just then, a knock came at the door. Xie Ming’an had arrived.
He was still wearing his slate-blue official robe, an embroidered crane on his chest. He raised an eyebrow upon seeing Mo Lingwei and Lu Shaoyuan alone in a room with his little sister, seemingly getting along.
"This humble servant greets the Crown Prince," he said, cupping his hands in a salute.
Mo Lingwei told him to dispense with the formalities and had him start investigating Lu Shaoyuan’s case.
Xie Ming’an clasped his hands behind his back and first looked at his sister. After confirming she wasn’t affected and didn’t look like she had been crying, he relaxed.
"Downstairs, I got the gist of what happened from the Shopkeeper and the staff. My men have already moved the body from the kitchen courtyard, as well as the woman who jumped to her death, back to the Ministry of Justice. Once I’ve clarified the details here, I will return to perform the autopsies."
Shen Ningning quickly woke Lu Shaoyuan so that Xie Ming’an could ask him some key questions.
"You’re saying that when Jiang Shanglong was leaving yesterday, his page came looking for him in a hurry, and after that, the shopkeepers started taking turns drinking with you? In that case, Second Young Master Lu, do you remember how many people were drinking with you?"
Lu Shaoyuan frowned in recollection. "There was Jiang Shanglong, a few of his trusted men, and several chief housekeepers. Including me, there were thirteen people in total."
An intriguing, thoughtful expression appeared on Xie Ming’an’s handsome, scholarly face.
"That’s not right. I just inspected the room where you held the banquet. It was late when you all left, so the Shopkeeper hadn’t had time to send anyone to clean up. I went to check that room before coming here and happened to count the bowls and chopsticks. There were sets for fourteen people."
"Second Young Master Lu, think carefully. Are you sure there were thirteen people?"
Lu Shaoyuan was astonished. "I’m absolutely certain. Before the meal, to ensure our cooperation went smoothly, I specifically asked Jiang Shanglong how many people would be coming. I prepared a small gift for everyone. Excluding myself, that was exactly twelve gifts. If there had been an extra person, it’s impossible that I wouldn’t have noticed!"
But as he said this, he became unsure. After Jiang Shanglong left yesterday, he had drunk until his head was spinning. He couldn’t be certain if there had been an extra person or not.
Xie Ming’an pursed his lips, a knowing smile playing on his face. "It’s alright. I’ve asked everything I need to. Second Young Master Lu, because this involves a loss of life, you may have to come back with me to the Ministry of Justice for a day."
Lu Shaoyuan’s expression was grave. "That’s no problem. As long as my name can be cleared, I’m willing to cooperate."
Xie Ming’an lifted his chin, and an attendant came forward to escort Lu Shaoyuan away.
Shen Ningning was a little worried. Seeing the look in his sister’s eyes, Xie Ming’an tutted. "Don’t be scared. Do you think your second brother would actually torture him?"
"In Mr. Xie’s opinion, what do you think is going on?" Mo Lingwei interrupted as Xie Ming’an was teasing Shen Ningning.
He really didn’t want to hear from anyone else how close Lu Shaoyuan and Shen Ningning were.
Facing Mo Lingwei, Xie Ming’an’s expression became serious again. "In any case, the motive wasn’t money."
"Why are you so certain? Everyone knows the Meng Family is fabulously wealthy. Those pirates might very well have been after money."
"They weren’t," Xie Ming’an stated decisively. "If it were really about money, it would have gone like this: they would have found a woman to falsely accuse Second Young Master Lu of violating her while drunk. Then, they would have used that as blackmail to demand a huge sum of Silver Taels, threatening to publicize the matter otherwise."
"But with such a huge commotion now, and two people dead, I believe the person behind this scheme may not have been targeting Second Young Master Lu. There might be another reason."
As he spoke, a hint of worry appeared in his dark eyes, and he turned to look at Shen Ningning.
’I’m really afraid they were targeting my sister.’
Therefore, no matter what, he had to get to the bottom of this case.