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The culprit calls the current Emperor ‘elder brother’. In other words, the mastermind behind the Heavenly Music House was his younger sister.
He had only three younger sisters now——Ning'an, Xinyang, and Huaiqing.
None of these three seemed to be suspects.
Ning'an was out of the question. Being such a kind and innocent person, how could she possibly collude with the brothel's forces and harm the little miracle physician?
Huaiqing was a foolish child, simply lacking such abilities.
It couldn't possibly be Xinyang either.
Xinyang was indeed a formidable character. Among so many princesses, despite not having the protection of a mother or the exclusive favor of her imperial father, she had never suffered any losses in anyone's hands.
She even received a good marriage arrangement prepared by the late Emperor before his death.
She was indeed a capable woman.
But she had no reason to plot against the little miracle physician!
Minister Xing dared to ask, "Does Your Majesty have any clues in mind?"
The Emperor, with annoyance, said, "Zhen has no clues. Are you sure the criminal hasn't deceived you?"
Although the Emperor trusted Minister Xing's abilities, he would rather question the accuracy of Minister Xing's judgment than suspect his own younger sisters.
At this stage, Minister Xing had a basic conjecture, but there was no concrete evidence at the moment.
Xiao Liulang could tell him that the Imperial Son-in-law was killed by the Gu Family siblings, which was an internal inference made by the officials of the Ministry of Justice——providing effective clues to speculate on the true culprit and their motive.
But he couldn't say this to the Emperor.
As Minister Xing contemplated how to broach the subject with the Emperor, Eunuch Wei's voice came from outside the study.
"Princess Ning'an, what business do you have for coming?"
"I've made some ginseng soup for His Majesty, is he inside?"
"Uh..."
Yes, he was, but it wasn't clear if it was convenient for her to come in.
"Ning'an, come in." The Emperor said.
Eunuch Wei smiled and stepped aside, "Princess, please."
Princess Ning'an, holding a food box in one hand and slightly lifting her skirt with the other, stepped into the study.
Minister Xing turned to Princess Ning'an and saluted.
"This is..." Princess Ning'an looked at Minister Xing in surprise.
The Emperor introduced, "This is the Minister of the Ministry of Justice, surnamed Xing."
"So, it's Minister Xing." Princess Ning'an nodded, "I apologize for the rudeness."
Minister Xing bowed, "This humble official doesn't dare."
Princess Ning'an said with embarrassment, "It seems I came at the wrong time. If I had known His Majesty was discussing official matters with the minister, I would have come later."
"It's okay, just a groundless case. Since you're here, take a look as well." the Emperor said, handing the confession letter and case file to Princess Ning'an.
Princess Ning'an placed the food box on the table and took the documents to read.
While she read, Minister Xing discreetly observed her.
The more Princess Ning'an read, the more astonished she became. By the end, her eyebrows furrowed, "It turns out that someone from the imperial family attacked Physician Gu. But why?"
A trace of doubt crossed Minister Xing's mind. There was no hint of guilt on Princess Ning'an's face. Could they have guessed wrong?
In theory, having a motive wasn't enough. There also needed to be an opportunity and evidence at the time of the crime, commonly known as witness testimony and physical evidence.
The Emperor snorted, "You also think it's absurd, don't you?"
Ning'an suddenly lowered her gaze and smiled bitterly, "Your Majesty only has three younger sisters now, and among these three, I have the most frequent interactions with Physician Gu. The Imperial Son-in-law died in the hands of Young Miss Gu and her eldest brother. Looking at it this way, I seem to be the most suspicious."
The Emperor's face darkened, "Nonsense! How could you do such a thing? Zhen believes that someone with malicious intentions wants to smear dirt on the imperial family!"
Princess Ning'an sighed, "But hasn't the criminal confessed?"
The Emperor coldly said, "The criminal might not necessarily be telling the truth. Or perhaps, he isn't lying, but someone impersonated the identity of an imperial princess to contact him."
Princess Ning'an turned her head slowly and looked at Minister Xing, "Does Minister Xing think these two possibilities are likely?"
Minister Xing opened his mouth, took a weak breath, and said, "Before the truth is revealed, all assumptions are possible."
"By the way, it also mentioned two other witnesses, one is the top courtesan from the Heavenly Music House who faked her death, and the other is also from the Heavenly Music House, a girl named..." Princess Ning'an seemed to have forgotten the name, looked at the document, and then said, "Ah, Hua Xiyao."
As she spoke, her gaze fell again on Minister Xing's face, "May I ask Minister Xing, where are these two witnesses now? Can they be summoned to testify in court? It's a bit arbitrary to conclude that the Heavenly Music House is colluding with the imperial family based solely on the testimony of one assassin, don't you think, Minister Xing?"
Princess Ning'an's gaze was very gentle, but for some reason, Minister Xing's forehead felt a bit cold.
He steadied himself and said, "Princess Ning'an is absolutely right. However, these two witnesses are currently unable to testify in court."
"Why?" Princess Ning'an asked softly.
Minister Xing explained, "Hua Xiyao was drugged and won't wake up for six or seven days. Another girl named Mo Qianxue is seriously injured and undergoing treatment at the medical hall. According to Chief Xiao, her condition is not good."
Otherwise, according to the normal procedure, Mo Qianxue would have been brought back to the Ministry of Justice for detention.
Princess Ning'an sighed thoughtfully, "One drugged, one injured, it's really unfortunate. Minister Xing, they are important witnesses in this case. You must ensure their safety and prevent anyone from silencing them, or the truth of this case will never see the light of day."
Minister Xing subconsciously glanced at Princess Ning'an upon hearing this.
Princess Ning'an smiled openly at him.
Minister Xing lowered his eyes, furrowed his brows, and bowed, "Princess is absolutely right. This official... will definitely increase manpower to protect them!"
……
After leaving the palace, Minister Xing returned to the Ministry of Justice’s yamen. Xiao Heng's office was just behind Minister Xing's. Hearing the commotion, Xiao Heng put down his writing brush and went to Minister Xing's office, greeting, "My Lord."
Minister Xing sat tiredly on the chair and recounted the conversation in the study with the Emperor to Xiao Heng. "... It seems flawless. Could we be suspecting the wrong person? Is the real culprit actually Princess Huaiqing or Princess Xinyang?"
Xiao Heng wasn’t surprised by this development. If the other party didn't have such means, they wouldn't have come this far today. He was glad he didn't rely on the Emperor.
Xiao Heng said, "It's not Princess Xinyang."
Minister Xing gave him a curious look, "How do you know?"
"I often go to the medical hall," Xiao Heng said, "Princess Xinyang contracted a heart ailment a few years ago, and only Physician Gu can treat her illness. Her condition has not healed, and she is still taking the medicine Physician Gu prescribed. She wouldn't have killed Physician Gu at this time."
Minister Xing had heard a bit about Princess Xinyang suffering from heart illness due to the loss of her beloved son. He had also heard that she followed the imperial physician's advice to recuperate away from the capital in Mount Fengdu.
"What about Princess Huaiqing?" Minister Xing decisively shook his head, "Surely, no one would really impersonate an imperial princess, right?"
Suddenly, Xiao Heng said, "Actually, even if she hasn’t reminded my Lord, it doesn't matter either."
Minister Xing was puzzled, "What do you mean?"
Xiao Heng smiled faintly, "My Lord, as Princess Ning'an said, you must send more manpower and keep a close watch on both the medical hall and the Ministry of Justice's prison. Don't give anyone a chance to silence the witnesses."
Raz P.'s Thoughts
contemporary romance
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