....
Shen Zhiyan inspected it around.
His eyes were slightly cold,
"The sleeping hall is neat and orderly, there is no trace of fighting, everything is as usual."
She nodded,
"This Prince has been unable to figure out whether Concubine Zhao had any reason to hang herself.
But even if there was a reason, it can't explain the fact that she hanged herself so far from the Hall she lived in."
"This is the most paradoxical mystery about Concubine Zhao's death.
I'm going to talk with Yuan Fang, Concubine Zhao's close court lady, to interrogate her."
He walked out of the bedroom and ordered a servant to go call her.
Murong Ci stood in front of the bed.
Her cold eyes swept away inch by inch.
Later, when she came to the main hall, Shen Zhiyan began to ask Yuan fang:
"Were you Concubine Zhao's close court lady, Yuan fang?"
Yuan Fang nodded and lowered her head.
Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, and her face was full of sorrow.
"Did you serve Concubine Zhao to bed last night?"
Murong Ci asked her to raise her head to answer.
"His Royal Highness, Master Shen, this humble servant did."
Yuan Fang choked.
"Before and after going to bed last night, what unusual words and deeds did Concubine Zhao have?"
Shen Zhiyan then asked.
"Concubine Zhao, as usual, rested after taking a bath."
Her eyes drooped and she choked sadly.
"Concubine Zhao would always drink tea before going to bed and..."
A thought flashed in Murong Ci's mind.
"...She'd eat some soup before going to bed every day."
"What soup?"
"Last night it was almond butter soup.
In the past, there were various ones, rose dew, hibiscus soup, chicken porridge and so on."
"Who made the almond butter soup yesterday?"
Murong Ci asked, as if something rose on the surface.
"Concubine Zhao didn't want to bother the cook in the Imperial dining room, so the servants set up a small dining room in the Jingfu Hall.
Concubine Zhao liked to eat, so servant Yuan Qiu was in charge of cooking."
Yuan Fang replied.
"Last night Concubine Zhao ate almond butter soup and then went to bed?"
Shen Zhiyan glanced at His Royal Highness, with sharp eyes,
"Did you see her sleep at night?"
"Concubine Zhao ate the almond butter soup and then went to bed.
This servant...was vigil and can guarantee it....."
Yuan Fang cried, more and more sad, and tears came out.
"This servant was always alert at night.
But I don't know why.....
Why was I so careless yesterday....?
Why did she do it....?
This servant didn't know anything...
Early this morning, Yuan Qiu called this servant several times for a while before this servant woke up...
It was this servant that didn't take care of ※Zhao-Zhao well...
So this servant deserves to die..."
※※(N.B.) affectionate way of calling someone by repeating their name twice.
Murong Ci and Shen Zhiyan looked at each other, then let her go, and then summoned Yuan Qiu.
Yuan Qiu was also sad.
Her eyes were slightly swollen and her head lowered down.
She said calmly,
"Ever since Concubine Zhao entered the Palace, Yuan Fang and I served her and became close to her.
She was still so young..."
Murong asked,
"I heard that Concubine Zhao liked to eat soup before going to bed."
Yuan Qiu replied:
"Yes, the almond butter, hibiscus and chicken porridge that Concubine Zhao ate before going to bed were all made by this servant."
She suddenly raised her head and pleaded bitterly,
"Your Royal Highness, Master Shen!
There's no way Concubine Zhao would ever hang herself!
Concubine Zhao must have been killed, and this servant girl begs you to get justice for Concubine Zhao!"
Shen Zhiyan glanced at His Highness, and asked calmly:
"Why did you conclude that Concubine Zhao would not hang herself?"
"The day before yesterday, Concubine Zhao said that she was going to visit His Majesty in two days..."
Yuan Qiu's speech was very fast and sounded messy,
"Just imagine, how could Concubine Zhao hang herself?
Isn't this too strange?"
"This Prince can guarantee you that we will make a thorough investigation.
You made almond butter soup last night.
Did you send it to the bedroom and watch Concubine Zhao eating it?"
Murong Ci asked.
"Every night, this servant maid prepared the soup and delivered it to the sleeping hall, but last night Yuan Fang said that Concubine Zhao was angry, so she took the almond butter soup and went in.
This servant maid thought that the small dining room had not been cleaned, so I went to clean it up."
Yuan Qiu Gradually calmed down.
....
------------
END of CHAPTER 26 PART 3
.....................to be continued
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The Crown Prince is Actually a Princess! SEASON 1
Historical FictionI reached the limit of 200 parts for a book in Wattpad and was unable to publish in the same book so I made a new book! It's the continuation of the previous one, from Chapter 67 Part 3 onward. SYNOPSIS: Disguised as a man, the Crown Prince was actu...
