Zhan Mohan's intention was clear: to hand over the body to the relevant authorities for an autopsy to determine Wen Yulan's true cause of death. Only by clarifying this first could they ascertain the extent of Mu Linjing's involvement.
Everyone understood this, but Zhan Yichen, looking at his mother's body, no longer wished for her to suffer further indignities in death.
However, thinking of Mu Linjing, he couldn't bear to condemn her outright. It wasn't that he completely distrusted her, but faced with his mother's death and the circumstances at the time, he couldn't find any reason to absolve her.
Regarding the question of whether to proceed with further dissection, none of them could offer a definitive opinion. Old Master Zhan thought for a moment and looked at Zhan Yichen.
"Yichen, if you agree, then listen to your elder brother. It's not a bad thing to investigate this matter thoroughly."
When Wei Yumeng returned, they were still grappling with this issue.
Wei Yumeng immediately stated her stance, "Yichen, I also think this matter should be thoroughly investigated. Do you truly not trust Linjing at all?"
She asked this deliberately, knowing that Zhan Yichen didn't entirely disbelieve her. Otherwise, he wouldn't have hesitated so much when Linjing asked him to call someone for a preliminary autopsy at the time.
To this, Zhan Yichen didn't know how to respond. Wei Yumeng then added fuel to the fire, informing him about what she had overheard the nurses discussing at the nursing home that day: that Mu Bai had, under the guise of being Zhan Yichen's assistant, delivered tonics to Wen Yulan, and the true purpose of those medicines.
Zhan Yichen was, after all, still worried about Mu Linjing. Upon hearing that she had undergone resuscitation at the hospital and was currently weak, his heart ached. "How is Linjing?"
"When I returned, I had already asked Uncle and Aunt to go and take care of her. Yichen, this Mu Bai is definitely problematic. Today's events are very strange. Are you going to let your close relative die unjustly?"
The word "unjustly" jolted Zhan Yichen as if awakened. That was right. He couldn't be muddled at this moment. Unwilling to desecrate his mother's body might be filial piety, but allowing someone to die unjustly and then making his beloved bear the charge of murder, was that also filial piety?
After a brief consideration, he made his decision. "Brother, let's not proceed with the funeral arrangements for now. I'll listen to you. Send Mom's body for an autopsy."
Upon hearing his decision, Wei Yumeng breathed a sigh of relief. She believed that as long as the body was sent for an autopsy, the truth would be uncovered and Mu Linjing's innocence proven.
This matter, apart from the people at the nursing home, was still unknown to the outside world. They sent Wen Yulan's body for examination, while discreetly arranging the necessities for the funeral at home. They would only hold the funeral for Wen Yulan after the matter was clarified.
Wei Yumeng quickly relayed this news to Mu Linjing. "Yichen still believes in you, or he wouldn't have agreed to the further examination. You focus on quitting the medication and don't think about anything else."
Mu Linjing was visibly thrilled to hear this news. She had initially thought Zhan Yichen would no longer believe her.
Although they had once promised to always trust each other, and she had been genuinely hurt by Zhan Yichen's lack of immediate belief in her innocence, she then considered that the deceased was his own mother. For him not to have been completely ruthless was already a great deal to her.
Why should she demand anything more? She had to give him some time to process his emotions.
After thanking Wei Yumeng, she hung up the phone. She knew that Zhan Yichen wouldn't visit her during this period, and she didn't want too many people to see her in her weakened state while detoxifying. His absence was exactly what she preferred.
She could only hope that by the time they met again, she would have successfully detoxified, the truth behind Wen Yulan's death would be revealed, and perhaps then they could interact as they used to.
For her, quitting the medication was a painful and prolonged process. In the following period, with only her parents by her side to care for her, from frequent relapses and several fainting spells to only one episode per day, she could barely recall the immense suffering she endured or the number of times she was rushed to the emergency room.
When the doctor informed her that she had successfully passed the first stage of detoxification, she immediately shared the news with Wei Yumeng.
This was the first piece of good news Wei Yumeng had received in days. "Linjing, I knew you could do it. Just persevere a little longer, and you'll be able to completely quit this medicine soon."
Calling Wei Yumeng to share this good news was secondary. Mu Linjing's primary concern was Zhan Yichen's current situation.
"How is that matter progressing?"
Speaking of which, Wei Yumeng sighed. "It's strange. After so many days, there should have been some progress by now. Yet, there's still no outcome. I suspect someone might be obstructing the investigation."
"That's not impossible. If that's the case, it would corroborate our suspicion that something is amiss."
After a few days of adjustment, Mu Linjing was able to make rational analyses with a calmer mind. Few people knew that Wen Yulan was still alive. Although Wen Yulan had made many enemies in the past, none of them would have gone as far as to take her life.
Moreover, this incident occurred precisely on the day after their engagement was canceled. Coupled with the text message that led her to the nursing home, she had conveniently taken the blame for murder.
This implied that the target of this incident was not Wen Yulan, who had lost her life, but herself!
The objective was to use Wen Yulan's death to provoke Zhan Yichen and ensure their complete separation.
Wei Yumeng realized that her conjecture perfectly aligned with Mu Linjing's. It was highly probable that this was indeed the case.
Wei Yumeng suspected two individuals: Feng Shiming, who was constantly opposing them, and Mu Bai.
There were still many unresolved issues concerning Mu Bai, but his act of administering medication to Mu Linjing alone was sufficient to indicate his malicious intent.
"Don't worry about all that for now. Quitting the medication is your priority. As for that matter, I'll have Mohan find a way to expedite a breakthrough. You need to be careful of Mu Bai during this time and avoid him as much as possible."
Finally, Wei Yumeng ended the call after a few simple instructions. Turning around, she saw Zhan Yichen standing silently at the doorway, staring at her. It made her heart skip a beat.
"Yichen, it's you. Is there something you need?"
Since Wen Yulan's incident, Zhan Yichen, though not utterly defeated, was not in good spirits. Everyone in the family knew he was grieving, but no one knew how to comfort him. Wei Yumeng worried daily that he might fall ill from brooding like this.
Just like his current demeanor, she didn't know how long he had been standing at the door.
Zhan Yichen looked at the phone in her hand. "Sister-in-law, was that her calling? How is she?"