Lan Heng understood completely upon hearing this.
However, there was one point he couldn't quite grasp: was there any evidence?
Zhong Li glanced at him, immediately understanding his unspoken question.
"Lord Lan, when you were sketching the scene of Yuan Shang's death, did you notice a stain near the screen?" Zhong Li asked.
Hearing this, Lan Heng took out the drawing from his怀.
In fact, he had requested the creation of these crime scene sketches when he became the Minister of the Grand Court of Revision. Previously, whenever the Grand Court of Revision investigated a case, people would inevitably enter and exit the scene, disturbing potential clues and evidence. He had made this requirement precisely to preserve such traces.
Naturally, it was this practice that had enabled the Grand Court of Revision to solve many difficult cases.
He frowned as he looked at the drawing in his hand. Whenever a case occurred, time at the scene was always pressing, leaving him with insufficient time for meticulous detail. Therefore, when he drew, he only outlined the main objects. For details, he used markings that only he could understand to represent the actual objects.
Indeed, as his gaze fell upon the area near the screen that Zhong Li had mentioned, his drawing showed several dots, indicating the presence of a stain near the screen.
"My lord, please also look at what is opposite the screen," Zhong Li prompted.
Lan Heng followed her gaze to the opposite side. It was a portrait of Lu Wuxie. Combined with the love letters found in Ping'er's box, everything seemed to connect.
"Ping'er used mandrake to intoxicate Yuan Shang, then prepared a rope and led Yuan Shang to Lu Wuxie's room. The two then engaged in intimacy. Ping'er faced Lu Wuxie's portrait. As for why she did this, it was likely to fulfill a small hope in her heart.
Afterward, she killed Yuan Shang, staging the scene to look like suicide by hanging. However, Yuan Shang was too heavy, and her own body was too delicate. Despite using all her strength, she could only lift Yuan Shang halfway, creating the absurd scene of Yuan Shang seemingly squatting on a stool to tie the noose around his neck.
After completing all this, she returned to her own quarters and cut her wrist with a dagger, committing suicide."
Zhong Li explained the events that transpired between Yuan Shang and Ping'er last night.
Lan Heng agreed with Zhong Li's deductions, yet the case remained an unsolvable puzzle. With one question answered, new ones emerged.
He looked deeply at Zhong Li and said, "Why did Ping'er do this? What benefit did such a circuitous course of action bring her? She lost her purity and her life."
Upon hearing Lan Heng's question, Zhong Li pursed her lips and remained silent. This was also something she couldn't quite figure out. However, there was one thing she was certain of: all that had happened was aimed at Lu Wuxie.
"My lord."
Just as they both fell silent, Xu Qing entered.
Lan Heng glanced at him.
Xu Qing quickly presented something in his hand, saying, "This was found in the laundry room; it should be Yuan Shang's undergarment."
Lan Heng took a look, then waved for Xu Qing to properly store it as evidence.
Zhong Li heard this and looked at the female corpse on the bed behind them. She wasn't surprised to find Yuan Shang's clothing there. Firstly, Ping'er had once worked in the laundry room and was most familiar with it. Secondly, to make something difficult to find, one would place it among similar items.
Clearly, Ping'er understood this principle; she was indeed very intelligent.
After handing Yuan Shang's undergarment to a subordinate, Xu Qing took out a list from his怀 and presented it to Lan Heng, saying, "This is the complete list of personnel from Prince Xian's estate that you asked me to thoroughly investigate."
Lan Heng took it, examined it, and asked, "Is it complete?"
Xu Qing nodded. "I counted. From the front hall to the rear courtyard of Prince Xian's estate, there are a total of fifty-eight servants, and their names are all on this list."
"Good!" Lan Heng said, preparing to tuck the paper into his sleeve.
"Wait!" Zhong Li frowned, taking the paper Lan Heng was about to put away. She unfolded it and read it carefully.
After a while, she asked, "Are you certain, Lord Xu, that Prince Xian's estate has fifty-eight servants?"
Hearing this, Xu Qing showed a hint of displeasure. "I counted them myself. What... Miss Zhong has doubts?"
Zhong Li folded the list and handed it back to Xu Qing. "If I recall correctly, a few days ago when I left Prince Xian's estate, there were fifty-nine servants, including Ping'er, who died here. How has it now become fifty-eight, Lord Xu?"
"How is that possible? It must be Steward Zhu..." Xu Qing was taken aback, then suddenly understood something. He turned and ran outside.
After a while, Xu Qing returned, panting, holding a new list. "My lord, this person has been found. He is a young house servant named A Qi, who arrived at Prince Xian's estate a few days ago, so Steward Zhu hadn't yet had time to add him to the records."
"Is that so? Then what about this house servant?" Lan Heng asked.
Xu Qing, patting his heaving chest, said, "He... is missing!"
"Then hurry and go find him!" Lan Heng narrowed his eyes and said sternly.
Scolded like this, Xu Qing nodded and led the constables behind him to leave again.
After a day of busyness, Prince Xian's estate was now enveloped in darkness. The lit red candles cast a dim and serene glow upon the manor.
Zhong Li organized the evidence related to Yuan Shang and Ping'er. She politely declined Lan Heng's offer to escort her back to the Grand Court of Revision and turned towards Lu Wuxie's courtyard.
With the mystery of Yuan Shang's death solved, the study had been cleaned by the Grand Court of Revision and the estate's servants. She walked into the room and looked at the man's portrait in the center of the shelves. It was undoubtedly Lu Wuxie, yet she had a subtle feeling that the person in the painting was somehow different from the Lu Wuxie of today.
"The real person is behind you, and you're staring at the painting with such fascination?"
A voice sounded from behind Zhong Li.
She turned to look. Lu Wuxie was leaning against a screen, appearing to have had enough rest and looking much more energetic.
"Young Master." Zhong Li bowed respectfully as usual.
Lu Wuxie waved his hand and said, "Never mind. I should thank you for helping to clear my name."
Zhong Li looked up, gazing at the man opposite her. He said this, yet there was no gratitude in his eyes, only indifference.
"Do you know Ping'er, Young Master?" After thinking for a moment, she voiced the question that had been weighing on her mind all day.
Lu Wuxie had not expected her to ask about Ping'er. He thought for a moment and replied, "I've seen her a few times. She's a servant from the laundry room, isn't she? If I recall correctly, she should have washed my clothes."
"She likes you, do you know that?" After asking, Zhong Li immediately regretted it.
Her question sounded a little ambiguous. After all, the case was solved, and Ping'er's feelings were of no consequence. Yet, for some reason, after entering Ping'er's room and seeing some details she hadn't mentioned to Lan Heng, she wanted to know what Lu Wuxie thought.
As expected, the moment she spoke, the casual smile on Lu Wuxie's face froze.
He put down the pixiu he had been playing with and stared at her intently.
Zhong Li avoided his gaze, thought for a moment, and then said, "I saw a footprint outside Ping'er's room. Others might not recognize it, but I know it's yours."
As she spoke, she looked at the soles of Lu Wuxie's shoes. His habit was different from others. Perhaps because his Qinggong was excellent, the soles of his shoes were always thinner, and the patterns shallower than those of others.
Lu Wuxie followed her gaze downward. After a long moment, he looked at her and said, "Are you suspecting me, Li'er, or do you simply want to know why I was there?"