Chapter 114

Doubts arise again.

In fact, when she first heard that Bi Yao had died, Nie Jinxuan's first feeling was—she had been silenced!

Even after finding the first crime scene where Consort Tong was murdered, rushing back to the capital from Zuixiashanzhuang, and the exchange with Emperor Shuncheng, Nie Jinxuan had been more convinced that Bi Yao could not have committed suicide!

Bi Yao was involved in this case, so she was threatened into confessing, and finally murdered by the true culprit to silence her... This was Nie Jinxuan's initial judgment! But she never expected that Bi Yao had truly committed suicide!

Nie Jinxuan was dazed. At this moment, hearing her say this, Gao Caiyong, who had also felt Bi Yao's death was strange, couldn't help but frown.

"Suicide?! It really was suicide?! But Princess Consort, didn't you say earlier that Bi Yao was not the culprit? And if she wasn't the culprit, why would she commit suicide?! This... this makes no sense!"

Gao Caiyong was also deeply confused! At this moment, Yin Fengzhan beside them narrowed his eyes.

"Are you sure it was suicide?"

"The artery in the left wrist was severed, the marks are many and messy. If it were murder, the killer would have made one clean, swift cut to avoid startling the victim. If the first attempt failed, it would startle the victim. These wounds, besides the victim herself, that is, Bi Yao, could not be explained otherwise! Furthermore, the wounds are shallow on the outside and deep on the inside, indicating the force was applied from the inside out, which is consistent with the direction of a self-inflicted wrist-slitting, and the wounds are very messy..."

Using a voice as calm as could be, Nie Jinxuan spoke quietly. After a pause, she turned to look at Gao Caiyong.

"By the way, Eunuch Gao, when Bi Yao was found dead, were there any items found around her? Like a murder weapon?"

"Oh, this servant knows. When Bi Yao died, she was sitting in the corner of the dungeon, her left hand was just lying there covered in blood, and her right hand was holding a shard of a porcelain bowl... At the time, I saw it with my own eyes, it couldn't be wrong!"

"Hmm, that's right then! Bi Yao broke the porcelain bowl and used the shard to slit her wrist and commit suicide..."

Pursing her red lips, Nie Jinxuan said in a low voice, then turned her gaze back to Bi Yao lying on the ground.

"Bi Yao was so young, she must have grown up in the palace since she was small, she hadn't even seen the world outside before..."

Nie Jinxuan felt a bit uncomfortable. But Eunuch Gao, standing nearby, frowned and couldn't help but interject:

"Uh... Princess Consort, actually Bi Yao didn't grow up in the palace! She had only been in the palace for two years."

Eunuch Gao said directly, then made a gesture for people to clean up Bi Yao's body. But hearing this, Nie Jinxuan was stunned and turned to look at Eunuch Gao.

"Only in the palace for two years? Eunuch Gao, is this true?"

"Yes~! Sigh, originally this servant didn't pay much attention to this. It wasn't until Consort Tong's incident that I investigated Bi Yao and checked her entry records, only then did I find out that Bi Yao entered the palace two years ago. Because she was delicate, literate, and clever, Consort Tong took a liking to her!"

"And this Consort Tong, sigh~, it's not that I'm saying this because she's gone, but Princess Consort, you might not know, although Consort Tong was beautiful and had an arrogant dancing style, her talent was... to put it bluntly, although saying she didn't know a single character is an exaggeration, she definitely couldn't be presented in public!"

"So, it was precisely because of this that Consort Tong took a liking to Bi Yao's talent! Therefore, for the past two years, Bi Yao had often helped Consort Tong in secret, otherwise, although Consort Tong was very favored in the harem, she would have been laughed at by many others in secret! Otherwise, Princess Consort, think about it, Bi Yao had only been in the palace for two years, how did she become Consort Tong's personal maid? There was a reason for it~!"

No one understood the twists and turns of the harem better than Gao Caiyong. But hearing this, Nie Jinxuan's expression sharpened, and she asked again:

"Then may I ask Eunuch Gao, when you investigated Bi Yao, did you find out what she did before?"

"Uh... Princess Consort, you mean Bi Yao's background before entering the palace? This servant has checked it all. This Bi Yao was originally named Zhang Bi Yao, she was the daughter of a farming family outside the city. Later, her parents died one after another, and she had no way to make a living, so she entered the palace... Of course, she entered the palace at such an age because she had connections. It is said that because her mother had a small friendship with a manager in the palace, after her mother died, she was brought into the palace by that manager. Oh, by the way, it is said that Bi Yao's mother was originally a fallen lady, so Bi Yao learned to read and write from her mother..."

"Then does Eunuch Gao know who that manager was?"

"I do! Now that such a big thing has happened, a fourth-rank Consort was murdered, and Bi Yao is the suspect, the manager who brought her in will naturally be implicated... Uh, why? Does the Princess Consort want to see that manager?"

Seeing Nie Jinxuan's intention, Eunuch Gao asked. Hearing this, Nie Jinxuan smiled slightly. Eunuch Gao didn't say anything more, first ordered people to clean up Bi Yao's body, and then took Nie Jinxuan to find the manager who had brought Bi Yao into the palace.

Yin Fengzhan, who followed along, didn't say anything from beginning to end, but he kept an eye on Nie Jinxuan's reactions, his deep eyes occasionally flashing with a thoughtful look...

Returning from the back of the palace, Eunuch Gao took Nie Jinxuan's party to the dungeon of the Imperial Guard Camp. After passing through layers of iron gates and guards, they arrived at the dungeon.

"Princess Consort, his name is Zhang Xi, he is the manager who brought Bi Yao into the palace."

Standing in front of a cell, Gao Caiyong said in a low voice, then turned to look into the cell... Hearing this, Nie Jinxuan followed Gao Caiyong's gaze and saw a slightly hunched back in the cell.

Nie Jinxuan couldn't help but frown slightly and asked in a loud voice:

"May I ask, are you Zhang Xi?"

"... Hmm..."

It seemed he had been asleep, so it was only after a long while that Zhang Xi, who was squatting in the corner of the cell, responded. Then he slowly raised his head... But the moment he saw Gao Caiyong and Nie Jinxuan and the others, he hurriedly crawled forward and said:

"Prince, Princess Consort, this servant is wronged! Eunuch Gao, this servant is wronged, Bi Yao has nothing to do with me... Prince..."

Zhang Xi was also an old man who had been in the palace for many years, so he naturally recognized Yin Fengzhan. As for Nie Jinxuan, because of the incident regarding Consort Lan's death, Zhang Xi naturally wouldn't be a stranger to her.

Hearing Zhang Xi's plea for mercy, Gao Caiyong's expression sharpened.

"Enough Zhang Xi, stop saying these useless things. Today, Prince Chen and the Princess Consort have come to ask you questions. You must say whatever you know. If you say a single word of falsehood, watch your head... Do you hear me clearly?"

"Yes, yes, yes, this servant knows!"

Hearing Gao Caiyong say this, Zhang Xi naturally didn't dare to say anything more. Gao Caiyong turned to look at Nie Jinxuan, who stepped forward and looked at Zhang Xi.

"Zhang Xi, do you know Bi Yao?"

"This, this servant knows her."

"Then two years ago, was it you who brought Bi Yao into the palace?"

"Yes..."

"Why did you help her?"

"Be, because she came to me and said that her mother had died, and she had no, no place to turn to, so she wanted to enter the palace to earn a living..."

Zhang Xi was honest; Nie Jinxuan asked a question, and he answered it, speaking crisply. But hearing this, Nie Jinxuan's eyes twitched, and she asked again:

"You knew her mother?"

"Yes, yes... this, this servant, before entering the palace, had a poor family background. At that time, Bi, Bi Yao's mother gave this servant a lot of help, so at that time I said, if one day I made something of myself in the palace, I would never forget her kindness. So, when Bi Yao came to find me two years ago, I helped her enter the palace... But, but Princess Consort, you must believe this servant, I really didn't know that Bi Yao would do such a thing. If I had known, even if I had the courage, I wouldn't have dared to bring her in! Princess Consort, you must believe this servant..."

Zhang Xi couldn't help but beg for mercy. At this moment, Nie Jinxuan stood up. Seeing this, Eunuch Gao knew that Nie Jinxuan had finished her questioning and made a gesture to take Nie Jinxuan away... But after Nie Jinxuan had walked two steps, she paused and turned back to look at Zhang Xi in the cell.

"Zhang Xi, have you seen Bi Yao before?"

"No, no I haven't... This servant has been in the palace for so many years and has never left the palace to go home, how, how could I have seen her?"

"Then how did you know Bi Yao was the daughter of your benefactor?"

"Because when she came to find me, she brought a jade pendant, and I recognized that jade pendant..."

Zhang Xi said in a low voice. At this moment, Gao Caiyong, who had been silent, snorted coldly.

"Hmph, a jade pendant?! Zhang Xi, I know your habits! You only know money. I imagine when Bi Yao entered the palace, she must have given you benefits too! Otherwise, would you have helped? What a huge joke!"

"Uh... Eunuch Gao, this, this servant did take money, but I really did see the jade pendant, which is why I helped! Heaven and earth are my witness, if I dare to tell a single lie, may I be struck by lightning!"

Zhang Xi swore solemnly, but Gao Caiyong glared at him and took Nie Jinxuan and Yin Fengzhan out...