Chapter 232

Yang Qinwu actually fell silent for a moment, then opened his mouth to answer: "Miss Li, do you know that all the palace maids and eunuchs on duty outside Zhenghua Hall that night have now, one by one, almost all disappeared?"

Li Qingluo was greatly startled: "What do you mean all disappeared? Did they die or were they transferred away from Zhenghua Hall?"

Yang Qinwu: "A few days ago I found a female corpse in a dry well."

"The deceased happened to be the little palace maid Cui Xiang who was on guard by the lake outside Zhenghua Hall that night."

Li Qingluo waited for Yang Qinwu to continue.

This person did not disappoint her, continuing to speak of the clues he had found: "Not only that, the palace has recently uncovered several murder cases that appear accidental, but the victims are all palace personnel who were on duty outside Zhenghua Hall that night."

Li Qingluo: "What a coincidence? Could someone have killed them to silence them? Who would it be?"

Yang Qinwu shook his head.

"Recently this matter has really given me a headache; His Majesty has already vaguely sensed something amiss and has ordered our Imperial Guard to strengthen patrols, strictly forbidding any recurrence of such incidents."

Li Qingluo wondered: "Since so many people have died in the palace, why hasn't Prince Su of the Ministry of Justice entered the palace to investigate? Is it only that you Imperial Guard have been ordered to step up patrols?"

Yang Qinwu stared at Li Qingluo with a very strange look.

"Miss Li, you don't know? His Majesty does not allow Prince Su to enter the palace to investigate the case."

"Although Prince Su holds the position of Minister of Justice and can even investigate any case under heaven, yet all cases within the palace may only be investigated by order of the Ministry of Punishments; the Ministry of Justice cannot review them."

Li Qingluo truly did not know this!

She was shocked to the core, and Yang Qinwu added: "However, it's strange. This time… His Majesty actually did not notify the Ministry of Punishments to enter the palace for investigation, as if he preferred to believe that these palace people really died by accident and coincidence."

Li Qingluo: "What if it was actually the emperor who did it?"

"Or perhaps something has touched his interests, causing him to turn a blind eye."

Li Qingluo: "Officer Yang, do you still know anything else? That night you were not on duty nearby; did you see anything?"

Yang Qinwu shook his head: "Sorry. At the time of the incident that night, I indeed was not outside Zhenghua Hall. However, a colleague of mine was on duty that night; if you truly wish to know, I can ask him for you."

Having said that, Yang Qinwu had nothing more to say.

But Li Qingluo understood the meaning behind his words.

The incident at Zhenghua Hall that night will cost lives.

Li Qingluo bade farewell to Yang Qinwu and left the Zhenghua Restaurant; passing by Fuman Lou, Deng Mama stopped the carriage in a corner.

"Miss, this old servant seems to have seen the Eldest Young Master."

Li Kechuan?

Li Qingluo gently lifted a gap in the carriage curtain to look outside.

Seeing Li Kechuan being pushed into the Ming Lou, Li Qingluo said: "Go see, who is he meeting?"

Soon Deng Mama returned.

"Miss, you'll never guess—it's the Liu family!"

Li Kechuan meeting the Liu family?

And he invited them to eat at Fuman Lou?

"Who did you see? Did you get a clear look?"

Deng Mama: "Only Liu Er and Liu San."

Liu Da and Liu Touzi that day had their legs broken at Prince Yun's Mansion, so even if they wanted to come they couldn't.

Li Qingluo was somewhat surprised, but not overly so.

She even had a vague guess as to what Li Kechuan intended by meeting them.

Li Qingluo couldn't help but smile: "I was just thinking about taking care of them, and they've conveniently gathered together in a den of snakes and rats."

"Come on, let's go take a look. Let's see what this wicked, foolish older brother of mine is up to!"

Li Qingluo put on a hood and, accompanied by Deng Mama and Que'er, entered Fuman Lou.

This time coming to Fuman Lou, Li Qingluo couldn't help but look around more.

Prince Su said, this is Princess Zhenyu's restaurant.

Therefore, last time when my Zhenghua Restaurant opened, those who tripped me up were secretly orchestrated by Princess Zhenyu.

Princess Zhenyu runs such a large restaurant; in the palace she openly caused the death of the imperial consort's niece, and palace people covered for her; even the emperor and empress initially made excuses for her.

Nanjia's death is even more intricately linked to her…

This woman is truly not simple.

Li Qingluo recalled the warning Princess Zhenyu gave her before leaving Jinling, knowing that this woman would surely become her formidable rival in the future.

Fuman Lou's business has indeed been rather bleak over the past month or so.

Not only has it been suppressed by the Ming Lou, but the newly emerged Zhenghua Restaurant has also snatched away much of Fuman Lou's business.

Thus, whenever Fuman Lou sees a customer now, it's like a bee seeing a flower and immediately rushes over.

"Several honored guests, please come inside——"

The dishes at Fuman Lou are all quite novel.

The tea is also quite special.

Li Qingluo chose a corner seat and waited for Deng Mama to go gather information.

And she and Que'er began to eat in earnest.

Soon Deng Mama returned: "Miss, in the Sichuan guest private room on the first floor—would you like to go there?"

Li Qingluo: "This is neither the Ming Lou nor our Zhenghua Restaurant; there are no mechanisms, so even if we went next door we wouldn't hear what they're saying."

"That would only scare the snake."

"You keep an eye on them; after Li Kechuan leaves, we'll tie those two up!"

After the meal, in a small alley, Deng Mama and her people bound the two Liu brothers tightly.

Then she covered their heads, and Li Qingluo stepped forward to rain punches and kicks upon them.

Ouch—ouch—

Spare my life, spare my life—

In broad daylight, who are you!? Do you know who we are? Ouch—

Li Qingluo's punches and kicks now are no mere flowery fists and embroidered kicks.

After a few punches from her, Liu Laoer and Liu Laosan were beaten until their noses bled, a sticky mess all over their faces.

Moreover, the force in her feet was vicious; the pain left these two farmhands unable to recover for a long while.

Don't, don't hit—

Hero, we have no silver on us. Please spare us—

They never imagined that the one beating them today wasn't some hero, but that little girl they had bullied for over ten years.

Li Qingluo signaled Deng Mama with her eyes; Deng Mama immediately bellowed in a rough voice: 'Bold commoner! Dare to lie to us?'

Just now you weren't leaving the restaurant together with the Jiangjun Fu's eldest son? If you had no money, would you go to Blessing Full Tower to eat? If you had no money, how could you meet the Jiangjun Fu's eldest son?

Hurry up, honestly hand over all valuables on you!

Otherwise, I'll beat you two to death!

Liu Er trembled all over, shouting: 'Originally, originally you've been watching us all along—'

Que'er's sharp eyes caught a corner of a pouch peeking from Liu Er's pocket; she reached out and snatched it.

Look, what is this? A silver pouch from Jiangjun Fu. You couldn't have stolen it, could you? Hand you over to the officials—this silver is enough to lock you up for life!

Liu San was instantly scared out of his wits.

No, no—

Ladies, this silver was a gift from the Jiangjun Fu's eldest son. Our family's money-losing niece, pregnant with his flesh and blood, now a corpse with two lives, died horribly together with the child in her womb, and we had no money for burial, so he gave us the silver to bury her quickly.

This silver is exactly the burial money for that money-losing loss; we truly didn't steal—

Deng Mama and Que'er both looked at Li Qingluo.

Li Qingluo heard them speak of Liu Sui'er like that, and flew into a rage, raining punches and kicks upon them.

These two are actually Liu Sui'er's own uncles; even if her death didn't draw a tear from them, calling her a 'money-losing loss' in such a cold tone made it seem she was merely a commodity awaiting sale, and Li Qingluo felt a sharp pain in her heart.

Liu Er and Liu San let out another series of miserable screams.

They even brought up the Prince Yun's Mansion, but they didn't expect it wouldn't scare off the attackers; instead, it invited an even fiercer storm…

Passersby at the alley entrance saw this scene and were so shocked they froze on the spot.

When did the women of DaLiang become so fierce!?

Que'er and Deng Mama naturally also joined in, landing several dozen blows.

Finally having vented enough, Li Qingluo stopped to catch her breath.

She crouched, taking out a sleeve arrow from her wrist and pressing it against Liu Er and Liu San's throats.

Deng Mama immediately understood and hissed low: 'Speak! Didn't he have you do something else to earn this silver?'

If you confess honestly, I'll let you go right away!

Liu Er: 'Ai yo yo… I'll speak, I'll speak…'

He really is in terrible pain.

Since arriving in Jinling, their family has suffered one misfortune after another, with deaths.

Mother died, sister died, and now Liu Sui'er has also died…

Moreover, father and elder brother have broken legs.

Their family can't afford any more deaths.

So Liu Er and Liu San hurriedly confessed: 'It was him; he told us to spread through the streets and alleys that Sui'er was killed by our family's former foster daughter, Liu Caoer.'

Yes. And they said that Sui'er's corpse with two lives was all plotted by Liu Caoer's schemes. They wanted us to have a grievance with a debtor, to go bite Liu Caoer to death, so she'd be despised and cursed by all under heaven.

He wanted to push these foul reputations onto his own sister, so that people wouldn't keep staring at him, nor keep gossiping about our family's bloodline Zhu'er.

Zhu'er, it's your own lack of filial piety first; you can't blame Second and Third Uncle for selling you out to save their own lives.

Que'er's face flushed red with anger in an instant.

Bullshit! So that's his plan! Beast!

After the Cui family's visit to break off the engagement blew up, rumors began to circulate furtively in Jinling City about Prince Yun's consort Lady Zhu and her former brother having an unclear relationship.

Although the rumors aren't big yet, Li Kechuan, who had been paying attention to this matter, will surely find a way to suppress it quickly.

But after thinking it over, he again turned his wicked idea toward his own younger sister.