Coroner's Diary

When Zheng Baishi arrived at the Meng residence, he was still somewhat puzzled. Upon seeing Yan Chi, he hurriedly asked, "Your Highness, have you found some clues?"

Yan Chi nodded and explained all the hidden secrets within the paintings to Zheng Baishi.

After hearing this, Zheng Baishi's expression changed dramatically. "Your Highness means to say that Meng Jin has improper intentions toward the Young Mistress of the household?"

Yan Chi nodded again. "It's not impossible. Meng Hui still hasn't confessed, so we cannot abandon other leads. Whether this is possible or not, we'll know once we test it."

Zheng Baishi remained somewhat incredulous. Although he had seen many cases of immoral conduct, the Meng family was an established lineage, and Meng Zhou served as an official in the court. Such incidents should not occur in Meng Zhou's household!

Yan Chi and Zheng Baishi waited together in the main courtyard of the Meng residence. Soon, Meng Zhou arrived with the Third Madam and Meng Ziyi and his wife.

"Greetings to the Crown Prince—"

Meng Ziyi and the other two bowed. Yan Chi scrutinized the three of them, noticing that the Third Madam appeared emaciated, her breathing unsteady, and her complexion somewhat pale. "How long has the Third Madam been ill?"

The Third Madam glanced at Yan Chi briefly. "For many years. I have never stopped taking medicine."

Meng Zhou added from the side, "Indeed, my sister-in-law has always been in poor health."

Yan Chi nodded and turned his attention to Xu shi. Young and beautiful, Xu shi appeared somewhat reserved in the presence of Yan Chi. When Yan Chi looked at her, she lowered her head, not daring to meet his gaze.

As a martial artist, Yan Chi could usually tell whether someone was skilled just by observing their aura. Among the three—Meng Ziyi, the Third Madam, and Xu shi—the latter two were clearly frail women, lacking not only martial arts skills but even physical strength.

Nevertheless, to be thorough, Yan Chi glanced at Bai Feng.

Bai Feng approached the three and said softly, "Please extend your hands, Madam and Young Mistress."

Though puzzled, the Third Madam and Xu shi complied. Bai Feng observed that their hands were smooth and delicate, without calluses, and their finger bones were slender, showing no signs of martial arts training. Bai Feng shook his head at Yan Chi, who then turned his attention to Meng Ziyi.

"What illness does Young Master Meng suffer from?"

Meng Ziyi also appeared somewhat reserved, far more introverted compared to Meng Wei's flamboyance. When Yan Chi questioned him, he grew even more nervous. "I... suffer from... heart palpitations..."

Yan Chi had already investigated this matter but asked again merely to observe his demeanor.

After scrutinizing Meng Ziyi, Yan Chi found his aura equally weak, with no indication of martial arts training. Still, to be cautious, Yan Chi continued, "I heard Young Master Meng injured his left hand? Where is the injury?"

Meng Ziyi seemed confused, likely not expecting Yan Chi to ask him this. He extended his left hand. "Here... here."

Stuttering, he pointed to his elbow.

Yan Chi tilted his chin, signaling Bai Feng to step forward. Since Meng Ziyi was a man, Bai Feng directly grasped his elbow, frowning slightly. He carefully examined the joints at Meng Ziyi's elbow and the bones of his forearm, but his frown deepened. "Young Master Meng's bones appear to be fine."Upon hearing this, Meng Ziyi instinctively glanced at Third Madam. The anxiety on his face seemed genuine, yet his stammer prevented him from speaking his mind. Third Madam looked at Yan Chi and asked, "Is the Crown Prince suspecting Ziyi?"

Yan Chi's expression remained stern. "There's no need for concern, Madam. I'm merely following protocol to gather more details."

Third Madam nodded. "Ziyi injured his arm when he was fourteen. His hand was immobilized with a splint for a long time until the bone healed. However, since then, his hand has been left disabled. While the bone appears intact, his left hand lacks strength. He can manage light objects like books, but anything heavier is beyond him."

As she spoke, Third Madam scanned the room and gestured toward a nearby armchair. "Ziyi, go lift that chair."

Obediently, Meng Ziyi stepped forward. He first lifted the chair with his right hand, then switched to his left. This time, despite gripping the chair tightly, he struggled to lift it, his face flushing red with effort.

Releasing his grip, Meng Ziyi looked nervously at Third Madam.

Third Madam remained composed. "Your Highness, this humble woman wouldn't dare deceive you—"

Yan Chi acknowledged with a nod. "Very well. In that case, Third Madam and Young Mistress may return now."

Third Madam frowned slightly, while Xu Shi watched Meng Ziyi with concern. Meng Ziyi glanced at them both, then nodded. Third Madam curtseyed and led Xu Shi out of the main hall.

Once they had left, only Meng Ziyi remained in the room. Yan Chi stared at him for a long while, until sweat beaded on Meng Ziyi's forehead, yet he said nothing. With Yan Chi silent, no one else dared speak. After a moment, Yan Chi finally spoke with a tone of mercy, "Alright, it's fine. Young Master Meng, you may go—"

Meng Ziyi looked at Yan Chi for a moment, then at Meng Zhou. Seeing Meng Zhou nod, he slowly turned to leave.

Meng Ziyi's steps were stiff, betraying his extreme tension. As he walked, he wiped the sweat from his brow. Just as he was about to exit, Bai Feng, who had been standing beside Yan Chi, suddenly moved with lightning speed toward Meng Ziyi. He formed a fist into a palm strike, aiming with fierce force at Meng Ziyi's shoulder.

The suddenness of the move caught even Meng Zhou and the others off guard. Yet, just as Bai Feng's hand was about to land on Meng Ziyi's shoulder, he abruptly withdrew his strike, steadying himself and standing firm. Meng Zhou breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did Meng Ziyi sense something amiss and turn to look. Surprised to find Bai Feng suddenly behind him, Meng Ziyi gave a slight nod before continuing on his way...

Once Meng Ziyi had left, Bai Feng turned and reported respectfully, "Master, he showed no reaction. I observed clearly—his shoulder and back showed no signs of tension."

A person might be able to put on an act, but the subtleties of the body could still betray them. After all, one can control facial expressions at most, while every muscle and bone has its own instinctive reactions.

Hearing Bai Feng's words, Yan Chi believed that Meng Ziyi was not a perceptive individual. Had he been trained in martial arts, he would have detected Bai Feng's movement earlier. At the very least, he should have reacted when Bai Feng's fist nearly struck his shoulder.

Frowning slightly, Yan Chi listened as Zheng Baishi asked, "Your Highness, does this outcome rule out the third branch?"Yan Chi remained silent, for the outcome did not align with his expectations.

Meanwhile, Meng Zhou remarked, "Ziyi has been a well-behaved child since he was young. Because of his stutter, he never liked making friends with other children. As a result, he appears very reserved now. When his older brother was still around during his childhood, things were a bit better, but after his brother passed away, he became increasingly reluctant to leave the third branch's courtyard. He is truly a pitiable soul."

"It is also true that his left hand is injured—this is known throughout the Meng residence. For many years, he has used his right hand for writing and other tasks. Since he was born into the Meng family, he has never had to do heavy labor, so it hasn't really affected him."

As Yan Chi listened, he grew increasingly convinced that Meng Ziyi was not the murderer.

When the killer murdered Meng Jin, even if others had assisted in the process, it was impossible for multiple people to have thrown Meng Jin into the lake from such a distance. Moreover, considering how Meng Wei died—he was hung on a rope while being held—Meng Ziyi, with only one functional hand, could not possibly have hoisted Meng Wei up.

"Regarding his hand, have you never considered hiring a physician to examine it properly?"

At Yan Chi's question, Meng Zhou smiled bitterly. "It's not that we haven't tried. We consulted many physicians, but none could help. Later, one physician suggested that a meridian might have been damaged, though there were no visible signs."

Yan Chi frowned slightly. "Recently, Ninth Miss from the Loyal Marquis Manor came to treat the young master. Why didn't you ask her to examine Young Master Meng as well?"

Meng Zhou sighed. "His mother had given up. It's been years since we last consulted Physician Guo, so it didn't occur to me at the time." He quickly added, "When the opportunity arises, I will definitely ask Ninth Miss to examine Ziyi."

Yan Chi nodded. "From what I know, stuttering is also an ailment, and it is not incurable."

Meng Zhou repeatedly agreed. Only then did Yan Chi and Zheng Baishi leave the Meng residence. Once outside, Zheng Baishi said, "Your Highness, since we couldn't test it, does that mean the content of the painting was merely a coincidence?"

Yan Chi shook his head. "Whether it's a coincidence or not, we'll know after visiting the painting gallery."

With that, he took Zheng Baishi into the carriage and headed straight for Ning Buyi's painting gallery.

Upon arriving at the gallery, Yan Chi and Zheng Baishi waited in the carriage while Bai Feng, accompanied by two guards, went inside. After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, Bai Feng returned to the carriage.

"Master, I've found out."

"The painter was indeed Master Ning, the proprietor of this gallery. Master Ning said that while he was painting, he noticed the Second Master of the Meng family continuously gazing downstairs. At the time, he didn't know what the Second Master was looking at and assumed he was intentionally posing that way, so he captured the moment in the painting. He also mentioned that while he was working on this piece, another painter was sketching Young Master Meng and his wife, and yet another was painting portraits of the three ladies."

With this inquiry, the matter was clarified.

Zheng Baishi frowned upon hearing this. "But we already tested it today."

Yan Chi shook his head. "Today, we only tested whether Meng Ziyi knew martial arts, not what was depicted in the painting."

Zheng Baishi hesitated. "But Meng Jin is already dead. How can we test what was shown in the painting? And even if we do, do we have a way to determine the cause of Meng Jin's death?"

Yan Chi shook his head again. "For now, the only motive we have is the dispute over the Meng family's inheritance. Let's test it and see if there are any other possibilities. If not, detaining Meng Hui would be justified."

In the evening, Qin Guan received a message sent by Yan Chi.After reading the contents of the letter, Qin Guan's brows furrowed deeply.

Fuling knew the letter had been sent by Yan Chi and quickly asked, "What did the Crown Prince say? Why does the young lady look so troubled?"

Qin Guan shook her head, "It concerns the Meng family case—not good news."

Hearing this, Fuling asked no further. Qin Guan then inquired, "What can rose seeds be used for?"

Yan Chi's letter had mentioned not only Meng Ziyi's matter but also the investigation results regarding the Meng family's second wife. The sudden death of this second wife's fiancé had aroused Qin Guan and Yan Chi's suspicions. However, the investigation concluded that the fiancé had died from a summer plague infection, making foul play highly unlikely. As for the rose seeds, not only was no one in the Meng family found to be fond of roses, but no one there had an illness requiring rose-based medication either.

Fuling thought for a moment and said, "Rose seeds are naturally for planting flowers."

"But what if no one is planting roses?"

Fuling tilted her head, "No one planting flowers yet having seeds—could it be for medicinal purposes?"

"And if not for medicine either?"

Fuling seemed stumped, "This... this servant cannot think of anything else."

Unwilling to press Fuling further, Qin Guan sighed and said no more.

Meanwhile, Ban Xia noticed Qin Guan's teacup was empty and came forward to refill it. But as she poured, numerous fine tea fragments came out. Fuling immediately said, "Did you forget to take out fresh tea? Why are you brewing broken tea leaves?"

Ban Xia hurriedly explained, "There was just a little left in the tea canister, and I didn't want to waste it, so I poured all of it into the teapot."

Fuling sighed, "It's alright, just don't use tea fragments next time." She reached to remove Qin Guan's teacup.

But Qin Guan stopped her hand, "Tea fragments... could they be rose tea? When harvesting roses, perhaps they collected faded flowers with seeds still attached. After drinking, only the seeds remained?"

Fuling nearly laughed at this, "Does the young lady mean floral tea? For beverages, one should use fully bloomed, delicate flowers—not like dried flowers for bathing where any picking would suffice."

Qin Guan's eyes lit up, "Bathing?"

Fuling nodded, "Exactly. When I used to gather peonies for the young lady in Jinzhou's garden, I didn't dare pick too many. Some half-withered flowers were also collected. After drying them, a layer of seeds settled at the bottom."

Qin Guan stood up, her eyes sparkling.

"Yes, why didn't I think of that..."

She looked at Fuling, "Fuling, you've been tremendously helpful this time!"

Fuling blinked in surprise, then smiled sheepishly, "This servant has been helpful to the young lady?"

Qin Guan asked, "What flowers do we use here? Do we still have dried flowers?"

Fuling quickly nodded, "Yes, yes, we do."

Noble young ladies had numerous bathing supplies—fragrant balms, incense, fresh petals when available, and dried flowers when not. During this severe winter, dried flowers were most commonly used. When Fuling confirmed their availability, Qin Guan headed toward the bathing chamber with Fuling following closely. Upon reaching the bath chamber, Fuling produced a small brocade box. When opened, it revealed a full container of dried flowers.

"Young lady, ours are peonies."Qin Guan took the brocade box and specifically examined its bottom. Upon inspection, she indeed found some flower seeds and numerous petal fragments. After pondering for a moment, a look of certainty dawned in her eyes.

By the time she performed the autopsy several days later, if Meng Jin had drowned in a bathtub or bathing tub, he would have inevitably inhaled tiny petals. However, after several days, those minute petal fragments would have been digested by the drowning fluid and gastrointestinal juices, ultimately losing their original form. Only the flower seeds remained in his digestive tract.

Realizing this, Qin Guan promptly wrote another letter to Yan Chi.