It was already midnight, with four hours remaining until dawn.
Approximately half an hour later, a carriage and several fast horses stopped at the entrance of the small alley. Soon, heavy and chaotic footsteps approached from outside, reaching the gate of the residence. Zhao Yu and Yan Chi, waiting in the wind and snow, turned quickly at the sound. Their expressions changed simultaneously upon seeing who had arrived.
The people at the gate were none other than Qin Shu and Hu Shi, the married couple. Hu Shi, clearly frightened, was being supported by Qin Shu, while Qin Yan and Qin Ye followed behind them. A few guards from the Marquis’s estate trailed further back, with the guards sent by Zhao Yu bringing up the rear. Seeing the entire Marquis’s household appear together, Yan Chi frowned slightly.
Zhao Yu was the first to express surprise, "Why have the Marquis and Madam come?"
Hu Shi’s eyes were red, and in her hand, she clutched the jewelry that the guard had just delivered to the Marquis’s estate.
Upon hearing this, Hu Shi’s lips trembled, rendering her speechless. Her gaze shifted and fell upon the charred corpse covered with a felt blanket on the ground. She let out a sharp cry and stumbled backward. Qin Yan and Qin Ye hurriedly rushed to support her, and Hu Shi leaned against Qin Yan, wailing uncontrollably.
"My Yu'er... why were you so desperate...?"
Hu Shi’s reaction clearly indicated she believed the corpse on the ground was Qin Chaoyu. Yan Chi stepped forward and asked, "Why have you come here?"
Today was Yan Chi and Qin Guan’s wedding night. Yan Chi had only brought Qin Guan home during the day, never expecting to meet again so soon, and under such circumstances.
Qin Shu’s expression was deeply somber. "We had already retired for the night when we heard that the Imperial Guards had come to visit. When we saw the jewelry they brought, we immediately recognized it as Yu'er’s belongings. Before Yu'er’s marriage, we specially commissioned a set of jewelry for her, crafted by the finest artisans of the Brocade Embroidery Workshop. To match the 'Yu' in her name, each hairpin was adorned with a feather motif at the end. Her mother recognized it at a glance. Then, hearing from the Imperial Guards that two bodies had been discovered, we rushed over immediately..."
Zhao Yu was dumbfounded and couldn’t help but glance back at the corpse on the ground. Though the body was badly burned, its height and build were still discernible. At that moment, even Zhao Yu felt it could indeed be Qin Chaoyu. "But... that’s impossible. Why...?"
The wind and snow were fierce, and none of the Qin family had brought umbrellas. Hu Shi only had an extra cape draped over her shoulders. Now, she wept as if her world had collapsed. "I’ve said it all along—Yu'er couldn’t have fled the palace on her own. She... she must have been forced... She was murdered!"
Hu Shi tried to lunge toward the corpse, but Qin Yan quickly held her back. "Mother, the body is unrecognizable. It might not be Sister!"
Hu Shi continued to sob, "These pieces were your sister’s favorites. If it isn’t her, how could her things be here?"
Yan Chi narrowed his eyes instantly. Only he was certain that the Crown Prince and the Empress had already left the capital. If Qin Chaoyu had intended to follow them, it was unlikely she would have left even her jewelry behind. Yet now, not only were there two female corpses here, but jewelry and jade ornaments were also found at the scene. It was all too bizarre.The already tragic and eerie scene became even more sorrowful and desolate with Hu Shi's mournful weeping. Although the Marquis's household had arrived quickly, no one knew when the coroner from the prefectural office would come. Upon learning this, Hu Shi couldn't help but plead with Yan Chi, "Prince Rui, where is Guan'er? Let Guan'er come. Let her see if this is her sister or not."
Though fear had left Hu Shi disoriented, she still remembered that Qin Guan was the best coroner in the Great Zhou Dynasty. But how could Qin Guan possibly come here?
"Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is critically ill. Just now, His Majesty sent someone to bring her into the palace to treat the Empress Dowager."
Hearing this, Hu Shi was both shocked and despairing, while Qin Shu was also taken aback—the Empress Dowager was critically ill?!
Qin Yan and the others were momentarily speechless. It was clear that this night was far from peaceful—trouble had also erupted in the palace. Under these circumstances, they could only wait.
The snowstorm was too heavy for carriages to enter the narrow alley. While the men could endure it, Hu Shi could not withstand the harsh conditions.
Before long, Hu Shi was swaying unsteadily in the bitter wind. Seeing no alternative, Qin Shu and his son had no choice but to escort Hu Shi back to the carriage.
Once the Qin family had left, Zhao Yu grew impatient. "Your Highness, since we cannot determine anything here for now, why not leave two men to keep watch while we check on the progress of the interrogation elsewhere? Regardless of whether the body here is the Crown Princess or not, the most urgent matter now is to locate the Empress and the Crown Prince."
Yan Chi did not object. "Very well, let us go and see."
With that, Zhao Yu indeed left his only two Imperial Guards behind and accompanied Yan Chi as they made their way out of the alley. At the alley entrance, Hu Shi was still weeping inside the carriage. When she saw Zhao Yu and Yan Chi approaching, her sobs grew even more intense. Zhao Yu bluntly stated that they had urgent matters to attend to, and Qin Shu and his wife had no choice but to let Yan Chi depart.
Once mounted, the snow had already accumulated a thick layer on their shoulders. Zhao Yu lightly flicked his horsewhip, clearly anxious.
Yan Chi rode behind him, his gaze fixed in the distance. "You seem quite worried."
Zhao Yu pursed his lips. "We have been searching for days, yet there is still no trace of the Empress and the Crown Prince. Of course, I am anxious. Now that two more bodies have been discovered, I fear that the Empress and the Crown Prince may have already left the city. The words of the Marquis's wife made me wonder—if the Crown Princess, the Empress, and the Crown Prince left the palace but later regretted it upon learning of their rebellion, would the Empress and the Crown Prince have killed her in a fit of rage?"
This speculation was quite reasonable and echoed Hu Shi's earlier implication.
Yan Chi, however, did not respond immediately. Lifting his gaze, he saw that they had already arrived at the temporary command post of the Garrison Battalion in the southern part of the city.
This was a government outpost located two streets away from the city gate, typically used by the Nine Gates Garrison. However, since the Imperial Guards had taken charge of the search, the outpost had been requisitioned by the Imperial Guards of the imperial city. Usually, Zhao Yu and Yan Chi would command from here, and all intelligence from the entire capital would be delivered to this location.
Amid the snowstorm, the gate of the outpost was slightly ajar, and the interior was pitch black, devoid of any light.
Yan Chi rode up to the gate and frowned. "Where is everyone?"
Zhao Yu quickly explained, "Tonight, all personnel have been dispatched. The suspects we just captured are being interrogated in the rear courtyard."Without suspecting anything, Yan Chi dismounted and strode forward, pushing open the yamen's main gate. He entered without hesitation. The courtyard before the main hall was pitch dark as well. Yan Chi did not enter the main hall, instead following the corridor outside it and passing through a side gate to the rear courtyard.
Upon entering the rear courtyard, he saw only a dim, yellowish glow emanating from the main room surrounded by three wings of side chambers.
Yan Chi approached without a second thought, but Zhao Yu gradually came to a halt. As Yan Chi reached the doorway, his steps paused slightly, and he turned back to look. "What is it?"
Zhao Yu stood more than ten paces away from Yan Chi, watched him for a moment, and suddenly said, "Your Highness, my apologies."
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