AUBTN -Chapter 331 The Disappeared Guard

Not long after, Yun Niang, dressed in mourning clothes, was escorted in expressionlessly by two members of the Imperial Guard.

The moment she was brought once more into that familiar hidden chamber, it was as if she had been struck by lightning.

All color drained from her face instantly. Her legs gave way, and if not for the guards supporting her from behind, she would have collapsed to the floor.

Looking at the four imposing figures before her, her lips trembled in fear.

“Yun Niang,” Su Hewan said calmly, her voice cool and steady.

“Don’t be afraid. We only want to know where you were and what you did on the night Prince Zhennan was killed.”

“More specifically, did you come here or not?” Yu Qing asked bluntly.

“You’d better think carefully before answering.”

Yun Niang’s gaze landed on the indecent objects hanging on the walls, and the mixture of shame and fear made her entire body shake.

“I… this common woman… did come here that night,” she whispered, her voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz, yet every word was clear.

“Why did you come? And how long did you stay here?” Su Hewan continued.

“After the prince returned to the capital, he sent someone to pass along a message, saying… saying he wanted to see me and Xiao Bao. So we often arranged to meet here.” Yun Niang lowered her head, not daring to look at anyone.

“But on the night the prince died, after I arrived, he said the princess consort seemed to have become suspicious that evening. To avoid causing further trouble, he told me to leave first. Altogether… altogether I stayed for no more than the time it takes to burn one stick of incense.”

Her account matched Su Hewan’s earlier deductions almost perfectly.

“When you left, did the prince seem unusual in any way?”

“No…” Yun Niang tried hard to recall.

“The prince only seemed somewhat disappointed. He even said he would find another opportunity the next day to bring our mother and son over. He personally peeled two oranges for me and told me to take them back for Xiao Bao…”

As she spoke, tears rolled down her cheeks again.

Lu Yan looked at her coldly.

“If there is even half a lie in your words, I guarantee that you and your son will spend the rest of your lives inside the imperial prison.”

At the mention of her son, Yun Niang reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. She suddenly raised her head, her face filled with terror and desperation.

“I’m not lying! The prince was my whole world—he was Xiao Bao’s father! How could I possibly harm him? Every word I said is the truth! If there’s even half a falsehood, may both Xiao Bao and I be struck by lightning and die horribly!”

Tsk, she’s even making the harshest oath possible. Doesn’t look fake to me… Yu Qing muttered inwardly.

Shen Jue looked at Yun Niang and asked coldly, “Prince Zhennan’s residence was heavily guarded. How did you come and leave without anyone noticing?”

“It… it was one of the prince’s personal guards,” Yun Niang hurriedly answered.

“Every time I came to see the prince or left afterward, a personal guard named A’Wu escorted me. That big brother was a very kind man.”

“A’Wu?” Lu Yan immediately turned toward Chang Lin.

“Go bring him here and let Yun Niang identify him.”

Chang Lin accepted the order and left.

However, in less than fifteen minutes, he returned alone, hurrying back with a grave expression on his face.

“Your Highness,” Chang Lin reported with a bow.

“This subordinate questioned every personal guard who accompanied the prince back to the capital. They all said that A’Wu disappeared after the prince’s death!”

The moment those words were spoken, Yun Niang’s face turned even paler.

“That’s impossible!” she screamed, eyes wide with disbelief.

“That’s impossible! He was clearly the one who escorted me out that night! I remember what he looked like—around thirty years old, with a scar over his left eyebrow!”

Before she could finish, Chang Lin shook his head.

“This subordinate has already checked through the entire personal guard unit. There’s no one matching that description.”

“N-No… that can’t be…”

Yun Niang broke down.

The only witness had vanished into thin air. In an instant, she went from being a victim to the prime suspect in the murder case.

Yunniang collapsed to her knees and desperately kowtowed before the four of them.

“Your Highnesses, please spare me! Princesses, please spare me! Everything I said is true! I swear on my son’s life that I really didn’t kill anyone! Please… please believe me!”

Seeing her crying so miserably, on the verge of a complete breakdown, even Yu Qing felt a little sorry for her.

Su Hewan stood up and walked over to her, her voice as calm as ever.

“Get up first. We’ll uncover the truth eventually.”

She turned toward Shen Jue and Lu Yan.

“For now, I think we should lock her up and keep her under strict guard.”

The two men gave slight nods in agreement.

Soon, the sobbing and pleading Yunniang was dragged away by the guards.

The secret chamber fell silent once more.

“It’s over. Our only lead is gone,” Yu Qing sighed dejectedly.

“Do you think that guard named A’Wu teamed up with Yunniang to kill the prince, and then hid himself so she’d take the blame?” Yu Qing speculated.

“But what would be the motive?” Su Hewan asked.

“Even if he was the killer, he had plenty of chances to do it before. Why choose that particular night?”

“Ugh…” Yu Qing sighed again. Solving a case really wasn’t easy.

Lu Yan gently patted her head.

“Don’t lose heart. The truth can’t stay buried forever.”

Su Hewan nodded.

“That’s right. We’ve been so focused on figuring out who the murderer is that we overlooked the most fundamental question.”

She paused, then enunciated each word carefully.

“We should first figure out how the killer managed to leave without anyone noticing after committing the murder.”

With that, the four of them resumed their investigation.

Then suddenly, Su Hewan cried out—

“I’ve got it!”

“Got what?” Yu Qing hurried over at once, while Shen Jue and Lu Yan also turned to look at her.

Smiling, Su Hewan pointed toward the hidden chamber door.

“On the night of the murder, after killing Prince Zhennan and taking the tiger tally, the killer hid inside this secret room. In truth… he never left at all.”

Shen Jue’s eyes lit up immediately as he continued her reasoning:

“Then the killer waited until noon the next day, when the servants of the manor noticed something wrong and broke open the study doors. At that moment, the cries of shock and the chaotic footsteps outside threw everything into confusion. Everyone’s attention was fixed on Prince Zhennan lying in a pool of blood.”

“The killer took advantage of that chaos, pushed open the hidden door, and silently blended into the first group of people rushing into the study. Since he was already someone from the manor, naturally no one would suspect him.”

Su Hewan smiled brightly at her husband.

“Exactly.”

“What a perfect trick of shedding one’s shell like a cicada,” Lu Yan sneered.

“It seems the only person capable of killing Prince Zhennan and knowing about the secret chamber must have been someone he deeply trusted and kept close.”

Now they knew how the killer escaped, but they still had no clue about the motive.

At the side, Yu Qing was practically about to pull her hair out in frustration.

“Someone close to him?”

“Princess Consort Liu Chaoru? She’s a sheltered noblewoman who probably doesn’t even dare kill a chicken, let alone silently slit the throat of a battle-hardened general.”

“And the three sons all have solid alibis. Besides, every one of them is a weak and useless playboy. How are we supposed to investigate this?”

Su Hewan also let out a sigh.

“We can’t afford to waste more time here. Today is already the third day. Of the seven-day deadline His Majesty gave us… only four days remain.”

Four days.

The moment those words were spoken, even the usually carefree and joking Yu Qing fell silent, her face turning pale.

Serving the emperor was like living beside a tiger. If they failed to produce both the real murderer and the missing tiger tally within seven days, it wouldn’t just be Shen Jue and Lu Yan—the two powerful ministers—who would suffer the consequences.

The two of them probably wouldn’t escape disaster either.