ASTRP -Chapter 84 The Prince and Feng Jingge were highly in sync while “solving the case”

“That’s right, it really is my younger sister!”

The man nodded heavily.

“Ever since the day she ran into you, my sister has vanished completely from the world—there’s been no trace of her!”

“If it wasn’t you who did it, then who else could it be??”

Prince Yu was furious beyond control. He had merely bumped into that girl once, yet somehow he was suddenly pinned with a crime.

He widened his eyes in anger. “Did you see your sister die with your own eyes? Or did you personally see her killed by this prince?”

“I saw her enter Prince Yu Manor with my own eyes!”

The man gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot as he glared at Prince Yu, his rage even greater than Prince Yu’s.

His expression was ferocious, as if he wanted to bite a piece of flesh off Prince Yu just to vent his hatred.

Prince Yu was wronged and had no way to defend himself. When he saw his imperial uncle, Feng Jingge, and the magistrate of Jingzhao all looking at him, he felt like he had jumped into the Yellow River and still couldn’t wash himself clean.

“I…”

For a moment, he didn’t know what to say, so he turned his gaze toward Feng Jingge. “Imperial Uncle…”

Feng Jingge pressed her lips together, just about to speak, when Xiao Jinghan spoke first.

“Has there been any unfamiliar woman entering your residence recently?”

His gaze landed on the steward beside him.

Because it was Xiao Jinghan asking, the steward instantly became the center of everyone’s attention.

Prince Yu also stared intently at him.

The steward shook his head. “No.”

Xiao Jinghan pressed further, “Are you sure?”

This time, before the steward could respond, a low voice suddenly rang out.

“There is a new one.”

“Who?”

Prince Yu’s eyes sharpened as he swept his gaze over the servants gathered at the doorway.

But all the servants lowered their heads, none daring to speak.

Prince Yu roared, “Who just spoke?!”

Feng Jingge was speechless inwardly: with your murderous aura, who would dare admit it?

Still, no one answered.

Prince Yu’s expression darkened visibly, as if he was about to explode.

At this moment, the steward stepped forward. “There is one new person, but she can’t really be considered an unfamiliar woman.”

Prince Yu turned sharply. “What do you mean?”

Feng Jingge suddenly noticed that the two men tied up on the ground exchanged a glance, then quickly lowered their heads again.

Their heads were down, but their ears were clearly perked up, clearly eavesdropping.

She leaned slightly toward Xiao Jinghan and lowered her voice. “Those two are not right.”

Her voice was so soft that only the two of them could hear.

Xiao Jinghan responded lightly. “Mm.”

Mm?

Feng Jingge frowned slightly.

Did that “mm” mean he understood? Or was he just answering her?

The steward continued, “There is a new maid in the kitchen, but she’s not really a stranger. One of the cooks fell ill and needed a month of rest, so her niece came to replace her.”

A cook’s niece?

Such a coincidence?

As Feng Jingge thought this, she noticed the two tied men glance at each other again.

And in that instant—there was a flash of joy in their eyes before it disappeared immediately.

If she hadn’t been watching closely, she would never have noticed it.

It seemed… the fire incident had hidden details.

And these two people were definitely hiding something too.

That cook’s niece probably had hidden secrets as well.

Xiao Jinghan asked, “When did she enter the manor?”

The steward thought carefully for a moment before replying, “Early this month.”

The Jingzhao Magistrate spoke up. “If I’m not mistaken, didn’t Your Highness also say the girl Prince Yu collided with was at the beginning of the month?”

“And both of you also witnessed the girl’s sister entering Prince Yu Manor.”

“Right now, all clues point toward the cook’s niece.”

He paused slightly, then stood up and said respectfully:

“In my opinion, Your Highnesses, why not summon that cook’s niece for questioning?”

“Perhaps this is just a coincidence…”

Prince Yu immediately cut him off. “There’s no way such a coincidence exists in this world!”

“Besides, why should we just believe everything they say?”

He pointed at the two men on the ground. “It was clearly them who set fire to my residence—why has the investigation turned back onto me instead?”

The Jingzhao Magistrate remained calm and unshaken.

“This official is merely trying to clarify the sequence of events. How has that become interrogating Your Highness?”

“If Your Highness believes they are lying, I do have a method to verify it.”

“If they are proven to be lying, I will personally send them to prison and punish them according to the law.”

“But if they are telling the truth, then I ask Your Highness to invite the cook’s niece here.”

Prince Yu knew the magistrate’s temperament well—he was impartial and upright.

But today, he simply felt irritated.

Yet with his imperial uncle present, he could not lose his temper.

He turned to Feng Jingge.

Feng Jingge said lightly, “This is your residence. The decision is yours.”

“It also depends on how much you want the truth.”

“If you don’t care about the truth, we can stop here and leave the rest to Magistrate Wang.”

“If you care, then proceed as he suggests.”

Prince Yu frowned in thought.

After a moment, he finally said, “Let’s follow Magistrate Wang’s suggestion.”

The magistrate immediately ordered the steward to separate the two suspects into different rooms and interrogate them.

He asked them about the missing girl’s appearance, what she wore the day she disappeared, and what exactly happened after she collided with Prince Yu.

After writing down their answers, the magistrate handed them to Feng Jingge first.

Feng Jingge looked at them together with Xiao Jinghan.

Their answers were nearly identical.

After reading, it was passed to Prince Yu.

Prince Yu’s face darkened more and more as he read.

Everything written matched exactly what had happened that day.

Seeing his expression, the magistrate asked, “Your Highness, do their statements match the girl you encountered that day?”

Prince Yu pressed his lips together. The more he read, the darker his face became.

The answer was already written on his expression.

He waved his hand at the steward. “Go—bring her here.”

The steward left immediately.

Feng Jingge glanced sideways at Xiao Jinghan, and he glanced back at her.

Their eyes met.

“You watch later.”

“I’ll watch.”

Both voices lowered at the same time.

They both froze for a moment, then smiled slightly.

They really were in perfect sync.

The steward returned quickly.

Behind him was a small girl, around twelve or thirteen years old, dressed in plain clothes.

She kept her head lowered, her face unseen.

The steward said, “Your Highness, this is the cook’s niece.”

The two men tied on the ground immediately fixed their gaze on the girl, staring intently.

Prince Yu looked at her and felt a faint sense of familiarity.

“Raise your head.”

The girl still kept her head down, her voice slightly hoarse as she said, “This servant has a rash on her face… I’m afraid…”