As the woman appeared, the onlookers began to whisper among themselves.
“I was just wondering if it could be Wang Sheng’s daughter, and it turns out it is—”
“Yes, ever since Wang Sheng’s daughter went missing two years ago, his wife would cry whenever she saw anyone. It was quite pitiful.”
“Wasn’t it said that Wang Sheng’s girl had eloped with her lover? How did she end up in the well?”
“Who knows? Perhaps her lover murdered her for money and then took the fortune to marry another pretty young thing…”
“I always thought, how could Wang’s girl elope with anyone, given her ordinary looks? Most likely she was tricked…”
Zhen Shicheng listened to these discussions impassively, then asked the woman, “Could you tell us about the circumstances of Acai’s disappearance?”
The woman fixated on the bones on the ground, continued sobbing, seemingly oblivious to Zhen Shicheng’s question.
A nearby man bowed to Zhen Shicheng: “Honorable Official, I am Acai’s father. Allow me to explain.”
Zhen Shicheng nodded slightly.
The man wiped his eyes and began, “I remember clearly. Two years ago, on the Flower Festival, the estate gave some girls time off. Acai said she wanted to go out to play. My wife and I softened our hearts and agreed, but Acai never returned from that outing—”
Zhen Shicheng patiently waited for the man to dry his tears, then asked, “Do you have any suspects in mind?”
“Yes!” The man’s voice unconsciously rose, his eyes flashing coldly. “Acai had a sweetheart named Aguang. That day, Acai must have arranged to meet that boy… Aguang is the murderer who killed Acai. I beg the Honorable Official to bring justice—”
The woman beside him burst into loud sobs, cursing between tears: “That damned Aguang, he’s the one who harmed my Acai—”
Zhen Shicheng listened expressionlessly. When their emotions had subsided somewhat, he asked, “If Acai and Aguang were in love, what reason would Aguang have to kill Acai?”
“Because we didn’t approve of their relationship!” The man’s face showed anger. “Aguang’s parents died early, leaving only a sickly grandfather who had moved out of the Wang estate. If Acai married into his family, she would only suffer. Of course, we didn’t agree. That boy must have harbored resentment. Seeing no hope of marrying Acai, he killed her and fled with the money she had secretly brought that day…”
“So, Aguang is no longer at the Wang estate now?” Zhen Shicheng asked, stroking his beard.
The Wang estate steward quickly responded, “Reporting to Your Honor, Aguang hasn’t been seen since the Flower Festival two years ago.”
“For such a runaway servant, was there an official report filed?”
The Wang estate steward looked towards Prince Xiang.
Prince Xiang, not expecting the steward to be so quick-witted in finding such suitable grieving parents, felt increasingly at ease. He said calmly, “The official is asking you a question. Answer truthfully.”
The Wang estate steward bowed and said, “We did report it at the time. The authorities should still have a record.”
Zhen Shicheng nodded slightly.
For a matter that could be easily verified, only a fool would lie.
“What about Aguang’s grandfather?”
“I remember this, Your Honor. When Acai didn’t return that night, her father specifically asked me for leave to go to Aguang’s home to look for her. He discovered that Aguang’s grandfather had already passed away…” the Wang estate steward replied.
The woman emotionally interjected, “Honorable Official, Aguang must have found his grandfather gravely ill but had no money for a doctor. He killed Acai for money, but when he found his grandfather had passed, he simply became a runaway…”
“So, was it because Aguang was upset that you didn’t approve of Acai marrying him, or was it for his grandfather?” Zhen Shicheng asked.
The woman faltered.
The man glared at his wife and explained, “Honorable Official, these are just our speculations. Only Aguang knows why he harmed Acai, but there’s no doubt that her death is connected to that boy.”
“Are you certain these bones belong to your daughter Acai?” Zhen Shicheng asked seriously, pointing at the skeleton on the ground.
The bones on the ground were stripped of flesh, with only indistinguishable undergarments hanging loosely on them. A head of long hair, though lacking luster, remained surprisingly thick.
However, it was impossible to determine even the gender based solely on long hair, let alone identify it as one’s daughter.
Yet the couple insisted, nodding.
“There’s no mistake. The steward has checked. In the past three years, the only young girl who went missing was our Acai. If these aren’t our daughter’s remains, whose could they be?”
Standing at a distance, Prince Xiang felt much more relaxed.
Initially worried about being implicated, he now felt reassured that this boy called Aguang could take the blame.
“May I ask what positions you hold in the Wang estate?” Zhen Shicheng inquired.
The woman said, “This servant works in the kitchen.”
Zhen Shicheng looked at the man.
The man followed, “I work under the purchasing steward—”
Zhen Shicheng asked, seeming casual, “So, you two live quite comfortably in the Wang estate?”
The couple exchanged glances, hesitantly nodding: “The Prince is generous, we get by…”
Zhen Shicheng opened his handkerchief, revealing the small pearl earring: “Take a good look. Is this pearl earring something your daughter wore?”
The man glanced at it, his eyes flickering slightly, and quietly looked at the Wang estate steward.
The steward nodded imperceptibly.
The man hurriedly said, “It’s Acai’s. I’ve seen Acai wear it!”
“Uh, is it Acai’s?” Zhen Shicheng pressed.
This time, even the woman chimed in through her tears: “It’s Acai’s. This was Acai’s favorite pair of pearl earrings—”
Zhen Shicheng let out a cold laugh, enunciating each word: “Your mouths are full of lies. This pearl earring is something you could never afford!”
This statement immediately caused a stir, with many people whispering, “Surely they can afford a pair of pearl earrings…”
In the eyes of those from the Wang estate, Wang Sheng and his wife held decent positions, and could certainly afford not just a small pair of pearl earrings, but even gold hairpins for their daughter.
Undoubtedly, the pearls on the earrings, barely larger than grains of rice, didn’t seem valuable to the people.
Prince Xiang, displeased, said, “Does Magistrate Zhen think I mistreat my servants?”
Zhen Shicheng smiled, “How Your Highness treats the estate’s servants is not within the scope of my investigation. I’m merely discussing the facts at hand.”
“Is that so? How does Magistrate Zhen determine they couldn’t afford to buy their daughter a pair of pearl earrings?”
Prince Xiang, having seen many treasures, didn’t consider rice-sized pearls to be anything special.
Zhen Shicheng held up the pearl earring and announced loudly: “Because the pearl set in this earring is no ordinary pearl!”
“What? It’s not a common pearl?” Many people, hearing this, craned their necks to look, including several princes.
Zhen Shicheng carefully held up the pearl earring, positioning it directly in the sunlight.
“Can everyone now see how different this pearl is?”
The previously unremarkable pearl, bathed in sunlight, suddenly became iridescent, changing colors as Zhen Shicheng rotated it with his fingers.
Prince Lu gasped, blurting out: “It’s a moonlight pearl!”
“These things are incredibly expensive,” he thought to himself. “My wife has a pair, and they cost me a fortune!”