Shao Mingyuan smiled at Qiao Zhao and added, “Together with Miss Li.”

Qiao Zhao: “…” Did this man have no sense of sacrifice whatsoever?

At this moment, the atmosphere fell into an eerie silence.

The leading monk cleared his throat to break the silence, “Lord Marquis was together with Miss Li, but I’m afraid this doesn’t prove anything.”

“The chicken bones are still buried in the pit at the end of the bamboo grove and should still be warm now. As for witnesses—” Shao Mingyuan swept his gaze over the monks, his eyes settling on a certain spot as he said unhurriedly, “The two masters protecting Master Jingxi can testify.”

All the monks immediately looked toward those two monks.

The leading monk asked gravely, “Were you two junior brothers present at that time?”

The two monks exchanged glances, and one of them said, “The two benefactors were indeed roasting wild chicken at that time.”

The leading monk obviously couldn’t accept this fact and asked with a dark expression, “You two junior brothers weren’t asleep at that time?”

The two monks remained silent, both thinking in unison: How could we sleep? The roasted chicken smelled so fragrant!

Shao Mingyuan lowered his eyes and smiled secretly, but noticed a familiar gaze falling on him.

He turned his head and slightly raised the corners of his lips at the young woman looking at him.

Qiao Zhao abruptly withdrew her gaze and pressed her lips together tightly.

So when they were grilling, he had already noticed that the aroma had attracted the two monks. Yet he could still eat with such composure and enjoyment.

The abbot spoke, “This was all a misunderstanding. Please don’t take offense, Lord Marquis and Miss Li.”

Shao Mingyuan said calmly, “We understand the masters’ feelings.”

“Abbot, I would like to see how my coachman is doing now,” Qiao Zhao said.

With the abbot’s nod, the two headed toward the guest room.

The guest room door was tightly closed, but light shone from within.

Qiao Zhao knocked on the door, and Binglu’s voice immediately came from inside, “Stop knocking! I won’t let you bald donkeys in!”

“Binglu, it’s me.”

The door suddenly opened. Binglu was holding a chair, her eyes red, “Miss, I’m so glad to finally see you and General Shao.”

“What happened to Chen Guang?” Qiao Zhao asked.

Binglu set down the chair and glared warily at the monk who had accompanied them, angrily saying, “Chen Guang is fine. It’s these stinking monks who just pounded on the door so loudly, shouting about killing and fighting. This servant pressed against the door and didn’t let them in.”

The accompanying monk was displeased and put his hands together in salute, “Amitabha, the female benefactor misunderstands. A murder occurred in our temple just now, and we originally wanted to ask the two benefactors about the situation.”

Binglu snorted coldly, “Chen Guang is unconscious, and I’m just a young woman. What situation could you ask us about? You had ill intentions, wanting to randomly pin the murder charge on us.”

The little maid said this, then stepped forward to take Qiao Zhao’s arm, “Miss, this servant didn’t open the door just now. Did I do right?”

Qiao Zhao reached out to pinch the little maid’s cheek, “Very good.”

When the situation was unclear and one was powerless, avoiding it was indeed the best choice.

“I’ll go check on Chen Guang.” After speaking to Shao Mingyuan, Qiao Zhao lifted her foot and walked inside.

Shao Mingyuan stood at the doorway, watching the young woman bend down to examine Chen Guang. She lifted her hand to touch Chen Guang’s forehead, then touched her own, and then grasped his wrist to check his pulse.

Shao Mingyuan watched quietly like this, his gaze gradually deepening.

Binglu looked at Qiao Zhao, then at Shao Mingyuan, becoming increasingly confused.

After finishing her examination, Qiao Zhao helped Chen Guang sit up halfway and instructed, “Binglu, bring a cup of warm water.”

“Yes,” Binglu responded and immediately brought over a cup of water.

Qiao Zhao took it and brought the cup to Chen Guang’s lips, saying gently, “Chen Guang, drink some water.”

Chen Guang showed no reaction.

“Help me support him a bit,” Qiao Zhao said to Binglu.

Binglu did as instructed.

“Chen Guang, can you hear me speaking? Open your mouth and drink water.”

Chen Guang’s lips moved slightly, and most of the water that poured in flowed out along the corners of his mouth.

Shao Mingyuan had originally intended to step forward to help, but seeing this scene, his feet seemed rooted to the ground, unable to move a step.

That night, when he was unconscious, how had Miss Li managed to feed him medicine?

Qiao Zhao used a handkerchief to wipe the corners of Chen Guang’s mouth and sighed in relief, “Fortunately, he can drink a little. Binglu, remember to feed him like this every half hour, no matter how much he can drink.”

“This servant understands.”

Qiao Zhao stood up and walked to Shao Mingyuan. “General Shao, let’s go out.”

Shao Mingyuan’s dark eyes stared unblinkingly at the young woman’s light pink lips.

What was he looking at? Miss Qiao frowned and asked puzzledly, “General Shao?”

Shao Mingyuan came to his senses and cleared his throat lightly, “Let’s go.”

Without waiting for Qiao Zhao’s answer, he turned around first and strode out with large steps.

Qiao Zhao was completely bewildered. She shook her head and hurried to catch up.

This man’s legs were too long and his steps too big. If she didn’t keep up, she’d be left far behind again.

This night was destined to be sleepless for the monks of Dafu Temple. Lights were lit everywhere, and even the birds sleeping in the trees were awakened by this commotion, flapping their wings to find quieter places.

The head monk’s corpse was still in his room.

With the abbot’s permission, Shao Mingyuan accompanied the abbot inside to examine it.

The head monk’s fatal wound was in his back.

“Abbot, I believe that the one who killed the head monk was a monk from this temple.”

As soon as Shao Mingyuan said this, it immediately drew sideways glances from all the monks.

The leading monk angrily said, “Does Lord Marquis believe that the brothers from Shuying Nunnery and our head monk were killed by disciples from our temple? Do you have evidence for such a statement?”

Shao Mingyuan glanced at him and said unhurriedly, “Of course, it’s only speculation.”

“What is Lord Marquis’s basis?” the abbot asked.

Shao Mingyuan pointed with his hand, “Abbot, look. The furnishings in the head monk’s room show no signs of disturbance whatsoever. This proves he didn’t struggle with the murderer, but was killed while completely off guard.”

“What does this prove? The head monk was sleeping at the time, so naturally he was off guard.”

“No, the head monk had gotten up, and he welcomed the murderer into his room,” Qiao Zhao interjected.

“Impossible. When we came in, we saw the head monk lying on the bed,” the monks protested in unison.

Qiao Zhao looked toward Shao Mingyuan, who smiled slightly at her, indicating she should speak.

Qiao Zhao didn’t stand on ceremony and asked calmly, “After you masters came in, did anyone move the head monk?”

“No. After confirming the head monk had no breath left, we kept him in this position the whole time.”

Qiao Zhao smiled, “So isn’t this perfectly obvious? The head monk’s entire body is on top of this thin blanket, which means he was placed on the bed by the murderer after being stabbed.”

“There’s also the angle of the wound,” Shao Mingyuan added. “If the head monk had been stabbed while lying face down sleeping, the wound’s entry angle shouldn’t be like this, but rather angled downward. This wound angle could only be caused by the murderer stabbing from behind.”

The monks looked at each other, and one asked, “Then how does this prove the murderer was someone the head monk welcomed in?”

“The window was closed. Since the head monk was stabbed in the back with a sharp weapon, the only possibility is that he opened the door for that person and was killed while turning to walk inside.” Shao Mingyuan swept his gaze over all the monks. “This shows that the head monk trusted the murderer very much.”