Since revealing her identity as the owner of Luxingxiang, the business hasn’t expanded. Instead, the supply of fragrances had decreased, catering more exclusively to noble ladies and women of high status.
As a result, while Luxingxiang was more profitable than ever, it maintained a lower profile. Consequently, no more troublemakers were daring to cause disturbances at the establishment.
“How was Miss Xiu’s disappearance confirmed?” Jiang Si asked.
“Yesterday, Miss Xiu went to a plum garden in the suburbs to inspect the quality of the winter plums. She hasn’t returned even today. Miss Chuchu felt something was amiss and went to search for her. The garden owner said Miss Xiu had left yesterday…” Aqiao explained.
Jiang Si furrowed her brows. “Did Miss Xiu go alone?”
“She took an assistant with her,” Aqiao replied.
“So, neither of them has returned?”
Aqiao nodded. “Miss Chuchu interrogated the garden owner but couldn’t get any information. That’s why she urgently sent someone to inform me. Madam, what do you think—”
Jiang Si pondered for a moment before saying, “Let’s go to Luxingxiang first.”
There were too many possibilities regarding Miss Xiu’s disappearance. It could have been a chance encounter with criminals who targeted them for money, or it could have been a deliberate act against her.
In Jiang Si’s view, the latter seemed more likely. She had just dealt with the Princess Consort of Prince Qi, causing Prince Qi to lose face. Rumor had it that the first thing people thought of when Prince Qi was mentioned was how impoverished his household had become. Under these circumstances, Prince Qi might target Luxingxiang as a means of retaliation against her.
After all, it would be more challenging to strike at Jiang Si directly, whereas targeting Luxingxiang would be much easier.
Contemplating these possibilities, Jiang Si quickly made her way to Luxingxiang with her entourage.
Luxingxiang’s doors were closed, with a sign indicating temporary closure. Jiang Si entered directly through the back door and met Lu Chuchu.
Lu Chuchu’s face was grim. “Your Highness, Miss Xiu is missing!”
“I heard from Aqiao,” Jiang Si nodded slightly. “Miss Chuchu, was there anything unusual before Miss Xiu left yesterday?”
Lu Chuchu thought carefully before shaking her head. “It was no different from usual. Miss Xiu is always particularly attentive to fragrances. Whenever she hears of good flowers somewhere, she goes to see them personally. This isn’t the first time.”
“And the assistant—”
“He’s reliable too, has been with Luxingxiang even longer than I have.”
“What about his family situation?”
Lu Chuchu paused before answering, “I sent someone to inform his family. They seemed completely unaware and are very worried now that they’ve heard he’s missing.”
Jiang Si temporarily ruled out the possibility of the assistant being involved. Generally, if an assistant had been bought off, they would have quietly arranged for their family’s safety, rather than leaving them in the dark as they were now.
Of course, some ruthless individuals might abandon their families for personal gain, but such people were rare and unlikely in this case.
After all, it wasn’t an immense fortune at stake. Ordinary people who sought benefits usually did so to improve their families’ lives.
“What about the plum garden owner?” Jiang Si inquired.
Lu Chuchu’s eyes flashed with anger. She quickly excused herself, saying, “Please wait a moment, Your Highness.” She left swiftly, returning shortly with a man in tow.
The man was somewhat portly, a middle-aged gentleman with a prosperous appearance. He looked indignant but didn’t dare to voice his complaints as Lu Chuchu dragged him in.
“Our owner is here now. Let’s see if you dare to keep things from Her Highness!” Lu Chuchu pushed the middle-aged man towards Jiang Si. “Your Highness, this is the owner of the plum garden, the one who invited Miss Xiu to view the plums.”
Jiang Si coldly examined the middle-aged man.
The man immediately bowed deeply. “This humble one pays respects to… to Your Highness…”
Jiang Si, not bothering with pleasantries, asked directly, “At what time did Miss Xiu arrive at your garden yesterday?”
“She arrived around noon, just after this humble one had finished lunch.”
“And when did she leave?”
Without hesitation, the man replied, “Around 3 to 5 PM.”
Jiang Si pondered this information. If the garden owner wasn’t lying, Miss Xiu had stayed in the garden for about two hours, which was sufficient time to inspect the winter plums. The journey from the suburban garden back to Luxingxiang would take about an hour. Leaving at that time, Miss Xiu would have had no problem entering the city before the gates closed. The timing seemed consistent with Miss Xiu’s usual behavior.
Jiang Si’s expressionless scrutiny made the middle-aged man increasingly nervous. His face twitched with anxiety.
This was the esteemed Princess Consort. If she became angry, would she have his garden torn down? No, demolishing the garden would be nothing—would she have him torn apart?
With this thought, the man’s legs began to tremble uncontrollably.
Jiang Si intuitively felt that this matter had little to do with the middle-aged man, but she couldn’t let him off easily. She pressed further, “You say Miss Xiu left around 3 to 5 PM. Do you have any witnesses?”
The middle-aged man was taken aback. Witnesses? This suddenly felt like an official interrogation, complete with demands for testimonies and evidence.
Lu Chuchu glared at the man. “Her Highness asked you a question. Answer!”
Aman followed with her glare, barking, “That’s right! Your eyes are darting around, and you’re not speaking. Are you trying to concoct a lie?”
The middle-aged man was on the verge of kneeling. With a dejected face, he cried, “This humble one wouldn’t dare deceive Your Highness! Witnesses—ah, I remember now! When I was seeing Miss Xiu off, some children came to the garden to secretly pluck plum branches. My wife caught them and chased after the little rascals with a broom. One child fell, and Miss Xiu helped the child up. She’s truly a kind person—”
“Enough nonsense!” Lu Chuchu reprimanded him, then looked towards Jiang Si.
After a moment of contemplation, Jiang Si made a decision. “In that case, let’s go to the plum garden and find that child to ask.”
Miss Xiu’s sudden disappearance required her to first rule out the involvement of the assistant and the garden owner before focusing her efforts elsewhere.
“Your Highness, perhaps we should bring more people,” Aqiao suggested softly, feeling inexplicably uneasy.
Jiang Si nodded, instructing Long Dan to bring additional guards. The group then set off for the suburban plum garden.
It was not yet noon when they arrived. The garden was in full bloom with winter plums, their waxy yellow petals shimmering like gold, creating a captivating scene.
Winter plums bloomed two months earlier than regular plum blossoms, and now was the height of their splendor.
Jiang Si paused to inhale the fragrance, waves of sweet scent washing over her.
Winter plums were one of the flowers used in making high-grade fragrances, which explained why they had attracted Miss Xiu’s attention.
“Your Highness, we’ve found the children who were plucking plum branches,” Long Dan reported, approaching her.
Jiang Si’s gaze shifted to see four or five children, each about seven or eight years old, tightly held by adults.
The adults all looked nervously at her, while the children’s eyes were filled with curiosity.
Jiang Si softened her tone. “I heard that one of you fell today. Which one was it? Are you hurt?”
The children unconsciously looked towards a chubby boy.
The boy’s face suddenly turned red, and he mumbled softly, “It doesn’t hurt at all.”