“A man? Six feet tall? And left-handed?” Huo Huaixin looked at the wedding dress laid out on the table and asked puzzlingly, “The height is one thing, but how does the Marquis know he’s left-handed?”
Yue Qiong picked up the wedding dress. “Brother Huo, look here. This dress was worn by that person. The dress is new, yet only the left sleeve has stains and pulled threads, while the right sleeve is pristine. I’ve had people check—these stains are moss from the back wall of the Plum Garden, surely left when the person entered the courtyard. Someone wearing a wedding dress would move carefully, and they must be left-handed to have inadvertently left marks on the left sleeve…”
Huo Huaixin looked carefully, his eyes suddenly brightening. “How astute, Marquis!”
Receiving this praise, Yue Qiong dared not accept it. His lips curved slightly, his smile somewhat bitter. These weren’t his accomplishments—he had simply omitted to mention Qin Wan’s role to avoid involving her in trouble.
After some thought, Huo Huaixin continued, “Tonight’s events are bizarre, but they’ve given us a breakthrough in the case. The Song Duke Manor’s wedding procession included twenty low-ranking servants for carriages and ceremonial duties, twenty guards, eight matrons and stewards, six personal maids, plus Young Master Wei who escorted the bride and his two personal attendants. If the Marquis is correct about this being Miss Song’s backup wedding dress, we can simply ask her head matron about it, while investigating all the male servants and guards. Isn’t that straightforward?”
Yue Qiong’s expression grew serious. “That’s precisely the logic, but Brother Huo, what’s the motive here?” He paused before continuing discreetly, “This person impersonated Miss Song’s corpse, yet didn’t seek me out or approach Jia and the others, but instead targeted someone unrelated… a servant in the manor. Why frighten an uninvolved person?”
Before Huo Huaixin could respond, a clear voice rang out.
“Naturally, it’s to create panic within the manor. The Marquis and Young Master are heavily guarded, making it difficult to approach them, so they target other servants instead. They only needed to appear and be seen.”
Huo Ning stood to the side, his expression solemn. “This matter involves both the Duke’s Manor and An Yang Marquis Manor. This person might be trying to escalate the situation and provoke conflict between the two households, or perhaps create a distraction to hinder our investigation. However, the manor’s servant was astute enough to remember the perpetrator’s characteristics, making identification not difficult.”
Seeing Huo Ning’s confident expression, Huo Huaixin glared at him before smiling apologetically to Yue Qiong. “Marquis, please excuse him. My son is passionate about this case, so I’m letting him gain some experience.”
Yue Qiong’s lips curved slightly, showing no concern. “Young Huo is promising and wishes to help you—that’s good. However, does Huo Ning’s reasoning suggest he’s certain the killer is among the wedding escort?”
Huo Ning hesitated briefly. “That… we’ll know after investigation. After all, Song Rou was the Young Miss of the Song family. Whether servants or guards in the wedding escort, all were deeply loyal to the Duke’s Manor. There’s no reason they would harm Miss Song.”
Yue Qiong nodded slightly. Since the prefecture had officially taken the case, any investigation would require Huo Huaixin’s presence. He said, “In that case, I’ll escort Magistrate Huo to the East Garden. Currently, all the Song Duke Manor’s wedding escort servants are residing there. Jia and Qing have already gone to account for all male servants and guards, ensuring none are missing.”
Huo Huaixin’s expression brightened. “Excellent! If we find this person, even if they’re not the killer, they could provide crucial leads. That would make this case much simpler, unlike now where we don’t know where to begin.”
The victim was the Young Miss of the Song Duke Manor, and it involved the An Yang Marquis Manor. Huo Huaixin knew that solving this case might not be considered a great achievement, but failing to solve it would be a catastrophic error!
Three days had passed since the incident, and he had no leads. Just as he was lying sleepless with worry, this development at the Marquis Manor was like a gift! Huo Huaixin was certain the case would be solved within days!
Beaming, Huo Huaixin followed Yue Qiong to the East Garden, which was brightly lit throughout. All the Song family’s male servants and guards had been gathered in one place. When Huo Huaixin arrived, Yue Qing was speaking with a bewildered Wei Yanzhi.
“Brother Yanzi, we’re not withholding information, we’re just waiting for the Prefecture Chief…”
His eyes swept across the courtyard. “Ah, the Prefecture Chief has arrived!”
Wei Yanzi also immediately noticed Huo Huaixin and hurried forward. “Prefecture Chief, has there been any progress in Xiao Rou’s case?”
As Wei Yanzi was the leader of the wedding escort, representing the Song Duke Manor, Huo Huaixin dared not be dismissive. However, he truly had no progress to report, so he could only say, “Young Master Wei, please don’t be anxious. Tonight’s visit concerns the case. We questioned everyone on the night of the incident, but due to new developments, we need to ask some questions again.”
Wei Yanzi’s face showed disappointment, and he asked hoarsely, “How is Xiao Rou?”
This question sent chills down Huo Huaixin’s spine. Song Rou was dead, her death tragically brutal. She had been lying in the public mortuary for days and was hardly presentable anymore—how could there be any “how is she?” Huo Huaixin smiled bitterly. “She’s fine, everything’s fine. The memorial hall you set up at the mortuary that day is still there, with incense burning continuously. Young Master Song, please take care of yourself.”
Wei Yanzi gritted his teeth and nodded with difficulty. “Please, Prefecture Chief, take this seriously and find Xiao Rou’s killer quickly. I’ve dreamed of her two nights in a row. She cannot rest in peace. She came to Jinzhou Prefecture alone and now lies lonely in the mortuary, her jade-like beauty destroyed, unable even to have proper funeral rites. It’s truly…”
Prefecture Chief Huo felt immense pressure. This was just Wei Yanzi—in a few days when official representatives from the Song Duke Manor arrived, they might hold a knife to his throat demanding the case be solved. “Of course. I work day and night and dare not be negligent. Young Master Wei knows the yamen’s procedures—before the case is solved, the deceased must remain in the mortuary. The mortuary is guarded, which is most beneficial for solving the case.”
Wei Yanzi nodded and stepped back dejectedly. “Ask whatever you need to ask, Chief. We will cooperate fully and hide nothing.”
Huo Huaixin was very satisfied with Wei Yanzi and instructed the dozen or so yamen runners behind him, “Split into two groups. Question each person individually. After questioning, they must leave the courtyard and not speak with those remaining.”
Having served as an official for many years, Huo Huaixin had his own methods. Upon his instructions, the yamen runners sprang into action, using two empty rooms in the East Garden. All the male servants from the Song Manor waited outside, being called in one by one for questioning.
Turning around, Huo Huaixin added, “Find Miss Song’s head matron and ask if she recognizes this wedding dress.”
The wedding dress was currently held by a yamen runner. At these words, Wei Yanzi looked toward the runner’s hands, his pupils trembling.
Wei Yanzi stepped forward. “Wait, where did this wedding dress come from?”
Huo Huaixin frowned, not answering the question. “Does Young Master Wei recognize it?”
Wei Yanzi went forward without hesitation and examined the wedding dress. His eyes immediately widened. “Of course I recognize it! How could I not? This is handmade from the capital’s Jinxiu Workshop, with all the embroidery done in gold thread. The pomegranate and other patterns are even inlaid with precious stones. This single dress is worth thousands of gold pieces. During the journey here, we were with Xiao Rou day and night—everyone would recognize this as her wedding dress!”
His expression darkened. “Did the Prefecture Chief take Xiao Rou’s wedding dress?”
Huo Huaixin’s lips twitched several times. Song Rou’s body lay in the mortuary, but given her status, Wei Yanzi had set up a memorial hall the night she was placed there. Moreover, he had decreed that no one could touch Song Rou’s remains until representatives from the Duke’s Manor arrived. Huo Huaixin wished he could change her clothes—heaven knows how horrifying it was to have a headless corpse in red wedding attire lying in the mortuary!
“Of course not. This isn’t the one Miss Song is wearing!”
Wei Yanzi was stunned, then said incredulously, “Could it be… Xiao Rou’s backup dress?”
Huo Huaixin and Yue Qiong exchanged glances before Huo Huaixin nodded. “Very likely, which is why we’re calling Miss Song’s head matron.”
Wei Yanzi looked dazed. “But… as far as I know, that dress was never taken out. How did the Prefecture Chief obtain it?”
Huo Huaixin didn’t answer, only saying, “Young Master Wei will know shortly.”
As they spoke, someone had already gone to summon Song Rou’s head matron from her quarters.
Wei Yanzi’s face showed uncertainty and anxiety as his eyes fixed urgently on the courtyard entrance. Soon, two women wearing dark blue narrow-sleeved shirts and skirts entered. Though there was much activity in the East Garden that night, the male and female servants were housed separately, and the two matrons didn’t know why they had been summoned. They were feeling apprehensive, but as soon as they entered the courtyard, they saw the bright red wedding dress in Wei Yanzi’s hands!
Their faces paled, and the two matrons stopped in their tracks, their eyes showing terror.