Miss Truth-Chapter 488 - 321: Martyrdom or Murder

Everyone in the courtyard paused in their actions. Ling Xiang had long been freed from her servile status, and she had already sworn an oath to never marry, serving the Lady for life. Now that a disaster had struck, the first reaction of everyone was that Ling Xiang had committed suicide to follow her mistress in death.

Lady Dugu’s heart tightened, and she immediately returned with the Maid, her face drawn tight, lips slightly pursed, she asked in a deep voice, "How is Ling Xiang now?"

"She slit her wrists, and the room is full of blood. When the Slave came, a Doctor had already been summoned, but the Slave thinks it’s a bit doubtful." The Maid’s face was pale, but her thoughts were still clear, her words well-ordered.

Lady Dugu did not ask any more questions but quickened her pace, hurrying into the courtyard that the late Lady Xiao used to live in.

Lady Xiao’s body had not yet been prepared for burial and remained on the couch in her original bedroom, while Ling Xiang’s room was right next to the Lady’s. However, while Lady Xiao was alive, Ling Xiang had set up a small couch in the Lady’s bedroom, staying in the room for the convenience of attending to her at any time.

Ran Yan also followed Lady Dugu and the others into Ling Xiang’s room. As soon as she entered the room, a strong smell of blood assailed her nostrils. Many women covered their noses and mouths with their sleeves.

Inside the room, Duke Xiao and the others had already arrived. Several Servants stood at the curtain of the inner chamber, blocking most people outside, and from the outside, the specifics of what was inside couldn’t be seen.

Ran Yan followed behind Lady Dugu, but she was not stopped either.

Inside, Ling Xiang lay neatly on the couch, her right hand clutching a bloody short knife, her left wrist bearing a neat wound from cutting her wrist. The curtains and walls of the room were splattered with blood, but the splashes were comparatively low, and Ling Xiang’s pure white gown was stained with only a little blood.

There was, however, a large pool of blood accumulated on the floor.

Although Ran Yan had been by the Lady’s side every day for the past month, she had not spoken much to Ling Xiang and thus was not very familiar with her. Even so, seeing a familiar person turned into a corpse, Ran Yan couldn’t help but turn her gaze away, saddened.

Xiao Song sensed her emotional change and leaned over, secretly taking her hand. Ran Yan was slightly startled, struggled twice, but he firmly held her hand in his.

There were too many people in the room, and Ran Yan, fearing her movements were too noticeable, quietly let him hold her hand. His warm palm wrapped around her hand, the uneasiness in her heart gradually subsided, replaced by a feeling of solid reassurance.

To an expert in this field, the scene almost had no flaws at first glance, and would surely be considered a loyal suicide to follow her mistress in death.

But Duke Xiao and his brothers were seasoned individuals. Even if they could not see any flaws in the scene, considering various factors together, they still felt something was amiss. They were immediately discussing whether to report the matter to the Government Office.

After only a brief discussion, they had reached a decision. Duke Xiao turned his head with a stern face and ordered, "Yuezhi, I entrust this matter to you, investigate it thoroughly."

The Xiao family was a prestigious noble family. If it were truly a murder, it would be damaging to their reputation if word got out. But one cannot cover the sky with one’s hand, and nobody could guarantee that Ling Xiang’s death could be completely concealed. The best strategy was: whatever the cause of Ling Xiang’s death, externally they would declare it a loyal suicide, accord her high funeral rites to blur the truth, and privately investigate the matter thoroughly to find the murderer and deliver them to the Government Office, using the family’s connections to seal off any leaks of information.

Xiao Song was not keen on taking on this task, but the whole room of clan members were looking at him, and it was not up to him.

He released Ran Yan’s hand, had everyone leave the room, keeping only a few eyewitnesses and several Maids from the Lady’s side, and he instructed Bai Yi to call over thirty Guards to secure the Lady’s courtyard.

After that, Xiao Song began to inspect the crime scene. Ran Yan understood his habits well—he preferred to examine the scene personally instead of waiting for his subordinates to report their findings. Those guards were all brutes who only noticed the obvious; subtle clues could easily be overlooked.

"Search Ling Xiang’s room and the senior lady’s chamber to see if anything is missing," Xiao Song instructed after carefully inspecting both rooms, then ordered the four maids who served the Duchess to check inside.

The Duke and the others left the room and sat down in the pavilion by the water in the courtyard, discussing the funeral arrangements while waiting for the preliminary results of Xiao Song’s search. Meanwhile, the women had all returned to their smaller eastern quarters.

Whenever Ran Yan saw a corpse, she couldn’t help but draw closer, especially if the deceased hadn’t been dead for long. Many minute clues on the body were still clearly visible at that time.

It wasn’t long before Liu Qingsong also hurried over, joining Ran Yan to examine Ling Xiang’s body.

"How is it?" Xiao Song immediately asked Ran Yan as she lifted the curtain and came out.

Ran Yan pulled off her gloves while sitting down next to Xiao Song, "The wound on the wrist is a clean cut, and from the wound, it indeed seems to be caused by the short knife in her right hand, but... The wounds caused by the victims themselves and those inflicted by others vary in force and direction. The wound on Ling Xiang’s wrist is very deep, larger on the inside and smaller on the outside, yet the position Ling Xiang held the knife clearly wasn’t a backhanded grip."

Typically, when one cuts their own wrist with the dominant hand, the wound is larger on the outside and smaller on the inside, while those inflicted by someone else are the exact opposite.

However, some people prefer to cut from inside out with a backhanded grip, like those used to wielding a pair of knives.

"Moreover, if it was a suicide, there would usually be ’hesitation wounds.’ People have a sense of fear when harming themselves, regardless of whether they want to die or not. It’s a natural bodily reflex; the first cut isn’t usually very deep. If they really intended to die, they’ll certainly make one or two more cuts," Ran Yan continued, seeing that Xiao Song had no further questions, she added, "There is only one cut on Ling Xiang’s wrist, and it’s bone deep. Unless she was specially trained, ordinary people simply couldn’t make such a deep cut on themselves so cleanly."

An ordinary person, no matter how brave or determined to die, will instinctively feel fear when cutting themselves. They may think they are cutting deeply, but in reality, the force is never as strong as when someone else does it.

"Most importantly, there is petechial hemorrhaging under Ling Xiang’s conjunctiva. I suspect she was smothered to death before her wrist arteries were cut," Ran Yan finally summarized her opinion.

Just after asphyxiation, the heart stops abruptly, but the flow of blood throughout the body doesn’t cease immediately. The murderer could have taken advantage of this moment to cut the victim’s arteries, which would still result in blood spatter, but it would be less forceful than if she had been alive. If Ling Xiang was indeed alive when her wrist arteries were severed, the blood spatter would be more extensive than it is now.

It’s now almost certain that Ling Xiang was murdered.

After searching on the other side, Liang’er came in to report, "Jiulang, the heirloom that the Duchess wanted to leave to Miss has disappeared."

Apart from Ling Xiang, Liang’er was the person the Duchess trusted the most, so she also knew about some of the items that were placed.

"Heirloom? What kind of item?" Xiao Song asked.

Ran Yan had not yet had the chance to discuss this matter with him, so she took the opportunity to carefully explain the Duchess’s instructions to him.

Who would steal the Duchess’s heirloom? And why take that item? (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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