Miss Truth-Chapter 493 - 324: Anyan, I’m Scared

"This matter is full of doubts, and yet not one can prove it was the work of the Ah family." Ran Yan said.

Everyone looked at her in surprise, but they soon realized that this daughter-in-law of low birth must be eager to please the Ah family and thus had spoken up. Therefore, no one took her words to heart for the moment.

Ran Yan understood what they were thinking but kept her composure, speaking in an even tone, "Firstly, from morning until now, the Ah family has been in everyone’s sight, busy with arranging the funeral of the grandmother and didn’t have any spare time to plan this; secondly, what would be the motive for the Ah family to do such a thing? The grandmother made it clear—the object was to be delivered to the Ah family by Ling Xiang, and then the Ah family was to present it to the aunt in the palace. Even if there was a need to tamper with the contents, the item would eventually end up in the Ah family’s hands anyway, they could have done it quietly. Why choose murder and robbery? Thirdly, one might consider that certain things need not be done by the Ah family personally, but this murder was clearly premeditated. The grandmother’s death was unexpected; how could the Ah family possibly have committed this crime in such a short time? And how could they use their own maid, Maid Tuo, with such impunity after the murder?"

Ran Yan listed the doubts one by one, and while everyone else could think of these points as well, no one had questioned the motive because the judgement on the Du Guxi hadn’t yet been set, and how could they treat the formidable Duchess as a suspect and interrogate her? Duke Song would never agree to it.

However, as Ran Yan laid out the arguments so clearly, everyone couldn’t help but glance toward Xiao Song, obviously suspecting that he had coached her.

There were more pieces of evidence on the corpse, but Ran Yan knew she could not discuss these matters in front of everyone. So she merely said, "The murderer’s clumsy methods of framing someone raise the question: do they think the Ah family is not clever enough, or do they doubt the wisdom of the elders here? I truly cannot understand. Besides, Doctor Liu has said there are many doubts about Ling Xiang’s body, and the seniors here may question him."

The expressions of the crowd varied, and Xiao Jing also found himself cornered. Ran Yan’s words were eloquent, making it seem that if he arrested Du Guxi, he would be a fool—yet with the suspicion still there, he couldn’t simply ignore it.

The room fell quiet for a moment before Xiao Song suddenly said, "Our Xiao residence hasn’t been very peaceful recently. It seems we must strengthen the mansion’s security."

Simply put the entire Xiao residence under lockdown—Xiao Jing and the others also had this in mind. Although he understood Duke Song’s detestation of evildoers, with everyone in the residence holding distinguished statuses—Duke, State Lady, Princess, county princess—who could they thoroughly monitor just because they said so?

Thereby, when Xiao Song made this suggestion, everyone turned their eyes to Duke Song.

"Those who do not have to attend court can stay at home," Duke Song, with the least patience for these messy affairs and a deep hatred for dark and lowly villains, said. The fact that the murderer had committed this deed under his watch had clearly touched a nerve, and turning the Xiao residence upside down right now was something he had no objection to as long as outsiders were unaware.

Seeing that Duke Song agreed, Xiao Jing changed the topic, "Let’s settle on this for the moment. Preparing for mother’s funeral is of utmost importance. Now that she is being buried with the status of Queen, even though the publicly displayed funeral rites can only be conducted as for a first-rank State Lady, the burial itself will still be handled according to the rank of Empress in the Zhou rites. Does anyone have any objections?"

Everyone expressed no objections. After all, they were about to entomb Madame Xiao with Emperor Xiao Ming, opening up the imperial mausoleum—how could they skimp with lower-ranking rites? Moreover, since the Emperor had granted her the posthumous title of "Charitable Empress of Liang," her status was already implicitly acknowledged, and he wouldn’t mind which rites they used in private.

They needed to discuss the details further, so they let the younger generation leave first.

Leaving the council hall, Xiao Song and Ran Yan walked shoulder to shoulder to the courtyard where they were staying. It was only then that he took her hand and smiled, "Lady is truly astonishing."

Xiao Song had always known Ran Yan was composed in the presence of corpses, but family law was as severe as national law, and in such solemn occasions, every Xiao clan offspring did their utmost to make themselves as inconspicuous as possible. Yet, Ran Yan remained as tranquil as ever, and in that moment, she was truly compelling.

Even though the members of the Xiao clan had not shown much appreciation for the doubts Ran Yan raised, nor had they expressed any surprise, deep down they surely would not overlook her performance today.

"Actually, finding the murderer in this case is not difficult, there are many questionable pieces of evidence." With Ran Yan’s many years of experience in solving cases, even without utilizing autopsy evidence, she still had ways to find the murderer through various clues.

Xiao Song sat down, wrapping his arms around her, and said, "But there is a tactic of sacrificing a pawn to save the chariot. No matter how you investigate, all the evidence eventually points to that one piece, because this piece simply follows an order, all actions are carried out by it."

For instance, in this case, the murderer could just be a deeply hidden pawn, without any connection to the mastermind. This pawn might have only received a veiled order—to frame the Dugu clan. All subsequent actions would be planned by the pawn, who might also have subordinates, hence all evidence would never trace back to the real mastermind.

"Perhaps the order was given in hastiness, so the plan was rushed, leaving so many flaws." Ran Yan sighed. There had been too many murders for power, money, or passion. It’s just that, "I knew things weren’t simple before marrying you, but I never imagined the waters to be this deep."

He held her waist and whispered in her ear, "Regretting it?" freewёbnoνel.com

Without waiting for Ran Yan to answer, he buried his face in the nape of her neck, chuckling, "It’s too late."

Ran Yan slapped him lightly, "Let go of me, there are so many people in the house today, and you’re still being handsy."

"Ah Yan, I’m scared," Xiao Song murmured, unwilling to lift his head.

The man who always seemed to hold all the aces, brimming with confidence and pride, suddenly saying such a thing, Ran Yan thought she had misheard. She paused for a moment before realizing he was indeed saying these words. Thinking it must be because of the recent death of Lady Xiao that he felt unsettled, she reached out and embraced his head, "Don’t be afraid, we are together."

Ah Yan, it’s precisely because you are by my side that I fear for your safety, Xiao Song murmured in his heart.

Xiao Song had considered keeping Ran Yan out of this matter even before their marriage, but Ran Yan had already reached the age of marriage, and others were eyeing her. If he constantly disrupted her marital prospects, sooner or later his intentions would be discovered, and they could be separated. Better to marry her and protect her at home.

But as he fell deeper into this love, he started to care more and more.

People have vulnerabilities because they care about someone or something, and because they have vulnerabilities, they fear. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote with a recommendation ticket or monthly ticket at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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