The Shadow of Great Britain-Chapter 673 - 328: Where is the Enemy_3

Arthur furrowed his brows upon hearing this and spoke, "Mr. Harrison, are you trying to tell me that the person drowned? If that’s the case, we should have found plenty of mud and sand in the victim’s mouth, nose, and lungs, especially in a place like the Thames River. These characteristics should have been more prominent."

Harrison hurriedly defended, "That’s not what I mean. If it really was the maid who died, I wouldn’t have had the courage to report it, after all, her death would be more or less connected to me."

"Then who died?"

Taking a deep breath, Harrison began, "After my maid fell into the river, I immediately sent the coachman to fish her out. But it was only after we had managed to save her that I discovered Norton fast asleep in the carriage. I was about to lash out at him, but then I thought that perhaps this incident could be... of further use. This maid of mine was new, and the previous one, due to dishonesty, I was contemplating dismissing."

Great Dumas’s eyes widened as he said, "You can’t be saying that it’s the previous maid who died?"

Harrison nodded, "Indeed, it was her, but the girl had succumbed a day before the incident. I was still considering how to inform her family to take her back for burial when this all happened. After the incident, I thought maybe I could utilize it further..."

Arthur then asked, "If that’s the case, how do we explain the excessive amounts of arsenic found in the victim’s body?"

Harrison said awkwardly, "Mr. Hastings, didn’t I just mention it? That girl wasn’t honest, often stealing things from my house, especially those cosmetics that beautify and nourish the skin. That excessive arsenic in her stomach only proves that my past suspicions about her were correct."

"And if you don’t believe me, you can always ask my other servants to testify. I had specifically ordered them to stay silent, but now it seems there’s no need for that. Of course, if it weren’t for that incident, my wife would surely have been willing to speak for me. But ever since ’The Times’ published that article, we have been living apart."

Louis, stroking his chin, asked, "So, are you saying that Judge Norton submitted a false autopsy report because he thought he had killed someone?"

"Half right,"

Harrison pursed his lips, "Besides being acquitted, he was also eyeing to regain the favor of the Tory Party’s bigwigs through this case, and return gloriously to the Lower House. But now, it seems he has completely given up on that dream, hence his turning to seek glory from the Whig Party in the hopes of securing the position of Deputy Chief Prosecutor for London. Alas! That scoundrel was ultimately played by Viscount Melbourne. As it turns out, fools will always be deceived, not learning their lesson the first time, they must be taught again."

Upon hearing this, Louis and Great Dumas exchanged glances, never having imagined that the case that had Scotland Yard up in arms would just be a farce concocted on a whim by these two fools.

And the chain reactions this case set off even nearly affected the political stability between the Tory and Whig parties.

Arthur nodded slightly, "In that case, are you willing to accuse Judge Norton of perjury in court?"

"That depends on the situation..."

Harrison didn’t dare to be absolute in his commitment since it was clear he had another, more pressing matter to clarify.

Harrison said, "Mr. Hastings, I swear to God, I have nothing to do with the assassination attempt in Liverpool. There were some issues between us before, but it doesn’t affect our personal relationship. Especially now, you and I can become very good friends."

"As for the Polish lass you sent, I really didn’t contact her afterwards. Of course, I’m referring to not contacting her on my own initiative. But if she came to me on her own, then you can’t put all the blame on me."