There is a god in the sky

Chapter 243 Beauty Bones 3

Xiao Ji couldn't understand her anger.

Even explanations seem superfluous, because the other party wouldn't accept them.

Perhaps he underestimated Zhao Xuan's hatred for Shen Lan.

“Miss Zhao, you should know why I let her live in the Xiao family.”

You once sent a maid to follow her, and that maid later died a violent death outside her courtyard. The murderer has not been found to this day.

That place is so unsafe, how could I let her be in danger?

He glanced down at the man kneeling on the ground, and thinking of what Zhao Xuan had told him to do, Xiao Ji was filled with rage.

"If I hadn't captured this person today, would Miss Zhao have planned to stop?"

Zhao Xuan glanced at her well-maintained hands and sneered, "I heard from my brother before that you were very protective of her, even kicking your brother-in-law out of the house for her sake. I thought he was exaggerating, but now I see that I was wrong."

"Did he tell you why I kicked him out?"

Mentioning this matter only fueled Xiao Ji's rage.

"Tch, all I asked for was one person, and you're already so reluctant to part with them?"

Xiao Ji never expected that such words would come from the mouth of the dignified daughter of the Zhao family.

Just one person?

What kind of person does she take Shen Lan for?

Is this how the Zhao family treats the people around them who are useful to them?

“Miss Zhao, we have reached an impasse. Let’s end this here today. If you and your brother continue to target Miss Shen in the future, I will handle this officially.”

Zhao Xuan walked up to Shen Lan, lifted her chin, and said, "With a face like a vixen, how did you manage to get him to stand up for you?"

Shen Lan looked at her sympathetically, "Miss Zhao, why don't you go back and look in the mirror? You're prettier than me."

Her appearance is absolutely not related to the word "vixen".

Zhao Xuan found her praise grating.

When faced with the two of them, Xiao Ji only helped Shen Lan and not her, which made her even more embarrassed.

She let go of his hand and walked out of the room with her head held high.

The kneeling man hurriedly chased after her, "Miss, wait for me..."

"roll!"

Zhao Xuan left with her entourage.

Sui Feng stopped the man.

This guy is a street thug who often does petty theft; it's a good opportunity to take him back and punish him properly.

Shen Lan rubbed her chin with the back of her hand and teased Xiao Ji, "Thank you for your help, sir, but you've really offended your fiancée today. Have you thought about how you're going to clean up the mess?"

Xiao Ji sighed inwardly; he truly didn't understand what Zhao Xuan was thinking.

Today's conversation was unsuccessful and left behind a mess.

Fortunately, this resolved any potential problems for Shen Lan.

"I will order all bookstores to stop selling the picture album."

"Under what pretext?"

"Since Zhao Xuan said that someone stole her painting, then it's the perfect opportunity to take it back."

Whether the album is sold or not is irrelevant. As long as no one recognizes the person in the picture as her, it's just an ordinary picture album.

Before leaving the room, Xiao Ji stammered, "You... try to avoid seeing the eldest son of the Zhao family from now on."

"Okay," Shen Lan readily agreed.

As Shen Lan descended the stairs, she remembered something and asked, "Sir, has Wu Qing's case been officially closed?"

Xiao Ji turned to look at her.

He hadn't had a chance to tell Shen Lan what she had asked at the Tong family's house last time.

But if the case is closed, it doesn't matter whether those things are said or not.

"Go back and talk."

On her way back, Shen Lan saw the gentle breeze and bright moon in the hall.

I haven't seen the two of them for a long time. I heard they went south to meet with accounts.

As soon as the two returned, Xiao Ji assigned them new tasks.

When it comes to finding information, a servant or waiter is not as useful as a follower, since they are often out and about and have more sources of information.

Mingyue winked at Shen Lan and said as she passed by her, "We brought back gifts for Miss Shen and have already delivered them to your room."

Shen Lan thanked them and smiled at them.

These two are neither as unreliable as Sui Feng nor as aloof as Sui Ying, making them easy to approach.

After entering the study, Xiao Ji took a scroll from the bookshelf and handed it to her.

"Shortly after Wu Qing's death, her parents came to the yamen to drop the case."

Shen Lan opened the case file and saw the application to withdraw the case signed by Wu's parents.

She remembered that the two men were heartbroken over their daughter's death, so why did they withdraw the case before the verdict was announced?

"You find it strange too, don't you?"

"Were they threatened? Or were they bribed with a large sum of money?"

"Coercion and bribery are common tactics used by the powerful to quell matters. The Wu family accepted the benefits but were also coerced. They are just a minor official; they can't fight city hall."

"So the murderer really is the wife of the heir of the Marquis of Zhenyuan's mansion?"

"It's almost certain, the only thing missing is concrete evidence."

“I just saw her maid, Yanni, on the road. She should know something.”

"Is that the maid you abducted from the Tong family? She was interrogated by the Tong family and then sold by the Zhenyuan Marquis's mansion after she was released. Now she works for a merchant's family."

Shen Lan felt uneasy, "She... was also implicated because of me."

"To be honest, she was an accomplice in Wu Qing's death, and if I continue to investigate and involve the Crown Prince's wife, she will definitely be the one pushed out to take the fall!"

So not only did you not implicate her, you actually saved her life.

Finding a servant to die in one's place is a common solution for powerful and wealthy families.

As long as the maid confesses that she did everything, the authorities will be unable to find the real culprit.

That's why so many cases end up being left unresolved—because there are always various reasons why the investigations can't continue.

"If she knew the truth, why wasn't she silenced by the Crown Prince's wife?"

"The Tong family was investigating very closely at the time. If Yanni had died then, do you think the Tong family would have investigated further after her death?"

Shen Lan nodded; she was indeed quite cautious.

"Once the case is dropped, the case file is no longer needed. Take it back if you need to see it."

Shen Lan put the file back. "No need, I was just asking out of curiosity."

"The patriarch of the Wu family is being transferred to a post outside the capital and has been promoted one rank. This should be the compensation from the Zhenyuan Marquis's mansion."

Shen Lan felt a bitter taste in her mouth and a dry throat, as if she couldn't speak.

Perhaps this is the best outcome.

What's the point of stubbornly persisting? In the end, all you'll get is a scapegoat.

The Wu family still held official positions, yet they couldn't even punish the murderer for their daughter's death.

What about them?

How can these ordinary, nameless people possibly get the truth and justice?

"Sir, something terrible has happened..." Constable Xing ran in from outside.

He leaned against the doorframe, panting heavily, and said intermittently, "Sir...we...we found...we found skeletons in an abandoned house, a strange skeleton!"

"How strange?"

"You...you should take Coroner Shen over to have a look."

Shen Lan and Xiao Ji exchanged a glance, then walked out together.

"I'll go get the toolbox. You guys wait for me at the door."

Fortunately, her toolbox was found, with only a few knives and some medicine replaced; otherwise, the autopsy today would have been troublesome.