The commander of the guards took the order and left.
The courtyard of the Qianqing Palace became quiet again.
The eunuch glanced at the emperor's silent back and lowered his head quickly, not daring to make any sound.
Time passed by minute by minute.
a long time,
"Today is the second round of selecting the prince's consort. Li Qingcha should be waiting in the front palace, right? Summon him to see the emperor... Never mind. Let him go to Zhongcui Palace directly and leave this matter to him. He must investigate it thoroughly."
The emperor's voice sounded unusually distant.
The eunuch did not move.
He needed to wait at least three seconds to see if the emperor had any orders for the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Three Judicial Departments, the Imperial Observatory, and other institutions.
However, there was only a long silence.
"..."
"..."
"..."
The chief eunuch said: "Your Majesty, the harem is a forbidden area..."
The emperor immediately interrupted.
"There is no need for my gold medal. Just let Sirou or Yongjia accompany him, just like the cold palace jewel robbery case back then."
"promise."
The eunuch left quickly and headed straight for the front palace.
At this moment, Li Qingcha was chatting with Lin Sicong and Jie Chengxuan, discussing where to eat lunch.
The eunuch entered the room and exchanged pleasantries.
"Master Li, come with us."
Li Qingcha was stunned.
"Eunuch, the process of selecting the prince's consort is all handled by the eunuchs and palace maids. We are only responsible for the handover and reporting to the emperor. We cannot enter the harem at will."
She had the emperor's will and could enter the palace at will like the Grand Secretary and the Chancellor of the Chancellery, but it was limited to a small range.
In the harem, you definitely can't go to the concubines' bedrooms.
The emperor is also afraid of wearing a hat.
The eunuch shook his head.
"There's a big case."
That one sentence made the room fall into silence.
Li Qingcha exchanged glances with Lin Sicong and Xie Chengxuan, then nodded.
"Please lead the way, sir."
So, the two of them went through many twists and turns and entered the harem together.
The palace was under complete martial law, with a sentry every five steps and a sentry every ten steps. The guards looked like tigers and wolves, ready to devour anyone at any time.
Just from the high-pressure atmosphere, Li Qingcha could sense the seriousness of the situation.
She lowered her voice,
"Father-in-law, where are we going?"
The chief eunuch didn't waste any words and answered directly: "Zhongcui Palace."
Hearing this location, Li Qingcha's eyes flashed.
Zhongcui Palace...
Isn’t that the bedroom of the Seventh Prince’s mother?
Things are getting interesting.
The two walked forward in silence until they arrived in front of Zhongcui Palace.
The eunuch waved his hand.
"Master Li, please wait a moment. You cannot go in directly to see Concubine Lin without someone else accompanying you."
Li Qingcha was stunned.
"Why doesn't the father-in-law come with me?"
"emperor……"
Before he finished speaking, a voice came from the courtyard.
"As long as I am here, it's alright."
The chief eunuch was stunned for a moment, then said, "Since His Royal Highness the Seventh Prince is here, then of course there is no problem."
As he said this, he made way.
Li Qingcha shook his head.
"My father-in-law must come in with me so that he can be a witness when I ask questions later. Besides, I can't do two things at once. It's hard for me to ask questions and take notes at the same time. I need someone to help me."
The eunuch: ￣□￣｜｜
He didn't want to cause trouble, but Li Qingcha insisted on causing trouble, so he had no choice but to agree to it.
The two entered the courtyard of Zhongcui Palace.
At this time, the place was heavily guarded, especially next to a dry pool, which was surrounded by guards in three layers inside and outside.
The Seventh Prince came forward and lowered his voice.
"Just now, a palace maid found a skeleton in the pond."
Li Qingcha nodded slowly and walked towards the pond.
There was a blanket on the ground. The skeleton on the blanket had been pieced together as best as possible, with all the bones in their proper places. It looked like there was no damage, so it should be a complete corpse.
Li Qingcha squatted down, looked directly at the skull, and gently rubbed the eye sockets with his fingers.
tsk...
It's quite scary.
She turned around and asked the Seventh Prince: "Who found the body?"
The Seventh Prince said, "A palace maid discovered it while drying flower petals. Every year at this time, my mother would prepare sweet-scented osmanthus cakes and use the stones beside the pond to dry the flower petals, so she would drain the water from the pond in advance. The duration is usually from mid-July to the end of August, only one and a half months each year."
“Why drain the pond?”
"If the pond is not drained, it will be very humid and the petals won't be able to dry at all."
Li Qingcha was quite speechless.
I can only say that rich people really know how to have fun, and they have so many ways to waste money.
If you have the spare time, why not just clear a space in the yard and use bamboo strips to dry the produce? Why do you have to go with something purely natural?
Li Qingcha asked: "Is the palace maid's testimony credible?"
The Seventh Prince hesitated for a moment.
"It should be credible."
"That's fine."
"You want to ask her a question? I will..."
"Wait a minute, let's take a look at the body first... er... skeleton."
Li Qingcha shifted his gaze.
The skull was whiter than expected, but it was still covered with dust.
She stretched out her hand and rubbed her eye sockets again, then observed the dust on her fingers. She rubbed her two fingers together to test the texture of the soil, and the corners of her mouth curled up in an imperceptible arc.
Then she stood up and clapped her hands.
"We should let the coroner come."
The eunuch behind him coughed lightly.
"Lord Li, this matter should not be spread outside the palace. What is it that you are confused about?"
"First, we need to determine whether the skeleton is male or female. Second, basic information such as age. Third, an experienced criminal expert can draw the person's appearance based on the skeleton."
"Ah? Is this possible?"
The chief eunuch thought Li Qingcha was talking nonsense.
Li Qingcha pondered.
"Forget it, let's talk about this later."
Suddenly he changed his tone.
The chief eunuch nodded, thinking that Li Qingcha was just acting on his own accord. However, the Seventh Prince was familiar with Li Qingcha and smelled a conspiracy.
Chapter 404 Putting the blame on
The Seventh Prince stared at Li Qingcha.
"how?"
Li Qingcha shook his head.
"This case is both complicated and simple. It is complicated because it happened in the palace, and many common criminal investigation methods cannot be used; it is simple because the case does not seem difficult."
Not difficult...
The chief eunuch murmured in his heart, unless Li Qingcha could really judge the living and the dead, how would he start with a skeleton?
You are such a boaster.
He coughed lightly,
"Master Li, do you need any equipment?"
The implication is whether an autopsy is necessary.
Li Qingcha pondered for a moment and said, "What's the first thing that comes to your mind when you see this corpse?"
The chief eunuch did not speak.
People around the emperor are like this and will not express their opinions easily.
The Seventh Prince said: "Fell into the water by accident?"
Li Qingcha smiled and said, "Whether he fell into the water accidentally or not is actually very simple. We can tell by checking his skull."
"How to do?"
"First, wash and wipe the surface with strong vinegar, then pour hot water into the top of the head. When a living person is drowning, they breathe in through their noses, and when they struggle, they will definitely inhale mud and sand. When the body is thrown away after death, the breath has stopped, so there will naturally be no mud and sand."
The seventh prince's eyes lit up, and he immediately turned around and ordered people to bring various instruments for autopsy.
Li Qingcha shook his head.
"No, let a professional coroner do this."
Seventh Prince: ???
Chief Eunuch: ???
There is obviously a solution, why not do an autopsy?
Doesn't Li Qingcha want Zhong Cuigong to be cleared of the charges so early?
White silk is not allowed to ride on my sister.
Li Qingcha said: "I think we should first question the person who found the body."
The Seventh Prince stared at Li Qingcha for a while, then nodded slowly.
