There is a god in the sky

Chapter 286 The Broken Engagement Scandal 1

Xiao Ji ordered his men to bring the evidence, all of which were items taken from the deceased.

Besides weapons and clothing, there were also some ornaments and silver coins.

Xiao Ji did not see the iron plaque, nor did he see the clothes with animal skins.

However, they probably wouldn't carry these things that represent their identity with them.

Wait a minute! If you didn't carry anything with you, you must have hidden it somewhere first.

"Somebody come!"

Xiao Ji called someone in and instructed, "First, go to the backyard of Fulai Inn and see if there is anything the assassin has hidden there. If not, go along the route from the inn to the crime scene and search all the places where things could be hidden."

After Xiao Ji took over the Crown Prince assassination case, the officials of the Criminal Investigation Department implicitly regarded him as their leader.

Magistrate Xu also knew that Lord Chu valued Xiao Ji more, but this was no one else's fault but Xiao Ji's current favor with the emperor.

He was busy writing down his findings in the dossier when a shadow fell.

He didn't hear a sound for a long time, then looked up and saw Zhao Xuan standing in front of his desk with a basket in her hand.

Her gaze fell on the case file, her expression gentle; there was no trace of arrogance or ruthlessness in her eyes.

“I heard you’ve been very busy lately. I went out for a spring outing yesterday and saw a very beautiful peach tree. I cut a few branches for you.”

She searched around for a vase, then chose a tall blue-and-white porcelain vase and arranged the peach blossoms in it.

"Is it pretty?" she asked Xiao Ji with a smile.

Xiao Ji tidied up the things on the table, got up and walked to the octagonal table next to him.

"Miss Zhao, please sit down. I have something to say."

Seeing his cold attitude, Zhao Xuan felt angry.

She had witnessed how Xiao Ji and Shen Lan interacted; they seemed to talk about everything, and he always looked at Shen Lan with a smile.

Zhao Xuan sat down, propped her chin up, looked at him, and sneered, "It seems you don't welcome me here."

"really."

Zhao Xuan was taken aback, her face changing color several times.

She had never seen Xiao Ji treat her so coldly, even after he caught her with evidence of harming Shen Lan.

"Now you don't even try to hide your disgust for me, all for a woman." Zhao Xuan laughed self-deprecatingly.

“If that’s the case, I, Zhao Xuan, am not obligated to marry you. You may simply break off the engagement.”

Xiao Ji got straight to the point: "I have already written the letter of annulment. Once this case is over, I will personally go to the Zhao residence to annul the engagement."

"you……"

Zhao Xuan pointed at him in disbelief, her finger trembling. "Are you crazy? Do you want to sever ties between our two families?"

She suddenly stood up, smashed the teacup and teapot on the table, and roared, "Xiao Ji, how dare you treat me like this!"

Her loud voice attracted the attention of many officials outside.

Zhao Xuan was extremely embarrassed and angry. On one hand, she felt ashamed, and on the other hand, she felt that she couldn't let Xiao Ji get away with it.

She shouted, "You're going to break off our engagement for the sake of a coroner? Have you thought about the consequences?"

"It's not about whoever has the loudest voice is right; you know what you've done."

I hope Miss Zhao will think carefully before speaking, otherwise I am not unaware of what your cousin did at the Crown Prince's residence.

Zhao Xuan was so startled that she took a step back, knocking over a stool, and didn't dare to look at him.

He got it.

He must have found out about his conspiracy with his cousin.

How did he know?

He's going to hurt himself again because of that woman!

Zhao Xuan covered her ears and ran out, bumping into several people before quickly leaving the Criminal Investigation Department.

Xiao Ji was aware of the rumors circulating outside, but he had nothing to explain.

I'm just a little worried about the impact of these rumors on Shen Lan.

Since realizing that he wasn't entirely unmoved by Shen Lan's feelings, he wasn't so self-righteous anymore.

Sui Feng rushed in, closed the door, and asked in shock, "Sir, you're not joking? You want to call off the engagement?"

"Ah."

"How...how can this be allowed?"

Putting aside how many years this marriage has been going on, what kind of decision is it to break off the engagement now?

Moreover, the wedding day is just around the corner, wouldn't breaking off the engagement at this time be enough to get you condemned by everyone?

Moreover, Miss Zhao will definitely shift all the blame onto her master and Miss Shen. What will Miss Shen do then?

"Your Honor, please think it over. Did you not hear what those people outside were saying? If they believe Miss Zhao's words, Miss Shen will never be able to come to the yamen again."

This was also a headache for Xiao Ji.

But how can he explain it? The more he explains, the more it seems like a cover-up.

But wouldn't not explaining be tantamount to admitting it?

"Go to the Crown Prince's residence and, under the guise of delivering a message to the Crown Prince, meet with that concubine. Tell her that if Zhao Xuan dares to say anything out of line outside, I will also say something out of line in front of the Crown Prince."

He had no intention of getting involved in the power struggles within the Crown Prince's household.

But among those who could suppress Zhao Xuan, this concubine was barely one.

"Sir, why don't you discuss this matter with Miss Shen? Perhaps she has a good idea."

"How can I discuss my marriage with her?" Xiao Ji shook his head, mainly because he couldn't bring himself to say it.

Sui Feng paced anxiously, "Aren't you afraid that the master and madam will break your legs if you do this? Madam has been looking forward to you getting married."

“I have already spoken with my father. He said that a wife should be virtuous, because an unvirtuous wife will bring disaster to three generations. This marriage is better off not being arranged.”

"That's true, but outsiders have to know that the Zhao family's daughter is not virtuous. With your character, would you do something that would cause a woman to lose all her reputation?"

Sui Feng knew his master too well. He took the initiative to break off the engagement instead of revealing what Zhao Xuan had done, because he didn't want to make her lose face.

There is no perfect solution to this problem, and Xiao Ji is not good at handling such matters.

He waved his hand, "No need to say anything more, my mind is made up!"

Shen Lan was in the bookstore when she heard the news.

The currently popular storybook has been designated as a seditious book by the imperial court, and all bookstores must immediately remove it from their shelves.

Those who had bought the book burned copies of it at home to avoid being implicated.

Shen Lan had also read the contents and thought it was a far-fetched way to call it a seditious book; it was simply a female protagonist with the same name as a princess.

But that's what's taboo.

Unfortunately, very few people outside knew the princess's name; the old author was simply too unlucky.

"Manager Shen, you need to come back to the manor immediately, something has happened at home," Xiao Ding rushed in and said.

"what happened?"

Shen Lan went out but everything is fine at home. Could it be that Madam Xiao is unwell?

"I can't say for sure, but you'll find out when you get back. Madam specifically requests to see you."

Shen Lan had no choice but to put down the account book in her hand and rush back. On the way, she stopped at a pharmacy to get some medicine to prevent miscarriage.

When Dr. Chen saw that it was her, he not only waived her medicine fees but also invited her to accompany him on house calls.

"To be honest, there is a special patient, a woman, who is more than eight months pregnant, but recently the fetus is not doing well and I'm afraid she won't be able to keep it, which could easily lead to the death of both mother and child."

Although the Xie family has a female doctor, her medical skills are limited, so I would like to ask for your help. If you can save the fetus, the family is willing to pay a thousand gold pieces for the consultation.

Even if the fetus cannot be saved, but the woman's life can be saved, one can still receive a hundred taels of gold.

One hundred taels of gold—that's a huge sum of money—and Doctor Chen thought the other party would be tempted.

"I'm sorry, I have an urgent matter to attend to right now." Shen Lan pointed to the medicine packet. "Chen Lang's medical skills are superb. If even you cannot save me, I certainly cannot help either."