Chapter 1210 Come to Interrogate
Chu Qing was scolded for no reason. In the end, he didnāt know what had happened. Finally, he looked at the two people who were leaving slowly and talking with each other with a trace of gloom across his eyes.
Both Chu Liuyue and Prince Cheng rejected him. He was the one who should inherit the throne the most. Why did they look down on him as if he were a beggar?
One day, he would show them who was the noblest one and who would have the last laugh.
When Chu Qing returned to his mansion, the officials of the Ministry of Justice were interrogating some servants in the mansion. The Ministry of Justice had informed him about this before. Seeing that the leader was Wen Xichi, Chu Qing calmed down, walked over with a smile, and said to him with cupped fists, āGreetings, Lord Wen.ā
āGreetings, Your Highness.ā Wen Xichi stood up and bowed to him.
āHave you found anything?ā Chu Qing asked in a gentle voice. He had little contact with the noble childes in the capital city, so it was rare for him to have such an opportunity to get close to one of them.
Wen Xichi pointed to the file for interrogation just now and said, āThose men were likely looking for something. Is there anything spectacular in Commandery Prince Qingās Mansion?ā
The men in black appeared suddenly and searched the rooms one by one. It was unknown whether they were looking for someone or something. It was also possible that they were looking for Commandery Prince Qing. If they wanted to assassinate him, they had to find him.
Wen Xichi felt that it was not very credible. Since they had made such a big move, they should have some understanding of Chu Qingās whereabouts. It would take a long time to find him by searching the rooms one by one. According to the places that the men in black had checked, many of them were just servantsā rooms, but they were far away.
It was very strange. It didnāt seem that they were looking for trouble with the master, but more like they were casually looking for something. Something had been hidden by Chu Qing, and it might appear in a remote place.
Did it have anything to do with the missing junior official of the Ministry of Justice?
Chu Qing frowned and said, āMy mansion is small, and usually, few people come here. There are only a few people in my mansion. If there is anything spectacular here, those people would have come for it early instead of doing it just now. They werenāt after something important, and they didnāt seem to be looking for something. I think it seemed to be an assassination!ā
It was the best way to clear his name with the excuse of assassination.
Wen Xichi raised his eyebrows and asked, āYour Highness, do you think itās an assassination?ā There was a kind of faint meaning in his eyes, making his handsome face look a little mysterious and aloof.
Chu Qing couldnāt figure out what Wen Xichi meant. He could only smile and say uncertainly, āIn fact, I canāt tell. Itās true that those people broke into my mansion. Speaking of which, Iām still very confused. Were those men in black after my Mother and Shao Jieāer?ā
He would insist that this was an assassination, no matter who those men in black were after.
Wen Xichi was silent for a moment and then said, āMay I see Second Miss Shao?ā
In fact, Shao Jieāerās identity had not been clear since she entered Commandery Prince Qingās Mansion. Wen Xichi didnāt know how to address her for a while, so he called her as before.
āAre you going to ask Shao Jieāer about this?ā Chu Qing frowned. If possible, he didnāt want Shao Jieāer to get involved. The imperial court was now dealing with the matter of Madam Jiang, and Shao Jieāer was very likely to be a suspect.
āI have something to ask her. If itās convenient for you, you can listen by my side,ā Wen Xichi said with a smile.
āWell⦠okay!ā Chu Qing had to agree and waved his hand to ask his servant to summon Shao Jieāer.
After a while, Shao Jieāer came over behind a servant girl. When Wen Xichi looked at Shao Jieāer, who was quietly lowering her head, his eyes flashed with a dark light.
Compared with the girl he had seen in the past, Shao Jieāer was much more well-behaved. When she was in Marquis Xingās Mansion, she had never been so well-behaved.
āGreetings, Lord Wen.ā Chu Qing asked Shao Jieāer to step forward and salute him.
Shao Jieāer took two steps forward obediently, bowed sideways respectfully, and then stood aside with her head down.
āSecond Miss Shao, where were you yesterday?ā Wen Xichi asked. The beadle, who was taking notes, hurriedly picked up a writing brush.
āIāve been in the mansion all the time and havenāt even gone out.ā Shao Jieāer said in a low voice. She sounded timid as if she didnāt even dare to raise her voice.
Chu Qing glanced at her unhappily but didnāt take over for her.
When Wen Xichi asked Shao Jieāer, it was inappropriate for Chu Qing to say anything.
āWhat were you doing when the fire broke out?ā Wen Xichi asked.
āWhen the fire broke out, I didnāt know clearly at that time. I was doing some needlework, and I was quite far away from the fireā¦ā Shao Jieāer said hesitantly.
āDidnāt you hear anything?ā Wen Xichi said seriously.
āI did, but I didnāt hear it clearly.ā Speaking of this, Shao Jieāer looked at Chu Qing timidly and uneasily.
āWhen did you know that there was an accident?ā Wen Xichi asked again.
āLater⦠Later, when the fire turned big, someone tried to assassinate His Highness⦠I was so scared that I hid with my servant girl. After that, His Highness sent his men to tell me that everything was fine.ā Shao Jieāer lowered her head.
āYou kept hiding and didnāt come out to see what was going on?ā
āI have never encountered such a situation at that time⦠I was so scared⦠that I hidā¦ā Shao Jieāer shook her head and looked frightened.
āSecond Miss Shao, I heard that you are helping Consort Dowager Qing manage the inner court of Commandery Prince Qing. Did you find anything unusual?ā Wen Xichi no longer stared at Shao Jieāer to ask about the fire. He changed the subject.
Shao Jieāer suddenly raised her head and said, āYour Excellency, Iām afraid that youāre wrong. Iām not in charge of the affairs of the inner court.ā
āIf itās not you, has Commandery Prince Qing been managing it himself?ā Wen Xichi asked curiously.
āIā¦ā Shao Jieāer still wanted to say something but was interrupted by Chu Qing with displeasure on his face. āJieāer is indeed in charge of the inner court, but after all, she has no right to manage it. So please donāt spread it out, Lord Wen.ā
He meant that what Shao Jieāer had just said was an excuse.
āIām sorry to have mistaken, Your Highness. I thought that you would personally manage the affairs of the inner court. Consort Dowager has been living a peaceful life for many years, so she would not be willing to meddle in such trivial things. I didnāt expect that Second Miss Shaoās current identity is not the real master of the inner court.ā Wen Xichi nodded with understanding and bowed to Chu Qing to apologize.
Shao Jieāerās face turned red and then pale.
Her identity was very embarrassing in Commandery Prince Qingās Mansion at the moment. Originally, with her status, she could at least be a consort. Chu Qing had also said so at that time. But in fact, after she entered Commandery Prince Qingās Manor, her status had been unknown, and this matter had been set aside.
Shao Jieāer had expressed that she wanted to marry someone, and she kept changing her mind, which made Chu Qing very angry and she did not dare to mention it again. Shao Jing was not willing to meddle in Shao Jieāerās affairs so she did not have a backer. Especially a few days after she entered the mansion, he heard that Consort Dowager had asked the servants to call her Second Miss Shao, as if she were an unmarried girl.
She was addressed as an unmarried girl, but she did things as a married woman, which was a great insult to Marquis Xingās Mansion. However, Shao Jieāer had to endure it and didnāt even dare to let others know. She tried her best to please Chu Qing and Consort Dowager Qing. Chu Qingās attitude slowly improved under her flattery, and he also asked the people around him to call her Consort Shao.
But in front of the Consort Dowager, the people of high status around the Consort Dowager still didnāt show Shao Jieāer respect and still called her Second Miss Shao. This kind of address was almost a disgrace to her.
But even if it was a disgrace, Shao Jieāer had to endure it.
She used to think that Consort Dowager Qing was a quiet and peaceful person. When she entered Commandery Prince Qingās Mansion, she knew that she had just escaped one trouble and gotten into another. Consort Dowager Qing was definitely not the kind of gentle woman who was said to have lived in the Yuhui Nunnery for a long time and had a peaceful temperament. She was more vicious than Madam Jiang.
Shao Jieāer had suffered a lot and had been beaten.
She didnāt dare to say a word or interrupt in front of Consort Dowager Qing.
This was also the reason why she looked up in a hurry when she heard Wen Xichi say that she and Consort Dowager Qing were in charge of the inner court together. Consort Dowager was in charge of everything in the inner court. How could she, an insignificant secondary consort who was not officially married, dare to go against her will, let alone compare with her? Consort Dowager Qing was obviously a powerful woman who liked to be in power.
She was in charge of everything in the mansion. It was said that most of the affairs of the outer court were also under her control. In fact, Chu Qing was not in charge of many things.
Shao Jieāer was very afraid of Consort Dowager Qing. She was very afraid that Consort Dowager would get angry. She just carefully flattered Chu Qing and wanted him to protect her.
Recently, her efforts paid off, and Chu Qing spoke for her. Although Consort Dowager Qing still looked down on her, she was not as strict as before. Shao Jieāer thought that she had finally won Chu Qingās heart.
But now, when she heard Chu Qing say that she had no right to manage the inner court, she felt bitter in her heart and her eyes turned red. She hurriedly lowered her head again, for fear that Wen Xichi would see the tears in her eyes.
As the daughter of Duke Xing, she had looked down on many Misses. But now, she had fallen into such a situation. She felt that she would die in Commandery Prince Qingās Mansion one day without knowing why.
She had seen Miss Mo, the first consort who was going to marry into the mansion, before. This Miss was not easy to get along with. When she came here last time, she took the opportunity to slap Shao Jieāer twice. Consort Dowager Qing was present, but she did not say anything. Chu Qing merely frowned unhappily. He scolded Shao Jieāer and asked her to apologize to Miss Mo.
The daughter of a beadle even got to bully her. Shao Jieāer was very unwilling and deeply resentful. She clenched her handkerchief tightly as if she were using it to vent her anger. Taking advantage of the time when Chu Qing wasnāt paying attention, she looked up and stole a few glances at Wen Xichi, just looking into his eyes. Then, she raised her hand and pointed at a tall tree, which was a little far away from the place they were at.
Chu Qing looked at the officials of the Ministry of Justice and said, āLord Wen, youāre being too courteous. If thereās nothing else, let Jieāer go back. After all, there are so many people here.ā
Wen Xichi nodded and said politely, āMy apologies. Second Miss Shao, please go back!ā
āTake⦠Second Miss Shao back now!ā Chu Qing ordered the servant girl beside him. The servant girl did not dare to hesitate and left with Shao Jieāer. Except for Wen Xichi, no one noticed that Shao Jieāer had gritted her teeth hard when Chu Qing called her āSecond Miss Shaoā. āHe still calls me Second Miss Shao by now.ā Grief and hatred appeared on her face.
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