"Female corpse?"
The little eunuch was anxiously waiting at the palace gate. Something must have happened. And the only interaction between him and Xu Qi'an was the Concubine Fu case. Then the female corpse must be related to the Concubine Fu case.
Xu Qi'an narrowed his eyes, his heart moved, "Is it the missing palace maid in the Concubine Fu case?"
The little eunuch was stunned, then sincerely convinced, "Milord is really clever, this servant admires you from the bottom of my heart."
This sentence was both a compliment and from the bottom of his heart. After two consecutive days of supervision, the little eunuch found that Xu Qi'an was a seemingly pompous appearance, but his intelligence was more than ordinary people's.
This was not clever, it was very simple reasoning … Xu Qi'an nodded, "Take me to see the corpse."
The little eunuch quickly led the way.
"Which well was the corpse found in?"
"The backyard of the Crab Pavilion."
"Crab Pavilion?"
Xu Qi'an thought, what a stupid name.
"The Crab Pavilion is where the palace maids live." The little eunuch replied.
The palace maids were also divided into different ranks. The palace maids with high status were called maids and even had ranks and titles, such as Jieyu, Beauty, Talented Lady, Imperial Lady, and so on.
This kind of palace maids had the hope of being visited by the Emperor and becoming famous. Of course, during the reign of the Yuanjing Emperor, none of them would be able to stand out.
The next level were the palace maids who served the concubines.
The lowest level were the odd-job workers who lived in large dormitories.
The Crab Pavilion was a palace maid's dormitory.
As they walked and talked, they soon came to the morgue in the palace. It was in a secluded courtyard in the south, used to store the corpses of those who had been executed, died of illness, or died of accidents.
On the simple and crude bed, there was a slightly bloated corpse that was soaked in water.
"Go and get the knife, I want to dissect the corpse." Xu Qi'an ordered.
He was excited to see the prey. In his previous life, when he was working in the yamen, he was often sent to observe forensic dissections and act as an assistant. He had accumulated a lot of professional knowledge and experience.
From the initial panic of vomiting to slowly accepting, and later assisting without changing his expression, Xu Qi'an vaguely found that he liked dissection.
After coming to this world, he had encountered many cases, but there were not many opportunities for him to dissect them.
"Consort Fu is the old Emperor's woman, I can't touch her. I can cut open this little palace maid's belly … If only she could be fresher."
As he thought about it, he unbuttoned the maid's clothes.
"Dog slave, dog slave, why didn't you send someone to inform me when you entered the palace …"
Princess Lin An's cheerful voice was heard from outside and immediately following that, a red figure flew over and stopped at the door.
"What are you doing?"
Lin An looked at Xu Qi 'an holding the female corpse's dudou in his hand, and the bright smile on his face suddenly froze.
Behind him, Huaiqing, dressed in a fluttering white dress, stepped over the threshold. She glanced at Xu Qi'an, and then her eyes fell on the dudou.
That's a little awkward … Xu Qi 'an's expression didn't change at all, "I'm going to examine the corpse and conduct an autopsy."
"Don't touch that disgusting thing."
Bian Juan stomped her feet repeatedly. She glanced at the naked body of the female corpse and immediately retracted her gaze.
In this regard, Princess Huaiqing adopted the same view and gave a suggestion, "Why don't you let the coroner do it?"
Because I like to do it … Xu Qi 'an shook his head solemnly and explained seriously, "Your Highnesses, you know that I do everything by myself and do it meticulously. If I can do it myself, I won't let others do it. In the eyes of others, this is a good quality of diligence, but in my opinion, it's really not worth mentioning. "
Bian Juan admired Xu Qi 'an's work attitude very much. Huaiqing's face was expressionless, as if she didn't believe his nonsense.
"Your Highnesses, please go back and drink tea first. Wait a moment, don't stay here." Xu Qi 'an wanted to drive them away.
When Huaiqing heard this, she didn't leave. Instead, she walked gracefully to the female corpse.
"The corpse was fished out last night. After it was identified as Huang Xiaorou, it was taken away by Eunuch Chang." Huaiqing said.
"I want to stay and take a look. Maybe I can get some clues from the corpse."
Huaiqing seemed to be very interested in work that used her brain. Chess, writing history, and now solving cases … Xu Qi 'an turned his head and silently looked at Princess Royal's clear and beautiful eyes.
Huaiqing's eyes slightly narrowed as she looked at him. Her voice had the texture of ice and was extremely pleasant to the ear, "Hmm?"
A simple "hmm" implied: Little brother, do you have something to say?
Xu Qi 'an withdrew his gaze and no longer looked at Princess Royal's flawless face. He turned his head and said to Bian Juan, "Where's the Second Prince?"
Bian Juan glanced at Huaiqing and said hesitantly, "It's nothing. I'll stay too."
"Okay!"
Xu Qi 'an happily stripped the female corpse.
Bian Juan's face turned red and then white. He covered his face and left.
"Your Highness, aren't you staying to watch?" Xu Qi 'an shouted.
Bian Juan covered her face and whispered like a mosquito, "I'm leaving, I'm leaving …"
Huaiqing glanced at the female corpse. Although she hid it well, Xu Qi 'an still saw the awkwardness in her clear eyes.
This awkwardness was like when Xu Qi 'an accompanied his parents to watch TV and happened to see the male and female leads in bed.
"She has a perfect appearance and top-notch configuration. The core is very powerful, but the kilometer is almost zero …" Xu Qi 'an evaluated in his heart.
If Huaiqing was compared to a top-notch sports car that had just left the factory, then Bian Juan would be a model car.
If it was mounted, then it would be a model car. The exterior would be unbelievably beautiful, but the inner core … was a long story.
But for men, Bian Juan was probably more popular with women who liked to act coquettishly, were charming, and not too smart.
"What's this?"
Huai Qing found a piece of dull yellow silk in Huang Xiaorou's undergarments. It was embroidered with a bright red lotus flower and a line of small words:
Spring of Yuanjing 31st year.
"She kept it close to her body before she died, which means it was something very important to her."
Huaiqing looked at Xu Qi 'an, as if seeking confirmation, and said, "What do you think, your excellency Xu?"
Xu Qi 'an answered with a "hmm".
Huaiqing's lips curled up slightly.
"Since Your Highness is so smart, why don't you take a look at this female corpse and see what you can see?"
Huaiqing couldn't help but look at him. Xu Qi 'an looked like he wanted to test her. She couldn't help but put away the smile on her lips, and an unwillingness to admit defeat surged in her.
"Based on the pale and swollen body, she didn't jump into the well after the crime." Huaiqing made a judgment.
"Within two days." Xu Qi 'an gave a more precise answer.
"There are no obvious wounds on her body, so she should have drowned to death, or maybe she was knocked unconscious." After saying that, the elegant and refined Princess Royal looked at Xu Qi 'an subconsciously.
Seeing that he was expressionless and didn't reply, Her Highness was a little unhappy. When she lowered her head, the corner of her mouth slightly twitched.
"Anything else?" Xu Qi 'an asked.
Huaiqing thought for a moment, and shook her head slightly.
"You're missing the most important step. Usually, when examining a female corpse, even if there are obvious signs of death, you should never forget to check …"
Xu Qi 'an raised his eyebrows at Huaiqing, and revealed a mischievous smile.
Huaiqing was stunned for a moment. Then, she saw Xu Qi 'an's gaze fall on the Forbidden Land. As smart as she was, she immediately understood.
Swish …
Her fair face immediately turned red. Princess Royal raised her eyebrows and gritted her teeth, "Xu Ningyan, you dare to flirt with me!"
Xu Qi 'an decisively admitted his mistake with a sincere attitude, "I didn't mean to offend you, please forgive me, Princess."
Huaiqing turned sideways, indicating that she didn't accept his apology, and she was very angry in her heart.
Flirting with a proud and cold princess is much more satisfying than flirting with Lin 'an … Huaiqing's charm when she's angry has a different taste … Xu Qi' an coughed and said,
"She drowned, yes, but she didn't drown in the well. She was pressed in the water and suffocated to death."
"Why do you say that?" Huaiqing didn't believe it. She turned her head and questioned.
Well, as long as we talk about academic issues, she will temporarily not be angry … Female top students also have their weaknesses … Xu Qi 'an silently noted it down, and explained calmly on the surface,
"You see, her face is purplish red. A normal drowned person's face would be pale and swollen. Only when she was pressed in the water with her head down and the blood flowed back to her head at the time of death, would the face be flushed with blood. "
Huaiqing frowned and thought about it.
"One more point," Xu Qi 'an grabbed the female corpse's wrist, "You see her hand, it's clenched into a fist, which is in line with the characteristics of drowning. But look carefully, there is no sand or moss under her fingernails. "
Huaiqing took a closer look, and the fingernails were really clean.
"This means that she did drown to death, but not in the well?" She asked.
"Your Highness is really too smart. Compared with you, Her Highness Lin 'an is just a younger sister." Xu Qi' an cupped one hand in the other before his chest to express his admiration.
Although she knew that he was complimenting her, Huaiqing still felt comfortable.
People love to listen to flattery, and saints were no exception. Moreover, Princess Huaiqing had always been proud. She would be dismissive of flattery on the surface, but she would be secretly happy in her heart.
Huaiqing said "hmm" reservedly.
"So, she was silenced." Her Highness Princess Royal then added.
Xu Qi 'an nodded, and at the same time, he heard subtle footsteps. He looked up at the door and saw the little eunuch coming over with the knives for dissecting the corpse.
The hurried footsteps rushed into the doorway. The little eunuch's first reaction when he saw the female corpse was to scream sharply, "Ah ~ ~"
"Little eunuch has never seen a woman, right? Come, come, let me give you a physiology lesson." Xu Qi 'an teased in a tone like an old hooligan.
The little eunuch ignored him and was a little embarrassed. He lowered his head and put the knives on the long table.
There were six knives of different sizes and thicknesses, wrapped in thick linen.
Xu Qi 'an wanted to lick his lips to express his inner expectation, but he felt that it was too awkward to show it in front of Huaiqing, so he had to endure it.
"Really, I don't like to be watched when I have some fun …" He chose a single-edged knife the size of a dagger, put the tip of the knife against the female corpse's throat, and cut it open.
A slightly turbid stream of water came out.
"Retch …"
The little eunuch covered his mouth and couldn't help but retch when the tender red flesh was exposed in front of him.
Xu Qi 'an then changed to a big knife, cut open the chest, and cut open the lungs …
"Retch …" The little eunuch escaped.
"Can't hold it anymore?" Sure enough, giving a eunuch a physiology lesson was pure nonsense.
Huaiqing's jade-like face showed a very vivid expression — horror and disgust. Her eyelashes trembled, and she looked away.
"There is also water in the lungs. The cause of death can be confirmed. Drowning." Xu Qi 'an put down the knife.
Huaiqing nodded and said, "Do I need to check anything else?"
"No, Your Highness, let's leave." Xu Qi 'an said, but suddenly made a sound of surprise.
Huaiqing, who had turned her head and was about to leave, suddenly looked back and suddenly frowned, "What are you doing?"
Xu Qi 'an was playing with the left breast of the female corpse, at least in Huaiqing's view.
"She was injured." Xu Qi 'an frowned. When he spoke, he turned the breast up so that Huaiqing could see the situation under the breast.
Huaiqing was stunned.
There was a deep scar under the left breast of the palace maid named Huang Xiaorou, which was located right in front of her heart.
She immediately knew that she had wronged Xu Qi 'an, and she also understood his doubts.
How could a palace maid be injured in such a dangerous way? The strange thing was that she survived.
Xu Qi 'an spread out the sackcloth again, held the largest knife, and cut the chest of the female corpse along the scar.
Huaiqing wanted to look but was afraid of hurting her eyes.
Xu Qi 'an took out the heart, squinted for a moment, and said thoughtfully, "From the scar, the wound is very deep. The weapon should be a pair of scissors or other sharp objects. It has reached the heart, and she should have died from a lot of blood loss. "
Huaiqing nodded, looked out of the door, and analyzed, "Only mother and the concubines of the imperial concubine rank can use medicine that can cure this kind of wound in the harem.
"If other people need medicine to save their lives, they don't need to use it from the treasury with mother's permission, or they have been rewarded by father."
The "other people" she said did not include the princes and princesses.
They left the morgue, and there was a well in the yard. Xu Qi 'an fetched a bucket of water and carefully washed his hands.
Then he rubbed the yellow silk found on the female corpse a few times, and spread it out to dry by the well.
"Tell the servant in charge of the morgue that I still need the corpse in there. Send it to the ice cellar." Xu Qi 'an sent the little eunuch away.
"Xu Ningyan, help me get a bucket of water." Princess Huaiqing stood at the side.
From the way she called him, Xu Qi 'an judged that she was in a good mood. When she was polite, she called him your excellency Xu. When she was angry, she called him Xu Ningyan.
At this moment, Huaiqing's tone was definitely not angry, so when she called him Xu Ningyan, it sounded like she was calling him a friend.
Xu Qi 'an fetched a bucket of water for her. Huaiqing squatted down and rolled up her long sleeves. A pair of white hands were soaked in the water, and her fingers were slender and well-proportioned.
Small hands are so beautiful … he said in his heart.
After Huaiqing finished soaking her hands, she took out a brocade handkerchief to dry the water and said, "I will take you to the Imperial Pharmacy."
Xu Qi 'an was about to nod, but at this time, a thought suddenly came to his mind. Why throw the corpse in the Crab Pavilion?
There were at least dozens of wells in the Imperial Palace, and there were more hidden ones, such as the well in the Cold Palace, or the well in the morgue.
"Let's go to the Crab Pavilion first."
In the distance, Lin An saw the two coming out and greeted them with brisk steps, "What did you find?"
"There is indeed some gain." Xu Qi 'an told her about the findings of the autopsy. Lin An listened and nodded, her small face was very focused, but after Xu Qi' an finished, her attention immediately shifted. Obviously, it went in one ear and out the other.
Lin An pointed to the light yellow silk hanging by the well and said in surprise, "Dog servant, does the lotus on it look like you …"
Before she finished, Xu Qi 'an suddenly screamed, covered his head, and rolled on the ground.
Pan Fan and Huaiqing were startled and asked anxiously, "What happened to you?"
"My, my head hurts …" Xu Qi 'an held his head in pain, not hesitating to let his mink hat fall, revealing his bald head. It was clear that his head was really splitting.
"Wait here, I will immediately go find the imperial physician." Pan Fan anxiously stomped her feet. She turned around and ran away while twisting her slender waist.
Seeing that her annoying sister had left, Princess Huaiqing did not put on airs anymore. She squatted down beside him and felt his pulse, "I have some medical skills …"
Feeling his pulse, it was indeed beating very fast. Xu Tongluo's heartbeat must have accelerated at this moment.
"Your Highness …" Xu Qi 'an held Huaiqing's soft hand and said in pain, "Ever since I stepped into the Spirit Refinement realm, I have had headaches from time to time. Duke Wei said that it was because of the restlessness of the primordial spirit. Maybe at any time, the primordial spirit will leave the body and die."
Huaiqing was shocked. She did not know about this, so she did not immediately withdraw her little hand.
When Pan Fan ordered the guards to find the imperial physician and returned to the courtyard, she found that Xu Qi 'an was patting the dust on his body calmly.
The annoying Huaiqing squatted beside the wooden tub to wash her hands.
"Are you alright?" Pan Fan asked in surprise.
"I'm fine. It's just labor pain. I'll be fine in a while." Xu Qi 'an waved his hand with a tired face.
"Phew … I almost overturned the car. Fortunately, I reacted quickly. Otherwise, if the sisters knew that I wrote the same love letter and gave them the same lotus petals, Huaiqing would not be able to bear it. Pan Fan would not be able to bear it either … Their affection for each other would definitely drop to the bottom … Xu Qi 'an did a good job. Not only did he stabilize the steering wheel, but he also held Huaiqing's little hand … He cheered for himself in his heart.
Huaiqing lowered her head and did not speak. Her little hand was pinched red, as if it was still warm from Xu Qi 'an.
Pan Fan looked at him suspiciously.
…
The Crab Pavilion was located on the west side of the Imperial Palace. It was a large courtyard far from the palace garden where the concubines gathered.
At this time, the palace maids had already left the Crab Pavilion and went to work everywhere in the Imperial Palace. There was only a caretaker nanny lying on a large chair, basking in the early spring sun.
The age spots on her face were clearly visible in the sunlight. Her body was fat and out of shape. Her hair was white and she wore a simple jade hairpin.
"Nanny Rong, Nanny Rong …"
The little eunuch shouted a few times, and the old nanny slowly woke up.
Nanny Rong?!
Xu Qi 'an recalled his childhood, and a famous line involuntarily appeared in his mind.
Your Majesty, do you still remember Nanny Rong by the Daming Lake?
"The two princes are here." The little eunuch said.
Nanny Rong took a closer look. Sure enough, it was the two most beautiful princesses in the Imperial Palace who came together.
She stood up with a speed that didn't match her age. She bowed and said, "This old servant greets the two princes."
Huaiqing looked at her and said, "I accompanied your excellency Xu to investigate the case. It's related to the female corpse that was fished out of the well today. Tell me what you know."
Nanny Rong nodded.
Seeing this, Xu Qi 'an no longer remained silent. He asked, "Who fished out the corpse and when did they find it?"
"It was Xiaoyu who found it. This morning, she went to the well to fetch water and noticed that the sound of the bucket falling into the water wasn't right. It was a bit muffled, so she leaned over the well and looked for a long time. Oh my, it was a corpse." The old nanny looked very excited.
Xu Qi 'an pointed at the stone well under the locust tree. "Is it that well?"
"Yes."
He walked to the well and looked inside. The well was deep and dark, and the water was like a mirror.
With the eyesight of an ordinary person, it would take a long time to find a corpse in such a dark well.
"No one found it yesterday?" Xu Qi 'an frowned.
The palace maid Huang Xiaorou's corpse must have been soaked in the water for more than 24 hours.
"It's infuriating to talk about this. This morning, they found a corpse in the well. Those damned maids said that no wonder there was a strange sound when they fetched water the day before yesterday …" The old nanny was angry when she mentioned this matter.
"None of them dug their eyeballs out and put them in the well to have a look. They made me drink corpse water for two days."
The old nanny looked disgusted.
The corner of Xu Qi 'an's mouth twitched. "Nanny, do you know that Huang Xiaorou?"
The old nanny was stunned. "Huang what?"
Xu Qi 'an said, "Huang Xiaorou."
The old nanny's eyes widened. "What Xiaorou?"
Xu Qi 'an said angrily, "I'm not asking you, Ma Dongmei. You don't have to answer me like that."
The old nanny thought for a long time and came to a realization. "I'm just confirming again. I know Huang Xiaorou, I know her."
Huaiqing's eyes lit up. She understood the reason why Xu Qi 'an wanted to come to Crab Pavilion.
What kind of brain did this little gong have to think so fast.
"You know her?" Xu Qi 'an reminded. "She is a palace maid by Consort Fu's side. How could you know her?"
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