Han Yunxi hadn't bribed Cao Tong, but wasn't she afraid that he'd expose the truth?
Gu Qi Sha wasn't the only one puzzled. Ning Cheng was curious as well. He knew Cao Tong couldn't be bribed, and he was certain that Long Fei Ye's men had killed Empress Xue. Where did Long Fei Ye and Han Yunxi get their confidence from?
After Empress Xue's death, Chu Tianyin had found plenty of coroner's examiners to examine her body, but none of them were able to find the true cause of death. What was the real cause of death? Were Long Fei Ye and Han Yunxi so sure that Cao Tong wouldn't be able to find out the truth?
Ning Cheng's gaze was fixed on Han Yunxi's back the entire time. His lips curved into a mischievous grin. Even when Han Yunxi's figure was swallowed up by the crowd, he still wanted to see more.
He'd disguised himself and blended into the crowd, accompanied by a few servants in disguise. They were all puzzled. His Highness Duke of Ning had plenty of work to do, so why had he traveled nonstop for two days and two nights just to come to Yaoshui himself? The Baili Trade Consortium had urged him multiple times to attend Ning Jing's wedding, but he'd refused every time.
It wasn't like he could show his face in person, so what was the difference between watching the crime scene and sitting in the palace waiting for news?
Empress Xue's corpse was placed in the courtyard at the end of the alley. Duanmu Yao wouldn't go so far as to reveal her mother's corpse to the public, so all unrelated people were kept outside the gates. Ning Cheng and a few of his retainers silently left the crowd until their figures vanished from the rooftops.
Empress Xue's body was placed in the center of the courtyard, preserved in a specially made coffin. Duanmu Yao stood by the coffin, her face ashen and sorrowful. She still regretted not leaving the mountains sooner to save her mother. She'd held onto her father's hopes in the past, believing that he loved her mother so dearly that he'd do anything to save her. But reality proved that her father still loved his country more than anything else.
The Chu Clan was the main culprit behind her mother's death. Once she dealt with Han Yunxi, she wouldn't spare anyone from the Chu Clan, including Chu Qingge!
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Duanmu Yao carefully opened the coffin.
Other than Long Fei Ye, who did not move, everyone present came forward to take a look. Long Fei Ye was not afraid of this kind of thing, he just did not like it. It had been almost two months since Empress Xue had passed away. If not for the low temperature at the end of winter and early spring, coupled with the nourishment of medicine, her corpse would have already started to wax.
Although it had been nourished with expensive medicinal herbs, and the corpse did not emit a strange smell, nor did it show any signs of liquefaction, it had long been deformed. Its face and hands were covered with livor mortis, and the degree of decay in its body could not be seen with the naked eye. Only a professional would be able to tell how badly the corpse had decayed.
Cao Tong only glanced at the corpse, a hint of helplessness in his eyes. He wasn't in a hurry to examine it, so he asked, "Princess Yao, may I take a look at that golden needle first?"
"Of course!"
Duanmu Yao carefully handed the needle over. "There's still poison on the tip. Be careful."
Cao Tong held the golden needle and examined it carefully. "What kind of poison is this?"
Before Duanmu Yao could speak, Han Yunxi cut in. "It's Sky Scorpion Poison. It doesn't matter if you touch it. As long as you don't get stabbed, you won't be poisoned."
Duanmu Yao gave a cold snort. "So you still remember!"
Han Yunxi was too lazy to argue with her. Han Yunxi knew that Duanmu Yao wouldn't believe her no matter what she said. She had invited Cao Tong here so he could speak up for her.
"Where did you find this needle?" Cao Tong asked next.
"From the bottom of her foot," Chu Qingge had told Duanmu Yao all this.
"So, Princess Yao believes that Empress Xue died from poison?" Cao Tong asked seriously.
"Yes, it was Han Yunxi who used this needle to poison her!" Duanmu Yao didn't forget to point out Han Yunxi's identity. She spoke as if she'd seen it with her own eyes.
Cao Tong nodded and asked, "Princess Yao, this one doesn't recognize poisons, so I specially brought a poison doctor with me. Would it be possible to let him in?"
Cao Tong's reputation and reputation were there. Even if Han Yunxi had invited him here, Duanmu Yao trusted him enough to agree without a second thought.
The poison doctor examined the needle, then Empress Xue's foot. "This is Sky Scorpion poison," he said seriously. "Anyone poisoned by it will die within three steps."
"Han Yunxi, you're still trying to quibble?" Duanmu Yao raged.
Han Yunxi snorted disdainfully and didn't answer.
The poison doctor hurriedly explained, "Princess Yao, this one can only confirm two points. Firstly, the poison on the golden needle is Scorpion Poison. Secondly, Her Majesty the Empress' foot was poisoned by the needle and was indeed poisoned. As for whether esteemed wangfei died from Sky Scorpion poison, this one … "
Poison Doctor said as he looked awkwardly at Cao Tong. Cao Tong waved his hand, indicating that he could leave.
"Grand Coroner Cao, what … do you mean by this?" Duanmu Yao didn't understand.
"To reply princess, Esteemed Empress Xue's passed away a long time ago … there's no point in examining her body," Cao Tong said tactfully, but everyone understood his meaning.
Generally speaking, there was no point in examining a corpse after seven days of death. No matter how well Empress Xue's body was preserved, it was impossible to examine it.
"Princess Yao, from the evidence we currently have, it's very likely that Esteemed Empress Xue died from poison. However, because there's no way to conduct an in-depth examination, this one can't come to a conclusion, "Cao Tong said seriously.
Duanmu Yao knitted her brows. "What did you say?"
Cao Tong was still serious. "Princess Yao, Esteemed Empress Xue was indeed poisoned, but this one can't confirm whether she died from poison. I hope Princess Yao will reconsider and not wrongly accuse a good person. Let the true culprit go! "
Duanmu Yao's gaze turned complicated. She looked suspiciously at Han Yunxi, but Han Yunxi didn't say anything and allowed her to look.
It was unknown what Duanmu Yao was thinking, but after a while, she said angrily, "What else can't you confirm? The evidence is irrefutable, it was her! "
"Yes, yes, yes, it was me, it was me! I'll admit it, alright? "Han Yunxi suddenly said impatiently.
Duanmu Yao was very surprised, but Cao Tong was angry. "Esteemed wangfei, if you want to admit your guilt, why did you invite Old Man here?"
"What do we do now that the autopsy isn't conclusive? The golden needles were indeed mine, and there were needle wounds on the soles of my feet. If I don't admit it, who will? "Han Yunxi shrugged helplessly.
"Esteemed Empress, Old Man just said that there was poison in the body. Although there were signs of poisoning, there was also physical evidence. However, we can't confirm whether Esteemed Empress Xue died from poison, and we can't find any other cause of death, so we can't come to a conclusion. Do you understand? "
Cao Tong was a little anxious. Why didn't these two women understand even after he'd explained twice? One was Western Zhou's princess, a Celestial Mountain disciple, and the other was Qin Wangfei. They weren't stupid!
Seeing that Han Yunxi didn't say anything, Cao Tong asked again, "Esteemed wangfei, do you understand?"
Third Elder Shen had helped him a lot, and this was the first time he'd asked him for help. He couldn't be a hindrance! Moreover, he'd been doing autopsies all his life and hadn't found a single case that was unjust, false, or wrong. This time, he had to make an exception and preserve his integrity in his later years! He couldn't make a hasty decision just because he couldn't do the autopsy!
This was an autopsy, not a matter of "one or the other" logic.
"I understand, but it's a pity that some people still don't understand. Sigh, some people are stupid. "Han Yunxi smiled.
She didn't say who was stupid, but Duanmu Yao immediately admitted it. She snorted, "Who says I don't understand?!"
"Great Coroner Cao, if you can't find any other evidence, then you can prove that she's the murderer! Don't you understand this logic? "Duanmu Yao actually retorted to anger Cao Tong.
Cao Tong's mouth twitched. He could tell that Qin Wangfei wasn't stupid. As for whether Princess Duan was stupid or not, he was at a loss.
"I don't understand." Cao Tong shook his head.
Duanmu Yao said seriously, "How can you not understand such a simple logic? If the murderer isn't Han Yunxi, why would the golden needles be stabbed under my imperial mother's feet? Could it be that someone framed her? After my imperial mother died, they added another needle? "
Long Fei Ye was the first to laugh at her words. Of course, he wasn't laughing because of Duanmu Yao, but because of Han Yunxi.
Without a doubt, Han Yunxi had been waiting for Duanmu Yao to say it herself.
Gu Qi Sha and Mu Ling 'er were secretly amused as well. Cao Tong was the only one who laughed out loud. "Princess Duan, you're right! If the needle was added later, then we might have jumped to conclusions today. The real murderer will probably laugh at us. "
Duanmu Yao gave a start, frightened by her own words. If Cao Tong or Han Yunxi had said those words in the beginning, she might have denied them immediately. But now that she'd said it herself, she couldn't help but think it over.
When she recalled Cao Tong's words and Han Yunxi's reaction, her resolute heart wavered again. She muttered to herself, "Chu Qingge …"
"Princess Duan, we can't let Esteemed Empress die with grievances!" Cao Tong said.
"It's just a single needle. This wangfei won't accept it even if I admit it!" Han Yunxi said Coldly.
Duanmu Yao glanced at Han Yunxi before relenting. "Then what do you want to do? We can't do an autopsy now. "
"Princess Duan, Old Man has an idea, but …" Cao Tong was in a difficult position.
"Go ahead and say it!" Duanmu Yao said seriously.
"Old Man remembers that there's a wondrous medicine in the world called 'Rising from the Dead' …"
Before he could finish, Duanmu Yao grew agitated. "Rising from the Dead?"
"You're thinking too much. Rising from the Dead is a heaven-defying medicine that can restore a corpse to its original state in a short period of time. But once the time passes, the corpse will turn into a puddle of blood. In other words … there won't even be bones left! "
Mu Ling 'er was the one to explain. She knew all the wondrous medicines in the world.
"No wonder you're a genius from Medicine City. My apologies for my lack of manners!" Cao Tong smiled and bowed.
"I don't dare, I don't dare." Mu Ling 'er was very modest as she turned to Duanmu Yao. "This medicine is hard to come by. It's hard to find it in such a short time."
"According to this one's understanding, this medicine comes from Medicine City's Medicine Hut …"
Cao Tong looked towards Han Yunxi and tried to sound her out. "I wonder if esteemed wangfei …"
Han Yunxi cut him off before he could finish. "What's there to be afraid of? As long as the Medicine Hut has the medicine, this wangfei will definitely ask master for it! "
Cao Tong gave a start, a little lost. He wasn't trying to test esteemed wangfei's "courage," but whether or not esteemed wangfei could "beg" the King Of Medicine for Rising from the Dead.
Why was esteemed wangfei so agitated?
Duanmu Yao saw Han Yunxi's agitation. She didn't want to believe that Han Yunxi wasn't her mother's murderer, but Han Yunxi's actions had shaken her heart again and again.
Had she really framed Han Yunxi?
Had she really been played for a fool by Chu Qingge?
Duanmu Yao's mind was in a mess with these two questions.
"Princess Duan, then … should we use this medicine or not?" Cao Tong asked seriously.
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