Bai Zhi’er paused her small feet.
She turned her head suspiciously, her round face full of confusion.
"Brother Eunuch, what do you mean by that?"
The interplay of light and shadow around made Feng Fuce’s profile appear inscrutable.
He walked forward slowly, his tone confident yet carrying a slight chuckle of insight.
"You just said yourself, every time you met, you never saw his face clearly, so why do you believe an ordinary eunuch who died is someone you know."
Bai Zhi’er bit her lip, her youthful face showing a bit of stubbornness.
"The Brother Eunuch who carried the coffin said that usually, only he guards the Orange Garden!"
Feng Fuce laughed lightly: "To my knowledge, eunuchs take turns guarding a garden like the Orange Garden, which the Emperor seldom visits, every fourteen days."
"His claim of always guarding the Orange Garden might just mean he was on duty during those fourteen days, but are you really sure he’s the same person you know?"
Bai Zhi’er had no idea there was a scheduling rotation like that.
She blinked her long lashes, looking helpless and pitiful.
"You mean... he might not have died? I mistook someone else?"
Feng Fuce’s dark eyes were cold, yet his tone carried a mocking laugh: "How would I know?"
"The reason I tell you this, Princess, is because seeing you cry so sadly made me think that if it’s a case of mistaken identity, you might not need to cry."
With that, he gave a perfunctory bow, bid farewell to the little one, and left directly.
Qingmei watched Feng Fuce’s tall figure recede into the distance and hurried to Bai Zhi’er’s side.
"Princess, let’s quickly return to the palace; the Emperor will soon finish his decrees."
This place is not safe to linger!
Otherwise, they might accidentally run into Marquis Wan, who prowls around the palace!
Qingmei felt that Feng Fuce’s words seemed overly focused on the Princess, making her uneasy.
Bai Zhi’er’s little face was full of confusion, and she nodded absentmindedly.
Qingmei picked up the little one and quickly returned to Ruizhu Palace.
As for Feng Fuce, his expression turned completely cold once he returned to the Brocade Armor Shura Guard.
If it hadn’t been for seeing that little rascal actually start mourning a dead, unfamiliar little eunuch with river lanterns, he wouldn’t have been compelled to intervene.
Crying is one thing, but not even knowing who you’re crying for is another.
Feng Fuce closed his dark eyes, pressing his fingers to his brow.
At this time, the Xiu Luo Envoy named Chu Ping stepped forward to report.
"Marquis, the servant Lixiang’s body has been autopsied as per your instructions, and indeed something strange was found."
He finished speaking and presented a small porcelain bottle with both hands.
Feng Fuce opened his piercing eyes and took a glance.
Inside the bottle, a small insect with six legs resembling a spider but with a scorpion-like tail was crawling back and forth.
Chu Ping said, "During the autopsy, the forensic doctors noticed something moving under the skin of the deceased’s abdomen, and once they fully opened it, they found this."
Speaking of which, Chu Ping felt a bit nauseated: "I have traveled far and wide with you, Marquis, but I’ve never seen such a thing; the forensic doctor said it could be a corpse-controlling insect, is it really that evil?"
Feng Fuce’s gaze darkened, and he suddenly sneered.
"This insect is called the Poisonous Insect; once placed on a human’s skin, it will cut its own path inside."
"An antidote must be taken once a month, or inevitably, the Poisonous Insect will devour the heart veins, causing death by bleeding from the seven orifices."
"It was a common tactic of the former dynasty, usually used to extract confessions or enslave someone, forcing them to work for others."
Chu Ping was startled: "So frightening? In that case, Lixiang was indeed a spy planted in Prince Kang’s Mansion by someone else!"