He was sent just to pour some tea, and then he never came back?
"It was the butler who dragged me away, insisting on having a chat," Will replied.
"Yes, it’s Mr. Xiuyi, Qian Xueying’s butler," Will answered.
"What did he talk to you about?"
"Nothing much, just beating around the bush–a complete waste of time."
Although Will spoke casually, Huangfu Jue sensitively sensed something unusual. Frowning, he re-entered the restroom, quickly scanning the surroundings.
The maid inside was earnestly scrubbing the walls and floor with water. Seeing him enter, she hastily put away her tools and stepped aside.
"Duke, the restroom will require a little more time before it can be used."
Huangfu Jue’s gaze swept over the drawers of the vanity cabinet.
"Did you touch my drawer?"
"No, no!" the maid immediately turned pale, "I only cleaned the walls and floor; I didn’t touch anything else."
Everyone in the Royal Palace knew that this man not only had a mania for cleanliness but also hated others touching his things. The maids were always very cautious when cleaning.
Huangfu Jue reached for an ajar drawer, which contained some small tools neatly arranged in their places, except for a pair of scissors that was slightly out of alignment.
The maid was already scared stiff, continuously explaining, "Duke, I really didn’t touch anything; I haven’t even dealt with the bloodstains on the cabinet..."
Huangfu Jue glanced at the side of the cabinet and indeed saw a faint bloodstain near the top, almost imperceptible unless looked at closely.
He remembered clearly that Qian Xueying had fallen near the toilet, and in such a large restroom, a mere fall shouldn’t have caused blood to splatter onto the cabinet.
He took a tissue paper, gingerly picked up the scissors that seemed to have been moved, and examined them against the light. There were faint fingerprint marks on the stainless steel scissors.
Earlier, after Qian Xueying used the scissors, she had only wiped off the blood, not the fingerprints.
Huangfu Jue had not resided here for a long time, only recently staying for a few days. There was a larger, more comfortable restroom in the bedroom, and this one was almost never used, much less the tools inside the cabinet.
"Take this and check the fingerprints!"
Huangfu Jue handed the scissors to Will, who carefully accepted them. His gaze then fell on the trash bin.
The maid hurriedly opened the trash bin, which was clean except for a bloodstained tissue.
Turning to the maid, she just shook her head, her face still pale.
The blood on the walls and floor had been dealt with using brushes, cloths, and cleaning agent; she hadn’t used any tissue at all.
Huangfu Jue narrowed his blue eyes, "Send this for examination as well, and also, have the doctor come to see me."
Will promptly left, picking up the trash bag and quickly exiting the room to have his subordinates process it, and then called for the doctor who had treated Qian Xueying’s wound.
When Huangfu Jue asked about Qian Xueying’s injury again, the doctor did not dare to take it lightly and immediately detailed the situation.
"In your opinion, is her wound a bruise or... a cut?"
At the word "cut," Will’s eyebrows twitched.
Just now, the Duke had asked him to check the scissors and to examine the bloodstains. Could it be that he suspected Qian Xueying?
"This..." Seeing his detailed inquiry, the doctor didn’t dare to be careless, "Actually, it doesn’t seem like a bruise,