Chapter 109 Murder Cases At The Birthday Party (Part Two)

Prince Jing lifted his eyes to Mrs. Wu who was startled. "Qian An was Mr. Wu's alias, wasn't it? This was written by him."

Prince Shun Qing also thought of a question. He asked, "Was the dead housemaid called Ru Mo?"

The butler shook his head and replied, "Your Lordship, the housemaid was called Si Qi not Ru Mo."

"Prince Shun Qing, my husband must have been framed by someone. The whole thing is a plot, " said Mrs. Wu in a flurry. But a skeptical look appeared on her face.

"Go, find all personal information about Si Qi" said Prince Shun Qing harshly.

The butler withdrew from the room. Mrs. Wu was in shock and kept muttering, "How could it be? No! No! My husband won't do that."

A while later, the butler returned with Si Qi's personal information. He said, "Si Qi, a 16-year old girl, was born in the Imperial City. Her mother was called Ru Mo. Seventeen years ago, Ru Mo seved in Wu Qi's mansion as a housemaid. But later, she was fired by Wu Qi's mother. After that, she lived in a house situated in the west of the Imperial City.

Mrs. Wu shivered all over and sank into a chair. She looked pale. Her eyes were full of disbelief.

All the guests understood that Si Qi must be the illegitimate daughter of Wu Qi and Ru Mo.

Lady Shun Qing glanced at Mrs. Wu with sympathy. Then she said gently, "Mrs. Wu, you look ill. You'd better rest in the guest room. If we find something related to your husband's death, you will be informed."

Mrs. Wu's face flushed. She nodded, rose to her feet, and followed the servant out of the room.

Lady Shun Qing sighed, "What a mess! Shang'er, Qingyan, let's take a walk." She stood while speaking.

Upon hearing this, Yun Shang squinted and stood. She supported Lady Shun Qing with her hands as she walked out of the house.

Lady Shun Qing's house was adjacent to a lake. A pavilion was situated in the middle of the lake. A bridge led to the pavilion. Lady Shun Qing, accompanied by Yun Shang and Prince Jing, walked toward the pavilion. Once they reached, she sat on a bench. Yun Shang looked around and thought to herself, 'This is a good place for conversation. There will be no eavesdroppers here.'

"Please sit." Lady Shun Qing patted Yun Shang's hands. Yun Shang sat beside the older woman.

Lady Shun Qing looked at Yun Shang for a moment before she said with a smile, "Qingyan is lucky to marry you. Shang'er, you are so beautiful. In two years, nobody in the Imperial City will be able to compare with you. I heard that you have been at the Ning'guo Temple for

ad practiced Chinese traditional martial arts for a long time. She often looked as if she had never practiced it. Prince Jing took off his cloak, put it around Yun Shang and said, "Your cloak is still in the room. The wind is strong here. Put on my cloak lest you get cold."

Yun Shang didn't refuse and bowed her head. On seeing this, Lady Shun Qing giggled and said, "Life is wonderful for young people."

A while later, the assassin returned and reported, "Your Ladyship, the maid went to Lady Gao*'s house.

(TN: Lady Gao is Lady Shun Qing's daughter-in-law. She was the wife of Lady Shun Qing's second son.")

"Well, Well." A dreadful smile appeared on Lady Shun Qing's face. She rose to her feet and said, "Let's go to Lady Gao's house."

Subsequently, they walked to a house. Just before they walked into the house, they encountered Prince Shun Qing. Prince Shun Qing nodded and said, "We'd better enter the house from the back. Don't alert the people in it."

Yun Shang acted innocent. Prince Jing held her waist and flew over the enclosing wall. As they neared the room, a voice could be heard. "You assured me of the deaths of Prince Shun Qing and Lady Shun Qing. But why are they still alive now?"

Yun Shang felt the anger radiating off Lady Shun Qing. At the time, another voice spoke inside the room. Upon hearing this voice, Yun Shang widened her eyes as if to say something. But Lady Shun Qing instantly covered her mouth. "I don't know. I don't know what's going wrong. There is a gear in the box that is loaded with the peach-shaped carving. If the carving is moved by someone, the gear will eject poison. Lady Shun Qing had moved the carving, but she didn't get poisoned."