Impératrice douairière Xiaoxuan

Chapitre 28

"I'd like to go take a look, is that convenient for you?"

"Please, Lord Zhan."

In just half a day, Bai Baozhen's study was in ruins, a pitiful sight, with only a few lingering wisps of smoke remaining.

"Could someone have burned to death inside?"

By the pool, Mo Yan cautiously peeked out from behind Zhan Zhao, her voice so soft it was chilling.

They hadn't thought much of it at first, but after she said that, not only Bai Yingyu, but even the two maids beside her became a little uneasy. They cautiously scanned the ruins, afraid that there might really be some remains among them.

"Don't worry, there's nothing wrong," Zhan Zhao said calmly.

Mo Yan asked curiously, "How did you know?"

"There was no smell of burning corpse."

"Oh..." She felt relieved, then looked at him sympathetically, "You've smelled it before?"

"……Um."

Zhan Zhao gave a casual reply; he clearly didn't want to answer the question, as it wasn't a pleasant memory.

Mo Yan didn't press the matter further. Although she was somewhat curious, fear ultimately prevailed. She strolled through the ruins, occasionally waving to Zhan Zhao to come and see what she saw.

“We’ve taken them all down,” she said.

"Hmm, couldn't find it," Zhan Zhao replied.

“They have no reason to bring that!” she said, and Zhan Zhao nodded.

"It's him?" Mo Yan gritted her teeth.

Zhan Zhao shook his head: "No."

...

The conversation between the two was utterly nonsensical and simple, leaving onlookers completely bewildered. Bai Yingyu followed the direction Mo Yan pointed, but found nothing but patches of ashes, let alone anything else to discern.

After circling around a few times, the two finally emerged, both with furrowed brows: things had gone beyond their expectations.

"Miss, Miss!" A maid rushed over. "The concubines are arguing up front. The third concubine is demanding that you come over and say something..." She glanced at Zhan Zhao and Mo Yan, seemingly finding it difficult to speak.

"What are you saying?" Bai Yingyu asked calmly. With her family so ruined, there was nothing left to hide.

"Since those betrothal gifts were returned to the young lady, let her go out and say a few words."

Bai Yingyu smiled wryly. This third aunt had never been able to outdo the other two, so she figured she couldn't get what she wanted and was simply trying to break things off. She couldn't let them make a scene in front of outsiders. She took a deep breath and said apologetically to Zhan Zhao, "Please wait a moment, I'll be right back."

Zhan Zhao nodded.

Perhaps because it was too chaotic at the front, several maids followed them to the front, leaving only Zhan Zhao and Mo Yan by the large pond.

"How could it be her?" Mo Yan shook her head and sighed.

"Perhaps she's afraid of something?"

Mo Yan sneered: "Afraid of damaging her father's 'reputation'?"

Zhan Zhao remained silent, gazing at the small building where Bai Yingyu lived not far away.

"That's the only place we might find clues right now." Mo Yan and he were looking in the same direction.

An autumn breeze swept by, and a light drizzle brushed against his clothes. Zhan Zhao looked away. He suddenly realized, belatedly, that although he and Mo Yan were completely different kinds of people, they shared an astonishing understanding.

He and Mo Yan had just inspected the study and found it had been smeared with oil inside and out. Furthermore, the ashes revealed that many books and papers had been removed, stacked, and then burned. The arsonist had clearly come prepared and had ample time, so it couldn't be the two people they encountered last night. Initially, Mo Yan suspected Wu Zichu, but Zhan Zhao believed that with Zichu's light-footed skills, he wouldn't have had so much time.

The two maids accompanying Bai Yingyu also had oil stains on their shoes. At first, they didn't pay much attention, assuming that maids frequently went in and out of the kitchen, and a little oil stain was normal. But when the maid in a hurry appeared in front of them, they immediately understood.

The maid's worn skirt had a large oil stain on the hem. The skirt was dark blue, so the oil stain wasn't very noticeable, which was probably why she hadn't changed out of it. Her shoes were the same as the previous two.

Coincidentally, they were all Bai Yingyu's maids.

Connecting the two, the most likely explanation is that Bai Yingyu was the one who burned down the study.

When Zhan Zhao looked up again, he saw that Mo Yan had already started walking towards the small building.

Are you going now?

"Anyway, there's nobody here."

He took a step forward helplessly: "What if someone sees us?"

"Just say you're taking shelter from the rain."

Mo Yan looked up at the sky with a smile, a few strands of rain clinging to the ends of her hair, soft and gentle.

Author's Note: Updates are difficult.

The little lion has been very restless lately, and I've been severely sleep-deprived, so updates have been slow. Please forgive me.

Taking care of a baby alone is a real test of both physical and mental strength!

Chapter Twenty-One

"Don't underestimate this light rain; it carries the chill of autumn. If you get caught in it and don't pay attention, the cold air can easily seep into your body and cause you to catch a cold," she added with an air of importance.

Zhan Zhao smiled: "That's very true."