Peaceful Farm Life

Chapter 848: Chapter 849: Suicide for Fear of Crime

Wild Goose Jade was unwilling to answer and turned to leave.

”Miss—” Meng Zhuqing wanted to follow.

But Wild Goose Jade turned her head, drew her sword with a fierce swiftness, and said to him with utmost indifference, ”Don’t follow me!”

Meng Zhuqing could only stop in his tracks, watching as Wild Goose Jade sheathed her sword and departed, as her icy voice slowly faded into the night until he could no longer see even a trace of her silhouette. Then he sighed softly, turned around, and returned to Fifth Prince’s Mansion to continue protecting Gong Juechen.

...

Upon learning about Su Chengjin being poisoned, the Emperor of Xiyun handed the investigation over to the Minister of Justice for a thorough inquiry. Fearing that heads would roll, the Minister of Justice immediately arrested Lord Fang and all the junior officials from the Imperial Hospital responsible for dispensing medicine to the Fifth Prince.

Many people from the Fifth Prince’s Mansion were also arrested.

Almost everyone who had come into contact with the medicine for the Fifth Prince was seized by the Minister of Justice for interrogation.

The Minister of Justice had been interrogating them for six days, resorting to severe torture, yet still hadn’t uncovered the slightest clue.

Then, the Minister of Justice grew even more worried about his own head.

Just as the Minister of Justice commenced the seventh day of interrogation, within Fifth Prince’s Mansion, Gong Juechen had also started the final detoxification process for Su Chengjin. Once finished, there would no longer be any residual poison in Su Chengjin’s body.

And just after Gong Juechen had finished the detoxification, Su Chengyu arrived.

As soon as he came, Su Chengyu inquired about Su Chengjin’s recovery from the poison.

Su Chengjin smiled and said, ”Your Highness, Crown Prince, you are too kind to be concerned about me. The palace doctor said that all the poison in my body has been cleared. It’s just that due to the long-term presence of poison in my body, I’ve suffered significant debilitation. It will take at least a year and a half of recuperation before I can truly be like a normal person again.”

”That’s very good!” Su Chengyu rejoiced sincerely from the bottom of his heart.

Seeing Su Chengyu’s reaction, Gong Juechen had mixed feelings. He had been staying in the Fifth Prince’s Mansion for almost seven days now and realized that this Fifth Prince indeed couldn’t measure up to Su Chengyu.

It was at that moment, the manager from the Fifth Prince’s Mansion rushed in.

Upon seeing that Su Chengyu, the Crown Prince, was also present, he first performed a grand salute, and then reported, ”I beg to inform Your Highness, Crown Prince, and inform the Fifth Prince, the Ministry of Justice has sent news—Qi Yin has committed suicide in prison out of fear of her crimes.”

Both Su Chengyu and Su Chengjin were taken aback.

Gong Juechen, with his head respectfully bowed, kept his expression hidden from the others, but the corners of his mouth were distinctly and wickedly curled up as if he had anticipated this outcome all along.

The manager continued, ”Before committing suicide out of fear of her crimes, Qi Yin wrote a blood letter on the prison wall. She wrote that she couldn’t bear the torture and preferred death. She also confessed why she wanted to poison the Fifth Prince.”

Upon hearing this, Su Chengyu immediately asked anxiously, ”Why?”

The manager said, ”Qi Yin stated that she and Qin Yin were sisters, but not just the two of them—there was also a younger brother. He was the one to carry on their family lineage, but the Fifth Prince, in his youth, while recklessly riding on the streets, trampled their four-year-old brother to death, severing their family line. Hating the Fifth Prince, they sought vengeance for their brother and together entered the palace to become palace maids.”

”Then, they used all means to get into the Fifth Prince’s palace, earned his trust, and became his personal maids, before poisoning him. Their intention was not to kill the Fifth Prince; they only wanted to make his life a living hell.”

”They said that letting the Fifth Prince die would be letting him off too easily, and they would have no face to meet their little brother in the underworld.”

”The Minister of Justice has also sent people to confirm with Qi Yin’s family, and indeed, Qi Yin and Qin Yin had a brother who was trampled to death by a horse when he was four years old.”

Gong Juechen didn’t believe a single word of what the manager said.

Su Chengyu did believe it, as this matter was ultimately to be reported to his father, the Emperor, by the Ministry of Justice. It seemed improbable to be fabricated. However, he didn’t know what to say.

When he, as the Fifth Imperial Brother, was young, he truly was...