"Don't all knife wounds look alike? How can you be sure it was Miss Zheng who inflicted this one?" Feng Jingyi couldn't help but step in to defend.
Hearing this, the eunuch curled his lips disdainfully and sneered, "If it were an ordinary knife, it would indeed be hard to tell. But Miss Zheng's knife has a very unique shape."
With that, he signaled to a guard beside him. The guard stepped forward with a shallow and wide wooden tray, on which lay a short dagger.
It was exactly the one tightly held in Zheng Yan's hand when she was murdered.
"Your Highness, the Fifth Prince, take a look." Since Feng Jingyi was the only one who had raised doubts, the eunuch picked up the dagger and showed it to him first.
"This dagger is extraordinary. There are countless tiny barbs on the blade. Once it pierces into the flesh, it's very difficult to pull out. If one tries to force it out, it will tear the skin and flesh, causing excruciating pain."
"And the wound on this maid's arm is not smooth. The skin on the side is turned outwards, exactly matching the shape of this sharp blade."
As the eunuch's words clearly reached the ears of everyone present, Bai Zheng clenched her fist tightly in her sleeve.
Marquis Gaochang couldn't help taking a step back. He seemed to be greatly shocked. His voice was hoarse as he slowly and carefully asked the most crucial question in the case, "Was my Yan'er stabbed to death with this very knife?"
When Zheng Yan was killed, it was obvious that she had been stabbed by a sharp blade, which was why a large amount of blood had gushed out from her chest.
But at the scene, there had only been one murder weapon beside Zheng Yan.
It was the one she had held in her hand when she was killed.
But if Zheng Yan had been stabbed to death with this short dagger, then who had forcibly pulled it out of her body?
The eunuch's eyes flickered slightly, and a trace of reluctance flashed across his eyes.
"Is it or not?" Marquis Gaochang's lips trembled. He leaned forward, staring at the eunuch eagerly.
The eunuch looked at Marquis Gaochang. After a long while, he slowly nodded.
"Yes."
"Yan'er—" Marquis Gaochang let out a heart - rending cry. Then his breathing became rapid. He tightly covered his chest, and his face turned purple. He took several steps back before collapsing into the arms of those who rushed forward to support him.
"How much pain must my Yan'er have endured at that time—" Marquis Gaochang's voice was shrill, causing everyone present to have red eyes.
Soon, someone spoke out indignantly, "What kind of deep - seated hatred could make someone act so viciously? Your Majesty is wise. You must severely punish the murderer!"
"Miss Zheng died so miserably. Please, Your Majesty, seek justice for Miss Zheng!"
All the previous preparations had not been in vain.
By this time, Bai Zheng, who had the most conflicts with Zheng Yan, had clearly become the target of public criticism.
Moreover, the wound on Qing Shao's arm had now become irrefutable evidence.
Amid the outcries of condemnation, only Prince Yi frowned and objected, "Judging Miss Bai as the murderer just based on this scratch is too hasty!"
"I don't want to believe it either, but this knife wound... leaves us no choice but to believe it." Bai Di stared at Bai Zheng aggressively, a glint of hatred flashing in her eyes. "Zheng'er, what else do you have to say?"
Bai Di wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she seemed to see a faint trace of mockery on Bai Zheng's face. When she looked more closely, that expression had changed to fear and timidity.
She didn't answer but just looked at Feng Linyuan pleadingly.
At this moment, she still had to play the role of a mediocre young lady, so it wasn't appropriate for her to fight back.
Feng Linyuan understood her intention. He frowned slightly and said in a deep voice, "Even if this maid's arm was scratched by Miss Zheng, Miss Zheng was resting in the warm pavilion and had just broken her leg. How could she end up being killed in the imperial garden? Could it be that Zheng'er and her maid had so much energy to spare that they carried Miss Zheng out specifically to kill her?"
As soon as these words were spoken, even Marquis Gaochang, who was deeply immersed in grief, was stunned.
During the investigation of the case, they had actually forgotten the most crucial point. How could Zheng Yan have appeared in the imperial garden?
She had just broken her leg.
According to the testimony of her personal maid, only Zheng Yan and Princess Pingyang had been left in the warm pavilion at that time.
Judging from the princess's affection for Zheng Yan, she would never have allowed Zheng Yan to go out, let alone helped her.
So who had carried Zheng Yan out of the pavilion and brought her to the imperial garden?
"Moreover," Feng Linyuan paused slightly, a strange smile appearing on his face. "This maid was given to Zheng'er by this marquis."
"What kind of reason is that?" Bai Di sneered without hesitation.
"If, as you said, there was a feud between Zheng'er and Miss Zheng because of their rivalry for the Fourth Prince, and if Zheng'er wanted to kill Miss Zheng for the Fourth Prince at this moment, Miss Bai, the Second Miss, tell me, would this marquis's maid help or not?"
Bai Di's face instantly turned deathly pale.
It was almost impossible, according to common sense, for a maid given by Feng Linyuan to completely abandon her old master and pledge loyalty to a new one in just one month.
It would be good if she didn't go and report to Feng Linyuan. How could she be expected to help with murder?
If Bai Zheng really got involved with Feng Jingyang in the future, would Qing Shao still have a chance of survival?
"This marquis may be seriously injured and on the verge of death, but it's not difficult to deal with one or two disloyal maids," Feng Linyuan said with a calm smile. "Moreover..."
Bai Di asked urgently, "Moreover what?"
Feng Linyuan's cold eyes swept across her face lightly. "Moreover, this marquis chose this maid because of her extraordinary skills. Even though Miss Zheng was proficient in martial arts, she had just broken her leg. It's probably impossible for her to injure this maid's arm."
"Yes, Qing Shao is very capable. She protected me several times and prevented the villains on the road from hurting me!" Bai Zheng spoke up in a timely manner.
Zheng Yan had been carefully raised by Marquis Gaochang since childhood. Just the dancing skills she had demonstrated when she snatched the jade pendant for Feng Jingyang were enough to make people marvel.
As a qualified daughter of a military family, her martial arts skills were naturally not to be underestimated.
But Qing Shao, who had stood out from Feng Linyuan's subordinates and been sent to protect Bai Zheng, how could she be an ordinary person?
Feng Jingyang's expression suddenly changed.
"She's just a little girl. Yan'er has been practicing martial arts since childhood. How couldn't she injure her?" Concubine Zhao sneered with a hint of contempt. "Is the marquis being overconfident?"
"This marquis will prove whether I'm overconfident or not with a test," Feng Linyuan said with a faint smile.
"How?" Concubine Zhao frowned slightly upon hearing this.
"I'm sure no one knows better than Marquis Gaochang how skilled Miss Zheng was. As long as the marquis selects someone of the same level as Miss Zheng or even more skilled to compete with this girl, the result will be clear."
"This... Your Majesty?" Concubine Zhao frowned unhappily and looked up at Feng Linche.
Feng Linche had been staring at Bai Zheng and Feng Linyuan like a venomous snake since just now.
At this moment, his eyes changed several times and finally turned into a bottomless abyss.
"I didn't expect that our Marquis of Dingyuan is really concerned about Miss Bai, the Third Miss."