During this period, in connection with the marriage of Princess Yunxi, he had met Feng Jingxuan several times and was not unfamiliar with Ci Hui, Feng Jingxuan's personal attendant.
Now that he saw Ci Hui again, he naturally recognized him.
But could it be that this was the servant he had seen last night when he urged Bai Sheng to start the fire, and whose traces he had accidentally discovered and then silenced on the spot?
That guy turned out not to be an ordinary servant, but Ci Hui, the personal guard beside Feng Jingxuan?
At this thought, Zhuo Lingxiao shivered all over, and a chill rose from his back.
The situation had been urgent at that time. Fearing that Feng Linyuan would discover Bai Sheng earlier and disrupt their plan, he had only been eager to come over and start the fire quickly.
When he saw Ci Hui's figure, due to the dim night and his own impatience, he hadn't recognized who it was before he directly attacked.
At that time, he had only thought the other person was an ordinary servant. Seeing him lying motionless on the ground, he had assumed the man was dead and hadn't bothered to give any more blows before leaving.
Who would have thought it was Ci Hui?
Ci Hui was quite skilled in martial arts, which was why he had managed to survive and come here to complain.
Zhuo Lingxiao secretly rubbed his hands. It was all his own carelessness. The situation last night had been so chaotic. He had been so focused on Princess Yunxi that he had completely forgotten about this person. Now, he was afraid there would be trouble!
However...
Even he with his sharp eyesight hadn't recognized Ci Hui at that time. Maybe Ci Hui hadn't recognized him either?
But regardless of whether Ci Hui had recognized him or not, this person couldn't be allowed to live!
Zhuo Lingxiao's expression quickly returned to calm, but his mind was racing, desperately thinking of a countermeasure.
All the guests were waiting in the courtyard in front of the guest room, watching everything that was happening inside.
No one spoke. Everyone tacitly fell silent and listened to the conversation inside.
Among the crowd, only Bai Sheng hung her head. Her long bangs completely obscured her expression.
Ci Hui had only knelt for a short while when his head started to feel dizzy, and his vision gradually blurred.
His injuries were very serious. There were many injured people in the mansion today. Even though he was Feng Jingxuan's personal guard, in the end, he was just a servant, and a servant who had failed to protect his master.
If it hadn't been for Steward Zhou sending someone to help him back to his room to rest and a few kind - hearted servants bandaging his wounds, it would have been hard to say whether he could have survived until now.
Everyone present had their own thoughts, and for a moment, no one spoke.
It was Consort Yi who was the first to speak. "Now that I think about it carefully, the fire yesterday was really strange. If it hadn't been for this fire, Xuan'er wouldn't have lost his life..."
"Mother is right. The person who started the fire must be the real culprit!" Princess Yunxi nodded and said through gritted teeth.
Zhuo Lingxiao's heart skipped a beat. He turned to look at his younger sister, Princess Yunxi, wishing he could cover her mouth!
If he had known this would happen, he should have revealed the whole plan of burning Bai Sheng to her from the beginning.
It was all his fault. He had been afraid that more people knowing would cause unexpected problems, so he had only told her to help say a few words and distract Bai Sheng at that time.
As for how they would deal with Bai Sheng later, he hadn't revealed a single word to Princess Yunxi.
Therefore, Princess Yunxi had no idea that the person she was now accusing of starting the fire was her dear elder brother, Zhuo Lingxiao.
Zhuo Yi, who had remained silent all this time, raised his eyes and glanced at Princess Yunxi without a trace. Then he looked at Ci Hui, who was shaking his head and about to speak. His eyes flashed, and he spoke first.
"Yunxi, Consort Yi, I don't think so. Let's not even mention whether the cause of this fire was an accident or not. Just talk about the whereabouts of the Third Prince.
At that time, he should have been in the front hall accompanying Yunxi, but he inexplicably appeared in the fireworks room in the side courtyard. If the person who started the fire is the real culprit, then wasn't the Third Prince lured to the fireworks room by the real culprit?"
As soon as these words were spoken, Feng Jingye froze completely.
Ci Hui suddenly raised his head. A look of doubt flashed across his face at these words, but soon, he seemed to remember something. His eyes were like torches as he stared intently at Feng Jingye.
"As Prince Xuanning said, this servant does remember something!" He tried his best to gather his spirits and looked at Feng Linche.
His injury was on his head. Zhuo Lingxiao had attacked with the intention of killing, so his injury was very serious, which had also made his memory a bit chaotic and fuzzy.
But Zhuo Yi's words had instantly reminded him of the main reason why Feng Jingxuan had entered the secret room earlier.
"What is it?" Consort Yi asked anxiously.
"The reason the Third Prince went to the secret room instead of the side courtyard was that he was going to interrogate a spy who had been suddenly captured. And according to this servant's knowledge, that spy was sent by His Highness the Crown Prince!"
After Ci Hui said this with all his strength, the last bit of energy he had been holding on to dissipated, and he immediately fainted again.
This was a serious matter. The eunuch beside Feng Linche secretly gave a signal, and the imperial physician came up and carefully carried the unconscious Ci Hui away for treatment.
Ci Hui was gone, but the words he had left behind were like a drop of water falling into a pan of hot oil. The originally quiet atmosphere in the room instantly exploded.
"His Highness the Crown Prince? How could it be His Highness the Crown Prince? When the fire broke out just now, he clearly risked his life to save the Third Prince. He looked so affectionate and righteous..."
"That affectionate and righteous look seems to have been all an act! He is really scheming and ruthless!"
"To be so ruthless to his own brother. If this Crown Prince ascends the throne in the future, I'm afraid none of us will have a good time..."
Feng Jingye's face turned green. He was breathing rapidly, his mouth open, but he couldn't say a single word.
Empress Chu felt as if she had been struck by lightning and stood there stunned.
But soon, she remembered the incident that had happened when she helped Feng Jingye wash the ink off his face earlier. She frowned and glanced at her son.
Empress Chu was always very intelligent. Looking at her son's expression and recalling the conversation between him and the servant who had come to report the news at that time, she quickly sorted out the clues.
What Ci Hui said was very likely to be true - Feng Jingye had indeed sent a spy, and Feng Jingxuan had probably captured the spy sent by Feng Jingye at that time.
But... how could Feng Jingye admit to such a thing?
Once he admitted it, his position as the Crown Prince would be in great danger!
At this time, Consort Yi had come to her senses. She rushed forward in one stride, grabbed the front of Feng Jingye's clothes tightly, and scolded while hitting him. "Feng Jingye, it's you! It was you who killed my son! You are so cruel - hearted!"
Consort Yi's scolding was mixed with sobs, which moved everyone present.
"Xuan'er is no longer a threat to you. Why did you still try to kill him? If you are willing to kill someone like Xuan'er, in the future, will you spare none of His Majesty's sons, none of your brothers?!"
"I..." Feng Jingye was sweating profusely.