A female coroner arrived at the Jingzhao Prefecture.

Chapter 116 The Truth Revealed to the World (4)

"Are Shuangcui and Linglong the maids whose faces used to be covered in sores and oozing pus?"

"what?"

Liu Xiao reacted a beat too slow, his gaze towards Mu Qingcheng was empty and confused.

Mu Qingcheng patiently helped him recall, "When we were at the mortuary, you told us that ever since General Liu agreed to let Huang Yiyi enter the family, strange things have been happening to the Liu family. Huang Yiyi was possessed by evil spirits and disappeared in the middle of the night. Madam Liu was pecked on the face by birds. The maid developed sores on her face. The old woman's face was oozing pus. Huang Yiyi developed a rash that was painful and itchy. All of these things were incurable by medicine. Not long after, they were inexplicably cured."

Liu Xiao looked blank. "Oh, yes, that's true. What happened?"

"Now I want to know, are Shuangcui and Linglong, who died here with Huang Yiyi, the maids you mentioned who suffered from facial diseases?" Mu Qingcheng spoke slowly, each word clear to Liu Xiao.

Liu Xiao's blank mind slowly regained its ability to think. His gaze lingered on the faces of the three women, and finally he gave a definite answer: "Yes, it's them! Shuangcui is a second-class maid in my mother's courtyard, and Linglong serves the First Madam. Apart from Xia Yu, the First Madam's dowry maid, Linglong is the most capable and the most favored by the First Madam. I am a man, and I don't concern myself too much with matters of the inner quarters. Moreover, they are not maids in my courtyard, so I would pay even less attention to them. The reason I know this is that after Yiyi developed a rash on her face, the family physician was helpless, and I found several doctors outside who were skilled in treating skin diseases, but it still didn't work."

"At that moment, I overheard the maids in the courtyard gossiping. They said that Shuangcui and Linglong had asked for leave, apparently because their faces had rotted and they couldn't bear to be seen. They were hiding in their rooms crying all day long. And Granny Chang had boils on her face that were constantly oozing pus, which was quite frightening. I immediately sensed something was amiss, so I had someone bring Granny Chang, Shuangcui, and Linglong to me. I examined their faces myself and asked them about the cause of their rotten faces, but none of them knew the reason. A few days later, Yiyi woke up one morning to find that all the rashes on her face had disappeared. I was overjoyed, but at the same time, I was also terrified. To verify my suspicions, I went to see the three servants and found that their faces had also become completely healed overnight!"

"So, I remember these two faces; they are Shuangcui and Linglong!"

After recalling the events, Liu Xiao leaned on the glass jar and slowly stood up. His cloudy eyes stared intently at Mu Qingcheng, and his voice trembled uncontrollably. "So, all the people whose faces were ruined back then are dead?"

"Uncertain. We haven't received confirmation from Madam Liu or Mama Chang," Mu Qingcheng replied cautiously.

Liu Xiao said, "My mother was perfectly healthy before I left home, and I had never heard of Aunt Chang's disappearance."

“We will go to the General’s Mansion to verify.” Mu Qingcheng nodded.

Liu Xiao lowered his eyes, pondered for a while, then raised his eyes and said, "So, the fact that their faces broke out at the same time and healed at the same time is not a coincidence, but that someone is manipulating things behind the scenes? Or even humiliating them and drowning them in water?"

He was relatively calm when he started speaking, but his emotions became increasingly out of control, and when he said the last two words, "drowning," he almost roared!

Mu Qingcheng swallowed, but did not answer.

The truth has not yet been fully investigated. While those on the inside can make reasonable speculations, it is not appropriate to discuss them with the parties involved. Moreover, no autopsy has been performed, and the cause of death cannot be determined.

"Young Master Liu, please calm down!"

Seeing this situation, Song Shuyu, who had been listening from the doorway, had no choice but to show himself and take charge.

Liu Xiao's body, which he had been struggling to support, collapsed to the ground. He pounded the ground with his fists again and again, and the whole room was filled with his suppressed sobs: "Why? Why? They are just weak women. Who is so cruel as to treat them like this?"

Everyone had witnessed Liu Xiao's madness and eccentricity, and had experienced his cruelty in treating Granny Yang's life as a game. Now, hearing him accuse the murderer of being heartless, they were all at a loss for words.

"You only know the pain when the knife cuts you." Mu Qingcheng sighed. "Liu Xiao, I shouldn't have kicked you when you were down, but I want to tell you something: Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you." Liu Xiao's hand, which was slamming against the ground, suddenly stopped. Blood seeped from the back of his hand, staining the ground red. Mu Qingcheng frowned and signaled the nearby officials to wipe it away quickly to avoid disturbing the scene.

The constables, acting on Song Shuyu's orders, forcibly pulled Liu Xiao up from the ground.

Liu Xiao was like a lost soul, neither crying nor laughing, muttering to himself, "Did I harm Yiyi? Was I heartless, and that's why I suffered divine retribution, causing the death of my wife?"

Song Shuyu moved closer to Mu Qingcheng and asked in a low voice, "Does Coroner Mu need further questioning?"

There were still many things to be done, and the three judges were still waiting outside to examine the pills and medicinal herbs.

It's pointless for so many people to continue watching Liu Xiao's despair and madness. Only by solving the case as soon as possible can we bring solace to the deceased and comfort to the living.

Mu Qingcheng replied, "There is one more question. Please wait a moment, sir."

Song Shuyu nodded.

However, before Mu Qingcheng could ask any questions, Liu Xiao suddenly lunged at the glass jar, pointing to Huang Yiyi's seemingly normal face in the red medicinal water, and excitedly said, "Coroner Mu, wasn't Yiyi just soaked in there? Look, her face, her skin, it's no different from a normal person's. If we pull her out now, can we still save her?"

Fearing that Liu Xiao would disturb the scene of the corpse, Song Shuyu hurriedly shouted, "Quickly restrain Liu Xiao and don't let him get near the glass jar!"

Two constables grabbed Liu Xiao's arm and dragged him away from the glass jar.

"Coroner Mu, speak up! Aren't you a coroner? Tell me, Yiyi isn't dead, she's still alive, isn't she?"

Liu Xiao craned his neck, asking repeatedly with unwavering determination, his eyes gleaming with endless hope and a fragile light that he was barely holding on to.

Mu Qingcheng clenched her fists so tightly that her knuckles turned bluish-white. She declared firmly, "Liu Xiao, I'm certain that all three of them are dead! As for the time and cause of death, I'll tell you after I conduct the autopsy!"

Liu Xiao burst into tears, like a broken doll.

As a criminal investigator, sympathizing with the victim's family can only offer emotional comfort, which doesn't actually solve the fundamental problem. Therefore, Mu Qingcheng had no patience to wait for Liu Xiao to calm down. She stepped forward, grabbed Liu Xiao's collar, and shouted sharply, "Stop howling!"

Liu Xiao was startled and obediently shut his mouth.

Mu Qingcheng said, "Tell me, where were you between the evening of September 9th and the early morning of September 10th? Where was your father?"

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(End of this chapter)