frightfiction Chapter 1457 Could it be Consort Kang who did it?
Chapter 1457 Could it be Consort Kang who did it?
The corpse beside her was Yingxiang, her former head palace maid.
Shen Zhinian frowned, quickly looked away, and doubts arose in her heart.
"oops--!!!"
A short, startled cry came from behind me, filled with utter shock.
It was Consort Dun who had rushed over.
She had come to watch the spectacle, but as soon as she squeezed to the front, she was met with a face distorted by the water under the white sheet…
Consort Dun turned pale with fright, hurriedly covered her mouth with a handkerchief, and took two steps back, her heart pounding.
Although she hoped Bahargul would suffer misfortune, seeing her dead in such a direct manner still made her feel nauseous.
After realizing what had happened, Consort Dun quickly bowed to Shen Zhinian: "Your subject greets Your Highness, the Imperial Noble Consort. May Your Highness be blessed with ten thousand years of happiness and peace!"
"Your Majesty, I have been disrespectful. Please forgive me."
Shen Zhinian glanced at Consort Dun, said "Get up," and then turned her gaze to Su Quanye: "Chief Steward Su, have you found anything?"
Su Quanye bowed and replied cautiously, "Your Highness, I have carefully examined the body of the woman from Baguan and the maid Yingxiang. There are no external injuries on their bodies, nor are there any signs of struggle or dragging around them."
"At first glance... it appears to have been an accidental fall into the water."
Listening to this airtight explanation, Shen Zhinian's doubts not only did not dissipate, but grew even stronger.
The absence of any abnormality is often the biggest abnormality.
She turned to look at the eldest princess, who was still sobbing in Consort Zhuang's arms, and asked in a softer voice, "Yun'er, since Madam Ba is your personal attendant, do you know when she left Changchun Palace last night?"
The eldest princess raised her red and swollen eyes and sobbed as she answered, "Your Majesty... when Yun'er fell asleep last night, Guli and Yingxiang were still watching over her."
"When Yun'er woke up this morning, she didn't see them..."
"Yun'er thought they were going to prepare breakfast for me or to fetch something..."
The eldest princess grew more and more upset as she spoke, her little face scrunched up: "Who knew...who knew that Eunuch Su sent someone to say that they fell into the pond...Waaah..."
Consort Zhuang quickly patted the eldest princess's back and gently comforted her, "Yun'er, be good, don't cry anymore, or you'll hurt your eyes."
As she spoke, she gently wiped away the eldest princess's tears with a silk handkerchief.
Shen Zhinian turned her gaze to Consort Zhuang, her tone calm but her eyes scrutinizing: "Consort Zhuang, since Madam Ba has already been arranged to serve the eldest princess in Changchun Palace, why would she and Yingxiang come to this secluded Taiye Pond in the middle of the night?"
Before Consort Zhuang could answer, Consort Dun, who was standing to the side, seemed to have finally seized the opportunity and covered her mouth with a handkerchief, saying, "Yes, this is too strange."
"Who doesn't know that the Imperial Concubine has always disliked Ba Shi? She was staying peacefully in Changchun Palace, so why would she come here?"
"Could it be that he received some 'orders' and had no choice but to come?"
Consort Dun's words implied that Consort Zhuang was inextricably linked to this matter.
Faced with her almost blunt accusation, Consort Zhuang showed no sign of panic. She raised her eyes and looked calmly at Consort Dun: "Sister Consort Dun, you are mistaken."
"Although I had some disagreements with Lady Ba, now that she has entered Changchun Palace to serve the eldest princess, why would I hold a grudge against her?"
"But you, sister... it seems that you and Madam Ba had a deep-seated grudge back when you were in Yikun Palace. Her sudden death, do you perhaps know something about it?"
Consort Dun did not expect that Consort Zhuang would directly provoke her.
Her expression changed slightly, and she hurriedly defended herself: "Your Highness, please don't wrong an innocent person!"
"After Lady Ba went to Changchun Palace, I barely saw her face a few times. How could I know anything about the inside story? I just think this matter is strange."
Shen Zhinian watched the two of them go back and forth, arguing with each other, and knew in her heart that asking any further questions would only be a waste of time and a pointless argument.
Consort Zhuang remained as steady as Mount Tai, while Consort Dun appeared fierce but was actually weak; neither could get any real information out of them.
"That's all."
Shen Zhinian spoke calmly, interrupting the two's confrontation: "Since the Censorate has verified that there are no errors, Steward Su can handle the follow-up matters properly."
Su Quanye bowed immediately: "This servant obeys."
Ultimately, the deaths of an insignificant palace maid and a female official were hardly enough to cause a ripple in the deep palace.
"Respectfully seeing off the Imperial Noble Consort!"
After exchanging greetings, everyone quickly dispersed.
Back at Yongshou Palace, the doubts between Shen Zhinian's brows had not yet dissipated.
"I remember instructing you before to have someone keep an eye on Bahargul's movements."
She looked at Xiaomingzi and asked, "Ba Shi and Yingxiang went to Taiye Pond last night. Didn't the people you sent out notice anything at all?"
Xiao Mingzi knelt down with a thud, cold sweat beading on his forehead, and said in a panic, "Your Majesty, please see the truth!"
"This servant did indeed arrange for people to keep an eye on Madam Ba day and night, but... but the people who were watching her last night reported that they did not see Madam Ba leave Changchun Palace!"
"This servant doesn't know either, how... how did she and Yingxiang suddenly appear at Taiye Pond, and then drown..."
Shen Zhinian's eyes sharpened.
Those watching didn't see Bahargul leave, but she and Yingxiang died in Taiye Pond.
This can only mean that either the person Xiaomingzi sent out failed in his duty.
Either... their methods were more sophisticated than they had anticipated. Not only were they able to bring people out of Changchun Palace silently, but they were also able to evade her spies and informants.
Han Dan frowned, unable to resist guessing, "Your Majesty, do you think... it might have been Consort Kang who did it?"
"Didn't you previously speculate that Madam Ba might have something on Consort Kang? What if Consort Kang gets pushed to the limit and tries to silence her..."
Shen Zhinian shook her head upon hearing this: "When I first heard the news of Ba Shi's death, she was the first person I thought of."
"But upon closer examination, Consort Kang may have had such thoughts, but she definitely does not have such abilities."
Xiao Mingzi nodded: "Your Majesty is right."
"The woman from Baguan and Yingxiang disappeared in Changchun Palace, yet they managed to avoid the spies sent by the servants and appear silently at Taiye Pond. Even the Shenxing Division could not find any clues after their deaths, and could only close the case as an accident."
"This level of meticulousness and efficiency is something that Consort Kang, who is currently weak and has limited manpower, could never achieve."
Upon hearing this, everyone looked even more confused.
Fuqu said softly, "If it's not Consort Kang, then who could it be?"
"The other party has such ability and a deep hatred for Ba, so they must kill her."
Shen Zhinian frowned slightly.
Yes, who could it be?
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Shen Zhinian!
She has been stuck in a cognitive bias.
Because of her memories of her past life, Shen Zhinian was prejudiced and believed that Bahargul was an important character who would live until the Prince of Jin rebelled and play a key role in that upheaval.