Chapter 134: The Trail Points Forward

"Your Majesty, I have read in books that vultures, such birds of prey, do not appear suddenly in thickets without cause; they are only drawn to rotting flesh."

He truly lacked a sense of romance. I had expected him to beg for some precious treasure. Why, all of a sudden, did Han Qing bring up such ominous birds as vultures?

"It has been circling the stables to the southeast. It is highly likely that there is a decomposing corpse there. I humbly request Your Highness to allow my men to investigate."

What?

"Granted."

It was an unexpected request, yet it stood to reason. Coming from Han Qing, it seemed perfectly normal. Several other officials, curious about the matter, accompanied them.

There were only a few dozen horses there, and no rotting meat was to be seen. Could his guess have been wrong?

"Young Master Han, have you been reading too many books, to the point of becoming delirious?"

"In broad daylight, how could there possibly be rotting flesh here?"

Han Qing did not even bother to respond to these cold remarks. He paced around the stables, eventually spotting a pile of hay at the back. After having some men clear the hay, they indeed discovered a body. It was mangled beyond recognition, its identity unknown, and it emitted a foul, fishy stench.

"Your Highness, we have indeed found a corpse. It appears to have been dead for five or six days. However, we questioned the stable master, and they have not replaced any servants. Aside from this hunting trip, no outsiders have entered here for the past two or three months," Minister Cao explained slowly.

If the body appeared within the last week, how could that be explained?

"Wait, why does this person look so much like a man of Chu?" Yuwen Hong, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up.

"Crown Prince of Chu, even if you have many grievances against our Kingdom of Qing, you should not make such reckless accusations at a time like this!"

"You are overthinking it. We people of Chu are bound by cords at the ankles from childhood, which are only cut upon reaching adulthood. Although this corpse is now unrecognizable, the marks remain on its ankles."

His words caused everyone to look at the corpse’s ankles. It was indeed as he said.

"Your Highness, since a man of Chu has died so mysteriously, shouldn't you provide an explanation? We had hoped for better relations in the future, but now such a malicious incident has occurred..."

It was clear he was looking to stir up trouble. Having found an excuse, he immediately began to prattle on at length. However, the Emperor’s expression remained calm and indifferent.

"This matter will be thoroughly investigated!"

The other officials departed one after another. Minister Gao quickly arranged for soldiers to take control of the scene and ordered the coroner to examine the body to determine the cause of death.

It turned out to be an actor? Minister Gao immediately investigated the theaters in Luojing and found that the only one missing was the actor from before. They hurried to the prison to check on him, but he was nowhere to be found.

Hadn't they already been ordered to dispose of this man? Why had he suddenly escaped from the prison?

Minister Cao offered an explanation: "Because the actor was a man of Chu, he was not handled according to the laws of our Qing Kingdom, but was instead handed over to the Marquis of Yueling. He should have been staying at the guesthouse these past few days."

But they checked the guesthouse and found no trace of him. It seemed highly likely that the corpse was indeed the actor. It had been less than a week; how could he have been murdered so suddenly? Could the Crown Prince of Chu have killed him and placed him in the hunting grounds? Was he the one manipulating everything from behind the scenes?

But that seemed impossible. Since no one else could enter the hunting grounds, how could outsiders have had the opportunity? Unless someone from the royal family had helped them smuggle the body in.

Minister Gao immediately questioned the stable master, who stammered in his response.

"Are you certain no one entered here?"

The master hesitated, then spoke: "Prince Huai came to select a few horses. But that is nothing unusual; after all, it is permitted for princes to come here, so it is not that big of a deal."

He nodded. That meant the situation was indeed suspicious. The matter regarding Prince Huai had to be handled. Given his status, his actions would certainly not be questioned; his position as a prince allowed him to do many things easily, granting him access to unexpected places.

However, since clues had emerged, they had to continue investigating in this direction. Minister Gao questioned everyone again, but the leads were scarce. Aside from the stable master seeing Prince Huai, no other princes had set foot in that area.

Minister Gao did not have the authority to interrogate Prince Huai directly, so he could only report the matter to the Emperor. Prince Huai was immediately summoned to the palace.

Yet, Minister Gao felt this case was strange. If someone was intentionally pointing clues toward Prince Huai, it might be a frame-up. Even if Prince Huai’s subordinates were not particularly brilliant, they would not make such a low-level error.

He went to consult Han Qing. If this case were settled wrongly, the Emperor would surely be furious, and they, as officials, would be unable to escape blame.

"Brother Han, you must give me some advice, otherwise I have no hope for the rest of my life."

Han Qing nodded calmly after hearing this. He still did not know what the person behind this was planning. They were all at a loss, unable to define the case.

"I have interrogated them. Prince Huai and the Crown Prince of Chu have been in close contact, and it just so happens that this man of Chu was the one who attempted to assassinate them before. Therefore, there is good reason to suspect that Prince Huai and the Crown Prince of Chu are colluding..." Minister Gao guessed simply.

Although such thoughts seemed incredible, they had reached this point and had to identify the culprit based on the clues.

"Have you checked the guesthouse?"

"Brother Han, that was arranged by court officials and approved by His Majesty. No one would dare to make trouble there, would they?" Minister Gao said, lost in thought.