As soon as Steward Chen left, the people on - site started whispering to each other in hushed tones. Naturally, they were talking about what had happened at the cemetery.
"Who on earth has such a deep grudge against the Chen family that they would even steal a child's corpse?"
"I don't think this was done by a human. I heard there wasn't a single footprint at the cemetery!"
"If there weren't any footprints, doesn't that mean... there's a ghost?"
"Don't forget, the Taoist priest the Chen family invited was chanting and dancing in front of the tomb. Even if there were ghosts, they should have been exorcised. How could they still cause trouble?"
Ye Wanmian rolled her eyes and quietly inched closer. She whispered, "Out of curiosity, I took a peek into the coffin during the mourning. Guess what I found?"
Her words piqued everyone's interest. Even Zhou Wang leaned in and asked in a low voice, "What did you find?"
"I found that there were fingernail marks on Young Master Chen's neck."
"Ah?!" A gasp echoed through the crowd. Just as everyone was about to start discussing further, a guard from the Pei family's army, who was in charge of escorting the funeral procession that night, walked out.
The scene fell silent instantly. Everyone lowered their heads and dared not say any more.
The guard glanced down at the crowd and snorted. "As you all know, the two princes attach great importance to the disappearance of Young Master Chen's corpse. Now I'll give you a chance. Think carefully about what happened that night. Whoever can provide clues - including any strange behavior of the people around you - can leave first and will also receive a silver note worth a hundred taels."
This was clearly a sneaky move to make people inform on each other.
Sure enough, the quiet crowd started chattering again, trying hard to recall any abnormalities that had occurred that night.
Some said that the mourners around them were faking their cries. Some claimed to have seen someone eating while mourning. Others said that someone was dozing off near the cemetery during the burial. Everyone was going all out for that silver note worth a hundred taels.
"When we were going up the mountain, I heard a dog barking in the distance. The sound was like a wolf howl. It was terrifying!" someone said. "Could it be that a wild dog dug up the tomb in search of food and ate the corpse?"
Ye Wanmian gave that person a quick glance but didn't move.
The soldier from the Pei family's army pondered for a moment after hearing this. Then he walked into the building. A short while later, he reappeared in front of everyone and said to the person who had just spoken, "The prince wants to question you."
The man's face lit up with joy and he followed the soldier in.
Inside the main hall, Xiao Yixuan was sitting on a grand chair, holding the booklet Steward Chen had given him. Xiao Wuchen was standing behind him.
The man knelt in front of Xiao Yixuan, kowtowed a few times, and lay on the ground nervously.
"You said you heard a dog barking. When did you hear it? Did you see any dogs nearby?" A clear and gentle voice sounded above him.
The man recalled carefully. "We left the Chen mansion close to midnight that night. It took about half an hour to walk from the Chen mansion to the town entrance. And it should have taken another half - hour to reach the place where I heard the dog barking from the town entrance."
"As for the dog's figure..." The man shook his head. "I didn't see it. The sound seemed to come from far away."
It didn't seem to be a particularly useful clue. Xiao Yixuan was annoyed, but he didn't show it on his face. He waved his hand and had the man taken away.
After that, several other people claimed to have noticed something strange and were summoned by Xiao Yixuan. But all they said were unfounded rumors.
Helplessly, Xiao Yixuan had to call people in one by one according to the names in the booklet. After flipping through two pages of the booklet, he suddenly stopped. His eyes fell on the name "Jiang Mian from Qingyu Alley". Unconsciously, he tightened his grip on the booklet.
"Where is Jiang Mian from Qingyu Alley?"
Outside the door, the soldier called out. Ye Wanmian answered and stepped forward.
"The prince requests your presence."
This wasn't Ye Wanmian's first time at Liuxiang Tower, but she had always followed Doctor Wang before. This was the first time she walked in on her own.
Most of the soldiers who were familiar with her had been taken away by the King of Mu from Dongli Town. The remaining ones thought she looked familiar but didn't know who she was.
But Xiao Wuchen was different. When Ye Wanmian's figure appeared in front of him, he was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect that she would be in the Chen family's funeral procession.
Xiao Yixuan watched Ye Wanmian walking towards him. He sat up slightly straighter, curled his fingers tightly, and his complex gaze was also tinged with a bit of scrutiny.
Ye Wanmian was just an ordinary commoner at this time. According to etiquette, she should kneel and pay homage to the prince. However, just as she bent her knees to kneel, Xiao Yixuan spoke:
"Sure enough, it's Mrs. Jiang who's always with Doctor Wang. Since we're old acquaintances, there's no need for such formalities. Just stand up and answer my questions."
Master Chen and Steward Chen exchanged a glance. They didn't expect Ye Wanmian to know the King of Xuan and the others. They couldn't help but look at her a few more times.
Ye Wanmian ignored everyone's gazes. She lowered her eyes and replied, "Yes." Then she stood up straight, with her hands naturally hanging in front of her. "Your Highness, just ask whatever you want. I'll tell you everything I know."
Since there were Master Chen, Steward Chen and others in the main hall, Xiao Yixuan didn't want to talk too much with Ye Wanmian. He asked in a cold tone:
"I'm a bit curious. Mrs. Jiang, you're Doctor Wang's apprentice. Doctor Wang has gone to the capital with the King of Mu. You should be guarding the medical clinic for him. Why are you in the Chen family's funeral procession? That Young Master Chen shouldn't have any relation to you, right?"
Ye Wanmian looked surprised. Then she glanced at Steward Chen and said somewhat embarrassedly, "I heard from an acquaintance that Young Master Chen had passed away. They needed to hire some people to mourn at the burial, and they would pay two hundred cash after the job was done. So I asked him to sign me up."
Although Xiao Yixuan tried his best to keep his expression steady, his voice still betrayed a bit of his emotions. "You put on mourning clothes to mourn for someone just for two hundred cash. Are you obsessed with money?!"
He really wanted to ask her if she was really that short of money. Didn't he give her silver when he went to Qingyu Alley to see her not long ago?
Ye Wanmian knew Xiao Yixuan too well. Just by looking at his expression, she knew what was on his mind.
She sighed deeply and said with a bit of grievance, "I'm just an ordinary commoner. I need money for everything in life. These two hundred cash really doesn't amount to much. After buying a few bolts of cloth and some meat, there won't be much left."
"Your Highness may think that mourning is a low - class job, but it also takes a great toll. One has to cry non - stop for several hours or even days. Some people even damage their throats. These two hundred cash aren't that easy to earn."
"It's just pitiful that I'm so unfortunate, living alone. If my relatives were still alive, I wouldn't have to find ways to earn money by myself..."
She choked with sobs and wiped the corners of her eyes with her sleeve.