The other direction that Wei Shuxuan thought of was to investigate Pan Anping's younger brother, Pan Leping. After all, in the suicide note left by Pan Anping, it was written that he had bequeathed all his property to his younger brother, Pan Leping. This man was highly suspected.
It only took Wei Shuxuan one day to investigate the source of the poison. There weren't many pharmacies in Quan'an Town, and even fewer had cooperation with the Pan Mansion. They were all very large - scale pharmacies. She just went there and asked, and soon got the information.
Back at the Pan Mansion, Wei Shuxuan went to find Xin Zizhao. But Xin Zizhao wasn't in his room. According to the servant who took care of Xin Zizhao's daily life, Xin Zizhao had gone out early in the morning.
"Did Young Master Xin say where he was going?" Wei Shuxuan asked the servant.
The servant looked embarrassed but still respectfully replied, "My lord, this lowly servant is just a menial. How could Young Master Xin tell this servant his whereabouts?"
"… Sorry. You can go and attend to your duties."
Wei Shuxuan hadn't thought of the troublesome class concepts in ancient times. She was stunned for a moment. Well, she'd have to rely on herself for this kind of thing.
After making up her mind, Wei Shuxuan came to the room of Pan Leping's wife, Jin Yan'er. She politely knocked on the door. "I'm Wei Luo. I'm here by the order of the prime minister to investigate the case of Pan Anping's poisoning. Please cooperate with me and let me take a statement, Second Madam Pan."
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard hasty footsteps from inside the room. The one who opened the door was Yan'er, the maid beside Jin Yan'er. Seeing that there was also a young page standing beside Wei Shuxuan, Yan'er slightly nodded and made a "come in" gesture. "This way, Young Master Wei."
After walking around a carved and hollowed - out screen, Wei Shuxuan saw a woman in a light yellow dress gently fanning herself with a silk fan. She was sitting lazily on a rocking chair, her belly bulging high. It seemed that she was about five months pregnant.
"Hello, Young Master Wei. Please sit down."
Yan'er walked over and helped Jin Yan'er, who was reclining on the chair. Jin Yan'er let out a soft laugh, covering her face with the fan. Her gentle voice came from behind the fan. "I'm really sorry. I'm not feeling well. Please forgive me, Young Master Wei."
"No, Second Madam Pan is pregnant. It's I who should understand you."
"Hehe, Young Master Wei is really good at talking."
As Jin Yan'er spoke, her slightly upturned phoenix eyes slanted towards Wei Shuxuan. Her eyes were full of charm, and her face was as rosy as a peach blossom. Her words seemed to carry a natural tenderness, making men fall into her gentle trap.
However, her tenderness was wasted on the wrong person. Wei Shuxuan saw through her intention at a glance. No matter how many coquettish tricks she used, she couldn't seduce Wei Shuxuan.
Wei Shuxuan smiled slightly and sat opposite Jin Yan'er. "Then, let's start taking the statement now, Second Madam Pan."
Jin Yan'er was stunned. A look of contempt flashed across her bright and beautiful face. She didn't expect this person to be so obtuse. She had prepared so much in vain. But this person was appointed by the prime minister, so she couldn't afford to offend. Although she disliked Wei Shuxuan very much, she still cooperated obediently.
How could Jin Yan'er's little scheme hide from the experienced Wei Shuxuan? Moreover, she even wanted to seduce her. They were both women. Why make things difficult for each other?
"Second Madam Pan, where were you on the day of the incident?"
"I was resting in my room."
"Was there anyone who could prove that you were resting in your room?"
"… Yes. I had several maids fanning me in the room at that time."
"Tell me what you did that day."
After carefully questioning Jin Yan'er and all her maids, since Jin Yan'er was pregnant and it was inconvenient for her to move around, most of the time she just walked around her own yard. And Pan Leping would go home every night to accompany Jin Yan'er. He was very considerate.
Through the interrogation, Wei Shuxuan learned that although the maids in Jin Yan'er's room would go to the pharmacy to buy medicine, almost all of them were prenatal pills and tonics ordered by Pan Leping.
"Is the relationship between your Second Master and your mistress good?" Wei Shuxuan looked at Yan'er, the maid who often followed Jin Yan'er.
"The relationship between Second Madam and Second Master is very good. Second Master often buys tonics for our mistress. He attaches great importance to the child in Second Madam's belly."
Wei Shuxuan thought for a while. "Isn't Second Master just being nice to her because of the child in her belly?"
"Of course not!" As soon as Yan'er heard Wei Shuxuan's words, she quickly retorted. "Whether before or after Second Madam was pregnant, Second Master was extremely kind to her. He almost always granted her every wish."
After asking several maids in a row, they all said that the relationship between Pan Leping and Jin Yan'er was very good. But sometimes Pan Leping was quite busy with business and would come back late at night. However, he would almost always be at home in the afternoon to accompany Jin Yan'er.
Accompany his wife during the day and be busy with business at night? How strange! Wei Shuxuan felt that there was something wrong with this.
Originally, Wei Shuxuan wanted to ask Pan Leping, but Jin Yan'er told her that Pan Leping had gone to deal with business and wasn't in the Pan Mansion at the moment.
"Okay then. That's all for today's statement. I'll take my leave now. Thank you all for your cooperation. I'll report truthfully to the prime minister."
"See yourself out, Young Master Wei."
Jin Yan'er gently waved the green handkerchief in her hand. Watching Wei Shuxuan's departing back, her originally charming face with a smiling expression instantly turned gloomy.
"Humph, what an ungrateful man. Ignoring such a beautiful woman and only asking useless questions," Jin Yan'er sat down on her chair. "Yan'er, go and see if the Second Master is back."
"Yes, Second Madam."
Just as Wei Shuxuan walked into the eastern courtyard, she saw Xin Zizhao walking in front of her. His white robe fluttered up and down as he walked. He exuded a cold aura, looking like an immortal descending from the sky.
"Hey, Xin Zizhao, where have you been? I've been looking for you everywhere."
"I went to practice kung - fu on the back mountain. What do you want?" Xin Zizhao looked down at her.
"I couldn't find out about the poison. So I switched to another investigation direction."
"Don't tell me you went to investigate Pan Leping?" Xin Zizhao guessed right away.
"How do you know?" Wei Shuxuan followed Xin Zizhao back to his room. Xin Zizhao looked at her helplessly, while she still looked confused. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"I want to change my clothes."
"Then you can go inside. You still haven't told me how you knew."
"Because of that suicide note."