Chapter 152 - 151: Interrogation Techniques (First Update)

Chapter 152: Chapter 151: Interrogation Techniques (First Update)

Chen Xi’s face instantly turned paler, as if the woman in front of her could see through her every lie!

Jiang Erlang, who was always laid-back, subtly raised his eyebrows and finally for the first time looked directly at the veiled woman.

This woman, who was trusted by Young Madam Zhao, seemed to indeed have some skills.

Zhao Shaohua’s face had already darkened. He said sternly, "Chen Xi, if you want to stay alive, you’d better be honest! I’m very certain that in the circle of aristocrats in the Western Capital, besides the people of the Wang Family and the people around Zhen, no one else knows Zhen’s real name. And the people of the Wang Family and those around Zhen are absolutely impossible to have taken the initiative to speak of this matter to outsiders! How on earth did you find out Zhen’s real name?"

Seeing everyone looking at her accusatorily, Chen Xi secretly bit her teeth, seemingly throwing caution to the wind, and shrieked, "I—I specifically asked someone to investigate in Jizhou! Are you satisfied now?! During that time, my eldest cousin had to go to Jizhou for work, and I remembered that Mrs. Yu’s family was in Jizhou, so I... I asked my eldest cousin to help me inquire about Wang Wuniang..."

She had specifically asked people to inquire about such a thing merely to humiliate a woman with whom she had no quarrel.

The hatred in Zhao Shaohua’s eyes seemed almost to transform into arrows, ready to shoot at Chen Xi.

Yet she still had some sense of reason, knowing what was most important at this moment, and worked to stabilize her emotions, saying, "So, the person who humiliated and bullied Zhen couldn’t have learned her real name from elsewhere. Zhen must be right; it was you who inadvertently mentioned Zhen’s real name in front of that person, which is why he knew.

Speak honestly, in front of whom have you mentioned Zhen’s real name?"

"The matter, that matter happened so long ago, how could I possibly remember..."

Chen Xi knew she was in the wrong. Seeing the cold look in Jiang Erlang’s eyes directed at her, she felt so aggrieved she was about to cry.

But Zhao Shaohua said coldly, "Whether you remember or not, you need to remember! I give you a quarter of an hour to sort out your thoughts, otherwise, if someone here dies, it’s your doing!"

Chen Xi’s eyes widened slightly. Such a heavy guilt was too much for her to bear, and she dared not say anything more, beginning to earnestly recall those times.

The things disclosed in Wang Wuniang’s daily journal went far beyond just this matter.

Xu Jing had already begun revealing some, and simply continued, "Wang Wuniang’s odd behavior all started after September 15th, the fifth year of Tianxi. During that time, she must have encountered something, clearly related to the person causing her nightmares. Before that, the only thing she did that we know of, which might have led to this encounter, was to go find Wu Sanlang to talk about it."

This was all inferred based on the contents of the journal, as anyone who read them should logically conclude.

Zhao Shaohua nodded, saying, "I think so too."

As she spoke, her sharp eyes aimed with a heavy aura at Wu Youbing, she said coldly, "Wu Sanlang, it’s your turn to speak. On which day did Zhen come to see you back then, what happened on that day, or are you the one who humiliated Zhen?!"

"Don’t falsely accuse me! After breaking off the engagement with that woman, apart from an accidental meeting while admiring the snow, I haven’t seen her..."

Wu Youbing spoke excitedly, then suddenly paused, as if recalling something, uncertainly saying, "No, it seems... it seems I did see her one more time... I remember it was three days after breaking off the engagement. I had arranged with Feng Qi and the others to drink at Gui Xiang House, and when I went out, that woman blocked the street at Marquis Wushun’s gate, saying she wanted to talk to me...

Of course, I had nothing to say to her, so I left without even looking at her."

Zhao Shaohua instinctively clenched her fist, "You just left Zhen there alone?"

"What else, did you really think I would have a heart-to-heart chat with her? But unexpectedly, that woman had a thick skin, not caring about being snubbed and even followed me."

Zhao Shaohua was taken aback, quickly asking, "She followed you to Gui Xiang House?"

Gui Xiang House was the most hedonistic place in Western Capital! It was chaos!

For a lady like Zhen to go to such a place, what good could come of it?

"Ah, I was surprised too."

Wu Youbing said impatiently, "But fortunately, she had some sense, and didn’t follow me inside. After that, I haven’t seen her again."

Xu Jing gave him a glance and said calmly, "So you’re saying that after you came out of Gui Xiang House, Wang Wuniang was no longer outside?"

"Right."

Wu Youbing grew more impatient, but when he met Xu Jing’s eyes, he was briefly stunned.

Tsk, he hadn’t noticed before, but this strange woman had such captivating eyes.

He unconsciously curled his lips into what he thought was a charming smile but was actually rather lecherous, saying, "I’m pretty sure Feng Qi and I were having fun in Gui Xiang House for about two or three hours, and when we came out, it was well past curfew. A lady like her wouldn’t dare stay in that place for so long; she must have gone home!"

Xu Jing actually had a few more questions for him, but seeing his smile, she couldn’t help but furrow her brows and turned to Zhao Shaohua, saying, "Do you know who Wang Wuniang’s personal maid was before?"

It was unlikely that Wang Wuniang had gone to find Wu Youbing alone; her personal maid would definitely know about this.

Zhao Shaohua nodded and suddenly turned, looking at two young maids standing aside, saying, "Zhen’s personal maids were Little Tao and Peony. After Zhen was gone, they went to Mrs. Yu’s side. Mrs. Yu just happened to keep them."

They evidently knew Zhao Shaohua well, and upon seeing Zhao Shaohua beckon to them, they immediately approached with nervous faces.

Zhao Shaohua said, "Wu Sanlang says that Zhen looked for Wu Sanlang on the third day after breaking off the engagement. Do you know about this?"

Peony, who seemed smarter, immediately nodded, "Both Little Tao and I knew about this. We advised Fifth Lady not to go, but Fifth Lady was determined at that time, completely ignoring our words and not allowing us to tell Madam."

Everyone was immediately energized, and Zhao Shaohua promptly asked, "Wu Sanlang said Zhen followed him to Gui Xiang House, and when he came out, Zhen was no longer there. Do you know when Zhen left?"

However, this question was not as easily answered as the first, after exchanging a glance, it was Peony who spoke, "Honestly, we, we really don’t know. Fifth Lady wasn’t willing to leave even after Wu Sanlang went into Gui Xiang House. After much persuasion, Fifth Lady was finally willing to sit and wait in a teahouse next to Gui Xiang House, while I stayed at the entrance of Gui Xiang House, waiting for Wu Sanlang to come out."

Little Tao continued, "At that time, I was with Fifth Lady. It was also my fault because my stomach felt a bit uncomfortable, so I went to the toilet, and when I came out, Fifth Lady was... was gone... I immediately went to find Peony to search for Fifth Lady around, but we couldn’t find her for a long time. We had no choice but to rush back to the Wang Family to tell Madam about it, but who expected, who expected that when we got back, Fifth Lady had already returned..."

Everyone was taken aback, immediately realizing something was wrong. Zhao Shaohua asked, "When did you get back to the Wang Family... wait, how long did you search for Zhen... wait..."

Zhao Shaohua didn’t quite have the experience in investigation or questioning techniques. Seeing her so anxious and at a loss, Xu Jing had to ask, "Do you remember roughly what time you realized Fifth Lady was missing, and what time it was when you returned and saw her at home?"

Zhao Shaohua’s eyes couldn’t help but light up, glancing at Xu Jing.

Indeed, Doctor Xu perfectly voiced the question in her heart!

Little Tao immediately responded, "We were so flustered when we discovered Fifth Lady was missing; how could we forget the time? It was about exactly 5:00 PM when Fifth Lady went missing. Peony and I searched around Gui Xiang House for over half an hour, and when we saw Fifth Lady back at the Wang Family, it was about 7:00 PM."