Chapter 290 - 288: Truly a Noble from the Western Capital! (Part 2)

Chapter 290: Chapter 288: Truly a Noble from the Western Capital! (Part 2)

Not drowning?!

Everyone stared at Xu Jing in shock, and some villagers couldn’t help but say, "Little Dongzi was clearly pulled out of the water and had no breath. If he didn’t drown, how did he die?!"

Xu Jing pointed to Little Dongzi’s body and said in a deep voice, "Take a closer look, everyone. Little Dongzi’s exposed limbs are visibly swollen in purplish-red and bluish-purple, which are signs of frostbite. The skin is goosebumped, with clear boundaries where his clothes covered him. His entire skin has a faint pink hue, and his lips are eerily curled up, giving a semblance of a smile."

Only then did everyone notice that Little Dongzi’s lips were curled up in an unnatural, creepy way.

In their rush to save him, they hadn’t closely examined Little Dongzi’s appearance!

Immediately, an experienced villager loudly exclaimed, "This... this is what someone looks like when they’ve frozen to death!"

Yan Ci’s face also darkened.

She had seen frozen corpses before, but as a doctor, she focused on the living and had never paid close attention to what the frozen dead looked like.

She couldn’t help but gaze deeply at the woman in the distance.

She claimed to be a doctor, so how did she know things only a forensic doctor would know?

Had it been someone else, Xu Jing could have easily bluffed her way by saying that as a doctor, she also had some research on the dead. But this reason wouldn’t fool a true doctor.

Xu Jing naturally sensed Yan Ci’s skeptical gaze and straightforwardly said, "I have assisted the authorities in investigations before, so I have some understanding of corpses."

Assisted the authorities in investigations?

Who exactly is this Miss Xu?!

The people from Western Capital, indeed, are not to be underestimated!

The villagers’ perception of Xu Jing instantly changed. Chen Laosan, who was the first to jump into the water to save people, suddenly stepped forward and said, "Since that’s the case, Miss Xu, could you assist us in uncovering the truth behind Little Dongzi’s death?"

Although the other villagers had some revised views of Xu Jing, they hesitated upon hearing this, "Is this really appropriate... who knows if what she says is true?"

"Yes, I think we should wait until dawn and report to the authorities, let the government officials investigate..."

Chen Laosan said, "When it’s dawn, yes, we’ll report it. Having Miss Xu assist in the investigation doesn’t conflict with our reporting it at dawn. We’ll find out the truth behind Little Dongzi’s death sooner, allowing Little Dongzi to rest in peace earlier."

Chen Laosan seemed to carry some weight in the village, and the few men who had objected immediately fell silent, while other villagers started discussing how Little Dongzi died.

"If Little Dongzi froze to death, then it means someone threw him into the river after he died."

"Jiang Da is still highly suspicious! Even if he didn’t kill the boy himself, he must have been the one to throw Little Dongzi into the river!"

"Or maybe Little Dongzi was so frostbitten and confused that he accidentally fell into the water while walking by the river, gasping his last breath in the water?"

The first batch of men who rushed to save people at the river immediately said, "Little Dongzi definitely didn’t fall into the river on his own! He was thrown in, otherwise the splash wouldn’t have been so loud!"

"Right, right, right, although we didn’t see the moment Little Dongzi fell into the water, we heard the sound, the loud ’splash’, I’m sure Little Dongzi fell into the water from a height!"

Everyone’s gaze instantly shifted to Jiang Da.

Who else but Jiang Da, who was by the river at that time, could have thrown the boy into the river!

Moreover, although they said the boy froze to death, who knows if he still had a breath left when he was thrown into the river!

Chen Laosan came forward to mediate again, "Jiang Da indeed has great suspicion, but as Immortal Doctor Yan said, we can’t accuse someone based solely on anger. This is what we’ll do, Jiang Da: for now, before dawn, you’ll have to endure this and do as we say as a suspect. If Miss Xu can prove your innocence before dawn, we won’t take you to the authorities."

A trace of ferocity flashed through Jiang Da’s eyes, but he didn’t explode, simply glancing subtly in Yan Ci’s direction, and said in a deep voice, "Fine."

The villagers, initially on edge, relaxed a little when they saw Jiang Da willing to comply. Two strong men immediately brought a rope and said, "Just in case, we need to tie your hands first."

Jiang Da remained silent for a moment, then quietly extended his hands.

The two men tied him up and took him into the village, presumably to hold him temporarily somewhere.

Since Jiang Da agreed to cooperate with the villagers, Xu Jing had been observing Yan Ci closely. Yan Ci seemed utterly uninterested in Jiang Da until, as Jiang Da was taken away, she couldn’t help but turn to look at him, her brows furrowing, with a faint hint of concern on her face.

Xu Jing immediately understood.

There was indeed some sort of relationship between Yan Ci and Jiang Da.

And Jiang Da was very opposed to the authorities; if by the next day, the villagers insisted on taking him to the authorities, something uncontrollable might happen.

So, the truth of Little Dongzi’s death must be uncovered before then.

Just then, an exaggerated wailing came from not far away. A round-faced, slightly plump woman hurried over, kneeling beside Little Dongzi with a thud, crying out, "Dongzi! How could you leave like this! Although I didn’t give birth to you, I raised you myself. In my heart, you’re no different from my child. Mom was counting on you to take care of me in my old age!"

It was Yan Si’s wife, Little Dongzi’s stepmother, Sister-in-law Wang.

A few women who came with her quickly stepped forward to help her up, saying, "Sister-in-law Wang, please restrain your grief. You’re still carrying the second child. Excessive sadness could affect the child in your womb, and even knowing this, Little Dongzi wouldn’t rest easy."

"Right, Little Dongzi was so filial in life, he wouldn’t want you and Yan Si to be so heartbroken over him."

Some villagers who had arrived early took the opportunity to say, "Du Sheng’s wife is right. Children hope for those living to live well. Yan Si, Chen Laosan, I see your lips are turning purple from the cold. You jumped into the water in this freezing weather, a blanket isn’t enough. You should hurry back and change into dry clothes!"

Chen Laosan was not in a hurry to leave and looked at Xu Jing, "Miss Xu, what do you think we should do next with Little Dongzi’s body?"

Xu Jing said, "Let’s carry him into the village first. I want to conduct a simple autopsy on Little Dongzi."

Everyone was astonished and couldn’t help but gasp, how amazing, this young lady is actually serious about it.

This well-dressed young lady with a large entourage of guards, no one would associate with the word autopsy!

They thought only those from lower social classes did such work!

Noble people from the Western Capital are indeed unique!

But Sister-in-law Wang suddenly looked at Xu Jing, saying, "Autopsy... What autopsy? Who are you? What do you want to do to Dongzi!"

Some villagers who had been present quickly explained, "Sister-in-law Wang, rest assured, Miss Xu is a noblewoman from Western Capital who has helped with official investigations before. Chen Laosan said, before dawn, Miss Xu’s help will determine how Little Dongzi died. You and Yan Si can rest assured!"

However, Sister-in-law Wang’s expression clearly showed her unease, but seeing that the other villagers seemed to have decided on the matter, she didn’t know what to say.

As she followed the other villagers into the village, she couldn’t help but turn back several times to look at Xu Jing.

Xu Jing pondered and asked Wei Muqing beside her, "I remember you said Sister-in-law Wang treated Little Dongzi fairly well as a stepmother?"