Di Daughter's Strategy - Chapter 60

Chapter 60

——Yi’er, my heart is pleased with you.

Luo Yi’er reclined on the soft couch in Yunxia Courtyard, her beautiful eyes half-closed and half-open, her expression calm and gentle, yet faintly a bit lazy.

She lightly pressed her pink lips together, covering her slightly shimmering eyes.

After he said that sentence, without waiting for her reply, he took her hand and headed toward the Taihe Hall, releasing her outside the Taihe Hall.

However, even after returning to the mansion, she still hadn’t quite reacted.

Indeed, her words in the palace today were somewhat probing, but she never expected him to say such words directly.

She just felt a bit stunned, her hands held by him, and she followed him blankly.

His voice was mellow, like fine wine, making one willingly sink into it.

She could not deny that at that moment, her heart suddenly pounded like thunder, her mind went blank, and all her usual calmness and clarity disappeared.

Luo Yi’er’s eyelashes trembled lightly, and she reached out to cover her slightly flushed cheeks.

Beauty misleads people.

The late night was sparse, the moonlight faint, the night thick and impenetrable. The cold wind blew through the bamboo forest, bringing a rustling sound.

Just as Luo Yi’er was still somewhat distracted, chaos suddenly broke out outside Yunxia Courtyard, faintly accompanied by a woman’s scream.

The door was hurriedly pushed open, Luo Yi’er suddenly snapped back to attention, a chill rising in her eyes: “What’s going on?”

Pansi’s face was solemn. “Miss, someone is dead.”

Luo Yi’er suddenly raised her eyes, looking coldly at Pansi, who quickly lowered her head: “The deceased is… Xiaoxi.”

She had always assigned people to watch over Xiaoxi, but today Xiaoxi suddenly died in the bamboo forest, unguarded.
It was her negligence.

She was about to accept punishment, but saw Luo Yi’er already standing up, her expression slightly cold, “What are you still standing there for?”

The hurried maid draped a cloak over her, and the group quickly rushed to the scene.

When Luo Yi’er arrived, many people had already gathered there.

Luoyun Pavilion was nearby, so Luo Qian and Luo Ying had naturally arrived. Luo Qian frowned tightly, while Luo Ying was so frightened that her face was pale, hiding in her nanny’s arms, covering her eyes as she looked this way.

Even Luo Yu, who was a bit farther away, was here. She wore pink clothes, tightly holding maid Qiao’er’s hand with one hand, and clutching a handkerchief inside her sleeve with the other.

Her face was pale, her body a bit unsteady, but not overly out of control.

Luo Yi’er had just stopped, scanning the people present, then looked at Xiaoxi on the ground. Because of the recent snow, to let the mistress better enjoy the snow, some places’ snow was not clean, and this bamboo forest was one of them.

Xiaoxi on the ground was still wearing a pink servant’s outfit, but under her was a pool of fresh blood, staining the white snow red, shocking to see.

Her pupils were wide open, seeming somewhat shocked, as if she saw someone unexpected. She had a wound on her head, but it was not fatal.

The truly fatal wound should be on the back of her neck, with blood all over the back of her head.

Luo Yi’er slightly furrowed her brows, somewhat uncomfortably averting her gaze. Pansi’s face was also somewhat pale, but she was blocking Luo Yi’er’s view.

Although these people were usually considered cold and indifferent, none of them had truly seen a dead body before, so this sudden sight made them all somewhat uneasy.

At this moment, Luo Fu came over. Upon seeing the scene, she couldn’t help but exclaim in shock, covering her mouth with one hand, seeming a bit nauseous and about to vomit.

She didn’t have time to step forward and instead turned to lean on a bamboo pole, feeling the urge to throw up.

This commotion finally brought Luo Yi’er back to her senses. She redirected her gaze to Xiaoxi, lightly furrowing her brows, and ordered a nearby servant, “Turn her over.”

Though the servants’ faces were also somewhat pale, they obeyed and stepped forward to turn Xiaoxi’s body over.

At this moment, the wound on the back of her neck became clearly visible. Luo Yi’er’s eyes deepened slightly as she tightly twisted the handkerchief in her hand.

On Xiaoxi’s neck was a hairpin stuck in, with only the head of the pin visible outside. The hairpin was already stained with blood, making its original appearance indistinguishable.

Just then, Madam Chu and her group finally arrived.
Upon seeing the scene, Madam Chu’s face turned cold.

Everyone moved to Fangyun Hall. Luo Yu’an also arrived, his expression clearly angry.

Madam Chu scanned everyone coldly and asked, “Who found the body?”

At this moment, a young maid stepped forward, her eyes still red, clearly frightened. “Madam, it was this servant who found the body.”

“I was on duty today and planned to take a shortcut back to my room. Unexpectedly, shortly after entering the bamboo forest, I smelled a strong scent of blood. Although I was a bit scared, I mustered courage and took a few steps forward, then saw the body.”

As she spoke, her face turned pale again, obviously recalling Xiaoxi’s corpse.

Luo Yu’an glanced at De Rong, who understood silently and quietly withdrew.

Luo Yi’er took this opportunity to observe everyone’s expressions. If it were others, she might not care so much, but it was Xiaoxi.

Luo Yu had just arranged a marriage with the Prince Wen’s mansion, and Xiaoxi was murdered, with wounds on her head and neck.

She felt some suspicion in her heart and quietly looked at Luo Qian and Luo Yu.

No wonder she was suspicious of these two, one had long harbored murderous intent toward Xiaoxi, and the other had just formed a relationship with the master.

Who knew what Luo Yu discovered by the lake that day, or what she might do.

Madam Chu told the maid to continue. The maid’s voice trembled as she said, “I quickly called for help. The patrolling guards hadn’t arrived yet when the young lady got here.”

After her words, everyone looked at Luo Qian. Luo Qian furrowed her brows and said coldly, “Tonight is New Year’s Eve. I intended to stay up late, so I wasn’t in a hurry to sleep. After dinner, I was strolling in the courtyard when I heard sounds not far away, so I came quickly.”

Her Luoyun Pavilion was indeed very close. Her words were reasonable. Luo Yi’er narrowed her eyes slightly, just about to withdraw her gaze when she caught sight of her hand trembling slightly under her sleeve. Luo Yi’er paused and looked up, seeing her face pale.

Luo Yi’er’s eyes flickered. She had thought it was just the shock from the scene earlier, but now it seemed it might be more than that.

She composed herself, furrowed her brows, and asked with a faint hint of confusion, “Eldest Sister, what’s wrong with you?”

Her words once again drew everyone’s attention to Luo Qian. Luo Qian furrowed her brows and was about to speak when she heard Luo Yi’er’s slightly worried voice, “Eldest Sister, are you… hurt?”

Luo Yu’an and Madam Chu’s eyes turned slightly cold as they finally noticed something was wrong with her. She sat in her seat, her left hand resting on her knee, but her fingertips were trembling slightly.

Luo Qian forced a smile. “Worrying Third Sister is unnecessary, I’m fine. I accidentally broke a vase earlier and just cut my arm.”

A vase?

Luo Yi’er’s eyes darkened more and more. If she remembered correctly, the wound on Xiaoxi’s head seemed to be caused by a blunt object like a vase.

However, that wound was not fatal, so she couldn’t make a definite conclusion.

Moreover, what puzzled Luo Yi’er was why Xiaoxi’s expression before death was like she had seen someone who shouldn’t have been there. She instinctively glanced at Luo Yu.

She saw that Luo Yu seemed not yet to have recovered from the earlier scene, fearfully covering her mouth with her hand and even lightly biting her finger.

This gesture naturally carried a hint of strangeness. Luo Yi’er couldn’t help but look again before barely withdrawing her gaze.

Just as she came back to her senses, she heard Luo Yu’an’s somewhat cold voice, “Have you called the mansion physician?”

If it had been before, Luo Qian could have barely comforted herself with this, thinking it was her father’s concern.

But in this situation, she couldn’t help but clench her palms tightly.
What concern?
It was just suspicion!

Luo Qian forced a smile and lowered her head: “Father need not worry, this is just a minor injury.”

Luo Yu’an remained unmoved, his expression dark and indifferent.
“If the mansion physician hasn’t been called, how can it be a minor injury?”

No sooner had he spoken than someone went to summon the mansion physician. Luo Qian’s face instantly turned pale.

This unusual change naturally drew everyone’s attention, causing inner doubts and fears. Luo Ying even shrank back into her nanny’s arms, frightened.

The mansion physician soon arrived, bringing a female physician who clearly knew what had happened.

The female physician was to examine Luo Qian’s wound. Under Luo Yu’an’s cold gaze, Luo Qian naturally dared not disobey and stiffly entered behind the screen.

At this time, Madam Chu told the maid to continue speaking. The maid, obviously not expecting so many changes, swallowed nervously and continued, “At this moment, the patrolling guard also arrived. It was then that the Fourth Miss hurried over from the nearby bamboo forest.”

“From the bamboo forest?” Luo Fu spoke up. By now, Luo Fu had recovered from the earlier scene, frowning and speaking bluntly, “Why was Fourth Sister in the bamboo forest?”

It was no wonder she was confused. Luo Yu’s Yueling Residence and Luo Fu’s Furong Courtyard were very close, and they often came and went together.

Because of this, their relationship appeared to be the best in the mansion. After hearing the commotion today, Luo Fu hurried to the bamboo forest, wondering why Fourth Sister hadn’t come out yet.

Unexpectedly, when she arrived, Luo Yu was already there.

Luo Yu had a delicate and obedient appearance, still somewhat frightened at this moment, her face slightly pale.

She looked at the gazes of Luo Yu’an and Madam Chu and explained with a trembling voice, “Today I had nothing to do, so during the day I went to Luoyun Pavilion to find Eldest Sister. After returning and having dinner, I found that my jade pendant was missing, so I took my maid to look for it.”

Luo Fu muttered again, “You don’t usually get along with Eldest Sister like this. If you were bored during the day, why didn’t you come to find me?”

Since the imperial edict was issued, the relationship between Luo Fu and Luo Yu had become distant.

Luo Fu was determined to marry into a good family and never expected her quiet Fourth Sister to surpass her and enter Prince Wen’s mansion.

Filled with jealousy and dissatisfaction, she naturally became estranged from her.

So, when Luo Fu said this, Luo Yu glanced at her twice, as if wanting to say something but awkwardly didn’t.

Luo Fu realized this and also felt awkward. She was the one who distanced herself from others but blamed them for not coming to her.

However, she was thick-skinned and quickly changed the subject, saying, “What jade pendant? Fourth Sister actually treasures it so much? It’s already night, and you still want to go looking for it?”

Luo Yu’s pale face flushed with a bit of red as she said softly, “It’s the jade pendant that Prince Wen sent after the imperial edict was issued.”

After the edict was issued, Prince Wen naturally could not show no response. According to etiquette, he sent some gifts to the Marquis’s mansion, including that jade pendant.

After she said this, no matter how many doubts people had in their hearts, no one asked further. Luo Fu averted her eyes, clearly disliking Luo Yu’s appearance.

Luo Yi’er pressed her pink lips lightly and looked deeply at Luo Yu. Just then, Luo Yu raised her head, and Luo Yi’er slightly raised her eyebrows and smiled gently at her.

Luo Yu paused, smiled back, and then lowered her head again.

Luo Yi’er twisted the handkerchief in her hand, her eyes growing deeper.

No matter what happened today, it would have nothing to do with Luo Yu.

Not because her reasons were very sufficient, but because she was now Prince Wen’s officially designated concubine.

The imperial edict had been issued, making her already half a member of the royal family. Her previous words were merely a reminder to everyone about this matter.

Luo Yi’er glanced again at the pale back of Luo Yu’s hand, composed herself, and finally withdrew her gaze.

At this moment, Luo Qian’s side finally got the result. Luo Qian came out with a deathly pale face. Luo Yi’er couldn’t bear to look anymore.

Even if she were reborn, what difference would it make?
Luo Qian was like this, even worse than Luo Yu.

The female physician lowered her head and respectfully reported, “To the Marquis and Madam, the injury on the young miss’s arm appears to be caused by a sharp weapon like a dagger. The wound is deep enough to see the bone and requires proper rest; otherwise, it is very likely to leave a scar.”

An accidental scratch from porcelain is naturally different from an injury caused by a sharp weapon.

Moreover, this wound was deep enough to see the bone, so it could not be explained away as an accident.