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"Pitter-patter... Pitter-patter, pitter-patter..."
The rain gradually grew heavier. Lin Zhiqing stared out the window, her gaze distant.
"Brother Shi'an, what on earth is going on? How could a perfectly fine person die just like that?" Jiang Liuyun slammed the table, his face flushed red.
Lin Shi'an saw Lin Zhiqing constantly staring out the window, the guilt in his heart beyond words: "This matter... I'm not clear about it either."
"What?" Lu Nanyue stood up with her hands on her hips: "You can't be this perfunctory, can you? A perfectly fine person was taken away by you, and now she's dead. Are you going to blame Zhiqing again?"
Her words were somewhat agitated. Lu Huai gently patted her hand, signaling her to calm down, then said, "What did First Master Lin say?"
Finally, someone got to the point... Lin Zhiqing straightened herself up.
Lin Shi'an let out a long sigh: "That old momo committed suicide by slitting her throat, leaving only a suicide note."
"Slit her throat?" Lin Zhiqing frowned: "Are the people of the Lin family all dead or something? They couldn't even keep an eye on an old woman with no strength to truss a chicken."
If someone had said this about the Lin family on a normal day, Lin Shi'an would definitely have argued with them.
But he hadn't properly handled what he had promised Lin Zhiqing. He couldn't help but feel self-reproach, and at the same time, he felt some dissatisfaction towards the guards.
Seeing no one speak, Lin Zhiqing sighed: "Where's the suicide note? Did you bring it?"
"I didn't bring it." Lin Shi'an recounted everything: "The suicide note is with First Master. It details the old momo's crime."
After speaking, he looked around, seeming somewhat hesitant.
"Did my cousin and I offend that old momo?" Lin Zhiqing asked.
Lin Shi'an nodded. Just now, he had indeed been hesitant about whether to say it. It concerned the reputation of the Lin family's daughters, and it was always awkward to speak about it with outsiders present.
But now, looking at Lin Zhiqing, it seemed she didn't care about those things.
Thinking of this, he slowly said: "That momo confessed that her granddaughter once worked as a cleaning maid in your courtyard. But one time, when you and Elder Sister were strolling in the garden, she accidentally soiled Elder Sister's shoes."
"The people around Elder Sister sent her to a brothel, and you, as her master, did not stop it."
After hearing Lin Shi'an's words, Lu Nanyue and Lu Huai exchanged a glance, then both looked at Jiang Liuyun.
In a large household, a reputation for mistreating servants was not a good one.
Others aside, Jiang Liuyun was Lin Zhiqing's fiancé. If he minded, this marriage would inevitably face some setbacks.
Jiang Liuyun noticed their gazes and scratched his head: "Why are you looking at me?"
"Qing'er has a difficult time in the Lin family, and it's already hard for her to protect herself. Now she's been dragged into this matter; it's truly an undeserved disaster."
His few words made his attitude clear. Lin Zhiqing looked up at him and curved her lips.
This Jiang Liuyun was indeed quite protective of the original owner.
"Cousin, you should go back first. I understand this matter now." Lin Zhiqing already had some guesses in her heart.
When Lin Shi'an was leaving, he hesitated for a long time, but in the end, he still apologized to Lin Zhiqing.
Lin Zhiqing didn't express an opinion. After he left, the first thing she did was to have Aunt Mu inquire if anything unusual had happened in the estate.
After she finished giving instructions, Lu Nanyue couldn't help but ask, "Zhiqing, what should we do next?"
Lin Zhiqing slowly raised her eyes: "Wait."
"Wait for whom?" Lu Nanyue was puzzled.
"My First Uncle." After Lin Zhiqing finished speaking, she invited them to drink tea.
Her words clearly indicated she didn't want to discuss the previous matter further, and everyone tactfully refrained from asking more questions.
The pattering sound of rain carried a sense of heaviness, and the sky soon darkened.
After the Lu siblings and Jiang Liuyun took their leave, no one else came to see Lin Zhiqing.
When Aunt Mu returned, Lin Zhiqing was dividing silver.
"Miss, there are indeed some unusual things in the estate." Aunt Mu rubbed her hands and moved closer to the stove.
Lin Zhiqing found a piece of clothing and draped it over Aunt Mu, then began to ask, "Tell me about everything in detail."
"Fourth Master rushed back overnight today and went straight to First Master's place as soon as he returned."
"First Master spent a fortune to seek medical treatment from outside, but he didn't publicly announce the patient's identity."
"Old Master went to the most famous brothel in the city today and dragged Young Master back."
"Fourth Mistress took her daughter back to her maternal home for a visit."
...
Lin Zhiqing listened intently for the time it took to drink a cup of tea, then fell into thought.
Today, Lin Congli hadn't come to her door. This meant that regardless of whether that momo was alive or dead, the identity of the murderer was already confirmed.
This matter should have had nothing to do with Lin Zhiqing anymore.
But Lin Zhiqing secretly took a breath; she always felt that things weren't that simple.
The most direct problem was that, besides the raw lacquer allergy, there were other reasons for her cousin's unconsciousness.
Right now, there were only two possibilities.
First, there was one culprit who caused her cousin's raw lacquer allergy, and another culprit for the other poison – two culprits in total.
Second, both poisons came from the same culprit, and that old momo was just a scapegoat.
Considering the current situation... Lin Zhiqing pinched her chin. That momo died inexplicably, yet the Lin family was being very secretive about it, only leaving behind a "suicide note" whose origin was unknown.
Moreover, Fourth Uncle, who had previously kept a low profile, had also returned. At the same time, Fourth Aunt had also returned to her maternal home.
All these things exuded an air of strangeness, and Lin Zhiqing couldn't pretend not to see it.
Because she knew very well in her heart that this matter was aimed at both her and her cousin.
Setting aside her cousin, she herself was isolated and helpless. If she didn't find out the real culprit behind this, she could dodge it this time, but not the next.
After thinking through the connections, Lin Zhiqing believed she still had to find out the real truth.
Otherwise, her situation would still be very dangerous.
Counting the time, tomorrow would be the last of the three days, and also the last day the Lu siblings and Jiang Liuyun could stay at the estate.
While they were here, she could still move around the estate with relative freedom.
Thinking of this, Lin Zhiqing made up her mind. She had to find out the real truth within this last day!
After making up her mind, she thought of another key point.
Her cousin had other toxins in her body.
But she and Lu Huai, among others, had already searched that room thoroughly and hadn't found any other dangerous factors besides the raw lacquer.
Could it be that she had overlooked something?
Lin Zhiqing re-evaluated everything, but still couldn't derive any effective information.
She thought all night, repeatedly overturning every link.
It wasn't until the sky was dimly lit that she closed her eyes and slept for a while.
This rest was destined to be short.
Before the sky was fully light, just as Lin Zhiqing finished washing up, Aunt Mu knocked on the door: "Miss, you haven't been looking well these past few days. The kitchen recently got some high-quality rhododendron flowers. I asked for some and made a soup. You must eat something."
As she spoke, she ladled a bowl of rhododendron and lotus seed soup and placed it on the table.
Although Lin Zhiqing had little appetite, she knew that at times like this, the first priority was to take care of her own body.
There was still a tough battle to fight today.
So, she sat down at the table and picked up the bowl.
Aunt Mu's cooking was excellent. Even though Lin Zhiqing didn't like sweets, she had to admit that this rhododendron and lotus seed soup had a fragrant floral aroma and a very delicate texture.
Speaking of which, she remembered that she seemed to have seen a type of tea made from rhododendron flowers in her cousin's daily register, and it seemed to have come from some Nanzhao Kingdom.
Wait... Lin Zhiqing's eating motion paused.
Xiao Cui's words suddenly surfaced in her mind—
"My young miss dislikes bitter flavors; she usually drinks more flower tea."