My Princess and Crown Prince Are Revived
Chapter 208 Shi Jing

Chapter 208: Chapter 208 Shi Jing

"Shi Jing, what is the meaning of this?"

Chu Baihan asked the man before him in a cold voice.

He was clad in black armor, his eyebrows were like drawn swords and his eyes like stars, his expression stern.

He was the Great General of Nanduan Kingdom, the deceased Marquis Shi Zhong’s son.

Twenty-three years ago, Marquis Shi Zhong had fallen on the battlefield, and after the tragic news had reached home, his wife died of grief soon after.

The vast Marquis Residence grew desolate as people departed, leaving only Marquis Shi Zhong’s legitimate son, Shi Jing, behind.

At that time, he was merely eight years old.

The Emperor had originally wanted to adopt him as a foster son, but the eight-year-old had refused and chose to live alone in the Marquis Residence.

Ten years later, through his own effort, he replaced the residence’s signboard, turning it into the General Residence.

He achieved this distinction not by relying on his forebears’ glories but by rising from a minor soldier to one of today’s most preeminent Great Generals of Nanduan Kingdom. Frankly, she admired him for that.

However, his temperament was something she couldn’t fathom.

"Princess Consort, Commandery Prince Xiang has issued an order: if you cannot uncover the truth, you will not be allowed entry into the Princess Consort Residence," Shi Jing said with a tense expression.

"General Shi, do you dare to obstruct the Princess?"

Nan Xing was furious and immediately spoke up in rebuke.

"Princess Consort, I beg you not to make things difficult for this subordinate," Shi Jing continued earnestly.

Nan Xing wanted to speak up again, but Chu Baihan shook her head at her.

Shi Jing...

He was indeed a very peculiar person.

If he was willing to stand here today and guard the gate for Commandery Prince Xiang, it certainly wasn’t because he had received any orders.

After all, his military achievements alone were enough to have her wine-guzzling and rice-wasting imperial brothers treating him with utmost courtesy, let alone a Commandery Prince.

So, if he chose to help Commandery Prince Xiang, it must be due to the deep relationship between the late Marquis Shi Zhong and Commandery Prince Xiang.

He was here out of consideration for the old ties.

Moreover, his nature was extremely stubborn—sometimes even the Emperor couldn’t persuade him.

If it weren’t for valuing his talents, Chu Baihan would feel like giving him a thrashing right now.

She sighed softly and spoke earnestly, "Shi Jing, I understand that Commandery Prince Xiang is very angry right now, but I must see him to clarify some matters in order to solve this case."

Yet, Shi Jing remained indifferent to her words.

"Fine, then I shall not attempt to enter these doors today, but I would ask you, General Shi, to summon all the servants of the residence. I have questions for them," Chu Baihan spoke with severity.

Hearing her words, Shi Jing frowned as if contemplating, and finally, he nodded.

"Princess, please wait a moment," he said.

Having spoken, he walked into the residence.

Seeing him enter, Chu Baihan immediately gave Nan Xing a look.

Realizing what to do, Nan Xing quickly dashed into the residence as well.

"Whew, finally made it in time."

At that moment, Yan Lian and Jian Yun also arrived at the Princess Consort Residence on horseback.

As soon as they dismounted, they walked over to where Chu Baihan was.

"Ei... cough, Princess Consort, why are you standing at the entrance instead of going in?" Yan Lian asked with confusion.

"Someone is blocking our way. Today, I may indeed not be able to enter this door," Chu Baihan spoke slowly in a calm voice.

"Blocking you? Who has the gall to block you?" Upon hearing this, Yan Lian rolled up his sleeves, seemingly ready to start a fight.

Tang Yu at this time couldn’t restrain himself from speaking, "Your Highness, they have many people, but we also have quite a few. Let me clear the way for you."

"Everyone, calm down. If I, the Princess, do not force my way into the Commandery Prince Residence, it is not because I am afraid. It’s that I do not want to complicate the matter. And, today’s Commandery Prince... really is a bit strange. If I were to barge in, I’m afraid I might startle the snake in the grass,"

As she spoke these words, a cold light flashed through Chu Baihan’s eyes.

"The Commandery Prince is a bit strange? I heard he doted on Xiang Zhang a lot. Now that Xiang Zhang is dead, isn’t it normal for him to behave excessively?" Tang Yu murmured in a low voice.

"The Commandery Prince indeed doted on Xiang Zhang, but he’s not senile yet. With Xiang Zhang dead, he should want even more to know who the murderer is. If he suspects me, he would have even more reason to let me in, just like how he sent the body to the Princess Residence’s doorstep, pushing me into a tight corner. Instead of rejecting me from the door as he is doing now,"

Chu Baihan explained in a cold voice.

The actions of the Commandery Prince seemed like those of a father devastated beyond measure.

But upon careful thought, everything seemed amiss.

Right at this moment, Shi Jing, with nearly a hundred servants, walked out.

So many people almost filled the entrance of the Commandery Prince Residence.

Chu Baihan had them stand in several rows, then asked in a cold voice, "Who was the first to discover your Princely Heir’s suicide?"

"It was, it was this servant."

Just then, a young maidservant, appearing to be seventeen or eighteen, stepped forward, trembling as she replied.

"How did you discover it?" Chu Baihan walked towards her, then questioned sternly.

"Ever since the Princely Heir was injured, he no longer wanted to dine with the Commandery Prince, so it was always this servant who brought meals to his room. Like usual, I carried the food to the door, called for the Princely Heir a few times, but he did not respond. I thought he was asleep, so I pushed the door open, and who knew I would see..."

As she spoke, the maidservant was already kneeling down, crying.

"Do not be nervous, I, the Princess, am not here to reproach you for anything."

Chu Baihan spoke in a tranquil voice, then helped her stand.

"You just tell me, did the Princely Heir still have a breath at that time?"

"This servant doesn’t know. When I saw the Princely Heir had hung himself, this servant panicked and went to call for help..."

"It was this old servant who heard the commotion and then led people to rush over. If the Princess has any questions, just ask this old servant,"

At this moment, Xiang Yun, the steward of the Xiang Residence, stepped forward.

There was still an enduring sense of sorrow on his face, surely the death of Xiang Zhang had also deeply affected him.

"Regarding the question the Princess asked just now... as soon as I saw the Princely Heir had hanged himself, I immediately carried him down, but by that time, he was already out of breath. Later, the house doctor came and also said it was too late to save him,"

He shook his head, his voice choked with sobs.

"If the Princess thinks we are deceiving you, you are very welcome to have the house doctor come and testify,"

"Steward Xiang, do you know of any distinctive features your Princely Heir had? The kind that could identify him even if his body was gone, only his skeletal remains," Chu Baihan asked again.

"Your Highness, what do you mean? Are you implying that there was a problem with our Princely Heir’s corpse?"

Xiang Yun’s complexion changed drastically as he asked anxiously.

"Steward Xiang, just answer my question," Chu Baihan spoke piercingly.

Xiang Yun could only frown and think.

After a long while, he shook his head, "Please forgive me, Your Grace. I have watched the Princely Heir grow up since he was a child, but if you’re asking for such distinctive features, the Princely Heir didn’t have any."

"Fine, I have no more questions,"

Chu Baihan quickly withdrew her gaze.

Since she couldn’t get any more information from him, there was no need to continue questioning.

She slowly walked past all the maidservants...

"Jian Yun, did you see that strand of hair when you were at the Ministry of Justice?" she suddenly turned back and asked Jian Yun.

"I did," Jian Yun promptly responded.