There is a god in the sky

Chapter 206 Who is the Murderer 13

"Have you heard? Our brilliant detective, Lord Xiao, actually had a falling out with his fiancée over a woman!"

"I heard that it was Miss Zhao who was paranoid and sent her maid to follow Lord Xiao, which led to the breakdown of their relationship?"

"Don't blame Miss Zhao for being suspicious when Lord Xiao is having a secret rendezvous with a woman in the middle of the night."

"I wonder if this marriage can still be saved."

Everyone, eager for a good show, started betting on when the Zhao family would break off the engagement.

Inside the Xiao residence, Mr. and Mrs. Xiao sat in the main seats with worried expressions.

When Shen Lan and Xuan'er were brought in, Xiao's father didn't do anything, but Xiao's mother was a little angry, though she didn't show it on the spot.

Last night, Xiao Ji personally went to the Zhao residence with the maid's body to explain the situation.

They didn't kill the person, but the person died outside Jifeng Study. The Zhao family would never believe his words.

Zhao Xuan immediately turned hostile and even threatened to break off the engagement.

Minister Zhao was not at home, and Madam Zhao, being a second wife, could not make the decision, so the marriage could not be called off.

“Father, Mother, Miss Shen is now a coroner in the Ministry of Justice. I have arranged for her to stay in the mansion temporarily.”

Xuan'er was the maid I bought back then, and my mother arranged her placement.

Madam Xiao knew perfectly well that this maid was prepared for Shen Lan, so she didn't respond.

She looked at Shen Lan and said, "I only have one question for Miss Shen."

"Madam, please ask."

"Would you be willing to become my son's concubine? With your abilities, I can grant your request. After becoming his concubine, you can continue to manage Jifeng Study."

Shen Lan refused without hesitation, saying, "Madam, I am unwilling."

"Oh? So you want to be the matriarch of the Xiao family?"

Shen Lan sensed the sarcasm in her voice and calmly replied, "No."

"Do you know what people outside are saying about you two? Xiao Ji is alright, he's a man, so a few rumors won't hurt him, but your reputation will be ruined. How will you ever get married?"

Shen Lan only learned this morning that Xiao Ji had spread these rumors.

Actually, rumors about the two of them had already started after they arrived in Beijing, but they hadn't spread this widely.

From the moment the maid in the Zhao household died, not only her, but also Xiao Ji would be suspected by the Tong household.

Why did he go to Jifeng Study after leaving the Tong residence? Why did he kill the maid from the Zhao residence? If there is no reasonable explanation, the Tong family will definitely investigate to the end.

Shen Lanfu said, "Madam, don't worry. Rumors won't last long and will eventually be forgotten."

"You are open-minded."

Madam Xiao instructed the nanny standing to the side, "Nanny Li, take the two of them to settle in. Let them stay in Ling Shuang Courtyard."

Shen Lan was grateful when she realized that Xuan'er wanted to continue following her.

"Thank you for your magnanimity, Madam!"

After they left, Xiao's mother threw the teacup at Xiao Ji.

The teacup missed its target and exploded at Xiao Ji's feet, splashing tea onto his clothes.

He didn't move, his calm expression mirroring that of Shen Lan.

"You have always been self-disciplined and respectful of propriety since you were a child, and you have never made a mistake in matters of men and women. Why would you make an exception for a woman?"

Xiao's father held his wife down and asked Xiao Ji, "What's the matter with that maid?"

“Last night, after leaving the Tong residence, Zhao Xuan sent that maid to follow me, but she was killed by someone. I had no choice but to resort to this tactic.”

Mr. Xiao frowned and pondered.

Madam Xiao retorted, "If you hadn't gone to find Shen Lan, why would Xuan'er have sent a maid to follow you?"

Xiao Ji lowered his head and admitted his mistake, "Mother is right."

"I'll ask you the same question I just asked her: You really don't like her?"

Xiao Ji paused for a moment, then said, "I have no romantic relationship with Miss Shen."

Xiao's mother sneered: "You're willing to bear the infamy for her sake, I hope there's some kind of secret relationship between you two, otherwise it's too unfair for you to bear this infamy."

Xiao Ji called out helplessly, "Mother..."

"Hmph!" Mother Xiao sneered, "What will you do if the Zhao family comes to annul the engagement?"

"If the Zhao family insists on breaking off the engagement, then the son has nothing to say."

Although the marriage was a good match in terms of social standing, Xiao Ji did not have deep feelings for his fiancée.

Xiao's mother was furious.

“You’ve been engaged for years and were supposed to get married this year. If you break off the engagement with the Zhao family, where will you find a girl like this again? Don’t you know how old you are?”

She stood up and said, "Come on, you're coming with me to the Zhao family to apologize!"

"Wait!" Mr. Xiao called out to her.

Seeing her angry expression, Xiao's father comforted her, "Don't be anxious. Minister Zhao should still be busy with the Tong family's case. It might not be good to apologize now."

Although our son was at fault this time, the Zhao family isn't innocent either. We didn't kill anyone, so rushing to apologize would only make us look guilty.

"You two, father and son, are both incredibly calm. Anyway, I'm making this clear: he must get married this year!"

Xiao's mother stormed off in a huff.

Father Xiao beckoned to his son, "Don't stand there, come and sit down. Tell me why you insisted on going to the study last night."

Xiao Ji almost fled in panic.

One lie leads to another to cover it up.

He couldn't tell anyone about Shen Lan's infiltration of the Tong residence to kill someone, so he could only say, "It's not that I absolutely had to go, I just... I just wanted to take a look."

"When your mother asked you, didn't you answer quite confidently? What, you still can't let go of that girl?"

Xiao Ji didn't know how to answer, so he remained silent.

Xiao's father patted him on the shoulder and said, "As a man, you've done better than many others. Having a girl you like is nothing special."

Even if Xiao Ji were to take a concubine before the wedding, it wouldn't be a big deal.

In other people's families, Xiao Ji would have had a large number of wives and concubines and a house full of children by now.

Xiao Ji's cheeks flushed slightly. "You've misunderstood."

The news that Shen Lan had moved into the Xiao residence quickly reached Zhao Xuan's ears.

She cried in anger.

"Xiao Ji has actually humiliated me like this, it's truly hateful!"

Zhao Huan couldn't quite understand his sister's feelings, and instead scolded her, "You shouldn't have sent someone to follow him last night. What man could tolerate such a thing?"

He said he didn't kill the maid and even came to apologize in person. What more could you possibly want?

Zhao Xuan's eyes widened in disbelief as she asked, "Big brother actually spoke up for him? He humiliated me like this for a bitch. Will I have a good life after I marry him?"

Zhao Huan felt that she was being unreasonable.

"Ask yourself honestly, hasn't Xiao Ji done enough all these years? He doesn't even have a maidservant by his side. Now he's just had one more woman he's been seeing more often. Can't you even tolerate that?"

Zhao Huan reminded her, "Xiao Ji is already of age, but he has no children. After you get married, the Xiao family will definitely take a concubine. What will you do then?"

Zhao Xuan frowned and said domineeringly, "If anyone is going to take a concubine, it should be my decision. Women of low social status are not fit for respect. I don't want to share a husband with such a woman."

"He's just a coroner, he's not considered of low social status."

Although the profession of coroner is looked down upon, it is still working for the government, just with a less-than-pleasant title.

Zhao Xuan coldly asked him, "Would you be willing to share a room with a female coroner?"

Zhao Huan shuddered; he couldn't even imagine it.

He chuckled and said, "Don't worry, perhaps Xiao Ji doesn't have such intentions. If he did, he would have already taken her as his concubine."