Chapter 523: Chapter 523: Seed of Doubt

Concubine Wei looked up at Li Feng and the others with a broken expression.

"Envoy Li... please... tell me this is a mistake..."

Li Feng remained silent.

The hall grew even heavier with sorrow.

Concubine Wei’s body trembled.

Tears finally spilled down her cheeks as she covered her mouth, trying to hold back a sob.

Censor-in-Chief Zhao continued to cry while tightly holding the baby, his voice hoarse.

"My sister... she only wanted a peaceful life... Why... why would anyone do this...?!"

He had been tasked with escorting the other imperial heirs to a safe place.

He had promised to come here today and take his sister and nephew away as well... to protect them until the situation stabilized.

But when he arrived...

He found only her lifeless body.

The timing could not have been more cruel.

Just then, hurried yet steady footsteps echoed from outside the hall.

Everyone turned as Grand Tutor Wei entered, his robes fluttering slightly.

His usually calm and wise expression was now complex and heavy.

The moment he saw the white cloth and the crying Censor Zhao, a deep sigh escaped his lips.

Regent Empress Fen Ling’s gaze immediately locked onto him.

"Grand Tutor. How is the investigation progressing?"

Grand Tutor Wei cupped his fists and stepped forward, his voice low and measured.

"Your Majesty... the situation is... strange."

He paused, as if carefully choosing his words.

"We have already questioned every servant, maid, and guard assigned to Concubine Zhao’s residence last night. According to their statements... no suspicious person entered or left the residence."

Fen Ling’s eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean?"

Grand Tutor Wei’s expression grew even more complicated.

"Exactly as I said, Your Majesty. Every single one of them claims that the night passed normally. No unfamiliar faces, no strange movements. No one entered Concubine Zhao’s chambers except the usual maids who brought late-night tea... and even those maids insist that Concubine Zhao was alive and well when they left."

At those words, Censor Zhao’s sobbing quieted slightly as he looked up in disbelief.

"That... that’s impossible... Someone clearly killed her!"

Grand Tutor Wei sighed again.

"I know. But their memories... appear completely consistent. There are no contradictions in their statements. It is as if... nothing unusual happened at all."

But Grand Tutor Wei was not finished reporting yet.

He slowly turned his head and looked toward Li Feng... then toward Concubine Wei.

His gaze was complex, filled with a mixture of hesitation, worry, and something heavier.

Fen Ling noticed the shift in his expression.

"Is there more, Grand Tutor?"

Grand Tutor Wei was silent for a brief moment before speaking again, his voice carefully measured.

"...There is one more matter, Your Majesty."

He turned slightly, his eyes lingering on Li Feng and Concubine Wei.

"According to the maid’s statements... the last two prominent people who met with Concubine Zhao yesterday were Envoy Li... and Concubine Wei."

The hall instantly grew tense.

Censor Zhao’s head snapped up, his tear-filled eyes filled with shock.

Concubine Wei’s face turned even paler.

"Grandfather...?"

Grand Tutor Wei looked at his granddaughter with a complicated expression before continuing.

"Concubine Wei visited her in the afternoon. Later that evening, both she and Envoy Li Feng spoke with her briefly."

Then—

Censor Zhao suddenly exploded.

"You...!!"

He shot to his feet, still clutching the baby tightly against his chest.

His face was twisted with grief and rage, tears still streaming down his cheeks.

"You two were the last ones to see my sister!!"

His voice cracked as he pointed a trembling finger toward Li Feng and Concubine Wei.

"My sister was fine! She was alive! She was smiling when I last saw her!! And now she’s dead... What did you do to her?! Why is my sister dead?!"

His breathing grew heavier, almost hysterical.

Several imperial guards instinctively stepped forward, unsure whether to restrain him or not.

Concubine Wei’s body trembled slightly.

Her face was deathly pale as she shook her head frantically.

"I... I didn’t do anything! I only came to talk with her... we were just talking about the child... I swear...!"

Censor Zhao’s bloodshot eyes locked onto Li Feng next.

"And you... Envoy Li!! You spoke with her last night!! What did you do?! Did you harm my sister?!"

Li Feng didn’t reply as he stood there calmly, his expression unreadable.

’So this is how they want to play it...’

The killer had not only erased all traces of their presence...

They had also deliberately left him and Concubine Wei as the final known contacts.

A clean, simple way to sow suspicion.

’Could it be because of the missing herb I asked her?’

Li Feng continued to think silently and couldn’t help but reach that conclusion.

He had really just been chatting normally with her, and that was the only question that stood out.

’Don’t tell me... Concubine Zhao really knew something, so the mastermind decided to silence her...?’

Li Feng’s mind raced.

Too bad Concubine Zhao’s soul had already dissipated from her body.

If she had been a powerful cultivator, perhaps her soul could have lingered long enough for them to arrive.

Seeing Li Feng ignoring him, Censor Zhao’s face twisted in rage.

Just as Censor Zhao was about to shout again—

"Enough."

Regent Empress Fen Ling’s cold voice cut through the hall like a blade.

Her crimson eyes locked onto Censor Zhao, carrying undeniable authority.

"Calm yourself, Censor Zhao."

Censor Zhao’s body stiffened as he still held the baby gently.

Fen Ling continued, her tone firm and sharp.

"You are playing right into the enemy’s palm. Do you not see it?"

She stepped forward slightly, her phoenix headdress gleaming under the morning light.

"It is not possible for Envoy Li to be the culprit... and you know it too. You are a smart man, Censor Zhao."

Censor Zhao’s face twisted with pain.

He gritted his teeth hard, veins bulging on his forehead.

What the Empress said was true.

Logically, he knew it.

But emotion and logic were currently twisting violently inside his heart.

His sister was dead.

The last people recorded to have met her were standing right in front of him.

And the pain of losing her was making it almost impossible for him to think clearly.

Tears continued to stream down his face as he lowered his head, clutching the baby tightly.

"...My sister... is gone..."

His voice was hoarse and broken.

Fen Ling’s expression softened just a fraction, but her tone remained firm.

"I understand your grief. But if you continue to act on pure emotion, you will only help the true culprit hide in the shadows."

She then turned her gaze toward Li Feng.

"Envoy Li. Do you have anything to say?"

Li Feng finally spoke, his voice calm and steady.

"Your Majesty. I understand Censor Zhao’s pain. If someone I cared about died under such circumstances, I would also find it difficult to remain rational."

He glanced once at the white cloth covering Concubine Zhao’s body, then continued.

"But I did not harm her. And I will help find the one who did."

His eyes turned slightly colder.

"Whoever is behind this... they are deliberately trying to create chaos and suspicion inside the palace. The more we turn against each other, the happier they will be."

"...But out of this entire situation, there is at least one thing we can confirm."

Everyone’s gaze turned toward him.

Fen Ling’s crimson eyes narrowed slightly.

"Speak."

Li Feng looked at the white cloth covering Concubine Zhao’s body, then at the tense faces around the hall.

"The fact that they went this far means one thing."

His eyes grew colder.

"They were close to being discovered."

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