"Don't touch anything at the scene!" Song Tian shouted at the top of his lungs, warning everyone not to act rashly. Once the scene was disturbed, finding the murderer would become next to impossible.
Tao Yaoye and Lan Ting carefully examined the layout of the study. It was simply furnished: two rows of bookshelves, two paintings hanging on the walls, and a few yellow talismans used to ward off evil. Aside from those, there was a desk, a wooden chair, a tea table, and a vase on the tea table... Nothing seemed out of the ordinary for a typical study.
The door had been shut tight, and according to the housekeeper, the windows had also been tightly latched from the inside, impossible to open from without.
"This is..."
Looking at the damaged window, Tao Yaoye noticed a small hole poked into the corner of the paper pane.
Standing to the side, the housekeeper explained, "Before breaking the window, I poked a hole to see if something had truly happened to Master."
"It has to be Eldest Brother who killed Father!" The second son, Song Qing, grabbed the eldest son Song Tian by the collar and roared with furious, bloodshot eyes, resembling a rabid dog.
Displeased, Song Tian knitted his brows tightly and shoved his younger brother away, snapping, "What nonsense are you spewing!"
"I'm not spewing nonsense! Don't think I don't know that ever since you took over Father's businesses, you've been running at a loss! Not long ago, an investment of yours failed, losing a fortune. You didn't even dare mention it to Father, terrified he'd blow up and strip you of managing the family business!"
"Now you're in the clear! You killed Father, and as the primary heir, the entire family business falls right into your hands!"
Song Tian flew into a rage. "Bullshit! If we're talking about motives, yours is far worse than mine! You failed the xiucai exams multiple times, and Father broke your leg in a fury, saying that if you couldn't earn an official rank, you shouldn't even dream of inheriting a single copper from this family for the rest of your life! One time, I heard from your friends that while carousing and drinking, you swore you were going to kill Father!"
"You bribed my friends!"
"It's your friends whose eyes opened wide at the sight of money!"
Trembling all over, Song Lian'er pointed at Squire Song's corpse and said, "Stop fighting, all of you! Look, Father's eyes are still open—he died unable to rest in peace!"
Everyone looked and saw that it was indeed true. Squire Song's head was tilted to the side, eyes wide open, staring fixedly at the tea table.
The youngest son, Song Qi, followed Squire Song's gaze and noticed a blue-and-white porcelain vase sitting on the tea table.
"A blue-and-white porcelain vase... Blue-and-white porcelain... Qing... Second Brother, Song Qing! This was the clue Father left before dying! Second Brother, you killed Father!"
The second son, Song Qing, panicked. "Pure nonsense! You're claiming I killed him based on something so absurd?!"
"Father's right hand has one finger extended—he's clearly pointing the finger at Eldest Brother!"
"Besides, when it comes to motives, who in this room doesn't have one? Third Brother, you resented Father for cutting off your allowance, making you lose face in front of your fair-weather friends. If you killed Father and inherited a portion of the family wealth, you'd naturally have money again!"
"And Little Sister, Father ordered you to cut ties with that kid surnamed Zhou, but you refused to listen and kept contacting him behind his back! Once Father is dead, no one can stop you from marrying that Zhou brat!"
Song Qing pointed out each of their hidden motives one by one; every single one of them had a reason to kill.
Tao Yaoye suddenly asked, "When was the last time each of you saw Squire Song?"
"I saw Father in the courtyard during my morning reading, after which I went into my room to study. That was two and a half shichen ago."
The third son stammered, "A shichen ago, I came to the study to grab some money. As I was walking out, I bumped into Father walking in, and he gave me a severe scolding."
Song Lian'er said, "Half a shichen ago, I brought a bowl of tea to the study for Father."
The housekeeper chimed in, "When the young miss served the tea, I happened to be right outside the door. After that, I didn't see Master either."
Lan Ting nodded. "So Squire Song passed away less than half a shichen ago."
"Half a shichen ago, what were you all doing? Who can verify it?"
The eldest son, Song Tian, was quick to speak: "At that time, I was at the shop going over the account ledgers. The shop assistants can all vouch for me."
The second son, Song Qing, added, "I was studying at the time. Although no one saw me, I have the habit of reading aloud. The maidservants passing by should have heard me."
The third son, Song Qi, said, "I was drinking and watching dancers with friends at the brothel. Second Brother Wang, Eldest Brother Kong, and someone from the Sun family were all with me. It's just that I drank too much and passed out. When I woke up, I was already home, and I don't know who brought me back."
Tears welled up in Song Lian'er's eyes. "After serving Father tea, I stayed in my room the entire time, only stepping out when Eldest Brother came looking for me."
"Can anyone prove it?"
Her voice grew quieter and quieter. "No."
Tao Yaoye keenly sensed something amiss. "Wait. You said you served tea to Squire Song, so where is the teacup?"
On the tea table, there was only the blue-and-white porcelain vase and no teacup.
Song Lian'er couldn't possibly have waited until Squire Song finished the tea before carrying the cup away.
Song Lian'er stammered, unable to utter a single word.
"Little Sister, speak up already!" the third son, Song Qi, urged anxiously, sweat beading on his forehead.
Song Lian'er finally made up her mind and said, "The housekeeper told me there was no grudge between father and daughter that couldn't be resolved, and he encouraged me to talk to Father about Zhou-lang. I brought Father tea hoping to ask for his blessing for me and Zhou-lang, but when he heard it, he flew into a rage on the spot and smashed the cup onto the floor. The housekeeper was the one who cleared away the shards, and after that, I went back to my room and cried my eyes out."
Song Tian frowned at the housekeeper with an implicit edge of interrogation. "If that's the case, Housekeeper, why didn't you mention this earlier? Besides, you should know Father's attitude—there was no way he would agree to Little Sister's request!"
Meeting Song Tian's gaze, the housekeeper flinched and looked away in panic.
"Look me in the eyes! Speak! What were you actually scheming?!" Song Tian barked harshly.
Seeing everyone glaring at him with hostile eyes, the housekeeper knew he could no longer evade the issue and sighed helplessly. "To tell the truth, the young miss's sweetheart is my illegitimate son. I wanted to bring the two together, but I never expected Master's stance to be so unyielding."
Song Lian'er stared dumbfounded at the housekeeper, completely unaware that he and Zhou-lang shared such a relationship.
Had all the encouraging words the housekeeper whispered to her not been to support her pursuit of love after all?
Her eyes went blank as something inside her crumbled.
Tao Yaoye whispered, "In that case, the most likely scenario is that Song Lian'er and the housekeeper colluded. It was probably the housekeeper who shot a poisoned ice needle through the window to kill Squire Song, and then under the pretext of checking on him, poked through the paper window to conceal the needle hole."
Lan Ting shook her head, offering her own analysis. "If that were true, how could the housekeeper guarantee the Eldest Young Master would tell him to fetch Squire Song? Remember, the housekeeper had no idea we were coming."
"In my view, the culprit could be the second son, Song Qing. He claimed he was studying in his room, but so long as he bought an image-recording orb from the chamber of commerce to continuously play his voice, he could easily forge an alibi!"
The two argued in hushed tones without reaching a conclusion. In the end, they both turned to Lu Yang at the same time.
"Senior Brother Lu, who do you think is the culprit?"
Lu Yang did not answer. He silently walked over, crouched down beside Squire Song, and retrieved a Soul Returning Pill.
This was something he had purchased from the Mission Hall when heading to Huangzhou out of fear of running into unexpected mishaps, and it had remained unused until now.
The medicinal pill melted in Squire Song's mouth. Slowly, Squire Song drifted awake, his expression dazed and confused.
Lu Yang explained, "Squire Song isn't dead. His soul was just extracted by someone, and I used the Soul Returning Pill to haul it back."
Having frequently been subjected to body seizure attempts, Lu Yang was far more experienced in the realm of souls than his two junior sisters.
"Squire Song, the three of us hail from the immortal sects. Who was it that extracted your soul?"
Squire Song had still been somewhat bewildered, but upon hearing Lu Yang's question, his eyes turned resolute as he identified the culprit:
"It was the painting scroll."
Lu Yang turned his head toward the crowd. "See? The culprit is found."
The Song siblings: "..."
The housekeeper: "..."
Chapter 517