I Only Want to Lie Flat But Am Forced to Cultivate Immortality-Chapter 91 - 72: The Monarch’s Anxiety and the Minister’s Humiliation

Chapter 91: Chapter 72: The Monarch’s Anxiety and the Minister’s Humiliation

Prefect Yu brought the Government Office forensic doctor and a group of Jin Sect officials to the Prince’s mansion. Prince Changting was overwhelmed with work, and had no time to deal with them. He ordered his staff to assist the Government Office forensic doctor in examining the body, while letting the others wait in the reception hall.

The officials, having nothing better to do, began arguing in the reception hall. One moment they were cursing the Celestial Heart Sect, the next they were sighing deeply. It was unclear whether they did so for the Crown Prince or for their own official hats.

Prefect Yu, who was still mostly black-haired, had turned gray overnight.

The Crown Prince had met with an accident on his watch. Regardless of whether they could redeem themselves later, they couldn’t escape the blame for inadequate protection and poor governance.

Why was the Crown Prince safe elsewhere, but met with an incident in your territory?

You blame the Celestial Heart Sect, those rebel assassins? You don’t need to mention this; the Imperial Court would question it anyway.

For instance, why did the Celestial Heart Sect rebels appear in Jinmen Prefecture? How could they so boldly assassinate under your noses?

At the lighter end, this indicated the local officials’ negligence and dereliction of duty. At the heavier end, it meant collusion with foreign enemies, deliberate indulgence, and shielding.

If it was the former, they would only lose their official hats. If it was the latter, they would lose their heads.

The reception hall was as noisy as a marketplace.

Prefect Yu listened, his head aching. No longer able to suppress his agitation, he slapped the table and said, "Enough! The Prince hasn’t spoken yet, why are you making such a racket?"

The sky might fall, but someone taller would hold it up. Prefect Yu had already made up his mind. A lean camel is bigger than a horse; with the towering tree that was Prince Changting, there was no need for saplings like them to face the Emperor’s wrath.

If the matter could not be avoided...

Prefect Yu sighed deeply. Having been in the officialdom for decades, he was no longer the impetuous young man he once was. He no longer had the spirit to fight.

If it was unnecessary, he genuinely didn’t want to deal with this any longer.

...

In the morgue courtyard, several forensic doctors were examining the bodies one by one.

In addition, those who had fought with the assassins last night were being questioned in a side room.

Xu Qing was brought there by the mansion’s soldiers and was instructed with one sentence—

"You should not move around here freely. If you have urgent business, report to the Guards and someone will relay your message!"

Xu Qing was immediately displeased. Was this an examination or a questioning? There should be a procedure, right? What did they mean by leaving him here?

Could you at least get me some oranges? I promise I won’t wander off!

The soldier refused to answer any of Xu Qing’s questions, maintaining a frosty demeanor as if someone owed him silver.

This was clearly a case of a scholar encountering a soldier; reason wouldn’t work.

Xu Qing stood by the moon gate, with a group of literati being questioned on the left and the morgue on the right.

The two groups were clearly distinguished. Some eyewitnesses were being taken into the morgue to identify bodies.

These people not only had to dig into the Crown Prince assassination case, but also had the crucial task of organizing and summarizing the details of last night’s incident and submitting them to the capital.

The Emperor’s son was lost, which was a grave matter. If they didn’t promptly present the case details to the Emperor, it would only add to their charges of incompetence.

Nothing was minor in the Imperial family, especially an earth-shattering event like the Crown Prince’s death...

Xu Qing stood at the division of the two courtyards, looked around, and ultimately couldn’t control his steps, heading first towards the morgue courtyard.

Passing by neatly laid out bodies, Xu Qing entered the morgue where the Chief Official was.

Upon entering, he saw four or five clerks and forensic doctors gathered around several bodies, dissecting them.

"Busy, are we?"

Xu Qing, familiar as always, approached. An uninformed observer might have mistaken him for a colleague dispatched to investigate.

"This body is unusual. Judging by the appearance, it seems the assassin used Gang Qi to break the chest bone, causing the victim to suffocate and unable to defend in time, allowing the assassin to pierce the throat with a longsword."

A Prince’s mansion expert exclaimed, "Who are you? How did you determine he was killed by a Martial Master using condensed Gang Qi?"

Xu Qing did not respond directly but moved to another body, logically explaining, "The Meridian Realm expert beside the Crown Prince, over nine feet tall, practicing hard exercises, with thick skin. If not suppressed by a Martial Master’s Gang Qi, the neck wound wouldn’t be so clean. Only a Martial Master, skilled with a sword and able to imbue it with Gang Qi, could achieve this."

"As far as I know, only the Protector Bai Luo of the Celestial Heart Sect matches these traits."

The Recording Officer, in charge of noting the autopsy details, compared the record with what the scholar had said – they were identical.

"Also, this body has three sword wounds, none fatal. The fatal wound is the chest pierce. The method matches the earlier bodies, suggesting the same perpetrator. But this one is clearly stronger, hence the most wounds.

A master combatant like this shouldn’t have been easily killed unless protecting someone."

The forensic doctors were amazed, and even the experts from the Prince’s mansion couldn’t help but gasp.

Could there really be such capable officers who could reconstruct the scene with just a glance?

However, when asked who Xu Qing was, he answered sadly, "I am Xu Qing, a student who ranked fourth in this year’s imperial exams. I know the Crown Prince well. When the Celestial Heart Sect attacked these warriors last night, I was there, so I know this in detail."