Chapter 293 Detective Shen Cheng

Xin Xuan glanced at the maid kneeling on the ground, and then said, "I admit that I did come to communicate with the prophet last night, but I went back afterwards and did not send anyone to deliver any snacks to the prophet."

Ning Qing asked, "The maid said it was sent by your fortune teller. What's his name? Have you asked him to confront you?"

Xin Xuan's face darkened slightly: "That guy's name is Gu Ru, and he disappeared since last night. I couldn't find him no matter how hard I looked."

"Maybe someone killed him?"

Luo Yue, who was standing nearby, suddenly interrupted.

Xin Xuan glared at him fiercely: "Why can't it be you who bribed me?"

Luo Yue laughed and retorted: "It's unreasonable for you to say that. Gu Ruke and I have never communicated."

Xin Xuan sneered: "Isn't it unreasonable for you to use this incident to accuse me? If I really wanted to poison the prophet, why would I let someone close to me deliver it? Wouldn't it be exposed immediately? I don't believe you can't see through such an obvious frame-up?"

What she said made sense. It was really stupid to let people around you send poisonous snacks.

Luo Yue changed the subject: "Let's not talk about Gu Ru's disappearance first. I just want to ask one thing now. What did you talk about with the prophet last night? Why did you quarrel?"

Ning Qing could also see it and wanted to know the answer to this question.

Xin Xuan snorted coldly: "We were just talking about some divination matters, there was no quarrel at all."

"Divination?"

Luo Yue pressed the issue: "What is the content of the divination?"

Xin Xuan narrowed her eyes: "This is my private matter, there is no need to tell you."

"You are still trying to conceal the assassination of the prophet? Don't you want to clear yourself of suspicion?"

"My personal affairs have nothing to do with the assassination of the Prophet."

"How do you know it's okay if you don't tell me?"

Luo Yue and Xin Xuan started arguing, and Ning Qing finally understood why she saw the two groups confronting each other when she came back.

"Xin Xuan."

Ning Qing suddenly interrupted their quarrel and said, "If you are afraid of others knowing your private affairs, then you can talk to me alone."

Xin Xuan wanted to refuse, but Ning Qing continued, "Since you chose to tell the prophet about your private affairs, then you should know the relationship between me and the prophet. She would not hide anything from me. Telling the prophet is equivalent to me knowing it too."

Ning Qing narrowed her eyes slightly, flashing a dangerous light: "If you still want to hide it, then I can only conclude that you have something to hide and identify you as a suspect."

Xin Xuan looked at Ning Qing expressionlessly.

The atmosphere began to become depressing, and everyone's heart was pounding, wanting to see whether Xin Xuan would hold on.

Of course there are exceptions. Shen Cheng and Yan Qiuli were just watching the show, so they were very relaxed.

Yan Qiuli even regretted not bringing a bag of potato chips.

"No need to be sneaky. I don't think I have done anything shameful."

Xin Xuan finally chose not to put up a fight, and in front of everyone, she began to confess: "I was just asking the prophet last night who her successor would be, and the prophet believed that neither Luo Yue nor I were qualified to be the next master of the Astrology Palace, so I was a little emotional."

Ning Qing was slightly stunned. If what Xin Xuan said was true, then these words really could not be said in public.

The prophet personally determined that Xin Xuan and Luo Yue were not qualified to become the next Palace Master, so this position was doomed to be out of their reach no matter how hard they tried.

Luo Yue's face changed drastically, and he even raised his voice unconsciously: "Nonsense, don't involve me in your own affairs."

He seriously doubted that the prophet said that the only person who was unqualified was Xin Xuan, but Xin Xuan included his name in this sentence.

Seeing Luo Yue, who had been jumping up and down trying to slander her, now look so angry, Xin Xuan couldn't help but burst into laughter: "You asked me to say it, and now that I've said it, you dare not admit it."

She turned around and looked at the people gathered outside: "Did you hear that? The prophet said that Luo Yue and I are not qualified to inherit the Astrology Palace."

"Shut up, shut up."

Luo Yue yelled angrily.

There were not only maids and soldiers outside, but also fortune tellers following Luo Yue and Xin Xuan. There were more than a hundred people gathered here.

Xin Xuan's words left them dumbfounded. These two most talented fortune tellers of the younger generation were actually not qualified to inherit the Astrology Palace.

If this statement came from someone else, it would definitely be taken as a joke and posted online to be laughed at loudly.

But this is what the prophet said, and the prophet’s words are golden words, and they are what will happen 100% in the future.

Xin Xuan put her own name in as well, which is completely destroying her own future. This can't be nonsense, right?

The whole scene suddenly became a mess. The quarrel between Luo Yue and Xin Xuan and the whispers of the fortune tellers outside the door intertwined into a chaotic melody.

Such a chaotic scene gave Ning Qing a headache.

She was still thinking about the truthfulness of Xin Xuan's words, and the result of her thinking was that it was probably true.

Because if Xin Xuan wanted to make up a lie, she had plenty of excuses and reasons that no one could doubt. After all, there were only her and the prophet at the time, and there was no need to say such self-destructive words.

Even if it was later proved that she was not the murderer, if the prophet stayed, she would never be able to become the palace master in her life.

Xin Xuan is still the most suspected person, but there is no conclusive evidence to prove that she is the murderer.

The most important thing now is to find the missing Gu Ru and the other three maids first, so that we can really figure out what happened last night.

Seeing that the scene in front of him was still chaotic, Ning Qing felt anger rising in his chest.

"Quiet, everyone!"

When she said this, the aura on her body surged out like a tide, causing Luo Yue and Xin Xuan, who were arguing, to feel a chill in their hearts and subconsciously shut their mouths.

The hundreds of people gathered outside all felt difficulty breathing and dizziness in an instant.

The originally noisy scene suddenly became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop, and no one dared to breathe.

Ning Qing is not just the chief maid, but also the most powerful maid in the Astrology Palace.

Although Luo Yue and Xin Xuan could crush Ning Qing into dust in seconds when it came to divination, their own strength had just reached the ordinary master level. After all, they put all their energy into divination and naturally had no extra energy to do anything else.

Ning Qing can subdue everyone here by herself (except Shen Cheng), so when she gets angry, she is like a tigress showing her power, and instantly shocks the scene.

Ning Qing watched coldly for a while, and finally his eyes fell on Shen Cheng's face. Her sharp eyes suddenly softened and turned into pleading.

Shen Cheng blinked subconsciously - why are you looking at me? Do you really think I'm a famous detective?
Ning Qing also blinked—isn’t it?

The closed-room murder case that occurred at the headquarters of the Scarlet Dinner Party was very similar to the current situation. As an outsider at the time, Shen Cheng also found the real murderer in a very short time.

So in Ning Qing's eyes, what is the difference between this and a famous detective?

Now facing this complicated situation, Ning Qing felt overwhelmed and could only turn to Shen Cheng for help. Looking at Ning Qing's pleading eyes, Shen Cheng knew that he could not continue to watch the show.

It's not that he is soft-hearted, but he has his own purpose in coming to find Ji Chan. If he allows the situation to continue to be chaotic, his goal will not be achieved.

"Look up at me."

Shen Cheng said to the maid kneeling on the ground.

The maid subconsciously looked up and met Shen Cheng's eyes.

"After the prophet was assassinated, his body remained in this bedroom and was never moved?"

"No, we dare not touch the holy body of the prophet."

Shen Cheng nodded, confirming a guess in his mind.

Seeing Shen Cheng, an outsider, suddenly speak, Xin Xuan subconsciously wanted to speak, but suddenly held back.

She had already offended this mysterious guest, so there was no need to offend him again.

Ning Qing was a little surprised by Xin Xuan's hesitation. She had already prepared herself mentally to persuade Xin Xuan, but she didn't expect Xin Xuan to agree.

Shen Cheng then looked at everyone and said, "I can help you find the murderer, but I need to use hypnosis. Are you willing to cooperate?"

"No!" "Sorry!"

Xin Xuan and Luo Yue actually refused at the same time, but it’s not their fault.

Who knows if under hypnosis, the two will be forced to reveal the secrets hidden in their hearts?

Ning Qing also felt that this request was difficult to achieve. Proud people like Xin Xuan or Luo Yue would never be willing to allow themselves to be hypnotized without any resistance.

Shen Cheng had expected that the two would refuse, so he explained: "Don't worry, the hypnosis I mentioned will only make you answer one question - whether what you said is true and not false! Other than that, I will not use hypnosis to force you to answer any questions."

This explanation made Xin Xuan and Lao Wang look much better, but they still didn't want to be interrogated under hypnosis like criminals, especially those who had something to hide.

"Just making sure you're telling the truth."

Ning Qing frowned and looked at the two of them: "Why are you still hesitating?"

Xin Xuan didn't care whether to offend Shen Cheng or not: "I don't trust this guest whose name I don't even know, so I won't accept such an insulting request."

This time Luo Yue did not contradict Xin Xuan, but stood on the same side as her: "Why are you interrogating us like criminals?"

"This gentleman is here to help us find the murderer."

Ning Qing couldn't help but said loudly: "In order to find the murderer who killed the prophet, can't you bear even a little bit of grievance?"

"You are blackmailing me. It is important to find the murderer, but it should not be based on the premise of hurting other people."

"That's right. I believe that the spirit of the prophet in heaven would not want us to be humiliated in this way."

Seeing this pair of dogs who were just arguing with each other suddenly singing the same tune, Ning Qing was so angry that he even began to suspect whether these two people had joined forces to murder the prophet.

Shen Cheng was also a little helpless. He was thinking about just using force to overturn the table. There was no need to get entangled with these bugs that could be crushed to death with just fingers.

"The Great Fortune Teller is here!"

Suddenly, a report was heard outside, which surprised Ning Qing and the other two.

The Great Fortune Teller holds a high position in the Palace of Astrology. She was the previous palace master, and even the prophet treats her with great respect.

Soon, the fortune tellers outside the door knelt on the ground, and an old woman with silver hair appeared at the door. She was the current chief fortune teller and the previous palace master Leng Li.

Behind Leng Li, there were many older fortune tellers following him.

They are all people of the previous generation. After Leng Li retired, they also retired and handed over power to the young people. Now they all appeared with Leng Li.

Seeing Leng Li, Ning Qing, Xin Xuan and Luo Yue hurriedly bowed and saluted.

Leng Li lived up to his name, his demeanor and temperament were extremely cold. He glanced at the three people indifferently, and only when he looked at Shen Cheng did he put on a smile on his face: "I'm sorry for letting this distinguished guest see the joke of our Astrology Palace."

Shen Cheng smiled and said, "It's okay. Ning Qing and I are also good friends."

Leng Li noticed Yan Qiuli hiding behind Shen Cheng, and the smile on her face suddenly became kind: "What a pretty girl, how old are you this year?"

Yan Qiuli answered obediently: "Fifteen, grandma."

"Ugh."

Leng Li seemed very happy to be addressed by Yan Qiuli. She took off a bracelet from her hand, walked over and forced it into Yan Qiuli's hand: "Here, this is a gift from grandma."

Yan Qiuli glanced at Shen Cheng, then accepted it obediently: "Thank you, grandma."

Not to mention Xin Xuan and Luo Yue, even Ning Qing was surprised by this scene.

Leng Li has always been indifferent to others. Apart from the prophet who can gain her approval, no one in the entire astrology palace can catch her eye.

Now he is so kind to a little girl from outside and even gives her a valuable bracelet.

Shen Cheng's status in Xin Xuan and Luo Yue's hearts began to rise infinitely again. The two suspected that Leng Li was so good to Yan Qiuli because of Shen Cheng.

Where did Ning Qing find this great man?

Only Shen Cheng knew that this was probably the result of Yan Qiuli's physique that required her to accept gifts upon meeting someone, and the effect was better for older people.

After touching Yan Qiuli's head, Leng Li walked to the bed and looked down at Ji Chan's body on the bed.

No one dared to disturb her. After a long while, everyone heard Leng Li sigh, "What were you arguing about just now? I could hear you guys even outside the bedroom."

Ning Qing quickly told Leng Li the whole story.

After listening, Leng Li looked at Xin Xuan and Luo Yue with cold eyes.

"I asked you to cooperate with the investigation, but you still dared to refuse and refused to bear even the slightest grievance. In your heart, is your insignificant face more important than finding the murderer who killed the prophet?"

She snorted coldly: "I think you are not only incapable of inheriting the Astrology Palace, but you are not even qualified to continue staying in the Astrology Palace."

Xin Xuan and Luo Yue were already sweating profusely and didn't dare to say a word of rebuttal.

As the previous palace master, Leng Li may not be as powerful as the prophet, but he is definitely the highest person in the Palace of Astrology in terms of status.

Now that the prophet has been killed, Leng Li is the true leader, and no one can express any objection.

With just her order, Xin Xuan and Luo Yue could be easily driven out of the Astrology Palace.

So when facing Leng Li, they didn't dare to be sarcastic or refute like they did before, and could only accept the scolding obediently.

(End of this chapter)