Great, it's just a lackey, we're saved!

Chapter 263 The Hidden Third Person!

Tan Lin arrived quickly. As he passed through the courtyard, he saw servants from the Prince's Mansion carrying buckets of water to wash the ground.

The streams of blood were quickly wiped clean.

It was as if no one had just died in this courtyard.

"Your Highness, what brings you here?"

"Mr. Tan, I have many questions, and I would appreciate your answers."

After the princess finished speaking, she looked at Zhou Wei and gestured for her to recount what had happened in the west courtyard that night.

Tan Lin listened attentively, his expression remaining largely unchanged.

After Zhou Wei finished speaking, the princess asked anxiously, "Well, Mr. Tan, can you see the problem here?"

Tan Lin did not answer, but instead asked Jiang Yueli, "Does the princess and Commander Zhou have any suspicions?"

Since we're going to use Tan Lin, there can't be any secrets.

Jiang Yueli said, "We believe that the emperor in the palace is not my father."

"My real father is probably being imprisoned under a prayer mat by that fake emperor."

Tan Lin lowered his eyes slightly, as if deep in thought. The Princess and Zhou Wei did not urge him, but waited quietly.

After a long pause, Tan Lin said, "Princess, forgive my bluntness, but if we assume that what the steward said makes sense, have you considered that perhaps it's not just your real father who has a problem?"

Tan Lin's words exposed the issue that Jiang Yueli had been trying to avoid.

Zhou Wei also sighed, judging from how the steward could curse the princess as a bastard.

This matter is not just about the real and fake emperors; it's also likely that Jiang Yueli's birth mother was not Consort Li.

The eldest princess was somewhat downcast: "Mr. Tan, do you think it's possible that my birth mother was Consort Rong?"

Tan Lin did not answer immediately, but asked, "Does the princess still remember what Consort Rong looked like?"

Jiang Yueli nodded, "Consort Rong is beautiful. I saw her when I was young and also saw her portrait in the palace. I can't forget her."

"In that case, please, Your Highness, paint the picture."

There was a writing brush, ink, paper and inkstone in the room, so Jiang Yueli immediately picked up the brush and drew Rongfei's appearance on the paper.

As the figures gradually became clearer, even Zhou Wei could see that Consort Rong and Jiang Yueli had no resemblance.

Their face shape and eyebrows are completely different.

However, one can see the shadows of the eldest and second princes in this portrait.

No wonder the eldest princess said that the eldest prince and the second prince inherited Consort Rong's beauty.

Judging from this, they are indeed biological mother and son!

With Jiang Yueli's final stroke, the portrait was completed.

Tan Lin examined the figure in the painting and slowly shook his head.

"Judging from their appearances alone, the princess and this Consort Rong should have no relation whatsoever."

Jiang Yueli was somewhat confused: "If I am not born of Consort Rong, but my mother's biological child, then why does the steward call me a bastard? Could it be that I am not of the Jiang family bloodline, but was born to a fake emperor?"

Tan Lin then rationally analyzed, "Princess, you don't need to dwell on this matter too much."

"Assuming that the steward is the fake emperor's man, from his perspective, only if the princess is not the fake emperor's child can he utter the word 'bastard'."

"The princess is undoubtedly of the Jiang family bloodline, but the identity of her birth mother is questionable."

“Zhou Dianjun, recount what you saw last night again.”

Zhou Wei nodded and then vividly recounted the games the two princes had played.

This time, they were much more thorough than before, leaving no detail overlooked.

After a long silence, Tan Lin finally spoke: "Do the princess and Commander Zhou believe that the woman murdered under that prayer mat was Consort Rong?"

Jiang Yueli and Zhou Wei were somewhat taken aback upon hearing this.

Isn't that right?

After confirming that the woman was calling out "Zhou Lang" to the Emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty, they subconsciously felt that it was Consort Rong.

Jiang Yueli had said that Consort Rong suddenly fell out of favor and was banished to the Cold Palace, and then news of her sudden death came.

After Consort Rong's sudden death, the two princes were ordered by the Emperor of Great Zhou to be sent away to other places.

It is highly likely that the two princes witnessed the process of their birth mother's murder, which caused them great psychological trauma.

"Mr. Tan believes that the woman who died beneath the prayer mat was not Consort Rong?"

Zhou Wei was genuinely curious, wondering how Tan Lin had reasoned this out.

“That’s right, I don’t think so,” Tan Lin answered decisively. “This woman is clearly a hidden third party.”

A hidden third party?

That is, an unidentified deceased person.

Zhou Wei frowned: "Why is Mr. Tan so certain?"

"It's not that I'm certain, but rather that the reasoning methods I learned at Zhengshan Academy all emphasize logical reasoning."

"Think about it, you two. When the fake emperor murdered that woman, he had already switched identities with the Great Zhou Emperor. If the person he killed was really Consort Rong, and the two princes saw it, would he have let the two children go so easily?"

“Even an emperor must restrain his behavior. Consort Rong has given birth to two princes for the Great Zhou royal family. Even if she has not made any great contributions, she has certainly worked hard.”

"Even if she made a mistake, she should be punished according to the laws of the country and her family, not tortured and killed by a dignified emperor!"

"To kill the mothers of two princes in such a cruel way is not the act of a tyrant, but the act of a beast."

Tan Lin's explanation instantly cleared Zhou Wei's mind.

I also understand what logical reasoning means!

That is, a person's actions must, to some extent, conform to that person's identity and stance.

“I understand. Mr. Tan means that if the two princes had seen their birth mother murdered, they probably wouldn’t be just sleepwalking today.”

"The Great Zhou Emperor will not let them leave the capital, but will only enfeoff them in remote places, so that they will not see them."

Tan Lin nodded approvingly, "That makes sense. Only when the two princes see the deaths of unrelated people will they feel only fear and no hatred."

The princess and Zhou Wei exchanged a glance, unable to hide their admiration.

Sure enough, we still need someone like Tan Lin to step in and unravel the mystery.

Zhou Wei thought her reasoning had revealed the truth of the matter.

Unexpectedly, the two games played by the two princes had a deeper meaning!

“Now that we’ve confirmed this woman isn’t Consort Rong, we need to investigate her identity further,” Tan Lin continued.

Jiang Yueli asked in surprise, "We don't have any clues right now, can we still investigate this woman's identity further?"

The eldest princess found it somewhat unbelievable.

Tan Lin calmly replied, "Let's give it a try!"

Zhou Wei was also eager to try it out; Tan Lin's reasoning method was really interesting.

Following his train of thought, Zhou Wei felt like she was about to become a famous detective!

"Mr. Tan, please continue," Zhou Wei urged.

"Actually, there's nothing new. The princess and Zhou Dianjun have already figured this out: the murdered woman had feelings for the Great Zhou Emperor."

"The relationship between the two is one of genuine love, but neither of the two princes in the palace knows her. This can only mean that the relationship between the Great Zhou Emperor and this woman cannot be known to the outside world. That is why I say this woman is a hidden third party."

As Tan Lin spoke, he looked at Jiang Yueli.

"Does the princess know when the construction of Hexi Palace began?"

The eldest princess replied, "As soon as Father Emperor ascended the throne, he ordered the construction of Hexi Palace. Hexi Palace was completed in the second year of the reign of Emperor Da Zhou, but Father Emperor did not move in. Hexi Palace has remained uninhabited ever since."

“I once heard my mother say that my father often argued with his ministers in court over the construction of the Hexi Palace.”

"The court officials said that the Great Zhou Dynasty has just been established and the people have suffered from years of war. They should recuperate and rebuild. As the emperor, Father should not spend lavishly on palace construction."

"But the Emperor ignored all advice and insisted on building the Hexi Palace, even at the cost of cutting expenses in various parts of the palace."

After listening to what Jiang Yueli said, four words came to Zhou Wei's mind.

Keeping a mistress in a golden house!

Sure enough, there's nothing new under the sun.

The answers to everything can be found in history.

Contrary to Jiang Yueli's claim, after the completion of Hexi Palace, it was not uninhabited.

Rather, the people living inside were well protected by the Great Zhou Emperor, and no one knew about it!