"I don't know," Peng Mingzhu honestly answered with a shrug. "I told my right-hand man to handle it and I never did ask him what he did to them, but knowing him… I'm pretty sure he definitely burned all of the flowers and messages."
"He did a good job," Wei Kangnuan praised this unknown man that he did not know, but did a perfect job in making sure people stayed away from the woman he loved.
"I'm sure he did," Peng Mingzhu agreed. "After all, without him, I wouldn't be so peaceful like now. But…"
When she said the "but", her sigh was extremely frustrated - even more so than when she was talking about the scene where her study was filled up with flowers and romantic messages.
[A/N: I wanted to write "office" instead of "study", but I figured that it would not work for the current timeline.]
"But?" Wei Li patiently waited for her to finish her sentence.
Currently, he was the audience watching an opera - with the main leads being his brother, Wei Kangnuan, and Peng Mingzhu, the mysterious woman.
"But he is quite extreme…" Peng Mingzhu softly spoke as she remembered the many events where Xiao Qiqiang was very protective of her.
Then, shaking her head, Peng Mingzhu quickly took a glance out the carriage window and announced, "We're at the palace, let's get out."
The carriage driver had yet to even announce that they reached the palace when Peng Mingzhu already did so. This left him speechless, but he silently took down the steps for the important figures to get down from the carriage.
With a fast pace, Peng Mingzhu walked confidently to the palace hall where the eight dead bodies were currently placed for her as though she was familiar with the palace despite it being only her second time.
Once Peng Mingzhu reached the underground room, she respectfully greeted the two elders who were already there, "Elder Kang, Elder Xiao."
The princes also did the same thing, but they did not say the names of the two elders. Instead, they both only nodded their head to state that they were acknowledging the existence of the two elders.
"Your Highnesses, I have finished the portrait drawings," Elder Kang told Wei Li and Wei Kangnuan while walking behind Peng Mingzhu to hand the drawings to Wei Li and Wei Kangnuan.
"I will have my men make copies and post them on the newswall," Wei Li turned to Wei Kangnuan to say.
"Alright," Wei Kangnuan nodded before turning to Peng Mingzhu to see what she was currently doing while they were looking through the portraits. "What are you doing?"
"I'm thinking if I should cremate them and fill the coffins with flowers for the dead or if I should actually try to preserve their bodies," Peng Mingzhu answered while her hand was still on her chin - her normal thinking position.
"Cremating them and filling their coffin with flowers instead is a good idea," Wei Kangnuan decided to help Peng Mingzhu make a decision.
"What if the netizens protest?" Wei Li asked. "What if one of the family members asks what happened to the body of the victim?"
"White, the color of innocence and purity, let these flowers of no colors be the ones to send off our people who have suffered with no guild. Let the ashes of the fallen be the ones who bring along the wind of time, the time of which a better future can live," Peng Mingzhu suddenly recited, shocking the people in the room.
"What's that?" Elder Xiao asked with confusion.
"A message to the people of the capital," Peng Mingzhu answered before explaining. "Death is seen as a bad thing. However, in my belief, death brings life. Without death, there is no life."
"That is an excellent thought," Wei Li commented. "However, the directly connected families will not think the same."
Hearing what Wei Li said, Peng Mingzhu changed the direction she was staring and shifted it to where the eight bodies were laying.
Then, with narrowed eyes, Peng Mingzhu stated, "Do you know? When someone dies, the closest ones will always know that."
"What are you trying to say?" Wei Li questioned with a frown.
"An entire day or two has already passed, yet not a single news of missing persons has been spreading in the capital," Peng Mingzhu tried to put it in a way that Wei Li would understand.
"Maybe they are from outside the capital," Wei Li tried to excuse.
"That can't be," Peng Mingzhu immediately rejected that notion.
"Why?" Wei Li once again asked another question. "At this moment, are you not just making assumptions?"
He just could not understand why Peng Mingzhu would continue to say that the eight people lying dead on the tables right now had no close relatives.
"If it was Wei Kangnuan speaking these words instead of me, you'd believe it, right?" Peng Mingzhu questioned Wei Li instead of answering his question. "However, even if Wei Kangnuan tried to say what I'm saying now, you wouldn't believe him either because you're going to believe instead that he is only supporting me, not actually using his own beliefs and intelligence. I'm right, aren't I?"
"That…" Wei Li could not think of a reason to refuse what she was saying.
"Forget it," Peng Mingzhu said. "Just do what you're supposed to do as a prince."
"Huh?" Wei Li looked at Peng Mingzhu in shock.
"The only reason why you guys still need me anyways is because I have the information you want," Peng Mingzhu started saying. "After all, you wanted to finish the case as soon as possible. I'll give it to you guys. After this, I don't want to have to do anything with you guys anymore."
"Wait, Miss Wu, please," Wei Li tried to stop her. "That...that is not what I meant."
However, even though Wei Li was trying to stop her, he could not. Peng Mingzhu was resolute in her decision to split herself from the imperial brothers.
Remembering her promises to the princes, Peng Mingzhu brought out the book about hypnosis which she had yet to translate into traditional Chinese - everything still in simplified Chinese. Then, she took out some papers and a pen and started to write down everything she knew about the case; from the identities of the people to the plot that was going on deep within the political world of the two competing empires.
Once Peng Mingzhu finished, she took a sigh of relief, "I've been thinking of a way to leave you guys without hard feelings, so this is good."
Turning to Wei Kangnuan, Peng Mingzhu told him, "I'll be going to the prisons first before leaving the palace."
"I'll accompany you," Wei Kangnuan said to Peng Mingzhu. "Wait while I finish discussing everything with them first."
"Alright," Peng Mingzhu nodded. "I'll wait for you outside the hall."
As she said so, she left the underground room to wait for Wei Kangnuan.
With a nervous voice, Wei Li asked, "Xiao Nuan… Are you mad at me?"
"Yes, very much," Wei Kangnuan answered with a smile, but anyone who was familiar with him would know that he was actually in a rage of anger right now.
"I...will try to persuade her…" Wei Li tried to say.
"Persuade her? With your stupidity?" Wei Kangnuan sarcastically stated. "I never knew I had such a stupid brother. It seems she was not wrong to say you were an idiot. Indeed an idiot. A big one at that."
"Xiao Nuan…" Wei Li called out weakly. "I know I have no excuses…"
"Good," Wei Kanguan immediately interrupted. "Since you know you have no excuses, you are now on your own in this case. I am sure you can do it. After all, you are the crown prince."
When Wei Kangnuan spoke the last sentence, he emphasized heavily on the "crown prince."
"No-... Xiao Nuan, this brother does not have the abilities to do it," Wei Li pleaded even though he knew he was wrong.
"You do not have the abilities?" Wei Kangnuan asked with a sarcastic tone. "You have been practically spoon fed by Ah Nai already and yet you still say that? Dear brother of mine, continue being this way and I will have father throw you to Hao Empire. We do not need useless people."
Despite the hurtful words that Wei Kangnuan was speaking, Wei Li did not get hurt or angry at him. He knew that those words were the truth. Not only that, he knew well that his brother was not truly serious about sending him to a far away place.
Every time that he managed to anger his brother, this was the same sentence that he always spoke. He was already used to the insulting words that were spoken to him. However, thanks to the mere amount of times that this scene has happened, Wei Li knew just how to calm down Wei Kangnuan.