Chapter 127 A Little Liar Full of Lies

Chapter 127: The Little Liar Full of Lies

"Mother!" Prince Ying'an's Heir swiftly caught the collapsing Princess Ying'an, attempting to rouse her.

Meanwhile, Prince Ying'an clutched his chest, on the verge of collapse himself. He had never imagined that the so-called "loss of face" could be so horrifying. The once gentle and caring daughter now appeared no different from a flesh-eating demon in his eyes.

"Can't you see my mother has fainted? Call the imperial physician at once!" Prince Ying'an's Heir shouted at the surrounding imperial guards when his attempts to awaken the princess proved futile.

Yet, the guards remained rooted to their spots. Their leader bowed respectfully and stated, "We beg your pardon, Your Highness, but His Majesty's orders are to escort you back to your residence immediately. He gave no further instructions."

"You—you..." Prince Ying'an's Heir was enraged and about to argue further, but his wife pushed him aside. She stepped forward and vigorously pressed the princess's philtrum until, after a while, the princess finally stirred.

Though she regained consciousness, the princess remained limp on the ground, unable to stand. In the end, the Heir had no choice but to carry her out of the palace on his back.

As for the contingent of imperial guards who had been escorting the prisoners, they had long since vanished from sight.

The Heir, breathing heavily as he carried Princess Ying'an, finally reached the palace gates. Before he could catch his breath, a shout came from behind.

The Ying'an family halted and turned to see an imperial guard approaching, carrying Bao'er.

The guard set the child down and addressed the family, "Your Highnesses, Lord Bai instructed that this child's parents have been arrested and the Vice-Minister's residence sealed. She is now homeless, and he hopes you can provide temporary care."

Even a quarter of an hour earlier, had they known Xin'an was not their blood kin, they would have willingly cared for her daughter.

But now, silence descended upon them.

The sight of Bao'er brought to mind Xin'an's terrifying face.

The guard was merely relaying Bai Xiuming's message, not negotiating. After speaking, he turned and departed.

Bao'er, unaware of what had transpired, reached out to embrace Prince Ying'an's leg as she usually did. But the prince recoiled in fright, retreating several steps.

"Grandfather?" Bao'er looked at him in confusion.

The scene remained at an impasse until the Heir's wife spoke, "Bao'er, stay behind me. We are leaving the palace."

The child seemed to sense the change in the adults' attitudes. She wanted to act coy as before, but when she met the stern gaze of the Heir's wife, she was instantly intimidated. She bit back her tears, managing not to cry, and obediently walked behind the Heir's wife.

The Heir's wife also did not wish to keep Bao'er in the residence, yet she ultimately could not bring herself to abandon the child.

Now, seeing Bao'er reminded her of the missing Che'er. Before Xin'an's family returned to the capital, Che'er had always been by her side.

Many things seem unremarkable until one begins to question them.

Now that Xin'an's true identity was revealed, was Che'er's disappearance also linked to this imposter Xin'an?

She even wondered if she herself had usurped the real Xin'an's identity, would she have allowed Xin'an's son to live?

She would not have.

Would this imposter? The truth remained unknown, but either possibility was cruel for Che'er.

Bao'er understood nothing, but from the moment her mother usurped Xin'an's identity, she had already borne the weight of sin.

The Ying'an household departed the palace, but the case that had ruined His Majesty's Birthday Banquet was only just beginning.

The imperial guard who had delivered Bao'er had just returned when Jiang Yan eagerly approached, holding a piece of skin to show Bai Xiuming.

It was the shapeshifter's skin Feng Yang had retrieved from the Bright Mirror Bureau's archives. Though not as good as the Wei snake skin, it was sufficient for experimentation.

By now, the skin showed signs of desiccation, with some scars from black firestone corrosion.

"My lord, the black firestone is indeed as useful as you said." He presented the shapeshifter's skin to Bai Xiuming. "This piece of shapeshifter skin already shows signs of drying."

Bai Xiuming ran his fingers over the skin; it felt slightly hardened. After a shapeshifter's death, its body should maintain its pre-death state for years, even decades. This texture was clearly abnormal.

"Well done."

Jiang Yan beamed. "Thank you for your praise, my lord."

But soon, he humbly added, "This subordinate still has much to learn. Without your reminder, I would not have realized the black firestone had such a use. I only wonder what method the perpetrator used to dry the Wei snake skin so silently."

"We'll find out by investigating."

He turned to Feng Yang. "Bring all personnel from the Vice-Minister's estate to the Bright Mirror Bureau. Interrogate them one by one. I want to know every detail of County Princess Xin'an's daily life and activities during this period."

"Yes."

Feng Yang departed with Jiang Yan, while Bai Xiuming remained briefly to speak with the recently returned Crown Prince before making his unhurried exit from the palace.

Back at the Bright Mirror Bureau, Bai Xiuming went directly to the prison.

At this time, Jiang Kai was interrogating Xu Zecheng but had yet to make any progress.

Hearing a few abrupt knocks, Jiang Kai stepped out of the interrogation room and looked up to see Bai Xiuming standing outside. He approached and whispered, "My lord, his lips are sealed. No matter how I question him, he insists he was deceived and was unaware that County Princess Xin'an was an imposter."

"If he won't speak, bring someone else to talk."

Jiang Kai raised an eyebrow and had the imposter County Princess Xin'an brought over, though he did not allow her to be seen.

Then, he returned to continue interrogating Xu Zecheng.

As Xu Zecheng was a high-ranking court official, Jiang Kai had temporarily refrained from applying severe torture to prevent future impeachment of their lord, using only a whip.

Even so, it had nearly taken half of Xu Zecheng's life. He hung from the rack, his body crisscrossed with horrifying whip marks.

Jiang Kai's brief departure had allowed him a moment of relief, but soon, the interrogator returned.

"I know nothing. I was deceived," Xu Zecheng rasped, his voice hoarse, still emphasizing his innocence.

"Who deceived you?"

"The County Princess. She tricked me. I was too busy with official duties to know the County Princess had been swapped."

Meanwhile, the imposter County Princess, whom Xu Zecheng spoke of, stood outside, listening to him.

After hearing only a few sentences, she was led away to another interrogation room.

That interrogation room was clean, devoid of the heavy scent of blood. Inside, there was a chair, and a person sat on it.

When she saw Bai Xiuming, her body involuntarily trembled.

She was suspended from the rack, staring at the man seated opposite her, his expression obscured by the flickering torchlight. A sense of dread steadily intensified within her.

"What is your name?" Bai Xiuming asked.

County Princess Xin'an turned her head away, refusing to speak.

"How did you replace County Princess Xin'an's face?"

"Bai Xiuming, you needn't ask these useless questions. I won't tell you. Do as you please—kill me or dismember me."

"I do not kill people lightly," Bai Xiuming said calmly. "It's fine if you don't want to speak. Since you enjoy cutting people's faces so much, I shall first let you experience the sensation of being flayed."

He crooked a finger, and a Bright Mirror Bureau guard entered.

"Peel the skin from her body. Just don't kill her."

The guard immediately replied, "My lord can rest assured of my skill; I guarantee she will remain alive and well."

As the man approached with a knife, the terror in County Princess Xin'an's eyes was undeniable.

The Bright Mirror Bureau guard ignored her screams, gripped one of her hands, and the knife tip pierced her finger.

County Princess Xin'an felt a sharp pain in her finger, though it was not immediately severe; the knife seemed to be coated with a pain-relieving powder. But she watched in horror as the guard peeled the skin from her finger.

Staring at her bloody finger and the thin layer of skin beneath it, County Princess Xin'an shrieked—not from pain, but from sheer terror. She had once experienced the agony of having her face cut off and her bones scraped, but that was over a decade ago, when she was merely a village girl. Now, after more than a decade of luxurious living, how could she endure such torment again?

"I never force anyone," Bai Xiuming said. "Both you and Xu Zecheng have only one chance. Whoever speaks the truth first will have a chance to live."

"I'll talk," County Princess Xin'an stammered through chattering teeth, recalling how Xu Zecheng had shifted all blame onto her. If only one of them could survive, that person should, of course, be her.

After all, if not for Xu Zecheng, she would never have succeeded.

"If I speak first, will you not kill me?" County Princess Xin'an asked again.

"Yes."

"I'll talk," she repeated. "Whatever you wish to know, I will tell you."

A faint smile touched Bai Xiuming's lips. Beyond the wall behind him, Jiang Kai was holding a half-dead Xu Zecheng, having heard every word County Princess Xin'an had spoken.

Jiang Kai mocked, "Lord Xu, it seems County Princess Xin'an desires to live more than you do."

"No, no, no! That woman is full of lies! Don't listen to her! Whatever you want to know, I know it all! You can ask me!" Desperate to survive, Xu Zecheng finally could no longer maintain his pretense.

"Good. Then let's start from the beginning."

The story sounded somewhat clichéd: old neighbors, childhood sweethearts reunited after many years. One had an overbearing wife, the other an unromantic and down-on-his-luck fiancé.

Both were dissatisfied with their circumstances. One was willing, the other eager, and so they secretly began an illicit affair.

The story diverged here. Xu Zecheng claimed that the imposter County Princess Xin'an told him her fiancé's family possessed a secret face-swapping technique that could replace someone else's face with their own, making it impossible for anyone to detect anything amiss.

However, the imposter County Princess claimed that it was Xu Zecheng who, upon hearing her mention this, became intrigued and instigated her to trick her fiancé into swapping her face with the real County Princess Xin'an's.

After that, there was little more to say.

They drugged County Princess Xin'an, swapped her face, and then killed her.

Subsequently, they returned to the capital and lived a life of carefree luxury for over a decade.

"You killed the real County Princess Xin'an?" Bai Xiuming asked.

"Yes, Xu Zecheng did it himself. He stabbed her in the heart. She stopped breathing before they wrapped her in a mat and dumped her in the pauper's pit."

Bai Xiuming had heard the answer he sought. He did not linger but summoned others to continue the interrogation, then departed the prison.

Outside the prison, Feng Yang was already waiting, having completed his investigation of the Vice-Minister's residence.

Feng Yang placed several confessions on the desk and reported to Bai Xiuming, "My lord, County Princess Xin'an's maids have provided a detailed account of all her recent movements and daily activities. According to them, the County Princess visited Prince Ying'an's residence once this month and attended a Ghost Opera performance.

After that, Matron Xu gave her two massages, both times using a new incense that the County Princess reportedly loved."

"Ghost Opera? Which troupe? Who was performing?" Bai Xiuming suddenly recalled the mask still hanging in his residence and asked.

"It was a troupe from Jiaozhou. Their principal actress is a woman named Yu An. It is said that when she performs Ghost Opera, unlike others, she does not use a mask but wears an ancestral ghost mask that looks indistinguishable from a real face. For this, she is highly acclaimed and known as Madam Yu."

"...A troupe from Jiaozhou. What a coincidence."

"My lord, what did you say was a coincidence?" Feng Yang asked, not having heard Bai Xiuming clearly.

"Nothing. Tell me about Matron Xu." Bai Xiuming picked up the confessions on the desk and began to read them.

Feng Yang suppressed his curiosity and said, "This subordinate ordered an investigation into Matron Xu. She is a distant relative of Xu Zecheng. Shortly after Xu Zecheng's marriage, she came to the capital with her son to seek refuge.

She holds a rather high position in the household, and the County Princess treats her well. However, there is one matter: her son was previously expelled for embezzling funds from the residence.

This subordinate found that her son owed a gambling den five hundred silver taels and even stole the County Princess's jade pendant to pawn it. But when this subordinate investigated, the gambling den said someone had redeemed the debt for more than the amount owed, and the pawnshop owner gave the same account."

"Do they remember what that person looked like?"

Feng Yang looked somewhat troubled. "That's the problem. The gambling den described her as a woman in her early thirties, with a raspy voice, small eyes, thick lips, and rather plain. The pawnshop owner said she was a woman in her twenties, with large eyes, a small mouth, and quite beautiful."

Bai Xiuming made no comment but simply said, "Continue."

"After that, this subordinate investigated the recent movements of others in the household and found two individuals whose whereabouts were unusual: one was Matron Xu, and the other was a scullery maid named Cui Hong from the main courtyard. It is said she once offended County Princess Xin'an.

Upon closer inquiry, this subordinate discovered that Cui Hong had caught Xu Zecheng's eye, which was why she was deliberately found at fault and demoted from a second-class maid to a scullery maid."

"Who did they meet?"

"Cui Hong met someone of ordinary appearance; she couldn't describe any distinctive features. That person gave her one hundred silver taels to monitor Matron Xu's every move and report back at any time."

"And Matron Xu?"

"Matron Xu said she met a maid from a wealthy family, whom she suspected was a maid of Princess Puning, who holds a grudge against County Princess Xin'an. According to her description, the person had willow eyebrows, phoenix eyes, and a melon-seed face—a rather beautiful woman.

That person used Matron Xu's son's gambling debt and his theft of County Princess Xin'an's jade pendant to threaten her, demanding she apply three bottles of perfumed powder to County Princess Xin'an. The person specifically emphasized that the last bottle of powder should be used before entering the palace, so Matron Xu sprinkled the powder into County Princess Xin'an's hand warmer."

"Did she not ask what kind of perfumed powder it was?"

"She did. The person said that kind of perfumed powder could make one's face itchy and cause rashes, and that their mistress simply wanted County Princess Xin'an to lose face at His Majesty's birthday banquet. Matron Xu had previously asked a perfumer to identify it, and the perfumer confirmed the powder was non-toxic. She even took some of the powder and used it on a maid in the residence, with no adverse reaction."

Bai Xiuming scoffed, "The maker of this perfumed powder is truly ingenious."

Feng Yang was momentarily unsure whether his lord was genuinely praising or being sarcastic.

"Oh, and Matron Xu said she saw the person who gave her the perfumed powder again this morning."

"What did they discuss?"

"That person suddenly brought up County Princess Xin'an's two children with Matron Xu and abruptly asked if the County Princess's son was already dead. Matron Xu was startled and retorted, 'How did you know?' Then the person left."

After Feng Yang finished his report, he said with some difficulty, "My lord, this subordinate has already had artists draw portraits, but the descriptions of these four women vary greatly. While their heights and builds are not significantly different, they are common. No other traces were left, so it will likely be difficult to find them quickly."

Bai Xiuming put down the confessions he had finished reading; their contents were largely consistent with what Feng Yang had reported.

Rather than four individuals, it seemed more like one person possessing four different faces.

This individual deliberately chose to act during His Majesty's Birthday Banquet, and their actions were filled with a sense of revenge.

To choose such a complex and dangerous method to expose the imposter Xin'an, the person must be deeply connected to that very face.

Moreover, that person was concerned about the fate of County Princess Xin'an's child who had gone missing earlier. Aside from the real County Princess Xin'an, Bai Xiuming could not think of anyone else.

How could someone who was supposed to be dead still be alive? And why wait all these years to seek revenge?

This truth might only be known by finding the person in question.

No...

Besides the real County Princess Xin'an, there was one other person who should know, and perhaps even be considered an accomplice.

"My lord?" Seeing Bai Xiuming remain silent, Feng Yang tentatively called out to him.

"Investigate that Ghost Opera troupe. The identity and background of every person in the troupe must be thoroughly investigated, especially that Madam Yu. Additionally, carefully examine their faces to ensure every one is real."

Feng Yang's pupils contracted. "Understood."

As he was about to withdraw, he saw Bai Xiuming stand up, seemingly intending to leave as well. He couldn't help but ask curiously, "Is my lord also going out?"

"Yes." Bai Xiuming walked past him. He was going to meet that little liar.