"Go, go, beggar, stay away, don't dirty the door of my house." Prince Wang had a look of disdain on his face.
Zhuifeng raised his eyebrows, but before he could get angry, Shen Ning glanced at him.
"Young Master Wang, please don't be rude to this girl. She is a distinguished guest invited by this county to help solve the case." Magistrate Zhou turned around and said.
"What? She...she came to help Mr. Zhou solve the case?" Prince Wang pointed at Shen Ning with a look of disbelief.
"Yes, Miss Shen, please don't be offended." Magistrate Zhou heard Zhui Feng calling Shen Ning Miss Shen, and then he remembered that he had never asked the girl's name, which was too disrespectful.
But this can't be blamed on him, because as a young man, if he rashly asks a girl for her name, she might be considered a prostitute.
Shen Ning said calmly: "Of course I won't be offended. Let's go meet Wang Yuanwai and Miss Qiuping first."
Magistrate Zhou said to Prince Wang, "Please come to the hall with your father and Qiu Ping. Miss Shen wants to see them."
The shock on Prince Wang's face still lingered. He had never expected that Magistrate Zhou would be so polite to an unspectacular little girl and obey his orders.
"Wait a minute, let everyone in the house come to the hall. The real murderer must be among them." Shen Ning said.
"Okay." Magistrate Zhou nodded immediately.
Prince Wang was so stunned that he didn't react at all. It wasn't until Wufu pushed him that he came back to his senses.
"The real murderer?" He asked in surprise: "Isn't the murderer Qiuping? Is there anyone else?"
"Young Master Wang, don't be impatient. The truth will be revealed soon." Shen Ning's eyes turned on his face and she smiled slightly.
Soon, everyone in the Wang family gathered in the hall.
Among them were not only the king, but also the prince, Qiuping, who had been locked up in the woodshed, and the entire servants of the royal residence.
They looked at Magistrate Zhou sitting in the upper seat and the government officials surrounding the entrance of the hall, and they couldn't help feeling uneasy.
Magistrate Zhou had a solemn face and said nothing. He was looking at Shen Ning intently.
With a faint smile on Shen Ning's face, she looked at each one from outside the king to the prince to Qiuping to the maids and servants serving Mrs. Wang.
Everyone who caught her gaze couldn't help but feel a chill in their hearts. They felt that her clear and bright eyes seemed to have the ability to penetrate people's hearts, making people feel guilty involuntarily.
Shen Ning's eyes fell back on Qiu Ping's face again, and she saw that the murderer whom the prince insisted was only sixteen or seventeen years old. She was indeed pretty. Although she was locked up in the woodshed for three days and three nights, her eyes were filled with tears. They were all swollen, but the watery appearance of pear blossoms with rain made people feel even more pitiful.
She also noticed that although Prince Wang had a look of resentment on his face, he still couldn't help but glance at her face. Five or six out of ten men in the entire hall were peeping at Qiuping from the corners of their eyes.
Even Wufu, the servant next to County Magistrate Zhou, was no exception.
"She is indeed a beauty." Shen Ning said with a smile: "Qiuping, how old are you this year and how long have you been in the house?"
Qiuping raised her head and glanced at her, not knowing who she was, but her expression was still timid, which made people feel pity.
She bit her lip, lowered her head and said nothing.
Magistrate Zhou coughed lightly and said in a majestic tone: "You all must answer truthfully what Miss Shen said."