"Your Highness..."
Her voice suddenly turned soft as she took delicate steps forward.
Then, as if remembering something, she bit her lip coyly:
"I didn't mean to make things difficult for my sister, it's just..."

She stole glances at everyone's reactions.
Looking up with flirtatious eyes: "I just heard about Your Highness's gathering and couldn't help but yearn for it."

She turned slightly, showing her best angle.
Her voice honey-sweet, with deliberately affected shyness: "Your Highness's grace is unmatched. I've thought of you day and night. This position of Top Courtesan..."

Jiang Yichuan avoided her intentionally passionate gaze, lightly tapping the table.

"What's so special about my sister?"
Seeing her flirtation had no effect, her tone suddenly turned cold.
Hatred flashed in her eyes: "Just because she caught Lord Zhao's fancy, he wants to make her his concubine..."

Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she forced a seductive smile: "But Your Highness..."

She stopped mid-sentence, because she saw Jiang Yichuan had stood up.
His gaze swept over Su Xingyao's pale face.

She was trembling slightly, fists clenched so tight her nails nearly broke skin.
Tears welled in her eyes, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall.

"Enough, silence!"
His sudden shout made Du Qingdai stumble backward.

After a brief pause, he regained his usual coolness:
"If Du Qingdai was counting on Du Qingshuang to take her place, she'd have no motive for harm."

"I disagree!" Li Yuan shouted. "Who knows what evil lurks in her heart? Perhaps she doesn't care about being Top Courtesan at all - it's just an excuse to clear her name!"

The room erupted in chaos.
Jiang Yichuan frowned, deep in thought.

Madam Liu's sharp gaze swept across the crowd.
Finally, her eyes landed on Ah Qing.

"Ah Qing!"
Madam Liu suddenly grabbed Ah Qing's sleeve, her voice harsh:
"Tell His Highness everything you told me earlier! Hide anything, and no one can save you!"

Ah Qing's face turned ghostly white.
She glanced furtively at Du Qingdai, then lowered her head.
Wringing her handkerchief, she spoke in a trembling voice:
"Everything I said was true... the poison... Manager Zhang ordered me to use it!"

"He had been embezzling funds, and when my mistress discovered it, he feared exposure. He ordered me to put poison in the wine that Official Li brought."

Her voice quivered:
"I... I couldn't bring myself to take a life... Though my mistress was strict with me, I couldn't bear to truly poison her."

"So I only put the poison in my mistress's rouge, thinking it would at most ruin her looks and spoil the courtesan selection, but wouldn't cost her life..."

"You treacherous servant!"
Du Qingdai exploded in rage, raising her hand to strike Ah Qing.
But Madam Liu blocked her: "Calm yourself!"

Jiang Yichuan remained silent, nodding to Hu Qi.
Understanding immediately, Hu Qi hurried to Du Qingdai's room.

"I knew Manager Zhang was suspicious!" Li Yuan suddenly shouted. "He was clearly trying to frame me!"

"When did Manager Zhang tell you to administer the poison?"
Jiang Yichuan's gaze remained on Ah Qing, his tone detached.

Ah Qing's fingers spasmed as she spoke softly:
"The afternoon before the courtesan selection. I went to my mistress's room, but it was locked."

"I used the excuse of organizing her rouge to enter. While she was resting with her eyes closed, I secretly added the poison."

"When I left, the door was locked again."

"Nonsense!"
Manager Zhang sneered, "I have spare keys to all rooms. If I wanted to poison someone, why would I need someone else to do it?"

Ah Qing suddenly looked up, tears streaming down her face:
"You're the one trying to frame me!"

"I never meant to harm Miss Du. Manager Zhang forced me! He molested me multiple times and threatened to throw me out of the house if I didn't comply."

Her voice choked: "I'm the sole support for my elderly mother and young brother... I beg Your Highness to see justice done!"

Just then, Hu Qi returned with the rouge box.
The coroner followed close behind.

"Your Highness, please examine!"
The coroner stepped forward and bowed: "Though the rouge contains poison, it would only cause skin ulcers if applied externally. It couldn't be fatal."

Jiang Yichuan took the rouge box, examining it carefully.
"Indeed. Moreover, this rouge shows no signs of use."

"This rouge was newly bought for the courtesan selection, I hadn't used it yet!"
Du Qingdai hurriedly stepped forward, her voice trembling with anxiety:
"My sister's face showed no signs of using this rouge either!"

Hearing this, Ah Qing finally relaxed her shoulders in relief.

"Your Highness, we found two traces of poison in Miss Du's room. Please come see," the coroner bowed again.

Everyone followed Jiang Yichuan to Du Qingdai's room.

The coroner pointed to a wine cup on the table:
"The first trace of poison was in this cup."

Jiang Yichuan picked up the cup, sniffed it briefly, his brow furrowing:
"What about the wine jar? Anything suspicious?"

"No poison in the wine jar," the coroner shook his head.

"See! Heaven is just - I didn't poison the wine!"
Li Yuan immediately perked up, his voice triumphant:
"Manager Zhang, how can you frame me now?"

"The poison in the cup might still be connected to you."
Jiang Yichuan said coldly.

Manager Zhang snorted, shooting Li Yuan a vicious glare.
The tension between them grew even thicker.

"The second trace of poison was here."
The coroner pointed to tea leaves discarded in a flower pot.

"When was this tea brewed?"
Jiang Yichuan approached the pot.

"That's the white tea my sister brought from home."
Du Qingdai quickly explained:
"I'm from Anji, and only enjoy our local white tea. I can't get used to Longjing or Jian'an teas here in Lin'an."

She hesitated slightly:
"Could the tea itself be problematic, or was it contaminated by the poisoned cup?"

"The poison in the tea leaves is different from the one in the wine cup."
The coroner said gravely.

"Which poison..."
Jiang Yichuan's finger tapped the table, his gaze intense:
"Was the lethal one?"

The coroner pondered for a moment.
He picked up a tea leaf, examining it carefully in the candlelight:
"Chen Shui Xiang."

"Chen Shui Xiang?"

"When added to tea, it induces drowsiness, unnoticed by the drinker."
He crushed the tea leaf between his fingers:
"But one cup of tea... wouldn't be fatal."

His gaze turned to the wine cup:
"The true killer was the poison in the wine."

The hall fell silent.

"So..."
Hu Qi's voice broke the silence:
"The sister specially brought this hometown tea to drug her?"

He suddenly looked up:
"Could it be..."

"Could it be what?"

"Could it be she didn't want her sister to participate in the courtesan selection?"

Jiang Yichuan's eyes flashed:
"You and your sister only switched identities last night? Was this a common occurrence?"

Du Qingdai startled:
"Yes. My sister and I look alike, so we often substituted for each other when needed. No one could tell us apart."

Her voice grew softer:
"But... no one ever knew about this..."

"Could it be... my sister resented me and deliberately made me miss the selection?"

"Listen to yourself!"
Li Yuan scoffed:
"You crossed out her name from the registry - how could she not be resentful? Anyone else would have taught you a lesson!"

"There might be some truth to that..."
Jiang Yichuan mused quietly:
"I fear..."

"Fear what?"
Du Qingdai's heart skipped a beat.