Forensic Imperial Concubine

"Your Highness, I apologize but your humble servant doesn't understand."
"I think the emperor knows it very well. Anyone who becomes associated with the Bu Clan would eventually be loyal to him since
the clan has supported him for years. This has been the Bu Clan's custom so they wouldn't just be able to survive but maintain
their status in the society. They will never favor any prince and will always be loyal to the emperor. The only reason why the
emperor would ask Francis to be associated with the Bu Clan on purpose is to intentionally fool others. The Bu Clan also knows
this and Francis knows it too. I'm quite sure that the only one who is unaware is Felix," Matthew patiently explained with eyes as
dark as the night.
Felix had lived in comfort all his life. Even though he had dealt with Hoffman, he was still too young to be taken out of his bubble.
Guidance from the empress didn't help him as well. He only became more close-minded. On the contrary, Francis, who had not
been valued in such high regard, had at least gained the support of Sherry and her family. Moreover, Francis was intelligent. If it
were not for his poor health, the emperor would have made him the crown prince instead of giving the position to Felix for so
long.
"Your Highness, should we investigate Prince Francis then?"
"No, that's not necessary for the time being," Matthew said while he shook his head. Francis had created a persona and fooled
everyone for so many years. Even though he knew his life would be threatened if he stayed in the Imperial Palace, he could still
live in there and reached twenty years of age. The man on the throne had never been a warm and kind person. Francis was very
clever to live so closely with him.
However, now that Francis had revealed himself to be the one behind all of this, there was no need for Matthew to investigate
him further. After all, it was only a matter of time until Francis would show his true colors. Matthew had thought that Harper would
feel upset when she found out that Francis was actually cunning and manipulative. But she reacted so normally, as if she wasn't
angry or troubled at all. It even seemed like she had already known it.
"Is everything all right in the mansion?" Matthew casually asked. Although he was almost sure that Francis wouldn't do
something untoward, he was still worried that the man would lose control and do something irreparable.
"Everything is fine. Lady Gianna is doing great as well in Prince Allen's mansion. Except for the servants who take care of her
day in and day out, no one else is allowed to get close to her. Lady Casey is protecting her carefully," Barry replied.
Only then did Matthew feel relieved. If there was anyone whom Harper was worried about in the imperial capital, it would be her
personal maids and Gianna. Matthew's mansion was heavily guarded and it was almost impossible for the outsiders to hurt

anyone inside. Allen's mansion didn't seem to be heavily guarded, but he was a very cautious man. His son, Clark, was also very
mindful. Matthew was confident that they wouldn't let anything terrible happen to Gianna.
"And the situation in the Holy Chant Temple?"
"It is not long until Master Chodak has fully recovered," Barry responded, assuming that Matthew was asking about Chodak.
After all, he was hurt because of Harper and he even broke his right hand. In this regard, Chodak could almost be seen as a
savior. However, Matthew didn't think so.
"I don't care about him! What happened to Charles?" Matthew asked while he looked at Barry intensely.
"He's doing good. I heard he's very obedient with the teachings of the Holy Chant Temple," Barry replied while he subtly raised
his eyebrows upon hearing Matthew's question. Since Chodak saved Harper at the cost of his right hand, Barry had no idea how
would Matthew return the favor. However, even as a monk, Chodak was a cunning man. It was very likely that he saved Harper
with a hidden agenda in mind.
"By the way, Your Highness, We just received news that someone sneaked into the mansion. The intruder didn't steal anything or
hurt anyone. However, we're not sure if we didn't lose anything. We are waiting for you to return so you can check yourself and
see what we may have missed," Barry informed Matthew with so much fear and hesitation. It was a surprise he could still form
complete sentences.
When Matthew heard that, he narrowed his eyes and thought deeply. The only thing that other people wanted from his mansion
was probably the Black Flag Token. However, even if others got a hold of it, they wouldn't be able to manipulate the Black Flag
Army as long as Matthew was still alive. 'But who would have the courage to sneak into my mansion?' Matthew could not help
but wonder.
"Which parts of the mansion had been searched?" he asked.
"Your study, Lady Harper's room, your room, and Lady Harper's dowry," Barry replied. In all honesty, he was a little confused. He
didn't understand why would anyone want anything among Harper's dowry.
With that information, Matthew immediately thought of something. He was sure that whoever the intruder was, that person was
not looking for the Black Flag Token. That would mean the trespasser was not acting on the emperor's command. Matthew could
almost be certain that the person was actually looking for the third Heavenly Book!

The first person who came to Matthew's mind was Chodak. After all, he had been looking for the third Heavenly Book for the
longest time. In fact, Chodak already had the first and second Heavenly Books. It was only natural for him to want the last one.
However, only a handful of people were aware that Matthew had the third Heavenly Book.
"You can leave now. I know what the intruder was looking for," Matthew plainly said, dismissing Barry.
After Barry left, Matthew's eyes instantly had an intense look. He quickly assessed the situation at hand. Apart from Harper who
gave the Heavenly Book to him, only Rufus, Barry, Jack, and Noah were aware that he had the third Heavenly Book. If others
wanted to find out the whereabouts of the book, they would have gotten that information from either one of those five people or
Matthew.
Meanwhile, in the imperial capital, Francis was right in the comforts of his mansion but his face was extremely pale. Although he
had come to his senses, the wounds were just healing so he didn't dare to move, even by just a little bit. "How is the situation?"
he asked.
"Prince Matthew and his wife are now thirty miles away from the imperial capital. They will reach the imperial capital by
tomorrow. Owen is with them."
Francis nodded and played with the sugar figurine in his hand. Recently, he had been obsessed with making various shapes out
of sugar. But most of his works had been two human-shaped sculptures.
Looking at Francis who was concentrated on the sugar figurines, the secret guard felt that it was really weird. A weak handsome
man was making such figurines. Most of the time, his eyes were so fixed on them and sometimes he would furrow his eyebrows.
But perhaps, the weirdest thing was that he would sometimes smile while looking at them. For the past few days that the secret
guard had been with Francis, he figured that instead of the belly, Francis was actually stabbed in the head by the assassin. The
prince was acting so weird, as if he had injured his brain.
"Do you think this sugar figurine that I made is beautiful?" Francis asked the secret guard.
The latter looked at it carefully before saying, "Yes, it's beautiful."
"Does it look like a person?" Francis asked again. Although the secret guard couldn't see the face of the sculpture that clearly, he
could tell that it was a woman.
"Yes," he briefly responded.

"Who does it look like?"
"It looks like a woman," the guard honestly said. He didn't know who it looked like except that it looked like a woman.
All of a sudden, the expression on Francis' face changed. He then ordered, "You can leave now."
"Yes, please excuse me."
Francis carefully put the sugar figurine aside and continued to make the next one. He had made countless sugar figurines by
then, and his skills had gotten better and better. However, when he looked at the figurines he made, he was still unhappy with
them. He hadn't seen that person for a long time but now, she was finally on her way back.