Chapter Nineteen: The Story of the Jiang Family Dynasty

Based on the fact that a child only grows to one month old at one year old and two or three years old at ten, Jiang Sijin must be at least fifty or sixty years old now. According to the lifespan of people in ancient times, it would be normal for her to die peacefully in her sleep.

"So what if I know?" Li Da said angrily. "When we escaped with the princess, she hadn't grown any taller in twenty years. At first, I thought the shopkeeper had murdered her for money, but the coroner and doctor examined her again and again and couldn't find anything. That's when we started to wonder if the princess had reached the age where she was supposed to be. We didn't originally intend to do anything, but it was the greed in these people's eyes that made me come up with this plan to lure them into a trap."

Su Zhenzhen was extremely interested in this. "Can I ask? How did you manage to kill all eleven people at once? Did you use poison?"

Li Da turned around and dug out a small section of bamboo tube, about the size of a finger, from beside the coffin.

"You guessed right, it was poison. This stuff has a smell, and it just so happened that it was windy today and they were focused on digging graves, so they stayed there for too long and naturally died from the poison."

Hensheng then raised a question, "Then why haven't we gotten hurt standing here for so long?"

Li Da's expression was somewhat ambiguous. It was only after Li Da's wife glanced at him that she opened the bamboo tube.

There was only a tuft of hair in the bamboo tube.

Su Zhenzhen suddenly had a wild idea: "Could this be Jiang Sijin's hair?"

Li's wife nodded. "That's right, the princess's hair is poisonous."

Upon hearing this, not only did Hensheng find it hard to understand, but even Old Man Bai opened his eyes wide with curiosity.

Knowing this would elicit such an expression, Li's wife didn't rush to explain, but instead stared intently at Hensheng.

"There are some things that, once you know them, you need to shoulder the corresponding responsibilities. After that, would you still want to know?"

"Why say so much?" Li Da's tone was not pleasant. "Just look at his face, what's coming to him will come sooner or later."

Old Man Bai held Hensheng's hand, "Child, follow your heart, and your father will still protect you."

Anyone with eyes could see the implication in the words of the Li couple. Even though Xu Hua told Hensheng not to feel guilty, he secretly provided financial assistance and even raised a private army, causing Old Madam Xu to live in fear.

Whether it's a hard knife or a soft knife, the ultimate goal is to make Hensheng acknowledge his identity and shoulder the responsibility of overthrowing the country.

Only Old Man Bai, even with his injured hand, still told Hensheng to go home and chop wood himself. After working hard for twenty years to support someone else's bloodline, he still made Hensheng follow his heart.

While others might have some selfish motives, in Old Man Bai's eyes, Hensheng was simply his child.

Su Zhenzhen suddenly felt a little sore in her eyes for some reason. It was really strange that someone had to put on this sentimental show when the atmosphere was clearly not good.

"Stop beating around the bush, just tell us everything you know. We were originally going to the capital to investigate some things."

Hensheng continued Su Zhenzhen's words, "You don't need to worry. I will not shirk my responsibilities in the slightest."

Mr. and Mrs. Li exchanged a glance, and then Mrs. Li began to recount those old stories.

After Jiang Sijin's abnormality was noticed, floods and droughts continued to occur in various places, and rumors spread that the Jiang family father and son were unworthy of their positions, so divine punishment was sent down.

The last emperor, Jiang Yichun, ignored these rumors and instead requested permission to personally lead disaster relief efforts across the country.

The Jiang family dynasty has used up half of its centuries-old resources just for disaster relief.

The late emperor favored aristocratic families, but after Jiang Yichun ascended the throne, he promoted talents from humble backgrounds. Even the empress was a commoner woman he married. He also created a sham harem and insisted that all people have access to education.

There was already Jiang Sijin, and Jiang Yichun only had one empress who had no children for a long time, which caused unrest in the court.

Unfortunately, at a palace banquet at that moment, Jiang Sijin's hair accidentally fell into a noble lady's bowl, causing the lady to be poisoned to death.

The court was in uproar, with many accusing Jiang Sijin of being a monster. Some even used this to attack Jiang Yichun, saying he was some kind of evil spirit reincarnated, otherwise why would he disregard ancestral rules and appoint a commoner? Jiang Sijin was his daughter, and it was reasonable for an evil spirit to give birth to a monster. That's why the Empress had not conceived for many years, because evil spirits don't have children so easily.

Upon hearing this, Su Zhenzhen had a question: "So, is Jiang Sijin's hair really poisonous?"

Li's wife nodded. "The imperial physician examined it and found that the princess's hair was indeed poisonous. After many comparative experiments, it was found that anyone who harbored ill intentions towards the princess would die from poisoning if they came into contact with her hair."

Su Zhenzhen was puzzled. "So Jiang Sijin is in danger, and many people will be terrified. Who knows if they might harbor malice towards her and then die from it? Is Jiang Yichun really determined to protect this younger sister to the death?"

Indeed, that is the case.

Jiang Sijin's hair was poisonous, but it only killed the daughters of several officials who had abused and bullied her when she was a child. These people resented that Jiang Sijin, a girl from a peasant family, could be supported by the whole country, while they, as noble ladies from aristocratic families, had no chance to enter the palace. So when they met at the palace banquet, they did not hesitate to unleash their malice.

At that time, rumors were rampant in the capital, but Jiang Yichun still adopted a policy of appeasement and did not resort to military force, which allowed those with ulterior motives to take advantage of the situation.

At this point, Li's wife gave a mocking smile, "You would never guess who this person with ulterior motives is."

Su Zhenzhen made a bold guess, "Could it be the person Jiang Yichun trusts the most?"

“That’s right! It’s him!” Li’s wife became agitated. “That man is nothing but a good-for-nothing scoundrel who only gets ahead because he has a handsome face and a good marriage.”

Li's wife looked at Hensheng and asked, "Do you know who that person is?"

Hen Sheng felt a sudden tightness in his chest for no reason, and asked in a hoarse voice, "Who is this person?"

"He is the Empress's brother, your uncle!"

Before Song Anbang rose to prominence, everyone called him Song Dalang. It wasn't until one day when one of his cousins, who was beyond five degrees of kinship, became empress that outsiders began to notice him.

Or perhaps it was the muddy waters behind the scenes that pushed him to the forefront, since the Empress's parents had died early and she could only use some poor, distant relatives as leverage.

Song Dalang had his own ambitions and was also very bold. After arriving in the capital, he went directly to the palace gate and knocked, saying that he was the emperor's brother-in-law.

Jiang Yichun not only did not blame him, but also brought him to the palace, saying only, "Having guts alone is not enough to be my brother-in-law."

Jiang Yichun arranged for a tutor to teach Song Dalang, and it was from this time that Song Dalang gave himself a new name.

Song Anbang wanted to be a person who would benefit the people.

For a time, Jiang Yichun was worried about Jiang Sijin's future, so Song Anbang promised to take care of Jiang Sijin for the rest of his life.

Until natural disasters struck, barbarian tribes took advantage of the chaos to plunder, and uprisings broke out in various places, the Jiang family dynasty was on the verge of destruction.

Song Anbang personally led this dynasty to its demise, and through internal and external collusion, opened the gates of the capital to the rebel army.