Chapter 7: The grandmother who secretly harbored evidence of treason in her left foot!
Chapter 7
Ye Xiren returned to her courtyard covered in sweat.
Xuechan greeted him with a worried look, "How did you hurt your hand? The imperial examinations have already begun, so the young master won't be able to take the exams this time."
Ye Xiren picked up the water brought by the maid, gulped it down, and let out a long breath.
This time, she went easy on him, but Ye Changming was full of energy and made an even bigger fuss than before. He insisted on going to the imperial examination and caused quite a commotion, almost exhausting her.
But how could she dare to let him go?
If he didn't go, he could still live until the second day of the third lunar month; if he went, he wouldn't even make it past the first day of the third lunar month. She and Liao Shi pressed him down to see a doctor until the imperial examination was over, and only then did they finally feel relieved.
Then, the "good sister" who had just been worried about her brother's injuries instantly changed her expression, abandoned him, and left Ye Changming's room, leaving him to vent his anger alone.
"It's better that he didn't go. He's not seriously injured; he'll recover in a few days." Ye Xiren finished her tea before finally putting down her teacup.
The last time she went all out was because Ye Changming had caused his entire family to be repeatedly beheaded. Even when his injuries were minor, he still insisted on going to the imperial examinations, causing harm to the Ye family once again. She was reborn with anger and fear, so she asked Ma Shan to go all out.
But after the incident at the Buddhist temple on the second day of the third lunar month, Ye Xiren suddenly realized...
Perhaps there's more to the story than meets the eye in the exam hall.
Thinking about it this way, Ye Changming didn't intentionally implicate the Ye family. After years of sibling affection, if it weren't for the fact that Fatty Jin and Thin Silver's martial arts skills were too high and Ma Shan couldn't control them, and that she woke up too late and didn't have enough time, she wouldn't have chosen to ask Ma Shan to beat up Ye Changming.
After all, Ye Changming was incredibly stubborn; he insisted on going to the imperial examinations, and no amount of persuasion or argument could change his mind!
The calamity of the first day of the third lunar month is over.
But there's still the "evidence" hidden inside the Buddha statue on the second day of the third lunar month...
Ye Xiren suddenly stood up, walked to her small study next door, picked up paper and pen and was about to write something when she stopped and looked at Xue Chan, who had followed her curiously: "You come out first."
Xuechan scratched her head.
The girl was acting strangely today. She served Ye Xiren tea, quietly left, closed the door behind her, and stood guard outside to prevent anyone from getting close.
After everyone left, Ye Xiren wiped away the cold sweat that had broken out again and began to hurriedly sort out the events of the past few days. She picked up her brush and wrote a beautiful line of small regular script on silk.
Ye Peizhong, who taught Ye Changming, also taught Ye Xiren. She had read many books since she was a child, including historical biographies and supernatural tales, but she had never encountered anything like what she was going through!
She must have encountered a deity or a ghost.
They died and came back to life, and came back to die.
But it's also possible that she was blessed by the Bodhisattva or her ancestors, allowing her to be reborn time and time again to help the Ye family avoid disasters. Perhaps, only by avoiding the disasters could she completely escape.
"On the first day of the third month, I was beheaded without knowing anything. This was the first time my entire family was executed."
"It was still the first day of the third month when I vaguely felt something was wrong. I reminded Ye Changming not to cheat. He was very angry. I was certain he would not cheat, but because he had entered the examination room, he was still beheaded by T. This was the second time his entire family was executed."
"It was still the first day of the third month, the second time. Through conversation with the patrolmen, we learned that the cheating incident in the examination hall had angered His Majesty and Prime Minister Jiang. Furthermore, the people of Northern Yan added fuel to the fire, resulting in the execution of the entire family for the third time."
"We didn't let Ye Changming take the imperial examination, so we escaped the first day of the third month. On the second day of the third month, this time it was because my grandmother secretly hid evidence of treason. We were taken to Dali Temple by Lu Qian. Before the night was over, the imperial edict was issued. This was the fourth time our entire family was executed."
Ye Xiren paused, a drop of ink falling onto the paper, her brows furrowing:
"That's not right. The first three times, the Northern Yan people embellished the story, which is why the sentences were handed down and the executions were carried out quickly. But what about the fourth time? How come he was beheaded on the same day?"
Can a map and a note be used to convict someone without any room for argument?
Also, when were the map and the note hidden?
The Buddha statue has no seams, so who put it in? Willow catkins? And when did she stuff them in?
...Could it be that someone switched the Buddha statue?
But when will it be changed?
Ye Xiren circled the first and second days of the third month with his pen, and then circled the first to the fourth days, and also circled the execution of the entire family.
Is there any connection between cheating and collusion with the enemy?
Is there any connection between these two dates?
Ye Xiren fell into deep thought.
Something flashed through her mind, her pupils contracted, and the pen fell to the table. The splashed ink turned the paper black, covering some of the words on it, like blood splattered on the four characters "execution of the entire family".
That's what connection is!
Whether it's the first or the second day of the third lunar month, the Ye family will inevitably commit a crime, and the outcome will be the execution of the entire family!
Having escaped the "exam cheating" on the first day of the third lunar month, they were then accused of "concealing evidence of treason" on the second day of the third lunar month.
Thinking of this, Ye Xiren felt her breath catch in her throat, and she could hardly breathe.
Whether it was tampering with the exam hall or the most important map of Daliang, it was clear that the other party was ruthless and determined to fight to the death!
Who exactly is it?
calm.
She knew nothing about what was happening outside, and even less about the people the Ye family had offended. The important thing now wasn't to pinpoint who it was, but to verify her guesses, survive, and then find the person behind it all...
Today is still the first day of the third month. Liu Xu was asked to come over early in the morning. If it is confirmed that the cheating in the examination room could not kill the Ye family and they changed their tactics, then Liu Xu has not yet made a move.
Ye Xiren breathed a sigh of relief.
But soon, the topic came up again.
no.
If they manage to stop Liu Xu from acting, there might be other tricks waiting for them. They can't make too many changes, otherwise they might fall into an unknown trap again.
Ye Xiren picked up the pen and threw all the papers with writing on them into the brazier, burning them completely.
Then, she stepped outside.
"Miss?" Xuechan, who was at the door, came back to her senses.
Ye Xiren asked, "Xuechan, where are the willow catkins?"
Xuechan paused for a moment, then replied, "The old lady dotes on you, young lady. I put the matter in front of her, and she immediately sent Liuxu to our courtyard. She's still in the corner room. Would you like to see her, young lady?"
Ye Xiren shook her head sharply, her eyes serious as she gave him a solemn instruction:
"Xuechan, I can only trust you now. Keep a close eye on Liuxu, but don't let her find out. It doesn't matter what she does, don't tell her anything, and don't let her notice anything unusual."
Xuechan was inexplicably startled, but she and Ye Xiren had grown up together since childhood and their friendship was extraordinary. Moreover, she had always been gentle and obedient, so she quickly nodded: "Yes."
"I'll go to my grandmother's first." Ye Xiren turned and left.
She was going to verify her guess.
Has the Guanyin statue in the Buddhist temple been tampered with?
The Ye family was small, and Ye Xiren was always pampered. She arrived at the Buddhist hall almost without any hindrance. Her grandmother had not yet begun to worship Buddha, and there was no one in the Buddhist hall.
She sent everyone else away and picked up the Guanyin statue.
On the second day of the third lunar month last year, she knelt here and carefully examined this Guanyin statue. The white jade Guanyin was compassionate and clearly looked exactly the same as the one she saw now.
She looked it over and touched it again, but there was no opening that could be opened; there was only a thin slit underneath.
Are the willow catkins stuffed in from here?
Ye Xiren held it up to use the light, but still couldn't see clearly inside.
She pursed her lips and held her breath. No matter what, she had to save the Ye family and protect the lives of her entire family. She didn't know when these repeated "rebirths" would end, and she couldn't afford to fail.
"Bodhisattva, Grandmother, I'm sorry," Ye Xiren murmured.
As soon as he finished speaking, he slammed his hand down hard.
With a crisp sound, the white jade Guanyin shattered into pieces on the ground.
Ye Xiren stared at the shards on the ground, her pupils shrinking in disbelief.
-
"I wonder what the young lady wants these willow catkins for?"
"I don't see any benefits to these willow catkins?"
"Yes, why did the young lady have to ask for her from the old lady alone?"
...
Xuechan was tidying up the girl's clothes when she heard the commotion. She frowned and came out, scolding, "What are you doing? Don't you have anything better to do? What the girl does is none of your business to discuss. If I hear it again, kick you all out!"
The maids immediately turned pale, bowed, and took their leave, daring not to utter another sarcastic remark.
Xuechan murmured, "I also want to know what it is about Liu Xu that you like, so I can learn that too..."
At this moment, Ye Xiren walked out, her steps were a little unsteady, she was dizzy, her brows were furrowed, and her eyes were lifeless.
"What exactly is going on?" Ye Xiren murmured.
"Miss?" Xuechan's heart tightened, and she quickly stepped forward to help her up, her face full of worry. "What's wrong, Miss?"
Ye Xiren entered the room and sat down, leaning on the table.
She snapped back to reality, grabbed Xuechan's wrist, and said, "Where's Liuxu? Go and call her in!"
Xuechan looked aggrieved.
Ye Xiren didn't notice that her mind was a complete mess, her thoughts a jumbled mess.
Xuechan had no choice but to go out and call for help.
The footsteps gradually faded away, then quickly approached again, two voices, one in front and one behind.
Liu Xu hurriedly shoved a bracelet into Xue Chan's hand and whispered, "Miss Xue Chan, do you know why the Second Miss sent me here?"
"I can't afford it." Xuechan refused to accept it, stuffed the item back, and said indifferently, "Second Miss has a good temper, and we don't have these rules here. If you behave yourself, no one will make things difficult for you."
Liu Xu was still a little nervous.
"Second Miss!"
Ye Xiren sat inside, looked at Liu Xu, and asked a strange question with a blank expression: "Which foot did you put in first?"
"Huh?" Liu Xu looked bewildered.
She glanced instinctively at her feet and murmured, "Left foot?"
"How dare you! You dare to come in with your left foot first! Guards, tie her up and throw her into the woodshed!"
Xuechan: "..."
Xuechan's raised foot froze in mid-air, afraid to land. Wait, is this my left foot or my right foot?
A note from the author:
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