Chapter 73 Me Too
Ah Chan held the broken inkstone and looked at it for a long time before closing the box and putting it back in its place.
She was no longer sleepy, so she walked to the window and opened it, and a refreshing breeze rushed in.
It started raining again outside sometime during the day. Without the moon, the chirping of insects and the calls of birds were all drowned out by the patter of the rain.
She moved a chair to the window, rested her chin on her hand, and looked at the rain curtain outside, but her mind was on Song Yan.
He should have already avenged Song Yu, right? He's so smart, even if it's an egg hitting a rock, he should be able to shatter it.
Achan wasn't very satisfied with the painting Song Yan left behind. It's a pity he's gone; if he were still here, she would definitely have asked him to paint another one.
Who would put a picture of a rooster crowing at dawn in their room to "quench their thirst by looking at plums"? Every day when she opened her eyes, she saw the proud and spirited rooster in the painting, and she couldn't help but have the sound of the rooster crowing echoing in her mind.
It's a pity, he's no longer here.
Ah Chan had witnessed many partings. Her sixth uncle, who had been very kind to her, had said that one day he would take her out to play, but he never came back after he left.
She thought she had gotten used to parting, but actually she hadn't; she still felt a little sad.
Ah Chan had fallen asleep by the window at some point. Rain dripped from the eaves outside, and a few drops splashed into the window and landed on her.
She remained fast asleep, undisturbed.
The rain gradually stopped.
Because it rained in the latter half of the night, the ground was wet in the early morning, leaving footprints with every step. The servants of the Duke's mansion began sweeping early in the morning, not daring to make any noise for fear of disturbing their masters' sleep.
It wasn't until 9 AM that the maidservant serving the Duke of Song summoned the steward, saying that the Duke had disappeared and that he hadn't been seen in the study or the main courtyard.
Meanwhile, those serving in the Crown Prince's residence also noted that the Crown Prince had never left his room, and they dared not disturb him.
The steward suppressed his doubts and had a maid lead the way to the young master's courtyard.
After entering the courtyard, the butler looked up at the sky. The sky was covered by dark clouds, gloomy and overcast. Such weather made people feel inexplicably heavy-hearted, as if something bad was going to happen.
The butler knocked three times on the door and asked, "Young Master, are you awake?"
He waited outside for a while and knocked on the door twice more, but there was still no response, so he frowned.
After a slight hesitation, he said again, "Your Highness, this old servant is coming in."
Having said that, he raised his hand and tried to push the door open, but it was bolted from the inside. However, this did not stop the butler. He raised his foot and kicked the door open with a little force. The door frame slammed against the wall with a loud bang and bounced back.
At that moment, no one paid attention to the door. The instant the door opened, the person standing outside could see the situation inside the room.
The door to the inner room was open, and the Duke, whom the maids had searched for everywhere, was now hanging from the rafters, facing the door of the inner room.
At his feet was a pool of dark red blood, and a person lay in the pool of blood.
"Ah—" The screams of the maids rose and fell, and even the steward, who had come down from the battlefield and had killed people and seen blood, felt his legs go weak.
"Quickly, report this to the authorities!!!"
After the morning court session, the emperor had breakfast and returned to his study to review memorials.
He focused on reading the memorials sent by officials from Xiling. Recently, the King of Xiling seemed to be interested in a marriage alliance with a court official. He wondered which family he had his eye on.
As the emperor was pondering, someone announced from outside the imperial study: "Your Majesty, the Prefect of the Capital requests an audience."
"pass."
Before long, the Prefect of the Capital rushed into the Imperial Study: "Your Majesty, something has happened at the Duke of Song's residence."
The emperor looked up: "What happened?"
"I just received a report from the Duke of Song's residence. They say that the Duke of Song hanged himself in his residence." The Prefect of the Capital still found this absurd when he said this. That was a dignified Duke, how could he just die like that?
The emperor's face showed astonishment: "The Duke of Song is dead?"
"Yes." The Prefect of the Capital swallowed hard. "The person who reported the case said that the Duke of Song hanged himself in the room of his heir, Song Xi. Song Xi... is also dead, and the cause of death is currently unknown."
The emperor frowned. How dare someone target the Duke of Song's mansion? Was it a personal grudge or a provocation?
"Guards!" the emperor suddenly ordered.
"Your Majesty," the chief eunuch hurriedly responded.
"Inform the Minister of Justice to have the Ministry of Justice and the Jingzhao Prefecture jointly investigate the murder of Duke Song. I need to know exactly how Duke Song and Song Xi died."
"Yes." The chief eunuch dared not delay and hurriedly sent someone to the Ministry of Justice to convey His Majesty's oral decree.
Upon hearing the emperor's order, the Prefect of the Capital finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Such a major case must involve many complexities, and the Jingzhao Prefecture government would not dare to investigate it alone. Now that the Ministry of Justice is jointly handling the case, the Minister of Justice will take responsibility if any problems arise.
After the Prefect of Jingzhao left, the Emperor paced around the Imperial Study twice before finally speaking, "Go and invite Prince Ming to the palace."
"yes."
The emperor felt somewhat relieved after sending someone to invite the Prince Ming. He sat back down in his chair and continued reading the memorials, but he was still somewhat absent-minded.
Until he turned to the memorial presented by the Duke of Song's mansion that day.
The emperor opened the memorial, initially showing no emotion, but the more he read, the more gloomy his face became, and finally he swept the teacup off the imperial desk.
"Absolutely outrageous."
The emperor stood up with a stern face, but then remembered that the Duke of Song was already dead, and sat back down.
The head eunuch serving nearby, unaware of what had happened, cautiously called out, "Your Majesty?"
The emperor didn't even glance at the chief eunuch; his gaze remained fixed on the memorial in his hand.
The more he looked, the heavier his breathing became, and even the hand holding the folded book was trembling.
The chief eunuch was uneasy, wondering what His Majesty had seen that made him so angry.
Even when the disaster relief funds were stolen during the great famine in Qingzhou, it didn't anger His Majesty this much.
Just then, someone outside announced that the King of Light had arrived.
Seeing Prince Ming stride into the imperial study, the emperor threw aside the memorial in his hand and said directly, "Imperial Uncle, Duke Song and Song Xi are dead."
"How did he die?" King Ming asked, somewhat surprised.
"I still don't know if the Marquis of Zhenbei left his residence last night?" the Emperor asked.
The most likely candidate to infiltrate the Duke of Song's mansion without being discovered by Song Xi and to easily kill him is a cultivator with a higher cultivation level than him.
Among those in the capital whose cultivation was higher than Song Xi's and who also had a grudge against him, the one who was the Marquis of Zhenbei was the one with the most power.
The Ming King shook his head: "The Marquis of Zhenbei has never left his residence."
"If it's not the Marquis of Zhenbei, then who could it be? Imperial Uncle, do you think this matter is related to Xiling?" The emperor's eyes sharpened at the mention of Xiling.
“Song Xi no longer poses a threat to the King of Xiling, so they shouldn’t have any reason to target him. However, this matter is indeed strange and should be thoroughly investigated.”
"I'll leave that to my uncle."
"Yes." King Ming nodded in agreement.
After the matter was explained, the emperor did not dismiss Prince Ming. Instead, he said, "Now that Duke Song and Song Xi are both dead, does the emperor think there is any need to pass on the title of Duke's mansion?"
Prince Ming was slightly taken aback. Was the Emperor planning to strip the Duke's family of their title?
The emperor was not harsh on the nobles. The Duke of Song was already dead, but the emperor wanted to strip him of his title. What had he done to offend him?
"Has the Duke of Song committed any heinous crime?" King Ming asked.
The emperor remained silent, simply tossing the memorial on the table to the Prince of Ming.
After the Ming King took the memorial and opened it, he only glanced at it twice before raising his eyebrows high.
This memorial is quite interesting. Every word and sentence in the beginning admits to the mistake, but when it comes to the matter of the child swap, the content of the memorial is completely opposite to what the Duke of Song said in court that day.
The memorial stated that he himself had switched the legitimate son with the illegitimate son, and even complained to His Majesty that if he hadn't neglected the Duke's mansion after the late Duke's death, he wouldn't have done such a heinous thing.
Your Majesty should at least be considered an accomplice in Song Yu's death.
It was later said that His Majesty had clearly appointed Song Xi, but because of the unfounded slander by the court officials, he transferred him back to Jing, which was clearly a breach of promise.
The following content was quite treasonous. In his memorial, the Duke of Song mentioned the open and covert struggle between the emperor and his half-brother, Prince Duan, before the emperor ascended the throne, and how the emperor eventually succeeded in ascending the throne.
He said that if His Majesty is like this, Song Xi is merely imitating His Majesty, so what is wrong with that?
In order to be loyal to the emperor, the Duke of Song's family even abandoned their eldest son. Isn't that enough to show their loyalty to the emperor and their love for the country?
The Ming King read the memorial twice, feeling that the tone and the way of thinking that went against the norm were exactly the same as those of the Duke of Song. But the Duke of Song would have to be crazy to write such a memorial of apology and send it to the emperor's desk.
"What does the Imperial Uncle think?" The Emperor's face remained grim.
"The Duke of Song wrote his memorial and then died. There may be more to this than meets the eye. Doesn't Your Majesty intend to investigate further?"
The wise man secretly thought that regardless of whether the memorial was written by the Duke of Song, it had successfully touched the emperor's sore spot.
The late emperor valued Prince Duan, the son of Consort Xian, more, and was very indifferent to His Majesty, the son of the Empress. He even considered changing the crown prince at one point.
This is how Prince Duan's appetite grew, and he sent assassins to kill the emperor several times. The two brothers had long been irreconcilable enemies.
Not long after the emperor ascended the throne, he ordered the death of Prince Duan, which caused dissatisfaction among the imperial family and court officials, and the emperor suffered a lot of humiliation.
If the Duke of Song hadn't died today, the emperor would probably have wanted to personally rip off his head for daring to mention Prince Duan in a memorial.
"I think the Duke of Song must have encountered some kind of accident, which is why he wrote down his true feelings," the emperor said. After that, he added, "However, what my uncle said makes sense, and we should investigate further."
Even so, judging from his appearance, regardless of whether the memorial was written by the Duke of Song before his death, the blame should be placed on the Duke of Song's household.
King Ming did not try to persuade him further.
Soon, news of the incident at the Duke of Song's mansion spread, causing many court officials to feel uneasy, fearing that someone might also target them. Rumors also circulated among the common people, whose reactions varied.
Some people were more concerned about who could kill the current Duke, while others secretly cheered.
Some people believe that the deceased Song Yu has become a vengeful ghost, seeking revenge on the murderer who killed him.
Wen Zhong was passing by a tea stall when he overheard many people discussing the matter. Everyone seemed to believe that this was a case of karmic retribution.
They seemed more willing to believe the contents of Mr. Baomu's book than the Duke of Song.
Wen Zhong stood by the roadside listening for a while, when he suddenly saw a familiar figure not far away. He was slightly surprised and quickly stepped forward: "Young Master Song, what brings you here today?"
The person walking in front seemed not to have heard him and didn't even turn their head.
Wen Zhong was a little puzzled, so he raised his hand and patted the person in front of him on the shoulder.
The man quickly turned around, and it was indeed Song Yan, but his eyes were full of vigilance as he looked over.
"Sir, do I recognize you?" the man asked first, his gaze toward Wen Zhong completely unfamiliar.
Wen Zhong was slightly taken aback: "Young Master Song, are you perhaps joking with me?"
The man seemed to realize something, and his gaze shifted slightly: "Sir, you must have mistaken me for someone else. My surname is Fang, not Song."
Before Wen Zhong could react, she cupped her hands in a respectful gesture and said, "I have something to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."
After saying that, he quickly walked into the crowd and soon disappeared from sight.
Wen Zhong stared in the direction where the figure had disappeared, his face showing deep thought.
After standing there for a moment, he turned and walked towards Changpingfang.
It was just past 11 PM, and the weather was still very hot and humid. No guests came in.
Achan had stayed up all night and was dozing off in the shop when Wen Chong walked in and bumped into the wind chimes hanging by the door. She opened her eyes when she heard the melodious chimes.
"Mr. Wen?" Achan rubbed her eyes, still looking a little confused. "Are you here to buy incense?"
Seeing her like this, Wen Chong softened his tone: "I just heard from Mr. Xu next door that Miss Ji told him that Young Master Song went back to his hometown?"
“Yes.” Achan picked up the herbal tea next to her and took a sip. She felt a little more awake before saying, “Young Master Song said some time ago that he wanted to go back to his hometown. I suppose he has been away from home for too long and is homesick.”
"Is that so?" Wen Zhong seemed somewhat regretful. "It's a pity that our last game of chess wasn't finished yet."
Asan's smile faded: "Is that so? That's a real pity."
Then she added, "Oh, by the way, Young Master Song left a gift for Mr. Wen before he left. Please wait for me a moment."
After saying that, she lifted her skirt and went upstairs to the second floor. A little while later, she came down with a scroll of paintings.
Achan handed the scroll to Wenzhong. Wenzhong took the scroll and opened it. It depicted a cute and lively little raccoon cat with a mouse pinned under its paw. The little raccoon cat puffed out its chest, looking extremely proud.
Upon seeing the painting, Wen Zhong couldn't help but smile: "I've only mentioned my little cat to Young Master Song twice, I didn't expect him to still remember it."
Achan looked down at the painting and said after hearing Wen Zhong's words, "Young Master Song is a thoughtful person. He has always regarded Mr. Wen as a confidant."
“Me too,” Wen Zhong said.
Achan looked up at Wenzhong and then smiled.
Wen Zhong took the painting and left A Chan's incense shop. He hired a carriage, which took him to the Ming Prince's Mansion.
When the gatekeeper of the Ming Prince's Mansion saw Wen Chong arrive, he hurriedly went to inform him. Before long, the steward of the mansion came out to greet him personally.
"Lord Wen, it's been a while since you last visited. The Prince often speaks of you." The steward led him towards the garden, speaking to him with a smile.
"It's just that your prince's chess skills are too poor. Recently, I've found a worthy opponent, so naturally I look down on him."
"Then why did you come here to me?" King Ming's voice came from the waterside pavilion.
Wen Zhong walked into the waterside pavilion without changing his expression: "Unfortunately, my young friend has left the capital, so I had no choice but to come and find Your Highness."
"Didn't you say my chess skills were poor?" King Ming glanced at him sideways.
"It is somewhat lacking, but the prince's methods of taking back moves are varied and quite interesting."
A vein bulged on the Ming King's forehead.
Wen Chong sat down opposite the Ming King and casually put the scroll in his hand aside.
"What is this?" King Ming asked curiously, looking at the scroll beside Wen Zhong.
"This is a parting gift from my young friend." Seeing that the Prince was looking at it, he added, "If Your Highness is interested, you can open it and take a look."
King Ming picked up the scroll and opened it. Upon seeing the little raccoon dog depicted on it, he raised an eyebrow: "Well done, lifelike."
This gift really did look like something given to a friend, not very formal, but it just happened to touch Wen Zhong's heart.
Wen Zhong also looked at the painting and smiled slightly: "It is very good."
After looking at the painting, the two chatted as they casually placed chess pieces on the chessboard.
Wen Zhong seemed a bit distracted today, perhaps because he was playing against a different opponent and was not used to it. He made two wrong moves in a row, which made Ming Wang quite pleased with himself.
Just then, the steward who was guarding outside the waterside pavilion stepped forward and said to Prince Ming, "Your Highness, the young master has arrived."
The young master he spoke of was naturally Bai Xiuming, the adopted son of the Ming King.
"Call him over."
Bai Xiuming walked into the waterside pavilion expressionlessly. When he saw Wen Zhong there, he greeted the two of them: "Father, Lord Wen."
Wen Zhongchao nodded slightly to him.
"How's the investigation going?" Ming Wang asked absentmindedly, his attention still on the chessboard.
Bai Xiuming said, "The Duke of Song undoubtedly committed suicide, but it was his birthday that day. He was having a meal with his two sons, and he did not appear weak or dispirited. His speech was also quite normal. There was no reason for him to commit suicide."
I suspect he might be possessed by something.
"It's not easy to possess an official. If it were that easy to be manipulated, the grand ceremony at the beginning of each year wouldn't need to be held."
Officials in the court are protected by the national fortune of the Great Xia Dynasty. If demons or monsters try to possess an official, it will cause a backlash. Usually, the soul is very fragile, and the backlash will severely damage the soul, which is equivalent to mutual destruction. Choosing to possess an official is not a wise move.
“I know this matter will continue to be investigated.”
"Hmm." Ming Wang didn't say much. Although possessing someone was not easy, Bai Xiuming dared to bring it up, so he must have some confidence. He didn't want to interfere too much.
Then he asked, "And what about Song Xi?"
"No drugs or toxins were found in Song Xi's body; the liquid mixed in his blood was ink."
How did the ink get into his body?
Bai Xiuming said, "Song Xi's last meal was in the study of the Duke of Song. He and the Duke of Song drank a jar of wine, and it is very likely that ink was mixed in the wine."
"This case is indeed strange. To kill a third-realm expert with ink—was it some ancient ink that came to life, or...?"
"Mo Ling." Bai Xiu Ming answered.
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