"It's my fault! It's all my fault!"
"It's my fault for offending someone. Someone knows that Hei Yin comes from the Zhao family, so they want to make an example of her and torture her to death! It's all my fault. I blame myself for not being careful in my daily actions, and I still don't know who I've offended!"
"That person is using Kuroyaku's death to threaten me, to slap me in the face!"
As Zhao Qingshu spoke with grief, he tightly gripped the blood-stained letter in one hand, and a tear rolled down his cheek.
Zeng Yaxian shook her head silently, as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing.
It wasn't until she snatched the bloodstained warning letter from Zhao Qingshu's hand and read its contents that her eyes widened in shock, her swollen, red eyes looking unfocused.
She slid off Zhao Qingshu's arms.
The old woman rushed over to help her up, and Zeng Yaxian almost disregarded her manners as she rushed to the side of the lifeless Hei Yin lying at the door.
But when she saw Hei Yin's appearance clearly, and even smelled the strong stench of blood, Zeng Yaxian froze on the spot, unable to move.
The old woman's eyelids twitched, and her face instantly turned pale: "Who is it?"
"Who on earth did this?"
Before the old woman could finish speaking, she felt Zeng Yaxian beside her trembling more and more, her whole body as cold as if she had been pulled out of an ice cellar.
The old woman quickly hugged her and tried to lead her back, saying, "Madam has already seen everything, so let's go back now. Leave things here to Master."
Zeng Yaxian struggled free from the nanny's support, then stepped forward, embraced Hei Yin's corpse, and wept bitterly.
"Kuroku... tell me... tell me who killed you?"
"Tell me, I want to avenge you... I want to avenge you... You're gone, what am I left with?"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Qingshu, who had been standing still, suddenly turned around and stared intently at Zeng Yaxian's distraught appearance.
He immediately rushed forward, embraced Zeng Yaxian's trembling body, and whispered comfortingly, "Don't cry, don't cry..."
"Ya Xian, I will avenge you. I will help you find the murderer. Even if I have to dig three feet into the ground, I will find the murderer!"
As he spoke, he hugged Zeng Yaxian tightly again.
But to everyone's surprise, Zhao Qingshu's action caused Hei Yin's clenched fist to suddenly loosen.
A jet-black substance rolled out.
Zeng Yaxian was slightly taken aback, and then hurriedly grabbed the thing that rolled out of Hei Yin's hand.
She bit her lip to stifle a sob, carefully examined it, then brought it to her nose and sniffed it intently. Suddenly, her eyes narrowed sharply:
"This fragrance...this fragrance..."
Zhao Qingshu seemed somewhat surprised. He frowned as he looked at the thing in Zeng Yaxian's hand, and then asked, "Yaxian? What is this?"
"The thing that Kurogane clutched tightly before his death must be crucial evidence..."
Zeng Yaxian raised her head blankly, her face streaked with tears: "It's incense, it's incense..."
...
The incident at the Zhao residence caused quite a stir, and rumors spread throughout the capital overnight, sparking much discussion. People were saying that Zhao Qingshu had offended someone and was being retaliated against.
The guards in his mansion were found dead and thrown at the gate, along with a warning letter.
Song Xizhi had heard this news from his subordinates early that morning.
She sat down on the soft couch, her brows furrowing slightly, a strange feeling creeping into her heart: "Is Hei Yin dead? Is someone targeting the Zhao family?"
Siqin, holding her sword, stood by the soft couch. Upon hearing this, her expression instantly turned serious: "Hei Yin is dead?"
She recalled their brief encounter and felt a deep sense of regret: "The one who could kill her must be a very powerful expert."
Song Xizhi felt that things were not so simple: "Hei Yin is dead. Is someone targeting the Zhao family, or is it targeting Madam Zhao?"
As the two were talking, they saw He Jingyan take a long stride and enter from outside.
Song Xizhi remained seated on the soft couch, but he instinctively walked over and sat down next to Song Xizhi.
The man's long arms and legs made the originally spacious soft couch seem much smaller.
Song Xizhi glanced at him, then shifted his position slightly to let him sit down.
What are you talking about?
The man asked the question.
Song Xizhi honestly answered what had just been said: "Hei Yin is dead. You may not know, but she was someone close to Madam Zhao."
"There are rumors and gossip outside, saying that someone is seeking revenge against Zhao Qingshu, but I don't think things are that simple. That person was able to torture and kill the highly skilled Hei Yin, so why didn't he go directly to Zhao Qingshu for revenge? Instead, he had someone close to Madam Zhao do the dirty work."
He Jingyan nodded in agreement, seemingly unsurprised by the matter: "That's what I wanted to say too."
He paused slightly, his dark eyes meeting Song Xizhi's directly: "Your guess is correct. This matter is not simple, because someone saw what that woman was holding in her hand."
Song Xizhi's hands tightened slightly, a bad feeling creeping into his heart: "What is it?"
He Jingyan's eyes darkened slightly: "It's incense. This matter might be aimed at you."
Song Xizhi's eyelids twitched. "This matter is actually related to me?"
He Jingyan patted her hand reassuringly: "Don't be afraid, I will send more people to protect you. You really don't have enough maids around you."
Song Xizhi wasn't concerned about that matter; she simply asked, "So, Zhao Qingshu orchestrated this whole thing?"
He Jingyan replied, "This is just speculation."
Upon hearing this, Siqin also became furious: "How can there be such a heartless person in the world? He killed his own wife's personal guard just to frame his master?"
Song Xizhi's eyes sharpened, and she sat up slightly: "We can't wait any longer, we must expose Zhao Qingshu's matter as soon as possible."
She recalled the account book she had seen the previous night, her expression changed slightly, and then she brought it up with He Jingyan: "I did find the account book in the house yesterday, but it didn't have any names or specific contents on it, only some food items."
He Jingyan paused slightly, signaling her to continue.
"Yellow croaker, cabbage, peanuts... pork, chicken, and things like that."
"The pigs are fat pigs, usually just one or two at a time, while the chickens are very mobile, sometimes a dozen or even dozens at a time. As for yellow croaker and cabbage, they are sold by the pound, sometimes dozens of pounds at a time."
He Jingyan tapped the square table lightly with his index finger, pondering for a moment: "Is it because these things are cheap?"
Song Xizhi shook his head: "But the quantity of peanuts is very limited, and they are counted in taels."
After she finished speaking, she paused slightly, and when their eyes met, they said in unison:
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