March 3rd
Before I knew it, the year had passed, and I had gained a lot of weight, complaining that it was all inappropriate.
Sui Zhixu ran away to attend the matchmaking banquet hosted by Princess Chang on the third day of the third month in order to avoid Yueling's lion's roar.
"Why are you here?" The four looked at each other, and had no choice but to honestly explain their purpose one by one.
Pei Qinglian: "Father urged me to come."
The three nodded, befitting Duke Pei's demeanor, and then Ning Yan turned to look at them.
"Me? The case in Jinzhou is killing me. There haven't been any banquets since the 15th, so I've been sneaking off to come and have some fun until today."
Cui Wan: "My mother and aunt wanted me to broaden my horizons, so I came."
The three turned around: "Ah Xu, what about you?"
Pei Qinglian asked in confusion, "Didn't you have an affair with Master Fan? Is he no longer capable, and you're looking for someone else?"
Cui Wan's eyes sparkled. "Does the head of the family also urge you to go on blind dates?"
Ning Yan rested her chin on her hand, thinking, "That shouldn't be the case. I remember that the Prince of Puyang was trained by the Prime Minister. Shouldn't we start with him?"
"Stop!" Seeing them lost in thought, a few cracks appeared on Xu's usually calm face.
He honestly confessed how Yue Ling was tormenting her, saying, "She really is now nagging me every day from morning till night. This doesn't fit the image of a hermit, and it damages his reputation and image."
"Unfortunately, they only talk the talk but don't walk the walk."
As soon as Xu closed her eyes, she noticed that her ears had developed calluses, calluses that were called "the hermit's calluses."
"Poor thing, last time I was tortured because the headmaster wouldn't let me quit my studies. Now I remember, I can only quit my studies this June." Ning Yan lowered her head and sobbed.
She was the only one left out of the four.
Everyone has their own troubles, and it's quite a coincidence that the four of them ended up together at the banquet.
When Pei Qinglian asked about Mingyi, Xu Zhixu shook her head. Later, when Yueling caused trouble, Xu Mingyi didn't say anything and just sat quietly. Even after Pei Qinglian chased her away, she still said that she was fine.
After that, Sui Zhixu thought of sending a letter to the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion, but was rejected once or twice. Sui He then stopped her, possibly because Madam Cheng interfered, and thus they were unable to contact her.
"I can't very well climb over the wall, it might have a bad influence on Mingyi," Sui Zhixu said helplessly, resting her chin on her hand.
Cui Wan slammed her hand on the table and stood up, gritting her teeth, "It must have been Liu Xi who did it! There's no one else but her. She loves to use reputation as leverage. I don't know why, even though I tried to suppress it privately, a bunch of people still came out cursing Mingyi. Are Liu Xi and Cheng Zhijie a good match? Isn't that just an empty promise between Madam Cheng and Madam Liu?"
The three shook their heads when suddenly a sharp cry for help rang out.
"Ah—Help! Someone help me!"
The four stopped their playful fighting, looked at each other, and each sent out men to investigate.
"Something serious must have happened." As the wife of the Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Ning Yan was well-versed in this matter and knew many ways that could lead to death in the power struggles within the inner quarters.
Before long, Ning Yan's maid returned. "Madam, someone has died in the backyard. The Princess has already gone to fetch the master."
"The backyard? The deceased was a woman?" Ning Yan thought to herself, "This is bad." She had guessed correctly. The people at the Princess's banquet were all rich and noble. This damned sincerity made things difficult for her and her father.
"Yes," Ning Yan's maid replied.
"Do you know who it is?" Sui Zhixu asked. Who was the thief who dared to cause trouble at the Princess's banquet?
Danhong returned just then and took over the conversation, "Madam, the Princess has sealed off the backyard, but I saw people from the Xu, Cheng, and Liu families still there."
"Who?" Sui Zhixu had a bad feeling. "Go and find out again who the person who had the accident is."
Cui Wan's lips twitched twice. Based on her years of experience with Liu Xi's incompatibility, she had a feeling that something had happened to Xu Mingyi.
She beckoned to her maid, "You, you go too, go and see who it is!"
With the murder case, the eldest princess announced the banquet was over before it even officially began, and the four of them had no choice but to leave to find their respective masters.
Ning Yan reassured them, then nervously clenched the handkerchief in her hand. "Don't worry, I'll go with Father to check on things later. It might not be that Mingyi is in trouble."
Sui Zhixu nodded. "Contact me if you need anything."
She walked towards the front yard and quickly found Sui He. Sui He was standing next to a woman dressed in luxurious clothes. The woman's brows and eyes, filled with experience, made her appear even more elegant and noble. Her eyes were long and deep, like a dark pool, which made people feel awe.
The phoenix hairpin in her hair further emphasized the woman's status as the hostess of this banquet, Princess Xuancheng, whom she had met in the Empress Dowager's palace.
Sui Zhixu immediately bowed to the Princess.
The eldest princess looked up at Sui Zhixu, a smile appearing on her tired face, and said to Sui He, "When I first saw her, I thought this child looked like you. Today, seeing you and your daughter together, you seem even more like one person."
"Your Highness is too kind."
"Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. You've seen what happened today, so I won't keep you any longer. It'll only frighten the child if you stay here. Take care on your journey; things aren't peaceful right now."
The princess's words had a hidden meaning. Sui He nodded, and before leaving, the princess patted Sui He's hand. Sui He turned back and glanced at her, silently saying, "Don't worry."
Sui Zhixu followed Sui He into the carriage. From the Princess's estate outside the city to the city gate, Sui He remained silent. Sui Zhixu opened his mouth but did not ask any questions. The trees in the suburbs were lush and dense. As they headed north, the road became wider and the number of people coming and going increased.
“Fate is cruel. I remember her as a good girl.” As they approached the city gate, Sui He sighed.
Sui Zhixu was startled. "Is it Mingyi?"
"Um."
The spring breeze brushed against the papers on the carriage, and along with Sui Zhixu's hair, the wind blew through every corner of Chang'an, carrying away many sounds.
—
"My lord, Lord Liu has sent someone."
Ning's father was talking to the coroner who was examining Xu Niangzi's body, his brows furrowed. Xu Niangzi was of noble status, and the crime scene was the territory of the Eldest Princess. This matter was really difficult to handle.
"Come in." Suddenly hearing the shout, Ning's father knew something was wrong.
"My master has come to ask if Madam Xu has any of Madam Liu's belongings with her?" The man asked respectfully, with a faint smile on his lips.
"No, not at all," Father Ning replied truthfully. The dagger on Madam Xu's chest was of an ordinary style. He had sent people to investigate, but they didn't know where it came from. The gatekeepers of the Princess's banquet would naturally have servants to check, so it wasn't Madam Liu's.
"That's good. Master Liu said the Liu family is happy to assist in the investigation."
Ning's father, his eyes dark, chuckled and saw the man off.
Those around Ning's father asked, "Does this case require Third Sister's involvement?"
"Not for now, I'll check later."
Ning Yan ran out of the darkness, "Father! I need to handle this case."
"Nonsense! Lord Liu is not the same as the Lu family; he is from the Qi Dynasty..."
"I know that the first duke in the Qi Dynasty with a fief of 1,300 households is more powerful than even a king. I'm tired of hearing you say that."
Lord Ning quickly looked around and glared at her, "How dare you say such things? Since you know, then don't interfere."
"No, Mingyi is my friend, I can't just ignore her." Ning Yan tugged at Lord Ning's sleeve, "Dad~"
"Go back first, let me think. How did I give birth to such a stubborn child like you?"
Ning Yan immediately wrote a letter to the group to inform them of the details.
After reading the letter, Xu Zhixu couldn't fall asleep for a long time. Only Liu Xi and Xu Mingyi were present. At first glance, it was hard not to suspect that Liu Xi was the one who did it, but why did she faint?
The next morning.
"My lady, my lady, something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened!" Danhong rushed into the house carrying a copper basin.
"What's wrong? What major event has made you so flustered?" Sui Zhixu, dressed in her nightgown, sat on the bed and slowly looked up at Dan Hong's series of actions.
Dan Hong put down the copper basin and helped Sui Zhixu wash up and change. Dan Hong made a fuss, but her hands moved steadily, gently smoothing out the wrinkles on Sui Zhixu's dress.
"Last night, the Cheng and Liu families had a fight. In the middle of the night, Young Master Cheng went to the Liu family alone with his sword, demanding that Madam Liu pay for Madam Xu's life. Fortunately, Madam Liu and Master Liu stopped him and sent someone to find Marquis Wu'an. After much persuasion, they finally managed to get Young Master Cheng back. But our gatekeeper said that Marquis Wu'an had to call in the Left and Right Imperial Guards to bring Young Master Cheng back last night." Dan Hong's almond-shaped eyes widened as she recounted the story with incredible twists and turns.
"The Imperial Guards just pushed them back." Sui Zhixu's tone was serious, and his expression was colder than usual.
Unexpectedly, the matter escalated to such an extent. The Left and Right Jinwu Guards were the imperial guards of the Southern Court, patrolling Chang'an day and night to maintain order in the capital and ensure the peace of the people.
Even the Imperial Guards were mobilized. No matter how big a trouble Cheng Zhijie caused, the Marquis of Wu'an and his group couldn't control him.
She once said that Cheng Zhijie's composure was not without reason. In Chang'an, everyone knew that Cheng Zhijie, the heir of the Marquis of Wu'an, was an exceptionally talented person.
Even though he was on the list of successful candidates in the imperial examinations, he still stood up for the students and defended them against injustice; his magnanimity is immeasurable.
At the age of twenty-two, he became the top scholar in the imperial examination. Among the three candidates, he was the most handsome. According to the unwritten rule, Cheng Zhijie should have been the third-ranked scholar that year. It was the emperor who took pity on his outstanding talent and appointed him as the top scholar.
It should be noted that the top three candidates in the palace examination were selected from among thousands of candidates, and the final three were all very similar. Cheng Zhijie was able to please the emperor among the final three. This shows that Cheng Zhijie was not only exceptionally talented, but also had a remarkable mind.
In the three years that followed, Cheng Zhijie rose through the ranks, skipping several levels, taking advantage of the major reshuffle in the imperial court.
In the Pei family case a while ago, Cheng Zhijie risked his life to obtain the account books, and he also contributed to the Pei family case. The emperor, considering his youth, granted him the sinecure of the third-rank Silver Seal Grand Master and also appointed him as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel.
Before Puyang Kai became the top scholar last year, Cheng Zhijie was undoubtedly Cong Lan's most promising disciple.
His youthful talent and ability captivated the hearts of many young women in Chang'an. If Cheng Zhijie hadn't already been engaged, these women would have torn him apart.
"Have you found out if Cheng Zhijie saw Lady Liu last night?"
Danhong thought for a moment, "No, Madam Liu refused to see Young Master Cheng. Young Master Cheng said he wanted to seek justice from Madam Liu, but Madam Liu refused to come out of her room. That's when Young Master Cheng started making a scene."
The biggest conflict between Liu Xi and Xu Mingyi is Cheng Zhijie.
Last year, Cheng Langjun denied his engagement to Liu Niangzi, citing the reason that it was a joke between their mothers when they were young and could not be counted. He then married Mingyi.
The popular storybooks that made headlines at the end of the year highlighted this scene: the elegant heir of a marquis's mansion, instead of marrying the daughter of a duke of equal social standing, became infatuated with the wife of a down-on-his-luck earl.
The Earl's Mansion was not only in dire straits, but Xu Niangzi's father had married into the Earl's Mansion, becoming the son-in-law of the Earl's only daughter, and thus only obtained the empty title of Earl.
He has no talent and is a womanizer.
Madam Xu's father was the number one customer of several famous brothels in Chang'an.
A weak mother, a philandering father, a younger sister who died young, and a nobleman's son who was willing to break his engagement for her. Storytelling books love to include love stories of such women, and they celebrate them extensively.
As Xu Zhixu recalled her last conversation with Xu Mingyi, a strange feeling of anger welled up inside her. "I'll write a message and go see Ayan."
She had just sent out the invitation when Yueling rushed over with only one thing in mind: "Investigate the cause of the young lady's death. Consider it your homework. Haven't I assigned you any homework in a long time?"
Knowing Xu was cautious, he asked, "Is Mingyi connected to that side?"
"Oh? No, I just saw you were too idle, so I gave you something to do."
Sui Zhixu: "..."
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