Chapter 58 If you're scared, I'll go myself...
Chapter 58
After He Hansheng and Shen Suining finished paying their respects at the mourning hall, the thick smoke from burning paper money inside made He Hansheng cough violently again.
He now looks so frail and weak, completely lacking his former arrogance and imposing presence; he's become a sickly man.
He Bufan sneered inwardly, thinking that the men Cui Rong had hired hadn't made things too easy for He Hansheng either. In his current state, he probably wouldn't even be able to ride a horse.
However, He Bufan did not show it on his face. He pretended to be kind and called He Hansheng from the front of the mourning hall to the backyard, where the other relatives and friends who came to pay their respects were.
"It's quieter here, so you can stay here and go back after dinner." He Bufan said, only then realizing that Shen Suining, who had been following He Hansheng, had disappeared without a trace.
"Where is the princess?" He Bufan frowned.
He Hansheng exclaimed "Ah," as if he had only just noticed that Shen Suining was missing, and sighed softly, "She was probably upset after I said a few words to her."
These words did not arouse any suspicion from He Bufan. Judging from Shen Suining's appearance, she was not someone who could put up with being bullied.
But since she had married He Hansheng and was now part of the He family, He Bufan couldn't help but say a few more words: "You must not spoil a woman. This princess is originally from the common people and doesn't know the rules. You should discipline her more often so that she doesn't give you attitude like this."
He Hansheng forced a pale smile and humbly asked for advice: "I don't know how to discipline them. Please teach me, Uncle."
He Bufan sneered, "If a woman is disobedient, just hit her. After a few hits, she'll obey. What's there to be afraid of?
He Hansheng paused for a moment, then replied, "Yes."
Although they all share the surname He, the two families had already separated by the time of He Hansheng's grandfather. He Changxin had also been expelled from the family because of his father's early death. Therefore, He Hansheng was not familiar with these relatives of He Bufan. He simply followed behind He Bufan and exchanged a few words with him whenever he had a reason.
These were all trivial matters, as if He Hansheng was unaware that He Bufan harbored murderous intentions towards him. He Bufan, being naturally suspicious, once doubted that Shen Suining was not just being spiteful towards He Hansheng. He Hansheng's constant presence around him now seemed as if he were deliberately monitoring his movements.
However, He Bufan had no evidence and could not break off relations with He Hansheng. Seeing that He Hansheng was bored with those relatives outside, he called He Hansheng into the house and drank tea with him.
He Hansheng kept Shen Suining's words in mind and was very cautious about anything he was going to eat. He picked up the tea several times, pretending to drink it, but then coughed violently and didn't touch a drop.
He Bufan saw that the pale face of the man had regained some color after coughing, and couldn't help but sigh, "If your aunt were still here, she might be able to help you take a look."
"My aunt's medical skills are superb; she must have helped my uncle a lot over the years," He Hansheng said politely for a moment, then suddenly changed the subject, "But she didn't seem to have any pre-existing ailments before; how could she suddenly..."
He Bufan glanced at him, pretending not to notice the probing in his words, and said calmly, "Her brother embezzled and accepted bribes and committed suicide out of fear of punishment. As the older sister, she is naturally also to blame. After Zhou Fu died, she was so heartbroken that she fell ill and never recovered. As the saying goes, a heart ailment is hard to cure. She was like this for a month or so, but in the end, she couldn't hold on any longer."
He Hansheng lowered his eyes silently, "Please accept my condolences and take good care of yourself."
"Of course, I'm not at the point where I'd be heartbroken and cry over a woman."
He Bufan sneered coldly, glancing at He Hansheng's right hand, which was in a sling, and frowned slightly. "Your injury..."
He had barely opened his mouth when He Hansheng began to cough violently.
He Bufan stared intently, and He Hansheng played along, pretending to be serious. He took out a handkerchief, covered his mouth, and coughed for a while. When he let go, the handkerchief was covered in red.
“You…” He Bufan stood up in surprise, thinking in disbelief: He Hansheng was actually injured to such an extent?
Just then, Shen Suining, who had been missing for a long time, rushed in from outside and cried out in anguish, "Husband~ how are you?"
He Hansheng's expression stiffened slightly. He waved his hand, and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
Shen Suining ran to his side and held his shoulder, her fingertips exerting a subtle pressure. He Hansheng instantly understood and leaned into her arms, coughing and weakly closing his eyes.
"My husband—"
Shen Suining cupped his face in her hands, her expression filled with fear and terror. She looked at He Bufan with tears in her eyes and said, "I'm sorry, Uncle. My husband is in such a state that he can't be left without a physician by his side. I'm afraid we have to go back right away."
Seeing that the two seemed genuinely acting, He Bufan quickly called for help from the people nearby, saying, "Send the young marquis out."
Shen Suining and several servants worked together to help He Hansheng away.
He Bufan watched their retreating figures, his brows furrowed. He felt something was off, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.
Cui Rong came out from behind the pillar and said, "Master, I just questioned everyone in the manor, and apart from the mourning hall, they did not see Young Master He's wife anywhere else in the manor."
“Such a big living person, could she just disappear into thin air?” He Bufan withdrew his gaze and sneered, “Although my manor’s military strength is not as great as that of the Marquis of Yong’an’s manor, it is still heavily guarded. In broad daylight, for her to disappear for a period of time under everyone’s noses, this little girl must have some ability.”
Cui Rong nodded in agreement, "Then the young marquis's injury is probably also suspicious. I will send someone to keep an eye on it."
“No need, I don’t have time to deal with him right now,” He Bufan took out a letter from the drawer next to him and threw it to Cui Rong. “A letter came from Yunzhou saying that a group of Jianghu forces have suddenly appeared and are wandering around in recent months. They seem to be investigating a case of refugee riots three years ago. Send some people over there. Whoever is investigating, make sure they don’t come back.”
Cui Rong: "Yes."
Shen Suining helped He Hansheng into the carriage.
The carriage slowly drove away from the He residence. After seeing that everyone standing in front of the gate had gone inside, Shen Suining pushed He Hansheng aside and said sarcastically, "He Hansheng, I didn't realize you had such a talent in this area. If it weren't for the fact that my Bifeng Hall is mostly filled with women, I would really like to take the young marquis in as well."
He Hansheng was pushed so hard that he bumped into the corner of the table and cried out in pain, "Be gentle, you'll really hurt yourself."
"Stop pretending," Shen Suining snorted, arms crossed. "You've gotten so into playing along."
He Hansheng chuckled softly, sat up straight, and slowly removed the bandages from his hands, revealing ambiguous teeth marks on his palm.
He looked up and abruptly asked, "What did you just call me?"
“He Hansheng,” Shen Suining didn’t react, “What? Do you want me to call you ‘Brother Hansheng’ like last time?”
“Not now, just now,” He Hansheng said, carefully wrapping the removed bandages around his neck and placing them on the table. “What did you call me in front of your uncle before you came out?”
Shen Suining thought for a moment, "Husband?"
He Hansheng responded, his brows immediately relaxing, revealing a subtle, bright smile.
Shen Suining looked at him with a puzzled expression and a hint of disdain, not understanding what was so exciting about it.
He Hansheng didn't seem to care much and asked her, "Did you find anything?"
Just now at the He residence, He Hansheng deliberately stalled He Bufan, allowing Shen Suining to sneak into his residence using disguise techniques without being noticed by anyone else.
After a moment of contemplation, Shen Suining said, "Just as you guessed, Zhou Hao most likely didn't die of illness, but was murdered."
He Hansheng chuckled, "How did you know what I was guessing?"
"Then what do you want me to investigate? Are you just bored?" Shen Suining rolled her eyes at him.
Having spent so much time together, the two had developed a tacit understanding. He Hansheng only needed to mention one sentence for Shen Suining to guess what he was thinking.
She sat up straight, shifting to a more comfortable position, and continued, "I just went to their inner courtyard and found that all the personal maids who accompanied Zhou Hao to our mansion last time are gone, as if they've vanished. The courtyard and room where she lived are also spotless, without a trace of her presence. If Zhou Hao died of natural causes, as her husband, having been by her side for decades, and with his wife having passed away so recently, even if he wasn't immersed in grief, he wouldn't be so quick to erase all traces of his wife's existence, would he?"
“He Bufan didn’t really have any marital feelings for Zhou Hao. He was mostly using her to control the military power in Zhou Fu’s hands. Now that Zhou Fu is dead, Zhou Hao is no longer of any use to him. Besides, over the years, Zhou Hao probably knows a lot of He Bufan’s secrets,” He Hansheng pondered. “But in this case, it will probably be difficult to find out the real cause of Zhou Hao’s death.”
Hearing this, Shen Suining couldn't help but chuckle. "Investigating cases is the business of the Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review. Why do you always want to get involved? Besides, even if there are other hidden circumstances surrounding Zhou Hao's death, now that all the traces of her life have been erased, it's impossible to investigate unless—"
The two men exchanged a glance and said in unison, "Open the coffin and examine the body."
Shen Suining was stunned for a moment, leaned forward slightly, and looked at He Hansheng with some surprise, "How could you say such a treasonous thing?"
He Hansheng ignored her mockery and focused on finding a reasonable way to open Zhou Hao's coffin and have the coroner examine the body.
Seeing his serious expression, Shen Suining couldn't help but ask, "Are you really planning to do this?"
He Hansheng looked at her, "You have a solution?"
“Well, yes, there is, but it’s a bit immoral,” Shen Suining hesitated, seemingly feeling ashamed, so she tactfully said, “He Hansheng, although I have blood on my hands and have turned over corpses, sneaking into the funeral hall of a newly deceased person in the middle of the night to open a coffin is something that is really hard for me to accept.”
He Hansheng understood her unspoken meaning and laughed, "Are you scared?"
"I'm not scared!" Shen Suining immediately retorted, "It's just that the dead should be respected. Besides, the seven-day mourning period hasn't even passed yet, and the yin energy is heavy at night, what if..."
“It’s okay. If you’re scared, I can go by myself,” He Hansheng said, pretending not to have heard what she had said earlier, using a retreat as a way to provoke her. “You can stay home and wait for me. You don’t have to force yourself.”
Shen Suining: "..."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com