Chapter 10 Uninvited Guests
At dawn the next day, many slaves had gathered in front of the Criminal Slave Yard. According to Feng family custom, before a fugitive or theft was taken away for execution, he was publicly caned after a public trial, to serve as a warning to the monkeys. Unfortunately, the monkeys often didn't consider the chickens relevant to them. Instead, they treated the early morning as a rare pastime, chatting and chatting in groups of three or five.
Qiu Tang huddled at the end of the crowd, her clothes soaked with sweat. She bit her lip tightly, not daring to even sob, fearing to attract attention.
The steward presiding over the case was sweating profusely. This short, stout man, who usually acted arrogantly in the outer courtyard, was now hunched over like a quail. This was just a theft trial of a runaway slave, but why were not only the Haofeng Guard suddenly asked to supervise the trial, but even the Yuanfeng Guard had joined the courtyard in large numbers?
The Haofeng Guards on the east side were dressed in dark black, with black gold tokens dangling from their waists, gleaming coldly in the morning light. The Yuanfeng Guards on the west side wore indigo brocade robes, embroidered with silver thread and flowing cloud patterns that appeared and disappeared with their movements, and wore jade tokens at their waists. The two groups occupied different positions, the dark blue and black distinct in the morning mist, like two undercurrents about to clash.
Suddenly, the crowd parted like a tide. Feng Yanyuan stepped out into the dust, dressed in a snow-white robe. Silver threads crisscrossed the hem, and the mutton-fat jade pendant at his waist shone warmly in the morning light.
The reclusive Third Young Master suddenly appeared, startling the steward to the point of kneeling. With the Young Master here, would he still be in charge? He saluted awkwardly, bowing naively. And the way he offered his seat—that fawning gesture—resembled the very image of the human stool slave he humiliated daily.
The slaves watching exchanged glances secretly, and a few of the braver ones even covered their mouths and laughed.
A sinister look flashed across Feng Wu's eyes, but his expression remained calm. He hadn't expected the Third Young Master to actually show up.
Interesting. He stroked the black gold token at his waist, sneering inwardly. Now that the evidence was complete, if the Third Young Master insisted on protecting this girl, he would inevitably lose face in front of the master. He'd destroy his own great power for a mere slave. This deal was a win for the Young Master.
He glanced at Yun Yuan, who was kneeling in the center of the execution platform. Who could have imagined that such a weak woman could become a wedge to pry open Master Yuan?
Let's see how the Third Young Master breaks this deadlock. Feng Wu calculated secretly, a barely perceptible smile curling his lips. This game of chess, no matter how, is going to benefit the Young Master.
Feng Jiu held Lu Zhong, pressing her heavily against Yun Yuan's side, and presented a scroll of confession with both hands. The steward hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to accept it or not. Finally, he accepted it and respectfully handed it to Master Yuan. But the gentleman didn't even raise an eyelid. The steward, feeling apprehensive, was startled by Feng Jiu's resounding voice.
"Last night, the Yuanfeng Guards searched the outer residence and found this thing under Lu Zhong's pillow." Feng Jiu shook open a brocade handkerchief, revealing a pass token, and handed it over.
Feng Wu frowned. He hadn't expected the access token to be pinned on Lu Zhong.
The physical evidence presented by both parties were spread out on the table: on one side was the account book with the seal of Yuanfengyuan and the jewelry found on Aunt Lu's body; on the other side was the fatal token.
Feng Jiu glanced over the evidence presented by the Haofeng Guards, a flicker of relief in his eyes. Of these items, only one crucial one was missing—the seal of Yuanfeng Court. It seemed that the Haofeng Guards, after searching the outer residence, hadn't found the seal Yun Yuan had hidden.
Yun Yuan flatly denied seeing the jewelry. She lost her seal and couldn't stamp it to retrieve the items. She hadn't even seen Aunt Lu yesterday. Lu Zhong couldn't explain the presence of a pass token under her bed. Knowing Qiu Tang had stolen it and given it to Yun Yuan, she angrily pointed at Yun Yuan and accused her of framing her for Aunt Lu's token.
Feng Jiu sneered, "You haven't even seen this token, so how do you know it belongs to Aunt Lu? Could it be that you have clairvoyance and can clearly see the word 'Lu' under this token from below the stage?"
Lu Zhong was speechless for a moment, his face flushing as he tried to defend himself, but Feng Wu interrupted him with a sharp shout. His face was gloomy, and he was secretly annoyed - this chess piece had finally lost its patience.
The public disclosure of the crime, which should have been simple, became complicated, and the sweat on the steward's back left a wet mark like a bedwet. At this tense moment, the Haofeng Guards suddenly saluted in unison: "Young Master!"
Feng Yanhao entered the courtyard, dressed in black, the black gold token hanging from his waist gleaming coldly. He walked steadily to Feng Yanyuan, whose white clothes were as white as snow. The two of them, one black, one white, looked like the Judge of Yin and Yang, silencing even the mosquitoes in the courtyard.
"The young master is here too." Feng Yanyuan stood up and saluted.
Feng Yanhao raised the corners of his lips slightly: "I'm curious that you will come."
The steward didn't dare interrupt, only sullenly moving a chair forward. He figured the two would at least exchange a few pleasantries, so he could hear about the girl's origins. But the two men didn't say another word, simply sitting down, their two pairs of cold, intimidating judge-like eyes glaring at him simultaneously.
The manager felt like he was about to choke on his breath, so he forced himself to calm down and move on to the next step. What was the next step?
"But...is there any witness?"
Feng Wu immediately stepped forward: "We've found a witness." He waved his hand, and several servants trembled and stepped out. However, before they could speak, Feng Jiu interrupted them coldly: "Think carefully, everyone. With the two young masters here in person today, if you tell even a single lie..." He paused meaningfully, "You'll lose your head."
The servants were suddenly silent.
Feng Wu's face was gloomy: "What do you mean?"
"The young master is here today because the people from Yuanfeng Court are truly innocent. Fifth brother, why don't you wait a little longer? Don't wait until the last witness arrives and all your stories become worthless. People will accuse the Haofeng Guards of neglecting their duties and taking human lives lightly."
"Witness?" Feng Wu asked in surprise.
Feng Yanhao tapped his fingertips lightly on the armrest, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes. He didn't care about Feng Wu's methods of dealing with slaves. He came today purely because of Feng Yanyuan's unusual behavior. In the past ten years, when had his third brother ever paid such attention to a new slave?
"Where's the witness?" Feng Wu looked around, his brows furrowed. "Is this just a bluff?"
Feng Jiu raised the corner of his lips slightly: "Fifth brother, please be patient. As for this witness..." He deliberately dragged out the tone, "We have to carry him here slowly."
Feng Wu frowned even more tightly.
Feng Yanyuan looked up at the sun, a flicker of impatience between his brows. Yesterday, when Feng Jiu reported back, he'd said this girl was incredibly clever—she'd hidden the seal and cut off crucial evidence, and now this witness was a stroke of genius.
This witness was good... but it inexplicably annoyed him. This nameless anger had been growing stronger since yesterday, and looking at Yun Yuan, who was kneeling obediently, her silence and feigned obedience, only made him even more annoyed.
Feng Yanhao found him funny. He was there to protect someone, so why was he so angry?
"Who on earth is this person? How dare he make my third brother wait so long?"
The gloom between Feng Yanyuan's brows suddenly relaxed, and his gaze turned to the courtyard gate: "Who else could it be..." He sighed softly, "Finally, they're here. Waking up at this time is rare."
Feng Jiu had been staring at the courtyard gate. Suddenly, his eyes lit up. He left Feng Wu, who was still pestering him, and quickly stepped forward, bowing deeply: "Master Xuan!"
Feng Wu turned back in surprise, only to see a plain gauze sedan chair slowly approaching. A young man in a cherry-colored brocade robe sat reclining on the sedan, his waist tied with a sky-blue silk sash. He yawned lazily. He rubbed his sleepy eyes and complained in a drawn-out voice, "This early in the morning... How unkind..."
A hint of surprise flashed in Feng Yanhao's eyes, and he couldn't help but turn around and carefully examine Yun Yuan, who was kneeling on the execution platform. This servant girl was so capable that she actually alarmed his two good brothers?
"It's not easy." Feng Yanhao looked at Feng Yanyuan meaningfully, "It's possible to get Brother Xuan to get up so early in the morning." He deliberately emphasized the word "early in the morning", as it was clearly noon at this moment.
"Young Master is here too?" Feng Yanxuan leaped off the sedan chair as if he had just woken up, and approached Feng Yanhao with a playful smile. "Could it be that Brother is also interested in this girl?"
"So..." Feng Yanhao raised his eyebrows, "Are you going to snatch this person from the third brother?"
"I'm being gentle and considerate!" Feng Yanxuan plopped down on the chair the steward had hastily brought over. "This is a wonderful girl from Qiluan Pavilion. Brother, you know, the dancing styles of Qiluan Pavilion are based on Qinggong. A single song can fetch a fortune and be world-famous. It's fine that it was a good thing for the third brother, but how did she suddenly become a criminal slave?" He suddenly turned to the steward and said, "I heard that a servant fell into the water yesterday?"
The manager's forehead was covered with sweat as he trembled as he repeated the case, his voice gradually becoming lower and lower.
Feng Yanxuan waved his whisk lightly and said firmly, "Absolutely impossible. She was in my Xuanfeng Courtyard yesterday afternoon. How could she have gone to such a remote place?"
The young master raised his eyebrows slightly and glanced meaningfully at Feng Wu, whose expression suddenly changed.
"This girl has just arrived. Has she offended my second brother?" Feng Yanyuan asked.
Feng Yanxuan draped the tail of his whisk over his arm and smiled slyly, "Not only did it not offend me, but it actually made me very happy." He recounted the story vividly, "Yesterday, I was flying kites with a few beauties when suddenly a plain-looking kite appeared from the sky. It quickly cut through my beauty's string. I released another one, but it got entangled again—"
He was talking so excitedly that he didn't notice Feng Yanyuan's increasingly gloomy expression.
"My beautiful girls were so angry that they were determined to find the one who didn't know the rules. I followed the kite string and found a delicate little girl." Feng Yanxuan pouted at Yun Yuan. "She said she was from Yuanfeng Courtyard and couldn't go back to the courtyard. She saw the kite and felt itchy, but she didn't expect to offend someone. I thought she was pitiful and cute, so I 'invited' her to come to my courtyard to apologize. She stayed for half a day."
Feng Wu's face turned pale. He had indeed found out that Yun Yuan had flown a kite, but no one knew where she had gone. He initially assumed she had gotten away, or perhaps hidden somewhere. He didn't bother to know where a slave might go. A small servant wasn't worth the effort of guarding her; he just wanted to make sure she didn't return to Yuanfeng Courtyard. He had never expected that she would be taken away by Young Master Xuan. But with the Second Young Master's superb Qing Gong skills, taking someone away quietly would be easy.
The worst part was, this story was so ridiculous it was believable—everyone knew that Young Master Xuan was a dissolute man, flirting with women everywhere. As long as Young Master Xuan was in the mood, he would do anything ridiculous, even climbing high walls and crawling through dog holes, just to win a beautiful woman's smile.
Feng Yanyuan paused for a moment and asked, "I can't go back to Yuanfeng Courtyard? What do you mean?"
Feng Yanxuan waved his whisk fan and said with a smile, "I saw quite a few Haofeng Guards standing on the road. I heard you and the young master were sparring. At such a critical moment, I, an idler, naturally dare not disturb them." He lightly tapped the whisk fan in Yun Yuan's direction and said, "This little girl was trying to force her way back, but I stopped her. I didn't let her go until the Haofeng Guards left. If you want to blame me, third brother, just come at me."
Feng Wu's throat rolled over, and after a long while he managed to squeeze out a sentence: "I...I didn't mean to stop the people from Yuanfeng Courtyard, but this maid was unfamiliar to me, and I couldn't recognize her at first...at first..."
"That makes sense." Feng Yanxuan suddenly leaned forward, his whiskers almost brushing against Feng Wu's face. "Then tell me, how could she have killed someone while she was having tea in my Xuanfeng Courtyard?" The teasing in his eyes grew stronger. "Could it be that she has mastered the art of splitting herself into two bodies?"
Feng Wu had cold sweat on his forehead and was stammering, unable to speak.
The young master scolded, "Asshole! How dare you convict the Third Young Master's personal maid without investigating the matter?"
Feng Wu fell to his knees.
This absurd false accusation finally collapsed under Feng Yanxuan's interference. The servants who had nearly committed perjury secretly congratulated themselves, thinking that if they had said even a little more, they would have been the ones kneeling on the execution platform.
Seeing the situation turn, the steward hurriedly followed Feng Jiu's instructions and concluded: Aunt Lu had misappropriated the seal of Yuanfeng Courtyard, falsely claimed jewelry and clothing, and then accidentally fell into the water while hiding. The seal must have sunk to the bottom of the lake. Although Lu Zhong had no actual evidence of involvement in the theft, his possession of Aunt Lu's access token showed ulterior motives. He was ordered to receive fifty slaps on the face and expel him from the Feng family.
The two young masters were quite satisfied with this compromise. Unexpectedly, the young master suddenly added a clause:
Feng Wu was biased and neglected his duties, nearly killing an innocent person and offending the Third Young Master's authority. He was publicly punished with 100 strokes of the cane and executed immediately.
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