Chapter 99 The Determination to Leave. ...
After Yin Yuan's death, Yi Yinwan managed the household affairs for a few days. When she had some free time, she summoned Leng Cuizhu and Leng Zhen to the main hall.
"Sit down," Yi Yinwan said, sitting in the main seat. She waved her sleeve at the two of them and looked up to ask, "Where is Jiang Shi? Why didn't she come to pay her respects?"
Leng Zhen naturally sat down to Yi Yinwan's right: "Jiang Mimi went home to visit her family."
Leng Cuizhu didn't want to sit too close to anyone, so she chose a seat a little further away and sat obediently.
“Zhen’er,” Yi Yinwan sighed, “your father has passed away, so your wedding… let’s postpone it for a few years.”
Leng Zhen lowered her eyes: "Yes, Mother, I understand."
"Also, this house cannot be without a master for long." Yi Yinwan turned the gold ring on her finger. "I've been very busy these past few days dealing with the master's funeral arrangements, so Aunt Xiaozhu will be in charge of the affairs of the mansion. Once this is over, I will take over the management."
"Ah," Leng Cuizhu hurriedly replied, "Yes, Madam, I will do my best..."
Leng Zhen frowned: "Why?"
“You are too young and not yet married. I am not comfortable entrusting such a large mansion and hundreds of people to you.”
Leng Zhen slammed her hand on the table and stood up, pointing at Leng Cuizhu: "Then why can't I? Why can she, an outsider, interfere?"
Leng Cuizhu was somewhat at a loss, and lowered her head in silence, waiting for Yi Yinwan to continue.
Instead of hearing what happened next, she heard Leng Zhen pointing her finger at her and cursing.
"It's all because of her, because of that bitch, that Father died! He was perfectly fine before she came, but he died as soon as she arrived. She's the one who killed him!"
He became inexplicably agitated and shouted at the dozen or so servants in the main hall, "Guards, seize this wicked woman and lock her up in the woodshed! Once the funeral is over, hand her over to the authorities."
The servants inside the hall looked at each other, but none of them made a move.
"I said seize her! Don't you understand? I am the head of this household, how can you disobey my orders?"
“Lily of the Valley,” Yi Yinwan said, sipping her tea, “Go and take the young master back. He’s overworked and has lost his mind.”
The maidservant went to pull Leng Zhen when she heard the noise, but Leng Zhen suddenly threw her away, causing her to fall to the ground, twist her ankle, and be unable to stand up.
"Ah, Miss Linglan." Upon seeing this, Leng Cuizhu hurriedly ran to help the little maid, only to be scolded by Leng Zhen.
"What are you pretending to be a good person for, Leng Cuizhu? You must have been in cahoots with them all along, weren't you? You planned to kill my father and then usurp the power to take over the Yin family mansion. You vile woman!"
“Your Aunt Xiaozhu isn’t a slut.” Yi Yinwan stood up, blocking Leng Cuizhu’s way, and took off the gold ring and bracelet from her hand in front of Leng Zhen. “But I am.”
As she spoke, she clenched her fist and swung it at Leng Zhen's face.
That punch was extremely powerful, not only knocking Leng Zhen to the ground, but also causing him to vomit blood.
Yi Yinwan squatted down, grabbed his collar, and punched him again.
"Hey, Yinwan, don't fight..." Leng Cuizhu hurriedly tried to pull Yi Yinwan away, but she couldn't budge her and almost got hit in the face by Yi Yinwan's elbow. Helpless, she stepped aside and watched as Leng Zhen was beaten without any chance to fight back.
After the beating was over, Yi Yinwan stood up, wiped the bloodstains from her hands with a handkerchief, and called out to the servants in the hall.
"What are you standing there for? The young master has been possessed by a ghost and gone mad. Lock him up and find a sorcerer!"
Upon hearing this, the servants immediately swarmed forward and scooped Leng Zhen up from the ground.
Leng Zhen, having lost a tooth from the beating, moved her lips and cursed with all her might: "Yi Yinwan, you ungrateful, treacherous bitch! Now that you've achieved your goal, you want to absolve yourself of all responsibility..."
Yi Yinwan: "Quick, gag him!"
Upon hearing the noise, the servant quickly grabbed a rag from the table and stuffed it into Leng Zhen's mouth.
Leng Zhen was powerless to resist and could only let several servants carry him out of the hall. He could only let out a few weak sobs and was helpless.
After recovering from the fight, Leng Cuizhu moved to the incense table, picked up the teacup, and was about to take a sip when she was suddenly patted on the shoulder.
"Xiao Zhu," Yi Yinwan leaned closer, "I'll trouble you to take good care of the household affairs during this time. Once this period is over, I will pay you the agreed-upon reward in one lump sum, and then you can leave."
“Hmm,” she turned around and nodded hesitantly, “Yes… Madam.”
"What does Madam intend to do with Leng Zhen?"
“I wish I could poison him so he would be mute and bury the secret he knows forever in his heart,” Yi Yinwan sighed. “But that would be too cruel, and it wouldn’t sound good if it got out. So, I’m thinking of locking him up in the house until he changes his ways and is willing to live a quiet life and stop spreading rumors.”
Leng Cuizhu nodded: "That's fine too."
In the following days, she was busy dealing with all the big and small matters in the mansion, and Yi Yinwan was also busy arranging the funeral. They were too busy to pay attention to Leng Zhen, who was locked in the woodshed.
"Oh, today seems to be the seventh day after his death," Leng Cuizhu thought suddenly, putting down the account book in her hand.
"Yes, it's the seventh day after death." Yi Yinwan lowered her head and dozed off. She said to the little maid beside her, "Linglan, tell all the men and women in the manor to go to bed early today. Mo Tianhei is still wandering around outside. Any unfinished work can be done tomorrow morning."
"Lady Leng, you should go to bed early tonight too. Don't disturb him and make him reluctant to leave, or even cling to you."
"Okay..." she said with some emotion, but ultimately said nothing.
After nightfall, she went to bed early, lay down to rest, but couldn't fall asleep, and silently closed her eyes.
A cold wind blew in her face, and she half-opened her eyes, noticing that the window at the far end of the dormitory was not closed.
Outside the window, it was pitch black, and the cold wind howled and lingered by the window. The frost that had condensed on the window frame slowly rose into the air, and the cold moonlight mixed with the eerie snowflakes rushed into the room, filled with resentment.
She didn't dare close the window, so she crawled into the blankets, wrapped herself up completely, and closed her eyes tightly.
After a while, the howling wind stopped, and her anxious heart finally calmed down. She peeked her head out from under the covers and looked at the dark room.
A considerable weight pressed down on her from above, like a piece of silk soaked in water, clinging to her body and holding her tightly.
She closed her eyes again.
It felt like a dream, yet it also seemed like it wasn't a dream... She couldn't remember.
She only remembered that the person whispered something in her ear—she couldn't recall what it said.
She doesn't remember, but she understands.
Both of them understood...
Unfortunately, old stories fade with time, and all resentment, all unspoken understanding, and all genuine feelings will eventually disappear with the years.
In the middle of the night, the sound of the burnt-out candlestick falling to the ground beside her bed reached her ears.
She woke up with a start, got up, and looked at the window at the far end of the road.
The windows were already closed, but the dim firelight from outside shone through, and a few shouts could still be faintly heard.
"The water's rising—the water's rising—"
"Ah, there's a fire..." She hurriedly put on her coat, got out of bed, and ran to the door. She tried to push the door open but couldn't, so she struggled to break it open.
Stepping outside, she saw black smoke billowing overhead and servants running around frantically throughout the mansion. She grabbed one of them and asked, "Where is the fire?"
"It seems the fire started in the front stable! The guards who usually keep watch at night were all asleep, and without one watching, the fire spread everywhere!"
After saying that, the man hurriedly went to help put out the fire, leaving Leng Cuizhu standing there.
She certainly couldn't help with putting out the fire, and might even cause trouble for others, but it would be very strange if she turned around and went back to sleep as if nothing had happened. She clenched her handkerchief, worried about Leng Zhen who was still locked in the woodshed in the backyard, and set off for the backyard.
Most of the fires were in the front yard, and all the servants in the mansion rushed to the front yard to put out the fires. The back yard was very quiet, with only the occasional chirping of sparrows.
"Leng Zhen?"
She pushed open the door to the woodshed and peeked inside.
The room was pitch black, and no outlines could be seen, let alone people.
She picked up the lantern she had taken from the corridor earlier and walked into the house, glancing around as she went. Before she could even use the lantern to light her way, her arm was suddenly grabbed, her body was turned halfway around, and a dagger was held to her neck.
"What's going on outside?" Leng Zhen asked in a cold voice.
“…The fire has started.” She looked down at the gleaming dagger at her neck, regretting that she shouldn’t have softened her heart and worried about whether someone who didn’t care about her family would get into trouble.
"Fire broke out?" Leng Zhen chuckled and sneered, "Great, perfect... I'll help you out and talk to them."
Leng Zhen supported her as they walked towards the front yard, the dagger in her hand held against her neck the whole way, tightening its grip further and further.
The servants, busy putting out the fire, were startled to see him carrying a cold green candle.
Leng Zhen: "Summon the mistress! If she doesn't come to see me within a quarter of an hour, I'll kill her!"
A moment later, the fire in the mansion was completely extinguished. Yi Yinwan arrived with several maids. Seeing the situation, she frowned and asked, "Why didn't you stay in your room and get some rest? Why did you have to go and provoke him?"
Leng Cuizhu was stunned for a while before realizing that Yi Yinwan was asking her, "Uh..." Knowing that she had no way to explain, she lowered her head in embarrassment.
Yi Yinwan then asked Leng Zhen, "Zhen'er, why are you going to such lengths? We're all relatives, why are you shouting and fighting?"
"Enough with the nonsense!" Leng Zhen said to herself, "Hand over the steward's silver token to me, and I'll become the head of this household. You can live a peaceful life as a respectable old woman, and I'll let her go!"
“I already said that once you get married and have a child, I’ll let you manage the household.” Yi Yinwan sighed. “These things are all negotiable. Why are you making such a big deal out of this, forcing me to resign? There’s no throne to inherit in our family, so why are you taking this so seriously!”
"Just one question: will you give it to me or not?"
"No." Yi Yinwan spread her hands. "Kill me or torture me, it's up to you. Anyway..."
Leng Zhen actually gripped the knife handle tightly and stabbed the tip of the knife into Leng Cuizhu's neck, piercing the skin, and warm blood slowly flowed out from the cut.
Her eyes widened, and she was forced to crane her neck, the tingling pain quickly spreading throughout her body.
Leng Zhen tried to stab a little deeper, but the dagger in her hand was snatched away, and her legs were kicked from behind, causing her to fall to the ground in pain.
"Quickly, tie up the sinner."
The coldness on her neck suddenly disappeared. Leng Cuizhu turned her head and saw several jailers dressed in black clothes and red pants subduing Leng Zhen on the ground and binding her hands and legs with hemp rope.
"This..." She looked up at the person who was slowly walking out of the crowd, her eyes filled with doubt.
"Jiang'e..." She abruptly closed her lips, paused for a moment, and then asked, "Lord Chen, what brings you here?"
Chen Xun waved his hand: "Yes, of course the criminal has been apprehended and brought to justice."
As he spoke, he took out a scroll, unfurled it, and read aloud: "Leng Zhen, your crimes are heinous. You have been on the run for seven years, and your crimes are countless. You once imprisoned my daughter, the Princess of Anning County, and subjected her to the most cruel tortures, forcing her to a miserable death. You also set fire to the house, killing the Princess's fiancé, the young Marquis Si. Your blood debts are numerous and unforgivable. Now that the evidence is conclusive and the law cannot tolerate this, I hereby order you to arrest you and bring you to justice, to punish you and serve as a warning to others!"
“This arrest warrant was issued to me by the Prince,” Chen Xun said, rolling up the scroll. “Young Master Leng Zhen, do you know your crime?”
Upon hearing this, everyone present was stunned.
"W-what?" Leng Zhen's eyes widened in exasperation. "Nonsense! Utter nonsense! Chen Xun, I know you've always disliked me and tried every means to get rid of me, but I really didn't expect you to be so twisted as to fabricate such baseless charges against me!"
He didn't know how Chen Xun knew about what he had done. He had clearly kept it well hidden and never let any unrelated people know... How did he find out?
"You don't like me?"
Chen Xun crossed his arms: "Young Master Leng, I have evidence in hand, both witnesses and physical evidence. The Prince of the County issued the arrest warrant after reviewing the evidence. Do you want to see the evidence? Or are you dissatisfied with this conclusion and want to appeal to the Emperor? You think too highly of yourself. The Emperor has no time to listen to your grievances."
"You, you..." Leng Zhen's eyes were bloodshot, but she couldn't utter any words of explanation. She stared at the crowd around her in despair and collapsed to the ground.
"Men, put the criminal on a horse and take him to the Dali Temple at top speed. There, someone will be able to deal with him."
Under Leng Cuizhu's utterly shocked gaze, several jailers carried Leng Zhen onto a horse and rode towards the Dali Temple, which was more than ten miles away. In the blink of an eye, they disappeared into the long alley.
"The client said that as long as the murderer is identified, his relatives will not be held accountable." Chen Xun walked to her side and said in a low voice, "So my wife doesn't need to worry. Even if someone has made a mistake, I will help you cover it up, after all, we are allies."
“Ah,” Leng Cuizhu frowned and curtsied, “Thank you, sir…”
"Lord Chen," Yi Yinwan called to Chen Xun, "Come in and sit down, have a cup of hot tea before you leave. Xiao Zhu, you too, it's freezing cold in the middle of the night, don't stand outside."
Yi Yinwan led her and Chen Xun to the hall, had charcoal lit and a pot of hot tea brewed, gave Leng Cuizhu a few instructions, and then left with her maid.
Seeing that there were no outsiders in the hall, Leng Cuizhu asked softly, "Lord Chen, who are you...?"
“My lady, please just call me Mimi,” Jiang Mimi said with a smile, her eyes narrowed. “My real name is Mimi. Chen Xun is the name of my late husband. I’m just using it.”
She nodded: "Miss Mimi, you left the manor a few days ago to prepare for tonight's events, weren't you? I wonder if you would be willing to tell me... how long have you been planning this?"
"About six or seven years." Jiang Mimi pondered for a moment. "Back then, when Lord Yin was still my colleague and serving in the same county, he started plotting. At that time, the Princess of Anning County had only been missing for a short while when her sister came to me and asked me to investigate the Princess's matter."
"After that, Lord Yin told me that he had a mistress outside, and that the child was extremely disobedient and had the potential to be a murderer and arsonist. He asked me to cooperate with him and find a pretext to lock the child up in jail and toughen him up. At that time, I began to have doubts about Leng Zhen, but I had no evidence."
"So, through Lord Yin Yuan's connection, Mi Mi got close to Young Master Leng Zhen, and after five or six years, she managed to make him lower his guard against me, and finally found the evidence." Jiang Mi Mi covered her lips, "I didn't expect that she would also find out about the Marquis's matter in the process."
"Of course, this is also thanks to Madam Yi's help. If Madam Yi hadn't set the fire in advance to lure the snake out of its hole, Mimi's plan tonight wouldn't have progressed so smoothly."
"I never expected you to have such thoughts, I never expected Madam to have such thoughts..." Leng Cuizhu's eyes narrowed. "It's all thanks to Miss Mimi, all thanks to Sister Yi..."
She thought no one could punish Leng Zhen in her lifetime. Fortunately, Leng Zhen didn't get away with it forever.
"Alas, my lady, please don't think of me as some righteous and awe-inspiring official. I'm afraid I can't bear the responsibility," Jiang Mimi sighed. "I was merely acting out of selfishness."
"The young county princess promised me that as long as I help her find out the truth about her sister's disappearance, she would be willing to marry me against all odds and pour all the connections and support she could get her hands on into me, so that I could rise step by step and soar to great heights."
“That’s not bad either,” Leng Cuizhu said, pursing her lips. “A gentleman judges by actions, not intentions.”
After everything at the Yin residence settled down, Leng Cuizhu boarded the carriage for the return journey, carrying several carriages of silver and treasures given to her by Yi Yinwan.
Before she left, Jiang Mimi came to tell her that she would write to her after Leng Zhen's verdict was announced, and that she would send her wedding invitations with the young county princess so that she could attend the wedding banquet. She readily agreed.
The roads were difficult to travel on snowy days. After more than ten days of arduous travel, she returned home to her own home in the mountains.
The rooster standing on the stone steps at the gate saw the carriage parked by the roadside and hurriedly ran over.
Leng Cuizhu was being helped down from the carriage by her maid. The rooster was rubbing against her skirt, and she said impatiently, "Stop it. The things in the carriage haven't been unloaded yet. Wait a little longer."
"But you broke your promise," the rooster crowed behind her, "Macau has returned to China, but you haven't, and today is the winter solstice!"
As she helped the servant unload the luggage from the carriage, she apologized, saying, "I'm so sorry, I broke my promise. I'm really sorry."
"Go back quickly and tell them to boil more hot water; I'm going to take a bath later."
"Okay, I got it." The rooster nodded and trotted back home.
After she finished moving her things, she walked into the house while breathing on her hands and rubbing them together. As she entered, she saw Eun sitting at the table pruning the wintersweet branches, and she went over to take a look.
"The wintersweet flowers are blooming so early..."
The man looked up, his silver hair still damp with unmelted snowflakes, which shimmered in the candlelight.
"Yes, it's colder this year than in previous years."
The two looked at each other in silence for a long time before the man finally put down the candle stick, got up, took off her cloak from her shoulders, folded it, and hung it to dry to the side.
"Did you have a good time, Miss?"
She smiled and nodded.
The man stepped forward, and she leaned against his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist.
The man pulled her into his arms, his wide robe enveloping her: "Miss, my strange illness and that of Dodder were cured not long ago; the curse has been lifted."
She answered softly, "Yes, from now on, nothing can separate us."
Nothing can restrain her anymore.
Nothing can stop her now.
Whether superficial or profound, vain or sincere, she will always be herself and determined to leave.
—End of text—
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Author's Note: This ending was planned from the beginning. I think it's a happy ending; Xiaozhu gains freedom and a happy life, and those who hurt her in the past receive their due punishment. [Milk Tea]
The extra chapters will be released irregularly, but there will be at least one chapter per week.
Red envelopes will be dropped in this chapter!
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