Chapter 71: Holding the Stepmother by the Knife
Liu Jingchang, who was still pondering Han Yan's testimony, instantly darkened upon hearing this, and jumped out of the carriage, demanding, "What happened? Who died?"
"It is...it is Master Xu's concubine, Lady Liu!"
A servant from the Xu household came to report that Madam Liu had been murdered by Xu Erlang, and that Xu Erlang was now holding a knife to Madam Xu's neck, preventing anyone from approaching!
Pei Zhiwei's heart skipped a beat. Xu Ren?
That person was incredibly meticulous.
If someone could orchestrate such a covert patricide plot as the collapse of the ceremonial frame, how could they suddenly kill their aunt and kidnap their stepmother in public at the Xu residence?
What happened during that time?
She looked up and met Xiao Yunzhan's gaze; both of them had a solemn look in their eyes.
Xie Ji jumped off the carriage, yelling, "This kid really dares to keep causing trouble? Is nobody in Dangyang going to do anything about it?"
The group hurried towards the Xu residence. The gates of the Xu residence were wide open, and the group arrived at the main hall.
Several servants, their faces pale, stared warily at the main hall. When they saw Liu Jingchang arrive with his constables, they seemed to find their anchor and hurriedly came to greet him.
"Lord Liu! You've finally arrived! Erlang... he's going to kill someone!" The old servant's knees buckled and he tried to kneel, but Liu Jingchang caught him.
"What exactly happened inside? Explain yourself!"
"It's Madam Liu! Madam Liu is lying on the floor of the main hall, bleeding profusely... Erlang is holding a knife to Madam's neck, and he won't listen to anyone's advice, not even when Dalang came back..."
Before the old servant could finish speaking, a loud crash suddenly came from the main hall, like the sound of tables and chairs being overturned, followed by Wang's terrified scream.
Everyone rushed toward the main hall.
The moment you step across the threshold, the sight before you takes your breath away.
On the blue brick floor in the center of the main hall, a woman dressed in crimson brocade lay supine; it was Lady Liu.
Her clothes were soaked black with blood, her eyes were wide open, and there was still blood at the corner of her mouth; she was clearly no longer breathing.
In the corner, Xu Ren was gripping a dagger tightly, pressing it against Wang's neck.
Wang's hair was disheveled, half of her cheek was red and swollen, and her body was trembling like a leaf. Tears streamed down her face, but she dared not cry out loud.
Xu Li stood opposite the two men, stamping his feet anxiously, his right hand outstretched in mid-air, as if he wanted to go forward but was afraid of provoking Xu Ren.
"Xu Ren! Calm down! Wang is our stepmother, you can't hurt her!"
Xu Ren ignored him, his eyes were frighteningly red, and his eyeballs were covered with blood vessels, as if he hadn't slept for several nights.
He stared intently at the crowd at the door, his back pressed tightly against the corner of the wall, shielding Wang Shi in front of him.
"Lord Liu!" The first yamen runner to arrive was overjoyed to see Liu Jingchang and rushed over to report in a low voice.
“We were ordered to arrest Xu Ren. As soon as we entered the second gate, we saw Madam Liu lying on the ground, and Xu Ren holding a knife to Madam Xu.”
When we tried to step forward, he threatened to kill the lady if we moved again, and forced us to investigate Liu's fate...
Once the servants confirmed that Madam Liu was no longer breathing, he suddenly threw his head back and laughed, saying, "Serves her right! Who told this wretched woman to look down on me!"
Liu Jingchang's face turned ashen. "You're just going to stand by and watch? Can't you think of a way to save them?"
"How dare we!" the constable quickly explained.
"His knife was so close that if we moved even slightly, he would press the knife a little closer to Madam Xu's neck. We were afraid of killing someone, so we could only keep fighting with him."
Later, the eldest son returned and tried to persuade him for a long time, but it was no use. Look at him now, he's getting more and more insane!
Following the constable's gaze, everyone saw that Xu Ren had indeed become agitated again, his hand holding the dagger trembling slightly, and the blade left a small red mark on Wang's neck.
Blood slowly seeped out; it wasn't much, but it made people's hearts tighten.
He kept repeating, "Let me go! Get out of my way! Or I'll kill her!"
Xu Li slapped his thigh in frustration and shouted, "Xu Ren! What are you trying to do?"
No matter what grudge you had against Liu, she is dead!
Release Wang Shi, and I'll take responsibility for anything that happens to you!
Our Xu family is the richest family in Daliang, and also imperial merchants.
Even if you cause someone's death, your older brother will definitely find a way to smooth things over. Saving your life won't be difficult!
"Save my life?" Xu Ren suddenly burst into wild laughter, peeking out from behind Wang Shi and spitting all over her face.
"It's all because of you! If you weren't the eldest son, why would your father give you everything?"
From childhood to adulthood, you always have to choose first, whether it's good or bad. After you've made your choice, I might not even get to choose.
He was so poor that he didn't even have the money to tip his servants.
For so many years, everyone in Yangzhou has laughed at me, saying that I'm just carrying the name of Xu Erlang, but I'm nothing but rubbish.
I've ended up in this state entirely because of you!
Xu Li was stunned by his shout. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but didn't know where to start. He could only anxiously spin around in place: "Who made fun of you?"
Don't overthink it!
Someone must be gossiping behind your back. How can you believe them?
We're brothers, when have I ever taken anything from you?
Put the knife down first, let's talk this out!
"Take your time?" Xu Ren sneered, pushing the dagger closer to Wang's neck. "I have nothing to say to you!"
Seeing that he couldn't persuade him, Liu Jingchang took two steps forward, trying to make his tone sound calm: "Xu Ren, I am Liu Jingchang, the magistrate of Yangdu County."
Tell me your demands. As long as you don't harm Madam Xu, everything is negotiable.
Pei Zhiwei did not follow forward, but instead carefully observed Xu Ren's position.
He huddled in the corner of the wall, with solid walls on both sides and Wang Shi in front of him.
He was shielded from both front and back, his head was tucked behind Wang's head, and even the hand holding the knife was hidden behind Wang's shoulder, leaving only a section of the blade pressed against Wang's neck from bottom to top.
She quietly moved closer to Xiao Yunzhan, her voice extremely low: "His posture is too tricky. There's no angle to even hit his hand holding the knife. Unless you can get around Wang Shi, there's no opening at all."
Xiao Yunzhan nodded, his eyes fixed on Xu Ren's movements: "We can't move now, otherwise we might accidentally kill Wang Shi."
Although he looks crazy now, he's posing more cautiously than anyone else; he's definitely not truly out of his mind.
Xie Ji, listening nearby, couldn't help but mutter under his breath, "That's right! If they were really crazy, they would have been hacking and slashing indiscriminately long ago. Why would they be so careful to hide themselves so well?"
I think he's just faking his madness, trying to escape in the chaos!
Liu Jingchang was still negotiating with Xu Ren: "Tell me, what do you want? As long as it's within my power, I can agree to it."
Xu Ren suddenly fell silent, a sinister glint flashing in his eyes: "Don't you already know what I did?"
I committed an unforgivable crime; what is there to discuss?
Upon hearing this, Pei Zhiwei and Xiao Yunzhan both frowned.
Although Han Yan had confessed that Xu Ren had orchestrated the collapse of the scaffolding, she hadn't told anyone else except for herself and Liu Jingchang. How did Xu Ren know that they had already investigated his patricide?
Pei Zhiwei quickly pulled over the first yamen runner and whispered, "Did you tell him that we found out he killed Xu Fengyan?"
The constable shook his head repeatedly: "When we arrived, he was already holding a knife to Madam Xu, which meant he was confirming whether Madam Liu was alive or dead."
There wasn't even time to mention the rest.
Pei Zhiwei and Xiao Yunzhan exchanged a glance, both wondering: How did Xu Ren know that they had already investigated the patricide?
If the masked man who assassinated Han Yan came back to report, why didn't he just run away instead of making such a big commotion?
Xu Li clearly did not understand the meaning of "unforgivable crimes". "You killed Liu Shi, who was just Father's concubine. How could she be unforgivable crimes?"
Please don't get the wrong idea.
You don't need to pay for her life at all.
"Pay with your life?" Xu Ren laughed again, laughing until tears almost came out. "I killed more than just Liu Shi."
You think the colorful display stand for Yuhuchun collapsed by accident? I deliberately made it collapse!
I killed my father! I killed Chen Gong!
And those people who were injured, it was all my fault!
Would this be considered an unforgivable crime?
"What did you say?" Xu Li was stunned, as if struck by lightning, his face turning deathly pale.
"You killed Father? How dare you...Are you insane?"
"Mad? You've driven me mad!" Xu Ren became even more agitated and slashed Wang's neck again with the dagger.
"Father has always favored you; even a concubine dares to look down on me!"
Why can't I kill them? Why should I, an illegitimate child, have nothing?
Wang was so frightened that she trembled all over, and tears streamed down her face even more. She dared not cry out loud, and could only plead softly, "Xu Ren, I have never looked down on you, please let me go..."
Xu Ren ignored her and shouted, "Everyone, step back!"
I need two fast horses and a carriage!
No one is allowed to follow me. I will release her once I am safely out of the city!
"If you dare to try anything funny, I'll kill her right now!"
Liu Jingchang hesitated for a moment, then said to the Xu family servant beside him, "Quickly prepare the carriage!"
As your second son said, the sooner the better!
Xie Ji, who was listening from behind, was puzzled and quietly moved closer to Pei Zhiwei.
"This Lord Liu is usually such an upright person, how could he so easily agree to Xu Ren's conditions for the sake of Lady Wang? Just who is this Lady Wang?"
Pei Zhiwei also found it strange.
These days, I've been dealing with Liu Jingchang and I've found that his personality is exactly like his appearance—a perfect example of an upright and honest military general.
She and Xiao Yunzhan exchanged a glance, both wondering why Liu Jingchang would compromise so readily today.
Before long, a servant from the Xu family drove over in a carriage. Two fast horses were tied to the sides of the carriage shaft, their hooves pawing at the ground, appearing somewhat restless.
When Xu Ren saw the carriage arrive, his eyes lit up, but he didn't move immediately. Instead, he stared intently at the crowd and said, "Everyone, step back!"
"Anyone who dares to follow me, I'll kill her!"
With no other option, the crowd could only slowly retreat until they reached the outside of the main hall, watching helplessly as Xu Ren, holding a dagger to Wang Shi, moved step by step toward the door.
He walked very carefully, keeping his head hidden behind Wang Shi the whole time.
Just as Xu Ren was about to step out the door, he suddenly stopped, let out a muffled groan, and the dagger in his hand clattered to the ground.
He slid down Wang's body and fell to the ground, motionless.
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