Chapter 18 Are all women from wealthy families cold-hearted? ...
The ash mixed with blood and foam spread a murky dark color on the blue brick floor, reflecting Feng Chao's twisted state of mind at this moment.
Xiao Yunzhan's boots pressed against his chest, each breath bringing a tearing pain, yet the obsessive flame in Feng Chao's eyes burned ever brighter.
"They deserve to die!" The voice was hoarse and broken from being sanded by the sandpaper, yet it was wrapped in a mad pleasure. "Born into an official's family, they could enjoy endless luxury, yet they still had to open their eyes and try to squeeze into the high-class gates! They even used their sincerity as a bargaining chip, what are they if not despicable people?"
Pei Zhiwei's gaze swept over his face, which was contorted with anger, as calmly as if she were looking at a piece of rotten wood that had long been eaten away by worms.
"True feelings as a bargaining chip?" she repeated softly, her tone completely flat. "And how do you know that those 'diamonds' weren't pushed along by their families, imperial decrees, and worldly rules, without any control over their own lives?"
"Helpless?" Feng Chao struggled violently, but was pressed down even more by Xiao Yunzhan's feet. Cold sweat streamed down his forehead, and he still roared hoarsely.
"I've been guarding this matchmaking temple for ten years! I've seen countless women cry one day while clutching the handkerchief of a poor scholar, and the next day they come dressed in fine silks and brocades, begging to marry into a wealthy family!"
Su Wenqing was willing to give all her money to Wang Yulan to buy sweet cakes, and Lin Mo'an dared to defy her elders for Shen Qingyuan. What about them? They abandoned everything with just a phrase like "my father's command!"
He was panting heavily, spittle splattering onto the blue bricks: "He even believed such nonsense as 'On the night of the full moon, I will personally hand over the talisman to ensure a smooth marriage'!"
"These elegant ladies from prestigious families, opening their doors to a stranger like me in the dead of night—isn't this just an impatient lust for vanity?"
His voice suddenly lowered, as if touching the deepest, most painful scar in his heart: "The ridiculous thing is that I once loved a woman like that... I saved up for three months to buy her a silver hairpin. When she smiled, her eyes were brighter than the peonies in the temple."
But as soon as her father was promoted, she immediately married the son of a high-ranking official. When I went to see her, she only said, "You can't give me what I want..." You daughters of officials are all cold-hearted to the core!
“Cold-blooded?” Pei Zhiwei’s tone was full of sarcasm.
"Wang Yulan approached Su Wenqing three times, saying she was willing to go to the countryside with him to farm, even if it meant going to the ends of the earth. But Su Wenqing would only say 'wait a little longer,' lacking even the courage to step out of his house. You clearly knew all of this from beginning to end, didn't you?"
Feng Chao stiffened, a flicker of panic crossing his eyes, which was quickly masked by madness: "He comes from a poor family, he has his reasons!"
"So your predicament is a reason for you to kill her?" Xiao Yunzhan said sarcastically, slowly leaning down, his gaze piercing Feng Chao's eyes like a knife.
"If you truly feel indignant about this 'injustice,' you should be looking for Wang Chen, who forced her into marriage, or the cowardly and timid Su Wenqing. But you only dare to lay a hand on unarmed women. You're just using your own incompetence as an excuse for indiscriminate killing."
He paused, then unconsciously increased the pressure on his feet. Feng Chao immediately groaned and vomited another mouthful of blood onto the blue bricks.
"As for Qin Chaochao, she is unwilling to marry because of my cold treatment in the corridor, and because she never thought of relying on marriage to climb the social ladder."
All you've said proves is that the woman who left you back then wasn't a gold digger; she simply finally saw through you and realized you were nothing but a maggot hiding in the gutter.
Feng Chao trembled all over from what he was being said, but he still stubbornly roared, "I'm not wrong! They are wrong! If they hadn't been so vain, how could they have ended up like this? I'm not wrong!"
Xiao Yunzhan, too lazy to argue with him any longer, called out in a deep voice, "Li Rong!"
Li Rong pushed open the door and entered. The two guards behind him looked even more solemn when they saw the mess inside the room and Feng Chao's insane appearance.
"Take him back to the Dali Temple and hand him over to Pei Shaoqing for rigorous interrogation. Anyone involved in this case, regardless of who is implicated, must be thoroughly investigated," Xiao Yunzhan ordered in a deep voice.
"yes!"
The guards stepped forward and bound Feng Chao tightly. As the cold iron chains locked his wrists, he struggled to turn around and roared at Pei Zhiwei and Xiao Yunzhan, "I did nothing wrong! They deserved to die! I'm never wrong!"
The sound of chains being dragged, mixed with roars, gradually faded away, and the room finally returned to silence, leaving only the still-wet blood foam and incense ash on the blue brick floor, gleaming coldly in the twilight.
Xiao Yunzhan slowly withdrew his foot and exhaled heavily—that breath contained both the relief of solving the case and an indescribable heaviness.
"Actually, that day in the corridor, I was upset because I had just failed to persuade my brother to accept the marriage proposal. My mind was full of how to reason with him, and I really didn't pay attention to her." His voice was low and tinged with guilt.
"If Chuntao hadn't mentioned it that day, I wouldn't have even known she was in the corridor... Although the murderer has been caught, the thought of her losing her life because of it still makes me feel guilty."
Upon hearing this, Pei Zhiwei's gaze softened. This was the first time she had ever seen this usually composed prince reveal such straightforward guilt.
She walked slowly to his side and said softly, "Your Highness need not blame yourself too much. Lady Qin's misfortune stems from Feng Chao's stubbornness, not from Your Highness's fault."
She paused, then looked up at Xiao Yunzhan, her eyes filled with genuine approval: "Besides, you didn't hastily close the case because of the royal family's reputation. Instead, you investigated the details time and time again, even setting aside your princely status to personally go to the cloth shop and jewelry store to look for clues."
This single-minded dedication to finding the true culprit for Lady Qin is the best consolation one can offer her.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yunzhan was taken aback at first, then turned to look at Pei Zhiwei.
The soft sunlight, gradually setting in the west, fell gently on her plain-colored dress, making the clarity and openness in her eyes even more apparent.
He suddenly remembered her crouching on the carpet in the Qin mansion, following the light to find that faint half-shoe print; he remembered her keen insight in the alley where Zhang Yanzhi was assassinated, where she only glanced at the footprint and immediately recognized it as a forgery.
If it weren't for her, this case would probably have been sealed with the conclusion of "suicide" long ago, with no possibility of overturning it.
"Speaking of which, you're the one who should thank me." Xiao Yunzhan's tone softened, and his eyes shone with a bright appreciation.
"You managed to find every single clue that the coroner and the constables missed. Without your meticulous examination, this case wouldn't have been classified, and Madam Qin wouldn't have been exonerated today."
Hearing him say that, Pei Zhiwei's cheeks flushed slightly, and she lowered her eyes gently: "Your Highness flatters me too much. I was just doing what I was supposed to do."
Just then, Li Rong's voice came from outside the door. He strode in and whispered a few words in Xiao Yunzhan's ear.
Xiao Yunzhan's eyes lit up, and he turned to Pei Zhiwei and said, "I have urgent business to attend to here and must leave first. I'll have Li Rong escort you back." He then turned to Li Rong and instructed him, "Make sure to escort Madam Pei back to the manor safely and without any mishaps."
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