Chapter 23: When he died, his limbs were dismembered and his head was chopped off. ...
A few dark clouds floated across the sky, covering most of the scorching sun.
Zhu Hao stood on the street outside Zhu's house. The house where she grew up was now a pile of ruins. The wind blew from afar, carrying dust and ashes.
It had been half a month since the fire at Zhu's residence, but this was the first time Zhu Hao had mustered the courage to come here. Because Zhang Qian had been dismissed from his post, the case of the Zhu residence fire was still under the jurisdiction of Chief Bo Lin. After a detailed investigation lasting half a month, Chief Bo Lin ruled the disaster a common fire accident.
First, the fire originated in the courtyard adjacent to Zhu Hao's boudoir. This courtyard had been her parents' former residence, and had been abandoned for over a decade. Zhu Lanxiang had moved all the antiques and jade from that room to her own courtyard, instead piling up miscellaneous items here. A detailed investigation by the government revealed that the fire was caused by a gauze lantern hanging from the eaves, blown down by the night wind. The window, left open, allowed sparks to drift into the inner room, where they coincided with the night's sweltering heat, causing the blaze to spread.
Secondly, Lin Zhubo had questioned the servants of the Zhu family, but none of them could find out anything unusual from their mouths. They all said the same thing, without any flaws.
Third, the fire originated far from the servants' quarters, near Zhu Hao's boudoir. Consequently, the servants, sensing the smoke, had already fled, leaving her, their "master," trapped in the flames. Fortunately, Song Xieqing rescued her. No one died, nothing unusual occurred, and there were no witnesses. Even if someone was behind the incident, it could only be dismissed as a common fire accident.
Zhu Hao was quite suspicious. A rule in the Zhu family was that all lights in each room should be extinguished at midnight. So why hadn't the lantern been extinguished in a deserted room filled with junk? It would have been fine if the window hadn't been closed, but it just so happened that the lantern had been blown down by the night wind, and even more so, the sparks had flown right into the inner room.
Zhu Hao reported this suspicion to Lin Zhubo, and the two of them found Miaoli, the maid who owned this house.
Miaoli's voice trembled as she replied, stuttering. On the day of the incident, she had eaten mushrooms sent by a friend from Nanjun. She was just a housemaid, her cooking skills were passable, and she had rushed to eat the undercooked mushrooms, which had caused some poisoning. Her mind was hazy, and when she went to the courtyard to turn off the lights, she was too busy to extinguish the eaves lamp. Unexpectedly, the night wind blew, and the small window was left open, causing a fire.
Although the doctor Miaolijing had checked and found that there was indeed some residual poison in his body, Zhu Hao still felt something was wrong.
Since Miaoli was responsible for the fire at Zhu's house, she should have paid Zhu Hao the corresponding compensation. However, Miaoli was only a country maid whose parents had died young, so where would she have come from? Zhu Hao, mindful that she was only about to turn sixteen and, like her, had lost her parents at a young age, had arranged for Miaoli to be her personal attendant and help her with household chores, thereby paying off the debt. Although she wouldn't receive a monthly salary, she had room and board, and since Miaoli had been at fault first, she naturally agreed.
"Pedestrians, make way! Move back to the side of the street! Hey! I told you! Don't push! Move to the sides!"
"Throw it if you want! Just make sure it doesn't hit us on the head!"
Zhu Hao glanced sideways at the sound and saw two yamen runners pulling at wrist-thick iron chains, dragging none other than You Yan. He was shackled and chained, crawling on his knees while the surrounding civilians threw rotten vegetable leaves and eggs at him.
On the day of the trial, You Yan still believed that the judge was Zhang Qian, so he declared that if he was really the one who committed the crime, he would kneel down and crawl on his knees in public.
Zhu Hao laughed at him, but he brought it upon himself.
After the second trial, Pei Yingchen, the Shaoqing of the Dali Temple, had also found out that the death of Lin Zhubo's daughter and the case of Qinggui's mother committing suicide due to humiliation were both related to You Yan. Afterwards, a group of people successively accused Pei Yingchen of You Yan's remaining evil deeds. The government office was extremely busy because of this. The number of You Yan's crimes was nearly a hundred, which made it impossible for Pei Yingchen to return to Beijing immediately after the trial.
This morning, You Yan's case was finally settled. He had committed years of evil, harming countless people and deserved the death penalty. While most death row prisoners were executed in the autumn, for You Yan, even one extra day of life would be an insult to his soul. Therefore, Pei Yingchen ordered that after You Yan had crawled on his knees for seven days, he could be executed on the spot.
And Zhu Lanxiang... Zhu Hao smiled. You Yan himself was not having a good time, so naturally he didn't want to see others having a good time. The written deeds he presented as proof of his collusion with Zhu Lanxiang were all authentic evidence. No matter how Zhu Lanxiang argued, it was of no use.
Therefore, Zhu Lanxiang was charged with the crime of collusion, but Zhu Lanxiang fought to the death and insisted that she had nothing to do with the matter. She was completely unaware of You Yan's conspiracy and even went to jail to prove her innocence. The government had to review the case again. The result was that apart from the written contract presented by You Yan, Zhu Lanxiang did not see any other suspicious points, so she was only sentenced to one year in prison.
The Zhu family owns a cloth shop and a garment shop. Zhu's father and mother are top embroidery technicians. More than ten years ago, when Zhu's parents were still alive, the business of the two shops was booming, and demand could hardly keep up with supply. However, since Zhu's mother passed away and Zhu's father fell ill, the two shops have been declining.
Zhu's father died when Zhu Hao was five years old, and the two shops were temporarily handed over to Zhu Lanxiang for management. She had no knowledge of embroidery and was stingy with the monthly wages of the embroiderers and seamstresses, so she fired them and recruited several low-paid workers from other places, causing the quality of the shops to decline sharply. Within a few years, the business lost its former glory, and the Zhu family was surpassed by the newly opened shops in Huaicheng.
During the year that Zhu Lanxiang was in prison, Zhu Haode found out the cause of Zhu's father's death and put the two businesses back on track.
You Yan noticed Zhu Hao's gaze, he turned sideways, and the two of them looked at the pedestrians across Huai Street.
He was wearing prison clothes, and his legs were bleeding from crawling on his knees for many days. You Yan was covered in dust and looked extremely miserable. He saw Zhu Hao standing across the street, and his eyes suddenly widened, and the whites of his eyes turned red. You Yan wanted to rush over and fight her to the death, but before he could stand up, he was suppressed by the guards and urged to crawl forward on his knees.
Zhu Hao glanced elsewhere and happened to see Miao Li walking through the crowd holding the headband she had embroidered a few days ago.
Although Miaoli was only sixteen years old, she was quite strong and energetic, and her strength was comparable to that of other boys her age. Therefore, she helped Zhu Hao a lot. Although her cheeks were peculiar, her lips and nose were exquisite and delicate, and her bright almond eyes made her look lively and energetic. However, due to her young age, her mind was not very stable.
Miaoli placed the headband neatly on her palm and handed it to Zhu Hao. "Sister Zhu, because Young Master You was parading on his knees, the streets were crowded, and I was late for nearly half a quarter of an hour. Miaoli apologizes to you. Sister Zhu, you are welcome to punish me in any way you want."
After spending half a month with Miaoli, Zhu Hao was 80% certain that even if the fire was not caused solely by Miaoli's fault, she would not be instigated by others to start the fire. Miaoli was at most a leaf used by the mastermind to deceive others.
If it was really her fault, since Miaoli and Zhuhao were in the same situation and she did not intend to burn down the house, why would Zhuhao bother with a little girl?
She took the headband and wiped the sweat from Miaoli's temples with her sleeve. "Since you've already delivered this, why should I punish you?"
With the Zhu residence in ruins and Zhu Lanxiang imprisoned, Zhu Hao dismissed all the servants. Since her parents' death, she was no longer a pampered young lady. Furthermore, she and Miaoli shared most of the household chores, so Zhu Hao preferred to treat Miaoli as a younger sister, so he asked her to address him as "sister."
Miaoli initially disagreed and refused to let her address her as Miss, so she respectfully addressed Zhu Hao as "Madam".
Zhu Hao thought of Song Xieqing. They were relatives who came together for profit, so how could she be considered his wife?
Zhu Hao corrected Miaoli several times before she agreed to call her sister yesterday.
She looked at the headband in her hand and said to Miaoli, "It's already noon. You go back to the Song residence to prepare the food. I'll be home later."
Miaoli may not be an expert in cooking, but she is sure to win.
Miaoli nodded, "Young Master Song..." She suddenly stopped. The young lady insisted on teaching her to call her "sister". If that was the case, then Young Master Song had to call her "brother-in-law"?
So, Miaoli asked quietly, "Will my brother-in-law be home today? Should I prepare more for him?"
Since he left on the wedding night, it is obvious that he has accomplished his plan. If that is the case, why would he come back?
"No need, it's just us from now on." Zhu Hao pinched Miaoli's cheek, "You only need to call me sister, not brother-in-law."
…
Zhu Hao stood at the ninety-ninth step of Zhe'erzhai. She gathered up her skirt and slowly climbed up the steps. The bamboos on both sides exuded a faint fragrance, which made her feel relaxed and happy.
Every time Zhu Hao climbed more than ten steps, he felt an unbearable pain in his chest and started to cough dryly.
The jade statue was enshrined in the main hall. Zhu Hao entered the inner hall and approached it. He saw that the crack on the statue's forehead had not been repaired. Zhu Hao took out the headband he had embroidered himself, looked at the jade statue that looked 70% like Song Xieqing, and said, "Excuse me."
Zhu Hao tied the hem of her skirt into a knot. Seeing that the altar was low, barely reaching her waist, and the jade statue was three feet tall, placed on the shrine, she could only reach the statue's shoulders and neck by standing on tiptoe. Zhu Hao exerted all her strength to climb onto the altar. Once she had a firm footing, she quickly tied the headband around the jade statue's forehead, just enough to cover the crack.
Ancient pines serve as the scenery, flowing clouds form the borders, and pine cranes soar into the sky. Such an elegant headband sets off the jade statue's elegance and handsomeness. I wish you a satisfied smile.
"This incident was caused by me. Now, I have made amends." After saying this, Zhu Hao suddenly saw a familiar green figure swaying up the stairs. She hurriedly jumped down from the altar and accidentally twisted her ankle, but she still explained, "I resorted to this desperate measure to tie my headband to the jade statue. Please don't blame me for climbing your altar without permission, Immortal Lord! I really won't dare to do it again next time..."
When I looked up, I saw that this person was dressed in a blue shirt and had the demeanor of a scholar.
Although the figure is very similar, the person coming is not Song Xieqing.
Before Zhu Hao could ponder the cause of the slight disappointment in his heart, Shi Chunsheng had already said, "I wish my lady well."
Seeing Zhu Hao remained silent and looked slightly downcast, Shi Chunsheng glanced at the statue and continued, "Jade artifacts are difficult to repair. My family elders and I have been pondering for months but haven't found a good solution. Raising funds to carve a new statue is also impractical, so we've had to repeatedly postpone the matter. Clearly, my family has already accepted the twenty taels of silver from Aunt Zhu as compensation, but in the end... I still have to trouble you to resolve this matter."
Zhu Hao suddenly looked up and asked in surprise, "What is the relationship between Zhe E Zhai and your family?"
Zhu Hao had found it strange before. The jade used to carve the statue was translucent and flawless, with almost no visible flaws to the naked eye. Yet, she only charged him twenty taels for a crack in the statue! If this hall was truly related to Shi Chunsheng, then it made sense, as he had always been partial to her since childhood.
Shi Chunsheng replied, "My mother's surname is Song, and my great-grandfather is the Immortal Lord's half-brother."
"The Immortal Lord is my distant blood relative, separated by generations. Only after his death did the people worship him as a deity. Upon his death, his limbs were dismembered, his head severed, and left in the wilderness to feed wild beasts. Since then, Huaicheng has been plagued by natural disasters, and the people have suffered miserably. Those who were dismembered and beheaded died inexplicably, leaving the wilderness littered with the corpses of wild beasts. It wasn't until the people built a jade statue for him and revered him as the Huaixian that peace returned to the city."
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The author has something to say: Xiaochun's great-grandfather is Xiaosong's younger brother, so Xiaosong is Xiaochun's elder and should be called uncle-great-grandfather.
Pianpian married Xiaosong, so Pianpian is Xiaochun's great-grandmother (the author laughs first)
Xiao Song went through a lot of miserable things when he was a human, but luckily he has met Pian Pian now, and things will get better and better in the future! Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or irrigated nutrient solution between 2024-07-18 03:53:54 and 2024-07-21 03:13:08~
Thanks to the little angel who cast the mine: Coriander, don’t sleep 1;
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Bai Ze's good friend 10 bottles; Boredom 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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