Chapter 33 Haunted
Returning to Gutengzhai, he saw two handprints on the rockery at the entrance: one on the vines, the other on the rockery stone. Because the background was darker and the snow had diluted the blood, the bloody handprints weren't a glaring bright red, but they were indeed bloodstains.
Ling Tianshui examined it carefully, comparing it with his own hand, and said, "The size suggests a man's hand, but judging by the angle and strength of his grip on the vine, his palm is more concave when he grasps things. His finger bones are more flexible and responsive than those of ordinary people. He obviously uses his hands frequently and does delicate work, so his finger bones are not thick. Also—"
He pointed to the index finger mark, which was noticeably weaker than the other finger marks, and said, "There's something wrong with his left index finger. It seems he can't exert force, or it's just stuck up out of habit."
Qiandeng tried to raise his left index finger as if to hold onto the rockery, but it felt awkward.
"The palace's backyard is barred from attendants and servants, and as a rule, no other men are allowed in or out. Lu Wulin only came in to help for a while, and he left when we left. So, who among the gentlemen in the backyard would suddenly come here, and why did they leave these two bloody handprints?"
The situation was strange and no conclusion was reached for the time being. Cui Fufeng and Ling Tianshui were discussing the cause outside, while Qian Deng brought Aunt Xuanji inside to check on Madam Dingxiang.
When I went to the front hall, I saw Madam Dingxiang sitting there wiping her tears, with Madam Ge standing beside her, looking uneasy.
As soon as she saw Qian Deng come in, Madam Dingxiang's voice became even louder as she complained to Madam Ge: "It's all my fault as a mother. I insisted on bringing my son to Chang'an. I thought our two families would be as close as one family, but who would have thought that he would be harmed by those heartless people! My niece is the Princess of a royal palace, how could she care about my cousin's safety and the reputation of my Yang family?"
This wailing made Madam Ge hang her head and dare not respond. Qian Deng pretended not to hear anything and walked into the courtyard to greet her with a normal expression. "Aunt, are you unhappy living in the mansion? I heard that you wanted to send my cousin to live with my cousin?"
Seeing her pretense, Lady Dingxiang replied sternly, "Niece, I don't think Huaijiang can live in your backyard anymore! Yesterday, Huaijiang was humiliated, and today, someone left bloody handprints outside. Don't you think this is going to drive Huaijiang to a dead end?"
"Don't worry, Auntie. It's probably because a servant accidentally scratched their palm while cleaning this morning, and the print is here. It's not a big deal." Qian Deng explained, "The men in my backyard are all very easy to get along with. When my cousin wasn't here, everyone was very friendly. They wouldn't come here in the middle of the night and leave handprints to scare people."
"Well, when Huaijiang wasn't here, they were all on good terms. But now that Huaijiang is here, they're ganging up on him, repeatedly using underhanded tactics against him!" Lady Dingxiang burst into tears. "If that's the case, I'm afraid the government is so busy that they won't be able to properly treat Huaijiang. Besides, this courtyard you've built for him is so remote and damp. How can he recover? I'd better take him to Jiazhi!"
"I'm afraid this isn't very appropriate. Firstly, my aunt was commended by the court for coming to help with the funeral, and my cousin was the chosen one chosen by the Inner Palace Bureau, and he himself said he wanted to marry into my family. Now our relatives are leaving after only two or three days. If outsiders hear about this, won't they laugh at my Changhua Palace for not treating our distinguished guests well? And what will my aunt say to the court?"
Yang Huaijiang is the main suspect in Shi Jingning's death, so Qiandeng naturally has to keep him in the mansion and not let him escape.
"Secondly, I just visited my cousin a few days ago. Auntie, you should know she's about to give birth. Unfortunately, since she became pregnant, her son, A-Yan, has been in trouble, with constant worries. Auntie, just think about it, my cousin has to take care of three-year-old A-Yan and has a baby on the verge of giving birth at any moment. If she also has a brother with a facial injury, how will she handle it?"
"Huaijiang has been harmed like this now, the court will surely be understanding. Besides, your candidates for husbands have all come in on their own, and the court doesn't stipulate that they must live here!" Madam Dingxiang said angrily, "As for the Huang family, they are a well-established family after all. Can't they take care of a patient?"
"Then the Wang Mansion still has more staff than the Huang Mansion." Qian Deng softened his stance and soothed her. "Aunt, I was young and naive. I took my anger out on my cousin over trivial matters, which damaged the relationship between relatives. Now, I will definitely invite the best doctors in the capital to treat my cousin. I will definitely restore his former beauty and reassure you, aunt."
Lady Dingxiang had made up her mind to leave, so how could she give up just because of a few soft words from her? However, when she thought of her daughter Yang Jiazhi, she became upset and hesitated for a moment.
Yang Jiazhi and Yang Huaijiang do not have the same mother. Because her biological mother died early, this daughter respects and loves her very much. Unlike Yang Huaijiang, he always has a grudge in his heart because she was the one who disposed of her biological mother.
But in the end, between troubling her daughter or letting her son suffer, she chose the former.
"Don't worry, County Lady. I've watched Jiazhi grow up. She's been very protective of her brother, and her husband, Huang Min, is also very generous. Minor illnesses in children and childbirth are common. How could she disdain her own brother for such a small matter?"
Madam Dingxiang stood up after she finished speaking, ignoring Qiandeng and instructed Madam Ge, "Have you packed Huaijiang's things? Send them to the Huang Mansion first, put everything in order, and then bring the young master over!"
Seeing that she was so stubborn and determined to ignore him, Qiandeng knew that it was useless to put any effort into her, so he could only say goodbye and leave.
Next to the rockery outside the courtyard gate, Cui Fufeng and Ling Tianshui had already finished studying the bloody handprint.
"Is that blood on the handprint?"
Ling Tianshui confirmed, "It's blood, for sure, but the color is lighter. I wonder if it's because it was diluted by the snow."
Qiandeng recalled what happened when he came here to inquire in the morning. He clearly remembered that he had seen the rockery when he entered the door. At that time, he only noticed the vines entangled and twisted in the snow, and did not see any handprints on the snow.
"When we came here this morning, there were no palm prints on the rockery. It seems this bloody handprint must have appeared when we left Gu Teng Zhai and were searching for clues in the mansion. However, the backyard has a high wall and a small gate, so no one else comes in or out on a daily basis. Only the gentlemen, the Shi family's younger siblings, and my aunt are here."
Cui Fufeng nodded. "This handprint is the size of an adult male and should have nothing to do with Madam Dingxiang, Shangluo, or Shi Jingning's sister-in-law. Ling Sijie and Ji Linyou are martial artists, so their hands are a circle larger than the palm print and have more calluses, so they don't match. Meng Lanxi, Jintang, Yan Penglai, and I only write on a daily basis and don't use our hands much. In a hurry to support, it is unlikely that our fingers will be in such a responsive posture. Finally, there is Xue Xiyang, who is good at playing musical instruments. His fingers and palms are longer than those of ordinary people, which also doesn't match this palm print.
"Of course, we still need to investigate whether anyone else entered or left the backyard today. For example, Madam Dingxiang once asked Lü Wulin to come in and clean up. Of course, Lü Wulin's hands are used to doing rough work, and they look completely different from this bloody handprint."
"Also, why did this person leave a bloody handprint in Gutengzhai? This is worth investigating," Ling Tianshui pondered. "The only people in Gutengzhai are Madam Dingxiang, the injured Yang Huaijiang, and an old maid. If he had sinister intentions, it would have been easy for him to attack directly. Why did he have to leave a bloody handprint to scare people?"
Qian Deng looked at his broad shoulders, narrow waist and imposing appearance, and thought that it was certainly not a difficult task for him, but perhaps for others, fighting three at once would be quite difficult?
Looking at the sky, Qian Deng could only hand over this inexplicable bloody handprint to them first: "Then please check who came in and out of the backyard today, especially those with unusual left index fingers. I have to go out for a while. My aunt wants to take Yang Huaijiang away because of this bloody handprint."
Cui Fufeng frowned upon hearing this. "Yang Huaijiang is the biggest suspect in this case. How are you going to resolve the issue of them leaving?"
"If we can't stop those who want to leave, then we can stop those who want to seek refuge. I'll go find my cousin right away." Qian Deng said hurriedly, "Yang Huaijiang, you will never leave the Changhua Palace!"
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