Chapter 37 Scars
The father worked hard, so naturally the son worked hard too.
Knowing that the county lady was in a low mood, Jin Tang ran to find her with his parrot Jin Tuan Tuan.
"County Lady, I heard that a bloody handprint appeared on the rockery in the backyard. Just now, the bailiffs from the Dali Temple came over and took all of our handprints. They are investigating who did this."
Qian Deng was analyzing and describing the case on paper. Seeing him coming, he closed the paper and looked up, asking, "Do you have any clues about this matter?"
"No, it's just that Shi Jingning just got into trouble, and now someone's playing tricks in broad daylight! This is too disrespectful to the palace and the county lady!" Jin Tang said angrily, "So I thought, after the storehouse and kitchen are repaired, I will take the workers to raise the walls of the palace by three feet. I guarantee that those scoundrels will not dare to sneak in and play tricks!"
Qian Deng hadn't expected him to come here to ask for work, so he said, "Jin Langjun has been busy running around for the palace, so tired. If I were to trouble you any more, I'm afraid it would be unreasonable..."
"Ah, the county lady saved my life, so this little thing is my duty! I promise to do it properly and do my best to relieve the county lady's worries!" Jin Tang patted his chest. Seeing that Qian Deng's expression had eased a little, he mustered up his courage, moved closer to her, and said, "This morning in the kitchen ruins, Shangluo and I chatted casually, and I said some unpleasant words. I hope the county lady can forgive me..."
Qian Deng put away the file and said, "Those are your private matters. I won't ask about them."
"Actually, I'm heartbroken when Shi Jingning died, especially his younger siblings. They were so young and helpless, it was so pitiful." Jin Tang leaned closer to her and said sincerely, "I heard he had an uncle who always took good care of them, but now his uncle's family has also suffered a disaster and can't take care of themselves. So I also had someone send bricks and wood to help his uncle's family repair it. Then, I will help him smooth things over at the Guanglu Temple. It would be best if his uncle could get a promotion there. In two years, Jingning's younger brother can fill his brother's vacancy, and his uncle's family can also help find good families for his sisters..."
Qian Deng had never expected that this arrogant and ignorant son of the richest man would consider Shi Jingning so much, and for a moment, she was touched: "If this is true, I would like to thank you for your kindness on behalf of Shi Jingning in the afterlife."
"It's all my duty. I know the county lady is kindhearted and can't bear to see the children suffer, so I want to help share some of her burden." He saw that Qian Deng's brows were still clouded with worry, so he whispered, "I just hope that the county lady can be carefree and happy. If she can smile every day, that would be my...our greatest joy."
Qian Deng lowered his eyes and nodded, forcing a smile: "Okay."
Seeing her expression relaxed, Jin Tang picked up the parrot stand beside him and said, "County Lady, do you know that Jin Tuantuan has learned to sing a song recently? I want him to recite it to you, County Lady."
Without waiting for Qiandeng's reply, he went straight to tease Jin Tuan Tuan: "Come, sing a song for the county lady."
Jin Tuantuan tilted his head and thought for a moment before opening his mouth and saying, "Hello, County Lady! Wonderful County Lady! Please treat me well!"
The strange tone made Qian Deng smile slightly: "This doesn't sound like a song?"
"Oh, this idiot." Jin Tang grabbed two walnuts and teased them in front of it, "Hey, didn't you learn the song before? Why don't you sing it..."
Jin Tuantuan stared at the walnut, flapped his wings twice, stretched his neck to grab the walnut, and didn't even remember to sing the song.
Jintang was so angry that he flapped its wings: "Little foodie, think about the important things first! Sing!"
When the parrot saw his hand coming, it spread its wings and flew away. As it flew away, its claws just scratched Qiandeng's finger, leaving a blood mark.
Jin Tang was horrified and quickly grabbed the parrot's ankle chain to pull it back, asking repeatedly: "County Lady, your hand is not hurt, right?"
"Oh, cousin Jin, your bird is so fierce!" Shangluo's voice came from outside the flower hall.
Jin Tang was angry and anxious. He turned around and saw Shangluo running in from outside the yard, followed by Meng Lanxi holding a white rabbit.
Seeing that Qiandeng's finger was injured, Meng Lanxi hurried forward to check. When she found that it was just a thin scratch, she breathed a sigh of relief, handed the rabbit to Qiandeng's arms, took out the medicine bottle and asked her to apply some medicine.
Seeing the county lady holding Meng Lanxi's rabbit, he held her hand and applied medicine. Jin Tang was jealous and resentful, holding his parrot frame, not knowing whether to leave or stay.
But Shangluo was still yelling, "Brother Jin, look how well behaved Lanxi's rabbit is. You should teach Jin Tuantuan a lesson too!"
Jin Tang stared at the rabbit, and seeing it lying softly in the arms of the county lady, so obedient and gentle, allowing himself to be caressed, he couldn't help but slap Jin Tuan Tuan's head hard, and ignored Shang Luo's words.
Shangluo said something without meaning it. After he finished speaking, he looked at Qiandeng's fingers and suddenly froze for a moment. His eyes were slightly red and he opened his mouth, wanting to say something but nothing came out.
Qiandeng moved his fingers and asked him, "What's wrong?"
Shangluo muttered, "Nothing, it's just... I just suddenly remembered that the last time I saw Brother Jingning, I accidentally interrupted him while he was carving a rabbit. The wound on his hand was in the same place as the County Lady's... "
Qiandeng stroked the rabbit silently. Because there was medicine on her hand, she unconsciously raised her finger and only lightly stroked the rabbit.
Suddenly, a strange idea flashed through her mind. She paused, raised her hand in disbelief, and looked at the injured index finger.
The bloody handprint left on the rockery was also made by raising the left index finger, leaving only a lighter mark than that of the other fingers.
Thinking about it this way, those two bloody handprints that suddenly appeared... the man's hands, which were flexible but not thick, couldn't they just belong to...
Before she could think of that strange idea, someone knocked gently on the open door of the flower hall. It was Cui Fufeng who came in with a file.
His eyes also fell on Qiandeng's fingers, and his face was full of surprise and confusion.
Qiandeng looked up and met his eyes, thinking with surprise. They understood each other but kept it to themselves, and both chose not to point it out in front of everyone.
She just nodded towards Cui Fufeng, then turned her head and asked Shangluo, "You came here specially to see me, is there something wrong?"
"County Lady, I'm a little scared..." Shangluo tugged at Qiandeng's sleeve and whispered, "My osmanthus hall isn't far from Gutengzhai. I've been hearing strange ghost cries these past few days, and I've been so scared I can't sleep. And... this morning, when I got up and walked near Gutengzhai, I heard that noise again..."
Qiandeng frowned thoughtfully: "Ghost screams? What does it sound like?"
"It just sounds like crying, but the crying is so miserable, as if the throat and tongue are rotten and broken, and it is still roaring and wailing..." When he said this, a light bulb went off in his head, and he suddenly understood something. He stared with wide eyes and open mouth in a daze, and then asked, "That's not a ghost, it's... It's Yang Huaijiang crying!"
Qian Deng nodded in agreement: "It's normal for him to cry after his face was disfigured and he ended up like this."
"No wonder... No wonder I heard a female ghost say that things have come to this point, everything is a foregone conclusion, and we must always look forward to life. Come back with me, it's better for everyone, and it's our only way..." Once he knew that the ghost screaming was from Yang Huaijiang, Shang Luo's fear subsided a little, and he patted his chest and said, "It turns out that the female ghost... The woman is Madam Dingxiang. She was comforting Yang Huaijiang and persuading him to go back!"
"Then, what does Yang Huaijiang say?"
"I don't know. I was so scared that I ran away... Anyway, I walked quite a distance away and could still hear him faintly crying..."
Qiandeng and Cui Fufeng looked at each other. They didn't expect that this mother and son, who had always been at odds, could show their true love in times of trouble. Maybe this was a good thing for Lady Dingxiang.
After sending off the other gentlemen, leaving only Cui Fufeng behind, Qian Deng hesitantly asked him, "Have you compared that bloody handprint with... Shi Jingning?"
Cui Fufeng nodded and said, "Yes, Tianshui and I have verified this. From this morning until the bloody handprint was discovered, no other men have entered or left the backyard except for the young men. Because the traces of snow on the courtyard wall are intact, this handprint can only come from the young man in the backyard - but... it doesn't match anyone else except Shi Jingning's. It's exactly the same."
He opened the file in his hand and showed her the file he had transferred from the Guanglu Temple.
When Shi Jingning was promoted to the position of Assistant Director of the Ministry of Cuisine of the Guanglu Temple, his signature and handprint were attached at the end of the file.
The ink marks on the white paper, the size of the palm, the length of the fingers, and the slightly curved blank space on the palm are almost exactly the same as the two palm prints in the snow.
However, there was nothing unusual about the index finger he left on the paper at that time.
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