Chapter 168 He Nianqing, aren’t you going to tell the truth?

Ruan Qingzhou came to Lincheng this time with orders to stay there for half a month to prevent the remaining members of Prince Chen's group from invading Jiangnan.

But this concerns the He family, and the He family has a close relationship with King Chen. If He Zhen is really King Chen's man, maybe he has other plans.

He Zhen, He family?

On the second day after Lincheng opened its gates, Ruan Qinghuan and Chu Li entered the city.

The two asked along the way and finally arrived at the He family's house. The scene in front of them was really surprising.

Chu Li: "Even though Madam He is crazy, doesn't she still have a second and third wife?"

"More than that." Ruan Qinghuan pushed open the courtyard door and saw that the inside was in a mess with fallen leaves all over the ground. One could imagine the situation when the He family's main branch fell into decline, the head of the family was in poverty, and the servants fled.

"The He family is huge, but the eldest branch is the most glorious. Whether it is money or sons who have passed the imperial examinations, the eldest branch has the most, so they are quite respected in the family."

"But in reality, the He family has many branches. If you count the illegitimate children, the eldest branch has four brothers."

Chu Li suddenly realized: "That is to say, in addition to the eldest branch of the He family, there are three more brothers?"

"yes."

"Why didn't anyone lend a helping hand when the He family's eldest branch fell into such a plight?"

Ruan Qinghuan: "The more prosperous a family is, the more complicated the disputes within it become. Even brothers may not be as friendly and respectful as they appear on the surface."

Chu Li frowned, this is quite true.

She grew up in the capital and had seen many of the intrigues and schemes within the inner courts of high-ranking officials. She knew that what Ruan Qinghuan said was true.

Among the noble families, families like the Duke of Chu's who only marry one wife are rare. Apart from the He family and the Ji family, it is probably difficult to find other families like them.

The He family's main house is now just an empty house. The two of them searched around inside but found nothing special.

Just as Ruan Qinghuan was about to leave, he discovered that a corner of the eaves was exposed at the corner of the backyard, which seemed to be a corner courtyard.

Chu Li followed her gaze and said, "People who live in a corner courtyard like that must be unwelcome in the mansion."

"Let's go and take a look."

I pushed open the creaking gate and found nothing unusual in the yard. The ground was still littered with fallen leaves and looked messy.

But what doesn't fit in with the mess is the wooden table and two worn-out stools in the corner. The run-down yard is covered with dust everywhere, but the table and stools are spotlessly clean.

Ruan Qinghuan gave Chu Li a look without saying anything.

Chu Li immediately understood what he meant and became alert.

The two men approached the door step by step. Although it was closed, it was tilted due to disrepair, revealing a large gap.

Chu Li took a closer look and sneered. Although the place was shabby, it was clean and tidy, and it was obvious that someone lived here.

Ruan Qinghuan grabbed Chu Li who was about to force the door open, turned around, picked up a wooden stick from the wall, and slammed the door open.

The moment the door opened, several stones fell from above. Although they were not big, if you were hit by them, it would definitely not be a good thing.

Chu Li was surprised and asked, "There is actually a mechanism?"

Ruan Qinghuan: "It's always better to be careful."

Ever since the two eldest sons of the He family died in the fire, the He family mansion has become a well-known haunted house. On the way here, people who were giving directions said that the house was extremely haunted.

When someone passes by here in the middle of the night, they can often hear wailing sounds, which are weird and scary.

Advise them not to get close to avoid bad luck.

Chu Li had practiced martial arts since childhood and did not believe in ghosts. Now it seemed that someone was probably playing tricks.

But she didn't expect Ruan Qinghuan to be so courageous: "When I came here, I was worried that my sister-in-law would be scared. It seems that I was worrying too much."

"The story of ghosts is mysterious. If there is no ghost in your heart, why would you be afraid of someone knocking on the door in the middle of the night?" However, after such a thing happened to the He family, why did they still dare to live here? Ruan Qinghuan was quite curious about this person.

Could it be that it was the crazy Mrs. He?

Behind the screen in the room, a ragged girl was holding on to a woman who was trying to break free with one hand and covering her mouth with the other, with an anxious and fearful look in her eyes.

Unexpectedly, the woman suddenly opened her mouth and bit her hand.

In pain, he loosened his grip and fled away in a scramble.

"My son, return me to you... My son..."

The crazy woman ran out of the room and saw Ruan Qinghuan and Chu Lishi standing there in a daze. After a moment, she suddenly smiled kindly: "Zhuo Qing, Zhuo Fan, have you resigned? Wait, I will order someone to cook for you."

Just as she approached, the girl who ran out of the house stopped her and said, "Mom, don't go over there."

Chu Li and Ruan Qinghuan stared at the two of them, their expressions changing slightly.

Although this woman was crazy, she was well taken care of except that her clothes were a little shabby. As for this woman...

Her appearance is 60% similar to that of this crazy woman. Could it be...

This idea was something that neither Ruan Qinghuan nor Chu Li had thought of before. Originally, Ruan Qinghuan only suspected that there was another hidden secret in the He family incident, but now it seems that this hidden secret is definitely a huge secret.

"Who are you and what are you doing here?"

Ruan Qinghuan looked at her. This woman was obviously injured. The breeze blew up her hair on her forehead, revealing a hideous scar.

Chu Li: "Don't be afraid, we are here to find out what happened to the He family back then."

"Then you have come to the wrong place. We are just homeless people who have no choice but to hide here. We know nothing."

Ruan Qinghuan: "Did we say we wanted to ask you?"

When it comes to the He family, she is obviously very resistant to it.

The crazy woman stared at Ruan Qinghuan and Chu Li, muttering: "My son is back, my son is back..."

Ruan Qinghuan: "Since this girl knows nothing, we have no intention of making things difficult for her, but this woman is the wife of the He family. We need to take her back to investigate some matters."

"She's already crazy. It's useless for you to ask."

"Whether you can find out the answer or not, there is no need to worry, young lady. You just need to hand the person over to us."

Chu Li was puzzled. It was obvious that this girl was from the He family, so why didn't his sister-in-law point it out?

Ruan Qinghuan took two steps forward, and the girl stepped back subconsciously: "The matter of the He family has already been settled. What basis do you have to arrest people?"

"Just because the He family participated in the rebellion." Ruan Qinghuan's eyes turned cold: "Prince Chen started a rebellion, and Princess Chen is the legitimate daughter of the He family. This is a serious matter, and no member of the He family can stay out of it."

When saying this, Ruan Qinghuan carefully observed her expression and saw that her eyes were flustered and evasive, and she was obviously feeling guilty.

Ruan Qinghuan continued to deceive her: "The people from the county government will be here soon. You'd better hand him over to us. Then I will keep the fact that you live here a secret. Is that okay?"

"No." The girl said without hesitation. She suddenly knelt down and said, "Please help me, young lady. She is indeed the wife of the He family, but the He family is now broken up and she has gone crazy. Please, please let us go."

Ruan Qinghuan helped the man up and raised his eyes slightly: "He Nianqing, are you still not going to tell the truth?"