Chapter 289 The Wen State Duke's Mansion is Finished
As the sun sets, its last rays fall on the treetops by the lake, tinging the lush leaves and shimmering water with an orange-red hue, creating a scene of extraordinary tranquility and serenity.
Perhaps because it was nearing dusk, there were hardly any people to be seen on the shore.
Dou Wenyi and Pei Siyan hid in a secluded, dark place. Not far away, two servants from the Wen State Duke's Mansion were setting up incense tables, offering tables, offerings, paper money, and other sacrificial items on the riverbank.
Duke Wen and Wen Yannian walked to the incense table. Wen Yannian glanced around subconsciously and asked, "Brother, will it get out if we offer sacrifices here?"
Emperor Muzong once decreed that no one was allowed to privately offer sacrifices to Empress Wen, so much so that there is not even a memorial tablet for her in the Wen family ancestral hall. This is the estate of the Duke of Wen, which was also a place where Wen Wan often came to relax and enjoy the spring scenery before she was married.
They had no choice but to come here to pay their respects to her.
Duke Wen squatted down and took out bundles of joss paper, laughing self-deprecatingly, "What are you afraid of? What use is the Crown Prince's word compared to the Emperor's decree?"
Wen Yannian's eyelids twitched violently, and he secretly cursed himself for being so useless.
Over the years, the Wen family's fear of Emperor Muzong had become so deep that even though they knew he was bedridden, his influence remained.
"What if the Crown Prince finds out?"
Duke Wen's attitude was perfunctory and indifferent. "In a few days, it will be Sister Wan's birthday. As her older brother, isn't it only right to burn some money for her in advance? Mother has never wronged her. Even when she plotted to poison Prince Xian, Mother was unaware of it. If there is a grudge, settle it; if there is a score, settle it. She shouldn't be bothering Mother."
The poisoning of the Prince Xian was planned and carried out entirely by the old Duke, and indeed had nothing to do with my mother.
However, they were all involved in the affair of 'Wen Wan's secret rendezvous with another man'.
Wen Yannian sighed, "Over the years, we haven't paid our respects to her, and she must have harbored resentment. But she just died, causing us so much suffering and wasting most of our lives."
Duke Wen looked up at the dark sky and said, “Don’t say such discouraging things. Fortunately, the Crown Prince is promising. Once he inherits the throne, our Wen family will finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
"Yes." Wen Yannian nodded heavily.
Duke Wen lit the incense, bowed three times in the direction of the imperial city, and then placed the incense sticks in the altar.
A cold wind blew by; it was already May, yet the wind was still biting. Wen Yannian sneezed, unwrapped the memorial that had been wrapped in yellow paper, and felt uneasy. "Brother, do you think Sister Wan will blame us?"
No sooner had the words left his mouth than a muffled 'crack' exploded in his ears, followed by lightning that tore through the dark night sky, and a fierce wind howled, causing the surrounding tree branches to sway incessantly.
The memorial in Duke Wen's hand trembled and fell onto the grass. He had a vague feeling that something was wrong, as if his sister Wan was unwilling to forgive them.
Wen Yannian was also startled. The lightning illuminated his pale face. "This damn weather, it changes in an instant. It might even rain. Let's hurry."
The people of the Great Zhou Dynasty have always feared ghosts and gods, and they were no exception.
"Um."
He lit a stack of joss paper and threw it outside the altar for the wandering ghosts to enjoy. The flames leaped up, and the crackling sound sounded unusually eerie and terrifying on the silent lakeside.
A sudden gust of cold wind blew in, scattering the paper money and petitions around.
Duke Wen was blinded by the dust that was kicked up. He rubbed his eyes and, for some reason, felt a chill run down his spine. When he looked up, he saw a white shadow that had appeared out of nowhere in the woods not far away.
Silent and terrifying.
Wen Yannian's eyelids twitched wildly. He had seen it too, and was quite frightened. He shouted in a trembling voice, "Who? Who's there?"
The woman was dressed in white, her clothes fluttering in the wind, her long black hair cascading over her shoulders. Only a partial profile was visible, half-asleep, and she looked remarkably like Empress Wen!
Duke Wen froze, his large hand already on the hilt of his sword. He rose irritably, took a few steps forward, and finally mustered his courage to shout at the figure.
“Wenwan, every grievance has its source, and every debt has its debtor. Even if you have a grudge, you shouldn’t take it out on us, let alone the old lady. If you’re so capable, go find the old Duke. He’s down there anyway, so it’ll be convenient for you.”
"Even if we were wrong about what happened back then, we can't be entirely blamed!"
Wen Yannian, who had never been as brave as his older brother, was extremely nervous and felt his legs go weak. "Yes... why are you so fixated on us? As sons, we can't go against our father..."
Suddenly, the world fell silent, and the biting wind subsided.
"Wen Zhisui, Wen Yannian, do you even want to deceive the dead?"
A deep voice rang out, and Pei Siyan, holding Dou Wenyi's hand, strolled leisurely from the end of the corridor.
Dou Wenyi frowned slightly, suddenly stopped, bent down and picked up the yellow document on the ground: the various things that Empress Wen had suffered back then came vividly to mind.
Both Duke Wen and Wen Yannian saw fear in each other's eyes. Without prior arrangement, they both turned back to look at the bushes again, but the beautiful figure from before had already disappeared.
Duke Wen felt a chill run through his body, and his heart was pounding. At this moment, he understood perfectly well that the Crown Prince had deliberately sent someone to play tricks!
It's over. The Duke of Wen's mansion has been completely destroyed in his hands.
He cursed Wen Jingchu in his heart, thinking that if he hadn't stood up for her back then, there wouldn't be this mess today.
He took a deep breath. "Your Highness, impressive! Wen Jingchu is still alive, isn't she?"
Pei Siyan's expression was gloomy and terrifying. He said in a low voice, "Uncle's heart is even more ruthless than mine. That's arsenic! How could you bear to feed it to your own sister? You really have the heart to do that!"
"Were you this cold and heartless towards my mother back then?"
Wen Yannian's face changed completely, and his chest and back were soaked with cold sweat.
He struggled to speak, "No... Your Highness, don't listen to her. She'll definitely pin all the blame on us. We... we're not the masterminds. We were forced into it!"
Duke Wen was utterly terrified. "Your Highness, do you intend to wipe out the entire Wen family? We are your relatives. Please, for the sake of the Wen family raising Wen Wan, don't try to exterminate us!"
The atmosphere was oppressive and tense, and a night breeze swept by, as if answering for him.
Pei Siyan took the document from Dou Wenlianyi and glanced at it casually.
After a long silence, he coldly retorted, "If it weren't for the Empress Dowager, do you think the Wen family would still exist?"
His voice was flat, cold, and deathly still.
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