"My brother didn't believe that our father was such a person, so he wanted to go to the capital to appeal to the emperor. But he was captured by bandits as soon as he left Yulin and his legs were crippled. Our father passed away, and my brother was crippled. Our mother couldn't bear such a blow and fell ill. She also went to join our father on the way to exile."
Upon arriving at their place of exile, the elder brother, unable to work due to his paralyzed legs, suffered endless scorn and humiliation. Unable to endure the shame any longer, he committed suicide by throwing himself into a well one night.
Liu Mengru often recalls the image of her brother being pulled out of the well, his eyes wide open and his body swollen, whenever she closes her eyes.
"Then how did you get back to Yulin?" Su Wenzhou couldn't help but ask, feeling sympathy for Miss Qin's plight.
"I have loved all kinds of floral scents since I was a child, and I have a special fondness for perfumery. When I was exiled, I used this skill to get on good terms with the wife of the local magistrate."
The guards, seeing that I frequently entered and exited the county magistrate's office, lowered their guard against me. Once, on my way to the county magistrate's office, I escaped.
I cannot let my family die in vain; I must clear my father's name!
Su Wenzhou noticed a key point: "You are Lord Qin's daughter. If you return to Yulin, do you think Tong Mingshan wouldn't recognize you?"
Liu Mengru didn't speak, but raised her hand to her temple and slowly peeled off a thin film in Su Wenzhou's shocked gaze.
What appeared before Su Wenzhou was a disfigured face, with a deep scar running from the left temple to near the right chin.
Although the scar had healed, it resembled a grotesque centipede, mercilessly tearing apart the girl's once smooth and fair skin, which was quite terrifying.
Despite the scar, Su Wenzhou could tell that Liu Mengru, without the scar, was not exactly stunningly beautiful, but she was still quite pretty and charming.
"General Su, this is the only way for a weak woman to preserve her chastity on the road to exile."
Liu Mengru spoke these words calmly, as if she were talking about someone else's story, making it impossible to feel how resolute and desperate she had been when she inflicted that wound.
Otherwise, what young woman would have the heart to ruin her own face?
Su Wenzhou felt a slight stirring in his heart. How much determination must a delicate young lady from a prominent family have to be to be so ruthless to herself?
“When I was little, I was a bit weak, so my father sent me to a Taoist temple to live for two years. He asked the Taoist priest to help me improve my health. That priest knew some disguise techniques, and out of curiosity and for fun, I learned them from him. I never thought they would come in handy now.” Liu Mengru smiled, but there was a hint of bitterness in her eyes.
"Back in Yulin, I went to Yuanmeng Tower to gather information, since there is no better place in the world to find out information than brothels and restaurants."
One day, I overheard a friend telling me that her client had seen a girl in Yicheng who looked just like the former courtesan. I took note of this and went to Yicheng. Sure enough, I saw the girl, who was none other than Yundie, the courtesan who was said to have been killed by my father.
"General Su, the person who was killed is still alive. How could my father possibly be a murderer!" Liu Mengru's smile was tinged with hatred.
"Later, in order to get closer to Tong Mingshan, I worked hard to become the most beautiful courtesan in Yuanmeng Tower, which indeed attracted Tong Mingshan's attention. Unfortunately, he is a very cautious person. After several encounters, he did not reveal anything, so I hope General Su can help me."
"How can Miss Liu be so sure that it was Tong Mingshan who was secretly selling iron ore and weapons?"
According to Liu Mengru, she does not yet have enough evidence.
"After my father's death, the person who benefited the most was Tong Mingshan. Tong Mingshan was a prefect, how much could his monthly salary be? But he was very generous. Every time I went to Yunhu to play the zither for him, he would give me several hundred taels of silver and some pearl hairpins and jewelry, each of which was very valuable."
"Look." Liu Mengru pointed to a spot in the room, and Su Wenzhou looked in the direction she pointed.
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