Chapter Twenty-Four
The wet nurse's cries as she struggled in the flames still seemed to echo in her ears. Back then, her father, just like Zhou Yanqing now, tried to stop her, but her desperate cries were to no avail.
After returning home, she fell seriously ill, and her parents never dared to let her see these things again.
At that time, she didn't understand why her father didn't save her wet nurse; now she still doesn't understand why Zhou Yanqing doesn't save Ning Qingzi.
The woman's hot tears slid down her cheeks, landing on Zhou Yanqing's hand and seeping into the lines of his palm.
Zhou Yanqing was at a loss for what to do, so she could only soften her voice and say, "Don't cry..."
But aside from that one sentence, he couldn't say anything else. The woman's tears reflected his helplessness.
Time passed, and the crowd at the Digu Temple gradually dispersed, leaving only the quiet smell of burning in the air.
The woman in his arms seemed to have calmed down a bit. Zhou Yanqing slowly released her and handed her a handkerchief. "Wipe yourself."
The handkerchief was very new, unlike what a man would usually carry; it seemed to have been specially prepared for her.
Si Yanmo didn't notice; she simply took the gift, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and followed him to the altar.
The closer you get, the stronger the burnt smell becomes, but unlike the usual smell of charcoal residue from burning firewood, this smell is mixed with a fishy odor, a fishy odor that makes you want to vomit.
At this moment, Ning He was instructing people to collect Ning Qingzi's body when he saw the two approaching. He quickly wiped away non-existent tears from the corners of his eyes with his sleeve and went to greet them.
"Your Highness, Your Highness," he bowed, "I didn't expect to have alarmed you both."
Looking at the hypocritical person in front of her, Si Yanmo wished she could tie him to the altar and burn him alive.
But she couldn't, at least Zhou Yanqing said she couldn't.
She remained silent, watching Zhou Yanqing speak to him and watch him leave the Digu Temple with Ning Qingzi's body.
Seeing the unusual quiet around her, Zhou Yanqing figured she was still caught up in her emotions. Just as she was about to offer some comfort, she heard her ask, "Did you hear Ning Qingzi crying?"
"What?" He frowned, not understanding what the woman meant.
"She burned for so long, did she cry?"
Zhou Yanqing was puzzled for a moment, but she still thought about it carefully and realized that she did not seem to have heard any crying or shouting.
The only tear was the one that fell from Si Yanmo's palm.
“When I was little, my wet nurse was burned to death in the same way. I can still remember her cries to this day; that kind of heart-wrenching scream cannot be covered up by any sound. At that time, I thought that being burned to death must be very, very painful.”
She raised her eyes, her gaze inquisitive. "It hurt so much, why didn't she scream?"
"Perhaps... she fainted?" Zhou Yanqing answered hesitantly.
“No,” she shook her head. “That kind of pain, even if you faint, will wake you up again.”
Zhou Yanqing seemed to realize what she was trying to say, "You mean, she was already dead before she was burned?"
"If we can prove that she was already dead before she was burned, then can we also prove that there was no demonic possession, and that there was only a girl who was killed by her father?"
Si Yanmo suddenly grabbed his hand, her voice pleading, "Zhou Yanqing, I want Ning He's lies to be exposed, I want him to pay with his life."
She didn't understand anything when her wet nurse died.
It wasn't until she gained the ability to read fates and secretly sought out the fortune teller from back then that she realized the fortune teller had misread the divination.
He later realized he had miscalculated and had the opportunity to stop the "purification ceremony," but he said nothing because he was afraid of losing his official position.
They can decide a person's life or death with a single word, without paying any price.
She felt it was unfair; they should pay with their lives for these innocent people!
A gentle breeze swept by, and perhaps Ning Qingzi saw that someone was willing to clear her name, the dark clouds in the sky gradually dispersed, turning into bright sunlight that shone through the branches onto the two of them, making them feel warm and cozy.
——
That night, the old wooden door creaked open, and Chen Ludao walked into the gatehouse carrying a basket of Xiangyuzhai pastries. "Gui'er, look what your father brought you..."
Before he could finish the word "了", he turned around and saw the man sitting in the main seat under the candlelight. He immediately knelt down and said, "I was unaware of Your Highness's presence. I am guilty."
Zhou Yanqing drew the dagger from his waist; the warm candlelight reflected on the blade, yet it exuded a chilling aura.
"Tell me, how much money did Ning He give you to perform this ritual?"
Chen Ludao was startled upon hearing this and stammered, "What...what is Your Highness saying? I don't understand."
At this moment, Si Yanmo emerged from the shadows, picked up the basket on the ground, and looked at it. "Xiang Yuzhai? May I try some?"
Chen Ludao looked up upon hearing this. Wasn't this Mo Li? Why was she with the Prince of Qin? Could the rumors be true?
He quickly replied, "Of course."
Si Yanmo opened the basket, casually took out a piece, and put it in her mouth. A floral fragrance immediately filled her mouth.
"Yes, it's delicious." She nodded in satisfaction and sat down next to Zhou Yanqing.
“When I was a child, my elder brother would come to Qin to do business and he liked to bring me pastries from Xiangyuzhai. However, when he brought them from Qin to Nandu, he could only bring back some that were easy to store.”
"He said that if I ever come to Qin, I must take you to try their freshly made osmanthus cake, it's absolutely delicious."
She spoke vividly, leaving Chen Ludao momentarily confused about what she was up to.
"I've been in Qin for so long and haven't had a chance to try it until today. It's truly fragrant with flowers and completely different from other desserts."
Chen Ludao chuckled, "Since Master Mobu likes them, then take them all. Consider it a gift from me."
Si Yanmo smiled, but the smile always felt somewhat eerie to him.
"Master Chen is really generous. The pastries at Xiangyuzhai are not cheap, and this basket contains all sorts of different kinds. I estimate it must cost more than five hundred coins. Master Chen's monthly allowance is only one tael, right? And he just gave it to me like this?"
Chen Ludao then realized that this woman was bluffing him!
He could only say, "I only buy it for my child occasionally."
“One tael of silver is worth about one thousand coins at the current market price. Your family consists of five people, including your parents, wife, and children. It's spring planting season now. If you spend five hundred coins, are you going to leave your wife, children, and elderly parents to starve? Besides…”
Zhou Yanqing stood up and used a dagger to pick up the small wooden box on the table. The box looked ordinary, but it was filled with gold, silver, and jade hairpins.
He raised an eyebrow. "Are you going to tell me that you 'occasionally' bought these with your meager salary?"
It turned out that the two had already turned their house upside down.
Chen Ludao closed his eyes and said in a resigned tone, "Ning gave me one hundred taels of silver, along with these gold and silver jewelry, and asked me to fabricate a celestial phenomenon of demonic possession to help him dispose of Miss Ning's body."
"A corpse!" Si Yanmo seized on the key point. "So Ning Qingzi was already dead before the ritual, right?"
Seeing Chen Ludao nod, she met Zhou Yanqing's gaze.
It seems she guessed correctly.
Chen Ludao didn't know much either. It was only last night that Ning He found him and asked him to fabricate celestial phenomena.
He was initially hesitant, but when he saw what Ning He brought, he wavered.
This is more money than he could earn in several lifetimes at the temple.
Just as Zhou Yanqing said, it was spring planting season, and his parents were in poor health, with two children to raise.
When people are poor to a certain extent, even fortune tellers stop believing in any gods.
If there truly are gods, why won't they help him cross over?
He no longer needs to do such a despicable thing.
He took a gamble, but perhaps because of this gamble, Digu will not save him...
After listening to his words, Si Yanmo closed the wooden box on the table. "This is stolen money, which should be taken away, but this..."
She placed the pastries from Xiangyuzhai on the table and said softly, "Leave them for the children."
The woman's voice was like a candlelight in the silent night. Chen Ludao immediately raised his bowed head and performed a deep bow, "Thank you."
...
Having obtained Chen Ludao's testimony, the two prepared to return to the Qin residence.
On the way, Zhou Yanqing recalled Si Yanmo's words and suddenly asked, "You...have an older brother?"
Although he had not investigated Si Yanmo in detail, he knew that the Si family only had two daughters, so where did the "brother" come from?
At first, he thought that Si Yanmo was just making things up to Chen Ludao, but Xiang Yuzhai's pastries are only available in Qin, and it would be hard for someone who hadn't tried them to recognize them.
This woman has too many secrets, so many that he's not even sure if she really is "Si Yanmo".
Si Yanmo simply smiled and waved her hand, "He is the son of my father's friend. He is two years older than me. We have played together since we were little, just like biological siblings."
“You’ve met him before!” she exclaimed, recalling their first meeting, “He Chunlou.”
Zhou Yanqing then remembered that when they first met, there was a man who teased her about having a crush on her boss, Yan Mo.
"That butterfly?"
Si Yanmo was amused: "What do you mean by 'flower butterfly'?"
After thinking about Zhong Zihe's behavior for a moment, she said, "To be honest, it is somewhat similar."
"You and him...have a good relationship?"
He still remembered how Si Yanmo pretended to be stupid at first. Even her parents seemed unaware that she was secretly working as a fortune teller outside, but this Zhong Zihe knew everything.
For some reason, the fact that this man knew Si Yanmo's secret before him made him slightly annoyed, and he unconsciously started to inquire about it.
“Yes,” Si Yanmo nodded, “Aside from my parents and sister, Brother Zihe is indeed the most trustworthy.”
"Don't let his carefree attitude fool you, he's actually quite reliable. It's just..."
Before she could finish speaking, Zhou Yanqing said irritably, "Oh, I know. I haven't even inquired about your lover's hobbies yet."
"My lover?" Si Yanmo frowned upon hearing this address. "No, you..." She had misunderstood.
Zhou Yanqing didn't give her a chance to finish speaking. Hearing the carriage stop, she immediately lifted the curtain and jumped out. "Alright, go back to sleep. We're going to the Ning residence tomorrow."
As he walked into the room, he shook his head, trying to shake off the inexplicable irritation.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the forsythia sprouting in the courtyard. He drew the dagger from his waist and swept it across, causing the buds to fall onto the gravel path.
Zhou Yanqing didn't seem to like this restless season...
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