Ren Guiwang stared in horror at Lin Jinghui in the lake, her body floating silently on the surface, lifeless.
His mind raced as he recalled the tasks he had previously assigned to the butler, and a sense of foreboding washed over him.
He frantically searched through the crowd for his second son, Ren Chuanhu, a terrible suspicion forming in his mind—his second son must have refused to take Lin back, so he simply threw her into the lake, causing her to drown.
Ren Guiwang stared wide-eyed, anxiously searching for Ren Chuanhu's whereabouts among the crowd. After searching for a while, he still couldn't find his second son.
His voice trembled with anger as he shouted at those around him, "Where is Ren Chuanhu?"
A servant hurriedly stepped forward and reported, "Master, the Second Master has been called out to drink and carouse, and he's in a brothel right now."
Ren Guiwang's face instantly turned extremely gloomy. He stared intently at the butler and pressed, "When did he leave?"
The butler was startled by the master's gaze and became flustered. He was well aware of the seriousness of the matter; it was highly likely that the second master had killed the first madam.
After all, if it were him, he would never want to be swapped with a crazy woman his brother had used.
However, Steward Ren was both afraid of the master's punishment and dared not easily offend the second master. Because the consequences of offending the second master would probably be worse than death.
Steward Ren quickly analyzed the current situation in his mind, and then respectfully replied, "Master, this old servant really doesn't know! This old servant has been looking everywhere for the Second Master." His implication was clear: the matter that the master mentioned, this old servant had not yet had a chance to tell the Second Master.
Steward Ren thought to himself, "Second Master certainly wouldn't be so foolish as to admit to murder. He also absolutely wouldn't reveal the words the old servant had previously conveyed to him." With this thought, Steward Ren breathed a sigh of relief.
After hearing the butler's explanation, Ren Guiwang felt slightly relieved. Since it wasn't his second son who did the killing, the situation wasn't too bad.
He muttered somewhat unhappily, "That Lin must have gone mad. She took off her clothes and ran into the lake to bathe and catch frogs, but she can't swim, so she drowned."
"What should we do now, sir?" the butler asked worriedly. "Should we report it to the authorities?"
When Ren Chuanhe saw that his wife, Lin, whom he had just married through a marriage exchange, had drowned in the lake, he was stunned. His eyes widened as he stared at the pale corpse in the lake, and his body trembled involuntarily.
After a long while, he finally came to his senses and stammered, "I...I have to report this to the authorities, otherwise, I'll never be able to clear my name even if I jump into the Yellow River!"
If the Lin family were to report him to the government office, claiming that he had pushed his wife into the lake to drown her because he thought she was crazy, he would very likely be wrongfully imprisoned.
It should be noted that Lin's father, Lin Daoqing, was a fourth-rank imperial guard captain, a higher rank than Ren Chuanhe, a seventh-rank imperial guard. Furthermore, Lin Daoqing was highly valued by Princess Kaiyang.
Even though the Ren family was a third-rank general's mansion, they still had to avoid the princess's mansion when facing it.
The servants of the Ren family gathered around the lake in terror, their faces etched with tension and fear, even more terrified than when they had seen frogs the night before. Each remained silent, awaiting their master's command; only upon receiving instructions would they dare to descend and retrieve the First Madam's body.
Lin Jinghui's maids and servants, on the other hand, were filled with fear, dread, and despair because of their mistress's sudden death. They huddled together, not daring to cry out for fear of displeasing their mistress. They could only kneel silently by the lake, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of their eyes.
Their tears fell like beads from a broken string, soaking their clothes.
Ren Guiwang stood by the lake, his hands behind his back, his brows furrowed tightly. His gaze fell on the naked corpse floating in the lake, which appeared somewhat pale in the water.
After watching for a while, Ren Guiwang came to a conclusion: he believed that Lin must have accidentally fallen into the lake and drowned because of her mental instability.
Thinking of this, Ren Guiwang waved his hand and instructed his servants, "Go and report to the authorities immediately. Have the officials from the prefectural government come and make a record. Then retrieve the body and bury it." His voice was cold and devoid of any emotion.
He was secretly relieved: it's better that this crazy woman is dead, she won't bring shame to the General's Mansion anymore.
Upon receiving the order, the butler felt as if he had been granted a pardon and immediately rushed off. He ran as fast as he could, as if the wind was blowing through his feet, afraid of wasting any time.
Not long after, the capital city government received a report from the Ren family.
Butler Ren stood panting in the main hall, and said to Lord Guan in a panic, "My lord, something terrible has happened! Our eldest mistress... no, the second mistress... no, the eldest mistress... is dead."
Lord Guan was displeased by Steward Ren's incoherent words. He frowned and said, "Steward Ren, speak properly to me. What exactly is going on in your household?"
Steward Ren then came to his senses. He composed himself and hurriedly explained, "It was Madam Lin who accidentally fell into the lake and drowned. I was ordered by the General to come and ask the government office to check the scene."
When Lord Guan heard that the deceased was Lin, the wife of Ren Chuanhe whom he had just married the day before yesterday, the corner of his mouth twitched slightly, revealing an undisguised sneer.
He wasn't surprised by the news, and his face clearly showed his sarcasm: Ren Chuanhe had brought back a crazy woman in exchange for a marriage; keeping her alive would only bring shame and embarrassment.
Lord Guan turned to his subordinate and instructed, "Go and call Constable Lin over. Tell him to take men to General Ren's mansion to investigate the case, and that his niece drowned there."
The subordinate respectfully replied, "Yes, sir." Then, he bowed to Lord Guan, turned around, and strode out of the yamen, heading towards the Lin residence.
Lin, the head constable, knew nothing about his second niece drowning in the lake at the General's Mansion. An hour earlier, he had ridden his horse at breakneck speed out of the capital, his destination a temple outside the city.
The temple is located on a small hill on the outskirts of the capital, in a quiet and secluded environment, and is very popular with worshippers.
Lin the constable's mother, Granny Lin, was terrified by the cries of ghosts, so she fled here to worship Buddha, hoping to receive Buddha's protection and eliminate her inner fear and anxiety.
When Granny Lin arrived at the temple, she quickly donated a few copper coins, then knelt devoutly before the Buddha statue, chanting prayers for his protection. As she prayed, she silently prayed in her heart that the terrifying ghosts would no longer haunt her.
After staying in the temple for a while, Old Lady Lin found that the eerie sound no longer rang in her ears, and her mood gradually calmed down, feeling an unprecedented sense of ease.
As time went by, Old Lady Lin's fear gradually subsided. She began to believe that Buddha had truly heard her prayers and driven away those terrifying ghosts for her.
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