Chapter 147 Singing

Ming Huashang breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that it was Su Yuji, but then she felt embarrassed and said, "It's you. Please take a seat."

Su Yuji stood in front of the window in a suit and said coldly, "No need, it can be explained in a few words. You don't need to know the specific reason, but I saw your maid before she died. Some details were not right at that time, and I thought I should tell you."

Ming Huashang's smile faltered when she heard Zhaocai's name. She lowered her eyes, smiled, and said, "Then we should sit down and talk slowly. I have been feeling groggy these past two days. There is no good tea in the room, only plain water. Please forgive me."

Ming Huashang took out the teacup, poured two cups of tea in turn, and placed them opposite. Su Yuji watched for a while, then slowly walked over and sat opposite.

Ming Huashang asked: "Thank you for reminding me. What did you see?"

Su Yuji didn't touch the water on the table, and said calmly: "After you and Su Xingzhi left that day, Zhaocai stayed behind to replace you. Jiang Ling and Ren Yao searched farther and farther, and I mainly followed them and didn't pay much attention to Zhaocai. But when I left, I vaguely saw her standing in the alley, talking to someone. The other person stood in the shadows, and I didn't see clearly, I just noticed that he was wearing red clothes."

Ming Huashang asked: "Is that the alley where she died?"

Su Yuji nodded: "Yes."

"What kind of red dress is it?"

Su Yuji said: "I didn't see it clearly. But I am sure it is not the one they found in the drainage ditch today."

Yesterday, Su Yuji was ordered to carry out a surveillance mission. Her mission was to secretly observe the Shuangbi team, not just Shuangbi herself. When Su Xingzhi came to find Ming Huashang, Su Yuji also saw him, but she had just had an argument with Su Xingzhi, and she was upset when she saw him, and she didn't want to follow them at all, so she stayed in Changshoufang and continued to monitor the rest of the people.

She didn't think a maid could get anything out of her, so she mainly followed Jiang Ling and Ren Yao. That's why she missed Zhaocai's death.

Su Yuji felt very sorry when she learned about Zhaocai's death. She clearly saw Zhaocai, and maybe even saw the murderer. If she had left a step later, or paid more attention to Zhaocai, could she have saved Zhaocai?

Su Yuji felt guilty and could not help but pay attention to the follow-up of Zhaocai today. When she saw Xie Jichuan find a blue gown from the drainage ditch, find Yang Banfeng based on it, and search Yang Banfeng's house for the murder weapon, Su Yuji knew something was wrong.

The person who killed Zhaocai was definitely not Yang Banfeng. Someone had laid clues and deliberately directed suspicion to Yang Banfeng. However, the evidence was overwhelming in Jingzhao Prefecture, with witnesses and evidence. Su Yuji had doubts but didn't know who to tell. After thinking about it, he could only come to Ming Huashang.

Ming Huashang was silent for a long time after hearing this, and then asked, "Why did you tell me such an important clue? Wouldn't it be more useful to tell Jingzhao Prefecture, Xie Jichuan, or... my second brother?"

When Xie Jichuan came today, Ming Huazhang took him outside to talk. They thought Ming Huachang was sleeping, so they didn't deliberately lower their voices. In fact, Ming Huachang couldn't sleep at all, and she heard everything.

She instinctively analyzed the clues, but then she thought about how she had killed Zhaocai, and she felt that she had no ability to take care of these things. This was what Jingzhao Prefecture should do, and her random mixing would only make the situation worse.

She didn't expect that Su Yuji brought completely different news. The murderer found by Jingzhao Prefecture was wrong, and the person who killed Zhaocai was probably still at large.

Why tell her something so important? What if she screws up again?

Su Yuji raised her eyebrows, stood up and said, "That's right, they have official positions and power, and can do more. Maybe I'm crazy, thinking that she is your maid, and only you will dig deep to find the murderer for her. Since you don't want to, then just pretend I didn't say anything."

Su Yuji was about to leave when Ming Huashang suddenly called her from behind: "Wait."

Su Yuji stopped but didn't look back. There was no light in the room, and the night was quietly between the two of them. Ming Huashang was silent for a moment and asked, "Why do you believe that I can find the murderer? Even I don't believe it myself."

Su Yuji exhaled, crossed her arms and hugged the dagger, and said coldly: "I don't believe it either. But compared to others, I think you want to seek justice for her more and are more willing to investigate further, that's all."

Ming Huachang was stunned when she heard these words. Everyone was carefully protecting her emotions, fearing that she would be upset again, but Su Yuji didn't care about her at all, and directly threw the death of Zhaocai, which Ming Huachang had carefully concealed, in front of her, and his words were merciless.

Yes, she can be hypocritical, can cry and wail, but Zhaocai will never come back. The people in Jingzhao Prefecture investigated the case for political achievements, Ming Huazhang investigated the case for her, and Xie Jichuan, Ren Yao and others found the murderer because they felt sorry. No one paid for Zhaocai.

Zhaocai was sold by his relatives a long time ago. He had been staying in the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion for many years and had long lost contact with his family. If Ming Huashang didn't speak up for Zhaocai, who else would?

Ming Huachang's nails dug into her palms unconsciously, almost leaving blood marks. She couldn't fall down. She had to continue fighting with the man behind her in order to make money.

Ming Huashang gritted her teeth, stood up and said, "Wait a moment, I'll change my clothes. Zhaocai's body is in the mansion, I'll go and perform an autopsy. There must be traces of the murderer on her body."

Ming Huashang was only wearing a middle-length shirt, and the cold kept penetrating into her body through her sleeves and trousers, causing her body to shiver slightly. Ming Huashang had no time to slowly put on her clothes, so she only tied a cloak on the outside. She patted her face hard, and her forehead was still hot, but her mind was extremely clear.

Cheer up, Ming Huashang. The murderer is still alive, how can you fall down? For those you want to protect, whether they are by your side now or have passed away, even if you break bones and your flesh is bloody, you must stand up again and continue to fight until you die.

Ming Huashang did not alarm the maid, but quietly pushed the door open, staggering and walking into the darkness without looking back. Su Yuji fell behind a few steps away. Ming Huashang breathed in the bone-chilling wind of early spring and said to the person behind her: "There is one thing I want to apologize to you for. I thought it was for your own good, so I asked Su Xingzhi not to tell you, but you are the one who should know the most. I acted on my own, sorry."

Su Yuji raised his eyebrows and his eyes became alert. Ming Huashang continued, "You should know that your surname is not Su at all, but the daughter of the Duke of Zhenguo. You were sent to the Su family because of some things. The Su family knows these things, and the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion actually knows them too."

Su Yuji's expression became colder and colder, and spikes stood up on his body. He asked, "What do you mean by saying this?"

"Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to show off or offend you. I just want to say that we should have been twin sisters, fighting and growing up together. But, our father had more important people to protect, so he had to choose one of us to send away. I'm sorry, that person is you, not me."

Su Yuji frowned slowly, not understanding what was said: "What did you say?"

"The Ming family didn't give birth to a pair of twin boys, but twin girls." Ming Huashang couldn't think well because of the fever, so she took advantage of the fever and said all these words in one breath without looking back, "The child who was actually adopted was Ming Huazhang. His surname was not Ming, but the son of Prince Zhang Huai. He was sent to the Ming family for refuge seventeen years ago because of the East Palace rebellion case. The father wanted to preserve the bloodline of Prince Zhang Huai, so he sent his own daughter away and left a son with Prince Zhang Huai to pretend to be twin boys, and kept it a secret until now."

Su Yuji was completely stunned. She was stunned for a long time and murmured, "But..."

"But those people didn't say that, did they?" Ming Huashang took over her words and said calmly, "Of course, my words are also one-sided to you. You can doubt me, but this involves the struggle for imperial power. No matter what, we will not be the winner. I hope you can think about it again and wait a little longer before making a decision."

This time it was Su Yuji's turn to remain silent. Ming Huashang did not urge her, and the two walked in the night, one in front of the other, and could only hear each other's footsteps. After a long time, just when Ming Huashang suspected that she had not heard, Su Yuji spoke: "Are you saying this for him?"

Ming Huashang wanted to explain, but then she thought that this was true. No matter how many reasons she gave, the core motive for her to persuade Su Xingzhi to hide Su Yuji was Ming Huazhang. Ming Huashang did not hide it and nodded, "You can think so."

Su Yuji seemed to chuckle and said, "You are really loyal to him."

Su Yuji couldn't go back home because Ming Huazhang had no home. Whether Ming Huazhang was willing or not, this was real harm. Ming Huashang didn't speak well of Ming Huazhang. This was a matter between him and Su Yuji, and Ming Huazhang should solve it himself. She shouldn't interfere.

Soon, they came to the courtyard where Zhaocai's corpse was stored. Ming Huashang walked straight to the gate. The guards saw her and asked in surprise, "Second Madam, why are you here?"

Ming Huashang nodded calmly and said, "I'll come and see Zhaocai."

The guard hesitated. Erlang had said that no one would be allowed in unless he accompanied them, but the guard was not sure whether Ermaid was considered "anyone". He hesitated for a moment and said, "Madam, wait a moment. I will go and report to Erlang."

Before he finished speaking, he suddenly heard a gust of wind. He was not on guard against Ming Huashang, so his back was completely exposed in the darkness, and he had no idea of ​​the sneak attack. He realized that something was wrong and was about to dodge, but he felt a pain in the back of his neck, his eyes rolled back, and he fainted uncontrollably.

Ming Huashang sighed and said, "Actually, it's fine to let him go and report it. There's no need to knock him out."

Su Yuji had knocked the guard down neatly. She clapped her hands and said calmly, "You just said that no matter how those dragon sons and princes fight, we will not be the winners. How do you know that he won't destroy the bridge after crossing the river? I don't believe him, I only believe in myself."

Ming Huashang certainly believed that Ming Huazhang would not harm the Duke of Zhenguo Mansion. However, Su Yuji had been targeted by a group of people for no reason some time ago, and now she had learned a completely different life story from Ming Huashang. It was understandable that she was wary and hostile to everyone, especially the royal family members. Ming Huashang did not persuade Su Yuji at this time, but silently dragged the fainted guard to a sheltered place.

Ming Huashang stood in front of the door, put her hand on it, but she didn't have the courage to push it open for a long time.

The door was thin, but it seemed to be heavier than a thousand pounds. The fortune was inside. She had done so much mental preparation, but when she stood here, she realized how much courage it took to perform an autopsy on her friend.

Ming Huashang took a deep breath and told herself to open the door on the count of three. One, two, three, Ming Huashang gritted her teeth and pushed the door open.

It was cold and dark inside, and the chill pounced on Ming Huashang like a snake, tearing at her madly. She would not allow herself to retreat, and forced herself to lift her legs and walk woodenly towards the dark shadow in the middle.

Zhaocai was lying on the table, still in the same position as when she died, her body curled up, her hands stiffly protecting her abdomen, her skin showing an abnormally grayish color. Ming Huashang suddenly saw this, and her heart felt like it was stabbed by a sharp knife. She turned around abruptly, gasping for breath.

Su Yuji stood at the door and saw how reluctant she was, so he said, "How about I come and take a look, and then describe the wound to you?"

Ming Huashang shook her head. She took out a tinderbox, blew it up, and forced herself to turn around. She scanned Zhaocai's body inch by inch, not wanting to miss a single detail. "I'll do it. I want to see every detail of how that man hurt her."

Ming Huashang leaned over to examine the body. The darkness was vast and silent. The fire in her hand was like a lonely boat in a storm, which could be swallowed up by the darkness at any time. Su Yuji stood at the door and watched this scene, feeling a little at a loss.

It seemed so unkind to say nothing, but when I tried to comfort her, it seemed that our relationship had not reached that point.

While Su Yuji was struggling, a low voice came from the room: "She is so timid, will she be scared to stay in a place like this alone?"

The ice silently shed cold air, and the flames flickered, occasionally passing over the gray-green face of the corpse. Ming Huashang stood in front of the ice bed, holding the dead man's hand and mumbling, as if talking to someone.

Su Yuji suddenly felt a chill on her back. She looked around and asked, "Are you... talking to a ghost?"

"She is a fortune-teller, not a ghost." Ming Huashang lowered her eyes and said, "Besides, what's there to be afraid of ghosts? We live among people every day, and we are not even afraid of people, so why should we be afraid of ghosts?"

Su Yuji raised an eyebrow, slowly leaned against the door frame, and looked up at the starry sky above: "Sometimes you really make people confused. You act lively and happy all day long, as if the future is all good, but sometimes, you are very disappointed in people."

Ming Huashang said in a low voice: "Because human nature itself makes people very desperate. When I decided to devote the rest of my life to hunting down the murderer and punishing the evil and promoting good, I thought I was ready. After all, I am not afraid of death, so what else is there to be afraid of? I don't care how others see me, I don't care about the dangers I may encounter, even if I incur the revenge of the murderer, it is my own choice. But why do you want to involve the people around me? Zhao Cai has never left the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion. She is simple and enthusiastic, outspoken, and her greatest wish in life is to eat and drink. Who can do this to such a woman? How can human hearts be so evil?"

After a long time, Su Yuji's voice came from the door: "Are you talking to me?"

Su Yuji thought Ming Huashang would deny it, but unexpectedly she nodded generously: "Yes."

She was so direct that Su Yuji was at a loss for words. Su Yuji looked at the eerie ice and corpse in front of him, smiled in an ambiguous way, and said, "This is the weirdest conversation I've ever seen."

Su Yuji looked at the bright and shining starry sky above her head and felt very ironic. How ridiculous, on such a cold night, there was such a beautiful starry sky, as if the gods in the sky never cared about the joys and sorrows of the world, and just arranged the stars they liked.

Just like no matter what happens, the sun will always rise as usual the next day.

Su Yuji suddenly asked: "Do you know why Yang Banmai went crazy?"

Ming Huashang shook her head truthfully: "I don't know."

"When people see a madman, their first reaction is usually disgust, as if they are born that way. I couldn't understand why Yang Banmang was so arrogant that he thought everyone in the world wanted to harm him, so I went to Xuanxiaowei to check his life. Unexpectedly, I found a torture record."

"Yang Banmai is the one being interrogated."

Ming Huachang stopped what he was doing and listened to Su Yuji quietly. Su Yuji didn't care about other people's reactions and said to himself: "In the second year of Chuigong, the sage used cruel officials to clean up the court. At that time, Yang Banfeng was still called Yang Huaisha. He had just passed the imperial examination and was full of vigor and talent. When he was having a small gathering with friends, he was filled with righteous indignation and criticized the current affairs. Unexpectedly, he was reported by his good friend and was arrested by the cruel officials and tortured. When he was released, his faith collapsed and he could no longer trust anyone. He felt that the court was unreliable and anyone in the world could kill him. He has been crazy ever since. However, even though he was like this, he still tried to live and kept saying that he didn't want to die."

Yang Huaisha, Huaisha, is Qu Yuan's last words before he jumped into the river.

Ming Huashang and the night were silent together. Su Yuji still looked up at the starry sky and said calmly, "It's not just Yang Banfeng. I have seen many people like him among the people. Natural disasters, man-made disasters, diseases, forced labor, they have to do their best just to survive, but they still struggle and shout in the mud, trying to survive. The only purpose of living is to live."

"You don't have to work hard for a living. You have the ability and people to support you in doing what you want to do. You are already luckier than most people in the world. God has given you a talent. It is up to you to decide how to deal with it. Even if you throw it on the ground and don't use it, it is your freedom. But to be honest, it would be a pity to give up because of something like this." Su Yuji used the handle of the knife to support the door frame and stood up straight. He patted the dust off his clothes and pointed to the east. "Look, it's almost dawn."

Ming Huashang looked in the direction Su Yuji's finger pointed and saw a faint dawn in the east. It turned out that the night had passed without her noticing.

Neither of them spoke a word, just staring at the rays of sunlight piercing through the clouds and the rising sun bursting out. As promised, drums began to sound in the tower, and the passionate drum beats, along with the morning bells of the Buddhist temple, resounded together over the sky above Chang'an.

Life is bitter like a song. Even so, we still have to sing at sunrise.

Ming Huashang exhaled softly and said, "So this is what he meant when he said that a big shot wanted to kill him."

After Ming Huashang finished speaking, she suddenly froze and murmured, "Big shot..."

Many fragments flashed through Ming Huashang's mind. She stared at the sunlight unconsciously. Countless lines extended, broke and rewoven in her mind, and finally, converged on the same point.

Ming Huashang suddenly turned around and ran quickly towards Zhaocai: "No!"