Chapter 26 No Good Banquet 5 Madam Zheng
When Bida brought the coroner, Old Wu, to the Zhao residence, Magistrate Zhao's body had already been moved to a nearby wing. Old Wu examined the body by lamplight, completing it before dawn and delivering the coffin to County Magistrate Feng. Fang Yan, upon receiving the news, rushed early in the morning, arriving at Xun Shu and He Xuan's courtyard with the latest news before leaving the Zhao residence.
The door to the courtyard stood ajar. A lush pomegranate tree stood beneath it. A simple breakfast, steaming hot, sat on a round stone table. Four stone benches surrounded the table, where Xun Shu and He Xuan sat opposite each other, enjoying their breakfast.
The clear morning light filtered through the branches and leaves, casting specks of light on the two of them. Xun Shu heard a sound and turned around, revealing two small dimples on his cheeks. "It's Brother Yan, have you eaten yet? Come over here and have some more!"
The aroma of food mixed with the fragrance of flowers and plants in the early morning, the chirping of cicadas in the trees and the singing of birds in the distance echoed each other, and the person in front of me smiled like a flower, with the purest kindness in his eyes and eyebrows.
The scene was so beautiful that Fang Yan was momentarily lost in thought, not realizing what day it was. He took a deep breath to suppress his emotion and sadness, walked over to an empty stool, and plopped down. He said sourly, "I've been busy all morning and haven't had a sip of water, and yet you two are sitting here leisurely enjoying your breakfast."
Xun Shu poured him a bowl of noodle soup, his eyes rather strange: "We are not government officials, why can't we have breakfast?"
Fang Yan was stunned for a moment, then spoke again with a tone of grievance: "Ah Shu, we are good friends. Yesterday, I was too impulsive and lost face for County Magistrate Feng in front of so many people. He ridiculed me this morning and ordered me to solve the case as soon as possible, otherwise I would be in trouble. Ah Shu, you must use your divination skills to help me find the murderer."
"I told you, divination is about fortune and luck, not the identity of the murderer." Xun Shu sighed, as if he felt that what he said was too cruel. He looked into Fang Yan's eyes and said seriously, "Don't worry, we are friends. If there is anything I can do to help you, I will definitely help you."
He Xuan lowered his eyes and suddenly said, "Ah Shu, since we are locked up in this yard and can't go out, why don't we help Brother Fang solve this mystery?"
Xun Shu couldn't believe what he heard.
Don't these two always quarrel when they meet? When did their relationship become so good?
Fang Yan was no less surprised than Xun Shu. He turned his head abruptly, his eyes filled with a complex expression, as if he was touched by his words, yet also felt guilty for their past arguments. He stared blankly at He Xuan, muttering, "Brother He, I was wrong in the past. I didn't expect you to be so magnanimous and open-minded, not to hold it against me..." He leaned forward, grasped He Xuan's hand, and said sincerely, "Brother He, you helped me this time. If there's anything you need my help with in the future, just ask. I promise you, as long as I can do it, I will definitely do it for you!"
He Xuan felt the hairs on his back stand up when a man pulled his hand. Just as he was about to shake it off, he heard his last words. His thoughts turned and he suppressed the strange feeling in his heart. He smiled meaningfully, "Then I'll keep it in mind." He pulled his hand out from Fang Yan's grasp without leaving a trace and repeated, "Brother Fang, don't forget what you said today."
Seeing the two agree to help him solve the case, Fang Yan couldn't wait to share what he had just seen. He extended his right hand, gesturing as he spoke in detail, "Last night, Old Wu examined County Magistrate Zhao's body. The sting site on the base of his right palm was swollen and black. His entire right hand, including his forearm, was bluish-black with dark bruises. His lips were cyanotic, but no other injuries were found. Old Wu took some of the corpse's blood and fed it to rats. The rats licked it and immediately collapsed and died. It's confirmed that Lord Zhao died of poisoning, and the body is now highly toxic."
Xun Shu opened his eyes wide: "There is such a strong poison? Do you know what it is?"
"Old Wu said that judging by the deceased's wound, the cause of death does appear to be a venomous insect bite, with the toxin entering the body through the wound. But he knows very little about venomous insects. I took out the bee's body for him to identify, but he didn't recognize it. I'll leave this house soon and go to the clinic in Chaozhou City to ask around. Perhaps the doctors there will recognize it." He paused, then remembered something and added, "Old Wu also said that this poison is very similar to the legendary One-Step Death. It is said that after taking this poison or getting it in contact with blood, the person will immediately fall to the ground and die. Because the time left after taking the poison is at most enough to take one step, it is called One-Step Death. After death from poisoning, the deceased's blood is highly toxic, and the poison will not dissipate until three days later. If the doctors in Chaozhou City don't recognize this bee either, you can ask if there are any venomous insects with symptoms similar to One-Step Death. Perhaps we can make new discoveries."
There is no better way nowadays.
"Don't forget to check the incense powder." Xun Shu sighed, "I hope you can find something this time."
-
Fang Yan came and went in a hurry, like a gust of wind, sweeping through the small courtyard, leaving no trace except the Hu pancake that he had bitten a few times.
After he left, the yard became quiet. Neither Xun Shu nor He Xuan spoke a word. They just let the cicadas and birds chirp in unison, feeling no sorrow or sadness, and still cheerful.
Breakfast was over. Xun Shu put down his wooden chopsticks and stared at the empty bowl in front of him in a daze, his mind full of what happened last night.
Last night, she hadn't slept well, having a terrible nightmare. In it, there were Madam Zhao and Magistrate Zhao. Their faces were as black as ink, their resentment so thick that they barely made out their human forms. They blocked her path, one in front and one behind, demanding to know why she hadn't helped. She preached to them about following the laws of nature and the laws of nature, but they only asked why she hadn't helped.
The chattering continued until she woke up. Even after she got up today, her ears were still buzzing, and the two people seemed to be still crying beside her.
He Xuan seemed oblivious to her annoyance and pointed outside, saying, "Since you said you want to help Fang Yan solve the case, you can't just sit here and wait for the answer to come to you. Go out and take a look, maybe there will be some new discoveries."
Xun Shu nodded, stood up and followed his steps. She walked to the gate in a daze and bumped into He Xuan's back, almost falling. He Xuan seemed to have eyes behind him, pulling and helping her to stand steadily, saying helplessly: "You are such a little kid. Such a small thing can make you so distracted that you can't even walk properly."
Xun Shu looked up blankly, his eyes dazed: "What?"
He Xuan bent his knuckles and tapped her forehead, the sound crisp. He rubbed his chin and muttered, "It doesn't sound hollow..."
Xun Shu rolled his eyes, too lazy to pay attention to him anymore. He turned around and looked around, putting aside his previous annoyance for the time being.
The passage ahead ran east-west through the Zhao residence, wide enough for four or five people to pass side by side, and barely enough for a carriage to pass. There were no flowers or plants growing on either side of the road, and the bluestone slabs were smooth and clean.
The courtyard Xun Shu stayed in last night was Zhao Yuanming's former residence. Both the main gate and the gate to County Magistrate Zhao's study opened onto this passage. Walking east between the two gates, one could reach the courtyard of the second daughter of the Zhao family and the courtyard where Madam Zhao once lived. Walking west, one could reach Zheng's courtyard and the courtyard where Bai Xing and other maids were temporarily staying.
She stood in the middle of the road, pondered for a moment, then pointed in the direction of Zheng's courtyard and said, "Let's go talk to Zheng first. Her reaction last night was too strange, as if she knew something."
He Xuan nodded, without asking her reason, and took the lead to walk towards the west, with Xun Shu following closely.
The morning sun shone on their backs, casting shadows in front of them. Xun Shu lowered her head, watching the two shadows walk side by side, indistinguishable as one from the other. She found it quite interesting. She stepped forward, following the shadows, and after about a hundred steps, she arrived at Zheng's courtyard.
It was clearly early summer, but the branches and leaves of the trees in the courtyard looked much thinner than they had been a month ago. Their leaves drooped, swaying in the wind, a look of desolation. Walking through the mottled shade of the trees, I saw the courtyard gate ajar.
There was no one guarding the door. Xun Shu was about to knock on it when the sound of conversation in the yard slipped out from the crack of the door, penetrated into her ears, and stopped her.
Xun Shu put his ear close to the gate and held his breath, trying to hear more clearly.
There were two people talking inside the door, one of them was Zheng, and the other had an old voice, probably the old lady Zheng mentioned by the housekeeper yesterday.
They seemed to be arguing, and Old Lady Zheng spoke in a voice as condescending as an elder: "Shu'er, where exactly is that thing? You lived in this house back then, so it's impossible that you don't know anything about it. Now your aunt is your only relative, you must believe that she can help you!"
Zheng's voice was hoarse and filled with resentment: "My only relatives are my father and mother, and they passed away five years ago! At that time, your whole family huddled together, with no one willing to help. They wished they could leave me far away, and you never had any relatives like us! Now you remember that I'm your niece? What were you doing before?" Zheng's voice was so sharp that the birds in the tree fluttered away. She realized that she had lost her composure, calmed down, and lowered her voice when she spoke again, "I said, my father was wronged. What happened back then had nothing to do with him, and those things have nothing to do with our family. If you want to find those things, I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place!"
"Shu'er! I'm doing this for your own good! Do you know how many people have been eyeing those things for so many years? If you hand them over as soon as possible, you can still live in peace. If you don't tell the truth, you will lose your life sooner or later!"
"Your life? Do you think you can threaten me with that?" Zheng sneered, her voice as cold as ice in the twelfth lunar month. "Now that my father and mother are gone, and my master is gone too, I'm the only one left in this huge house. I'm not afraid of anything anymore. I'm telling you, my father is innocent of what happened back then! And those things have nothing to do with our Zheng family! If you still want to live here, then keep your mouth shut and don't bother me. If you don't want to live in this courtyard, then go to the maids' courtyard next door. There should be an empty bed there."
"You!" Madam Zheng was clearly furious and said angrily, "Why don't you think about Yuan An?"
Zheng's voice fell silent, a soft spot touched, and she remained silent. Xun Shu leaned in closer, wanting to listen more carefully.
He Xuan grabbed her arm and pulled her back, then shook his head helplessly. Just as she was about to ask what he meant, she heard a tender child's voice from the treetops above her head. It was Zhao Yuanan, the son of Zheng and County Magistrate Zhao.
His clear voice penetrated through the layers of branches and leaves, reaching Xun Shu's ears, and also the ears of the two people in the courtyard: "Don't threaten Mother! Mother can do whatever she wants, don't worry about Yuan An. Yuan An is a man who can take care of Mother and himself!"
Madam Zheng sighed, not knowing what to say. Zheng was so surprised and flustered at the sudden appearance of Zhao Yuanan that she was speechless. Zhao Yuanan jumped down from the tree and disappeared from Xun Shu's sight. A moment later, the backyard door was opened from the inside. Zhao Yuanan, who was only half a man's height, pointed at Xun Shu and He Xuan and said, "Mother, there are guests outside the door. They are the brothers and sisters who came last time. They have been here for a while. Mother, would you like to welcome them in?"
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