Chapter 19: The Token That Shouldn’t Appear
With He Jianzhong’s death, many gazes immediately turned toward the He Family.
Huo Yun knew he had to act quickly.
After receiving Yue Tang’s order, he immediately left the He Family and headed straight for the alley where the Zhang Family lived.
The Zhang Family was still living in the house at the busy street corner, with vendors and tea stalls densely packed in front of the door. He found the most bustling tea stall and ordered a pot of tea.
That morning, he had been summoned into the Marquis’s Mansion along with He Jianzhong and given a scolding, so Zhang Shaode didn’t dare say anything about Zhang Shi’s death.
The Marquis of Guangling could promote their official positions, but squashing them would be just as easy as squashing an ant.
Although daughter Zhang Shi’s death left a stifled feeling in the heart, the living mattered more in the end.
After returning to the mansion, he immediately sent his only son Zhang Ji to replace He Xu in going to find Wei Zhang.
After seeing the person off at the door, before he could even sit down in the room, Madam Zhang came rushing in anxiously: “There are so many people outside saying that He Jianzhong is dead!”
Zhang Shaode almost thought he misheard: “Who did you say died?”
“He Jianzhong!” Madam Zhang slapped her thigh. “Just now in the Liu’s Tea Shop outside the door, a bunch of people were discussing the He Family’s affairs, saying He Jianzhong was just killed by his wife! The rumors had all the details, and many people were heading to the He Family to watch the excitement!”
Zhang Shaode’s jaw dropped, then he set down the cup and strode out the door.
The He Family no longer had any master who could take charge, and the only somewhat normal He Hui had already gone to the yamen, with everyone unsure why he hadn’t returned yet.
By the time Zhang Shaode arrived, the He Family was already in chaos.
Servants throughout the mansion were shouting and fleeing, while several butlers were shouting at them.
The main chamber was a horrific sight: He Jianzhong lay sideways on the ground, and Madam He, still covered in blood, was giggling foolishly.
On the way there, Zhang Shaode had been half-believing and half-doubting, but upon entering the door he knew it was true, and only after seeing this scene with his own eyes did he have a clear realization: He Jianzhong was really dead!
Just over an hour ago, this in-law who had been arguing with his own family had turned into a corpse in the blink of an eye!
“What happened here?” he asked the people around him.
If He Xu’s death felt sudden and Zhang Shi’s death felt infuriating, then He Jianzhong’s death just one night later made everything feel abnormal!
In just two short days and nights, three people in the He Family had already died!
And the dead were not outsiders, but the master of the house, the Eldest Young Master, and the Eldest Young Mistress!
Not only that, He Jianzhong had been personally stabbed to death by Madam He! And Madam He had gone mad at this very moment!
He Jianzhong was a military general, while Madam He was a frail and sickly woman—how could she have killed him?
Even if she caught him off guard and landed the first stab, she absolutely couldn’t have landed the second!
Zhang Shaode wasn’t stupid; he sniffed out the eerie strangeness behind this bloody scent.
“It was Madam who killed with the knife!…”
The servant spoke incoherently.
“Who saw it happen?!”
The servant trembled as he recalled: “The door was closed; at the time, only the newly hired medical woman was there with Madam.”
“Where’s the medical woman?”
“She got scared and ran off long ago!”
Zhang Shaode furrowed his brow tightly.
This sole witness was a medical woman who had just been hired, and she fled immediately after the incident?!
He quickly scanned the surroundings, then swiftly crouched down to examine the corpse on the ground, groping around to inspect it.
Apart from how strangely He Jianzhong had been killed without resisting, Madam He’s sudden madness was also abnormal.
Yesterday after Zhang Shi’s death by collision, he had heard from the servants nearby about the cause of Zhang Shi and He Xu’s argument—it was this medical woman!
Her appearance had sparked the couple’s argument, and then things spiraled out of control.
This medical woman was suspicious!
He Jianzhong absolutely did not die at Madam He’s hand!
He quickly crouched down and groped over He Jianzhong’s corpse, finding nothing, so he flipped the body over.
At that moment, the right hand that had been pressed against the ground was turned over, revealing a gleaming Imperial City Commander Token right before Zhang Shaode’s eyes!
……
The Marquis of Guangling returned from Prince Jingyang’s Mansion and sat lost in thought at the walnut desk carved with the pattern of the God of Literature.
He repeatedly pondered Yan Bei’s tone and demeanor before and after, feeling that this visit wasn’t so simple.
The Du Family was originally a founding marquis with great merit; after other marquises of the same rank had their nobility titles revoked, the title had still been passed down to him, Du Minghuan.
But it wasn’t until he was twenty that he secured a position in the Imperial City Department, where he stayed for seven or eight years.
That year, he followed Prince Duan in accompanying the Former Emperor on an excursion and managed to squeeze in front of Prince Duan to show his face, which reminded Prince Duan of the old Marquis of Guangling’s merits and led to his promotion to Deputy Envoy.
This position was a height the Du Family had never dared to dream of in the past few decades.
But that was the end of it.
Prince Duan and the Former Emperor were full brothers; the Former Emperor was benevolent, and Prince Duan respected his imperial brother, so even with few imperial clan branches, imperial power was as steady as an iron plate.
Prince Duan had controlled the Imperial City Department since the Former Emperor’s ascension and had received imperial edicts more than once; when Prince Duan grew old and retired, the Imperial City Department would be handed to his offspring.
In short, for various reasons, three years ago, the Marquis of Guangling had taken a desperate risk and acted against Prince Duan’s Mansion.
Then his cousin Prince Jingyang returned to the capital to serve as Regent Minister per the Former Emperor’s deathbed imperial edict, which delighted him to no end.
Now Prince Jingyang not only held military power but was also the Regent Minister of the Imperial Court; with such a great backer, did the future glory of the Marquis of Guangling’s Mansion need any worrying?
But this cousin was truly hard to approach—practically unfeeling toward kin!
In these three years, aside from visiting the Marquis of Guangling’s Mansion once right after returning to the capital to see the Old Madam, he had never come again.
Even when the Marquis of Guangling himself sent invitations multiple times to visit the mansion, getting in once out of ten times would be lucky. And that one time had to be when Prince Jingyang had official business to discuss.
The only consolation was that during festivals, the Prince’s Mansion would send festival gifts to the Old Madam as per the etiquette of juniors.
But that wasn’t enough—not nearly enough!
The Marquis of Guangling knew better than anyone that having committed such a major crime three years ago, if the handle of assassinating the Princess was ever seized, it would be tantamount to the crime of deceiving the Emperor hanging over his head!
He could not afford not to leave himself a way out.
The power-shaking-the-world Prince Jingyang was his way out.
He had to firmly grasp this family connection so that on the day trouble might erupt in the future, Prince Jingyang would protect the Du Family.
This time for the Old Madam’s birthday banquet at sixty, the mansion had made full preparations and spread the news early; he had also hoped to use public opinion to get Prince Jingyang to visit the mansion for the birthday celebration.
Who would have thought… on such an important day as the Old Madam’s sixtieth birthday, Prince Jingyang still wouldn’t give face!
He sat sullenly for half the morning, going nowhere.
When the butler brought the list of banquet invitees: “The invitations have been sent separately to the Top Scholar, the Second Place Scholar, and the Third Place Scholar; all three lords accepted on the spot and promised to attend.”
Only then did his expression brighten slightly: “Remember to arrange the Top Scholar’s seat at the same table as the Second Uncle Master.”
