Chapter 191: Witchcraft Curse Incident
Dantu County, Xu Family, Marquis of Wu’s main wife Xu Fen was full of grievances as she complained to Grandmother Madam Sun.
“He doesn’t touch me at all. He dotes on that woman surnamed Bu all day. I don’t see him for ten days or half a month. Nominally I’m the main wife, but in reality everyone in the Marquis of Wu’s Palace says the one surnamed Bu is the main wife. Grandmother, what’s the difference between this and being a living widow?”
“He has never touched you?”
“Only three times, and each time it was over quickly. I couldn’t possibly get pregnant.”
Madam Sun’s face became very grim. She closed her eyes and thought for a long time before saying, “Only by getting rid of Bu Lianshi will you have a chance to get pregnant and have a child. Only then can your child become the Marquis of Wu’s successor.”
“Getting rid of her is of course good, but how?”
A trace of vicious cold smile appeared at the corner of Madam Sun’s mouth. “Use the oldest, that is, the most effective method!”
A few days later, Marquis of Wu’s main wife Xu Fen and several maidservants collapsed almost simultaneously, foaming at the mouth, convulsing all over, sometimes shouting and yelling nonsense. For a time, rumors spread in the Marquis of Wu’s Palace, and an ominous gloom enveloped the Marquis of Wu’s Palace.
Sun Quan naturally learned of this. He ordered the palace physicians to treat his wife and several maidservants and find the cause of the illness, but no matter how the physicians examined them, they couldn’t find the cause and could only use unclean food as an excuse to get by.
Sun Quan had a trusted eunuch named He Ding. He was Sun Quan’s chamberlain, of humble status, yet able to speak in Sun Quan’s presence. Because he was a eunuch, this man was extremely greedy for money. All his services had clear prices, and the cheapest item on his price list was his conscience.
In the main hall, Sun Quan angrily rebuked several physicians. “Unclean food? You actually came up with that. What a bunch of useless fools!”
The several physicians trembled and murmured in agreement, not daring to explain further. Sun Quan flicked his sleeve. “You can’t even diagnose a minor illness. What’s the use of keeping you? Get out!”
The several physicians scrambled away in fear. Sun Quan was in a bad mood and paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back.
He Ding saw an opportunity and whispered, “These physicians are fooling the Marquis of Wu!”
Sun Quan turned and glanced at him. “What do you mean?”
“Your Highness Marquis of Wu, these maidservants don’t live together and don’t eat together. How could they all eat the same unclean food? And even if they did eat unclean food, everyone should have shared it. How could only these three fall ill?”
Sun Quan had been too involved to see it clearly, but he suddenly realized it was indeed impossible to be unclean food.
“Then what do you think is the cause?”
“Marquis of Wu, my aunt is a famous witch. I remember her saying that when several people go mad simultaneously without warning, that’s witchcraft!”
“Witchcraft!” Sun Quan’s eyes narrowed. He seemed to think of something. Perhaps this was an opportunity.
Witchcraft was extremely prevalent in the Two Han dynasties. Even Emperor Wu of Han was implicated in a witchcraft disaster, leading to the execution of his wife and son. Of course, Emperor Wu’s incident was related to power struggles between father and son, but witchcraft definitely had a huge market in the Two Han, especially in the south, where belief in witchcraft was deeply rooted. Zhuge Liang borrowing the east wind was no less a form of witchcraft. Sun Quan was no exception and was extremely superstitious of witchcraft.
“Is your aunt still alive?”
“Yes, right in Dantu County.”
“Invite her to come see for me. I will reward her heavily!”
“This subordinate will invite her tomorrow!”
“No! Invite her today.”
In the afternoon, a middle-aged witch arrived as promised. Her surname was Zhuang. Madam Sun had spent a large sum to invite her from Wu Commandery. She had no relation to He Ding, but for greater deception, she used the alias He Xiaoshi, He Ding’s aunt.
An altar was set up in the Marquis of Wu’s Palace. He Xiaoshi held ritual implements on the altar, chanted incantations, and continuously produced various firelights, full of mystery and eeriness.
She suddenly cried out and collapsed. He Ding rushed forward to support her and shouted, “Aunt! Aunt!”
He Xiaoshi slowly opened her eyes and looked at Sun Quan with strange gaze. “There is indeed witchcraft aura in the palace, and it’s very heavy!”
She suddenly pointed to the southeast, her gaze becoming exceptionally sharp. “The witchcraft aura is in that direction!”
Sun Quan stood up and slowly clenched his fist. He turned to General Chen Wu and said, “Search thoroughly for me. No matter who it involves, even my study must be searched completely!”
Chen Wu cupped his fists. “This subordinate obeys the order!”
By evening, the search of the Marquis of Wu’s Palace was over. On Sun Quan’s desk were placed two pairs of figurines that had been found: one pair of Sun Quan with a needle stuck in the chest and Sun Quan’s name written on it—one found in Sun Quan’s study, one in Bu Lianshi’s bedroom.
The other pair was of Marquis of Wu’s wife Xu Fen, also with a needle stuck in the chest and Xu Fen’s name written on it—one found in Xu Fen’s bedroom, the other also in Bu Lianshi’s bedroom.
Sun Quan’s face turned ashen. He had never dreamed that Bu Lianshi would use such vicious and despicable means with witchcraft to scheme for the position of main wife, even cursing him. He had truly misjudged her and the Bu family.
How much a man loves a woman is how much he will hate her when he turns. Sun Quan immediately ordered Bu Lianshi sent to Changdong Courtyard. Changdong Courtyard was the cold palace, where she was under house arrest in a dilapidated courtyard with no maidservants, only an old woman delivering meals daily.
Sun Quan pondered with hands behind his back for a long time. Although Bu Zhi was the second-in-command of the Huai Si Group and moving him would have great impact, the arrow was already on the string and had to be released.
Sun Quan finally made up his mind. He issued an order as Marquis of Wu, demoting Bu Zhi to county commandant of Lingyang County.
Bu Lianshi cried all day. She could never have imagined she would suffer such an undeserved calamity. Kind by nature, she couldn’t bear to harm small animals. How could she use witchcraft?
What chilled her even more was that her husband didn’t believe her at all, sending her to Changdong Courtyard without giving her any chance to defend herself. Years of marital affection meant nothing in terms of trust.
Bu Lianshi cried until midnight. The food had gone cold long ago, and she had no appetite, only drinking a bowl of water. Unexpectedly, soon after drinking it, she suffered excruciating abdominal pain. After tormenting her for an hour, before dawn, Bu Lianshi finally breathed her last.
In the morning, Sun Quan received the news that Bu Lianshi had taken her own life out of guilt, drinking the deadly poison Crane’s Crest Red hidden in her pendant.
Sun Quan felt some sadness, but thinking of her vicious use of the figurine to curse him and that Bu Zhi was Sun Ben’s faction member, his heart hardened again. He said coldly, “Even suicide out of guilt cannot be lightly forgiven. Pass my order: strip her of all imperial titles, return her body to the Bu family. She has no relation to me anymore.”
In the Bu residence, Bu Zhi looked at his niece’s icy corpse, overwhelmed with immense grief, and instructed, “Prepare her for burial!”
Two women preparing the body wrapped Bu Lianshi’s already stiff corpse layer by layer with white silk and slowly placed it into the coffin in the courtyard. Bu Zhi personally lifted the lid and closed the coffin.
Bu Zhi returned to the main hall and sat there grieving endlessly. With his niece dead, how could he account to his deceased elder brother?
Eldest son Bu Xie stepped forward and whispered, “Father, Younger Sister’s death is suspicious!”
“How is it suspicious?”
“How could Younger Sister hide Crane’s Crest Red in her pendant? If discovered, she would be deemed an assassin. How could she not understand that?
Moreover, when she was sent to Changdong Courtyard, apart from a few old dresses, all her jewelry was confiscated. Where did this pendant come from?”
“Perhaps she hid it on her person?”
“How? They searched her body.”
“Then what is your view?”
Bu Xie gritted his teeth and said, “It was the Marquis of Wu who had her poisoned, then slandered her as suicide out of guilt.”
