Chapter 17
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Chapter 17
The Pavilion of Embellished Splendor was the closest building to the garden and was also where the ladies retired to rest. No one knew whose idea it had been, but the spacious hall had been divided into two sections by hanging curtains. The female musicians played their instruments behind the curtains, while the ladies rested and chatted on the other side.
The female musicians who had been engaged to provide entertainment were now resting in a side hall of the Pavilion of Embellished Splendor.
Since they were all daughters of distinguished families, Lin Qing could not bring too many men with her. She entered the side hall with only Meng Jie, Liu Ye, and the maidservant pair of Liu Xiangxue and herself.
Including Liu Xiangxue, there were three female musicians. Liu Xiangxue was skilled at the qin, Chu Zhiyi at the pipa, and Jing Yue at wind instruments.
All three girls were young, and they knew one another well.
Chu Zhiyi and Jing Yue had been worried when they saw Liu Xiangxue taken away by the Tianlu Guards. Now that she had returned, they finally breathed a sigh of relief—only to see Lin Qing and Liu Ye standing nearby, which made their hearts leap into their throats once more.
The ladies were terrified upon seeing Lin Qing as well, retreating as far from her as they could. This, however, caused Lin Junrou to stand out all the more.
The Pavilion of Embellished Splendor was enormous. Those permitted to remain in the main hall were all people of noble status. The fallen Yongning Marquis household certainly did not qualify, yet Lin Junrou was still standing there.
Lin Qing swept her gaze across the room and immediately met the eyes of the Grand Princess Fuhui beside Lin Junrou.
The Grand Princess Fuhui had a head of silvery hair and a kindly, benevolent face. She sat upright in the principal seat.
Lin Qing hurried forward and bowed. “This subordinate, Lin Qing, pays respects to Your Highness, Grand Princess.”
“There is no need for such ceremony, Lord Lin.” The Grand Princess Fuhui smiled warmly. “You have worked hard, Lord Lin, dealing with such a grave incident.”
As she spoke, she glanced at the ladies around the room. Her kindly gaze instantly turned stern.
“Lord Lin is acting on His Majesty’s behalf. You are all to cooperate fully. If anyone dares hinder him, do not blame this old woman for showing no mercy.”
There were not many people in the room to begin with. After the Grand Princess Fuhui’s warning, even those harboring ulterior motives immediately put them away. Quite a few noble ladies even stole glances at Lin Qing and Liu Ye, their cheeks quietly flushing red.
The daughters of noble families were strictly raised and had few opportunities to meet unrelated men. Lin Qing and Liu Ye were both exceptionally handsome—one fair and delicate, the other tall and striking. Even with the Tianlu Office’s fearsome reputation, they still made the hearts of the young ladies pound.
One girl in a red dress was especially bold. She walked directly up to Lin Qing and said frankly, “Lord Lin, ask me whatever you wish.”
Lin Qing was rarely caught off guard, but she paused. “And you are?”
The girl in red introduced herself with easy confidence. “My name is Jiang Ruonan. My father is the Duke of Pacifying the Realm.”
The current Duke of Pacifying the Realm had inherited his title, but he was an upright man who had long guarded the frontier. He was a general devoted to his country.
Lin Qing felt genuine respect for such a man. “So you are the young lady of the Duke of Pacifying the Realm’s household. My apologies for not recognizing you.”
“You are too kind, Lord Lin.” Jiang Ruonan laughed heartily, then continued, “With the Grand Princess here, we have merely been chatting and eating together. If there is anything unusual, it would have to be that young lady from the Yongning Marquis household.”
When Jiang Ruonan pointed directly at her, Lin Junrou’s body swayed. Tears welled in her eyes, making her resemble a small white flower battered by wind and rain.
“Miss Jiang, I know you dislike me. I shall leave.”
Jiang Ruonan sneered. “Oh, so you do know that I dislike you. At least you have some self-awareness.”
Lin Junrou’s expression grew even uglier. She lifted her leg to leave, but the girl standing beside her grabbed her arm.
That girl was proud and hot-tempered. She snapped, “Jiang Ruonan, just look at you. Where is the dignity expected of a daughter from a noble family? No wonder your fiancé cannot stand you. Junrou was brought here by me. She is such a kind person—why must you make things difficult for her?”
Hearing this, Lin Qing suddenly remembered that Jiang Ruonan had a fiancé whose family was a suitable match for hers. In the original story, however, that fiancé was also one of Lin Junrou’s many devoted admirers.
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Later, when Prince Rui rebelled, the Duke of Pacifying the Realm was framed and killed by that very fiancé. The Jiang family subsequently fell into ruin, and Jiang Ruonan’s fate was little better than that of a vicious supporting character.
Thinking of her fiancé, who was forever trailing after Lin Junrou, Jiang Ruonan’s bright and generous face instantly darkened. She gave a cold laugh.
“A supposedly legitimate daughter of a marquis whose identity is still uncertain, and a false legitimate daughter elevated from a concubine’s child. No wonder the two of you get along so well. You truly do share the same foul odor.”
Lin Qing understood at once. The girl defending Lin Junrou was probably Zuo Wan, daughter of Zuo Qiufan, the Vice Minister of Personnel.
Zuo Qiufan had risen to the position of Vice Minister of Personnel by clinging to his father-in-law’s family and exploiting their resources. In middle age, his first wife had scarcely been dead a day before he elevated his favored concubine to the status of secondary wife, turning the children born to that concubine into legitimate sons and daughters.
Lin Qing knew of Zuo Qiufan’s disgraceful deeds—indeed, she knew more than most. But as a man in the eyes of the ladies, she rarely had dealings with them, and so she had not recognized at first that the girl protecting Lin Junrou was the daughter of Zuo Qiufan’s secondary wife.
The forces in the capital were all tangled together, and every household had its own sordid secrets. Lin Qing lacked the ability, and the inclination, to meddle in all of them. But when trouble was delivered straight to her door, she did not mind taking care of it.
Lin Qing raised her eyes to the woman seated behind Zuo Wan and said to Liu Ye, “Does the Dali Temple accept cases in which a concubine attempts to murder the principal wife?”
Liu Ye did not understand, but answered at once, “Of course we do. How could we allow a murderer to remain at large?”
Lin Qing said, “A few days ago, the Tianlu Office received evidence that the favored concubine of Vice Minister Zuo Qiufan, Lady Wang, had been adding arsenic to the principal wife’s tea for years. The amount was never large, but she continued until the poison finally took effect.”
Lady Wang was Zuo Wan’s mother. She exploded in panic. The fact that the Tianlu Office knew what she had done terrified her, and she knew she could never admit it. Otherwise, both she and her children would be finished.
“Why are you falsely accusing me, Lord Lin? She died of an illness!”
Lin Qing directly instructed Meng Jie, “Later, send the evidence uncovered by the Tianlu Office to the Dali Temple and place it in Lord Liu’s hands.”
“What are you shouting for?” The Grand Princess Fuhui struck the armrest heavily with her hand. “Whether it is the Tianlu Office or the Dali Temple, investigations are conducted on the basis of evidence. If you are innocent, your name will naturally be cleared. But if you are guilty—murdering the principal wife and passing a concubine’s children off as legitimate—then death would not be punishment enough!”
Lady Wang nearly collapsed onto the floor. Despair covered her still-beautiful face as several guards dragged her away.
Zuo Wan was dumbfounded. She had worked so hard to become a legitimate daughter, and for how long had she enjoyed the glory? Could it truly end here?
As she looked at the contemptuous and mocking gazes around her, and at her mother being dragged away amid shrieks of anguish, she could no longer remain there. She hurried toward the exit.
Lin Junrou’s complexion shifted repeatedly from green to white. She had finally found a stepping stone, only for Lin Qing to shatter it in an instant.
The Grand Princess Fuhui had not failed to notice Lin Junrou. But Li Chenxuan had spoken to her beforehand, so she had deliberately turned a blind eye.
At her age, she had seen every kind of scheme and stratagem. Lin Junrou’s petty tricks were transparent to her at a glance, and she loathed the girl from the bottom of her heart.
“I did not notice her earlier. Whose daughter is that?”
Jiang Ruonan hurried over and said, “Your Highness, she is the eldest daughter of the Yongning Marquis.”
The Grand Princess Fuhui’s brows drew together slightly. “How is it that this girl does not even understand the distinction between superior and inferior? I shall speak to the Yongning Marquis another day. A young lady must be properly taught and raised.”
Everyone present understood what those words meant. The Grand Princess had publicly humiliated the Yongning Marquis household.
A lady immediately covered her lips and mocked, “A fallen household, yet she carries her eyes as though they were set atop her head. She dares force her way into every gathering. If my family had such a disgrace, I would have no face left to show anyone.”
The lady beside her instantly added, “You cannot put it quite that way. Who knows whether she is truly the legitimate daughter—or some child born to an outside woman?”
The remark drew laughter from those nearby. Who in the capital had not heard a rumor or two?
Lin Junrou’s face turned deathly pale. Unable to bear the ladies’ insults any longer, she ran outside in tears, only to be stopped by Meng Jie after a few steps.
Lin Junrou hated Lin Qing to the bone. Yet seeing Meng Jie’s imposing figure stirred something faintly in her heart. Through tear-filled eyes, she gazed at him.
Meng Jie said seriously, “The murderer has not yet been identified. You are not permitted to leave the Pavilion of Embellished Splendor. According to rank, the third room from the back on the right is where you are to stay. Do not go to the wrong place. The Tianlu Office’s prison is no place for idle wandering.”
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That was where the female relatives of minor officials and wealthy households in the capital were kept.
The gentle expression Lin Junrou had been wearing froze upon her face. So humiliated that she wished she could crawl into a crack in the ground, she ran out sobbing.
Lin Qing had been watching Liu Xiangxue the entire time. Lin Junrou had suffered a crushing defeat, yet Liu Xiangxue, who was the upright female lead’s second-in-command in the original story, remained composed, her gaze lowered and her mind apparently undisturbed by anything around her.
Even Lin Qing could find nothing wrong with that reaction. Yet sometimes the absence of a flaw was the greatest flaw of all.
Lin Qing simply stopped watching Liu Xiangxue and instead carefully examined the temporary stage set up inside, studying it from every angle.
The gauze curtain remained lowered, as though separating this place into two different worlds. From outside, one could see only a hazy blur within.
Farther inside, two more gauze curtains had been drawn lengthwise, dividing the stage evenly into three sections.
It was rare to see a stage arranged in such a fashion.
“Who designed the gauze curtains on this stage?” she asked.
Chu Zhiyi and Jing Yue had been huddled on one side of the stage. At this, Chu Zhiyi approached with her head bowed deeply and said in a small voice, “It was Xiangxue’s and my idea. I play the pipa well, but I become nervous whenever people stare at me. That is why we arranged the stage this way. No one can see anyone else, so naturally no one feels nervous.”
Lin Qing asked, “Where were each of you positioned?”
Chu Zhiyi’s voice remained as soft as a mouse’s squeak. “I was in the center, Xiangxue on the left, and Jing Yue on the right.”
Liu Ye also came over and inspected the several gauze curtains. “Did any of you leave at any point?”
Chu Zhiyi thought for a moment, then shook her head. “No, we did not.”
Jiang Ruonan rushed in. “Who says no one left? Liu Xiangxue clearly went out in the middle of it.”
Her words immediately drew everyone’s eyes toward her.
Jiang Ruonan did not seem to mind. “Lin Junrou got into a minor dispute with another noble lady. Unfortunately, the tea was knocked over and splashed onto Liu Xiangxue’s clothes.”
Lin Qing arched a brow. Lin Junrou again?
Jiang Ruonan pouted and snorted. “That girl also has a fiancé like mine, one whose soul seems to belong entirely to Lin Junrou. He even asked her to keep an eye on Lin Junrou. How could she possibly agree? Naturally, the two of them ended up fighting.”
Lin Qing asked, “Which family is the girl from? Is she here as well?”
Jiang Ruonan replied, “She is the third legitimate daughter of Censor Zhao. She left after the fight and is staying in the room next door.”
Lin Qing turned to Chu Zhiyi and Jing Yue. “Did you know about this as well?”
The two nodded. Jing Yue’s cheeks flushed faintly, and her voice was as soft as a mosquito’s hum.
“Xiangxue did indeed leave to change her clothes. She was gone for less than the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea before returning. Later, a servant came to tell us that something serious had happened in the front courtyard and that none of the ladies were permitted to leave this place. The three of us remained here and never left again.”
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