Chapter 67 Families Battle
Tong and nurse Liao stayed at the courtyard to look after the injured Maner and Baochuan who was called back from the family school temporarily. Little maidservant Ting Xue followed Qin Yunuan and told her what she had heard about the issue that Yan Chengbing came to the Family Qin.
“How righteous he is. Yan Chengbing is a promising talent,” Qin Yunuan puckered her lips. She admired the person who could suppress his father Qin Zhi.
Qin Yunuan looked at Ting Xue again. This little girl was very dutiful and diligent to work in the courtyard. Qin Yunuan had ordered nurse Liao to observe those new-come girls and she also let Maner investigate secretly the background of Ting Xue. Different from Tinghe, Ting Xue was very well-behaved.
“From tomorrow on, you are my maidservant. Tinghe was gone and now you are in her past position as the second-class maidservant.” Qin Yunuan glimpsed at Ting Xue with praising eyes. Ting Xue acted so alert and resourceful when she reported loudly the coming of nurse Zhao and treaded the skirt of nurse Zhao. Qin Yunuan needed this kind of smart talents.
At the flower hall, the phenomenon was a little bit serious. Qin Yunzhuang stood timidly behind Qin Linfeng, eluding the gloomy eyes of Qin Zhi.
Qin Linfeng clenched his fists. He had been put under house arrest for so long. Today he was suddenly summoned to be here. He thought his father finally realized that he was the eldest son of the legal wife of the mansion of the Grand Commandant and believed that how malicious the menial daughter of the concubine was. However, Qin Linfeng had never thought that he heard the bad news that his younger sister he loved very much got involved in a murder case.
“Master, Third Miss comes.”
The moment Qin Yunuan stepped into the flower hall by her foot, Qin Linfeng rushed to pull the cloak of Qin Yunuan angrily. Blue veins emerged on his hands, “It was you that set a trick to Yun Zhuang. You must have something to do with this issue.”
“Unfilial son! Let her off,” Qin Zhi shouted.
Qin Linfeng was so impulsive that he considered nothing. The one who died was that dissolute Shangguan Rang, but now it was said in the Royal City that the Grand Miss appeared at the room where Shangguan Rang died. How could she face those noble girls and ladies in the Royal City?
“Tell me! What kind of tricks have you played? Insect-poison? Witchcraft? Tell us! How did you seduce Yunzhuang to be in that room? I know. That second miss from Li Family was guided by you, right?” Qin Linfeng glared at Qin Yunuan. Actually he had known that Li Weijun was the close friend of Qin Yunzhuang, but he did not care about the life of that girl from Family Li who he had only met for a few times.
Qin Yunuan just glimpsed at Qin Linfeng gently, with her calm and gloomy eyes, “I don’t have the ability of insect-poison and witchcraft, and I have no money to bribe the Grand Miss of Family Li. But brother, you put forward a good question. How can I have the ability to seduce Grand Miss to go to the desolate place?”
What Qin Yunuan meant was that Qin Yunzhuang went to that place willingly, which had nothing to do with her.
The two people’s arguments made Qin Zhi very impatient. Nurse Zhao had whispered the condition of the Fuxi Courtyard to Qin Zhi that Qin Yunuan seemed to stay at the courtyard for the whole night. Now Qin Zhi felt more satisfied with Qin Linfeng.
“I don’t want to order you again. Linfeng. Let her off,” Qin Zhi said coldly.
Qin Yunzhuang rushed to pull back the arms of Qin Linfeng. Qin Lingfeng withdrew his hands unwillingly and glared fiercely at Qin Yunuan.
Qin Yunuan still kept a cold and pure face. Even though she was in a mess with her messy collar due to Qin Linfeng, her innate pure and aloof temperament was increased. Ting Xue secretly stepped forward and helped her tidy her clothes and remove the wrinkles on her collar.
Yan Chengbing waiting outside dispatched a police officer to ask that if they could depart.
Qin Zhi was upset and waved his hands. He looked at Qin Yunzhuang, Qin Linfeng and Qin Yunuan in the flower hall and then went out of the hall without words. He should always worry about his children.
Butler Xie followed immediately the master together with the rest three people. He wanted to take the whole family to the court, but Qin Yuwan had a marriage engagement and could not go out. Qin Yuzhao was insane and impolite, and Qin Baochuan and Qin Baoduan were too young. He wanted to show his innocence by appearing in court with the whole family. But this time, he might have no way to escape safely.
Qin Yunzhuang was the significant witness in this murder case, so two police officers beside the horse carriage were supervising her. Qin Linfeng was not content about this very much. He was about to argue but gave up by Qin Zhi’s eyes as cold as ice.
In the horse carriage, Qin Yunuan teased the whole thing carefully again and again.
At that moment, she had arrived ahead of one incense-burning time. She had never trusted Li Qiqi and she did not believe that Li Qiqi made up her mind to say goodbye to Su Chenghai. So Su Chenghai did not show up because he had left the Royal City on the day before.
All was clear when Qin Yunuan found the impatient Shangguan Rang waiting in the compartment of the small thatched cottage. Li Qiqi was just a concubine of the mansion of Grand commandant and she couldn’t have a relationship with other young masters. All were deployed by Qin Yunzhuang. She used knock-out drops to make Shangguan Rang conk and then Li Qiqi appeared. Afterward, when Qin Yunuan dragged conking Li Qiqi into the room, Prince Anyang, Zhao Huijin from East Qin appeared to assassinate her. Maner blocked the attack for Qin Yunuan
After Qin Yunuan hid outside the room, she saw Qin Yunzhuang led Li Weijun to break in, and heard that they blamed all to Li Qiqi. Qin Yunzhuang, she was that kind of girl who could sacrifice each person who could be sacrificed. She always stayed innocent when playing tricks, which was very similar to the way Dou Qing’e acted.
Actually, what Qin Yunzhuang said to Yan Chengbing was believable partly. But there were two suspicious points. The first was the tool those assassins from East Qin used. They always used recyclable ferric daggers, so there would be no tool and evidence left on the spot. The second was the words of Li Qiqi. Though Qin Yunzhuang and Li Weijun were on the same side, Li Qiqi might struggle to retract her words. There would be a good show in the court.
Noisy people had not crowded at the police office of Qingshui County for a long time. Farmers around quit their farm work and came to the police office from miles away after they heard that several high-ranking officers in the imperial court would come for a big case. They crowded at the gate of the county police office and saw a line of horse carriages of Qin Family proceeded from a distance. They first saw the noble luxury of Qin Family with forceful horses and elegant curtains.
Dirt odor around and the smell of pig and cow faeces in the air made Qin Zhi very unsatisfied. He saw the onlookers and then raised the curtain to order Yan Chengbing who walked ahead, “We enter the office from the back door. There are too many people.”
Yan Chengbing answered calmly, “Excuse me, Your Honor Qin, according to the law of Qi Land, all witness and relevant people in the case should come into the court from the front door of the office.”
Qin Zhi was dismal. He as the Grand Commandant should be a good example to other officers. But now, he was in the dilemma.
He let Qin Yunzhuang and Qin Yunuan behind him got off the horse carriage. Uneasy Qin Yunzhuang, wearing a veil, felt very upset when she saw those ragged farmers stared at her and were gossiping about her.
“Stay away from me! You are all menial people!” Qin Linfeng shouted at those gossiping women and then supported Qin Yunzhuang to get off the horse carriage. Women around covered their mouths and stopped gossiping when they saw this violent-tempered young master from the Royal City. They feared to offend this nobleman. An about six-year-old little girl who carried a basket was so scared and tumbled on the ground. Potherbs in the basket were poured out. The girl was about to cry but stopped after she saw the outrageous big eyes of Qin Linfeng.
When the people were gossiping, a fairy-liked slim maiden who wore a blue veil and a yellow and pink skirt came to the little girl. She crouched and lifted up the dirty little girl, and then let her maidservants pick up those potherbs for the girl. Finally, she even took out a pretty silk handkerchief to wipe the dirty face of that little girl.
Some people noticed that this beautiful maiden came together with the Qin Family. Though they could not see the whole face of the maiden, they had noticed the fair water-liked eyes and the profile under the thin veil. They thought the maiden must be a prominent beauty with such an oval face.
“Honey, don’t cry. That brother just said in a louder voice and he was not malicious to you,” Qin Yunuan coaxed that poor little girl.
Qin Yunuan’s words were like a sharp spine in Qin Lingfeng’s body. He did not need such a daughter of a concubine to defend him.
“Third Miss, we shall go,” Ting Xue helped Qin Yunuan up.
Wow, she was the Third Miss of Family Qin. People around suddenly knew who the maiden was. They praised this pretty and kind maiden.
The horse carriage of the mansion of Shangguan came soon. It was the first time for the Left Chancellor Shangguan Yuan to be such a distant county police office to supervise the judgement. At first, he was unwilling to come, but his precious eldest son was dead. He hoped to let the emperor decide the case for a fair judgement. However, he feared to report that to the emperor because the death of his son had something to do with a concubine from Family Qin.
He had heard about Yan Chengbing. Though the man was hard-tempered, he was upright and fair. With this righteous man, he believed that the murderer who caused the death of his son must be brought to justice and tortured to death.
Shangguan Yee also came. Her eyes were inflamed and tears strains were clear on her face. The dead was his lovely elder brother. When she saw Qin Yunzhang, she turned to be fevered and went at Qin Yunzhuang fiercely, shouting, “Bitch! Bitch! I know it was you that killed my brother. Do you want me to show the evidence? I have the evidence, Your Honor Yan!”