C85: Are You Beginning to Regard Your Uncle as an Outsider?
“The mine director is a discreet man but has a lust for women. Apart from his wife, he has several concubines and is also a regular customer of various brothels. That Lady Jingwu in the Pear Blossom Garden is his new sweetheart, but somehow she managed to gain the trust of the mine director, which is very surprising.”
“If she’s just a common prostitute, Ling Zhaowen wouldn’t have dispatched her to manipulate the mine director.”
“Second Master Ling also wants the account book of Jia family. We…”
“Now that he has already figured out a way to get the account book without alarming the mine director, which will spare us a lot of needless trouble, I’ll consult with Ling Zhaowen after Little Liu arrives tonight and send him to the Pear Blossom Garden.”
“I see.”
It was almost dusk. All households were in the busiest hour, and Ling family was no exception. Masters had returned. Servants were either serving their masters or bustling around in the kitchen, not having a moment they could call their own.
The back door of Ling family was also opened. A hunter who had just returned from hunting on this day came to deliver game. There was also a fisherman who specially brought a big bucket of fish which were still alive and kicking.
The game and the big wooden bucket required quite a few men to carry. Servants were going in and out of the back door, yelling constantly. The butler of Ling family was doing accounts with the hunter and the fisherman, making the next deal.
It was a sight of busyness and uproar with all kinds of sounds and voices.
A servant in a blue gown was dragging a handcart laden with firewood, which had just been sent here by a firewood seller, into the backyard. After that, he was bidden to help carry game, sweating buckets. It was not until all work at the back door was finally done and the door was closed that he got some time to have a rest. He raised his hand to wipe off the sweat and took a sip of water.
Out of force of habit, the man stretched out his hand intending to fish a towel out of his clothes to wipe his face but touched something else. After a brief change of his countenance, he stood up and hurriedly left.
“Wu Er’niu, where are you going?” someone called from behind.
“To the latrine.”
“Bah. You’re such a frequent latrine-goer.”
Wu Er’niu hurried to the latrine and took a piece of paper out of his clothes. As he read it, his face paled visibly, but his eyes were fixed on one of those lines for quite a long time.
After a while, when he came out of the latrine, his face had returned to normal.
It was getting dark. Masters’ meals had already been served. Chefs also prepared a meal for servants with a cauldron. There were meat dishes, vegetable dishes and also soup. Servants, who had had another hectic day, sat down to enjoy the supper, chatting and laughing. Some were bragging and some others were telling dirty jokes. Everybody was talking whatever it was that they felt might perk up their spirits, which made the kitchen an uproarious sight.
It was not until night fell and all oil lamps had been lit that the group of people finished the meal and returned to their respective rooms.
After going back to his bedroom, while nobody was paying attention, Wu Er’niu secretly broke his finger with his teeth, hastily and messily wrote a couple of words on a piece of cloth torn off from his clothes, then quickly stuffed it into his front inner pocket for fear that somebody might notice. He kept looking left and right, a thinly disguised nervous look on his face.
When leaving the room, he appeared a little hesitant, paused and then turned around several times on the spot.
“What are you doing, Wu Er’niu? Go and wash. There won’t be any water left if you don’t hurry, and then we’ll have to put up with your foul odor for another night!” A man walking by the doorway yelled at him after seeing his inexplicable behavior.
Wu Er’niu froze with a somewhat unnatural expression on his face. “I’m going right now. I’m going right now.”
The man who had just yelled at him flicked a glance of confusion at him, mumbled something and then left, ignoring him.
Wu Er’niu hurriedly walked to the bathhouse, roughly took a bath and then left. Most servants had already returned to their bedrooms. There was only one lamp hanging outside the bathhouse giving off dim yellow light.
Wu Er’niu looked left and right. After confirming that nobody else was around, he walked into the shadows on the side and felt his way to the foot of the wall. This was an outer wall of the mansion, on the other side of which was a narrow alley. It was very high and people had to climb up to the top of it to see the outside. Crouching down, Wu Er’niu meowed. In response, another meow came from outside. Both meows sounded unprofessional. Anybody could tell they were made by poor imitators.
He quickly fished out the strip of material on which a couple of illegible words had been written in blood, frantically picked up a stone, wrapped it up in the strip of material, firmly tied it and then heavily threw it over the wall outside.
A thud was heard and then another shoddy meow came.
On hearing it, Wu Er’niu sighed with relief and then hastily left the foot of the wall.
Not long after he left, a man walked to the position where he had been, checked around in suspicion and murmured perplexedly, “It’s so weird. There’s no cat. Why did Wu Er’niu come here?”
Having found no cat, the man left as well.
…
“It’s completely dark already. When will your man come?” Ling Zhang asked Yuwen Tong.
After Yuwen Tong said that Little Liu, who was good at forging account books, would arrive on this night, Ling Zhang had been looking forward to meeting him all along.
“Relax,” Yuwen Tong bade him to be more patient.
“By the way, the local government has enforced martial law and also imposed a curfew. He won’t get caught, will he?” Ling Zhang was worried.
But his words aroused no concern whatsoever in Yuwen Tong. “This task is of the lowest level of difficulty. If he gets caught, I don’t see why I should let him stay in my team.” Speechless, Ling Zhang silently forced back the words on the tip of his tongue.
“What do you think about the suggestion I made a while ago?” Seeing that he kept silent, Yuwen Tong asked him.
Ling Zhang nodded. “No problem. I’ll talk to Uncle. But… you did it so quick. I didn’t even know who the woman sent by Uncle was yet, and you’ve already found out every detail.”
“It was not that difficult to find out,” Yuwen Tong replied calmly.
Upon hearing this, Yao Yi standing not far away silently raised his head to look into the sky. The marshal nearly skinned him alive because of this matter, the thought of which still sent chills down his spine.
Ling Zhang waited sitting in the Green Bamboo Mansion until the Hai hour. At exactly the Hai hour, Yao Yi walked inside and reported, “Marshal, Young Master Ling, Little Liu arrived.”
[Hai hour = 9pm]
Ling Zhang looked outside. As expected, a man in black took a flying leap over the rooftop of his house and landed onto the courtyard of the Green Bamboo Mansion. He was wearing a black night-suit just like the next guard, only that he looked thinner, the lower half of his face behind a piece of black cloth.
There was a striking resemblance between his gait and that of Yao Yi and others, which was neat, clean and sure-footed. He didn’t seem travel-worn at all.
“Your subordinate Zhang Liu pays his respect to you, Marshal!” The man knelt down on one knee, lowered his head and saluted Yuwen Tong.
“You may rise. It has been a long journey. You must be tired.”
“I’m performing my sworn duty. I don’t feel tired at all.”
Zhang Liu rose to his feet, respectfully standing before Yuwen Tong. He seemed to be a little surprised by the presence of Ling Zhang and flicked a glance of curiosity at him.
“This is Young Master Ling, the eldest grandson of Lord Ling. You should pay your respect to him.”
“Yes, Marshal.” Zhang Liu nodded and turned to face Ling Zhang. “I am Zhang Liu. It’s my honor to meet you, Young Master Ling.”
“That’s very courteous of you, Guard Zhang,” Ling Zhang smiled and then stood up. “I’ll go and talk to Uncle first. I suppose you have a lot to catch up on as well.” Yuwen Tong knew that he was trying to give them some privacy. Originally, he wanted to ask him to stay, but then, as if something had just occurred to him, he changed his mind and nodded. “I’ll be here waiting for your message to come.”
“Okay,” said Ling Zhang, who then nodded at Zhang Liu and left.
After Ling Zhang walked out of the room, Zhang Liu immediately removed the mask and looked at Yuwen Tong, curiosity gleaming in his eyes. “Marshal, is this Young Master Ling the one you have an engagement to?”
“Yeah.” Yuwen Tong was not at all surprised by the curiosity of his subordinate.
“He seems to be a lot younger than you.” Zhang Liu gave an innocent sigh of amazement.
Yuwen Tong’s face darkened.
Yao Yi hurriedly gave a cough and said to Zhang Liu, “Little Liu, tell us about the situation in the capital city.”
Zhang Liu grunted “Oh”, left this matter aside and immediately started talking about what had happened in the capital city. “There haven’t been any noticeable changes in the capital city, except for that Second Master and Second Mistress were summoned to the imperial palace once. They looked very unhappy when they came back. Second Master even closed the door and lost his temper. He criticized you, saying that you’d been neglecting your family since you reached adulthood, that you were ungrateful, that you put your family in a dilemma and disgraced the family name, that…”
Yao Yi deliberately gave a cough again, an embarrassed look on his face. After casting a glance at Yuwen Tong, he said to Zhang Liu, “Little Liu, skip the criticism and go straight to the point.”
“Okay,” Zhang Liu gave a nod and continued, “He knew that you’d come to Tanyang, and he has already secretly sent some men to find out how your engagement to Young Master Ling came to your knowledge. Furthermore, on the very night Deputy Captain received your letter, Zhang Chong’s memorial to the throne arrived, which was temporarily distrained by Lord Zhao.”
“I see. Anything else?”
“When I left the capital, nobody else knew you were in Tanyang. They all thought that you would return to the capital soon and went to visit Second Master and Second Mistress.”
After saying this, Zhang Liu fell silent again.
Yao Yi covered his forehead, speechless.
Clearly Yuwen Tong had become used to this. “Now I have a full knowledge of the situation in the capital city. There’s a task for you.”
“At your service, Marshal.”
In the courtyard of Ling Zhaowen’s abode, Ling Zhang conveyed the suggestion of Yuwen Tong to Ling Zhaowen.
Ling Zhaowen had no objection. “I’m glad to help. Later, I’ll have someone send word to the Pear Blossom Garden and arrange for Guard Zhang to enter the Pear Blossom Garden.”
“Thank you for your trouble, Uncle. I’ll go back and tell Yuwen Tong.”
“There’s no need to thank me. We’re family. Are you beginning to regard your uncle as an outsider?”
Ling Zhang was stunned. After quite a while he understood the undertone contained in Ling Zhaowen’s words. His face faintly flushed. “That was just a casual remark of mine, Uncle. What are you thinking about?”
“What am I thinking about? I’m not thinking about anything.” Ling Zhaowen watched him with a mischievous look on his face. “Why are you angry?”
Ling Zhang tightened his lips, abruptly turned around and left.
Seeing that his nephew left without saying goodbye just like what he used to do when he threw a tantrum in childhood, Ling Zhaowen couldn’t help feeling amused.
“It seems that the old man’s eyes are indeed sharper. This time things might really turn out as he expected.”
“My dear, what was it that you and Zhang’er were talking about just now? Why are you smiling so happily?” Fu Caiwei carrying a tray of snack walked inside and put the tray down onto the table of Ling Zhaowen.
“Let me tell you something interesting,” Ling Zhaowen lowered his voice and described Ling Zhang’s reaction to Fu Caiwei.
“Don’t snatch at every chance to tease that kid. What if he alienates Marshal because of this?” Fu Caiwei asked worriedly in disapproval of her husband’s making fun of Ling Zhang.
“Rest assured. Though Zhang’er has always been mild and obedient since childhood, when it comes to dealing with his own matters, he always makes decisions himself. He’s not the kind of person who will change his attitude merely because of a couple of remarks of mine,” Ling Zhaowen said with certainty. He was totally unworried.
C86: Jia Zhong’s Anger
When Ling Zhang returned to the Green Bamboo Mansion, he found that Zhang Liu was no longer there, so he asked Yuwen Tong, “You’ve finished talking already? Where’s Guard Zhang?”
“I had Yao Yi take him to his room to have a rest. How was your talk with your uncle?”
“Uncle said that he would make arrangements for Guard Zhang to enter the Pear Blossom Garden.”
Yuwen Tong nodded. “That’s good.”
Ling Zhaowen took quick action. The next noon, he returned from the Pear Blossom Garden and came to Yuwen Tong’s place, informing him that necessary arrangements had been made, that Zhang Liu could enter the Pear Blossom Garden in the afternoon.
After putting some efforts into it, Zhang Liu disguised himself as a blind physician who specialized in gynecology. He had changed into scholar’s clothes and undergone simple countenance transformation. His eyes closed, a medicine chest on his back, a bamboo cane in his hand, his gait slightly unsteady, he was now someone furthest removed from the bright-eyed, sure-footed and brisk guard he was the night before.
Ling Zhang was amazed. “You are such a master of disguise.”
“Thank you for your compliment, Young Master.” Yao Yi accepted Ling Zhang’s praise without any pretence at politeness, a smug smile on his face.
Ling Zhang also smiled, “Previously, you helped Uncle Lu disguise himself, and today you helped Guard Zhang in the same way. Have you been learning disguise for a long time?”
“I’ve been doing this for twelve years,” answered Yao Yi.
That was quite a long time, Ling Zhang secretly sighed at the knowledge that as he had expected, this amazing skill could not be mastered without years of practice.
“Uncle and I have to pay a visit to Lu family later today. I arranged for those guards to begin learning the first formation in the morning,” Ling Zhang told Yuwen Tong.
“I saw it. They were pretty good. In a way, they have made a considerable improvement after the foundation was laid,” Yuwen Tong commented.
Since Ling Zhang had put quite some effort into teaching those guards, he felt proud to hear Yuwen Tong praise them.
“After all things here are handled, I’ll recall the twelve men in the herb farm.”
“Are there any unresolved issues in the herb farm?”
“Since Supervisor Zhou and the twelve guards are there, and those herb farmers are also vigilant, the farm is fairly safe for the moment.”
Ling Zhang believed that Zhang Chong probably wouldn’t be able to find the time to send his men to the herb farm to make trouble.
As chance would have it, he chanced upon Zhang Chong again when he visited Lu family in the afternoon that day.
Naturally, Ling Zhang made no gesture of friendliness whatsoever at Zhang Chong. It was because of Ling Zhaowen’s presence that he blandly greeted Zhang Chong.
Zhang Chong briefly sized up Ling Zhang and then inexplicably observed, “Young Master Ling also came here. It’s been a couple of days since our last meeting. You seem to be in even better health.”
“Thank you for your concern, Commander Zhang. I owe my good health to your kindness,” replied Ling Zhang.
“I don’t dare to claim the credit for it. I only hope that Young Master Ling does not hold grudges against me,” said Zhang Chong.
“Never would I do that. Commander Zhang must be joking,” Ling Zhang said calmly.
Zhang Chong softly snorted and then walked into the mourning hall, followed by his attendants.
He lit three joss sticks and paid his respects to the deceased before saying to Lu Fengnian, “May I ask when Lu family will hold a funeral for Lord Lu? I’ll schedule some time and come here to see Lord Lu off.”
Lu Fengnian heaved a sigh and replied with a sorrowful and indignant look on his face, “The murderer is still at large. Yesterday, an eminent Buddhist monk who came here to help my son find his path to the Pure Land said that the spirit of my son was filled with resentment, that now was not the perfect time to bury him. It’s best if we hold the funeral after the murderer is brought to justice.”
Zhang Chong unnoticeably knitted his eyebrows and then said, “Are you saying that you’ll keep waiting leaving Lord Lu’s body in this hall? Isn’t that synonymous with stopping Lord Lu from resting in peace?”
“We won’t wait for long. In a few days, if they still can’t find the whereabouts of the murderer, we’ll invite the eminent monk around again to hold a dharma assembly.”
It was after hearing this that the look on Zhang Chong’s face grew faintly milder. “Prefecture Guards have been searching for the criminal all along these days, but that ruffian fled so quick that his whereabouts are still unknown. I failed Lu family.”
“You’ve done your best, Commander Zhang. I can understand.”
“Thank you for your understanding. In any case, I’ll do whatever I can to make sure Lu family gets the justice it seeks.”
“I’m very grateful to you, Commander Zhang.”
“There is no need for formalities, Old Master Lu. If you need any help, feel free to inform me.”
“I will. Thank you.”
Zhang Chong finished his talk with Lu Fengnian and left. He didn’t look at Ling Zhang or Ling Zhaowen before walking out of the mansion.
“It’s been only a couple of days, yet Zhang Chong couldn’t wait to ask about the time for Uncle Lu’s funeral,” Ling Zhang said with a cold countenance.
“Hump! Jia Zhong has been proactively trying to bribe Lord Tao into helping him get the position of the Right Tongzhi which has just become available, but Lord Tao didn’t agree. He even said that it had only been a couple of days since Lord Lu’s death and the murderer was still at large, so this matter should be left aside for the moment. Jia Zhong probably has gone to ask Zhang Chong for help in his anxiety,” Ling Zhaowen explained.
“No wonder,” said Ling Zhang in a cold tone of voice.
After leaving the mansion of Lu family, Zhang Chong didn’t go straight back to the Prefecture Guard. Instead, he went to a tea house to meet Jia Zhong.
“How did it go, commander? When will Lu family bury Lu Kui?” Jia Zhong asked expectantly on the sight of him.
“Lu Fengnian said that he didn’t want to hold the funeral when the murderer was still at large. He was merely saying that to put pressure on me. That old bastard,” answered Zhang Chong with a sullen look on his face.
“What? How come he and Tao Feng used the same excuse? Did they by any chance do this on purpose?” Jia Zhong said immediately.
“Even if they did it on purpose, we have to show some patience for the moment. If Lu family still doesn’t bury Lu Kui in a couple of days, I have plenty of methods of making them do it!” Zhang Chong smacked his hand down on to the surface of the table.
Anxious as Jia Zhong was, he didn’t dare urge Zhang Chong to force people of Lu family into burying Lu Kui right now. Having no choice but to subdue his anxiety, he returned home and started breaking things in his study to vent his anger.
“Please calm your anger, my Lord. Now that Commander Zhang has made a promise that he wouldn’t let Lu family stall on this, let’s just be patient and wait for another couple of days,” Adviser Qian, who was standing on the side, observed, trying to persuade him.
“I’ve waited for such a long time and I’m so close to getting that position, but Lu family and that old bastard Tao Feng stubbornly refuse to let go. My anger is killing me!” Jia Zhong thundered.
“Just relax, my Lord. Since Lu family has just received a heavy blow and is no longer a threat to us, how much longer could Tao Feng possibly last out the pressure Commander Zhang exerts on him? He will compromise eventually,” Adviser Qian consoled him.
Unreconciled, Jia Zhong snarled another couple of curses before his anger gradually subsided.
“How’s it going in the First Master’s house? What have they been doing during the past few days? Why aren’t they quarreling?”
“Liu Chengfang has moved in with them. The First Madam has been busy bullying her, so she doesn’t have the time to quarrel with the First Master. As regards the First Master… He has been quiet over the past couple of days and has barely gone out of his mansion.”
Jia Zhong knitted his eyebrows. He had been bustling around dealing with all kinds of issues all along, while his elder brother and his sister-in-law had been doing nothing but leisurely enjoying the fruit of his hard work!
Adviser Qian noticed the sullen look on Jia Zhong’s face, but since this matter concerned Jia Yin, who was Jia Zhong’s full brother after all, if he talked too much, he might end up offending Jia Zhong, so he decided to keep silent.
“Have you had any news of Yuanling?” Jia Zhong suddenly asked about Jia Yuanling.
Adviser Qian answered, “Not for now, but I calculated the time and I think they’ll reach the destination soon. It shouldn’t be long before news comes in. All people in that place work for Commander Zhang. They will send us a message immediately after the successful rescue of Young Master.” Jia Zhong gave a nod and observed, “Tell your men to keep a close eye on people in this house lest they should make any more trouble.”
“Yes, my Lord.”
…
Though Ling Zhaowen was eager to stay and have a talk with Lu Kui, Lu Kui could only get out of the coffin for some fresh air at night when nobody was around. Suspicion would, without doubt, be aroused if he was still in Lu family at that hour of the night, so he had no choice but to leave Lu family after finishing his talk with Lu Fengnian.
“Rest assured, Uncle. With the presence of Yuwen Tong’s men, nothing’s going to happen to Uncle Lu.”
“I know. Alas. If it weren’t for that Zhang Chong must be handled, this kind of inauspicious method would never have been…”
“Uncle, I believe Uncle Lu won’t mind, as long as Zhang Chong gets his just deserts.”
“I understand.”
At the same time, in the Pear Blossom Garden, Zhang Liu, who had disguised as a blind physician, entered the brothel without arousing any suspicion and was assigned a room.
As luck would have it, the mine director of Jia family came to the Pear Blossom Garden on that very night. On observing the existence of Zhang Liu, he frowned and asked, “Who’s this guy?”
“I haven’t been feeling myself lately and I’m afraid it’ll take a long time for me to recover. All competent female physicians outside have been hired by other people. Those available either are charlatans or have treated numerous prostitutes. I’m afraid to let them treat me for fear that they might be unclean, so I had this blind physician invited over. He came to Tanyang not long ago. It is said that his medical skills are pretty good, that he could diagnose diseases by simply feeling a patient’s pulse. And unlike other physicians, he doesn’t need to perform those kinds of… Anyway, I just drank a bowl of decoction he prescribed me this afternoon and I feel much better now,” explained Lady Jingwu.
It was not until the mine director heard her words that his frown dissolved. After confirming that Zhang Liu was indeed blind and would only quietly stay in his room, the director finally let down his guard somewhat, but he still told servants in the Pear Blossom Garden to keep a weather eye on the physician, ordering that the physician should not leave his room unless summoned to treat patients.
“Rest assured, Director. The courtyard has a gate. I’ve already told him that he must stay in his room with the gate locked unless summoned. I’ll have him leave after I recover. I doubled the payment and he agreed willingly.”
“Humph. He’s yet another money-grubber.” After hearing that the gate would be locked, the mine director of Jia family finally let go of this matter.
Just like this, Zhang Liu stayed in the Pear Blossom Garden without any trouble.
It would take quite a few days to forge the whole account book. On the first night, instead of rushing into taking action, Zhang Liu merely observed the mine director’s daily schedule, habits and some other details concerning various aspects.
Lady Jingwu was very cooperative. For her, after fulfilling this task, she would get a large sum of money, pay off her debts, leave Tanyang, change her identity and start life anew somewhere else.
“The matter of the account book can wait. Our first priority is to find out where Zhang Chong hides the armaments,” Yuwen Tong told Ling Zhang in the Green Bamboo Mansion.
“The Prefecture Guard is heavily guarded. It is indeed very difficult to find where the armaments are in full view of Zhang Chong.”
“The Prefecture Guard is not the only suspicious location.”
“Where else could he possibly be hiding them?” Ling Zhang was confused.
“There are too many people in the Prefecture Guard, which makes it unsafe to store armaments there. If I were Zhang Chong, I wouldn’t put them there. As for where he’s hiding them…” Yuwen Tong looked at the map before him. “There is indeed a place that I suspect, but I need to find some clues first.”
Since even Yuwen Tong is not sure of it, Zhang Chong must be hiding the armaments in a very secret location, Ling Zhang thought.
C87: Exposure of the Covert Operations of Wu Er’niu
“Hey, Wu Er’niu, you’ve been absent-minded all day. What is it that you are thinking about?”
Someone slapped Wu Er’niu on the back with great force causing him to totter.
“No… Nothing.”
“You must be missing some girl.”
“Ha-ha…”
At dusk, servants who had just finished their work grabbed this opportunity to make fun of Wu Er’niu. In his embarrassment, Wu Er’niu gave a smile, his eyes gleaming with alarm that he had failed to conceal, which even he himself was unaware of.
One of those servants who had been surrounding Wu Er’niu teasing him skeptically looked at Wu Er’niu, feeling that the reaction of Wu Er’niu was a little weird.
On that night, after all servants had supper, Wu Er’niu was, as usual, the last one to go to the bathhouse.
“Why are you still here, Wu Er’niu?” asked the man who had previously found the behavior of Wu Er’niu somewhat weird.
“You go first. I’ll be there soon,” Wu Er’niu answered.
The man flicked a glance of perplexity at Wu Er’niu and then left.
Wu Er’niu wiped the sweat from his forehead and fished a note out of his inner pocket. After he read the words on it, his countenance grew slightly more composed. Then he crumpled the note up into a ball, stuffed it into his mouth, chewed it and swallowed it.
Like how he did it the day before, Wu Er’niu torn a strip of cloth off his clothes, wrote a couple of words on it in blood, stuffed it into his inner pocket and then went to the bathhouse.
When he walked out of the bathhouse, there was nobody else around. He vigilantly looked left and right, which was yet another thing he did the day before, and then wormed his way into the thicket.
What had escaped his notice was that there was another person who sneaked out of the bathhouse and had been quietly following in his wake. The man mumbled, “This guy has been acting absent-mindedly during daytime and furtively at night. He’s definitely been in fornication with some handmaid working in this mansion. Let me find out which girl is stupid enough to have an eye on this moron Wu Er’niu.”
Oblivious of the stalker, Wu Er’niu felt his way to the foot of the wall and meowed several times. Someone outside meowed in response and with that Wu Er’niu wrapped the strip of material around a stone and threw it outside.
Like the day before, after hearing a thud and another meow given by the person outside, Wu Er’niu sighed with relief and then left the foot of the wall.
“He’s not fornicating with a handmaid? Then what is it that Wu Er’niu is doing?” A figure wormed his way out of the shadow and stared fixedly in the direction of the outer wall, deeply perplexed.
“There were meows on both occasions. Did that moron come here to feed some cat? If so, why was he doing it so stealthily? And he’s been absent-minded all day long.”
At this very moment, someone walking in his direction spotted the figure and yelled, “Who’s there?”
The man wondering in confusion was taken aback by this yell. He hurriedly turned around and found that there were two people coming. One of them was carrying a lantern and the other one was wearing steward’s clothes.
“Steward He,” he smiled obsequiously and walked over to pay his respect to the steward.
The one who was addressed as “Steward He” was in charge of miscellaneous affairs in the kitchen of Ling family, which was an important duty. As a trusted henchman of Ling Zhaowen and Fu Caiwei, he had always had a stern look on his face and dealt with everything in a businesslike, serious manner, which was why all servants somewhat feared him.
Seeing that it was this steward who had spotted him, the man who had mumbled to himself in suspicion just now couldn’t help feeling mentally disturbed, though there was an obsequious smile on his face.
“Ma Sanshui, why are you still here at such a late hour of the night?” Steward He fixed a penetrating gaze at him.
Ma Sanshui buckled at the knees. “I… I’ve just finished my bath and I’m on my way back.”
“Speak the truth! This dark narrow path does not lead to the quarters!” Steward He snapped, his eyes so piercing that he seemed to be staring right into Ma Sanshui’s soul.
Ma Sanshui’s face paled visibly. Since he wasn’t here to do any bad things, he couldn’t help but tell the truth after Steward He put pressure on him. “I… I followed Wu Er’niu to this place. Wu Er’niu was stealthily doing something over there at the foot of the outer wall last night, and I noticed that his mind had been wandering all along during daytime today, so I’d been paying some extra attention to his behavior. A moment ago I saw him come here again and I stalked him trying to find out what he wanted to do.”
Steward He knitted his eyebrows. “Wu Er’niu? What did he do at the foot of the wall?”
“I didn’t see it clearly. Originally, I had thought that he was here to meet someone, but he only stayed here for a short while and then left. There was nobody else. I merely heard a couple of meows,” answered Ma Sanshui.
“Meows?” Steward He became suspicious. “No wild cats would come here at this season. Let’s go and check.”
“Yes,” the man carrying the lantern for him replied and then looked at Ma Sanshui.
Ma Sanshui immediately took the hint and led the way for them.
After worming their way through the thicket, they arrived at the foot of the outer wall. Steward He took the lantern himself and carefully checked the perimeter but didn’t found anything suspicious, and neither did he find any cat footprints on the wall.
“Are you sure what you heard were meows?” Steward He asked Ma Sanshui again.
Ma Sanshui first nodded and then said in a somewhat uncertain tone of voice, “That thing sounded a little weird. It gave a couple of meows and then disappeared.”
The face of Steward He darkened. He searched the spot with great care one more time and then ordered, “Go and wake all of them. Have them gather together at the mess hall. Remember—don’t disclose anything to Wu Er’niu. Otherwise, you’ll have to take dire consequences!” After hearing his words, Ma Sanshui realized that this seemed to be turning into a serious matter. He couldn’t help feeling a little scared. “Steward He, Wu Er’niu didn’t do anything bad, right?”
“It’s not your place to decide whether he did anything bad or not. Move! Now!” Steward He glared at him.
Frightened, Ma Sanshui ran away immediately.
After the duration of burning joss stick (roughly 5 minutes), all servants assembled in the mess hall. Apart from Steward He, there was also another steward present whose surname was Li. This Steward Li was the eldest son of Butler Li and all servants of Ling family respected him very much. On the sight of Steward Li, those servants were briefly stunned. Though they had no idea what it was that had happened, everybody had sensed that it must be something urgent, since the two people had grim faces. Nobody dared to be the first one to speak.
“Let me ask you something. Did anybody hear any meows in the past few days?” asked Steward He.
Meows? All servants shook their heads in confusion, offering negative responses.
Wu Er’niu also shook his head. It was just that the look on his face was somewhat unnatural.
“Then did anybody see any cats?” Steward He asked another question.
Wu Er’niu shook his head again like everybody else, but fine beads of sweat were oozing out of his forehead.
Steward He and Steward Li saw both times that he shook his head, even Ma Sanshui who was standing beside him could tell that something was wrong.
Wu Er’niu is trying to hide something! he thought.
“All right. Now, except for Wu Er’niu, everybody go and wait outside,” Steward He ordered.
Wu Er’niu felt a shiver from head to toe and began to panic, his eyes darting back and forth. Flustered, he couldn’t help asking aloud, “Why? I didn’t hear any meows or see any cats either!”
This remark was very loud and also very abrupt. All others looked at him in confusion, and naturally they saw his rather unnatural countenance, feeling that he was acting a little weirdly.
Neither Steward He nor Steward Li responded to Wu Er’niu. They just stared at him with piercing eyes.
More fine beads of sweat oozed out of his forehead. He moved, intending to leave the hall with other servants.
“Wu Er’niu, where do you think you are going?” Steward He asked coldly.
Wu Er’niu didn’t dare to take another step, standing there at a loss what to do. When everybody else left, there was nothing he could hide behind. He was in now full view of Steward He and Steward Li.
“Wu Er’niu, here’s my question for you. Why did you stealthily go to the foot of the wall in the backyard last night and tonight?” Steward He began to interrogate him.
“I didn’t go to the foot of the wall in the backyard. There must be some kind of mistake, steward.” Wu Er’niu’s legs were trembling, but he stubbornly tried to deny it.
“Is that so? It seems that infliction of torture is inevitable. Guards!” Steward He yelled. The look on his face instantly went cold and severe.
Two tough hombres immediately walked in from outside, each having a stick in hand.
“Flog Wu Er’niu ten times.”
“Yes!”
The two strong men walked over with an apathetic face. One of them aimed a kick at a bench which slid up to Wu Er’niu facing him vertically. The other man kicked the back of Wu Er’niu’s knees and forced him into lying prostrate on the long wooden bench.
“Steward, Steward Li, please help me. I have no idea what I did wrong. On what basis does Steward He think I deserve this punishment?” shouted Wu Er’niu, who was forcibly pinned against the surface of the bench, unable to move.
“On the basis that you furtively did something but refuse to admit it. If you confess right now, I’ll have them stop. If you don’t, I’ll show you no mercy.” Steward He threatened him, staring him with an icy look in his eyes.
“I–I didn’t–I didn’t do anything. You wronged me!” Heedless of due formality, Wu Er’niu began to resist fiercely.
“Beat him!”
Slap! A blow ruthlessly landed on Wu Er’niu’s body.
“Ah–” Wu Er’niu let out a pained cry.
The stick was made of wood of high density, so when the strong man raised it high up and swung it downwards, the blow was uncommonly heavy. Blue veins stood out on the forehead of Wu Er’niu due to the great pain.
Slap, slap, slap…
Blows were landed on Wu Er’niu one after another, each followed by an anguished screech from him, which sounded exceptionally horrifying. Servants standing outside the mess hall were so nervous that they were involuntarily trying to make their breathing shallow. None of them knew what it was that Wu Er’niu had done wrong.
Ma Sanshui was the only one who had a vague idea, his face ghastly pale. He was not a fool and had already deduced something from the immediate action Steward He had taken—Wu Er’niu fornicated with some outsider!
Ten blows were meted out to Wu Er’niu and executed right away. No mercy whatsoever was shown.
When the punishment was over, Wu Er’niu’s forehead was covered in cold sweat. Fighting against agony had cost him so much mental strength that his consciousness began to blur.
“Are you going to tell me the truth? Or would you prefer another ten blows?” Steward He fixed him with a cold stare.
Wu Er’niu, who was groaning in agony gripping on to the edges of the bench with all the strength he had left, looked at the stick in the hands of the tough hombre, and said in a quivering voice, “I’ll confess. I’ll confess.”
Steward He waved his hands, gesturing for the two strong men to back off.
“Now, tell me the truth. I want every detail.”
“Some–Someone offered me a hundred taels of silver to provide him with information on Ling family.” Gritting his teeth, Wu Er’niu falteringly finished making this remark with difficulty. After this confession, his face went ashen, as if he had seen the consequences that he would have to face.
“Who’s that person? When did he make contact with you? What have you told him?” Steward He angrily questioned.
“I–I haven’t found the time to tell him yet…”