"Miss," Yu Gu called softly from outside the door.
Lin Yanxi, choked with tears, looked at Yu Gu blankly.
Yu Gu held a cloak in her hand and gently draped it over Lin Yanxi. "I should have died with Madam, but she asked me to stay and take care of you and the third miss."
Lin Yanxi trembled as she took the cloak, her eyes filled with pain. "It's all my fault. She said she wanted to put a cloak on me, that she wanted to see me one last time, but I, I was angry then."
Her voice, broken and trembling, was like a dandelion swaying precariously in the wind, ready to scatter at any moment. "I pouted at her, and didn't even let her have her wish of seeing me one last time."
Shen Muzhou couldn't bear to see her blame herself further. "This is not your fault. No one knew it would turn out like this."
"Who! Yu Gu, tell me, who killed my mother?"
Yu Gu's tears also fell uncontrollably. "Madam asked me not to tell you these things, but I think you should know."
"Curse users practice forbidden arts against the will of heaven, at the cost of backlashing themselves. The only thing that can offset this backlash is the spiritual essence of the Talisman Master's arts. The eldest young master, Jiang Hao, also died because of this."
"But the backlash has not ended, and there is more than one curse user. When they cannot obtain the spiritual essence of a Talisman Master, they need to absorb the essence and blood of ordinary people to temporarily relieve the pain of backlash. But that is just a drop in the bucket. They have been secretly searching for those with the bloodline of a Talisman Master awakening. But for some reason, Miss can use talisman arts, yet there is no sign of a Talisman Master's awakening."
"However, they still quickly targeted the Grand Tutor's mansion. Madam knew that this matter could not be hidden. She used a Spirit Gathering Talisman to disguise herself as someone who had awakened the power of a Talisman Master, to lure out the curse users, and then used three salt nails driven into her head to dissipate her cultivation as a Talisman Master, making them mistakenly believe Madam had perished with them."
"So, when they did not obtain the spiritual essence of a Talisman Master, the curse users, in a fit of rage, attacked everyone on the estate... Madam had already told me to hide in the secret passage beforehand, thus I escaped."
Shen Muzhou pressed for details. "Did you see the appearance of the curse users?"
Yu Gu shook her head. "I only saw them wearing black cloaks."
Black cloaks, more black cloaks!
Lin Yanxi's eyes were bloodshot, with a hint of killing intent. "I will make them pay with their blood."
Strangely, she did not sense any curse energy on her mother, but the wounds on her mother's body were indeed not caused by sharp objects.
She must have missed something...
Yu Gu shook her head. "Madam did this precisely to conceal the signs of your Talisman Master awakening, so that you could live a life in obscurity. Do not think of revenge anymore."
"But Miss, why could you use talisman arts before, yet no signs of a Talisman Master's awakening could be detected from you?"
Lin Yanxi paused. The reason no signs could be detected before was because she was borrowing the power of the Soul Ring. But her mother could detect the signs of her Talisman Master awakening within her these past two days.
Clearly, Yu Gu was unaware of this.
She was about to explain, when Shen Muzhou interjected, "For now, we should first take Madam back to the Grand Tutor's mansion."
He felt that the whole matter was rather suspicious. He had seen a hint of probing in Yu Gu's eyes.
Lin Ze arrived with people from the yamen. Upon seeing Jiang Wan's corpse, he was speechless. He gently picked up Jiang Wan in his arms.
"Your husband will take you home."
He lifted Jiang Wan with some difficulty, the rain falling on both their faces.
"Do you remember when I first met you? It was raining this light drizzle. That misty rain was like a dream. You, in a red dress, were hiding in a pavilion to avoid the rain, but you didn't notice me."
"You supported everything I did, including my ambitions. I always promised you things I couldn't deliver. I promised you I would lay down my arms and retire, and take you to see all the beautiful landscapes of Yue You. I thought you would wait for me to fulfill these promises."
Alas, Jiang Wan would not wait.
The past few decades flashed before his eyes like a fleeting white steed.
White lanterns hung from the eaves of the Grand Tutor's mansion, casting a pale candlelight. The coffin lay in the mourning hall, and Lin Ruoyan was weeping hysterically beside it.
Lin Yanxi, dressed in white mourning cloth, knelt in the mourning hall. Her face was neither sad nor happy, showing no expression. Only her downcast eyes were empty and dim, as if covered with a layer of ash.
Shen Muzhou, with people from the Dark Night Guard, surrounded the Grand Tutor's mansion. He feared that the curse users would attack the mansion again.
Lin Ze walked up to Shen Muzhou and said, "Ninth Prince, how long do you intend to stay in my Grand Tutor's mansion?"
"If it weren't for your repeated interference in my Grand Tutor's affairs, how could my wife have fallen into such a plight?"
"Do not think I don't know what your intentions are in deliberately approaching my daughter!"
Shen Muzhou stood outside the mourning hall, killing intent in his eyes, his hand gripping the hilt of his sword.
"What, is it not enough that you killed my wife, and now you want to kill this old man?" Lin Ze provocatively said.
The Crown Prince was suspicious today that the Grand Tutor's mansion was getting too close to Shen Muzhou. He was always cunning. Using this occasion, even if he disrespected the Prince, outsiders would not say much, as he had just lost his wife, and was overwhelmed with grief.
And he could use this opportunity to frame Shen Muzhou for having ulterior motives towards the Grand Tutor's mansion, and also to put on a show for the Crown Prince, demonstrating his loyalty.
Shen Muzhou drew his sword. The people of the Grand Tutor's mansion protected Lin Ze. His eyes fell on Lin Yanxi, who was kneeling on the ground, and he paused, sheathing his sword.
She knelt there silently, as if everything happening outside had nothing to do with her.
Seeing that he had not provoked him, Lin Ze shouted hysterically, "Take your Dark Night Guard and get out!"
"Father."
Lin Yanxi, who had been silent, called out softly.
Lin Ze immediately suppressed his anger. "It's alright, with Father here, you don't need to fear people from the Ninth Prince's mansion."
Lin Yanxi looked at Lin Ze deeply, wanting to say something but holding back. She then walked towards Shen Muzhou and said, "Ninth Prince, please return. The matter I promised you before, I hope that after it is completed, you can return the..."
The Dark Night Guard forcibly pulled Lin Ze aside. He glared but could only be held back, unable to do anything. He was well aware of the strength of the Dark Night Guard.
Before she could finish speaking, Shen Muzhou took her hand and placed the Soul Ring in her palm.
The Imperial Observatory had said that Lin Yanxi was the only path to life in his near-death fate. However, if all of this was based on forcing and threatening her, he would rather choose near-death.
As for Lin Yanxi, after spending this time together, he believed she was not the one who would bring chaos to Yue You and provoke a world-ending war.
"You..." Lin Yanxi was somewhat surprised. He was returning the Soul Ring so easily?
Shen Muzhou's deep eyes gazed at her, his voice low. "Protect yourself."
Then he left the Grand Tutor's mansion with the Dark Night Guard.
After he left, Lin Ze looked at the brightening sky and revealed a meaningful smile.
In two hours, when dawn broke and the court convened, Shen Muzhou would be framed and imprisoned in the imperial court. Then, we'll see how proud he still is.
Lin Yanxi noticed Lin Ze's smile. She gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, and knelt back down.
Lin Ruoyan was still crying.
Lin Yanxi hugged her younger sister to her heart, and bitterly comforted her, "Yan'er, rest assured, I will definitely avenge Mother."
"Sister, did Mother... die in pain?"
The word "death" settled heavily in everyone's heart.
She fell silent for a moment, her fingernails digging deep into her flesh. She couldn't lie to herself. Her mother's fingers had broken from struggling, three three-inch salt nails had been driven into her skull, and she had even convulsed and soiled herself from the intense pain before dying...
Black cloaks, curse users, she would make those people pay a thousandfold!
A mist of tears veiled her apricot eyes. She took a deep breath and said, "Death is always painful, but the living must be brave and continue to live."
"Yan'er, I swear to you, I will make the one who killed your mother wish they were dead, and pay with blood for blood!"
Ruoyan had never seen her second sister so fierce. She stopped speaking, not wanting to make Lin Yanxi sadder.
The sun rose as usual. Yan'er fell asleep leaning against Lin Yanxi. Lin Ze, having changed into his official robes, prepared to go to court.
Lin Yanxi stared intently at Lin Ze and coldly said, "Father, can't you not go to court today?"
Lin Ze's expression stiffened slightly. "Ah, there is a very important matter in court today. Father promises, I will return after the court session."
"What important matter?"
"You wouldn't understand if I told you about matters in court."
Lin Yanxi glanced at her sleeping younger sister, placed her aside, and walked to Lin Ze's side. "Give up."
Lin Ze's expression stiffened for a moment, and he asked, "What?"
"Father, Mother's death is related to the Crown Prince. I told you before, the Grand Tutor's mansion should not become a sharp weapon in the hands of the Crown Prince, framing innocent people for power. When two factions contend, it damages the foundation of Nanmin."
She recalled carefully that the first time she sensed the existence of curses was on Shen Muzhou. His illness was related to curses. Later, at the hairpin banquet, the hairpin the Crown Prince gave her was imbued with curse energy.
After that, it was in Quanjing Village. Hei Jin seemed to be instructed by someone to deliberately lure them there, the purpose being to kill Shen Muzhou.
She encountered black cloaks in Quanjing Village. To escape, she used talisman arts. Obviously, to the black cloaks, she was an unexpected gain. Their original intention was to kill Shen Muzhou.
Shen Muzhou had many enemies, and the one in the imperial palace who most wished Shen Muzhou dead was the Crown Prince. Coincidentally, all these matters were somehow connected to the Crown Prince.
In the past, she had always thought of herself as merely the unmarried second daughter of the Grand Tutor's mansion. With her status, she couldn't possibly shake the Crown Prince's position. She only wanted to persuade her father not to work for the Crown Prince anymore, to remain neutral in court, or even to resign and live in seclusion.
But now it was different. She realized she was wrong. She resented Consort Yu, feeling that Consort Yu had seen the Crown Prince's violence in her past life but remained indifferent. It was precisely because of these people's indifference and tolerance that the Crown Prince dared to continue his violent acts so brazenly.
Therefore, it was the same with Shen Muzhou. If she ignored her father and the Crown Prince's scheme to frame Shen Muzhou, what difference would there be between her and Consort Yu of her past life, and those perpetrators?
Moreover, if she wanted to bring down the Crown Prince, she needed to rely on Shen Muzhou's influence.
"Father, after the Crown Prince gained power, the first person he would betray would be you. The Grand Tutor's mansion would also be implicated. If Mother's death is related to the Crown Prince, will you still do those wrong things for him?"
Lin Ze remained silent. The court affairs were intricate and complex. As a Grand Tutor, how could he easily extricate himself?
"Zhaozhao, believe your father. I will find the real killer for your mother's death and give you and Yan'er an explanation."
After speaking, Lin Ze hurried away, boarding a carriage towards the imperial palace.