The next morning.
Zhong Li and Hua Yao arrived at the Anping Marquis’s manor early. The Marquis was not home from the morning court, and the two did not wish to engage with the women in the rear courtyard. Following the map of the rear courtyard drawn by Hua Yao, Zhong Li quickly located Madam Nian’s courtyard to thoroughly investigate further details.
Perhaps it was too early, as there were few servants in the courtyard. Only one woman, dressed in plain white mourning clothes and with her hair tied in two buns, was kneeling on the ground, sobbing and burning paper money.
“Madam, how could you leave like this? What will become of Chunping alone? Wuwu… If the Marquis lets the second Madam become the mistress of the manor, Chunping will surely be bullied in the future, wuwu… If you were to leave, please take Chunping with you, wuwu…”
Hearing the sobbing from inside, Zhong Li and Hua Yao exchanged glances. Zhong Li signaled Hua Yao to wait at the entrance and then stepped inside.
“Madam, I’ve come to see you.” Zhong Li picked up a stack of paper money from the table and squatted beside Chunping, tossing it into the brazier.
Chunping only then realized someone had arrived. She looked up and said, “Are you… Temple Official Zhong?”
Zhong Li’s hand paused as she placed the paper money. She looked at the young maidservant opposite her and asked, “How do you know me?”
Chunping’s cheeks flushed. “Yesterday, Lord Xu came to see the Marquis. I thought there was news about Madam’s case, so I went to eavesdrop. I didn’t expect to see… Lord Xu being… Just then, Temple Official Zhong arrived, and I was deeply impressed by you.”
So that was it.
“Then do you think your Madam…”
“Madam would never commit suicide!” Before Zhong Li could finish, Chunping spoke first.
Zhong Li raised an eyebrow.
Chunping lowered her head, not daring to look at her, but stubbornly spoke her mind, “And she wouldn’t have climbed the rockery either.”
“Oh? Why?” Zhong Li’s interest was piqued.
Chunping took a deep breath and uttered something that greatly surprised Zhong Li: “Madam is afraid of heights!”
“You say your mistress is afraid of heights?” Zhong Li led Chunping to sit on a stone bench in the courtyard and casually placed a cup of clear water beside her. She had cried so hard that her throat was hoarse; drinking more water would allow her to provide more information.
Chunping nodded. “When Madam was young and mischievous, she fell from a wall. Since then, she has been unwilling to climb to high places. Moreover… Temple Official Zhong, you saw how Madam was. She would get out of breath from just walking a little more. How could she have climbed a rockery?”
Zhong Li nodded. This was something she had been wondering about all along.
“Besides, even if Madam had wanted to end her life, she wouldn’t have chosen this time,” Chunping said, taking a sip of the clear tea. She glanced back in the direction of Madam Nian’s memorial hall, as if recalling something, and said faintly.
“How so?” Zhong Li pressed.
“Temple Official Zhong knows that Madam has an eldest son, the Young Marquis Chang, right?” Chunping asked.
Zhong Li nodded. “I heard he traveled around various regions of the Southern Yue Kingdom. Is that true?”
Chunping nodded. “It’s true, but… the young master didn’t leave home because he loved landscapes. It was because of Madam.”
“What do you mean?”
Chunping leaned forward conspiratorially, glancing around to make sure only she and Zhong Li were in the small courtyard. “This is not something a servant should speak of, as it is improper to gossip about the masters. But for Madam, I will tell only you, Temple Official Zhong.”
Zhong Li nodded. Although she had no interest in gossip, having solved so many cases, she knew that most rumors had a basis in truth.
“The young master had an affair with the third Madam of the manor.” Chunping’s voice was extremely low.
“What?” Zhong Li could hardly believe her ears. What was this? The son of the manor having relations with a concubine? https:/
“Temple Official Zhong, don’t disbelieve me. I overheard this. Eight years ago, when I was inadvertently delivering tea and snacks to Madam’s room, I heard the young master and Madam arguing, vaguely about the third Madam. But I couldn’t hear clearly from outside. Afterward, their argument grew fiercer, and the young master left in anger, slamming the door. The next day, the young master left home with his personal servants, under the pretense of traveling.” Chunping said.
“So you’re saying your Madam wouldn’t have committed suicide because the matter with Young Master Chang was unresolved, right?” Zhong Li asked.
Chunping nodded. “The young master’s affairs were Madam’s greatest worry. If this worry was not resolved, and Madam was not gravely ill, how could she have easily taken her own life?”
Zhong Li nodded. She understood the logic. She looked up at the courtyard opposite Madam’s, its gate tightly shut, rust already forming on the lock. That was the abandoned courtyard she had seen from the rockery.
“That’s the third Madam’s courtyard, isn’t it?” Zhong Li asked.
Chunping followed her gaze and nodded.
“Do you know how the third Madam died?” Zhong Li asked.
Chunping thought for a moment. “I heard she died of illness.”
Upon hearing Chunping’s answer, Zhong Li’s eyes lowered. Her account was consistent with Xu Qiu’s.
“Do you know anything else about the third Madam?” she pressed.
Chunping shook her head and retorted, “Does my Madam’s death have anything to do with the third Madam?”
“Oh, no. I was just curious about that courtyard and asked casually,” Zhong Li explained.
Chunping lowered her head in silence. Suddenly, she seemed to recall something and quickly stood up. “The sacrificial offerings haven’t been changed today. If Temple Official Zhong still wishes to investigate, you can look around the courtyard yourself. I must go attend to my duties.”
With that, she bowed to Zhong Li and hurried towards the kitchen.
Zhong Li watched Chunping depart and then turned her gaze to the memorial hall inside the house.
Madam Nian’s case had not yet been solved, so the coffin in the house was still empty. Only a memorial tablet was placed on the table in the center. There was not much ash in the censer before the tablet, suggesting that not many people mourned Madam Nian after her death.
Zhong Li walked around the memorial hall and entered the bedroom. Madam Nian’s bedroom was tidy, and the two windows were open, indicating that Chunping was an attentive servant.
She casually opened Madam Nian’s dressing case and looked inside. All the jewelry was still there. Then she went to the wardrobe and the bed, until her gaze fell upon a small bottle placed beside the pillow.
Zhong Li picked up the bottle and looked at the pattern carved on it: a lingzhi mushroom. It appeared to be a medicine bottle. Madam Nian was taking medicine, but why hadn’t Chunping told her?
She opened the bottle, poured out two pills, and sniffed them. It was morning glory. Madam Nian was taking this?
However, Zhong Li quickly understood. Madam Nian was overweight, and perhaps her diet had not been healthy for many years, leading to mild liver cirrhosis. Taking this substance was plausible.
She capped the bottle and was about to put it back when her fingertip brushed against something under the pillow.
Out of curiosity, Zhong Li lifted Madam Nian’s pillow. Beneath it were several neatly folded letters, all signed by the same person: Yan Zhi.
Zhong Li knew that the Marquis’s legitimate son was named Chang Yanzhi. So, these must be letters written by Madam Nian to Chang Yanzhi?
Thinking this, she casually picked up one and opened it to examine.