Chapter 241: A Ghost

Wang Sanlang confessed that the next day, he was taken to the Longevity Pavilion, hidden in a small room in the backyard, under the guise of being a rural relative of the old lady. Those who received him, hid him, and delivered messages were all under the old lady’s stewardship—lame-footed women from her side, led by Mrs. Tang.

Initially, Mrs. Tang instructed him to secretly go to the Rose Pavilion at night and use stupefying powder to incapacitate the people there, then feign conjugal relations with that girl. She claimed that if they had conjugal relations, the old lady would decide to have her marry him and provide a substantial dowry.

However, tonight, Mrs. Tang’s instructions changed. After deflowering the girl, he was to hang Chen Feng from the rafters and stage her suicide. After completing the task, he was to quickly hide in the Longevity Pavilion, and they would find a way to get him out the next morning. Later, the old lady would give him five hundred taels of silver…

After hearing this, Chen Shiying was so angry that he trembled and nearly fainted. Madam Jiang hurriedly rose to support him, saying, “Don’t worry, dear, we’ve taken precautions against this, and Feng is unharmed.”

Wang Sanlang was taken away. Chen Shiying had Ding, Mrs. Tang’s wet nurse, and Mrs. Tang brought in for questioning. He also ordered for Tang’s courtyard and the Longevity Pavilion to be guarded, with no one allowed in or out.

Ding was questioned first. She immediately realized that their actions had been exposed and was terrified, trembling and begging for forgiveness.

Chen Shiying said, “Tell the truth. If you don’t, not only will you not survive, but your entire family will be killed.”

Ding explained that it was the old lady who had instructed Mrs. Tang to discuss the matter at the Longevity Pavilion, and it was also the madam Zhao’s idea. She had said that Chen Feng was just a country girl and would not dare to aspire for a higher status once she lost her purity. Chen Shiying had no intention of letting such a daughter marry into their family, and instead planned for Chen Yuhui to take her place.

However, madam Zhao had no relatives in Dingzhou, so she insisted that Mrs. Tang should arrange it. Mrs. Tang was unwilling and afraid, so Ding volunteered herself, claiming that she had a relative working in a gambling den and some martial arts skills. Madam Zhao was delighted and agreed to find this person.

Ding made an arrangement with Wang Sanlang and had him prepare stupefying powder and a knife. Subsequently, under the pretext that Wang Sanlang was a relative of the old lady, Mrs. Tang directly brought him into the Longevity Pavilion for concealment…

Perhaps realizing that she was doomed, Ding shifted all the blame onto the old lady and herself, leaving Mrs. Tang and her daughter without any involvement in the matter.

Afterward, Mrs. Tang was also interrogated. Terrified, she knelt down and tearfully pleaded, “It was all the mother’s plan and me and my daughter is not involved. The old lady ordered my servant to do it, and the servant dared not refuse…”

Chen Shiying, having served as a magistrate for many years, naturally knew how to interrogate people. He asked all the necessary questions and then ordered for the two women to be detained.

He slammed his fist on the table and said to Madam Jiang, “Wang Sanlang and all those involved in this matter cannot be spared. Tang should be afflicted with an illness and sent to our estate in the countryside to die there. Yuhui should be sent to Wan Ci Temple outside Dingzhou to transcribe Buddhist scriptures for a year. My mother, oh, my mother, how could she do this!”

He was deeply ashamed and infuriated by his mother’s actions. Yet, despite her wickedness and excesses, she was still his biological mother. He added in a helpless tone, “Tomorrow, I will have a good talk with her. If she dares to commit evil again, we cannot keep her in our family. We’ll publicly expose her misdeeds, just like what she did to my father. Additionally, everyone in her courtyard will be replaced…”

Madam Jiang calmly agreed, but internally, she was in turmoil and even more grateful for her deceased father-in-law and Mrs. Wang. With such a venomous mother, her husband had not been led astray. Apart from inheriting her father’s kind nature, she was also heavily influenced by Wang’s teachings.

Chen Feng was incensed. That wretched old lady was so despicable! Chen Shiying dealt with those who had committed wrongdoings, but the worst, the old lady, was let off lightly. If the old lady no longer had her henchmen, she might not be able to carry out evil deeds for the time being. Wasn’t that letting her off?

That wouldn’t do at all!

Chen Feng was determined to find a way to expose the old lady’s past wrongdoings to the elders of the Chen family and ensure they dealt with her. This was the fate the old lady deserved for her previous misdeeds, and she had to pay the price for what she had done today.

Chen Feng said to the golden swallow, “Golden Treasure, you said that if someone tried to harm me, you could kill them, right?”

The golden swallow nodded, “Yes, but only if they directly intended to harm Mommy. For example, if Wang Sanlang tried to harm you, I could peck him to death. However, since the old lady was instigating others and didn’t directly act, I cannot peck her or kill her. Otherwise, it would affect my future cultivation.”

Chen Feng pondered for a moment and said, “You don’t need to peck at her or harm her. Just give her a little scare, alright?”

The golden swallow chirped, “Alright. She treated Mommy so badly, I’m really very angry. Should I drop a lump of poop in her mouth?”

Chen Feng replied, “Her mouth is dirtier than the poop itself. Placing it in her mouth would be degrading.” Then, she murmured a few words to the little bird.

The golden swallow, hearing this, chirped and said, “Fun, I like it.”

Chen Feng cuddled the golden swallow and said, “Mommy wishes you success, my golden darling.”

The golden swallow stuck out its little tongue and, with a smirk, said, “Mommy, wait for good news.”

With that, Chen Feng and the golden swallow left the hidden space. Chen Feng opened a small crack in the back door and let the golden swallow fly out.

After circling in the air, the golden swallow landed in a large courtyard. The outside was already guarded, and the people inside were perhaps still unaware, the atmosphere quiet.

It flew to the room where the old lady resided, finding the window slightly ajar and flew in.

It held the canopy on one side of the bed and hung it on a hook. Seeing the old lady sleeping so peacefully and even snoring, the golden swallow silently cursed her for being able to sleep so soundly after committing such wrongdoing.

It glanced around the room and noticed a white embroidered handkerchief on the table, which it picked up and placed on its head. It then flew to the middle of the bed, chirping a few times.

The commotion woke the old lady, and in her daze, she saw a headless white figure floating in mid-air, moving up and down…

“A ghost!” The old lady screamed and fainted.

The golden swallow dropped the handkerchief and quickly flew out through the window.

The night guards rushed in upon hearing the commotion, finding the old lady lying on the bed, foaming at the mouth. The servants were terrified and began shouting, causing a stir in the residence. Chen Shiying and Madam Jiang hurried to the Longevity Pavilion and sent for a doctor…