The kidnappers who abducted Jiang Yan claimed to be notorious bandits. They asserted they were unaware of Jiang Yan’s identity.
Having received a hefty commission, the kidnappers disguised themselves as household guards. In front of onlookers, they declared they were acting on their master’s orders to capture a concubine who had eloped with a guard.
Zhu Yicheng inwardly exclaimed, “This is bad!” However, the more he protested, the more intrigued the spectators became. Some mischievous bystanders even urged to lift the carriage curtain to see what the “adulterous woman” looked like.
Jiang Yan was paralyzed with fear. Memories of past coercion flooded her mind. She would rather die than go with strangers again. Clutching Yinghong’s hand, she pleaded, “Let me die instead!”
Though young, Yinghong had experienced the purge of Duke Ying’s household. She was more composed than ordinary girls her age. While unsure of the kidnappers’ background, she knew if Jiang Yan fell into their hands, it would not only tarnish Jiang Yan’s reputation but also affect Duke Ying’s household and even Song Mo’s standing. If Jiang Yan preferred death, it might be for the best.
If the mistress died, the servant would be disgraced. Naturally, Yinghong wouldn’t survive either.
These thoughts weakened her limbs. Tears fell involuntarily as she choked out, “Miss, we don’t even have scissors. How… how can you die?”
Jiang Yan was at a loss, muttering, “I won’t live anyway. I won’t live.”
Yinghong gritted her teeth and cried, “Miss, we can’t fall into their hands! Even if you die, they can still dishonor Duke Ying’s household. Let’s run! At worst, we’ll be killed by swords in public. At least we can preserve our dignity…”
Jiang Yan grasped at this lifeline. She lifted the carriage curtain and jumped out. Upon landing, her ankle twisted painfully, leaving her unable to rise.
Yinghong panicked.
Jiang Yan pushed her away, urging, “Escape if you can.” Even if she escaped, a fate worse than death likely awaited her.
Resigned to her fate, Yinghong supported the limping Jiang Yan as they fled.
The bandits were prepared. They threw lime powder at Zhu Yicheng and his men. Even bystanders coughed and cursed from the irritation. Seizing the moment, the kidnappers covered their faces with damp cloths. Two agile men emerged from the powder cloud, snatching up Jiang Yan and Yinghong like eagles catching chicks. They tossed them into the carriage and sped towards the city gates.
People on the streets cried out to make way, murmuring amongst themselves: “Whose carriage is that? Racing through the busy streets – aren’t they afraid of killing someone? Why isn’t the City Guard doing anything?”
Someone with keen eyes remarked, “It looks like Duke Ying’s carriage!”
Some shook their heads, while others quietly slipped away to avoid trouble.
The guards at the West Gate hesitated upon seeing the carriage. By the time they heard the screams for help from inside, it had already passed through the gates… The servant Zhu Yicheng had secretly sent to fetch help from Duke Ying’s household had just arrived at the mansion’s entrance.
Song Mo smirked coldly. He ordered Xia Lian and the Six Bureaus to spread the word among Beijing’s martial artists, telling them to mind their own business and turn in any suspicious individuals. He also borrowed troops from the City Guard. Led by Chen Jia and his trusted men from the Jinyiwei Inspectorate, they pursued through the West Gate.
The martial artists of Zhili Province were in an uproar.
Hot-tempered veterans, veins bulging on their foreheads, fumed: “Is some bastard trying to use Duke Ying’s heir to purge our Northern martial arts community?”
Prominent figures in the jianghu, recalling the fire at Duke Ying’s mansion, turned pale. They had to temporarily set aside their differences and gather, regardless of their allegiances. They selected skilled members to form several teams to help Song Mo search. As for the masters of various martial arts schools and secret societies, to prove their innocence, they hurriedly ordered their disciples to assist the Six Bureaus in gathering information.
Within two hours, Jiang Yan’s kidnappers were cornered in a small village on the way to Tongzhou.
By the time Song Mo arrived, many were dead or wounded, with only a few captives remaining alive.
The criminal underworld and righteous martial artists of Beijing had intentionally left these survivors to prove their innocence to Song Mo. As for interrogation, even the Six Bureaus dared not question them, let alone the jianghu figures.
So when Song Mo entered the shed where the prisoners were held, they eagerly “confessed” everything.
Both the underworld and righteous factions breathed sighs of relief.
The Six Bureaus, however, found themselves in a predicament.
Notorious bandits? What kind of bandits would take a job without scoping it out first? This story wouldn’t even fool the officials at the Ministry of Justice’s main hall, let alone Song Mo!
Were they expected to take these men into custody?
It was best for small fry like them to stay far away from conflicts between such powerful figures!
Several constables discreetly shuffled their feet, bowing their heads as they left the shed.
Song Mo handed the prisoners over to Chen Jia while he went to check on Jiang Yan and Yinghong, who had fainted from fright and were still lying in the carriage.
But before Chen Jia’s men could approach, the few survivors bit into poison hidden in their false teeth, committing suicide.
Chen Jia’s lips quivered with rage as he cursed the jianghu figures operating in Beijing: “Such amateur tricks! I’ve long since grown tired of them! Now that they’re dead, you’re even more implicated!”
For the seasoned jianghu bosses, tricks like poison in false teeth were child’s play. When capturing someone, the first step should have been to dislocate their jaw. How could the survivors have possibly committed suicide?
The only explanation was that they knew this matter was not simple and didn’t want to get involved, so they deliberately turned a blind eye.
Several jianghu leaders smiled bitterly, privately lamenting to their trusted brothers or disciples: “We had no choice in this matter!”
Suddenly, there were far fewer jianghu figures active in Beijing.
Of course, this was all aftermath.
When Song Mo learned that the survivors had committed suicide, he calmly nodded and said, “Then burn the bodies and scatter the ashes in the river to feed the fish.”
Several of Chen Jia’s subordinates shuddered at these words, their gazes towards Chen Jia filled with sympathy and admiration.
Chen Jia’s face reddened, and he coughed lightly, somewhat uncomfortable.
Song Mo went to the room where Jiang Yan was resting.
The doctor urgently summoned by the Six Bureaus emerged from the inner chamber with relief, respectfully bowing to Song Mo. He reported, “The two young ladies from your household are fine. They just need to take some calming medicinal soups.”
Song Mo rewarded the doctor and took Jiang Yan and Yinghong back to Duke Ying’s mansion.
Jiang Liuzhu, who had been anxiously waiting for Jiang Yan, had a foreboding feeling when she overheard people discussing an eloped concubine. When her maid returned with information, she immediately realized Jiang Yan might be in trouble.
Anxious and worried, she rushed to Duke Ying’s mansion.
Dou Zhao, trusting Song Mo, gently comforted Jiang Liuzhu.
Jiang Liuzhu gradually calmed down and sat with Dou Zhao in the room, waiting for news of Jiang Yan. When Jiang Yan returned to the mansion, she rose to greet her, supporting Dou Zhao.
Seeing that Jiang Yan was still dazed and unaware of what had transpired, Song Mo simply told her that those people had mistaken her identity and that the household had reported it to the Six Bureaus once they discovered the error.
Jiang Yan, considering the sequence of events, didn’t suspect anything. Her mind at ease, she reassured Dou Zhao and Jiang Liuzhu when she saw them, despite her frightened appearance, saying, “I’m fine, it was just a misunderstanding.”
Dou Zhao maintained her composure, smilingly going along with Jiang Yan’s words. She cheerfully instructed the maids to prepare a peach wood bath for Jiang Yan and cook “safety noodles” before sending her back to Bishui Pavilion.
Jiang Liuzhu also pretended nothing was amiss, playing along with Dou Zhao. However, once Jiang Yan returned to Bishui Pavilion, a trace of worry crossed her brow. She asked Song Mo with concern, “Cousin, there’s no serious problem with Yan’s situation, is there?”
“Nothing serious,” Song Mo replied with a smile, his gaze sharp and confident.
Jiang Liuzhu felt relieved. Perceptively, she said to Dou Zhao, “Since I’m already here, I’ll keep Yan company. It’ll also prevent the elders from worrying.”
Dou Zhao nodded with a smile and returned to the main courtyard.
She informed Song Mo about Jiang Liuzhu’s actions, her expression inadvertently revealing a hint of admiration: “It’s a pity I came to Beijing so late and couldn’t witness the Jiang family’s glorious days firsthand.”
Understanding her meaning, Song Mo smiled and said, “The fragrance of plum blossoms comes from the bitter cold. You might not have appreciated the Jiang family’s resilience back then.”
Dou Zhao nodded repeatedly.
A servant entered and reported, “Young Master, Madam, Young Master Gu has arrived!”
Song Mo instructed the servant, “Tell him to wait in the study. I’ll be there after I change my clothes.”
The servant acknowledged and withdrew.
Just as a maid brought in water, another servant came to report that Ma Youming had arrived.
Song Mo had just changed his clothes when Jiang Yi also rushed over.
Dou Zhao helped adjust his collar and said, “It seems everyone knows about this incident.”
Song Mo gave an affirmative “Mm” and said, “I think their fabricated reason isn’t bad. We’ll announce to the public that someone mistook the carriage while trying to capture a concubine who had eloped with a guard.”
Dou Zhao smiled and nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, Shi Chuan, the Commander of the Jinyiwei, was leaning against the railing on the top floor of the Zuixian Tower, gazing towards Duke Ying’s mansion.
Within a hundred zhang of the Forbidden City, buildings higher than two stories were prohibited.
Duke Ying’s mansion was located next to the Forbidden City.
In reality, nothing could be seen from the Zuixian Tower.
But for some reason, Shi Chuan felt as if he could see Song Mo standing in the middle of Duke Ying’s spacious main courtyard, looking in his direction.
His hand tightly gripped the red railing.
Liu Yu’s heart tightened along with Shi Chuan’s hand, and he couldn’t help but ask, “What if Song Yantang discovers us? What should we do?”
“He won’t discover us,” Shi Chuan said decisively. “Whether it’s Prince Liao or Song Yantang, they may appear friendly when they see us, but deep down, they’re the masters and we’re just their servants. If you please them, they’ll toss you a few sweets. But if you anger them, they’ll turn on you without mercy.”
Liu Yu couldn’t help but grumble inwardly: If you know they can turn on us without mercy, why did you send people to kidnap Jiang Yan right after Geng Li left Duke Ying’s mansion?
“You don’t understand!” Shi Chuan, perceiving Liu Yu’s thoughts, smiled and said, “In Prince Liao’s heart, only Song Yantang is worthy of speaking to him. The rest of us, at best, are fit to polish his shoes. With Song Yantang around, none of us can make a name for ourselves.”
Liu Yu still didn’t understand.
In his view, the success of Prince Liao’s plans was uncertain. Wasn’t it too early to make such moves?
But seeing that Shi Chuan had no intention of saying more, he wisely remained silent.