Wang Daxia’s brain was strung together with money—everything was money, money, money.
Wei Caiwei remembered that when Wang Daxia arranged tonight’s altar “chance encounter,” he had mentioned that Lu Bing went to the underground death row early this morning to see Ding Rukui and instructed the prison guards to set up an altar in the courtyard tonight.
During the “chance encounter” with Ding Rukui in the courtyard just now, Ding Rukui had been holding and reciting a brilliantly written thousand-character eulogy to commemorate the deceased. She heard that this eulogy was written for the Wei Nanshan couple.
Ding Rukui had been imprisoned underground for ten years, cut off from the world, so naturally he didn’t know about the Wei Nanshan couple’s successive deaths within a single day.
So, clever as Wei Caiwei was, she could roughly guess what Lu Bing had told Ding Rukui this morning.
Wei Nanshan was merely a family retainer taking care of Ding Wu. Lu Bing wouldn’t specifically seek out Ding Rukui for someone insignificant.
Lu Bing must have discovered the name “Clerk Ding Wu” on the household registration and then followed the trail to dig “me” out.
Being exposed didn’t matter—her identity was unassailable. Lu Bing wouldn’t do anything to her, at most intimidate or try to trick her with words.
Wei Caiwei was confident as she stood up with her walking stick: “I’ll go see Lord Lu immediately.”
Wang Daxia followed along.
Under the imperial physician’s skillful hands, Lu Bing’s condition had stabilized. Lu Ying held a bowl of medicine, feeding it to Lu Bing spoonful by spoonful—his grip still had problems and he couldn’t hold the medicine cup steady.
After Lu Bing drank the medicine and rinsed his mouth, Lu Ying wanted to feed his father a piece of candied fruit to remove the bitter taste. Lu Bing slowly shook his head: “I’m not a child. A little bitterness is fine. Feeling bitter is good—better than having no sensation at all.”
Hearing this, Wei Caiwei noticed Lu Bing’s speech was still somewhat slurred, like talking with food in his mouth, but his meaning was clear and outsiders could understand him. She was immediately amazed by Imperial Physician Song’s medical skills, far beyond what she could achieve. Her adoptive parents and Ding Wu were right—the capital was a place where dragons and tigers hid, full of capable and extraordinary people.
“Help me sit up,” Lu Bing said.
Seeing his mighty father become as fragile and helpless as a baby, Lu Ying felt sad inside but didn’t show it on his face. He forced himself to stay strong, constantly telling himself his father would definitely recover, and helped his father change from lying down to half-reclining, stuffing several pillows behind his back.
Connected by blood, Lu Bing in turn comforted him: “I’ll get better quickly. Don’t worry. When people get old, they all get sick.”
Only now did Lu Ying understand why his father had suddenly started asking daily whether he ate his three meals on time, and reminded him not to stay up late and go to bed early. His father’s body had serious problems and hoped he wouldn’t follow in his footsteps.
Lu Ying nodded: “I know. I already ate dinner on time and even added an extra bowl of rice than usual.”
“That’s good. What an obedient child.” Lu Bing comforted Lu Ying, then turned his gaze to Wei Caiwei leaning on her walking stick: “You may sit while answering.”
Wei Caiwei sat on the rose chair beside the bed. Wang Daxia also moved a lightweight master’s chair to sit, but was stopped by Lu Bing: “Not you. A young, strong fellow—standing for a while won’t hurt.”
Lu Ying also said: “You had leisure time to climb trees and cut branches to make walking sticks, so you must have strength with nowhere to use it. Don’t sit.”
Wang Daxia stood straight.
Lu Bing looked at Wei Caiwei: “Do you know why I called you here?”
He’s trying to trick me again. Wei Caiwei said: “This citizen woman doesn’t know.”
Lu Bing asked: “I heard you just met with Ding Rukui—why have you been concealing that you know Ding Wu? Your purpose in coming to the capital was to act as a go-between for the father and son.”
It really is about this matter!
Wei Caiwei remained calm: “This citizen woman never deliberately concealed anything. If others don’t ask about this citizen woman’s past in Tieling, how can this citizen woman tell people? This citizen woman did come to the capital with the purpose of finding channels to relay messages between father and son, exchange news, and report their safety. But this requires opportunity—this citizen woman never expected to see Ding Rukui so quickly.”
Wang Daxia had already learned about Wei Caiwei’s relationship with the Ding family while carrying her, but Lu Ying was the last to know she had such background. He said: “You really aren’t an ordinary widow.”
“She may not be a widow at all.” Even while seriously ill, Lu Bing didn’t forget to pass on experience to his flesh and blood: “Knowing someone’s face doesn’t mean knowing their heart. To figure out someone’s background, you can start with people around them. According to intelligence from Embroidered Uniform Guards monitoring Ding Wu in Tieling, both Ding Wu and she remain unmarried. When did a widow appear?”
Lu Bing’s gaze was sharp as a torch, instantly full of killing intent, showing no sign of being a stroke patient: “You are impersonating the real Wei Caiwei. Very likely, you killed Wei Caiwei on her way to the capital, obtained her household registration, and came to the capital impersonating her.”
The atmosphere immediately became tense.
Wang Daxia was so shocked he jumped three feet high: “Lord Lu! Murder demands a life! Without evidence, you mustn’t speak carelessly!”
Wei Caiwei was with his father, so Lu Ying naturally stood by his father’s side, feeling his father’s words made sense: “Wang Daxia, if you interrupt again, get out.”
Wang Daxia covered his mouth. He couldn’t leave—if he wasn’t there, Wei Caiwei would be even more isolated and helpless.
Lu Ying said to Wei Caiwei: “All signs indicate you’re very suspicious. I guarantee not to wrongly accuse an innocent person, but if you don’t cooperate, speak in fragments, only explain things favorable to yourself, and always conceal things from us, making us take detours, once bitter consequences result, you can only reap what you sow.”
Lu Bing and Lu Ying played bad cop and good cop, finally showing some coordination.
“I didn’t kill anyone.” Wei Caiwei said: “This citizen woman is Wei Caiwei herself. Except for lying about marriage, everything this citizen woman has stated is true. Lord Lu is perceptive—this citizen woman is indeed unmarried.”
What?
Father and son Lu Bing and Lu Ying exchanged glances: they had indeed tricked it out of her.
Wei Caiwei suddenly changed from calling herself “citizen woman” to “citizen girl.” The most shocked was Wang Daxia, who jumped even higher than before. Forgetting Lu Ying’s warning, he pointed at Wei Caiwei:
“You you you! You’re not a widow? You deceived me? Where did that spirit tablet of your deceased husband in your house come from? What about you saying your heart only holds your deceased husband? You even—you even serve meals to your deceased husband every meal, setting out chopsticks at an empty place. You’re more convincing than a real widow! You played me for a complete fool!”
Wang Daxia was like a girl who had been deceived in body and heart by a playboy and gotten pregnant, only to discover the man was actually a married scoundrel.
“Since I was disguising myself as a widow, naturally the more realistic the better. Spirit tablets, serving meals, and words of longing for a deceased husband were all necessary.” Wei Caiwei removed the white silk cloth wrapped around her hair bun: “Disguise was to make myself appear credible. If disguising as a widow instead made me suspicious, then this disguise wasn’t needed.”
“In Tieling, my parents were famous doctors at Ivory Mountain. I helped them from childhood, and patients all knew me. I started consulting with my parents at the medical clinic when I was fourteen. Locals mostly trusted my medical skills and didn’t look down on me for being young and unmarried. But leaving Tieling for the capital, practicing medicine along the way to earn travel expenses, in strange places very few people were willing to trust an unknown unmarried girl with gynecology and miraculous healing…”
“Because I hit too many walls along the way and business was terrible, upon entering the capital I changed my appearance, bought plain clothes at a clothing shop, and even bought a blank spirit tablet at a coffin shop, disguising myself as a married widow. In outsiders’ eyes, only women who had been married understood the troubles and illnesses of married women, knew about pregnancy and childbirth, and would ask me to treat them.”
Wei Caiwei’s explanation was seamless. Though she had indeed disguised herself and lied, it was understandable.
In her previous life, Wei Caiwei only sought revenge and didn’t care about business, always presenting herself as an unmarried girl.
In this life, Wei Caiwei needed to stay here after revenge to prevent her dead husband from castrating himself, so from the first day of rebirth she planned her retreat, practicing medicine as a widow.
Wang Daxia still couldn’t believe it. He was afraid of ghosts—that night they stayed together, he was terrified facing the spirit tablet, repeatedly explaining to the dead spirit that he hadn’t wanted to come, the widow had actively invited him to stay overnight.
If I had known this, what was I so conflicted about!
My sincere heart was ultimately misplaced!
Wang Daxia’s intestines turned green with regret as he pointed at Wei Caiwei: “What about ‘Spirit Tablet of Deceased Husband Wang Erlang’ written on the tablet? My surname is Wang, and I’m also ranked second—what do you mean by this?”
Wei Caiwei said: “Oh, the spirit tablet was blank when I bought it. That day Chen Jingji took me to see the house, and I took a liking to it at first sight. Chen Jingji said the neighbor was the Wang residence, five generations of chiliarchs, charitable and quite virtuous. I immediately rented the house, and when I returned to the inn, I took out the spirit tablet, mixed vermillion ink, and casually wrote ‘Spirit Tablet of Deceased Husband Wang Erlang’ on it.”
Wang Daxia asked: “Why Erlang? Dalang would have been just as easy to write!”
Wei Caiwei said: “I don’t know either. Writing casually, I wrote ‘Er’ (two), probably because ‘Er’ has the simplest strokes. I meant nothing else by it. If you mind, I’ll go back and buy a new spirit tablet, changing it to ‘Spirit Tablet of Deceased Husband Wang Dalang.'”
Previously it was always Wang Daxia who left others speechless, but today he opened his eyes—Wei Caiwei’s glib tongue made his brain ache with anger, and he was furious:
“Wang Dalang won’t work either—you’re not allowed to share my surname! Your widow facade has been exposed by us, so why still keep a spirit tablet at home? Who are you putting on this act for?”
“For clients to see.” Wei Caiwei said: “The capital’s women spend generously and trust widows more. I’ve only been here a few days but already earned some silver. I usually present myself as a widow—if I suddenly became an unmarried woman, I’d be a fraud. How would patients dare ask me to treat them?”
Wei Caiwei looked at Lu Bing and Lu Ying: “Lord Lu, Commander Lu, my widow disguise wasn’t malicious, only for convenience in making a living in a strange place. I’ve never harmed anyone. After this matter ends, I’ll still practice medicine as a widow. I beg you both to allow me to keep this little secret.”
Wang Daxia was furious: “Who says you haven’t harmed anyone? You harmed me!”
Author’s Note: Wang Daxia: The more beautiful a woman is, the more she lies. A sincere heart was ultimately misplaced!
Congratulations to the 1000 readers who won prizes. For those who didn’t win, don’t worry—this chapter gives 100 red envelopes. Leave a 2-point comment first, first come first served. Have a pleasant weekend everyone!