Before Steward Tang could locate the enemies Lin Zhi had made in his time, news arrived concerning Chen Mansion’s steward, Liu Dazhu.
Much like what had befallen the Lin and Zhang families, Liu Dazhu’s entire family had perished in a fire.
Liu Dazhu’s family had taken root deep in the mountains, living a life almost entirely cut off from the outside world. They kept bees in the hills, made their honey, and then carried it out to sell — ordinarily they had almost no contact with other people whatsoever.
So the fact that Liu Dazhu and his whole family had died in the mountains was unknown to anyone until Hei She’s men went looking for them.
“The Liu family had built three rooms in a mountain gully, with beehive frames set up in the rear courtyard. When we arrived at the gully, the place had already burned to a pile of rubble. Within that rubble, we found five bodies. Following Miss Yan’s instructions, I examined the necks of each corpse — all of them bore wounds inflicted by a sharp implement. They were murdered first, and the arson was done afterward to destroy the evidence.” Hei She had spent years at Long Yunxiao’s side and had witnessed countless brutal scenes, but this time, following Yan Qing to investigate the Chen family’s past had shown him a kind of ruthlessness that surpassed even the worst he had encountered in his years with the brotherhood. He was hardened to violence and bloodshed — yet he had never before seen multiple households wiped out to the last person.
“And these are only the ones we know about. What about those we don’t?”
The death of Steward Liu and his family was no surprise — yet when it became real, Yan Qing could not help but feel heaviness settle over her.
Qian Lan sought revenge for the Chen family, but in doing so she had dragged so many people to their deaths — and every one of them had once given the Chen family their wholehearted loyalty.
To spare the Chen family further trouble, they had withdrawn from the world and lived in seclusion. Yet even so, they had not escaped the fate of being killed.
Qian Lan had lost her sister and both parents — perhaps she was pitiable. But what she was doing now bore no trace of humanity whatsoever. She had been utterly blinded by the word “vengeance.” One might even say she had gone mad.
“And it’s very likely she’s been taking revenge against the wrong person,” Long Yunxiao said, striding in just then, with Steward Tang following behind him.
Steward Tang’s face was flushed with excitement — clearly the investigation had yielded significant findings.
The gloom over Yan Qing’s heart seemed to lift by half. “There’s been a discovery?”
“Not only a discovery — the person who killed Lin Zhi all those years ago has already been brought back to Yang Guang Hall by Steward Tang.”
Yan Qing was overjoyed. It seemed Long Yunxiao had not only found the true culprit but had brought him back on the spot.
Long Yunxiao was clearly thirsty, and took a long drink before continuing: “Back in the day, Lin Zhi had a falling-out with a man called Chou Qianwan, and Chou Qianwan was the third-ranked figure in the Wan Hu Brotherhood. At that time, Long Yun Association, Wan Hu Brotherhood, and Si Hai Pavilion stood as three co-existing major brotherhoods in Wu Jia Jie. Chou Qianwan was quite a figure within the Wan Hu Brotherhood, but this man had one particular vice — he was deeply lecherous.”
Yan Qing already had a faint inkling of what was coming. She held her teacup in both hands and waited quietly for what followed.
Long Yunxiao took another sip of tea, which eased his throat considerably, and continued: “On one occasion, Chou Qianwan encountered Lin Zhi and Chen Fangfang together. He was captivated by the beautiful and gentle Chen Fangfang, and despite knowing the two were a couple, he not only sent her gifts but sought to arrange a meeting with her. Chen Fangfang not only refused him outright but found him thoroughly repugnant, rebuffing him time and again without an ounce of respect. When Lin Zhi found out about this, he challenged Chou Qianwan and nearly beat him to death. After Chou Qianwan recovered, he harbored a deep grudge against Lin Zhi. The two brotherhoods clashed repeatedly, both openly and in the shadows, yet Chou Qianwan lost to Lin Zhi every single time. And so he resolved to have his revenge.”
“So he chose to use Chen Fangfang to take revenge on Lin Zhi?”
Long Yunxiao nodded. “That day, it so happened that the Commander was hosting a banquet and sent someone to invite Chen Fangfang. The Commander did have some interest in Chen Fangfang, but harbored no improper intentions — he invited her to the private banquet simply to hear her play the piano. After Chen Fangfang arrived, the Commander received her with every courtesy and remained properly respectful throughout, never once behaving in a disrespectful manner. When Chen Fangfang left, there was not the slightest trace of distress about her. But after Chen Fangfang departed, Chou Qianwan had his men ambush her on the road, forcibly took her to his own residence, and violated her. When Chen Fangfang returned to the Chen Mansion, she immediately took her own life.”
“So that’s how it was.” Yan Qing shook her head slowly. “There was yet another element in the middle of it all.”
“After Chen Fangfang died, the Chen family’s elderly parents passed away one after the other. Chen Lingling watched her family members die before her eyes one by one, and the seed of hatred took root in the depths of her heart. But she believed it was the Commander who had driven Chen Fangfang to her death — she did not know that there was also Chou Qianwan behind it all. From beginning to end, the Commander had done nothing to Chen Fangfang. And later, when Lin Zhi went to seek vengeance, he too was ambushed halfway by Chou Qianwan’s men and shot to death. Steward Tang has confirmed: the weapon Chou Qianwan used at the time was precisely that kind of improvised firearm, while everything the Commander used was the rifles imported from the Su Nation.”
“It appears that Qian Lan has truly taken revenge against the wrong person.” Yan Qing gave a short, bitter laugh. “She went to all that effort, sent so many people to their graves alongside the Chen family, and in the end the very person she meant to avenge herself upon was the wrong one. What do you think — if she found out, what would she do?”
“Do you think Shi Guang would be unaware of the truth?” Long Yunxiao asked suddenly. “Qian Lan is a woman alone — she would not have the means to kill so many people and conceal her origins. The only one capable of doing all of this for her is Shi Guang. If Shi Guang was able to trace things all the way from Hui Yuan to Qian Lan, then he must also have learned the truth of what happened all those years ago from the mouths of those with knowledge. It is very likely he already knows that Chen Fangfang’s death had nothing to do with the Commander — yet he has been deliberately misleading Qian Lan all along.”
“I agree with your inference — yet even if Shi Guang deliberately misled Qian Lan, Qian Lan should not have allowed Shi Guang to kill so many people for the sake of her own ends. She can’t have been unaware of everything Shi Guang was doing — she permitted it, and perhaps even participated, given that no one knew the Chen family’s affairs as intimately as she did.”
“Yes — Qian Lan is equally beyond pardon,” Long Yunxiao said. “The Wan Hu Brotherhood declined several years ago and has now virtually vanished without a trace. We found Chou Qianwan thoroughly drunk in a gambling den. He’s buried in debt and has been hiding from creditors in every corner. Steward Tang gave him a little money, and he told the whole story of what happened back then without a word left out.”
“But does he have any evidence? An empty claim proves nothing.”
“He said that on Chen Fangfang’s lower right chest there is a lotus-shaped birthmark,” Long Yunxiao replied. “That sort of thing is known only to parents. Even Lin Zhi probably didn’t know.”
“Long Yunxiao, you mentioned that Shi Guang’s work was so clean and thorough — so why didn’t he kill Chou Qianwan to silence him?”
“As it happens, after Chou Qianwan killed Lin Zhi, he handed his position off to a subordinate and left Wu Jia Jie to lie low elsewhere. After he left Wu Jia Jie, he settled around Hai Cheng, and even took a wife there and had two children. But then the gambling addiction struck again, and he gambled away the house and everything in it. His wife took the children and left. With nowhere to turn, he crept back to Wu Jia Jie in secret. When we found him, he had only been back just over a month.”
“If he had never left, he’d be dead by now — that one act of fleeing bought him his life,” said Yan Qing solemnly. “Make sure your people keep close watch over him. I’m worried Shi Guang might track him down.”
“Don’t worry — in my hands, even if he grew wings he couldn’t fly away.”
Yan Qing smiled. “You’re right — I’m overthinking it.”
Seeing her pick up her teacup for a sip, Long Yunxiao thought for a moment and then said: “The events of that year have now been fully investigated. You’ll be heading back to Shun Cheng now, I suppose?”
“Yes, tomorrow.”
She had been away for quite some time on this trip, and she didn’t know what the situation at the Shi Mansion might be like. Her greatest concern was Luo Huaimeng.
Though Qian Lan had no reason to go after Luo Huaimeng, the worry was unavoidable. Shi Ting had asked her to remain in Shun Cheng precisely to look after the back courtyard.
Long Yunxiao understood perfectly well that Yan Qing was eager to return, but for him, this was likely the very last time they would be alone together.
Yet when he thought of the journey back and having her companionship even for that stretch of road, the ache in his heart eased considerably.
“These people — do you plan to take them all back to Shun Cheng?” Long Yunxiao said. “It would be inconvenient for you to travel with them. How about leaving them with me for now — you can come and collect them whenever you need?”
What Long Yunxiao suggested was exactly what Yan Qing had been thinking of raising with him. Bringing these people back to Shun Cheng was not only inconvenient but too conspicuous — and if it alerted Qian Lan and Shi Guang, the effort would all be wasted. The best approach was to leave them with Long Yunxiao for now: even if Shi Guang’s reach was long, it would not extend into Long Yunxiao’s Long Yun Association.
“Then I’ll trouble you again,” Yan Qing said, sounding apologetic. “Not only did you give your people and your effort, but now I’m asking you to hold prisoners for me as well. I truly don’t know how to thank you.”
“Between you and me, there’s no need to talk of repayment. If one day I need your help with something, I only ask that you don’t refuse me.”
“What help could I possibly offer you?”
“That’s hard to say. There might be one thing that only you can do — like the time you helped me examine a body.”
Yan Qing immediately waved her hand: “I would really rather not give that kind of help again.”
Long Yunxiao laughed too. “Get some rest — I’ll come for you tomorrow.”
—
When Yan Qing left Huxi Town, snow was falling over the town — light and drifting.
But once the boat entered the river channels, the snow disappeared. By the time they reached Shun Cheng, the skies were clear and sunny, not a single snowflake in sight — a rare and welcome stretch of fine weather, though the air still carried a dry, biting chill.
Yan Qing parted ways with Long Yunxiao at the dock. She needed to first go to the foot of the mountain where Baiyun Convent stood and meet up with those who had gone there before her.
“Mr. Mu,” Yan Qing said to Mu Bai. “Thank you for escorting me all the way. Please convey my thanks to Mr. Xie as well — once this matter is resolved, I will personally come to pay my respects.”
Mu Bai’s task was now complete. In the face of Yan Qing’s words, he offered the rare gift of three words: “No need to thank me.”
Mu Bai had watched with his own eyes as Yan Qing uncovered a case buried for more than a decade. Though the actual investigative work had all been carried out by Long Yunxiao, every lead they followed had traced back to her precise analysis of the bodies.
He had initially assumed that the person Xie Yan had him protect was a frail young lady. But aside from her outward appearance of delicate fragility, she bore not the slightest trace of the pampered, cosseted manner of a mistress of means. On the contrary, she was tough, she was sharp, and she was the kind of woman who commanded a second look.