Lu Jingcheng was dead! Qin Wan felt immensely shocked, while Fu Ling and Bai Ying beside her stood with mouths agape in horror!
“How did he die?” Qin Wan frowned. “What was the cause?”
Bai Feng shook his head, “That’s still unclear. I heard that a doctor was called for him last night and examined his wounds. He was then left in his room, but when servants went to change his bandages this morning, they found him cold and lifeless.”
Qin Wan instinctively stood up, took two steps toward the door, and then stopped.
It wouldn’t be appropriate to seek out Lu Youxin at this moment. They didn’t know how the situation was unfolding over there, and before understanding whether Lu Youxin could control the situation, she couldn’t show herself. Her identity needed to remain concealed – one misstep would be truly difficult to fix.
Qin Wan returned to her seat, “Go investigate further! The other branches of the family are staying in that compound now. This incident will surely cause tremendous waves. Go see if Aunt can handle it, and if there are any developments, return to report to me immediately—”
Bai Feng acknowledged and continued toward the East Courtyard.
At this moment, the Lu Family’s East Courtyard was in complete chaos. The main gate of Qingsong Garden stood wide open, and from the main hall came sounds of tragic wailing. Two middle-aged men in fine clothes stood at the doorway, their faces showing both shock and fear, not daring to enter. Several servants in blue robes knelt on the ground, but the majority of people standing in the courtyard were servants wearing red short robes.
Lu Youxin stood in the middle of the courtyard and commanded, “From now on, no one in this courtyard is allowed to take a single step outside.”
At this command, the two middle-aged men at the door immediately frowned in disapproval.
One of them said, “Second Sister, what are you doing? Jingcheng died so unexpectedly – such a major incident naturally needs to be reported to the authorities.”
The speaker was the Lu family’s Third Master, Lu Bohong. After he spoke, the Fourth Master Lu Boyou beside him said, “Yes, Second Sister, what are you doing…”
Before Lu Youxin could respond, a sharp accusation suddenly rang out from inside the room!
“Lu Youxin! You poisonous woman! You must have killed my son!”
As these words rang out, a middle-aged woman with a tear-streaked face rushed out of the room. This was Madam Fang, Lu Jingcheng’s birth mother.
Madam Fang stumbled toward Lu Youxin, and upon seeing her, her eyes blazed with overwhelming fury. She grabbed her skirts and charged toward Lu Youxin, her expression twisted with rage, clearly intending to attack. “You poisonous woman! I’ll fight you to the death—”
Madam Fang stumbled toward Lu Youxin, but before she could get close, she was restrained by Matron Huang and another elderly servant. Seeing this, her anger intensified, and she tried to strike Matron Huang’s face. However, having lived a life of luxury, she was no match for Matron Huang and the others. Matron Huang applied subtle pressure to her body and easily subdued her. “Second Madam, one may eat carelessly, but words cannot be spoken recklessly. Our Young Miss hasn’t returned since leaving here last night, so how could she have harmed the Fourth Young Master? Before the truth is clear, how can Second Madam make such accusations against Young Miss?”
Madam Fang was restrained and couldn’t move, and her struggle only left her looking disheveled with messy hair!
“It was her, it must have been her! Who else could it be? She’s long despised our second branch! She has no sons of her own! Yet she refuses to let Jingcheng inherit the family business, watching as the great Lu family falls to ruin! Yesterday, for the sake of a visitor, she wanted to drive Jingcheng out! Where in this world is there such a cruel aunt?! Jingcheng has always been in excellent health, and last night he only had minor injuries. She must have had someone kill Jingcheng!”
“You poisonous woman! No wonder no one wants you! No wonder you’re childless! Your wickedness – this is heaven’s retribution!”
“Your entire first branch, none of you are any go—”
A sharp “crack” rang out as Lu Youxin took two quick steps forward and delivered a heavy slap to Madam Fang’s face!
“Say those words again?” Lu Youxin demanded.
Madam Fang had been nearly hysterical, but this slap stunned her momentarily. However, she quickly recovered, tears flowing as she took on the appearance of someone ready to risk everything. “You dare hit me! You dare hit me! I will say it – your first branch doesn’t have a single good person, your sister died early—”
Lu Youxin’s brows furrowed as she raised her hand and delivered another heavy slap to Madam Fang’s face!
This slap turned Madam Fang’s face to the side, blood quickly seeping from the corner of her mouth. Madam Fang’s eyes flashed with fury as she turned her head and said, “Your first branch—”
Lu Youxin narrowed her eyes and without hesitation delivered a third slap to Madam Fang!
This third slap swelled Madam Fang’s other cheek as well. Her head tilted to the side, her ears ringing, and this time she couldn’t speak for quite a while.
Lu Youxin coldly looked at Madam Fang, “Continue speaking. Let’s see which is more formidable – your mouth or my slaps.”
Madam Fang drew in a breath, blood flowing from both corners of her mouth. At this moment, another person rushed out from inside – it was Lu Jingcheng’s father, Lu Boyong. His face was also tear-stained, and leaning against the doorway, he cried out in anguish at the scene before him, “Youxin, what are you doing?! Jingcheng’s body isn’t even cold, and you’re already abusing his mother like this?! He was our only son, and today he died under suspicious circumstances. I must have the authorities investigate this clearly—”
Lu Youxin coldly looked at Lu Boyong, “This matter is not to be reported to the authorities.”
Lu Boyong was stunned, then exploded in rage, “Why can’t we report to the authorities?! Could it be what his mother said is true?! Did you kill Jingcheng?!”
Hearing this, Lu Youxin gave a cold laugh, “What is Lu Jingcheng to me? Why would I bother to have someone kill him?!”
Lu Youxin’s words were direct, showing no consideration for the second branch’s feelings. Lu Boyong was furious, and Madam Fang began cursing through her tears. Lu Youxin then said, “The Lu family is already struggling to sustain itself. Now with such an incident, if we report it to the authorities, we won’t be able to keep our mining business. When word spreads, who would dare to do business with our family? If that happens, neither the third nor fourth branch will get any share of the Lu family’s assets!”
Hearing this, Madam Fang, with bloodshot eyes, said, “You poisonous woman! Even at a time like this, you’re still thinking about the Lu family’s business!”
Lu Youxin sneered, “How else? Isn’t the Lu family’s business exactly what you came for? If you hadn’t been blinded by greed and stubbornly refused to leave, would your son have met such an end?! Rather than cursing me, you should think about yourselves! You raised your son to be useless, and now that he’s lost his life, you want to blame me. It seems you’ve forgotten who runs the Lu family!”
Lu Youxin’s words left Madam Fang and Lu Boyong speechless, but Madam Fang was still sharp-tongued. Coming to her senses, she turned to Lu Boyong and shouted, “My Lord! Are you going to watch our son die here so mysteriously without doing anything?!”
Lu Boyong snapped back to attention and immediately walked toward the courtyard gate, “I don’t believe you. I’m going to report this to the authorities right now!”
When Lu Boyong was halfway there, Lu Youxin coldly commanded, “Take Second Master to the room!”
The servants in red immediately responded, four or five of them quickly subduing Lu Boyong. Some lifted his arms, others his legs, and they lifted him completely off the ground. Lu Boyong was so angry he nearly fainted, “Lu Youxin! How dare you! You dare treat a human life so lightly! If you didn’t kill Jingcheng, why are you acting so guilty?! You… you shameless woman… what are you planning to do?! Are you going to imprison us?!”
Seeing Lu Bohong and Lu Boyou standing helplessly at the door, Lu Boyong shouted, “Third Brother, Fourth Brother, what are you standing there for?! Such a major incident has occurred! Are you just going to watch her do whatever she wants?! You watched Jingcheng grow up too!”
Lu Boyou and his brother were indeed at a loss. They had come for the family business and to seek trouble with the fifth branch, but who could have imagined such a thing would happen!
Hearing Lu Boyong’s words, Lu Boyou stepped forward, “Youxin, this matter, you…”
Lu Youxin coldly looked at the two of them, “What? Do you two want to report to the authorities? Once the authorities arrive, forget about keeping the mining business – even our trade-in Jian Prefecture might be lost. When word gets out, who would dare do business with our family?! If that happens, neither the third nor fourth branch will get any share of the Lu family’s assets!”
Lu Youxin’s words were sharp and direct, making Lu Boyou and his brother hesitate. She knew these people too well – they had come to Jian Prefecture to fight for the family fortune. Now that the second branch’s son was dead, the other branches were probably secretly rejoicing. How could they genuinely help the second branch?!
Lu Boyong was carried into the room, still cursing incessantly. Outside, when Madam Fang saw that Lu Bohong and Lu Boyou were immobilized by Lu Youxin’s words, her expression changed abruptly as she lunged at them, “You! You’re the one who killed my son! It was you! You were afraid Jingcheng would outshine your families, it must have been you!”
Madam Fang had been quiet for a while, causing Matron Huang and her companion to lower their guard. With a sudden struggle, she broke free. In a few quick strides, she reached Lu Boyou and his brother, raising her hands to claw at their faces. She was like a mad woman, completely unrestrained. A painful cry rang out as Lu Boyou’s face was left with a long, bleeding gash! Lu Boyou covered his face and stumbled backward while Lu Bohong hurried to restrain Madam Fang, “Second Sister-in-law, Second Sister-in-law, what are you doing?! How could it possibly be us!”
Hearing this, Madam Fang raised her hand and slapped Lu Bohong, “You think I don’t know?! None of you have good intentions! You all wanted Jingcheng dead so no one would compete with you! My Jingcheng, give me back my Jingcheng’s life, give me back my Jingcheng’s life…”
After scratching and hitting people, Madam Fang grabbed Lu Bohong’s collar, pushing and shoving him in anguish. Though Lu Bohong was reluctant to use force against a woman, he was now extremely annoyed. With one push, he sent Madam Fang to the ground, shouting angrily, “What are you all waiting for?! Restrain Second Madam! Second Madam has lost her mind!”
Lu Bohong, at his age, had never been slapped, especially not in front of so many people. His face turned red with anger. Lu Boyou was in an even worse state – not only had he been struck by a woman, but his face now bore a long gash. His appearance was ruined!
Covering his face as he stood up, he pointed at Madam Fang and cursed, “Shrew! What a shrew! We felt sympathy for you when Jingcheng died, yet you dare falsely accuse others! I think Youxin is right – we shouldn’t report to the authorities now. Let’s first get a doctor to examine how Jingcheng died. If it was a natural death, so be it. If not, the killer must be in our compound. Find that person and you can deal with them however you wish, but reporting to authorities would affect our entire family!”
Madam Fang continued wailing, her curses now directed at Lu Youxin and the two masters. Matron Huang and others came forward to restrain her. Lu Bohong said through gritted teeth, “Exactly! Even with such an incident, you can’t make baseless accusations against us! Look at your behavior – it truly disgraces the Lu family name!”
Lu Youxin watched this scene with composure. Everyone in the Lu family harbored ulterior motives. After years of open and hidden conflicts, she had suffered countless losses. Now, she wasn’t afraid to openly confront them, but Lu Jingcheng’s death was unexpected!
The Lu family was already facing multiple crises, and with Yan Chi and Qin Wan staying here, she was the last person who wanted any trouble!
Yet inexplicably, Lu Jingcheng had died!
Though this nephew had grown increasingly worthless, she had once held and cherished him when he was a toddling baby. Even as he strayed from the right path while growing up, she never wished him dead. The character of ‘Lu’ couldn’t be written two different ways – she had genuinely hoped someone from the younger generation would amount to something. If that had happened, even adoption wouldn’t have been impossible. Lu Youxin felt a wave of regret and melancholy pass through her heart.
Lu Youxin looked at Lu Bohong, then at Lu Boyou. On the surface, neither showed any guilt, but these were extremely shrewd people. Lu Youxin couldn’t be certain they were innocent. Collecting herself, Lu Youxin ordered, “Confine Second Master and Second Madam to the side room. Don’t touch Fourth Young Master’s room yet. Matron Huang, take Fourth Young Master’s servants and investigate what happened last night! Don’t let anyone who entered this courtyard last night slip away.”
As she was giving orders, footsteps sounded outside the courtyard. A middle-aged couple appeared with a young man.
Lu Youxin turned to look and said, “Fifth Brother, Fifth Sister-in-law, why have you come?”
The newcomers were the Lu family’s Fifth Master Lu Boyi and Fifth Madam Hong, followed by their eldest son, the nineteen-year-old Ninth Young Master Lu Jinghe.
The three had just learned the news and rushed over, their faces anxious. Before entering, they heard Madam Fang’s hysterical cries. Upon entering the courtyard, they witnessed the chaotic scene. Lu Boyi stepped forward, “Youxin, what happened?! How did Jingcheng die?!”
Lu Boyi was pale and frail, supported by Madam Hong. After the mining accident two months ago, Lu Boyi had been wracked with guilt and anxiety, falling ill as a result. During these days, when the other branches caused trouble, he followed Lu Youxin’s instructions to recuperate and avoid confrontation with the other branches. He and Lu Jinghe had moved to the more secluded Qingzhu Courtyard, rarely coming to this area. Thus, they were the last to learn of today’s news.
Lu Youxin sighed, watching as Matron Huang and others carried the still-cursing Madam Fang to the side room, “I don’t know how this happened either. We’re already in a difficult situation, and this incident only adds frost to snow for the family. Fifth Brother, your health isn’t good – please return first. I will handle this matter properly.”
Lu Boyi looked questioningly at the disheveled state of Lu Bohong and the others. Lu Boyou approached, speaking with a sarcastic tone, “Fifth Brother, you’d better go back quickly. The second Brother and his wife have gone mad. This incident is indeed sudden – we might all find it hard to bear, but we wouldn’t make false accusations. First, they said Youxin had someone kill Jingcheng, then they accused me and Third Brother of killing him, claiming we feared Jingcheng would compete with us for the family fortune. How ridiculous!”
He pointed at his face, “See this? Second Sister-in-law’s doing. Third Brother was even slapped by her. It’s really…”
Lu Boyi was extremely shocked. His two elder brothers usually maintained such dignified appearances, yet today they both bore injuries… Lu Boyi didn’t know what to say. Seeing only Lu Bohong and Lu Boyou in the courtyard, he asked, “Where are Jingxiu and Jingyun?”
Lu Bohong replied, “They went to Jian Prefecture city early this morning together. They left before knowing about this incident.”
Lu Boyi nodded, but Lu Youxin’s brows furrowed, “I remember, yesterday, they all came to see Jingcheng, didn’t they?”
Lu Bohong nodded, then suddenly changed expression, “Youxin, you’re not suspecting them, are you?”
At this, Lu Boyou also became unhappy, “Youxin, you’re overthinking. They had already planned to go drink in the city!”
Lu Youxin smiled ambiguously, “I’m just asking. After all, we need to understand how Jingcheng died.”
Lu Boyou snorted, “Fine, since you won’t let us report to the authorities, as the family head, you must provide a clear explanation. Otherwise, Second Brother and his wife surely won’t let you off…”