The Empress, seated to one side, remained curious about the entire case. “Madam Shen, although Tang has confessed, the intricacies of this case have not been fully revealed. With so many bodies discovered, you’ve mentioned two pairs. I’d like to hear about the others as well.”
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Zhu Yan dared not disobey the Empress’s inquiry.
“Among the numerous victims, there’s one whose story is particularly tragic,” Zhu Yan began, her expression growing solemn. “She was a courtesan from Lanyin Pavilion named Ru Yan. Long ago, she had left that life behind and married. She deeply loved her husband, Xu Huansheng, who loved her equally, disregarding her past. They lived a blissful life, and Ru Yan even bore Xu Huansheng a son. However, their happiness was short-lived. Not long after their marriage, Ru Yan disappeared.
“Xu Huansheng struggled to raise their child alone, yet he never sought another woman. When we visited him recently, he still clung to the hope that his wife would return someday. When we informed him of his wife’s death, he remained eerily calm. Perhaps he had long suspected her fate but couldn’t bring himself to accept it.
“His devotion to his wife was unwavering, even when her former patrons came looking for her. He chose to trust her completely. And even…”
Zhu Yan paused as if struck by a chord deep within her.
“Even what?” the Empress prompted.
The story had captivated everyone present, eager to hear more.
“Even to the extent that Xu Huansheng once told his wife that if she wished to be with her former patron, he would let her go, prioritizing her happiness above all else.”
This revelation stunned the audience. Could love truly run so deep? To willingly relinquish one’s beloved to another man?
As murmurs rippled through the crowd, Zhu Yan continued, ignoring the chatter.
“To redeem Ru Yan, Xu Huansheng sold everything he owned. After their marriage, they lived in poverty, but contentedly. His wife chose not to leave with her former patron because she knew where her heart truly belonged. Yet, despite all this, certain individuals refused to leave her in peace!”
Zhu Yan’s gaze returned to Madam Tang, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
“If not for you, the Xu family would never have been torn apart. His beloved wife wouldn’t have left him, and their child wouldn’t have lost a mother. Even now, Xu Huansheng lies to his child, saying the mother has gone to a faraway place. He can’t bring himself to tell the child that his mother is dead.”
“What do you know!” Madam Tang erupted in anger at Zhu Yan. “You’ve only seen the surface. None of this is true.”
Madam Tang’s breathing quickened, her eyes burning with rage. “That woman was nothing but a harlot! Xu Huansheng sold everything to redeem her, reducing himself to poverty. And how did she repay him? She showed no remorse, continuing to associate with her former patrons. Did she not know to avoid suspicion? She was deliberate in her actions, clinging to Xu Huansheng’s love while unwilling to forgo the gifts and favors from her patrons. What’s there to sympathize with such a woman? She was a whore who deserved to die!”
“If that’s what you believe, you’re gravely mistaken!” Zhu Yan retorted fiercely. “Would a woman bear a child for a man she didn’t love? If Ru Yan truly harbored feelings for her patron, she could have easily abandoned her impoverished life and left with him. But why didn’t she? Because her heart belonged to her husband, not her patron. Her interactions with the patron were merely out of gratitude for past kindnesses. As a woman yourself, how can you not understand such matters of the heart?”
Zhu Yan’s words hit Madam Tang like a thunderbolt, leaving her stunned.
“No, this can’t be true,” Madam Tang muttered after a long pause, shaking her head as if unable to accept Zhu Yan’s argument.
“But it is,” Zhu Yan replied, her tone softening. “When we spoke with Xu Huansheng, I saw the longing in his eyes. A man cannot show such yearning for a woman who didn’t love him and had hurt him deeply.”
“No, no…” Madam Tang seemed to waver, shaking her head repeatedly.
Just as everyone thought Ru Yan’s case had concluded, Zhu Yan suddenly spoke up, “You might think Ru Yan’s case ends here, but it doesn’t. When we investigated Xu Huansheng’s home, we discovered another person…”
Zhu Yan’s words made Madam Tang tremble, looking at her in disbelief.
“At first, I thought Madam Tang’s crimes were based on physical similarities among the victims. But later, I realized it might stem from a deep-seated obsession with a certain identity.”
“Nonsense! What identity? I simply despised them!” Madam Tang’s eyes betrayed her unease, as if Zhu Yan had touched a raw nerve.
“Is that so?” Zhu Yan replied coldly. “Then what about Xu Huansheng’s neighbor?”
Madam Tang deflated like a punctured balloon, slumping to the ground with a vacant stare and jumbled speech. “What neighbor? I don’t know anything about that.”
“You don’t?” Zhu Yan challenged. “How interesting. That neighbor bore a striking resemblance to you. In the days before Ru Yan’s disappearance, she reported hearing strange noises at night and often spoke of seeing someone by her bedside. How could she have such odd reactions if you hadn’t been observing her?”
“What are you saying? I don’t know anything. You’re just making things up!” Madam Tang’s eyes darted about, filled with panic.
“Am I now?” Zhu Yan didn’t bother to argue further. “If Madam Tang didn’t harbor an obsession with the identity of courtesans, perhaps that neighbor would have fallen victim as well.”
Madam Tang turned pale, unable to utter a word.
Meanwhile, the Empress and the assembled officials listened with heavy hearts.
After a long silence that filled the temple hall with tension, Zhu Yan continued, “Next, let’s discuss Huang Yun, perhaps the most undeserving victim. A poor scholar from Quanling Village, he taught at the local school in his spare time. He had an elderly mother, and his wife had passed away five years ago. Known for his honesty and kindness, he was a diligent student who never had conflicts at the village school. How could such a man be associated with courtesans?”
“Then why was he found dead alongside a courtesan?” someone among the officials asked.
Zhu Yan sighed, “That’s precisely why his death was so unjust. As I mentioned, he was honest and kind-hearted. Such people often have one weakness: compassion. He taught courtesans to read and write, which led to their acquaintance. But the murderer assumed the courtesan was seducing him, fearing he would be led astray. Thus, she killed him.”
“Hiss…” The audience drew in sharp breaths at Zhu Yan’s explanation.
The killer’s actions were utterly deranged, based entirely on unfounded assumptions and perceived realities.