Dou Niang’s cold gaze slowly swept across the crowd as she hissed, “Tell me, is this fair? Just because I’m a lowly maid, do I deserve such a fate while those who violated me go unpunished?”
The crowd remained silent.
Many thought to themselves: How naive Dou Niang was! A servant’s life was naturally cheap – how could it compare to that of their masters? Still, Dou Niang’s plight was indeed pitiable.
Numerous servants recalled their own experiences of injustice and mistreatment, inwardly sighing.
“One night, my husband beat me severely. I was unconscious for a long time before I woke up,” Dou Niang recounted, her eyes distant with memories. “He held me, crying, saying he didn’t want to beat me, but he couldn’t control himself. Just thinking about how the son he had raised for so many years was someone else’s made him wish he could die right then and there.”
“His mention of death reminded me. Since he didn’t want to live, and I wasn’t ready to die without avenging myself, I decided to grant his wish. I’d let him go first, and after I got my revenge, I’d join him. Then our family of three would be reunited.”
Dou Niang wiped the corner of her eye, her expression turning fierce. “So after he fell asleep, I strangled him with a hemp rope. Everyone in town knew we’d been devastated since losing our son. My husband’s parents were long gone, and he had no close relatives. I just made up an excuse that he died of grief over our son, and no one doubted it. After taking care of his funeral and observing the three-month mourning period, I sold our belongings and came to the capital. You know what happened after that, Your Honor.”
“Although I already know how you entered the Earl’s household, I’m curious to know why you were so certain you could get in smoothly?” the official asked.
Dou Niang smiled, “I set up my stall on the road the Madam of Earl Yongchang’s household had to take to Zhenbao Pavilion. When I was a maid there, I knew Madam would visit Zhenbao Pavilion regularly. She also loved sweets, and I figured a person’s tastes don’t change easily. In Nanhe, I made a living with my unparalleled sweet treats. How could I fail to catch her attention?”
“So, Madam taking the eldest miss to buy sweets and encountering the bully who overturned your stall wasn’t a coincidence?”
“Correct. The bully harassing a helpless woman like me was real, but I usually paid my dues in full. That day, knowing the time was right, I deliberately provoked him. As expected, when Madam saw my stall destroyed, she had her maid bring me over to talk and asked if I’d like to work as a cook in the Earl’s household,” Dou Niang’s eyes glinted brightly as she smiled, “Of course, I was willing.”
Zhen Shicheng sighed inwardly, stroking his beard. “Tell us about your plan to murder Madam.”
He marveled at her patience – coming to the capital alone to sell sweets for revenge, successfully waiting for Madam to take the bait. Indeed, men often underestimated women.
“After entering the outer kitchen, I became the pastry chef. It’s not easy to move from the outer kitchen to the inner quarters, let alone kill Madam. I could only wait patiently. Unexpectedly, heaven was on my side. Not long after, Madam ordered the steward to transfer me to the small kitchen in the main courtyard. With careful observation, I quickly learned the layout and the maids’ shift patterns.”
“So you made your move then?”
Dou Niang smiled, glancing at Earl Yongchang. “No, I hadn’t planned to act so soon. Although the thought of killing had been in my mind for a long time, the closer I got, the more I feared failure. What made me decide was accidentally learning that Earl Yongchang suffered from sleepwalking. Someone with sleepwalking wouldn’t know who killed their bedmate if they woke up to find them dead. This was my heaven-sent opportunity. How could I not seize it?”
Jiang Si, who had been listening intently to Dou Niang’s words, felt her mind go blank at this revelation. She involuntarily stepped back, instantly drenched in cold sweat.
A hand steadied her from behind.
Jiang Si turned, unexpectedly meeting a pair of cold eyes.
It was Xie Yinlou who had steadied her.
At that moment, Jiang Si forgot to pull away or thank him. Her pretty face was drained of color, her eyelashes trembling violently.
Xie Yinlou thought he must have seen wrong.
He had become vague on what Jiang Si was usually like, but today she had been so outstanding from the start, speaking confidently to the Prefect of Shuntian Prefecture. It seemed nothing could intimidate her, yet why did she now look so fragile?
Confused, Xie Yinlou’s tone carried a hint of concern.
Jiang Si finally came to her senses, stepping back to create distance, forcing a smile, “I’m fine.”
Of course, she wasn’t fine!
Upon hearing Dou Niang’s reason for acting, she finally understood why in her previous life, Madam Yongchang had been alive and well before Jiang Si’s death, but in this life, she was suddenly murdered.
In her previous life, Earl Yongchang’s sleepwalking wasn’t diagnosed now, but after the “sleeping pig” incident when a famous doctor was called. This meant that at this point in her previous life, Dou Niang hadn’t yet decided to act.
Sometimes, it’s just like this – a change in thought can completely alter the course of one’s life.
She didn’t know if Dou Niang had eventually acted in her previous life, or if she was discovered before she could. For whatever reason, Madam Yongchang had escaped that fate.
But in this life, her well-intentioned warning to Xie Qingyao meant to help her friend’s father avoid the “sleeping pig” embarrassment and prevent Xie Yinlou from losing his pending marriage arrangement, had inadvertently led to Madam Yongchang’s death.
Realizing this, Jiang Si could barely stand.
Did this mean Madam Yongchang died because of her few words?
Large beads of sweat rolled down the young woman’s smooth forehead, tracing her pale cheeks and disappearing at her colorless lips.
“Have you been affected by the heat?” Xie Yinlou asked softly.
Jiang Si didn’t dare meet Xie Yinlou’s eyes, awkwardly turning away, “It’s nothing.”
Xie Yinlou’s gaze darkened as he said flatly, “If you’re unwell, you should go rest.”
As he said this, he deliberately increased the distance between them.
Dou Niang had already reached the account of her crime: “I saw Chunfang put away the clothes and leave, while Madam went to the flower hall for a meal. I sneaked into Madam’s bedchamber and hid in the wardrobe, lighting incense to induce sleep. I waited until near dawn, then emerged from the wardrobe and stabbed Madam with a candlestick. Heh, Madam bled so much, but Earl Yongchang slept like a dead pig, oblivious to everything. I placed the candlestick in his hand, took off my outer garment to wrap it, and quietly left.”
Dou Niang looked at the wooden-faced Chaoyun, “My original plan was to frame Earl Yongchang, to let him experience the pain of killing his wife with his own hands. But as I walked into the courtyard, I suddenly heard faint crying. Following the sound, I saw Chaoyun burning paper offerings. That’s when I had the idea to bury the bloodstained clothes there. If Earl Yongchang admitted to killing his wife, that would be ideal. If something seemed amiss, at least there would be a scapegoat…”
The crowd gasped repeatedly.
This woman was truly terrifying.
“Regardless, being able to expose your shameful deeds from years ago in front of your children and so many people has already satisfied me, hehe—”
Earl Yongchang, his face extremely unpleasant, finally spoke, “Can you tell me exactly how I deceived you?”