In the past hundred years, there has been no other woman in the martial arts world who has achieved such renown besides Miss Yu.
Having such a daughter, Madam Yu felt it was truly a blessing from heaven. The only drawback was that the marriage was arranged too early, which worried her, fearing that her exceptionally talented daughter would marry an ordinary man. Unexpectedly, Lu Shuang won the Rising Star title at last year's Sword Trial Tournament and was immediately hailed as a representative figure of the younger generation in Baili City, with a meteoric rise to prominence. This finally put her mind at ease, and she secretly rejoiced that her husband had made a wise choice and had not entrusted his daughter to the wrong person.
However, just as she made up her mind to happily marry off her daughter, devastating news arrived—Lu Shuang had died inexplicably.
That was bad enough, but the worst part was that her husband was always a man of his word and a bit old-fashioned. After three days of consideration, he actually decided to let his daughter keep her promise and marry into the Lu family as a ghost bride. However, the usually filial and obedient daughter changed her ways this time. Not only did she refuse to comply, but she also said that she had someone else in love and was already pregnant with that person's child!
A single sentence stirred up a huge storm. Yu Yin Huaisu, who governed his family with the Three Cardinal Guides and Five Constant Virtues, could not tolerate such a disgraceful act that would ruin the family's reputation. In a fit of rage, he used the family law and gave Yumi a good beating, forcing her to reveal the name of the adulterer. Although Yumi was beaten black and blue, she remained silent and eventually fainted.
Yu Yinhuai was still furious. He locked Yumi in Hanyu Tower and said that he would tie her up and take her to the ancestral hall to apologize to the ancestors after the matter was investigated. Then he scolded Madam Yu for not disciplining her daughter properly. At this time, someone from the Xiao family came and invited him away. Madam Yu took the opportunity to go up to Hanyu Tower and planned to comfort her daughter.
"Sigh..." Madam Yu sighed softly, "When will a mother's worries for her children ever end?" Lost in thought as she walked, she arrived at her daughter's door. Gently pushing open the door, she softly called her daughter's nickname, "Mimi, your father just went out. Is there anything you need, tell your mother..."
Her voice suddenly stopped, because there was no one in the room, not a single person.
A letter lay flat on the carved dressing table. Madam Yu rushed over. Although her intuition had told her something terrible was about to happen, after reading her daughter's note, she couldn't help but collapse to the ground. The letter fluttered from her hand, then was swept away by the wind and buried under the table, most of it hidden in shadow. Only the corner still visible showed the writing faintly discernible.
"...It was because he was already carrying her child in my womb, and no matter how much I couldn't bear it, there was nothing I could do. I had already gone with him..."
Madam Yu clenched her fists and burst into tears.
The sun quickly set.
Dusk fell, shrouding everything like a black veil.
"Young Master, Madam Yu requests an audience."
"Madam Yu?" Xiao Mo glanced at Yu Yinhuai, who had suddenly stood up, and smiled. "Doctor Yu has only been away from home for a short while, and Madam has already come looking for you. Has something happened at home?"
Yu Yinhuai stammered, "Please forgive my rudeness, young master. I'll go out and see what's going on."
“Hey…” Xiao Mo stopped him and said, “Since you’re here, please come in and we can talk.”
Before he could finish speaking, staggering footsteps sounded outside the hall. Madam Yu, her face streaked with tears, entered the room and rushed to Xiao Mo's side. Without saying a word, she knelt down on both knees with a thud.
Xiao Mo raised an eyebrow and reached out to help her up, saying, "Madam, please rise. What is the matter..."
"Young Master!" Madam Yu interrupted him, handing over the letter with both hands, her words dripping with tears, "My daughter has been deceived by a treacherous villain and has run away from home. Her whereabouts are unknown, and her fate is uncertain. I beg you, Young Master, to uphold justice for my Yu family!"
"What?!"
In an instant, everyone in the hall gasped in surprise. Xiao Nuo and Feng Chenxi exchanged bewildered glances, their hearts sinking: Yumi had run away, so what about Xiao Jian…?
Yu Yinhuai rushed forward, grabbed Madam Yu's wrist, and shouted, "What did you say?"
"What did I say? I said our daughter, she..." Madam Yu forcefully pushed him away and cried out, "She's gone!"
"Gone?" Yu Yinhuai murmured, repeating, "Gone..."
Xiao Mo took the letter and said in a deep voice, "Everyone, don't panic. Let's see what Miss Yu has to say first."
He dismissed the servants who were not involved and began to read Yumi's letter from the beginning. When he read the sentence "because she was already carrying his child," Yu Yinhuai's old face turned red, while Xiao Nuo almost jumped up. If Feng Chenxi hadn't pulled him back, he would have cried out.
He turned to look at Feng Chenxi, hesitated for a moment, but finally couldn't hold back and whispered in her ear, "It's all over now, my second brother is probably gone too!"
Feng Chenxi sighed softly and said, "Let's wait until your older brother finishes reading the letter before we talk about it."
"...He has already gone far away with him. Forgive me for being unfilial, and do not worry about him. I leave you with rice." After reading the letter, Xiao Mo looked up and glanced at everyone, finally fixing his gaze on Madam Yu's face. He slowly said, "I have read the letter, but I wonder how Madam wishes me to uphold justice for your family?"
Madam Yu said with tears in her eyes, "Young Master, the Sword Testing Tournament is over. Now it is not easy to enter or leave the city. As long as you order a thorough investigation, we will surely find out the whereabouts of that traitor."
"A thorough investigation?" A vague smile suddenly appeared on Xiao Mo's face. "In that case, your daughter's premarital pregnancy and elopement will no longer be able to be concealed."
Madam Yu said sadly, "When I came to find the eldest young master, I was already determined to do whatever it takes. I just want to find my daughter, and also..." Her voice suddenly turned into a gritted teeth as she said fiercely, "I want to see who that treacherous villain who seduced my daughter and ruined her chastity is!"
Yu Yinhuai, who had been stunned, finally came to his senses and said in a hoarse voice, "Foolish! You are truly foolish! How can the century-old reputation of my Yu family be ruined by this unfilial son? Stop talking and come back with me at once! You came to see the eldest young master without consulting me, I will settle this score with you later! Eldest young master..." He cupped his hands towards Xiao Mo, "This is a matter of my Yu family, but my wife has troubled the eldest young master with it, please forgive her. As for my daughter's note, please take it, and the eldest young master can pretend that he has never seen or heard of it!"
Xiao Mo smiled, folded the letter several times, but instead of returning it to Yu Yinhuai, he put it in his own pocket.
Yu Yinhuai said in a daze, "Young Master, you..."
Xiao Mo stretched out his hand and pointed to the chair where Yu Yinhuai had been sitting, saying, "Doctor Yu, please sit down for a while. This matter is probably not just your family's business."
Yu Yinhuai stood motionless, and Xiao Mo did not retract his hand, pointing firmly. After a while, Yu Yinhuai stepped back first and slowly sat back in his chair.
Xiao Mo turned to Madam Yu, who was still weeping, and asked, "According to Madam's deduction, around what time did your daughter leave?"
Around three-quarters past the hour of You (5-7 PM).
How can we determine this?
“Because at 5:15 pm, he…” Madam Yu looked at Yu Yinhuai and said, “He was still at home. Not long after Mimi was knocked unconscious by him and sent to her room, Young Master Da sent someone to invite him. After he left, I immediately went up to check on Mimi, but she was already gone.”
Xiao Mo crossed his arms in front of his chest and tapped them repeatedly, saying, "In that case, it's quite a coincidence—someone in our household also went missing around that time."
Before Yu Yinhuai and his wife could react, Xiao Nuo was already trembling and stood up abruptly, asking, "Big brother, is second brother really gone?"
"Second Young Master?" Yu Yinhuai and his wife exchanged a glance and said in unison, "The Second Young Master has left too?"
Xiao Mo did not answer, but looked directly at Xiao Nuo. Suddenly, his face darkened, and he slowly said, "Third brother, what do you know?"
“I…” Xiao Nuo avoided his gaze, stammering and unwilling to answer.
"What time is it now, and you still won't tell me!" Xiao Mo glared at him, then softened her voice again, "You can't help your second brother like this, you know? Come on, tell your eldest brother what you know."
Xiao Nuo gritted her teeth and whispered, "One day, my sister and I went to find my second brother, but we heard a woman washing her face inside the house..."
Xiao Mo pressed further, "And then?"
"Then, when Sister Youli brought lunch to Second Brother, I heard a woman's voice talking inside the house..."
Can you tell who it is?
“I…” Xiao Nuo hesitated for a moment, glancing at Yu Yinhuai and his wife, “I didn’t think of it at the time, but now that I think about it, it should be… Sister Yumi.”
Yu Yinhuai suddenly stood up, staring intently at Xiao Nuo. After a long while, he said in a trembling voice, "Third Young Master, this matter is of great importance. If you are not absolutely certain, you...you cannot speak recklessly..."
“Doctor Yu,” Xiao Mo said with his usual protectiveness towards his brother, and immediately said with displeasure, “whether my third brother is talking nonsense or not, just look at this and you will know.”
He made a gesture, and a maid carried a tray to Yu Yinhuai. On the tray was a jadeite corn-shaped ornament.
Upon seeing it, Yu Yinhuai was utterly shocked: "This, this is..."
"This must be your daughter's personal ornament, right?" Xiao Mo picked up the ornament from the tray, squinted and examined it closely for a while, then suddenly exclaimed, "Oh!" "There are words engraved on it... Who says that idle feelings have been abandoned for a long time..." He read it aloud, then looked up at Yu Yinhuai with a half-smile, "I wonder for whom your daughter struggles and hesitates, unable to let go?"
Yu Yinhuai was stunned and speechless.
Feng Chenxi was secretly alarmed. She had always thought Xiao Mo was gentle and polite, sometimes even a bit mediocre, but she never expected him to have such a cunning and treacherous side. His question to Yu Yinhuai seemed normal at first glance, but upon closer examination, it contained many layers of special meaning.
First, he said, "I don't know who your daughter is doing this for," which shows that Yumi was not "deceived by a villain" as Madam Ruyu claimed, but rather acted voluntarily. Then, he said, "Struggling repeatedly, wanting to give up but unable to," these eight characters on the surface refer to the meaning of that poem, but considering the current situation, one can't help but think that Yumi knew her love was not accepted by the world, but after repeated consideration, she ultimately could not give up this relationship, and thus inscribed the poem to show her feelings and determination.
In this way, even if Xiao Jianzhen really was the man who eloped with Yumi, he would never be the villain who seduced her daughter and ruined her daughter's reputation, as Madam Yu said. Not only that, but he was very likely seduced by Yumi—at the very least, it was consensual.
Xiao Mo used a casual question to clear his brother of the charge of seducing a young woman; it was a brilliant move.
Looking at Yu Yinhuai and his wife, who had already suffered a series of blows, they were now being implied that their only daughter might have seduced the second young master of the Xiao family to elope. They found it hard to accept and were stunned on the spot, unable to speak for a long time.
Xiao Nuo looked at them with sympathy in his eyes. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Brother, let's find them first, no matter what."
“Of course!” Xiao Mo nodded. “Father personally instructed me that before the Lu Shuang case is fully investigated, my second brother must not leave the city. If we cannot find him, how can I explain it to Father?”
Xiao Nuo sighed and turned to look at Feng Chenxi. The two of them could see each other's thoughts in each other's eyes—with Xiao Jian gone, the various suspicions left about him would probably be even more difficult to clarify.
——————————————Aren't you tired of using dividing lines all the time?———————————
Wow, good job! Of course I remember. You asked so many questions back then in "The Wind and Smoke," leaving me and Zhuyu completely bewildered. But it also made us notice many details we hadn't noticed before. Thank you so much, please continue to ask questions.
My darling Chenchen is graduating soon? Go ahead and do your thing, this post won't disappear. Come back when you're done. No need to leave a comment if you don't have time... I've never objected to reading hastily posted content, but of course, comments and discussions are welcome. (The moderator is muttering behind my back, "You're the one who clearly sees the lack of replies and asks for more, yet you're still putting on airs... Ahhh, this... kick you away! I'm updating today, I'm the boss!")
Recently, I've noticed an increasing number of old friends appearing in the comments section of this post. Some are still using their old IDs, while many have changed their usernames. Thank you all for your attention and support; I'm very touched. After all, it's been almost a year since the end of "Fengyanyin," and JJ is a place where new people replace old ones. It's truly heartwarming that everyone is still supporting Yilu.
However, after the initial joy, I was filled with worry. There was a slight possibility that new readers wouldn't compare this work to *Feng Yan Yin*, but for veteran readers, it's simply impossible…
Alright, alright. Whether you're a new reader or an old friend, throw in your bricks, eggs, or shrimp! I'll use them to build a house and cook. Haha.
If you really don't like this article, I won't ask you to go elsewhere. After all, you've already done me a favor by coming in. But please, no personal attacks. In the middle of summer, please keep this nourishing content for your own use.
I'm really getting old. I've rambled on for so long. Okay, goodnight everyone.
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication
Lu Shuang is dead, but his fiancée is pregnant with Xiao Jian's child and elopes with him. Putting aside the whole story of the Cold-Covering Powder, this alone is enough to make one suspect that Xiao Jian killed his rival in order to steal his love. What a mess this is!
I overheard Xiao Mo instructing his subordinates to bring the two back, and he gently comforted Madam Yu. His demeanor had lost the sharpness and politeness he had displayed earlier, and it seemed he treated them like in-laws. I sighed inwardly and quietly left the main hall. Night had fallen outside, the streetlights were just coming on, and a faint full moon appeared in the half-blue, half-black sky.
Hearing the unsurprising footsteps behind me, I said, "Tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival."
Xiao Nuo walked to my side, looked up at the sky like I did, and said with a wry smile, "It seems that I won't be able to keep my promise to find the real culprit before the Mid-Autumn Festival."
"Find the real culprit?" I raised an eyebrow, my tone odd.
Xiao Nuo noticed and stared at me, saying, "You seem angry?"
"I really admire that real culprit now. He actually managed to find such a good scapegoat as your second brother. Cold medicine powder, Miss Yu... just how many secrets is he hiding? Whether he killed Lu Shuang or not is no longer important. Drug addiction and adultery, those two things alone are enough to ruin his reputation!"
Xiao Nuo's eyes flickered a few times, and she murmured, "Perhaps his goal is to ruin my second brother's reputation..."
I pursed my lips, stared at the darkening sky, and made up my mind: "No! I'm not resigned to this!"
Xiao Nuo laughed, raised her eyebrows, and said, "Then what are we waiting for?"
In the moonlight and lamplight, his eyes shone like stars, reflecting a familiar understanding—he knew what I meant! He knew what I was thinking!
A string in my heart skipped a beat unintentionally. To cover up that awkward feeling, I quickly turned around and walked towards the gate of the Xiao residence, then took a carriage to Baili Town.
My decision was actually quite simple—to not be distracted by the corn incident and to continue investigating the Hanfusan clue.
Because if Youli committed suicide, then the investigation would end here, as everyone suspected: Youli liked Xiao Jian, but not for him, so she bought the Cold Clothes Powder from Hei Hu in an attempt to control him, and committed suicide after her scheme was exposed. However, now it seems Youli didn't commit suicide, but was murdered. The person who killed her is the key to all the mysteries. Was Yumi also a pawn he set up, a honey trap used against Xiao Jian? If he used the Cold Clothes Powder first and then the honey trap, what was the purpose of such a meticulously planned scheme to frame Xiao Jian?
The most obvious point so far is that You Li is just an ordinary maid. How could she freely enter and leave Baili City to buy cold clothing powder from Black Tiger?
A dazzling array of things can be overwhelming. Often, things become complicated precisely because there are too many extraneous details. Therefore, to find the truth, we must start from the most basic things.
As soon as we arrived in Baili Town, I couldn't wait to jump off the carriage and go find Black Tiger, but Xiao Nuo grabbed my hand and said, "Wait."
"What?"
"I'm hungry, it's time for dinner. Let's grab something to eat first. I know a noodle stall here that makes really delicious noodles!" Without waiting for a reply, she pulled me into an alley. The alley was small, but it was brightly lit and bustling with activity. Sure enough, there was a noodle stall at the end of the alley, with a big "Zhang" character written on its greasy and worn-out signboard.
Xiao Nuo walked over and greeted him with a smile, "Uncle Zhang, it's been a long time!"
The noodle stall owner stood under the signboard, his face mostly hidden in the shadows and not clearly visible. Hearing Xiao Nuo's voice, he greeted her without looking up, "You're here again, mistress? Find a seat."
Immediately, a waiter led us to a seat by the wall, asking very solicitously, "Third Brother, what would you like to eat?"