Unglaublich

Kapitel 6

Then Ning Gong'an pointed to a man and said, "This is my brother-in-law, Wei Wende."

Chen Wenwei and Qian Botang couldn't help but chuckle when they saw the man. It turned out that Ning Gong'an's brother-in-law was remarkably handsome, with a face as white as jade and radiant with health. Standing next to Wei Ningshi, they were like withered bamboo beside a jade tree, or ink mixed with cinnabar—a seemingly mismatched pair. It was a mystery how these two had become husband and wife. Wei Ningshi's son, Wei Chengying, had returned from Daze Mountain and stood behind his parents. This young man looked nothing like his mother, but rather very much like his father. He wore a small, lined jacket made of jade, red, and camel hair satin, tied with a willow-green handkerchief; underneath were light red floral trousers, the legs loose; his hair was styled in a circle of small braids reaching his forehead, all gathered at the top of his head, tied into a thick braid that trailed behind his head; his face was as white as a full moon, and his eyes were as clear as autumn water.

After reading, Chen Wenwei and Qian Botang both secretly praised him, thinking, "What a handsome young man!" Following Ning Gong'an's pointing, they saw a woman in her thirties with a long face and fair complexion, Ning Mengshi, the widowed sister-in-law of the second branch of the family, holding a five-year-old boy, her son. A fifty-year-old woman and two slightly younger women were Ning Gong'an's wife and two concubines. There was also a ten-year-old boy and a fourteen- or fifteen-year-old girl, Ning Gong'an's second son and second daughter. Ning Gong'an's eldest son was doing business in Guangzhou, and his eldest daughter was married and living in Shaanxi, so they were not at home. The old patriarch of the Ning family had always doted on his youngest son, Ning Gongwei, so he hadn't told him about Ning Gongwei's murder, nor had he come to the main hall.

After listening to Ning Gong'an's explanation, Chen Wenwei nodded and said, "I just walked around the area again and found that the deceased Ning Gongwei's courtyard was quite far from the wall, and it was surrounded by other people's houses. After the thief entered the courtyard, he went straight to Ning Gongwei's courtyard, which means that this thief must have been to the Ning residence before. There are some hidden cabinets in Ning Gongwei's study, which are very cleverly designed and cannot be found by ordinary people. I also looked at the missing items list, and the stolen items were very valuable. It can be seen that this person knows Ning Gongwei very well, and it must be an inside job."

Qian Botang chimed in, "Governor Chen believes that one of you committed the crime! Because Governor Chen and I found two sets of footprints along the wall in the courtyard, but these two sets of footprints had steady steps, and the paths they came from and went from were not the same, so they were obviously forged! And the reason for forging the footprints must be to cover up the criminal! What reason could make this murderer receive sympathy and protection after killing your third brother? Although I don't know, this thief must undoubtedly be a relative of yours!"

Ning Gong'an retorted, "If it were someone we know who committed the crime, I would have nothing to say. But to conclude that it was someone from our household just from footprints is a bit far-fetched. Who can control how a thief walks? Just because the way they came and went is different, you can deduce that the murderer is among us; but if the thief walked in circles, how can you deduce who committed the crime?"

Qian Botang glanced at him and said, "I know you're not convinced. I just checked Ning Gongwei's room. Not only was the study burglarized, but the bedroom was also in a mess, with signs of struggle. If it were really a thief, they could have just gone into the study to steal. Why would they go into the bedroom and fight with the master?"

After saying this, Qian Botang raised his head. He thought his words would be shocking, hitting the nail on the head, intimidating everyone present, and allowing Chen Wenwei to find the murderer, thus completing his mission. However, the people in the Ning household, young and old, showed no surprise or words, listening quietly. This greatly disappointed Qian Botang. According to the Qing Dynasty's criminal law, protecting relatives was generally not a crime. Even if someone committed a serious crime, relatives who protected them could receive a lighter punishment, and torture was not allowed when extracting confessions. He involuntarily closed his fan and turned to look at Chen Wenwei.

Chen Wenwei stood up and paced back and forth in front of these people, his eyes flashing with a sharp light. He said in a deep voice, "I already know the murderer. If someone exposes him, or if he comes forward himself, I can promise to reduce his sentence by one degree!"

But these people remained silent. Some lowered their heads and remained quiet, some looked around as if it were none of their business, some were coaxing children, and some were even chuckling softly. Chen Wenwei suddenly walked up to Wei Chengying and said, "Aren't you going to talk?"

Wei Chengying was startled, her face turning red, and she stammered, "Tell me, tell me what?"

"Men, seize this criminal!"

The two constables agreed, grabbed Wei Chengying from the crowd, pushed her to the ground, and tied her with ropes. This time, the Ning family erupted into chaos. Some cried, some screamed, some cried out their innocence, and some cried out their grievances. Ning Gong'an's second daughter was paralyzed with fear. Her mother, the second concubine of the first wife, hurriedly called for servants. The child in Ning Mengshi's arms was wailing loudly with its mouth wide open. Ning Gong'an's first wife, holding a string of prayer beads, closed her eyes and kept chanting Amitabha.

Wei Chengying's father, Wei Wende, stepped forward and knelt down, saying, "Master, my son is gentle and kind, and has never argued with anyone. How could he possibly kill his uncle?"

Ning Gong'an also knelt down and said, "Your Excellency is wise. You have already said that Ning Gongwei died at the beginning of the fifth watch yesterday (3:00 AM), but Wei Chengying left home at 3:00 AM (12:30 AM). The nuns in the temple on Daze Mountain can all testify that after he arrived there at 1:00 AM (1:30 AM), he never came out again until this morning when he received the news of the death from the servants sent out by my family. He simply did not have the time to commit the crime."

"Ning Gongwei died between the third and fourth watches of the night, not at the beginning of the fifth watch!" Chen Wenwei's words stunned everyone. Qian Botang finally witnessed the shocking scene.

The Great Qing Divine Judgment Twenty-Eight

Chen Wenwei slowly said, "After a person dies, the body gradually stiffens and loses body temperature. If it is indoors in summer, and the time is no more than twelve hours, the time of death can be determined relatively accurately by the softness of the body and by the areas where body temperature is not easily lost, such as the armpits and anus. I deduced it this way and concluded that Ning Gongwei died at the beginning of the fifth watch. But I soon discovered that the livor mortis told me a different time."

After death, blood flow ceases, and the blood begins to move towards the lower parts of the body, eventually accumulating under the skin and appearing as purplish spots, known as livor mortis. At room temperature, livor mortis begins to form as early as 15 minutes after death, becoming noticeable within half an hour to an hour. Over the next twelve to eighteen hours, the livor mortis continuously changes until it is fully formed and no longer changes. During this time, moving or turning the body can create new livor mortis. Therefore, from the livor mortis, I determined that Gong Zhengwei died between the third and fourth watch of the night. Although this time is somewhat vague, livor mortis is not easily altered or faked, making it more reliable. The difference between the old and new livor mortis also indicates that the body was moved twice within half an hour of death. Why would someone move it? Simply to heat the body with fire, raising its temperature and keeping it soft. I noticed that the deceased's inner garment was dry, while the outer garment was damp, a result of being heated by fire and then wet during movement. This morning's torrential rain can be seen as a blessing from heaven, ensuring the deceased's right to die and the murderer's escape.

"However, Wei Chengying, there's still one thing I don't quite understand about this case. I just asked the servants, and when you stabbed Ning Gongwei with your knife between the third and fourth watches of the night, no one heard him scream. Given his strength, it would have been possible for him to escape from your blade, but why did he neither scream nor run away, but instead remain entangled with you? Is there some hidden reason behind this?"

Wei Chengying lowered her head and remained silent, only sobbing quietly. Large tears dripped onto the floor, soaking the area.

Ning Gong'an sighed and said, "Since you've already guessed the murderer, I'll tell you the truth. Last night, around 11 PM, Wei Chengying mentioned he'd acquired a jade treasure, a Xiuyan jade lotus leaf and double turtle pendant. I looked at it and said it didn't seem like real jade. Wei Chengying disagreed and had several people present examine it, but most said it was fake. Still not satisfied, Wei Chengying said he wanted his third uncle to check if it was real Xiuyan jade, so he went to Ning Gongwei's courtyard. Around 1 or 2 AM (11:30 PM to midnight), Wei Chengying ran back, saying he had killed Ning Gongwei. We were all terrified and pressed him for an explanation. He said Ning Gongwei had a drunken fit, spouting flirtatious words while pinning him to the bed, trying to rape him. In the struggle, he grabbed a short sword from the wall and stabbed Ning Gongwei in the chest."

"Alas, Ning Gongwei has always had a penchant for homosexuality, and the depth of this penchant is beyond the imagination of most people. We've tried to persuade him, but he says that liking homosexuality doesn't violate moral principles or involve taking other men's wives, and that it's a virtuous thing. Unexpectedly, last night, in his drunken stupor, he did something foolish. To prevent this family scandal from spreading and to preserve the Wei family's single-line lineage for three generations, we staged the scene, kept the body warm, and postponed Ning Gongwei's time of death. We also had Wei Chengying leave the Ning residence first to avoid the time of the crime we staged..."

The Great Qing Divine Judgment Twenty-Nine

At 9:30 AM, Wei Chengying, chained and escorted by several constables, walked out of the Ning Mansion's gate. The Ning family followed silently. Chen Wenwei, too, seemed deeply troubled. He knew that according to the Qing Dynasty law, a junior killing an elder, or a servant killing their master, was punishable by slow slicing. Even if the killing was for resisting adultery, because she wasn't a woman, the sentence would only be reduced by one degree, resulting in immediate execution. Even if he wanted to help and change the verdict to "Wei Chengying defended herself with a knife, and Gong Chengwei did not avoid the knife and was wounded to death," Wei Chengying would only be sentenced to hanging, still unable to escape death. Although the case was solved in less than two hours, the thought of it made Chen Wenwei feel extremely uneasy.

Chen Wenwei's sedan chair had only taken a dozen steps when a heart-wrenching roar came from behind, "My son is innocent—"

Chen Wenwei's heart skipped a beat. He quickly ordered the sedan chair to stop and lifted the curtain to look back. He saw Wei Chengying's mother, that ugly woman, disheveled and stumbling, crying as she rushed out of the Ning Mansion's gate. She carried a knife in her left hand and waved something multicolored in her right. Chen Wenwei then remembered that his mother hadn't been among the crowd that had seen Wei Chengying off at the Ning Mansion.

"Be careful, sir!" several constables said as they drew their swords.

"Don't hurt her!" Chen Wenwei hurriedly stopped him, got out of the sedan chair, and walked towards Wei Ningshi.

Lady Wei, knife in hand, rushed to Chen Wenwei, but then knelt down with a thud, crying, "Master, my son is innocent! He took the blame for me. It was I who killed my third brother, Ning Gongwei!"

Qian Botang also got out of his sedan chair and walked over. Upon hearing Wei Ningshi's words, he exclaimed in surprise. Chen Wenwei asked, "Nonsense! Your son committed murder, how can you absolve him? I know you have a mother's heart to protect her son, but the laws of the Qing Dynasty do not tolerate sentimentality."

“My lord, I did indeed kill my third brother. My son is very filial, so he took the blame for his mother! Although I agreed against my will, how could I bear to see my own son arrested? If you don’t believe me, please look at this murder weapon and the blood-stained clothes!”

Chen Wenwei took the short sword and the blood-stained clothes. The short sword was three feet long, made of fine steel, and although it was sharpened, it wasn't very sharp. The blade and hilt were stained with dried blood. There was a very clear bloody fingerprint on the hilt; the fingerprint was thick, with wide knuckles, perfectly matching Wei Ningshi's fingers, while Wei Chengying's fingers were long and slender. There were three pieces of blood-stained clothing: a thin blue silk overcoat, a red jacket with wide sleeves and a round collar, and a gold-embroidered trailing skirt. All of them belonged to Wei Ningshi. The overcoat had many drops of blood splattered on the front, and some on the hem of the red jacket and the gold-embroidered trailing skirt.

Chen Wenwei asked Wei Ningshi, "Why did you kill Ninggong Wei?"

"Last night, around midnight, my son returned from his third uncle's courtyard and called me out. He said he had been violated by Ning Gongwei and was crying uncontrollably, wanting to die. Seeing my only son defiled by this beast, I was filled with rage and went to settle the score. When I got to his room, I found him just having fallen asleep. I grabbed him, pulled him up, and started hitting him. Ning Gongwei tried to fight back, but I grabbed a short sword from the wall and stabbed him in the chest, ending his life. Only after killing him did I feel fear and return home." I then told my brother and the others. My son said that the whole thing started because he was looking at the jade, and if I were imprisoned, he would be an unfilial son and have no face to live in this world. He was willing to take the blame for his mother, which would also fulfill his filial duty. At first, I didn't agree, but everyone else persuaded me in the same way, and my son even said that if he couldn't take the blame, he would hang himself. I had no choice but to agree. Later, someone came up with an idea, saying that we could fake a murder-theft case so that we wouldn't need to find someone to take the blame. That's why the body was moved and false evidence was fabricated later.

At this moment, Qian Botang had already come over. He looked at the blood-stained clothes and the murder weapon, and asked Chen Wenwei, "Can these things also be forged?"

"The blood is human blood, and it was sprayed directly onto the surface. Only by killing another person could it be faked. What do you think, Brother Qian?"

Brother Qian tapped the large red sandalwood fan with gold lettering, held in his right hand, twice against his left hand and said, "It seems this woman is the real culprit?"

Chen Wenwei pondered for a moment and said, "Let's not jump to conclusions. Let's go back to the residence of the Ning Palace Guard who was murdered and take another look."

The Great Qing Divine Judgment Thirty

After breaking the seal on the Ning Palace Guard courtyard, Chen Wenwei and Qian Botang entered for the second time. The June morning sun was intense, shining directly down and making everything in the courtyard gleam, even the shadows of the trees and the corners of the walls, making it impossible to associate this place with a haunted house.

Chen Wenwei entered the main room of Zhiyue Hall in Ninggongwei and examined it carefully again. After finishing, he remained silent for a long time. Qian Botang, growing impatient, followed him and asked, "Did you see anything?"

Chen Wenwei said, "I've seen quite a few things, but I'm even more clueless now."

"What?"

"If what Wei Ningshi said is true, and Wei Chengying lost her virginity here, then there should be pubic hair and semen stains on the bed. But the bed is very clean, with nothing on it, which is suspicious; moreover, since she was seeking revenge for her son, she wouldn't have stopped with just one strike. Ning Gongwei should have multiple knife wounds, but Ning Gongwei only has one knife wound to the heart, which shows that she lied. Also, when I checked the Ning residence this morning, I asked the servants if Wei Ningshi had learned martial arts. The servants replied that because she was naturally strong, she liked to practice with weapons when she was young, and had even studied martial arts with a female Taoist nun for a year. It is also illogical that someone like her could fight Ning Gongwei, who is not very strong and has no martial arts skills, all the way from the bedroom to the main hall."

"So, Lady Wei Ning was merely taking the blame for her son, and Wei Chengying is the real culprit?"

"But how do you explain the blood-stained clothes and the blood-stained sword? If Wei Chengying killed the person, there should be Wei Chengying's handprint on the hilt of the sword. But it is clear that the bloody handprint on the hilt belongs to his mother, Wei Ning; the blood-stained clothes also belong to Wei Ning."

Qian Botang vigorously shook the large fan in his hand, saying, "Indeed interesting, indeed interesting!"

Chen Wenwei shook his head and said, "It's interesting, but unfortunately it's going to put us in a difficult position!"

"Have you two encountered a difficult case?" As he spoke, a man walked in. The two men turned around and saw that it was Zhang Wentao.

Chen Wenwei and Qian Botang hurriedly went over to pay their respects. Qian Botang smiled and said, "Teacher, you've arrived! This case is much easier to solve!"

Zhang asked Tao, "I heard this is a murder case, so I came to take a look. I thought you two had already solved it, but when I came in, I heard Brother Chen say 'difficult.' Since it's a difficult case, I'm not going to shirk my responsibility and take credit for your work."

Chen Wenwei said, "Lord Zhang, I think this case would be difficult to solve without you!" He then recounted how the case was solved that day. Zhang Wentao listened, took the blood-stained clothes and sword, examined them for a while, and said, "I'll also take a look at the scene. You wait here. I'll come out in a quarter of an hour and give you an explanation."

After saying this, Zhang Wentao went into the main room, but after about fifteen minutes, he still hadn't come out. Qian Botang asked suspiciously, "Just now, my teacher seemed very confident, as if he would soon be able to solve the mystery, so why didn't he come out as promised?"

Chen Wenwei said, "No rush, let's wait and see."

The two waited for almost half an hour before Zhang Wentao came out of the house. He said to them, "I'm ashamed, I'm ashamed. This case has also stumped me."

Qian Bowen asked, "Teacher, what do you mean? Didn't you say that the answer would be clear in a quarter of an hour?"

Zhang asked Tao, “I just saw this blood-stained garment. Most of the bloodstains on it are in the shape of ink droplets, which is the shape of blood splattering when a knife is pulled out of a wound some time after someone has died. If the knife was pulled out immediately after the stab, the blood would spray out like fireworks, forming gnarled branches on the clothes, which is definitely not like this. Therefore, I judge that her son, Wei Chengying, must have killed Ning Gongwei first, and then Wei Ningshi pulled out the knife, which is why there is talk of her taking the blame for her son. But after I went into the room, I found that the short sword was hanging far from the bed, which could not have given Wei Chengying the opportunity to draw the knife to defend himself. Ning Gongwei was also found lying outside the bedroom, and there were signs of a fierce struggle where he fell. Only when Ning Gongwei was being chased could this situation have occurred. I was careless just now. Now it seems that someone murdered Ning Gongwei and then found a way to make the Wei family mother and son willingly take the blame for him.”

Qian Botang asked, "Who is this person?"

"I really can't guess, but it must be someone from the Ning or Wei family who could make this mother and child make such a huge sacrifice!"

“Wei Ningshi and Wei Chengying must know!” Chen Wenwei said.

"But they definitely won't say! They're even willing to take the blame, why would they easily reveal the murderer?"

After Zhang Wentao finished speaking, the three of them fell silent.

Who is this murderer who is so close yet so untouchable? How can we uncover his true identity?

The three of them pondered in silence for a long time before Qian Botang suddenly said, "I have an idea."

Chen Wenwei also laughed and said, "I've thought of one too, but I don't know if it's the same as yours."

Zhang Wentao smiled and said, "Why don't you tell me? Qian Botang, you go first."

“Since Lord Zhang has determined that it was the Ning or Wei family who did it, I will investigate who else, besides Wei Ningshi and Wei Chengying, left alone between the third and fourth watches of the night, roughly during the time of Ning Gongwei’s death. Only the person who left alone would have had the opportunity to commit the crime.”

"Brother Chen, what about you?"

"Since the murderer is determined to kill Ning Gongwei, this person must have a deep-seated grudge against him. I'll go and ask around in the Ning household; who could possibly harbor such hatred towards Ning Gongwei? Only someone like that would have a motive!"

Zhang Wentao laughed and said, "What you two say is correct. Go ahead and investigate! I just arrived here and haven't had time to examine the body at the mortuary yet. I'm afraid that after the examination, we might find new clues! Let's have a competition and see who can find the real culprit in the end!"

The Great Qing Divine Judgment Thirty-One

Around noon, Zhang Wentao and his entourage had lunch at the Ning residence. Zhang Wentao, Chen Wenwei, and Qian Botang sat at one table in the main room of the side courtyard. The twelve constables, clerks, and sedan chair bearers they brought with them sat at two tables in the east wing of the side courtyard. Ning Gong'an wanted to join them, but Zhang Wentao politely declined.

The meal at the Ning residence was quite lavish, featuring a dish of braised duck with shiitake mushrooms, a dish of pickled mandarin fish, a dish of sizzling chicken, and a dish of braised pork—a variety of meats including chicken, duck, and fish. Four vegetarian dishes were also served: stir-fried fermented bean curd, three-shredded bird's nest soup, eight-treasure orange peel soup, and stir-fried squid. Three seafood dishes were also served: clear-broth crab meat lion's head meatballs, eight-treasure sea cucumber, and braised shark fin. Upon seeing so many dishes, Zhang Wentao hurriedly said, "That's enough, that's enough! How can we possibly eat all this?"

The servant serving the dishes smiled and said, "Our master always eats like this. It's called 'look, smell, and taste.' The food is secondary; it's all about the presentation. You three are distinguished guests, so how could we dare to be negligent?"

Zhang Wentao then realized that the Ning family master's meals were so extravagant. Without saying anything more, he only ate a few bites before having the food taken to the yamen runners in the side room. The three of them discussed the case for a while longer, and after finishing their meal, they went their separate ways to solve the case.

Qian Botang first ordered the yamen runners to bring in the servants who had served the Ning family the previous night while they played mahjong, and questioned them one by one.

The first person Zhang asked was Wang, the nanny who served the first wife. Wang was about thirty-eight or thirty-nine years old, with thin lips and fine teeth, and looked like a very talkative person. As soon as Zhang asked Tao, "Were you there the whole time we were playing mahjong last night?" Wang immediately started talking non-stop.

"Reporting to Master, I was serving you all night. The eldest mistress was in high spirits playing mahjong, so I had to stay by her side, serving tea and water, not daring to leave for a moment. Around midnight, the game started and continued until the early hours of the morning. They were playing a game of 'two-four sparrows' with a base of five taels of silver. The eldest master and eldest mistress were paired together, as were the aunt and son-in-law. They sat on the east and west sides, while the second mistress and third master sat on the north and south sides. Later, the third master left, and the cousin took his place. The young masters and ladies of the eldest branch would occasionally play a few rounds for the cousin. The aunt lost more in the first four rounds, while the second mistress won some. In the last four rounds, the aunt won a hand of 'wan zi yi se' (a suit of ten thousand and one suit) worth twenty-eight taels of silver. After more than ten rounds, when the accounts were tallied, the aunt had won eight taels and six mace of silver, the eldest master and eldest mistress lost four taels of silver, the second mistress lost nine mace of silver, and the cousin on the north side, along with the second young master and second young lady of the eldest branch, jointly lost four taels and nine mace of silver..."

Seeing that she was about to continue, Qian Botang, fearing that she would reveal the mahjong tiles and winning strategies of the night, hurriedly interrupted her, saying, "Did you see anyone leave the main room during the night? And there were no maids, servants, or other servants with you."

"The eldest master was taking snuff, and because he was afraid someone would give him the wrong kind, he went back to his room to get his snuff bottle once! The eldest mistress was losing badly and didn't have any money, so she also went back to her room to get some silver! The second mistress had to put the second son to bed and went back to her room once, without anyone following her! The son-in-law had to relieve himself once, without anyone with him! The cousin's son went to see the third master once because he wanted the third master to appraise jade. Later, when the incident happened, the aunt also went to see it, but she didn't let us servants follow!..."

Upon hearing this, Qian Botang was greatly disappointed to learn that all the potentially suspicious individuals at the location had gone out alone between midnight and 4 AM. Before Wang could finish speaking, he waved his hand and said, "You may leave. Call the next person in!"

Qian Botang questioned all the servants who had been present the previous night, and their accounts were largely the same. After finishing his questioning, Qian Botang was drenched in sweat, whether from anxiety or the heat, he didn't know. He kept fanning himself with a large mahogany fan and sat down to drink tea in silence. He had only taken two sips when the curtain was lifted and Chen Wenwei walked in. Upon seeing him, Qian Botang hurriedly stood up and asked, "Brother Chen, how are things on your end?"

Chen Wenwei waved his hand and said, "I also got nothing."

The Great Qing Divine Judgment Thirty-Two

Chen Wenwei sat down, picked up the iced tea on the table and drank it all in one gulp, then said, "Speaking of people who have a grudge against Ning Gongwei, there are indeed two in the Ning family. One is Ning Mengshi, the second daughter-in-law of the Ning family, and the other is Ning Fu, the head steward of the Ning family."

Qian Botang asked doubtfully, "How could Ning Mengshi have a grudge against her brother-in-law, Ning Gongwei?"

"After the death of the second son of the Ning family, Ning Mengshi inherited a large fortune. Because the second son was skilled in business, the amount was truly considerable. The third son, Ning Gongwei, was envious and persuaded Ning Mengshi to entrust her money to him for lending. He reasoned that this would prevent her from squandering her wealth, as she still had a son to support and would inevitably incur future expenses. Ning Mengshi, unable to resist his eloquent words, meticulously recorded all her assets in a detailed account, allowing Ning Gongwei to use the funds for business. Over time, Ning Gongwei embezzled all of Ning Mengshi's cash, and then persuaded her to mortgage several shops. Fortunately, she..." A sensible member of her family reminded her that with so much silver being spent without ever seeing where it went, it might be unsafe, and they suggested sending a trusted confidant to investigate. As it turned out, Meng Ningshi asked one of her brothers to inquire. There was no business as Ning Gongwei had claimed; he had pocketed it all! When Ning Mengshi went to confront Ning Gongwei, she discovered he had a trick up his sleeve: he had never issued receipts for the money withdrawn from her accounts, only using her personal seal. Ning Mengshi was left speechless with bitterness. Half of her fortune had simply gone to Ning Gongwei! Naturally, she hated him to the core!

"Does that mean everyone in the Ning family is on Ning Gongwei's side? After all, Ning Mengshi also has a son, who is also a descendant of the Ning family!"

"Old Master Ning is old and senile, and has long since stopped caring about affairs. Besides, he dotes on this youngest son the most, and no one dares to report this matter to him, lest they needlessly cause him worry! Ning Gong'an of the eldest branch of the Ning family initially tried to persuade Ning Gongwei twice, but later, for some reason, he just let it go! Ning's daughter, Wei Ningshi, also couldn't stand it and argued with Ning Gongwei several times. But Ning Gongwei bribed his son-in-law, Wei Wende. Later, Wei Ningshi stopped caring about the matter."