Marquis Jin Nan nodded and stood up, while Nan Aoyu stood to the side with a mournful face.
Ji Wushang and the others stood aside, waiting for the Marquis of Jinnan to begin.
"What happened here!" Marquis Jinnan glared at everyone, then looked at Nan Aoyu, "Tell me!"
"Big brother, I... I don't know what happened either!" Nan Aoyu said, stretching out his hand in an innocent manner.
"Then why did you kill Lady Qi?" the Marquis of Jinnan said coldly. "Speak now!"
Nan Aoyu thought for a moment, recalling everything, before realizing that she clearly saw Ji Wushang fall and be stuffed into a sack. How could it have turned into Madam Qi? She was so angry at the time that she beat Madam Qi without even listening to her explanation… Thinking about it now, it must have been Ji Wushang's doing! She was originally plotting against Ji Wushang with Nan Jinxue and Zhao Yirou, so how did it turn out like this? No! It was this woman!
"Brother, this is what happened! Originally, the Crown Princess came to the accounting office to look at the newly completed account books and check them. After seeing her come to check, I went out to do other things. Unexpectedly, after quite some time, when I passed by the pavilion, I heard Madam Zhao and several concubines and young ladies say that the Crown Princess had disappeared!"
Just then, Zhu'er was helped out by several servants, saying that the Crown Princess was missing! We also heard that someone saw the Crown Princess at Yixiang Tower! So I guessed, could the Crown Princess have been kidnapped? Or did she leave the manor on her own? So I gave the order to go to Yixiang Tower immediately… Brother, you know what kind of place Yixiang Tower is!” Nan Aoyu sighed, “How could we know? When we got there, we saw… we saw… what a misfortune for our family!”
Everyone turned to look at Ji Wushang, who narrowed his eyes, slightly surprised. "I did leave the manor. After reviewing the accounts, I saw it was still early, so I took my two maids, Hongfei and Cuiwu, and went directly to Baima Temple to pray for the young master and the Marquis's manor. Then I listened to Abbot Huiyuan's sermon. If a maid hadn't reported that something had happened at the manor, I thought that since I was listening to the Buddhist scriptures, Hongfei and Cuiwu could testify to this, or Abbot Huiyuan could testify."
Ji Wushang continued seriously, "As for Zhu'er, I had her wait outside the accounting room, but she was nowhere to be seen after I finished looking at the account books. I thought she had gone to get some snacks for me, so I didn't take her and went directly to Baima Temple with Hongfei and Cuiwu."
“This servant can testify for the Crown Princess!” Hongfei and Cuiwu spoke at the same time, kneeling down as they said.
At this moment, Zhu'er came forward from outside with several servants and immediately knelt on the ground. "Miss, Zhu'er didn't go to get the snacks. Instead, she was knocked unconscious! She was thrown into a corner of the woodshed. When she woke up, she couldn't find you, so she went to the pavilion to tell her mistress and aunt!" As she spoke, Zhu'er looked at Ji Wushang and began to cry softly, "It's good that you're alright, Miss, it's good that you're alright..."
Those around them felt that this matter was too suspicious! Was someone trying to frame them? Or were Madam Qi and Nan Jinxue really having an incestuous relationship?
The Marquis of Jinnan snorted angrily, "Second brother, what do you think?"
“I think we should wait until the second young master wakes up and ask him, since he hasn’t woken up yet!” Aunt Jin said at this moment.
Zhao Yirou narrowed her fox-like eyes at Ji Wushang, "Father, I beg you to give my husband a chance, let him wake up and ask again. I'm afraid someone deliberately framed him!"
☆、222 What audacity!
Ji Wushang scoffed inwardly at Zhao Yirou's words. Did she really think Nan Jinxue could wake up? What a naive woman!
Ji Wushang said calmly, "What if my second brother doesn't wake up? Although the doctor has examined him, we don't know how he is now." As he spoke, he looked at Nan Aoyu. He had heard from the servants that Nan Aoyu had smashed Nan Jinxue's head with a teapot in front of everyone. That was really ruthless!
The Marquis of Jinnan looked at Nan Aoyu with anger on his face. This vicious fellow, was he thinking of killing his son? He actually smashed a teapot on Nan Jinxue's head! No matter how bad Nan Jinxue was, he was a rebellious son, and it was his father who should punish him. How dare he do such a vicious thing!
Besides, I know Nan Jinxue. Although he sometimes has a fondness for women, he would never be promiscuous. Moreover, Madam Qi is already over thirty years old, and her looks have long since faded. How could Nan Jinxue have even the slightest relationship with such a woman? In addition, I always teach him to abide by the rules! There must be something wrong here!
Now, Nan Jinxue probably can't stand in the capital! Incest with his aunt will be condemned by the world! He's his own son, he can't be ruined by these people! He must find a way to quell this storm!
At this moment, the Marquis of Jinnan was racking his brains, trying to figure out how to minimize the impact of this matter. He didn't want Nan Jinxue to be ruined by such a ridiculous incestuous incident. Besides, Lady Qi was already dead! At worst, he would let the dead person take the blame for this!
Ji Wushang stepped forward and said, "Father, I think someone has probably plotted against my second brother and Madam Qi! Or perhaps someone tried to steal a chicken but ended up losing the rice instead."
Upon hearing Ji Wushang's last words, Nan Aoyu immediately asked, "Princess Consort, what did you mean by your last words?"
“What I mean is actually very clear to Second Uncle,” Ji Wushang said instead.
These words immediately silenced Nan Aoyu.
"What do you mean?" Marquis Jinnan immediately looked at Ji Wushang, regardless of what Nan Aoyu had just said! He was only thinking about how to restore the reputation of the Marquis's mansion and Nan Jinxue's reputation. He absolutely could not let him die at the hands of a woman!
At this moment, the Marquis of Jinnan remembered something. If it weren't for Ji Wushang's foresight in sending Tie Feng with men to protect him, he would have surely died under the swords of those villains!
I'll have to ask her about this later. What exactly happened? Did she know beforehand that the Left Chancellor had already betrayed the court?
"Think about it, my second brother is usually of excellent character. He knows what's important and is capable. Otherwise, how could he serve His Highness? But today, something like this happened. I think someone must have drugged him, which is why he was successfully tricked!"
"Who exactly is that villain? Why did he plot against Jin Xue?" Marquis Jin Nan sighed slightly, then looked at Ji Wushang with great tension, as if trying to get some information from her.
“I don’t know either, but Father, I just looked into it. The servants said that my second brother and second aunt were very intimate at the time, and everyone saw it, but they didn’t stop. Isn’t that strange?” Ji Wushang said with great difficulty, his face embarrassed.
The Marquis of Jinnan blushed slightly, but it did sound a bit strange.
When Nan Aoyu heard Ji Wushang say such things, she recalled the situation at the time. Everyone was looking at the two of them, but Nan Jinxue was still standing there, as if she was being controlled. There was no other explanation except that she had been drugged!
So, I shouldn't have acted so impulsively and killed Qigesi! But it's true that she's been defiled, and even if I didn't kill her, she would still die! Such an unchaste and impure woman, who has served two men related by blood, absolutely deserves to die!
"That's right. I also felt something was off at the time. I thought someone must be plotting against my husband!" Zhao Yirou said, looking at Ji Wushang. "Sister-in-law, you've returned from the White Horse Temple, but it's truly remarkable that you were able to both pray and return in such a short time!" These words, seemingly an exclamation, subtly pointed the finger at Ji Wushang. Because everyone present who wasn't there could be the one plotting against Nan Jinxue and Madam Qi.
“It’s because the maid’s carriage was fast, otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to get back in time.” Ji Wushang nodded slightly. “Abbot Huiyuan promised that he would personally come to the mansion tomorrow to perform a ritual and bring some blessings to the mansion.”
"Oh, that's very good!" At this moment, the old lady Yun, who had been silent for a long time, spoke up, then looked at Ji Wushang and nodded approvingly.
“I know that Grandma also likes Buddhism, so she specially asked Abbot Huiyuan when she was praying for the young master and the Marquis’s mansion.”
"Good!" Old Madam Yun nodded repeatedly. After a few seconds, she looked sharply at Nan Aoyu and Marquis Jin Nan. "Since someone framed Jin Xue, we must find out the truth! The incident happened at Yixiang Tower. I don't need to tell you these things, do I?"
"Mother is right, I will immediately send someone to invite the manager here," said the Marquis of Jinnan, and then immediately ordered his servants to quickly invite the manager of Yixianglou.
Nan Aoyu was a little scared. The shopkeeper was one of her own people. She hoped he would say something to reassure her. Otherwise, she would be dead!
Inside the Yixiang Tower.
A man in black sat at the table and glanced disdainfully at the person kneeling on the ground. This person was being held by two other men in black and dared not raise his head or utter a word.
"Someone from the Marquis's residence will definitely take you in for questioning later. Do you know what to say?" The woman's cold voice rang out.
"I will make sure I explain things perfectly!" The shopkeeper had seen a bit of the world, but he didn't know what these people were up to. If it were Nan Aoyu or Nan Jinxue's people, they wouldn't be masked, but he couldn't tell what kind of people these were!
"Tell me the truth." The woman poured herself a cup of tea, then slowly took a sip. "Tell me once."
"Yes... At the time, I didn't know what was going on. I was watching the restaurant from the front yard and didn't notice what happened at the back door. Later, I heard from the servants that someone knocked out everyone in the back yard and then kidnapped Madam Qi into the side room. The second young master was also tricked, which is why this happened." The manager looked into the woman's eyes, trying to read her emotions, but he didn't expect that the woman's face was covered by gauze and she was dressed in all black, so he couldn't see any of her emotions under the veil.
"No, if you say that, your family and this restaurant will no longer belong to you! Because that's not the truth; you're trying to deceive me!" the woman said coldly, then stood up. "I'll tell you what the truth is!"
The shopkeeper was astonished after hearing this. "You, you... how do you know so much detail!" It was as if he had witnessed it all!
"Just say it like that. If you don't, you can wait and see how you die!" The woman said, glancing at the two men in black. One of them took out a small bottle from his pocket and made the shopkeeper smell it. The man immediately collapsed.
The woman immediately disappeared with two men in black. Reaching behind the screen, she bowed and said, "Third Prince, everything is ready."
"Very good." The man smiled slightly. Nan Xuzong, you should be grateful to me!
The shopkeeper woke up not long after, only to find himself in the corner tower of the corridor, as if he had slept for a long time and had never been to a dark place at all!
"Shopkeeper, someone from the Marquis's residence has arrived. They want you to come over." The servant, panting, led several guards from the Marquis's residence towards the shopkeeper. "Shopkeeper, why are you sleeping here?"
"I'm fine." The shopkeeper had a question in his mind, but he also knew in his heart that everything had been planned out, and he could only go along with it to avoid being harmed.
"Come with us, the Marquis requests your presence!" the guard said immediately.
The shopkeeper nodded, "Yes, yes, Brother Rong Tiewei, please wait a moment." As he spoke, the shopkeeper immediately turned to the waiter, "Go, go and ask Madam to make arrangements."
"Yes!" The waiter immediately nodded and ran off.
The shopkeeper watched him run away and sighed inwardly, wondering if the waiter had seen the meaning in his eyes.
The main hall of the Marquis's residence.
Everyone around was quietly waiting for the shopkeeper when they finally heard a servant outside announce that the shopkeeper had arrived.
Ji Wushang stared sharply at the newcomer. The shopkeeper lowered his head and stood in the hall.
"You are the manager of Yixianglou, right?" Marquis Jinnan stepped forward and asked.
"It is indeed I." As the saying goes, the common people cannot fight against the officials; one can never be too careful!
Marquis Jin Nan nodded. He hadn't managed Yixiang Tower for far too long! He didn't even recognize the manager anymore! It seemed he had delegated too much power to Nan Aoyu, causing him to replace all his own people!
"Tell me, what exactly happened?" Marquis Jinnan asked, his eyes fixed on the shopkeeper as if trying to poke a hole through him.
"Yes, yes, yes..." At this moment, everyone's eyes were on the shopkeeper, who was too nervous to speak.
Grandma Yun slammed her hand on the table! "What are you dawdling for! Is it that hard to say?"
"Please forgive me, Madam!" When the shopkeeper came in, he saw that everyone was standing except for this elegantly dressed old woman sitting there. He had heard that this matter had alarmed Madam Yun, who had lived in Yunxiang Pavilion for a long time, and it seemed that it was true!
Startled by Old Madam Yun's words, the shopkeeper turned pale with fright, knelt on the ground and kowtowed several times, then said, "It's like this, I've been working for Master Hou for a long time... Yesterday, I was managing the accounts in the accounting office when suddenly Master Hou sent someone to ask me to see him."
I was terrified, after all, I still have a family to support. He said if I didn't comply, he would kick me out of this capital city, so I agreed..."
"What did you promise?" Ji Wushang asked immediately.
The Marquis stared intently at the shopkeeper, then at Nan Aoyu. This brat really had guts! He'd done so much behind his back!
"I agree, I agree, I want to conspire together, to conspire against the Crown Princess..." the shopkeeper stammered.
"What did you say?" Ji Wushang asked in surprise, his bright eyes fixed on the shopkeeper. "What are you talking about? Conspiracy, conspiring against me?"
"You're spouting nonsense! Who do you think you are? You're making this up! You'd better watch your mouth! Watch what you say!" Nan Aoyu shouted at the shopkeeper, "I'm telling you, if you dare to say a single careless word, I'll kill you!"
"Yes, yes, that's how he threatened me! Please, Madam Yun, please, Lord Marquis, do justice!" With that, the shopkeeper knelt on the ground and kowtowed several times.
"Get up and speak," Old Madam Yun said coldly, glancing at Nan Aoyu. "Nan Aoyu, you have quite the nerve!"
"Mother, please don't listen to his one-sided story! He's framing me!" Nan Aoyu knelt on the ground and shouted loudly.
"We'll find out the truth soon enough! You don't need to intimidate others now! Stand aside!" Old Madam Yun snorted coldly.
Nan Aoyu glared at the man, her lips twitching as if issuing a warning.
Marquis Jinnan noticed this subtle action and immediately said coldly, "If you're hiding anything, I won't let you off! If you tell the whole truth, I'll let you continue as the manager of Yixianglou!"
"Yes, yes!" The shopkeeper nodded immediately, not daring to look at Nan Aoyu, because at this moment, he saw the maid behind Nan Aoyu. The maid's figure seemed to be the black-clad woman who had spoken to him in the darkness just now, but it also seemed not to be. This illusion was enough to remind the shopkeeper of the words she had taught him.
"That's the truth, just say it!" the shopkeeper said to himself.
The shopkeeper swallowed hard before looking at Ji Wushang and said, "Yes, it was a conspiracy with the Crown Princess..."
Ji Wushang looked at him, then glanced at Old Madam Yun, "Grandma..." But seeing the look in Old Madam Yun's eyes, he didn't say anything else.
"Actually, I don't know anything else. I just followed the Second Master's instructions and provided them with a side room. It was originally supposed to be for the Crown Princess, but how did it end up being given to Lady Qi instead?"
Ji Wushang narrowed his eyes and stepped forward. "Second Uncle, I have never offended you, so why are you plotting against me? Conspiring? Conspiring with whom?"
"I...I didn't!" Nan Aoyu tried to back away, but Marquis Jinnan said, "Second brother, how dare you!"
"I ask you, what evidence do you have to say that I ordered all of this? Produce the evidence!" Seeing that she couldn't withstand the questioning from Marquis Jin Nan and Ji Wushang, Nan Aoyu immediately asked the shopkeeper, "Without evidence, all of this is slander!"
"This, this, I, I..." The shopkeeper stammered, unsure of what to say.
"Evidence? It just so happens that I have some evidence here!" At this moment, a voice suddenly came from outside. "Haha, I asked the servants of the Marquis's mansion to report for a long time, but there has been no news for a long time. Therefore, I barged in. I hope you will not blame me?" Huangfu Xuan had already stepped into the threshold of the main hall of the Marquis's mansion and looked at everyone here.
The people around were surprised. Why was Huangfu Xuan here?
"Greetings, Third Prince!" The group bowed in greeting.
"How could our Marquis's Mansion blame the Third Prince! This old lady greets the Third Prince!" As she spoke, Old Madam Yun was about to rise from her seat to bow to Huangfu Xuan, but Huangfu Xuan immediately stepped forward, "Please sit down, Old Madam. How can a junior accept the Old Madam's courtesy?" After she sat down, he bowed himself and said, "To tell you the truth, I happened to go to Yixiang Tower for a drink today. I wandered around aimlessly and heard some noises in the backyard. I became suspicious and ended up witnessing a good show!"
"Hehe, I had no intention of disturbing the Marquis's residence, but I overheard some snippets of conversation. As everyone knows, the Southern Prince is working for me. Today, he's not at home but has gone to treat his legs, so naturally I must inquire about matters at the residence on his behalf." Huangfu Xuan tried his best to be polite, despite being a bloodthirsty, arrogant, and wicked executioner, he could still feign utmost friendliness. "I overheard what you were saying outside just now, and unfortunately, I do indeed have such so-called evidence."