Mi esposa se sube al muro

Capítulo 20

Madam Lu glanced again at the charred ruins left by the fire, sighed deeply, and had just gotten up when she suddenly heard a flurry of footsteps outside. Peeking out, she saw that it was Prefect Lin and his officials from the prefectural government. The fire must have been too big, and having started at night, it must have spread to the surrounding area, which was why even the prefectural officials had come.

When Madam Lu saw that Prefect Lin and his entourage had arrived, she had no choice but to retreat behind the screen to avoid suspicion.

When Prefect Lu saw his superior and colleagues arrive together, he disregarded his disheveled appearance and hurriedly stepped forward to pay his respects. However, Prefect Lin stopped him, saying, "Last night I was just here drinking and chatting with you, sir. I was shocked to hear this terrible news this morning, so I rushed over. Are you all alright in your household?"

Judge Lu sighed and said, "Thank you for your concern, Lord Lin. Although a few houses were burned down, fortunately it was discovered in time last night, and all the distinguished guests who stayed here are safe and sound. They all returned home early this morning."

Upon hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement, saying it was a stroke of good luck amidst misfortune.

Just then, a man rushed in from the entrance of the main hall, his face filled with anxiety. He shouted directly at Magistrate Lu, "Lord Lu, my master got drunk last night and stayed at your residence. He hasn't returned this morning, and I heard that your house is on fire. Have you seen him?"

Upon hearing this, Magistrate Lu was startled and quickly smiled to reassure him, "Vice Envoy Hu, please calm down. Lord Huang did indeed stay here last night, but after the fire started, everyone who was staying here safely left. Perhaps Lord Huang went somewhere else, which is why he has not returned yet?"

The deputy envoy shook his head vigorously, his expression full of disbelief: "My master has only been here as the governor for a little over a month by imperial decree, and he is not very familiar with the area. Where else can he go so early in the morning?"

Upon hearing this, everyone turned to look at Magistrate Lu, their expressions varying.

Lu Tongpan had just calmed down when he heard what Hu Fu said. Although the morning air was still a bit chilly, beads of sweat were already dripping from his forehead.

"This matter is of great importance, Lord Lu. Are you sure that all those who stayed overnight had already left when the fire broke out? What if..." The speaker was a man in his forties, plump and fair-skinned. Although his voice was not loud and he did not finish his sentence, the word "what if" immediately made everyone's hearts jump.

Lu Tongpan wiped the sweat from his brow, looked at the man, and said with some displeasure, "Lord Cao, what do you mean by that?"

Lord Cao snorted and then said in a low voice, "What I mean is that Lord Lu should confirm this carefully."

Lu Tongpan felt a surge of anger. This man surnamed Cao was a supervisory official in charge of collecting tea, salt, and wine taxes in the prefecture, and he had a history of questionable conduct, with whom Lu had never had a good relationship. His words now felt like needles piercing Lu's heart. Suppressing his anger, he was about to retort when he suddenly heard Prefect Lin cough and look over, saying, "Lord Lu, this is a matter of life and death. This Inspector is personally appointed by the Emperor to oversee the affairs of the prefecture; it is no small matter. Lord Lu, you would be wise to be more careful."

Hearing Prefect Lin speak in the same manner, Judge Lu could only suppress his displeasure and turned to the steward, sternly asking, "When I asked you before, you said all the guests had come out. Is that true?"

The steward's face flushed red and then turned pale, his legs trembling uncontrollably. After a long pause, he stammered, "They should all... have come out... It was all in chaos at the time, and I didn't count them all..."

Judge Lu was furious, but before he could speak, another person beside him suddenly exclaimed, "Oh dear, I hadn't thought of that before, but now that you mention it, it all comes to mind. Inspector Huang lived in the room at the far end next to mine. I haven't seen him since I came out. Could it be that he couldn't escape and was burned alive inside?"

Upon hearing this, everyone gasped, and the entire room fell silent instantly.

Xu Shirong heard a gurgling sound coming from Madam Lu's throat beside her. She was gripping the chair arm tightly with one hand and her eyes were glazed over. Xu Shirong hurriedly went over and patted her back, afraid that she might faint if she couldn't catch her breath.

"Nonsense! Nonsense!"

Although Judge Lu was still able to stand, his voice was trembling slightly.

"Quickly, go and search!"

Prefect Lin's expression changed drastically. He muttered that he had already headed in the direction the man had pointed. Seeing him go, the officials immediately stepped over the rubble and rushed over. They poured water into the pile of rubble to cool it down, and without caring about the dirt, they hurriedly began scavenging from the ground. A moment later, a cry of alarm rang out: "Oh no! Someone has indeed burned to death here!"

Upon hearing the shout, Magistrate Lu shuddered and rushed over, parting the crowd. Sure enough, he saw a charred object pressed under the lifted wall. Judging from its appearance, it was still vaguely recognizable as a curled-up human figure. His legs went weak, and he landed hard on the pile of rubble, no longer feeling any pain.

The officials in the prefecture had never seen such a gruesomely burned corpse before. When they came to their senses, the timid ones retreated in fear, while even the bold ones paled and dared not look a second time.

"Lord Lu, is Inspector Huang staying in this house?"

Prefect Lin took two steps back, realized what was happening, looked at Magistrate Lu, and shouted sternly.

Judge Lu's face was ashen, his lips trembled slightly, and he could no longer speak.

The crowd immediately began whispering among themselves, their expressions varied—sympathy, surprise, schadenfreude, and a whole host of other emotions.

Seeing that Magistrate Lu could not answer, Magistrate Lin assumed that he had agreed and sighed, "Lord Lu, the Inspector is of a high status. It is an unexpected death in your residence. Although it is a natural disaster, I have no choice but to report the facts. I hope you will not blame me."

Prefect Lu sat atop the pile of rubble, his head slightly bowed, filled with regret and fear. The Lianghuai region was rich in resources, but the salt and iron taxes were heavy. Emperor Renzong had sent this inspector to supervise the tax collection of the various prefectures. Now, because of his birthday celebration, he had suddenly died in his own residence. If this were reported to the emperor, his punishment would likely be severe. While he might not be executed, demotion was certainly inevitable.

Prefect Lu tried to stand up, but his legs were as weak as cotton. He sighed deeply and said, "The fault lies with me. Lord Lin, please report the facts..."

"etc!"

Before he could finish speaking, he suddenly felt himself lighten and stood up abruptly. Turning around, he saw that it was Yang Huan who had lifted him up. Feeling somewhat grateful, he gave a wry smile and said, "Nephew, things have come to this, there's no point in saying more..."

Yang Huan glanced at the charred corpse from afar and shouted, "How could a fire break out in the manor when everything was fine? Maybe someone got caught red-handed by that short-lived inspector and tried to kill him to frame Lord Lu?"

These words immediately startled everyone present. Prefect Lin only paused for a moment before remaining unmoved, while Supervisor Cao shouted, "Lord Yang, you are the magistrate of Qingmen County and have only been in Tongzhou for a few days. How can you speak so recklessly? Your two families are relatives, so it's not appropriate to protect each other like this."

Yang Huan glanced at him sideways and said, "I didn't point at you, why are you jumping out like that?"

The supervisor, Cao, was so angry that his entire body trembled with rage. He pointed at Yang Huan and roared, "You...you..."

Yang Huan spat and said, "What are you talking about? Maybe you were the one who set the fire in the dead of night!"

Supervisor Cao's expression changed. This obese man had actually leaped over and rushed over. Just as another argument was about to break out, someone suddenly said, "I've heard that Lord Yang is known as a righteous official in Qingmen County. He can even find clues and find the real culprit from a skeleton that has been dead for years. Since Lord Yang has this suspicion, he should produce evidence. Firstly, to clear Lord Lu's name, and secondly, so that we can all witness Lord Yang's extraordinary abilities."

Yang Huan looked in the direction of the voice and saw the speaker standing far behind the crowd. He hadn't noticed him before because he had been silent. Now, seeing him in a blue robe, hands behind his back, a faint smile playing on his lips, Yang Huan suddenly realized the man looked familiar. Upon closer inspection, he remembered—it was the man who had robbed him of his top-class room on the day they entered the city!

The author has something to say: Xu Shirong grabbed her outer garment and wrapped it around herself, then flung open the curtains and strode to the window. Pushing open the windowpane, she was shocked to see flames raging in the south-facing room, which was separated from her own by only a wall. The fire, fanned by the wind, crackled and popped, and sparks flew over the wall, occasionally landing on the ground. In just a moment, she even felt her face burning from the heat.

This row of south-facing rooms, numbering over a dozen, was occupied tonight by drunken guests. It's astonishing that such a large fire could break out so late at night!

Xu Shirong glanced back at Yang Huan. Outside, flames raged and chaos reigned, yet the man remained sprawled out, fast asleep. Fearing the fire might spread, she rushed to the bench and called his name several times. Seeing no response, she slapped his face hard twice. Only then did Yang Huan open his eyes, looking completely bewildered.

"My lord, my lady! Fire! Fire outside!"

Just then, there was a series of urgent knocks on the door, where Little Sparrow was chirping incessantly.

Xu Shirong went to open the door, and sure enough, it was Xiao Que. She looked extremely anxious and was panting as she said, "Madam, Madam Lu was afraid you were still asleep, so she sent me to tell you to come and get out of the way..."

Where is Madam Lu?

"After giving me the instructions, he seemed to head towards the south room."