Shen Minghui's face turned ashen: "You still say you didn't use the Gu poison?"
"Ya Rong, it's one thing for you to deal with Shen Minghui, but why did you have to use a curse on me? I'm your own brother!" Lei Hong looked heartbroken and grief-stricken.
Lei Yarong roared angrily, "How many times have I told you? I didn't use any poison, I really didn't! You poisoned yourself with that poison, didn't you!"
Lei Hong's face instantly turned horribly gloomy: "Am I crazy to cast a spell on myself? If you've done something, just admit it. Don't make me your scapegoat."
Shen Lixue sneered. It was clearly him who framed Lei Yarong, yet he turned around and accused Lei Yarong of harming him. Lei Hong's ability to distort the truth was truly remarkable. He was willing to sacrifice his own sister just to save his own life!
"Grand Commandant Lei, what do you think should be done?" Shen Minghui looked at Grand Commandant Lei, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Grand Commandant Lei's imposing gaze swept over Lei Yarong and Lei Hong. Lei Hong was the eldest son of the Grand Commandant's family and an official in the court. If the poison was placed on him, the Emperor would inevitably suspect the Zhuang Minister's family, and their years of planning would be ruined. The Grand Commandant's family's century-old foundation would also be in jeopardy.
As for Ya Rong, although she is also the legitimate daughter of the Grand Commandant's mansion, her reputation has been ruined by adultery. Letting her take the blame and preserve the reputation of the Grand Commandant's mansion is the best choice.
"Ya Rong was caught having an affair with A Zhi. Under A Zhi's instigation, she used witchcraft to murder her husband!" In just a few words, Grand Commandant Lei convicted Lei Ya Rong.
"Father!" Lei Yarong looked at Lei Taiwei in shock. He said that she had been caught committing adultery and had used witchcraft to murder her husband. Was she going to be thrown out to take the blame?
"I wonder how Grand Commandant Lei plans to handle this matter?" Shen Minghui looked at Grand Commandant Lei with a half-smile. If Grand Commandant Lei asked him to release the person again, he would really take the matter to the imperial palace.
"Lei Yarong is yours to do as you please!" Grand Commandant Lei's eyes were gloomy as he hardened his mind, choosing to sacrifice the lesser to save the greater.
"Thank you!" Shen Minghui smiled slightly as he looked at Grand Commandant Lei's dark face. This was exactly what he wanted to hear. He had deceived his woman, and he would never let her get away with it. "Guards! Lady Lei was caught in the act of adultery. She showed no remorse and attempted to murder her husband. She shall be burned at the stake!"
Chapter 121: A Tender Moment on a Thunderstorm Night
"Shen Minghui, if you dare burn me to death, I will haunt you even as a ghost!" Lei's fierce gaze slowly swept over everyone in the room, and she burst into laughter, a laughter that was both mad and desperate.
Shen Minghui smiled coldly: "I'd really like to see how you'll take revenge on me as a ghost. Take her to the ancestral hall and have her burned at the stake!"
"Shen Minghui, I curse you to be childless and without descendants!" Amidst Lei's sinister and furious roar, two rough-looking maids stepped forward expressionlessly, cruelly twisted her hands behind her back, and dragged her to the ancestral hall.
"My family affairs are none of your concern!" Shen Minghui endured the excruciating pain in his body, supported by the arms of his guards, and walked slowly forward, saying arrogantly, "As husband and wife, I couldn't bear to see you lonely for the rest of your life, so I kindly sent you and your lover to the Yellow Springs together. Instead of being grateful, you cursed me. You are ungrateful!"
Outside the ancestral hall, a pile of dry firewood was stacked, with a pillar standing in the middle. The rough-looking old woman tied the struggling and roaring Lei Shi tightly to the pillar, and the guards threw the man named A Zhi over there as well, and quickly set it on fire.
Dry wood meets fire and quickly ignites, a raging fire rising high and illuminating most of the sky. In the towering flames, Lei Shi, his clothes disheveled and hair loose, glared fiercely at everyone present, shouting angry curses that shook the heavens.
"Good and evil will eventually be rewarded. You harm people indiscriminately without asking why, and you will surely be punished..."
"We know what our retribution is. You'd better take care of yourself and have a safe journey!" Shen Minghui looked coldly at Lei Shi, who was struggling in the fire, with a mix of sarcasm and mockery.
"I curse you to die a horrible death!" Lei's eyes were bloodshot, and her voice was filled with misery.
"Even if we die a horrible death, you won't be able to see it!" Shen Minghui looked at the pile of firewood and sneered like ice.
Grand Commandant Lei Hong looked at Lei Shi struggling in the fire, lowered his head, his face was ashen, his large hands clenched tightly, and his eyes were filled with an uncertain expression.
Their loved ones were burned alive right before their eyes. They held high-ranking positions but could not interfere and could only watch helplessly as she died in front of them.
Shen Minghui stared intently at the Lei family's house, which was gradually being engulfed by the flames, a thick mockery on his lips and a cold, bloodthirsty smile flashing in his eyes, as if he had avenged a great grudge.
Shen Lixue's gaze deepened. Grand Commandant Lei had the ability to save Lei Yarong, but faced with Shen Minghui's aggressive pressure, he didn't say much and readily gave in, allowing Shen Minghui to burn her alive.
Before and after Shen Minghui was poisoned by Gu, Lei Taiwei treated him differently. Could there be some unspeakable secret about Gu poison?
"mother!"
"mother!"
Two tragic cries rang out. Shen Lixue turned around and saw that Shen Yelei and Shen Yingxue had arrived at the ancestral hall at some point. They staggered and collapsed in front of the fire, their faces full of pain. Shen Minghui had abandoned them, and their biological parents had been burned to death. They had truly become orphans without parents.
Children of lowly status living in the Grand Commandant's mansion would surely be looked down upon. Without the protection of Lady Lei and the status of legitimate children of the Prime Minister's family, their lives as guests would definitely be very miserable and difficult.
The fire burned for one or two hours before it was extinguished. Lei Shi and A Zhi were burned to charred corpses. Lei Shi's body was taken away by Grand Commandant Lei, while A Zhi's body was thrown into a mass grave.
Looking at the black ash on the ground, Shen Minghui slumped into his chair, devoid of any joy. His eyes were dull and unfocused. "Heh," he thought, "the dead are dead, the departed are gone. The Prime Minister's mansion is truly on the verge of collapse."
As dawn broke in the eastern sky, Shen Lixue bid farewell to the Prime Minister's residence and boarded the carriage of the War King's mansion.
The coachman lowered the curtain and sat at the front of the carriage, not in a hurry to get going: "Princess, shall we return to the Prince Zhan's residence?"
"Go to the Holy King's Mansion!" It was Mao Shi (5 to 7 in the morning). The War King had already gone to court. Shen Lixue prepared to go to the Holy King's Mansion to ask Dongfang Heng about the Gu poison.
"Yes!" the coachman replied, cracking his whip, and the horse galloped forward like an arrow released from a bow.
It was still early, and the Holy King's Mansion was quiet. Two guards stood at the entrance, imposing and expressionless.
As Shen Lixue alighted from the carriage, a faint scent of mint suddenly wafted from behind her. She turned around in confusion, only to bump her elbow into someone's hand. With a clatter, boxes of all sizes fell to the ground.
"I'm sorry!" Shen Lixue apologized, lifted her clothes, and squatted down to help pick up the boxes.
"It's alright, it was my abruptness that startled you, young lady!" The clear and elegant male voice was beautiful and pleasant to hear.
Shen Lixue was startled and looked up. The man opposite her was very young, wearing a light blue brocade soft robe. He was elegant and refined, with black hair as black as ink. A jade hairpin was dyed with a faint green light. His posture was noble and refined, like a banished immortal.
A pair of fair hands, more beautiful than a woman's, gracefully half-squatted down, gently picking up one box after another.
"Thank you, young lady!" The man accepted the box from Shen Lixue with a gentle smile, his demeanor ethereal and otherworldly, his deep eyes like misty clouds, making them unfathomable.
"No need to be polite!" Shen Lixue smiled slightly, like a blooming snow lotus from the Tianshan Mountains, bright and dazzling. The crystal swallow on her chest and the water-green Ruan Yanluo complemented each other perfectly, reflecting points of light in the morning light.
The man's gentle smile froze for a moment, Dongfang Heng's Crystal Swallow.
"Farewell!" Shen Lixue turned and walked forward, but accidentally stepped on her long skirt, causing her slender body to stagger and fall backward.
"Watch out!" The man stepped forward, supporting Shen Lixue's waist and steadying her.