"I am from a collateral branch of the Ning family. I have two sons. My eldest son, Ning Zhuangxue, has been diligent and studious since childhood. Although he has not yet achieved any official rank, his teachers have always praised his outstanding talent, predicting that he will surely become an official and have a bright future. Not long ago, the General's Mansion was looking for tutors for its three young ladies. I have some connections with the old lady of the General's Mansion, and since my son is indeed talented, I was recommended to the General's Mansion. For the convenience of his teaching, the General's Mansion allowed my son to live there. However, just a few days ago, my son suddenly knocked on my door, covered in blood. As soon as I opened the door, my son collapsed on top of me, repeatedly saying that the General's Mansion had killed him to cover his tracks, and then he died... He died right in front of me! The General's Mansion has actually done such a heinous thing! It is simply unforgivable! You must give me an explanation today!"
Fang cried out, and everyone was shocked. The General's Mansion had actually done such a thing. This was a life lost, a serious crime!
Supported by Dongxue, Ouyang Yue looked at Fang Shi with bright, clear eyes. Fang Shi continued to weep, "Later, I sent people to inquire, spending some money, and discovered that it was my son who was exceptionally talented and handsome. The third young lady of the General's mansion, infamous in the capital for her unruly behavior, and having just been jilted by her fiancé, had no hope of marrying into a prestigious family. Seeing my son's talent and handsome appearance, she...she fell in love with him, tried to seduce him several times, and in a fit of rage, killed him!" Fang Shi lay on the ground, weeping bitterly, "My poor child! Just because of his good looks and talent, he suffered such a terrible fate! Is there no justice in this world? Those immoral and lowly young ladies can live well, while my son, such a talented man, was brutally murdered! It's such an injustice! He was so wronged!"
"suck!"
Everyone gasped in shock. They never expected that just as the scandal involving Ouyang Hua and Ouyang Rou was drawing to a close, another unexpected turn of events would occur, implicating the third young lady of the Ouyang family. Moreover, this matter was no less sensational than the news about Ouyang Hua and Ouyang Rou—equally explosive. This third young lady's promiscuous behavior, resorting to underhanded tactics when her advances failed—that was truly appalling! And the General's Mansion was utterly disrespectful. Three young ladies from one mansion, and not a single one of them was a respectable woman. This inevitably raised serious questions about the upbringing of Old Madam Ning and Madam Ning. And considering they came from the Ning family, with all these scandals surfacing, how utterly corrupt and depraved must they be inside?
Fang's intervention not only tarnished the reputation of the General's Mansion, but also that of the Ning Mansion. Coupled with today's series of scandals, the guests who were originally there to offer their congratulations now looked at the people from the Ning and General's Mansions with utter contempt and disdain.
Huang, Old Ning, and Ning were all furious. The previous incidents involving Ouyang Hua and Ouyang Rou had already made them feel ashamed, and now Fang had come to cause trouble again. They were so angry that they were practically fuming and almost fainted.
At this moment, Ouyang Yue was helped forward a few steps by Dong Xue. She looked calmly at Madam Fang and said, "Madam, I do not know you. Why are you ruining my reputation like this?" Ouyang Yue's expression was very calm. Her face was still pale from the pain of her illness, making her look weak and pitiful. However, her eyes were extremely bright, like the finest black glass beads, shining with a convincing and firm gaze.
Fang felt a slight tremor in her heart as she was being stared at, but thinking of her son's death and her purpose today, she vowed that she would rather die than let Ouyang Yue benefit. In fact, when Ning Xishan first approached Fang, Fang wanted revenge for her son and also planned for the future. Even if Ning Xishan hadn't said anything, Fang would have ended up in the same situation anyway. In the end, she even got money from Ning Xishan, so she actually gained more than she should have.
"Stop pretending and trying to gain sympathy. Did I say something wrong? Weren't you dumped by your fiancé because of your bad character? My son was chosen by the General's Mansion because of his outstanding talent, wasn't he supposed to be teaching the young ladies of your General's Mansion? He was supposed to live in the General's Mansion, but suddenly he left and was killed. Aren't these facts?" Fang said angrily.
Ouyang Yue sighed, "The clothes on a traveler's back are sewn by his mother. As a mother, I understand your grief over losing your beloved son. But your slanderous accusations, especially since you are from a collateral branch of the Ning family, and your husband died suddenly, would not be standing here today if it weren't for your grandmother's help. Madam, you should think carefully. Is it worth ruining your relationship with both families because of someone else's instigation? You don't need to fear retaliation. Just tell me who instructed you to cause trouble today, and I will not hold you responsible for defaming my reputation!"
Upon hearing this, Madam Fang's face flushed red with anxiety: "Nonsense! So what if he was helped by Old Madam Ning? That doesn't mean my son's life was lost! Don't try to fool me with these lies. It's obvious that you, you vile woman, admired my son's talent, but he had no feelings for you. You killed him in a fit of rage and are now making excuses to confuse the issue! Everyone, you must stand up for me! Look at the true colors of this General's Mansion! This is a life worthless! How dare such a bold person exist right under the emperor's nose? They should be dragged out and beaten to death!" Madam Fang didn't actually know much about what had happened back then. Hearing Ouyang Yue's words, she panicked. Could it really be as Ouyang Yue said? If she maliciously framed him like this, things would get really troublesome!
"What? Outstanding talent? Which school is this Ningzhuang Academy? I've never heard of it before," Leng Caiwen said coolly.
Dai Yu said calmly, "Nameless little feet."
Leng Caiwen scoffed: "Just because a woman dies doesn't mean I have to take responsibility. You need evidence to back up your claims."
Madam Fang said coldly, "Young master, you seem to be a well-read young master from a prestigious family. How can you treat such trivial matters of human life as a game? Who raised a son like you? It's a disaster for the family!"
Leng Caiwen sneered, "I'm just telling you, the claim that Miss Ouyang's reputation is ruined in the capital and no one dares to marry her is utter nonsense! Let's not even discuss whether your unfortunate son is as good as you say. How can a commoner without even an official title be worthy of the general's daughter? Even if I were to ask to marry Miss Ouyang, it would depend on whether she's willing! Is your son even worthy?"
"What!"
This statement immediately caused a stir. Leng Caiwen was the second son of the eldest branch of the Leng family, one of the five great families. Although he had a notorious reputation for womanizing, his talent far surpassed Hong Yicheng's, and he was also handsome and dashing. Let alone someone like Ouyang Yue with a bad reputation, even those with widespread fame were few who were worthy of Leng Caiwen. He actually said that his proposal to Ouyang Yue depended on her happiness. They thought Ouyang Yue would be overjoyed to accept; Young Master Leng was giving Ouyang Yue far too much credit. They actually thought that Ouyang Yue, after failing to seduce Ning Zhuangxue, might actually try to kill her!
Ouyang Yue's lips curled into a very faint smile, her expression nonchalant: "Young Master Leng is joking again."
Ouyang Yue's attitude left everyone dumbfounded. Young Master Leng, Leng Caiwen—Ouyang Yue just rejected him like that? Was it genuine?
Ouyang Yue turned her head and said, "However, Young Master Leng is not wrong. Putting aside the talent of this Ningzhuang Academy Young Master, the reason why he was kicked out of the General's Mansion and killed was probably his own fault, and had nothing to do with the General's Mansion or me!"
"You're talking nonsense!"
“Miss Ouyang is right. Ning Zhuangxue’s death was caused by a dispute with several pimps over the division of spoils!” At this moment, a short, stout middle-aged man in official robes walked in. Everyone recognized him as none other than the Prefect of Jingzhao who had been sent to fetch him earlier!
"What?! What's going on?!"
The Prefect of Jingzhao entered, cleared his throat, and said, "A few days ago, I received a murder case, the case of Ning Zhuangxue's murder. Following the investigation, I discovered that this so-called talented scholar, who has yet to achieve any official rank, is a regular at brothels. At the brothel he frequents, there's a pimp and thug named Ming Dawu, who has several thugs under his command. They make a living by swindling, cheating, and trafficking women, and have had multiple contacts with Ning Zhuangxue. Before Ning Zhuangxue went to the General's Mansion, these people had already secretly met, and you all know what kind of collusion they've been engaging in. I subsequently found large quantities of sleeping pills and aphrodisiacs at Ming Dawu's hideout, as well as evidence of human trafficking contracts with various brothels. I was about to arrest them when, to my surprise, Ming Dawu and his accomplices were all dead!" The Prefect of Jingzhao found this strange; a few days ago, someone had left a bundle in front of his yamen. When the constables picked it up, they found it was filled with evidence.
There were many cases of trafficking women in the capital, but most of the brothels had powerful backers, so it was impossible for him to investigate each case one by one. In the capital, it was said that if you killed three people with a brick, all three might be connected to the imperial family. Naturally, he adopted a policy of "if the people don't report it, the officials won't investigate." After receiving this case, the Prefect of the Capital hesitated about whether he could handle it. However, after two days of hesitation, one morning while he was still half asleep, he suddenly felt a chill on his face. Looking down, he saw a bloodstained dagger stuck in the headboard. He was almost scared to death!
Thinking about the recent situation, he immediately felt that this matter needed to be investigated. He had originally been thinking about how to bring it up with the Ning family, but now that the Ning family had run into trouble, he naturally had to be impartial. He cleared his throat and said, "Furthermore, I have also discovered that Ming Dawu is not only the cousin of one of the concubines in the General's Mansion, but also that Ming Dawu and Ning Zhuangxue have had contact with Ning Xihai, the eldest son of the Ning family. The brothel that the eldest son of the Ning family frequents is the place where Ming Dawu works."
The Prefect of Jingzhao looked at Ning Baichuan and said sternly, "Lord Ning, please hand over Ning Xihai. In this case of multiple murders, both Ning Zhuangxue's and Ming Dawu's people are dead. Now only Ning Xihai remains. I need to take him out and find out how much he was involved in this case. Is he related to this murder? Please bring him out, Lord Ning, and don't delay my investigation!"
However, the answer given to the Prefect of the Capital City caused an eerie silence in the hall... as if even the heavy breathing could be clearly heard.
Ning Xihai is already dead. After all this fuss, it turns out it was all caused by a few scoundrels? And by this point, all of these so-called parties involved are completely dead!
Doesn't this mean there's no way to prove anything?! How are we supposed to investigate this?!
Ning Xishan, who had been quietly staying by Huang's side all day, suddenly changed her expression. Fang had been in a daze ever since she came out of the Jingzhao Prefecture.
At this moment, he went berserk, leaping up and charging towards Ning Xishan: "You bitch, you dare to lie to me!"
☆、058、The Death of Ouyang Hua!
Suddenly, Fang jumped up with great speed. Ning Xishan, who had been somewhat stunned by the appearance of the Prefect of the Capital, was naturally a beat slower. By then, Fang had already rushed forward: "You bitch, you lied to me! You told me that Miss Ouyang seduced Zhuang Xue, and when Xue'er refused, she killed him in a fit of rage! So it was all your brother's doing! You two conspired to deceive me! You have such black hearts! I'll fight you to the death!"
Ning Xishan was pulled away by Fang and thrown to the ground. Fang was clearly a shrew. She leaped onto Ning Xishan's body and slapped her hard with her two hands, which were like iron fans.
"Clap clap clap!"
Ning Xishan screamed in pain, "Stop! You're crazy! You're talking nonsense! When did I say anything like that? You're insane! Stop it!"
"You still dare to talk nonsense? I'll beat you to death!" Fang Shi gritted her teeth, trembling with anger. She didn't know where the strength came from, but she slapped Ning Xishan's face repeatedly. Ning Xishan screamed in pain, her eyes suddenly widening and bulging out. Only then did the servants of the Ning family react and immediately pulled Fang Shi away. Ning Xishan was saved, but her face was extremely painful.
When Ouyang Yue saw this, her eyes lit up, and she exclaimed, "Cousin, you're alright! Move aside quickly, it seems like I'm stuck on something."
"Bang bang bang"
As he spoke, he reached out and slammed his hand hard against Ning Xishan's back. The sound made everyone present change their expressions. Why was it like hitting a thing? That's a person! Wouldn't hitting her like that hurt her?
Ning Xishan was speechless at this moment, her expression becoming even more gleeful as she strained her voice with a ferocious look.
"Cousin, are you alright? Looks like I'm not very strong, ah!" Ouyang Yue looked like she was struggling, her face flushed red. Suddenly, she turned her hand and slapped Ning Xishan with an unusually fierce palm strike.
"puff!"
"puff!"
"ah!"
Suddenly, Ning Xishan spat something out of her mouth. Everyone looked and saw that it was two snow-white teeth, still stained with blood. Ning Xishan stared wide-eyed, then suddenly turned around and shoved Ouyang Yue hard: "You damned bastard, look what you've done! My tooth! How dare you!" Ning Xishan's teeth had just fallen out, and she was still a little slurred, so her words weren't very clear. Her face was filled with deep disgust and anger, which was obvious to everyone!
Ouyang Yue was pushed so hard that she stumbled back two steps. Dongxue was startled and immediately rushed forward to support her, saying anxiously, "Miss, how are you? You're still sick, why are you meddling in other people's business?" Dongxue already had a cold face, and her words, full of complaints, were like knives. She even looked at Ning Xishan with anger.
"laugh."
Many people laughed. Everyone had clearly seen that no matter how strong Ouyang Yue was, she couldn't knock out that tooth. Besides, she hit Ning Xishan's back, not her face, so how could she knock out her tooth? Fang Shi was whipping Ning Xishan like a madwoman. She wasn't angry, but when Ning Xishan choked on her knocked-out tooth, she kindly stepped forward to help because she was afraid she would choke to death. After rescuing her, Ning Xishan blamed her. She really didn't appreciate her kindness!
"Miss Ning has quite a temper. I dare not speak to her in the future, otherwise if I say something wrong and she gets sick, it will be my fault."
"That's right! They really can't tell good from bad. You should never associate with people like that!"
"A whole bunch of scoundrels!"
Although the ladies were whispering, their voices were still audible enough for anyone to hear what they were saying. Ning Xishan's face turned pale as she glared at Ouyang Yue with hidden resentment.
Originally, Ning Xishan approached Madam Fang with the intention of subtly punishing Ouyang Yue through her influence. Little did she know that this would also involve her brother, Ning Zhuangxue, and Ming Dawu—things Ning Xishan was completely unaware of. Therefore, the arrival of the Prefect of Jingzhao to demand her release was entirely unexpected. From Madam Fang's perspective, it seemed as if Ning Xishan had known the truth about her son's death all along, but deliberately brought up Ouyang Yue's affair to cover up the truth for her brother, attempting to divert attention and clean up his mess!
Ning Xishan never thought of such a long-term perspective, but now that things had come to this point, Fang Shi was convinced of it: "You wretch, you're supposed to be a young lady from a prominent family? Bah! Such a vicious young lady from a prominent family is truly unheard of!"
The Prefect of Jingzhao stepped forward and asked, "Madam, what do you mean by that? Are you saying that Miss Ning was also involved in the murder?"
Upon hearing this, Ning Xishan immediately shook her head and retorted, "No, no, I don't know anything. She said it was a hoax, but I don't know anything about any murder case. She's wronged me!" Ning Xishan gasped, took a deep breath of cold air, and coughed twice after speaking.
The Prefect of Jingzhao raised an eyebrow. Indeed, few people believed Ning Xishan's words. Why did Madam Fang blame Ning Xishan when no one else did? If she said that Ning Xishan had no connection to the matter, even a fool wouldn't believe it!
"Injustice? What injustice? You still claim injustice! It was you who blocked my way a couple of days ago, pretending to be kind, giving me money as a gesture of compassion, and even talking about Xue'er's death. You even told me personally that the Third Miss of the General's Mansion had a terrible reputation, was unfit for public life, and couldn't get married, so she took a fancy to my Xue'er's talent. You also said that the Third Miss Ouyang was favored by General Ouyang and had just returned to the capital, so the Ning family couldn't help us. I risked coming here to expose the Third Miss Ouyang's hypocrisy for Xue'er's sake. It turns out you lied to me all along. It turns out Ning Xihai had been secretly in contact with Xue'er, and Xue'er's death must be closely related to him. You deliberately lured me here to cause trouble and confuse the situation in order to get rid of yourselves. This was all your conspiracy. My poor Xue'er, even in death he couldn't get justice for himself, and your mother had to be played like this. Why are we so miserable!" Fang Shi lay on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably, her voice filled with sorrow, drawing much sympathy.
Ouyang Yue looked coldly at Fang Shi. Ning Xishan may have acted maliciously back then, but if Fang Shi didn't have any other intentions, why would she wait two more days and deliberately cause trouble at Huang Shi's birthday banquet?
As a mother who truly cares about her son, upon hearing the truth from Ning Xishan, she should have been furious and stormed the General's Mansion to demand justice for her son. However, at that time, Ouyang Zhide had just returned to the capital and was riding high, so Fang Shi had no confidence in achieving her goal. Moreover, the presence of so many noble ladies and celebrities would not have been as effective. She didn't believe Fang Shi was here today solely to seek justice for Ning Zhuangxue!
Fang knelt on the ground, crying incessantly, her eyes darting around, her heart filled with uncontrollable panic.
When Ning Xishan bet against her, she also felt there was something wrong with it, but after taking the silver, her mind raced. This silver was so easy to obtain; she wanted revenge for her son's death, but the dead cannot be brought back to life, and what she needed most now was to gain as much benefit as possible to offset her losses. Therefore, she set her sights on Ouyang Yue's "ladder to heaven."
Although Fang Shi had always been protected by the Ning family, she was never truly content. Even with the Ning family's continued support, they wouldn't waste time on useless people. Back then, she had schemed and plotted to please Old Madam Ning, which was why she was only slightly better off than other members of the collateral branches, gaining the qualification to study at Ning Manor School—her future was limitless! Why should she always be inferior? If she were to become related to Old Madam Ning through marriage, and given the Ning family's influence, who knew her son might one day rise to a higher rank than General Ouyang Zhide! Therefore, she naturally wouldn't let any opportunity to establish a connection slip by. Moreover, once Ouyang Yue married into their family, she would have a plan to deal with her. Then, she could achieve fame and fortune, and take revenge—wouldn't that be wonderful!
But things weren't going as she thought. The General's Mansion was not something she could mess with. Originally, she could still manage because of her connection to the aggrieved party, but now that they had no connection, how could she possibly survive if she openly slandered the eldest daughter of the General's Mansion? Fang felt a deep sense of fear!
"Ha, what a show today! The Ning family, which has been a prestigious family for a hundred years in the Great Zhou Dynasty, has turned out to produce such scoundrels!"
"They're cousins, yet they treat their own family like enemies, resorting to underhanded attacks and malicious slander. If I had a daughter like that, she would have been beaten to death long ago!"
"What's so strange about that? Just now, Miss Ouyang was treated like a villain for helping out, so it's not impossible for something like this to happen!"
"I heard that Ning Xishan has a temper that's easily ignited. It seems she not only has a bad temper, but she's also quite brainless!"
"That's what I mean..."
The group of wealthy women, upon hearing this, understood everything. They didn't know if Ning Xishan and Ning Xihai were truly involved in the murder, but their reputations were completely ruined. No matter what Ning Xihai was like, it was a fact that he engaged in such despicable acts. There was an 80% chance that Ning Xishan had plotted to frame Ouyang Yue through Fang Shi. If Ning Xihai was also involved in the murder, wouldn't Ning Xishan be considered an accomplice? Furthermore, it was one thing to find another scapegoat, but this was her own aunt's daughter, her own cousin—how could she do this? This was undoubtedly chilling; if she was so ruthless to her own family, she was even worse than a demon to outsiders!
“Yes, I didn’t do it, she said it was barren!” Ning Xishan was so anxious that her face turned red. She stood there stamping her feet like a madwoman, but the more she did this, the more slanderous looks she received.
The Prefect of Jingzhao was dumbfounded when he saw this, and couldn't help but cough lightly: "Lord Ning, I think we should first invite your eldest son out of the mansion. I will go back to investigate the case first. If it has nothing to do with him, I will release him as soon as possible."
Ning Baichuan's forehead veins were clearly visible, and his eyes were bloodshot, showing that he was furious. Before he could speak, someone next to him said, "The Prefect of Jingzhao is too late. You don't know, this young master Ning is already dead. The cause of his death is a strange one. He died of excitement while he was having fun!"
"Shut up!" Ning Baichuan shouted angrily, and the man shut his mouth, but the sarcasm in his eyes became even more obvious.
The Prefect of Jingzhao was genuinely unaware of this matter. He was stunned for a moment. All three people he had investigated were dead. This was truly an unsolved case, difficult to investigate even if he wanted to. At this moment, his eyes turned and he saw Ning Xishan, who had been beaten and scolded by Fang Shi earlier and looked somewhat disheveled. Now, her face was flushed with anxiety as she tried to defend herself. He coldly said, "Since Young Master Ning is dead, the body will be taken away by the yamen officials. Miss Ning and this Fang Shi are both related to this case, so I will naturally bring them to the yamen for personal questioning."
Madam Huang was completely bewildered by the events of the day. Despite her extensive experience, Ning Xihai's accident hadn't made her faint, but if Ning Xishan were to get into trouble now, the Ning family would become a complete laughingstock! Even if Ning Xishan was truly innocent, being taken away like this would only complicate matters. She no longer had time to deal with Ning Xishan's outrageous behavior; resolving the situation was the only right thing to do.
"Prefect of the Capital Prefecture, you are unaware that this Fang woman is a greedy person. Years ago, after her husband's death, she relentlessly came to the Ning residence demanding answers, claiming that she was a woman with two sons, destitute and alone, and that if the Ning residence didn't provide assistance, she would be forced to her death. I took pity on her and showed her much kindness, but she only grew more insatiable. That Ning Zhuangxue is somewhat literate and talented, so the clan school allowed him to enter, and he eats and lives in the residence. Unfortunately, her two sons are idle and good-for-nothings, and this Ning woman actually..." She demanded two hundred taels of silver a month to settle down. When the household refused, she made a scene. And regarding the Ningzhuang School, she demanded a full ten thousand taels of silver! Several of my maids overheard her greed and saw her true colors. How could the Ning family tolerate such a person any longer? "My lord, this Fang Shi was driven out of the house with resentment, so she deliberately framed me. Please don't believe her!" Huang Shi feigned grief, her performance quite impressive.
"You shameless old man, that was clearly the money you gave me to settle down and to provide for Xue'er's funeral. What do you mean by asking for the moon? I am kind by nature, how could I be the greedy person you describe!" Even if she were, Fang would not admit it now.
Madam Huang sneered, "That's utter nonsense. If I were to give you money for settling down, and you were clamoring for the money Xishan gave you as a token of your compassion, that would be quite a sum, wouldn't it be enough to bury Ningzhuang School? Since you accepted the money for the burial, you accepted that this was offset, you agreed to it, so why are you making a scene now? Taking money and not doing anything, what kind of place is my Ning Mansion? Would you let me do whatever I want! That money was clearly something you deliberately extorted, and now that you hear I'm celebrating my birthday today, you're greedy and trying to extort money again. With so many wise and intelligent ladies and gentlemen present, how could you possibly fool us!"
A hint of a smile flashed in Ouyang Yue's eyes. Huang Shi was indeed Huang Shi; her words were absolutely correct. Fang Shi had accepted the money, which meant she accepted the Ning family's solution. Now, having taken the money, she was causing trouble, claiming to be seeking justice for her son, but she seemed nothing more than a greedy person. If Fang Shi said the money wasn't a token of sympathy from Huang Shi, then she was admitting Huang Shi's accusation of extortion, further proving her insatiable greed, rendering all her accusations against people and things invalid. Conversely, this statement was indeed a trap. Given Fang Shi's background, trying to outsmart someone as experienced as Huang Shi would be utterly futile.
"I...I'm not...I'm not that kind of person, I'm not!" Fang opened her mouth to speak, but didn't know how to refute it. Only then did she realize that she had fallen into Huang's trap. She was so anxious that her face turned red and her neck bulged, but she couldn't explain a single word.
"Hmph, sir, look at this woman, she's clearly guilty. Please take her away for questioning. How dare she openly slander the young lady and deliberately come to the Ning residence to cause trouble! I will not let this go!" Madam Huang said coldly, her eyes dark. Although she couldn't match Princess Shuangxia's imposing presence, her gloomy expression was still very intimidating.
Although the Prefect of Jingzhao knew there was something fishy about the matter, the Ning family was no ordinary family. Even though their reputation was ruined today, a fallen camel is still bigger than a horse. Moreover, the Ning family's century-old foundation couldn't be completely destroyed by a few bad reputations. He couldn't afford to offend them openly. Besides, the letter only said that he wanted to investigate this case. Ning Xihai and the other two were already dead. He was content to close this case and didn't need to get involved in this mess.
The Prefect of Jingzhao clasped his hands in a fist salute: "In that case, I will take my men back first. However, this is only a matter concerning the case. If it is necessary to inform other people, I would appreciate it if the old lady, Lord Ning, could release them."
"Wait!" Ning Baichuan suddenly spoke up, pointing to the nine scoundrels who were standing to the side with their necks hunched over, insulting Ouyang Rou and Cao'er. "These nine people were with my son beforehand, so they must be key figures in the case. Prefect of the Capital, take them away. They might be helpful to the case."
"Thank you for your cooperation, Lord Xie Ning." The Prefect of Jingzhao smiled faintly and waved his hand, "Take them all away!" The officials who followed took away the nine people, along with Fang Shi, who was shouting and crying that she was innocent.
Ning Baichuan coldly stared at the nine men. He knew perfectly well that they weren't entirely ignorant, but for the sake of the Ning family's reputation and his own official position, he had to make this choice, even if it meant risking them revealing more of Ning Xihai's shameful secrets. He couldn't afford to give the impression that he was hiding anything. Besides, things hadn't reached the worst point yet.
Ning Baichuan looked at Ouyang Hua, Ouyang Rou, and Hong Yicheng, and finally turned to Ouyang Yue, saying in a deep voice, "Although you all claim that the man in black framed you today, it's all just talk. Do you have any way to catch the man in black?"
Everyone thought to themselves, "Isn't this obvious? If we could catch that man in black, would we need to interrogate him for so long?" Ouyang Hua, Hong Yicheng, and Ouyang Rou all shook their heads with grim faces.
"Hua'er, Rou'er, and Yue'er, as my nieces, this matter has greatly disappointed me. When Yue'er fainted, why didn't you call a servant familiar with the area to guide you? Instead, you went to such a remote place on your own. Furthermore, when Young Master Hong admired the scenery of my mansion, he didn't even bring a servant with him. Today's incident may have been a setup, but it also serves as a reminder to you to think things through carefully before acting. You must never do such impulsive things again. I will have someone investigate this matter thoroughly. If it is found that any of you are truly involved, I will certainly hold you accountable for defiling the Ning family!" Ning Baichuan's voice was stern, causing Ouyang Hua, Ouyang Rou, and Hong Yicheng to involuntarily tremble.
They were indeed innocent; they had originally intended to cause trouble. Ning Baichuan's words had made them very nervous. If they caught those men in black and the truth was revealed, and they found out they were also involved, wouldn't they be in deep trouble? The three of them opened their mouths, wanting Ning Baichuan to stop pursuing the matter, but their expressions changed drastically, and they swallowed their words back. If they said that, wouldn't they be admitting their innocence? The three of them were extremely nervous. Ouyang Yue coldly watched them, a chilling glint in her eyes.
She had anticipated this outcome. Today, Ning Baichuan, for the sake of his family's honor, had Ning Xihai involved in this matter. Even if Ning Xihai died, not only did these people claim to have seen the shadowy figure, but even Ning Baichuan himself wanted to kill them all. However, he had no choice but to let it go today. If he insisted on going his own way, he would lose face greatly. Even now, he was worried about how to explain himself to the Emperor. Tomorrow, impeachments against the Ning family, the General's family, and the Hong family would be inevitable!