Chapter 109: Hidden Truths

"This is your mother's skeleton. You killed her and buried her here. The kapok flowers here bloom so bewitchingly because they have absorbed the nutrients from her corpse," Ji Changge said, looking coldly at Wang Erlang.

Wang Erlang shook his head frantically. "No, I didn't kill her. She was killed by mountain bandits."

Wen Jing looked at the other skeleton in the pit—a male one. Who exactly was this man?

"You're lying! It was clearly you who killed her, otherwise why would her body be buried in this wasteland?" Ji Changge stared at Wang Erlang.

Wang Erlang's eyes suddenly turned vacant, and he muttered to himself, "That's right, why is my mother here? Shouldn't she be on Mount Shuangqi? When did she end up here?"

Ji Changge sneered, "Why are you so certain this is your mother's skeleton? Wasn't your mother's body never found?"

"No, this is my mother. I come to see her every day, but... she should have been on Mount Shuangqi..." Wang Erlang clutched his head in agony.

Ji Changge wanted to ask more, but Wen Jing signaled him with her eyes not to pressure Wang Erlang any further.

"Ding Wu, take him back to the Supreme Court," Ji Changge ordered.

Looking at Wen Jing’s bandaged wrist, Ji Changge opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately only managed, "Go back now."

"My thanks to the young duke for the rescue," Wen Jing said, curtsying slightly before turning to leave.

***

Upon returning to the Wen residence, the household was overjoyed. They crowded around Wen Jing, asking question after question, but she provided only a brief account of the situation.

"I never imagined that while Wang Erlang seemed so honest, his second uncle could be so deranged. But why would he want to harm my seventh sister?" Wen Banniang asked indignantly.

Madam Wen glanced at Wen Banniang and said coolly, "They already said he was a madman; what reason would he need?"

"What a pity for such a good marriage," Wen Wuniang sighed.

"If it was Wang Sinian who snatched away the seventh sister, then he must have also swapped the dowry. We cannot let the Wang family take advantage of us," Wen Jiuniang said, a flash of inspiration in her eyes, mixed with a hint of excitement.

Madam Wen looked at Wen Qiran and, seeing his displeased expression, stepped forward. "The dowry is of little consequence. It is enough that Qiniang is safe, but..."

"But what?" Wen Qiran asked, glancing at Madam Wen’s hesitant demeanor.

"Alas, it is just that those things were left behind by her mother. It would have been one thing if Qiniang had married into the family, but now this marriage is certainly ruined. Even if her mother were still alive, she would surely demand their return; we cannot let our enemies benefit," Madam Wen said, wiping the corner of her eye.

"Mother is right," Wen Jing said.

Wen Qiran’s expression softened slightly. "I will consider this matter carefully. You all need not concern yourselves with it, and do not go around wagging your tongues in public."

"Understood, Master," Madam Wen replied, bowing her head.

"Qiniang, come with me. I have something to ask you," Wen Qiran said to Wen Jing.

Wen Jing answered and followed Wen Qiran into the study, feeling a faint sense of unease.

"Kneel," Wen Qiran said with a grim face.

Wen Jing knelt as commanded; Wen Qiran knew everything after all.

"Father, I am sorry."

***

Wen Qiran let out a long sigh. He was not a man of many words, and though he wanted to reprimand Wen Jing, he did not know where to begin. Looking at her full-body injuries, he felt a wave of guilt. When she had told him where the dowry was but begged him not to open the chests for the time being, he should have realized something was wrong. At the time, he had been too preoccupied with wedding arrangements to notice such an obvious anomaly; the chests had likely been filled with nothing but rocks from the start.

"How did you realize there was a problem with the Wang family?" Wen Qiran asked.

"That day, I stumbled into Seventh Uncle Wang's room, intending to pry some information out of him. Wang Erlang appeared there just in time. I suspected he had been following me, so I intentionally left my medicine chest behind. I later had him retrieve it for me, and upon its return, I discovered several paintings were missing. I couldn't be certain if Wang Erlang had taken them, but my intuition told me he was likely the culprit behind these three cases. To make him reveal his true colors, I had to provoke him..."

"Then you should have discussed it with your father. Wouldn't it have been safer for me to send men to protect you? Qiniang, do you realize you almost died? If not for Wang Jue, whose leg suddenly healed, you both would have died," Wen Qiran said, his voice laced with anger.

"Daughter deeply regrets it and promises it will not happen again." Thinking of the day and night spent in the cave made Wen Jing feel nauseated. Wen Qiran was right; if Wang Jue's leg hadn't healed, they would be nothing more than two desiccated corpses now. She had indeed acted recklessly, overestimating her own abilities and implicating the poor Seventh Uncle Wang.

"Qiniang, you should stop going to the Supreme Court. After this incident, the clan elders have already expressed much criticism regarding your actions," Wen Qiran said. Even if the elders hadn't said anything, he did not want her to continue working there; he was still shaken. If anything had happened to her, how could he face Chu Tuolian in the afterlife?

"Yes, Father," Wen Jing replied submissively.

***

Inside the Supreme Court, Ji Changge looked at the evidence laid out on the floor—all recovered from the cave.

He picked up the peculiarly shaped short blade. This was the murder weapon. Wang Sinian had used it to slit the throats of the three victims, allowing their blood to flow along the grooves carved into the floor and into the final vessel. Most perversely, Wang Sinian had fashioned a sandglass out of the blood. The blood was sealed inside and had not evaporated; the dripping sound Wen Jing had heard in the cave was the sound of the blood-glass.

It was a pity Wang Sinian was dead; no one would ever know how he had killed He Yunxiu, Shen Ying, and Liang Shuxuan.

"How is the autopsy?" Ji Changge asked, looking at Zhongsun Yan.

"Reporting to you, sir, these two skeletons—a man and a woman—have fractured cervical vertebrae. The cuts are very clean; they were also decapitated," Zhongsun Yan said, pointing to the broken vertebrae.

Ji Changge was startled. Could these two also have been murdered by Wang Sinian?

But since Wang Erlang was so certain this was his mother, he must know something. If one were to calculate the timing, Wang Erlang would have only been seven or eight when his mother died. He would not have had the strength to kill two adults back then.

Ji Changge entered the dungeon, where Wang Erlang sat with his hair disheveled.

"Bring him out."

Two guards brought Wang Erlang out.

"How did your mother die? Do you remember?" Ji Changge asked.

"She was killed by mountain bandits," Wang Erlang said, expressionless.

"Your mother was killed by your second uncle."

Wang Erlang blinked and looked up at Ji Changge. "Second Uncle told me my mother was killed by mountain bandits."

"Based on the autopsy, your mother's cause of death is the same as He Yunxiu's—decapitation. The one who killed your mother was Wang Sinian. Why did he kill so many people?" Ji Changge pressed.

"You're lying! How could Second Uncle kill my mother!" Wang Erlang shouted in anger.

"Do you know he almost killed Wen Qiniang as well? Your seventh uncle has already died by his blade. Do you still think he is a good man?" Ji Changge asked, leaning close to Wang Erlang’s face.

Wang Erlang’s breathing grew rapid, his eyes darting back and forth as if trying to recall something.

Ji Changge waited quietly. He was certain Wang Erlang knew something; he was simply unwilling to remember.

"I don't know! I don't know anything!" Wang Erlang suddenly stood up and ran toward the door, but the two guards blocked him.

***

"Let him go," Ji Changge said to the guards.

"Sir, shouldn't we follow him?" Ding Wu asked.

Ji Changge shook his head. "I know where he is going."

Ding Wu looked at Ji Changge with surprise. Having followed him for so long, he still could not guess what was on his mind.

***

At the Wang residence, Wang Xuelin finally regained consciousness. Seeing the elderly Madam Wang keeping vigil at his side, he asked, "Has Erlang been found?"

Madam Wang nodded. "He has been found, Master."

Wang Xuelin was relieved, then asked, "Has Qiniang been found?"

"She has been found as well. You should focus on recovering, Master; everything is fine now," Madam Wang said, wiping away tears.

Wang Xuelin looked at his wife suspiciously. "What exactly happened?"

Madam Wang forced a smile. "Nothing happened. You just focus on getting well."

"Tell me quickly! Cough, cough, do you want to worry me to death? After all these years, do you think I can't tell when you're speaking the truth or a lie?" Wang Xuelin coughed repeatedly.

Madam Wang could no longer hold back her tears. After a long while, she said, "The second son is dead."

"What?! How could the second son be dead?!" Wang Xuelin clutched his chest, staring at his wife in shock.

"He killed Seventh Uncle and almost killed Qiniang and the seventeenth young master," Madam Wang wept.

Wang Xuelin felt as though he had been struck by lightning. He could never have imagined that the mastermind was his own biological son. Why would he do such a thing...

"Grandfather," Wang Erlang walked in, looking soul-crushed.

Wang Xuelin looked at Wang Erlang, his eyes filled with tears.

"You were always closest to your second uncle. Erlang, tell your grandfather, why... why did your second uncle do these heinous things?"

After a long silence, Wang Erlang suddenly turned and ran out without a word.

Wang Xuelin sighed. He realized he was truly old. Even with his own son and grandson, whom he had watched grow up, he had no idea what was in their hearts. He was an incompetent father and an incompetent grandfather.

"Sir, why are we here?" Ding Wu asked, looking at the dilapidated cellar before them.

"Where does a person go when they are at their most sorrowful, distressed, and dejected?" Ji Changge asked Ding Wu.

Ding Wu was taken aback, as if he hadn't expected such a question. He thought for a moment and said, "I am a man who loves his home. When I feel weary, returning home to see my wife and children makes it all feel worth it."

Ji Changge said softly, "This place is Wang Erlang's 'home'."