An autopsy report was required to state the time and place of death, as well as the condition of the body.
Medicine was still underdeveloped in this era. During autopsies, coroners often encountered phenomena they could not explain. In such cases, most would record them and leave them as accumulated experience and material for future coroners to study, in the hope that a more precise explanation might eventually be found.
The coroner who had written Dantai Sandao’s autopsy report must have been thinking along those lines.
But it was far too strange that no traces of vomit had been found in the mouth or nose.
The coroner must certainly have questioned those close to Dantai Sandao and confirmed that no one had cleaned the body before recording the detail.
Death by alcohol and carbon monoxide poisoning, yet no residue in the mouth or nose—and everything was so clean…
Yan Tongshu suddenly rose from her chair, her gaze grave. “Pearl, summon the yamen runners. Come on—we’re going to the Earl of Yuguo’s residence.”
“Yes.”
Yan Tongshu hurried to the Earl of Yuguo’s residence. After the gatekeeper gave a brief report, she went straight to Ning Yuan’s bedroom.
Following discussions between her and the Ministry of Justice, Ning Yuan’s body had been temporarily kept here, guarded jointly by yamen runners from the Ministry of Justice and the Kaifeng Prefecture.
Yan Tongshu once again examined Ning Yuan’s corpse in meticulous detail. She loosened his clothes and moved her eyes inch by inch over his body, desperately recalling every unusual detail she had noticed during her first examination.
She gestured with her hands.
At the time, Ning Yuan had been lying peacefully on his back, his limbs relaxed, his expression serene. There had been no sign of discomfort or struggle.
His clothes had been ordinary.
There had been no external wounds on his body.
His skin had displayed the characteristic signs of gelsemium poisoning.
A flash of insight passed through Yan Tongshu’s mind. Her gaze fell on the buckwheat pillow beneath Ning Yuan’s head.
There was one more characteristic—a tiny clue, easily overlooked.
The buckwheat pillow bore several marks left by droplets of water that had soaked into it and then dried.
Yan Tongshu crouched beside Ning Yuan and pushed aside his hair to examine his head. It was intact.
She then examined his eyes, ears, mouth, and nose.
“Pearl,” Yan Tongshu called.
Pearl stood by the doorway and answered from a distance, “Young Master, I’m here.”
“Go find a pair of pincers.”
“Yes.”
Before long, Pearl returned with the pincers. She stepped into the room and, when she was still three paces away from Yan Tongshu, handed them to her from a distance.
Yan Tongshu inserted the pincers into Ning Yuan’s ear. A moment later, she pulled hard and drew out a long, thick needle.
The needle was about five inches long—approximately fifteen or sixteen centimeters.
Yan Tongshu took out a handkerchief and placed the needle on it. She summoned a yamen runner and instructed him to safeguard it carefully. Then she turned and left the room to find Tantai Mingzhu.
Before long, Tantai Mingzhu hurried over from the accounting office. Breathing hard, she asked, “My lord, why have you summoned me in such haste?”
Yan Tongshu got straight to the point. “Miss Tantai, I want to examine your father’s remains. A letter arrived from Yunzhou today, and I discovered…”
“All right.”
Before Yan Tongshu could finish, Tantai Mingzhu readily agreed. “If you wish to examine him, my lord, you must have discovered something. I trust you. If you say he should be examined, then examined he shall be.”
Yan Tongshu rose. “In that case, I’ll be on my way.”
Tantai Mingzhu knelt and bowed. “Thank you, Lord Yan.”
Yan Tongshu gave a slight nod and strode away with Pearl.
After returning to the prefectural office, Yan Tongshu wrote an official order and sent it by eight-hundred-li express to Yunzhou, instructing the local coroner to reopen the coffin and examine the body, as well as conduct a thorough investigation into Dantai Fu.
Yan Tongshu gazed at the clear sky outside the window.
All he could do now was wait for the news.
Yunzhou was right next to the capital. With the eight-hundred-li express, a round trip would take only a little more than a day.
After an anxious wait, Yan Tongshu finally heard Zhang Jiu’s voice. Zhang Jiu had brought back the report from the second examination conducted in Yunzhou.
Yan Tongshu opened the document and took out the autopsy report, his eyes clear and focused.
Just as he had suspected, a needle had also been found embedded in the bones of Dantai Sandao’s skull.
“As expected.” Yan Tongshu set the document down. “Zhang Jiu, how did your investigation into Yu Xiujia go?”
Zhang Jiu said, “I was just about to report to you. Yu Xiujia served Madam Wang at her side for many years. After Madam Wang’s death, someone acted as matchmaker for her, and she married a farmer who raised pigeons. Lord Yan, Yu Xiujia’s standard of living after marriage was not noticeably better than that of her husband’s family.
“Finding this suspicious, I sent people to investigate the servants responsible for patrolling Lord Wang’s residence. None of them had noticed anything unusual. However, their families have all been unusually fortunate in recent years. Every one of them found steady, profitable work, and the places where they worked all had business dealings with the Zhong family to some extent. The same was true of Yu Xiujia’s husband’s family.”
“Then everything is clear.” Yan Tongshu pondered for a moment before saying, “Send constables to summon everyone involved to the Kaifeng Prefecture office for a court hearing. Then, after Wang Quan’an leaves the cemetery, take the constables and some hounds there to conduct a search. On your way to the cemetery, detour to the Wang residence and tell Yu Xiujia what you are doing. Tell her that Wang Quan’an will pay for his crimes today.”
Zhang Jiu understood at once. “Yes, sir. I understand.”
…
“Silence!”
The courtroom cry rang out through the Kaifeng Prefecture office.
Yan Tongshu sat upright beneath the plaque bearing the words *Justice Shines Brightly*.
Every constable in the Kaifeng Prefecture stood with a solemn expression.
The Earl of Yuguo, Tantai Mingzhu, Wang Quan’an, Dantai Fu, the hunter Wang Liang, and the others involved were all brought before the court.
The Earl of Yuguo held a noble title, so he merely bent slightly at the waist in greeting. Yan Tongshu had the constables bring him a chair. Everyone else stood as they answered after paying their respects.
Once the courtroom had fallen silent, Yan Tongshu spoke first.
“After the hour of Hai had passed on the twenty-eighth day, the servants in Prince Ning’s courtyard and Concubine Dantai discovered him lying on his bed. When they approached and questioned him, they found that he had already died. I arrived shortly after midnight the following day. Based on the autopsy and the servants’ statements, it has been established that Prince Ning died sometime between the period after he drank partridge soup, which was after the hour of Xu had passed, and the time after the hour of Hai had passed. Does anyone have any objections?”
Wang Quan’an had not participated in the autopsy that day and made no comment. Everyone else nodded, indicating that they agreed with Yan Tongshu’s account.
“After conducting experiments on mice, I found that those given partridge meat suffered chest pains, vomiting, and weakness and soreness throughout their bodies. I therefore suspect the presence of gelsemium poison. Prince Ning was murdered, and in recent times, only three people had a grudge against him…”
Yan Tongshu swept her gaze around the room, taking in everyone’s expressions.
Dantai Fu had shackles on both his hands and feet. His entire body was hunched like a quail, yet his murky eyes darted restlessly from side to side.
Tantai Mingzhu held her hands neatly folded in front of her. Her shoulders drooped, her posture relaxed, and her eyes were lowered in an attitude of docility and composure.
Wang Quan’an was gaunt and haggard, his hands clasped behind his back. He held his head high, his brows marked by impatience and disdain.
Yan Tongshu withdrew her gaze. “Dantai Fu, you testified in court last time that after Dantai Sandao’s death, Prince Ning conspired with the local magistrate to use his estate to buy you off and force you to marry Tantai Mingzhu as a concubine. Is that true?”
“Yes…” Dantai Fu had barely gotten the word out when the Earl of Yuguo shot him a murderous glare.
Dantai Fu immediately shrank back, too frightened to say another word.
Bang!
Yan Tongshu brought the magistrate’s block down with a thunderous crack and reminded them, “This is the Kaifeng Prefecture court…”
As she spoke, she turned toward the Earl of Yuguo, her gaze sharp. “Anyone who dares threaten or intimidate a witness in this courtroom will not escape punishment.”
The Earl of Yuguo’s face twitched violently. He glared at Yan Tongshu as if he wanted to kill her.
He had known from the beginning that he should never have allowed Yan Tongshu to get involved.
And now, Yuan’er’s death had yet to be investigated, while Yan Tongshu was already ruining Yuan’er’s reputation beyond repair.
Seeing that the Earl of Yuguo had been silenced by a single retort from Yan Tongshu and dared not argue back, Dantai Fu immediately found his courage. He repeatedly answered, “Yes, yes, yes,” then added with a fawning grin, “Lord Yan, I swear that not a single word of my previous testimony was false. If I lied, may Heaven strike me with five bolts of thunder and leave me without a complete corpse.”
Yan Tongshu said, “Repeat your original testimony word for word.”
This time, Dantai Fu did more than repeat himself. He embellished the story and added numerous details.
He gave a shameless chuckle. “Lord Yan, that’s exactly how it happened. I was forced into it! Perhaps you could consider that I’ve earned merit by confessing…”
He gazed at Yan Tongshu expectantly, but she ignored him and turned to Tantai Mingzhu instead. “Tantai Mingzhu, do you acknowledge Dantai Fu’s account? That day, outside the study, did you overhear his conversation with Prince Ning and learn the truth about your forced marriage?”
Seeing that there was no longer any way to conceal it, Tantai Mingzhu did not deny it. She merely said, “In answer to Lord Yan, I did indeed hear part of their conversation from outside the study that day, though only vaguely and not in its entirety. Afterward, I grew suspicious and began looking for someone to investigate the matter. Unfortunately, before I could uncover anything, His Highness the Prince passed away.”
Tantai Mingzhu was extremely clever. Her answer was deliberately vague, leaving her room both to advance and to retreat.
Yan Tongshu narrowed her eyes, then looked back at Dantai Fu. “Dantai Fu, when I questioned you that day, you admitted that on the night of the prince’s death, you had sneaked into the study intending to steal something. But when you saw the prince inside, you fled in panic. Is that true or not?”
Dantai Fu nodded, arguing, “But I didn’t steal anything in the end. That shouldn’t count for much, should it?”
Yan Tongshu continued, “You used the forced-marriage affair to blackmail Prince Ning into giving you money several times. Why did you stop going to him later?”
Dantai Fu’s gaze darted about. “The prince wouldn’t give me any more money. What was I supposed to do?”
Yan Tongshu asked, “What did you say when you last met Prince Ning? Why did the two of you quarrel?”
“I...” Dantai Fu lowered his head, his eyes shifting restlessly. “The gambling house was being unreasonable. The loan wasn’t due yet, but they were already demanding repayment, so I went to borrow money from the prince. Who would have thought that a man who boasts outside about his benevolence and righteousness would turn his back on me the moment things got difficult? I shouted at him a few times, made him angry, and he told me to get out. So I left.”
Yan Tongshu sneered. “A shameless scoundrel like you? He told you to leave, and you simply left?”
Dantai Fu’s voice grew increasingly weak. “He’s a prince. What else could I do?”
Bang!
The judge’s gavel slammed down.
Yan Tongshu thundered, “At death’s door, and you still dare spout lies!”
Dantai Fu went pale with fright. His legs gave way, and he dropped to his knees. “I... I... I didn’t...”
“You still dare deny it!” Yan Tongshu raised a hand. Pearl came before the court carrying a wooden tray. She lifted the white cloth covering it and addressed the crowd. “There are two long needles here. One is stained with fresh blood. The other is not only bloodstained, but covered in rust. The newer needle was removed from Prince Ning’s ear...”
What?
Earl of Yuguo immediately rose and walked toward Pearl to see for himself.
Tantai Mingzhu, meanwhile, abruptly lifted her head, staring fixedly at the rusted needle.
It seemed she had already guessed the truth.
Pearl continued, “The other was found in the skull of Dantai Sandao, who died five years ago after becoming drunk and, with the doors and windows of his room tightly shut, was supposedly accidentally poisoned by charcoal fumes.”
Tantai Mingzhu’s body swayed violently, and Fenghe hurriedly caught her.
Step by step, she walked toward Pearl, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked at the thick, long needle.
The needle was about five inches long and more than three times thicker than an ordinary sewing needle. It was not an ordinary needle at all, but a specially made cobbler’s needle used to mend shoes.
“Dantai Fu!” Tantai Mingzhu’s eyes were bloodshot as she rushed forward and seized the terrified, stunned Dantai Fu. “You killed my father! You! You beast!”
Tantai Mingzhu slapped Dantai Fu across the face, crying out in hysterics, “How could you do this? My father was your elder brother! When you had no food to eat, he gave you half the family’s grain. When you were in debt, he paid it off for you. When you had no way to earn a living, he taught you to cook. You weren’t clever enough to learn it, so he found someone to teach you cobbling. Even when your son took a wife, he was the one who paid and made all the arrangements. And what did you do? You killed him! Have you no conscience at all?”
Tantai Mingzhu wept bitterly.
She had warned him long ago. She had urged her father not to trust a gambler, because gamblers have no humanity.
But Father had said that his parents were dead, and this was his only younger brother—his only brother. As the eldest brother, he was like a father, and could not do wrong by their grandparents.
Tantai Mingzhu beat Dantai Fu like a madwoman. Dantai Fu clutched his head and curled up on the ground. “My lord, this woman has gone mad! She’s assaulting an elder. Hurry and arrest her!”
Even at a time like this, he still refused to repent.
What a schemer. Absolutely shameless.
One of the bailiffs could not stand it any longer. Taking advantage of the moment when no one was looking, he kicked Dantai Fu in the shin, then turned aside and pretended it had been an accident.
Tantai Mingzhu’s blows came in a relentless flurry, leaving Earl of Yuguo no chance to intervene. He glanced at Dantai Fu as if he were already a dead man, then turned to Yan Tongshu. “My lord, did my son die because of this needle?”
“Yes and no.” Yan Tongshu’s voice was steady. “Prince Ning was poisoned with gou poison. It attacks the brain’s nerves, causing chest pain, vomiting, and weakness throughout the body. In the end, the victim suffocates to death when he can no longer breathe.
“The only vomit found in Prince Ning’s room was beside the table where he had eaten his late-night meal. He was lying on his bed with his body stretched out and his expression peaceful, yet there was no vomit beside the bed. This indicates that something interfered with that physiological response after he was poisoned. I also found several dried water stains beside his ear and on his pillow, which led me to suspect that his brain was involved. After conducting a second autopsy, I discovered this needle.
“The needle was inserted through his ear and driven into his brain, damaging the cranial nerves. It would render a person unconscious and kill him within one-fifth of an incense stick’s time, or at most half an hour. The needle accidentally interrupted the nerve reflex that caused him to vomit, but the poison remained in his body. Prince Ning’s autopsy report shows that he died from the poison while unconscious. Thus, the true cause of death was still poisoning.
“When the needle was driven through his ear into his brain, cerebrospinal fluid leaked out, which explains the water stains on Prince Ning’s pillow. By the time the poison took effect, the prince’s entire body had already grown weak, so he was unable to resist and Dantai Fu was able to land the blow with ease. Had that not been the case, given Prince Ning’s martial arts, Dantai Fu could never have struck him so silently and so successfully.”
Yan Tongshu had his men restrain Tantai Mingzhu, who was already exhausted, and hand her over to Fenghe. “Likewise, Dantai Sandao’s doors and windows were shut tight, and the charcoal fire was burning too fiercely. He died from carbon monoxide poisoning, yet he appeared peaceful at the time of death. However, Dantai Sandao had fallen asleep drunk and died from the charcoal fumes. Severe intoxication can stimulate the intestines and induce vomiting.
“Carbon monoxide poisoning can cause the same reaction, but Dantai Sandao’s autopsy report clearly states that his mouth and nose were clean, with no traces of vomit. This means that, just like Prince Ning, his brainstem had been tampered with. Therefore, after questioning Tantai Mingzhu, I ordered the local authorities to reopen the coffin and conduct a second autopsy. They found this shoe-sewing needle inside Dantai Sandao’s brain.”
Earl of Yuguo glared hatefully at the bruised and battered Dantai Fu. At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to take up a blade and personally cut the bastard down.
That was the son of whom he had been so proud.
The heir he himself had chosen.
That bastard had actually been bold enough to raise a hand against the son of the Earl of Yuguo.
This time, even if Dantai Fu died, he would find the man’s corpse and tear it to pieces!
Bang!
The magistrate’s block struck the table, jolting Dantai Fu’s nerves.
Yan Tongshu’s voice was as cold as ice. “Dantai Fu, tell the truth. How exactly did you commit such crimes against Dantai Sandao and Prince Ning?”
“I... I...” Dantai Fu rubbed his face. His bruised and swollen features twisted together, his eyes brimming with tears. The moment he moved, tears streamed down his aged face. He looked old and aggrieved enough that anyone unaware of the truth might even feel a little sorry for him.
Dantai Fu’s voice was muffled, carrying a note of grievance. “Th-that... that needle could have belonged to someone else.”
This shameless old rascal made Yan Tongshu so furious his chest ached. “At the time of Prince Ning’s death, you were the only person who entered his room. Who else could it have been but you? And who else could have come into contact with Dantai Sandao five years ago, then Prince Ning five years later, while also possessing the skill to drive a cobbler’s needle precisely through the ear canal and into the brain? Tantai Mingzhu.”
Tantai Mingzhu raised her head, her gaze clear and cold. “Mingzhu is here.”
Yan Tongshu asked gravely, “Five years ago, on the day your father attended that banquet, was there a cobbler present?”
Tantai Mingzhu answered without hesitation, “No! Dantai Fu was a gambler, a drunkard, a whoremonger, and a man of poor character. Hardly anyone was willing to give him face and attend his granddaughter’s one-month celebration. Including my father and me, there were only twelve guests in total.”
Yan Tongshu asked, “Among those Prince Ning came into contact with in the days before his death, aside from Dantai Fu, was anyone else present at that one-month celebration?”
Tantai Mingzhu replied, “No.”
Yan Tongshu continued, “In the days before Prince Ning’s death, did he have contact with anyone else besides those in this hall?”
Tantai Mingzhu said, “The Prince had been seriously ill, and he also had to copy out the *Tao Te Ching*. He remained in his own courtyard to recuperate. Other than Magistrate Jin and those in this hall, he saw no one else.”
Yan Tongshu gave a court runner a look. The runner brought forward the cloth bag containing Dantai Fu’s cobbling tools and emptied its contents out in full.
Yan Tongshu’s gaze, sharp as a blade, cut into Dantai Fu. “Tell me: where is the missing needle? Why does the needle found inside Prince Ning’s skull bear the same mark as the tools in your set?”
Dantai Fu struggled. “Th-that... that...”
Yan Tongshu could not be bothered wasting words on him. He snapped, “At death’s door, and still trying to evade punishment. Guards!”
Two court runners stepped forward, their voices booming. “At your service!”
Yan Tongshu’s fury broke loose. “Take him away and beat him. Beat him until he tells the truth!”
The two runners turned at once. Water-and-fire staves in hand, they approached Dantai Fu with broad smiles.
They had been waiting a long time for this day.
The old bastard was less than human. First he sold off his granddaughter and ruined his own son; then he murdered his elder brother, who had loved and cared for him, and forced his niece—a respectable young woman—to become a concubine.
Pah! Even calling him a beast would insult beasts.
The runners seized Dantai Fu and dragged him outside. Before long, his wailing cries rang out from beyond the hall.
One after another, like a pig being slaughtered.
“I confess! I confess! Stop hitting me...”
Dantai Fu howled miserably.
The runners dragged him back in. His legs had gone limp beneath him, and tears and snot smeared his face. At last, he stopped being stubborn and stopped trying to shift the blame onto others.
He lay sprawled on the ground, weeping as he recounted the whole story.
It turned out that, before his granddaughter Tantai Hong’s one-month celebration, he had secretly incurred a massive gambling debt without telling anyone in the family.
He had been too afraid to tell them and had no idea what to do.
Then, as luck would have it, Dantai Sandao returned.
His eyes darted back and forth between Dantai Sandao and Tantai Mingzhu.
For the one-month celebration, everyone had to dress properly so as not to appear discourteous. Thus, although Dantai Sandao and Dantai Mingzhu had not dressed ostentatiously that day, their clothes were refined and made of fine, richly textured fabric, while the accessories they wore were understated yet steeped in an old-world elegance.
Dantai Fu could not take his eyes off them. Envy churned in his heart. Why should things be this way? They all bore the Dantai name, so why was Dantai Sandao blessed with such good fortune? He had a capable daughter who knew how to make money, and their lives had suddenly become wealthy and comfortable. And what about him?
He had given birth to a son—the Dantai family’s only male heir—but that son was useless. He could not even compare with Dantai Mingzhu, a worthless girl.
Already miserable, he tried to drown his sorrows in alcohol. Yet he consoled himself with the thought that no matter how capable Dantai Mingzhu was, she was still a woman. Sooner or later, the Dantai family fortune would be handed over to the only male heir of the Dantai family—his son.
Once the money fell into his son’s hands, he could spend as much of it as he pleased.
But just as he was reassuring himself, he overheard Dantai Sandao telling someone that he had already sponsored several promising young men in the capital. He was currently observing their character to decide whom to take as a son-in-law, so that Mingzhu could have several children in the future, all bearing the Dantai name and inheriting the family fortune.
That completely enraged Dantai Fu.
Such an enormous family fortune—and Dantai Sandao would give it neither to his own younger brother nor to his son, but to Dantai Mingzhu, that useless girl?
It was infuriating. Utterly infuriating.
He drained cup after cup of liquor. Emboldened by the alcohol, he followed Dantai Sandao to the bedroom.
Dantai Sandao was lying on the bed, snoring loudly. Dantai Fu pulled out a long shoemaker’s awl.
The needle was actually more like an awl, with a detachable handle.
He aimed it at Dantai Sandao and drowsily searched for a place to strike. He was not clever and knew of only two ways to kill someone: poisoning them with rat poison or attacking them outright. He did not know which parts of the body were most lethal, but he knew that people relied on their heads. Then he thought the ear was a rather concealed spot, and that no one would notice if the needle were driven into it.
So he plunged the needle in with all his strength, then removed the awl’s handle.
It was his first time committing a crime, and fear seized him. The shock sobered him considerably, and he fled in a panic.
In his confusion, he climbed out through the window and closed it from the outside.
The next day, he was completely sober—and even more terrified. He did not dare go outside to face anyone. It was only after he heard that Dantai Sandao had died that he finally breathed a sigh of relief and emerged to offer Dantai Mingzhu false consolation.
He never expected that this wretched girl, Dantai Mingzhu, would be so sharp-eyed. She actually suspected that there was something wrong with Dantai Sandao’s death and even reported it to the authorities.
But those were the authorities! Dantai Fu was terrified.
He waited uneasily, day after day, for some word, but nothing happened. Then, one day, the county magistrate summoned him to the yamen, where he saw Ning Yuan.
Ning Yuan sat in a chair, dressed with elegant, jade-like refinement. Propping his head up with one hand, he studied Dantai Fu with sharp light glinting in his phoenix-shaped eyes.
As he traded words with the county magistrate, Dantai Fu finally pieced together what had happened.
It turned out that day, drunk and muddleheaded, he had entered through the door and escaped through the window. He had shut the window too tightly, causing Dantai Sandao to die of carbon monoxide poisoning.
At the time, Dantai Fu had not realized that, by sheer accident, the needle he had used had put Dantai Sandao into a complete coma. Then, while waiting for death, Dantai Sandao had been poisoned by carbon monoxide. By a twist of fate, it had concealed Dantai Fu’s act of murder.
All he knew was that he had escaped punishment.
The county magistrate told Dantai Fu that Prince Ning had taken a fancy to Tantai Mingzhu and wanted her to become Ning Yuan’s concubine.
As for Dantai Sandao’s modest estate, it meant nothing to people of such standing, so they were willing to give it to him as hush money.
However, after inheriting Dantai Sandao’s property, he could not let Tantai Mingzhu notice anything amiss. He had to make her believe that he, her second uncle, was greedy for the betrothal gifts and had forced her into marriage.
Ning Yuan had repeatedly instructed him that Tantai Mingzhu’s hand had to be crippled, severing any thought she might have of supporting herself.
At this, the Earl of Yuguo could no longer keep his composure. “Lord Yan, Dantai Fu is spewing nothing but lies. You must not believe him.”
Yan Tongshu ignored him and let Dantai Fu continue.
Dantai Fu cried out, “Lord Yan, I’m not lying. Back then, I didn’t understand either why Mingzhu was to be taken as a concubine. I even asked Prince Ning why he did not simply marry Mingzhu properly. Prince Ning looked down on the likes of me and left without answering. Later, the county magistrate gave me a private warning. He said Mingzhu’s status was too low for her to be a prince’s wife, and that only by making her a concubine—by keeping her person under Prince Ning’s control—could they ensure that she would never harbor any disloyal thoughts toward the fortune the Earl of Yuguo’s household would build in the future, and never dare betray the Earl of Yuguo’s estate. I’m just a nobody. If no one had explained such grand reasoning to me, how could I possibly have figured it out myself?”
“Shut your mouth!”
The Earl of Yuguo was Ning Yuan’s biological father. How could he possibly not know the true nature of Ning Yuan’s relationship with Tantai Mingzhu?
Overcome by panic and fury, he lunged at Dantai Fu, wishing he could tear Dantai Fu’s mouth apart on the spot.
But Tantai Mingzhu stood nearby, watching him with an icy gaze.
“Mingzhu, you mustn’t believe that mongrel’s wild nonsense. Think about the life you had in the Earl of Yuguo’s household. How well Yuan'er treated you. It was practically whatever you wanted, you got.” The Earl of Yuguo tried desperately to reassure her. “Every season, whether it was pastries, clothes, or jewelry, when had he ever failed to choose the finest and newest for you?”
