The Lin State Duke's mansion.
Upon hearing the devastating news that Lin Mengzhi had been dumped at the city gates as a corpse, the Lin State Duchess immediately fainted.
The Lin State Duke, who had just risen from his concubine Tao's bed, staggered and fell to the ground upon hearing the news of Lin Mengzhi's death.
After a long while, he recovered, and with Lin Hongtao, went to the city gates to retrieve Lin Mengzhi's body.
The Lin State Duchess, upon regaining consciousness, saw Lin Mengzhi's corpse and fainted again.
Her daughter had dined with them just last night, and in the span of a single night, had become a corpse. Who was the killer, and what malevolent methods did they employ to kill her daughter?
When she awoke again, Lin Zhenfei had already arranged for Lin Mengzhi's memorial hall and had summoned Yan Song, the Grand Minister of Justice.
"Oh, my Zhi'er, you died so tragically, sob..."
The Lin State Duchess wailed by Lin Mengzhi's coffin, on the verge of collapse.
Her daughter had died a terrible death. Before dying, her face was disfigured by scalding, and after death, her clothes were stripped off. She died without any dignity.
At this moment, Lin Zhenfei's expression was also grim. He had few children to begin with, and now he had lost a daughter, and it was his prideful daughter. This was a great blow to him.
"Lord Yan, you must help us find the murderer of my daughter. My Zhi'er died too miserably," the Lin State Duchess said, weeping.
"Madam Lin, please rest assured! This subordinate will do his utmost to bring the killer to justice," Yan Song said, cupping his hands towards Madam Lin.
Immediately thereafter, Yan Song ordered the coroner to perform an autopsy on Lin Mengzhi.
After the coroner finished the autopsy, Yan Song spoke a few words to the Lin State Duke and his wife.
"Lin State Duke, Madam Lin, the dead cannot be brought back to life. Please accept my condolences!"
Afterward, Yan Song immediately left the Lin State Duke's mansion.
At this point, Lin Zhenfan, who had been standing by, slowly spoke, "Zhi'er's death is very peculiar."
As he spoke, the Lin State Duke and his wife both looked up at Lin Zhenfan.
"Second brother, why do you say that?" the Lin State Duke asked curiously.
"I don't know if older brother and sister-in-law have heard the rumors about the Cold King's mansion recently?" Lin Zhenfan deliberately brought up the matter.
"You mean the rumors about the Cold King's bride being abducted by a man in red on their wedding night?" the Lin State Duchess asked.
"That's right."
Lin Zhenfan nodded.
"Then what does this have to do with our Zhi'er? Are you trying to say that Zhi'er spread those rumors?" Lin Zhenfan asked, initially confused, then suddenly realizing.
"Yes, Zhi'er did spread those rumors. Two days ago, I saw Zhi'er sneakily heading south of the city," Lin Zhenfan said.
"Alas, my Zhi'er, how could you be so foolish? To provoke that malevolent god," Madam Lin cried out immediately.
But Lin Zhenfei fell into deep thought after hearing Lin Zhenfan's words.
"Then your implication is that Zhi'er's death is related to the Cold King, his consort, and Ming Jiuxiao?" Lin Zhenfei suddenly realized.
"Highly likely," Lin Zhenfan nodded.
"Alas, how could Zhi'er be so foolish?" Lin Zhenfei slapped his thigh in frustration. Unfortunately, his daughter was already dead, and nothing he said would matter now.
He, Lin Zhenfei, dared not provoke the Cold King or Ming Jiuxiao directly.
"Father, Mother, I also believe that my sister's death is related to the Cold King's consort and that Ming Jiuxiao. Think about how Leng Ruo Li extorted fifty thousand taels of silver notes from us for a trivial matter before. The Cold King's bride being abducted on his wedding night is not only a scandal for the Cold King's mansion but also a disgrace to the imperial family. The Cold King is a man who repays every grievance. If he found out that my sister was the main instigator of the rumors, he would never let her go," Lin Hongtao added fuel to the fire.
Lin Zhenfan was pleased upon hearing this.
Lin Hongtao's words were like divine assistance.
"My lord, I think Tao'er is right. Zhi'er's death must be related to the Cold King's consort," Madam Lin said, her eyes red and swollen.
"Both of you shut up! Even if the Cold King did kill Zhi'er, so what? The matter of the Cold King's bride being abducted on his wedding night is not only a scandal for the Cold King's mansion but also a disgrace to the imperial family. How can such a thing be casually spread around?"
As he spoke, Lin Zhenfei suddenly slapped his thigh with great force.
"So, Zhi'er's death is just going to be let go like this?"
Madam Lin became anxious seeing the Lin State Duke's attitude towards their daughter's death.
"You lunatic! Did I say it would be let go? This revenge must be exacted, but not now. We must take it step by step," Lin Zhenfei's eyes also turned red as he pointed at Madam Lin and yelled.
Thus, the Lin State Duke and his wife began to quarrel in Lin Mengzhi's memorial hall, bickering back and forth.
This continued until Prime Minister Qin and his wife brought Qin Xixue to the Lin State Duke's mansion.
"Elder brother, sister-in-law, my Zhi'er died so tragically!" Madam Lin saw Prime Minister Qin and Madam Qin and broke down crying again.
"Minzhi, I know about Mengzhi's situation," Prime Minister Qin said, patting Madam Lin's shoulder.
"Sob... my life is so bitter. Overnight, I have seen my child die before me." Madam Lin cried again.
"Sister, death is irreversible. You must not cry and harm your health," Madam Qin comforted her.
"Yes, Auntie. Cousin Mengzhi wouldn't want to see you cry so sadly either," Qin Xixue also wiped away a tear and consoled her.
However, Qin Xixue was quite surprised by Lin Mengzhi's death.
...
The Cold King's mansion.
Lin Mengzhi's death was merely a source of amusement to them.
But Lin Mengzhi's death was quickly overshadowed by the rumors she had spread during her lifetime. With the Cold King's pressure on those who spread rumors indiscriminately, the rumors in the capital were brought under control within a few days.
In the afternoon, Leng Ruoli, seeing that Jun Mohan was free today, pulled him to fertilize the crops in the yard.
In ancient times, there was no chemical fertilizer, only manure or plant ash.
However, Jun Mohan found manure smelly, so she had the servants bring two large baskets of plant ash to scatter in the soil.
As soon as they finished, Murong Lichen and Murong Ziyi arrived at Hanchen Garden.
"Senior brother, sister-in-law, we plan to leave the capital tomorrow," Murong Lichen said with a smile.
"Leaving so soon? Why not stay a few more days?" Leng Ruoli looked at him and said.
"No, my father's health has been affected by Murong Qiansong's matter, and I am a bit worried that if I leave, Murong Qiansong's remaining followers will cause trouble again," Murong Lichen sighed.
"Since that's the case, we won't ask you to stay," Leng Ruoli nodded in response.
"Thank you, senior brother and sister-in-law, for saving Ziyi's life. Otherwise, Ziyi would not be alive now," Murong Lichen said with red eyes.
"Alright, what's done is done. It's good that you are alive," Leng Ruoli comforted him.
Afterward, Murong Lichen had Murong Ziyi kneel and kowtow twice to the Cold King and his consort before leaving Hanchen Garden.
But as soon as they left, the Prince of Ji and his wife bid farewell to the Cold King and his consort with Little Sixth.
After chatting for a while, they also left.
"Jun Mohan, let's invite Murong Lichen and the Prince of Ji and his wife and others for a meal tonight to show our sincerity," Leng Ruoli said as she watched the backs of the Prince of Ji and his wife leave.
"Certainly, you arrange it!"
The Cold King nodded in agreement.