The Battle of the Noble Ladies (Book 2)

Chapter 71 - Overturning

In early December, every household began bringing out large vats to brew glutinous rice wine. The air was filled with the aroma of burning wheat straw mixed with the fragrance of sticky rice, wrapping everyone's good spirits in a mist of joyful anticipation.

But on this street, people seemed to have heard some kind of news. For some reason, they all abandoned their tasks, leaving the wine vats by the riverside and quickly flocking toward the growing crowd.

Some curious patrons in the nearby teahouses and restaurants leaned out to look, puzzled. "Hey, hey, what's going on? Brewing rice wine is as important to our Qingzhou as celebrating the New Year—why are people suddenly acting so mysterious?"

A waiter came up to refill their tea, glanced at them with a smile, and, with his towel slung over his shoulder, joined the conversation. "Ah, you gentlemen must've just returned from afar and haven't heard! A major event happened in our city! These people are all rushing off to see the spectacle. If my monthly wages weren't waiting for me at home, I'd have gone too! This is something you don't hear of every day!"

The young men in fine clothes exchanged glances, intrigued. One of them chuckled, "Oh? Then tell us about it. What kind of big news has come up?"

The waiter smacked his lips, thrilled to have an excuse to linger, and eagerly leaned closer, speaking with enthusiasm. "You wouldn't believe it! Our Qingzhou magistrate, that esteemed official, actually allowed his concubine to murder his first wife! And that's not all—he conspired with a shaman to burn his own daughter alive..."

The group fell silent, their expressions a mix of disbelief and skepticism, as they glanced down at the crowd below—sure enough, they were all headed for the magistrate's office.

"Yantang..." murmured a delicate-looking young man in red robes, frowning as he looked at a refined and graceful young man beside him. "Weren't you saying you came here to visit your aunt?"

Guo Yantang stood up in disbelief, leaning out the window to catch a better look before suppressing his anger and sitting back down. He turned to the hesitant waiter and questioned, "Are you making up a story?! The magistrate's wife comes from a prominent family; how could a mere concubine be bold enough to harm her?"

The waiter's face flushed under his accusatory gaze, and he replied excitedly, "My lord, I wouldn't risk my life to spread rumors about an official if this weren't true! Do you see the crowds today? They're all here to watch the drama. People have even come from neighboring counties just to witness it! And yes, it's true—the magistrate even tried to kill his daughter to cover it up, but he was a step too late, and the first wife's family saved her. They reported it to the governor, who has already arrested the magistrate!"

Guo Yantang couldn't quite place his emotions. Last year, when he'd visited, Song Linlang had been alive and well...

Picking up on the critical detail, he asked with a cold expression, "The Song family has arrived?"

If the Song family had come, then the matter of Song Linlang's death was likely true. He hadn't expected Xiang Yunzhang, whom his mother had always looked down on, to actually be audacious enough to indulge his concubine over his wife and, worse, poison his first wife.

The waiter nodded, looking somewhat sorrowful. "Exactly. It's tragic that such an esteemed family couldn't even protect their own daughter; I heard the old matriarch has fallen ill from the stress..."

Meanwhile, the "ill" Old Lady Song sat calmly on her couch, her face stern as she listened to the commotion outside. She sneered, "Public opinion can be as strong as iron and can crush even bones. Xiang Yunzhang's career has come to an end."

As Song Chuyi cracked walnuts with a small hammer to prepare walnut paste, a wry smile tugged at her lips. "Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it. Even the emperor is mindful of public sentiment; how could a mere magistrate escape it? He's reached a point of utter condemnation—now, even Heaven itself won't be able to protect him."

Old Lady Song, watching Song Chuyi intently as she cracked the walnuts, felt a strange sense of bitterness fade away slightly. She touched Song Chuyi's head and sighed, "Thanks to you, we didn't even need to lift a finger to win this battle of public opinion. Xiang Yunzhang's reputation is ruined."

"That part isn't so important," Song Chuyi replied, shaking her head. "Even without public outrage and a bad reputation, you and Uncle Li could deal with Magistrate Xiang. After all, he's been in office for years; there's no way his record is spotless—even if he wanted it to be, I doubt his concubine or mother would have let him. What truly matters is that, after this public scandal, there's no excuse for the Xiang family to keep our cousin."

Before, no matter what, Xiang Mingzi still bore the Xiang surname, and the Song family, for all its strength, couldn't override family ethics and propriety. But now everyone knows what kind of family the Xiangs are—poisoning the first wife for a concubine, attempting to burn the legitimate daughter to protect a son from a concubine. Such a family has no right to continue raising Xiang Mingzi.

Moreover, there are rumors circulating that the concubine killed the first wife under Lady Xiang's orders—she's been dissatisfied with the first wife's childlessness for years and was already eyeing potential replacements.

And when Third Master retrieved Song Linlang's body, a large crowd witnessed the scene, with him weeping bitterly, making it truly poignant...

With Miss Xiang still in such a depraved family, many people are hoping the Song family will take her away.

Old Lady Song sat there, lost in thought, and didn't speak for a long time.

When Song Chuyi had finished separating the walnut kernels and placed them on a fine white porcelain dish, Old Lady Song finally came to herself and nodded.

Song Chuyi adjusted the blanket over her before turning to leave, but Old Lady Song called her back, hesitating for a moment. "Xiao Yi, did you suspect something?"

Song Chuyi stopped, turned back to look at Old Lady Song, and, after a moment's thought, pressed her lips together and nodded. "After Aunt Li helped us find Yunhe and the others, I saw you kept Nanny Wang and Nanny Zheng behind for a while. Not long after, Third Uncle went to retrieve Aunt's remains, and that's when I began to suspect..."

Old Lady Song let out a bitter laugh, feeling there was no one else she could confide in—she couldn't hold this in until she could speak to Old Master Song back home. She sighed heavily and said, "She calculated our arrival down to the hour and took the poison herself..."

Song Linlang, who had once revered Xiang Yunzhang and the Xiang family as her world, had finally dealt a devastating blow to Xiang Yunzhang just before her death—a blow that would ensure his ruin, leaving him no hope of redemption.