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"How could everything be stolen? Wang Laifu isn't stupid; if he gets robbed once, he won't be careless again. If it happens a second time, how will he face his sister?" Shengzi glanced around and lowered his voice even more. "This time, it's a stroke of good luck!"
"What do you mean? Could it be that this sister has come back to life?" Since experiencing last night's events, Chang Tai's perspective on life and the world had changed. If a Soul-Returning Bell could transform into a person he had been close to for months, then the sudden revival of someone who had died from illness didn't seem so extraordinary.
"Brother Chang, are you alright?" Shengzi kindly placed a hand on Chang Tai's forehead. "You don't have a fever, so why are you talking about such strange things? How could someone who has died come back to life? My concern is Deputy Minister of War Li Tai!"
"How does Wang Laifu's niece relate to the Deputy Minister of War?"
"Isn't that why Wang Laifu is having such good luck?" Shengzi sighed or perhaps was envious, shaking his head several times. "Deputy Minister of War Li Tai has two sons. The elder son, Li Long, is currently serving at the border but has been given a nominal position where he doesn't have to lead troops into battle yet can still claim credit for achievements. His younger son, Li Hu, has been ill since birth and has been kept at home for treatment. He should be around fifteen by now. Previously, Liu Zhanggui from Jishengtang often went to check on him, but after some trouble at Liu's home, they changed doctors. I don't know if it was because that doctor wasn't skilled enough, but shortly after the switch, Li Hu died. After Li Hu's death, the doctor was arrested by the authorities; I imagine Brother Chang can guess the charges were baseless?"
"To add a crime is never hard to find an excuse. Deputy Minister of War Li Tai's reputation and character are indeed lacking, and he is quite stingy." Chang Tai was not unfamiliar with this Vice Minister; in fact, he genuinely disliked him. This man had no real talent but was adept at reading people's expressions and understanding the emperor's intentions, which earned him favor over the years. As for himself, he was just an ordinary Constable in the office; no matter how much he disliked Deputy Minister of War Li Tai, it was merely in his heart. The bureaucracy was dark; all they could do was strive for a little light for ordinary people in this dark world—such as handling cases meticulously to avoid wronging good people while ensuring that bad ones were not let go. "That doctor is likely in grave danger."
"Indeed! Fortunately, Ruyi didn't agree to treat Li Tai's son back then; otherwise, it would have been the girl who faced misfortune today. That doctor has been sentenced to death and will be executed next month."
"Wait a minute! You said Ruyi was fortunate not to agree to treat Li Hu; what’s that about?"
"Brother Chang doesn't know?" Shengzi raised his face and looked at Chang Tai. Seeing that he truly didn't know, he continued: "I thought you were aware of Ruyi's situation."
"Stop wasting time!" Chang Tai tapped Shengzi on the forehead. "Quickly explain what happened!"
"After Liu Zhanggui's family had troubles, they naturally couldn't attend to Li Hu's illness anymore. Although Li Tai isn't a good person, out of consideration for his son, he didn't make things difficult for Liu Zhanggui's family. He only asked Liu Zhanggui to recommend a doctor. Mrs. Liu might have mentioned Ruyi in passing, so Li Tai sent his steward to invite her. And our Ruyi? She was quite fierce; she coldly chased Li Tai's steward away immediately. Her shop sells Rouge and Face Powder; it's not a medical clinic and she doesn't take responsibility for treating patients."
"Li Tai didn't hold it against her?" Chang Tai asked with concern while feeling somewhat guilty because Shengzi knew all these things while he did not. He thought that if he had been able to help Xing Ruyi with everything back then, perhaps there wouldn't be today's Yin Chensi situation. However, such thoughts only flickered through his mind before passing away; he understood that fate cannot be forced.
"How could he not hold it against her? Li Tai deliberately sent one of his concubines to buy Rouge from Ruyi’s shop. Within two days, that concubine died—poisoned—and all evidence pointed towards our Ruyi. At that time, a report was filed with the authorities; however, Brother Chang was out working at that time and wasn't in the capital, so you wouldn't know about these matters."
"What if...?"
"Of course, it's about turning danger into safety!" Shengzi said proudly, with a hint of blind admiration. "Although Ruyi was captured, she didn't show any signs of panic at all. Brother Chang, don't worry; we were just putting on a show and didn't really put her in a difficult position. We all know this was definitely a trap set by Li Tai to frame the girl.
The girl remained calm at that time. Whether her Rouge was problematic or not, she was willing to take responsibility. She just couldn't die without clarity. She wanted to see the scene and personally inspect that box of Rouge. If it really was an issue with the Rouge, she would commit suicide without Li Tai needing to punish her. To be honest, I was sweating bullets back then, but since the girl was fine, we went ahead. And guess what, Brother Chang? The real culprit was found by the girl! It turned out to be the Li Family Concubine fighting for favor!"
"What exactly happened?"
"Brother Chang, don't rush; the following events are quite exciting."
Chang Tai looked anxious, while Shengzi leisurely continued like he was reading a book, showing no urgency at all: "As for Li Tai, he truly is a ruthless character. Just to frame Ruyi, he even involved two of his own concubines in the scheme. We ordinary folks can't compare to such cunning.
Li Tai only has two sons, both born of his wife. One of them is sickly from birth; even with good medical care, he won't amount to much. Moreover, his wife is aging and has lost her beauty over the years; she's been focused on religious practices and doesn't pay much attention to matters in the household. Therefore, the concubines below are secretly competing for favor, all hoping to bear a son or daughter soon to solidify their positions in the household.
Li Tai is well aware of this and took advantage of their jealousy by deliberately arranging for one of them to buy Rouge from Ruyi's shop and emphasized that it was a gift from him. This concubine wasn't very clever either; suddenly receiving such a great benefit, she rushed back to flaunt it in front of others. This sparked jealousy among the other concubines in the household. At that moment, Li Tai subtly fanned the flames and casually reminded them, leading someone to poison this concubine's Rouge.
The poison wasn't anything serious but was deadly for these concubines because it ruined their looks. The concubine who used the Rouge couldn't take it anymore and hanged herself.
On the surface, this Rouge was bought from Ruyi's shop, and since the concubine's face was ruined after using this box of Rouge before she hanged herself, it seemed clear-cut. Furthermore, Li Tai even invited doctors from the Imperial Medical Bureau to examine this box of Rouge and confirmed that it indeed contained toxic substances. If we hadn't unraveled the truth step by step at Ruyi's place, she would have been wrongfully accused. Even if she wasn't charged with poisoning the concubine, just selling toxic Rouge would have been enough to cost her life."
"Did Li Tai admit he was behind this?"
"Of course not," Shengzi frowned slightly. "He only acknowledged that there were indeed instances of concubines vying for favor in his household. However, we found the real culprit; as long as it had nothing to do with Ruyi, no one cared about other matters. After all, offending Lord Li is akin to being haunted by evil spirits. Speaking of being haunted by evil spirits reminds me of something else."
"Is it related to Fox Demon?"
"I'm not entirely sure if there's a connection or not. Brother Chang, you know that Ruyi has medical skills and quite good ones at that. Being played like this by Li Tai might lead her to use some medicine against him or something similar. But that's just speculation without solid evidence; besides, I reckon that incident with Li Tai isn't closely related to the girl."
"Hurry up and tell me what happened!"
"Actually, it's not a big deal. It's just that Li Tai was originally unwilling and wanted to use some underhanded tactics against Ruyi. As a result, he was haunted by the Evil Spirit every night, which left him in a half-dead state, making him unable to deal with the girl at all. Moreover, the Evil Spirit that tormented him was actually the concubine he had schemed against, the one who hanged herself after being disfigured. We don't know the truth of it, but at that time, the Li Family indeed invited monks and Taoists to perform a Ritual. Perhaps because of this incident, after his Son Li Hu died, he thought of arranging a Yin Spouse."
"Yin Spouse?"
"Yes! This Yin Spouse, also known as Yin Marriage or Ghost Marriage, is about finding a spouse for the deceased. Some young men and women did not marry before they died, and the elders believe that if they are not married posthumously, their spirits will cause trouble, leading to unrest in the household. Therefore, it is necessary to hold a Yin Marriage ceremony, selecting an unmarried man and woman of similar age to be buried together as husband and wife, ensuring that these young masters and ladies are not alone underground. Some people also believe that the souls paired through a Ghost Marriage will protect the entire family. Li Tai, being a high official whose son died, emotionally did not want his son to leave alone. Coupled with the previous issue of being haunted by the Evil Spirit, he placed even more importance on arranging a Ghost Marriage for his son."
"So this is why your family, Wang Laifeng, has had good fortune?"
"Exactly! Li Tai initially wanted to find someone from a well-matched family, but during this time, there were not many deceased officials' daughters available. So he lowered his requirements and only asked for an unmarried girl under sixteen years old who was beautiful, preferably recently deceased. Coincidentally, the niece from the Wang Laifeng family perfectly fit this requirement and was chosen."
Shengzi then took out a folded Paper Wrap from his pocket and handed it to Chang Tai. Upon opening it, Chang Tai found a notice with red background and black text detailing exactly what Shengzi had just mentioned—the requirements set by the Li Family for selecting a partner for the Ghost Marriage. The signature at the bottom indeed bore the seal of the Li Family.
"I got this from a certain Matchmaker in the capital. It is said that in order to find the most suitable partner for Li Hu, the Li Family sent this notice to all major matchmakers in town. If someone is selected, there would be a reward of five taels of silver. If any girl from another family is chosen, the Li Family would also follow normal procedures to send gifts. Just think about it, how heavy would be the betrothal gifts for the daughter-in-law of the Deputy Minister of War!"
"So what you mean is?"
"It's not my meaning!" Shengzi waved his hand: "This is something everyone in the capital has been speculating about lately. The Wang Laifeng family first lost their eldest niece, and before she was even buried, her corpse was stolen. Not long after that, another person died right when the Li Family was selecting a partner for their Ghost Marriage. In the end, that person was chosen by the Li Family. When you look at these events together, don't you think it's too much of a coincidence, Brother Chang?"
"It is quite coincidental!" Chang Tai frowned: "It seems we need to visit Sister-in-law Village ourselves."
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