After the cannon fodder father and daughter married into the family, the whole family regretted it

Chapter 937 Those Things

The disaster relief efforts took twelve days to complete, and Qin Yan returned to the capital noticeably thinner.

There was no other way; it was freezing cold, and all we ate was dry rations, roasted until they were parched, so we didn't have much of an appetite. As for sleeping, we rented a usable house in the village, but it needed repairs.

Qin Yan even had to do it himself once, because there was no other way; two houses in that village were destroyed by a snowstorm.

The elderly couple was struck by a falling roof beam and died instantly. They had three grandchildren; their son had died young, and their daughter-in-law had remarried two years ago.

The three children, the oldest is only twelve years old, still a teenager.

The other house collapsed, but no one died. It belonged to a widow who was bedridden with six children, three of whom were her own children, and the other three were her brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law.

The oldest among them was only fourteen years old.

Qin Yan naturally had more to worry about.

When he returned to the capital, he learned that Princess Mingzhu had been poisoned by a strange poison.

The imperial physicians were unable to find a cure, so it was Old Master Zhou who stepped in.

It's a long, poisonous herb unique to the Northwest region, called "Hundred-Day Intoxication." Those poisoned will feel their bodies gradually losing control over a hundred days, until finally their entire body is filled with toxins, and they die.

More than poison, this poison is used to torture people.

If it weren't for the fact that Old Zhou had traveled extensively during his youth and happened to see such a person, he wouldn't have been able to cure the poison.

Fang Nanzhi assisted in the work and also gained experience.

However, the toxins still affected the Grand Princess, and she is now paralyzed from the waist down and will need time to recover.

It's worth mentioning that the Grand Princess's poisoning was traced back to Yao Xin.

The poisonous herb was juiced and used to soak a jade thumb ring.

That jade thumb ring was a token of betrothal between the Grand Princess and Chen Zijun.

Over the years, outsiders have never seen it, but in private, Princess Mingzhu always can't help but take it out to reminisce about the past.

Not many people know about this.

Granny Wen happened to be one of them.

After Granny Wen was arrested, Grand Princess Mingzhu disposed of all of her close associates, but unexpectedly, her frequently used items were tampered with.

Knowing she was doomed, Granny Wen confessed the truth, but still wanted to fight for her descendants' lives.

They found Yao Xin.

After Zhu Guanfeng had obtained the confession and the official's letter, and was preparing to make a thorough arrest, he discovered that Yao Xin had committed suicide in the study.

Yao Xin attempted suicide by hanging, but fortunately Zhu Guanfeng arrived just in time and saved her life.

But after Yao Xin was rescued, she remained silent, and the other party did not care whether she was tortured or coaxed.

He was determined to die and no longer cared about anything.

Zhu Guanfeng invited Wan Sheng and Fang Nanzhi to see him, hoping to get him to talk.

Yao Xin didn't give him any chance at all, acting like a wooden puppet and refusing to say anything.

However, during this time, Zhu Guanfeng discovered something else.

Yao Xin is like a rock in a latrine, smelly and hard, but Yao Shi is not.

Zhu Guanfeng investigated the Yao family and discovered the problem: the Yao family patriarch had two sons. The younger son died a few years ago, and the eldest son was raised as the heir.

The eldest son was born out of wedlock; yes, that's Yao Chengwen.

The other party was arrested by the Ministry of Justice and charged with instigating Chen Yong to falsely accuse the Grand Princess.

In other words, Chief Yao has no successor.

Zhu Guanfeng made two trips to Yao's residence in the capital before discovering how lively it was.

The two young masters of the main branch are either dead or arrested, and Chief Yao is no longer young, and is even bedridden, so it is impossible for him to have any more sons.

The future young master of the Yao family would have to be adopted from within the clan.

Many people from each branch came, ostensibly to visit the clan chief, but actually to have their children adopted into his family.

The clan leader, who was already in poor health, was so angry that he fainted and was diagnosed with a stroke. He was even drooling when he spoke.

The Yao clan members refused to leave and wanted to continue taking care of their clan leader.

From an outsider's perspective, Zhu Guanfeng would easily be taken care of by Chief Yao if he were to stay for another ten days or half a month.

These are irrelevant to the case.

What caught Zhu Guanfeng's attention was that, through probing, he learned that Chief Yao had previously favored his youngest son.

After all, he was born of the legitimate wife, and the legitimate wife was respected.

Unfortunately, the youngest son died young. While hunting, he encountered bandits and, in his panic, fell to his death.

With the youngest son gone, Chief Yao could only raise his eldest son. He was very strict with his eldest son and found fault with him in every way, but fortunately, the eldest son was steady and had gained the approval of the clan.

Yao Chengwen was able to gain a foothold thanks to Yao Xin's help.

The other party was incredibly intelligent, almost supernatural, and kept giving Yao Chengwen advice and strategies.

Zhu Guanfeng felt that something was wrong. Yao Xin's blindness was caused by a fall from a height.

Do the Yao family members just love to fall from the sky from time to time?

They spent some more money to send someone to inquire with the servants of the Yao family.

When Yao Xin was young, he was humiliated by Yao Chengye, the second son of the Yao clan chief.

Yao Chengye once forced Yao Xin to take off his clothes in public to prove his innocence and that he had not cheated on the exam.

If Yao Xinruo didn't agree, her servants would use force.

Yao Xin complied with the order despite the humiliation. Even though he didn't cheat on the clan school exam, he still lost his integrity and reputation and was looked down upon by many.

Later, Yao Xin passed the imperial examination and was given an important position, after which the clan began to work hard to repair their relationship with him.

Yao Chengye went from being arrogant to being obsequious, and only after he took the initiative to back down did Yao Xin's relationship with the clan improve.

In other words, the two have a deep-seated grudge.

Knowing all this, Zhu Guanfeng went to see Yao Chengwen once, and through trickery, coercion, and enticement, learned more about the matter.

For example, Yao Chengwen and Yao Xin's collaboration did not begin after Yao Chengye's death.

It started a long time ago.

They share a common enemy, and the humiliation they suffered in their youth is not something they can easily forget.

Yao Xin helped him seize power, and he helped Yao Xin do things that were inconvenient for her to do in public.

It's hard to say who's at a disadvantage. Yao Chengwen knows that he's born out of wedlock, and if he can't show more talent, he won't be able to become the next clan leader even if Yao Chengye dies.

"So you killed Yao Chengye?" Zhu Guanfeng suddenly asked.

Yao Chengwen's expression changed: "Lord Zhu, please be careful with your words."

Zhu Guanfeng sat cross-legged opposite him, a smile playing on his lips: "You should know why you're here, right?"

“You were tricked by Yao Xin into taking the blame, but I don’t see any anger in you. You seem to be doing it willingly.”

Yao Chengwen lowered his eyes and pretended to be stupid.

"I don't know what Lord Zhu is talking about."

"But who would willingly take the blame for someone else? Unless it's a relative or a close friend. Although you all share the surname Yao, you probably weren't familiar with each other before Yao Xin became an official, right?"

"There wasn't much talk about family ties, only an exchange of interests, so I'm guessing, is there some kind of leverage you have that makes you willing to sit in this jail?"

"What kind of leverage could it be? It's really hard to guess. Could it be related to your brother's death?"

Zhu Guanfeng stared intently at his face, not missing a single change in his expression.

Yao Chengwen's forehead was already covered in cold sweat, but he gritted his teeth and remained silent.

"It must be tough being a son of a concubine, especially in a large family."

"Although he was the eldest son, he was looked down upon because his mother was a concubine. He did not receive his father's love, and even the few times he saw his father, he was scolded."

“Servants are all opportunists. If your father doesn’t value you, they’ll just treat you perfunctorily.”

"But your younger brother, who was born a few years later, was different. From the moment he was born, he received his father's love, a noble status, and the flattery of the clan."

"Even if you study hard and are better than your younger brother in everything, you still can't get a second glance from your father. Oh no, you might even be scolded for showing off and bullying your younger brother?"

"This must feel terrible, right?"

Zhu Guanfeng's questions, word by word, seemed to resonate deep within his heart.

Yao Chengwen's face was deathly pale, his fists clenched tightly, yet he still feigned innocence.

"Lord Zhu, you're mistaken. My brother and I have an excellent relationship."

"Ha, how so? You've been trying to please everyone, carefully agreeing with everything, and you've probably thought that if you took good care of your younger brother, you'd earn Father's favor, haven't you?"

"It's a pity your younger brother isn't a good one. He's an illegitimate son, and in his heart, he's no different from a servant."

"He never acknowledged you as his brother, treating you like a nobody. Did your father see all this, but never said anything?"

"Ugh, having a younger brother is so annoying, especially a legitimate brother. Why does he get everything so easily?"

"If we lose this younger brother, won't the power of the Yao family and Father's attention fall into your hands? Hmm?"

Zhu Guanfeng patiently guided him, a hint of sarcasm deliberately appearing in his eyes.

Yao Chengwen's tightly clenched fists were bulging with veins, and his body was trembling, whether from anger or excitement, it was hard to tell.

Suddenly, he looked up.

"Correct!"

“Yao Chengye, he shouldn’t have been born. When I was a child, I was also raised by my stepmother, who treated me very kindly.”

“But ever since Yao Chengye came into my life, I have been sent back to my birth mother.”

“My legal mother was a woman from the Cui family, of respectable status, with a generous dowry, while my birth mother was just a merchant’s daughter, she could give me nothing.”

“From then on, Yao Chengye was the only one in his mother’s heart. Even his arrogant father would spoil him.”

“They are all descendants of the Yao family, so why should they be? I am the eldest son, so everything should belong to me.”

"Yao Chengye was raised to be a hopeless case, neither good at literature nor martial arts. The clan had a lot of complaints about him. Some people suggested that Father should make me the young master. Afterwards, Father would find a reason to beat me with thirty strokes of the cane."

"When I was recuperating in the ancestral hall with my injuries, Yao Chengye's father personally took him to visit a famous teacher."

"Isn't Yao Chengye deserving of death? He stole what was mine, and I'll find a way to get it back."

"When he was dying, he cried so hard. For the first time, he willingly called me 'Big Brother' and called me that affectionately. I miss that very much."

Yao Chengwen revealed a strange smile.

Zhu Guanfeng felt that he was seriously ill.

On one hand, she resents the ruthlessness of her biological father and stepmother, and the coldness of her younger brother; on the other hand, she desperately craves their approval.

That's really pretty perverted.

But Zhu Guanfeng didn't want to delve into the ugliness of human nature; he was there to judge the case.

He struck while the iron was hot.

"Was it Yao Xin who suggested killing Yao Chengye? And the hunting grounds were meticulously planned, weren't they?"

Yao Chengwen lifted his eyelids and glanced at him: "Does Lord Zhu also look down on me? Does he think that without Yao Xin, I am nothing?"

Zhu Guanfeng raised an eyebrow. When did he say something like that?

But clearly, Yao Chengwen had completely lost his mind and wouldn't listen to his explanations.

His eyes were red-rimmed, and his face was full of excitement, anxiety, and agitation.

“I killed him. I knew he liked hunting and spring outings, so I tried to let him know that there was prey on Wushan Mountain.”

"First, I used a tiger to lure away all his guards, and then I led him to escape, which was actually suicide."

"The plan was so perfect that the guards can testify that tigers were present."

"When we were found, we had fallen off a cliff together, but my younger brother had his heart cut by a tree branch, while I was seriously injured and unconscious."

“When my younger brother was buried, my stepmother cried until she fainted. I was seriously injured and took care of her. I told her that I would take care of her in place of my brother in the future. My stepmother was deeply moved.”

“My father didn’t doubt me. After I was busy with the funeral and fainted three times, my father came to me and was willing to do his best to train me.”

Yao Chengwen seemed to have returned to that time, and a mix of emotions welled up in his heart, including secret joy, trepidation, nervousness, and relief.

Zhu Guanfeng looked at his excited, flushed face and asked only one question.

"Then why was it a fall off a cliff?"

Yao Chengwen grinned.

"Lord Zhu, do you really want something from me to convict Yao Xin? Unfortunately, you'll be disappointed; it was just an accident."

He just hadn't found another opportunity.

Zhu Guanfeng stared at him for a long time.

“After you went to prison, your family sent people to make arrangements. Once it was your stepmother and once it was your father. From this perspective, you may have really achieved your goal.”

After saying that, he stood up and left the prison.

A burst of violent laughter came from behind him. Yao Chengwen laughed so hard he was doubled over, tears streaming down his face, until his whole body was convulsing.

I don't know if he was happy or regretful.

Zhu Guanfeng could tell that Yao Chengwen wasn't lying; he seemed quite pleased with himself for personally murdering Yao Chengye.

His tone was full of pride.

However, sometimes the truth is not simply what the person involved tells.

Zhu Guanfeng thought Yao Chengwen was crazy, but he wasn't quite right in the head.

How could a bastard son, who was bullied and powerless in the clan, possibly scheme against the noble and privileged eldest son?

Yao Xin could use him as if it were an easy thing to do.

What convinced him even more was that the people he had sent out of the capital earlier had returned.

These people went to the place where Yao Xin used to work to investigate why Yao Xin fell off the cliff and why she lost her sight.

There has indeed been progress.

Yao Xin, a member of a collateral branch, became successful and overshadowed all the other members of the Yao family.

Yao Chengye, in particular, was arrogant and considered himself the next clan leader, unwilling to be overshadowed by others.

Moreover, his father often told him to learn from Yao Xin and to be more ambitious.

Yao Chengye was unconvinced. He pretended to be on good terms with Yao Xin, but behind her back he did a lot of dirty tricks.

The fall off the cliff was orchestrated by Yao Chengye; it was a pre-arranged accident. Unfortunately, Yao was lucky enough to survive.

Yao Chengye hadn't cleaned up his messes beforehand, and Yao Xin quickly found out.

But at that time, he was already blind, had lost his official position, and had no value to the clan. He was no match for the legitimate son.

Therefore, Yao Xin didn't cause any trouble at all.

He gave up on himself, traveling and sightseeing, seemingly having completely abandoned everything.

This put Yao Chengye at ease. He even felt that it was good that he hadn't killed Yao Xin. Seeing the once-proud son of heaven living a wretched life was a kind of happiness.

In other words, the feud between Yao Xin and Yao Chengye went beyond their youthful days, including an attempted murder.