The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

Chapter 0812 The Truth Comes Out

After comforting Qiu Shi, Han Jianming returned to the rear courtyard and told Mr Zhao, "Yuxi still treats me the same as before, but I can't shake the feeling that something has changed." He could sense that Yuxi had changed, but he couldn't pinpoint exactly what was different.

Mr Zhao replied, "Although Wangfei intervened in Madam's affair at the time, she certainly was not pleased about it. It is simply that Wangfei's joy and anger do not show in her expression, so you could not see it." Han Jianming could not see it, but he could nevertheless sense it.

Han Jianming smiled bitterly. "Had I known, I should never have hesitated back then. I should have forced the medicine down her throat." He had thought the matter was over, never imagining that Yuxi would actually keep it in her heart.

Mr Zhao paused before saying, "Daren, Gunainai is now Pingxi Wangfei and the one who holds power over the Northwest. She may choose to do something herself, but others cannot force her to do it." Ye Shi's behaviour had clearly been intended to pressure Yuxi into helping her preserve the child. That had violated a great taboo. Pingxi Wangfei held power over the Northwest, and what people in such a position detested most was being forced to do something against their wishes. Since Ye Shi had done this, the Han family would certainly face the consequences.

Han Jianming's expression turned very ugly. "I failed to handle this matter properly." He had not expected the consequences to be so serious either.

Mr Zhao said, "Daren, this child still cannot be kept." Mr Zhao learnt about the matter only afterwards. If it had been up to him, Han Jianming should never have loosened his mouth in the first place.

Han Jianming shook his head. "Since I have already promised Yuxi, I cannot go back on it." He could not allow his words to come out of his mouth only to return to himself again, especially after making the promise in front of Yuxi.

Mr Zhao's expression became somewhat grave.

Han Jianming stated, "This child will not return to the Han family, nor will he bear the Han surname." Allowing him to live was already the greatest concession he would make. Any other hopes Ye Shi harboured were destined to come to nothing.

At the beginning of the second lunar month, Yun Qing went to the horse farm in Tong County again. Yuxi knew his temperament, and since the round trip would take only a few days, she did not try to stop him. She merely reminded him to return early.

On the second evening after Yun Qing left, Jiang Hongfu returned to Haocheng and went to the Yun residence to request an audience with Yuxi. At the time, Yuxi was just preparing to have dinner.

Yuxi was somewhat surprised and asked Xu Wu, "Did he say there was some urgent matter?"

Xu Wu shook his head. "No. But from what I saw, Jiang Daren's expression seemed a bit off. Wangfei, do you want to see him?"

Yuxi nodded. "Take Jiang Daren to the guest room to rest first. I will see him after I have finished dinner." She usually finished her meal in about half an hour.

Meanwhile, Jiang Hongfu settled into the guest quarters with Mr Gao and two attendants.

Mr Gao looked at Jiang Hongfu and said, "Eldest Young Master, even if you ask Han Shi about this, she will never admit it." A few days earlier, their men had discovered that the bandit Yan Xiaoxi had previously worked for a bandit chief named Yang Duoming, who was one of Yuxi's men.

At first, Mr Gao thought the information was incorrect, but after a thorough investigation, he found nothing to suggest otherwise. The reason Mr Gao had never suspected Yang Duoming before was that he had never left the northwest, so it was impossible for him to have formed an enmity with Jiang Hongjin. Yuxi, on the other hand, did have some tenuous connection with Jiang Hongjin.

Jiang Hongfu said, "I must get to the bottom of this. After all, Er Di had neither grievance nor enmity with her. Why would she harm him?" If he did not clarify the matter, he would have no peace of mind.

Mr Gao said helplessly, "Even if you ask her, Pingxi Wangfei won't tell you." Admitting to a crime to the victim's elder brother would be the act of someone extraordinarily foolish.

Jiang Hongfu shook his head. "I must find out the truth." As for why he absolutely needed to know, he could not say it aloud.

The longer Jiang Hongfu stayed in the Northwest, the clearer it became to him that the Imperial Court was incompetent and corrupt. The Imperial Court was beyond saving, whereas the Northwest was filled with hope. His convictions had already begun to waver. He no longer wished to remain neutral; he wanted to stand on Yun Qing and Yuxi's side. But before he could decide, he received this news.

Mr Gao didn't understand why Jiang Hongfu was so stubborn, but his attempts to persuade him were useless. Fortunately, Pingxi Wang thought highly of his biaodi, their Eldest Young Master, so Pingxi Wangfei presumably would not harm him.

Dinner was soon brought in, but because Jiang Hongfu was preoccupied, he had little appetite and drank only a few mouthfuls of soup.

Some time later, a young servant finally approached him and said, "Jiang Daren, Wangfei requests your presence." Most of the young male servants currently serving in the wangfu had been selected from the orphanage or Qingming Hall. They were extremely loyal to the residence and, under ordinary circumstances, could not be bribed.

Entering the study, Jiang Hongfu looked up at Yuxi, who was standing before the desk. She wore a lotus-root-coloured dress and had arranged her hair in a crescent-moon bun, into which she had tucked a jade phoenix hairpin. Her simple attire only accentuated her elegance even more.

Yuxi frowned slightly and asked, "Is there something inappropriate about my appearance?" If Jiang Hongfu's gaze hadn't been perfectly clear and innocent, she would have been angry by now.

Only then did Jiang Hongfu return to his senses. He first bowed to Yuxi, then asked, "Wangfei, may I ask whether you have a subordinate named Yang Duoming?"

Yuxi's heart skipped a beat, but she kept a straight face. She asked, "Whatever you have to say, say it directly. There is no need to turn bends and skirt corners." From the moment Yuxi learnt that Yan Xi had failed to conceal his identity properly, she knew that it would be impossible to keep the matter hidden for long.

Jiang Hongfu looked at the completely composed Yuxi and sighed inwardly. Han Shi's thoughts ran far deeper than those of his Biaoge. Fortunately, he had never thought of setting himself against his Biaoge; otherwise, whether he would still be alive today was itself questionable. Jiang Hongfu said, "I assume Wangfei has heard from Biaoge about what happened to my Er Di. The man who harmed him is named Yan Xi, and he and Yang Duoming are sworn brothers." Yang Duoming's position was actually semi-public; otherwise, Jiang Hongfu's men would not have been able to uncover his identity. Of course, Yuxi had never entrusted him with truly secret matters.

Yuxi asked expressionlessly, "And what of it?"

Jiang Hongfu's expression was ugly as he demanded, "I only want to know why he harmed my Er Di when he had no grievance or enmity with him?"

Yuxi looked at Jiang Hongfu and smiled. "Why go around such a huge circle? What you truly want to ask is why I would harm Jiang Hongjin, isn't it?" Yan Xi and Yang Duoming were so unrelated to Jiang Hongjin that even eight poles could not reach him, whereas she had at least had dealings with Jiang Hongjin before. Since Jiang Hongfu had come straight to her door to question her, he had clearly already decided in his heart that she was the mastermind behind the curtain.

Seeing this, Jiang Hongfu asked, "May I know how my Er Di has offended you so much that you would harm him in such a ruthless way?"

Yuxi replied calmly, "I always thought you were an intelligent man. I never expected you to be a fool as well." Was that not a foolish question? She was indeed the one who had harmed him, but would she admit it? Of course not. Even if Jiang Hongfu had convinced himself of her guilt, he had no evidence. All he had was conjecture.

In all Jiang Hongfu's years, this was the first time anyone had called him a fool.

Yuxi continued indifferently, "It is only for the sake of the ability you possess that I have tolerated you. Otherwise, you would long since have become a pile of yellow earth."

After saying this, Yuxi raised her voice and called, "Xu Wu, come in."

Once Xu Wu entered, Yuxi gestured towards Jiang Hongfu and instructed, "He left his post without authorisation and without being summoned. Drag him out and give him twenty strokes of the board." Twenty strokes would merely make Jiang Hongfu suffer a little without taking his life.

Xu Wu was somewhat surprised, but he quickly nodded. "Yes." With that, he grabbed the red-faced Jiang Hongfu and dragged him straight outside.

After the twenty strokes had been administered, Xu Wu had Jiang Hongfu taken back to the guest room. After some thought, he also sent over some medicine for his injuries. However, it was only ordinary injury medicine; he could not bear to part with the special remedies Master Yang had formulated.

Momo Quan looked at Yuxi and asked, "Why does your expression look so awful?" She didn't know what had happened in the front courtyard.

Yuxi answered, "I had Wangye's cousin, Jiang Daren, flogged." She did not explain the reason.

Momo Quan knew how far she should go and when not to pry. Since Yuxi hadn't volunteered the reason, she wouldn't ask about it herself. "If you had him beaten, then you had him beaten. It is hardly a major matter." Since Yuxi had dared to punish him, she must have had a reason.

Yuxi said, "Momo, I want to be alone for a while." She was not afraid of Jiang Hongfu himself. The crucial point was how Yun Qing would react if he found out. She needed to think carefully about what she ought to do.

Momo Quan nodded and left.

No one knew how much time had passed before Meiyun called from outside, "Wangfei, Guard Xu has sent word that Jiang Daren has awoken."

Hearing this, Yuxi paused, then rose and went to the study. She took a thick copy of the Zizhi Tongjian from the bookshelf and pulled out half a banknote from inside it.

Yuxi swept her gaze across the shelves, casually took down a copy of The Analects of Confucius, slipped the half-banknote inside it, and summoned Meiyun. She handed the book to Meiyun and gave her several instructions.

Meiyun nodded.

When Mr Gao heard that no one else was allowed to remain in the room, he looked at Meiyun warily. Meiyun chuckled lightly. "If my Wangfei wanted Jiang Daren dead, it wouldn't have ended with merely twenty strokes." After serving by Yuxi's side, Meiyun had improved rapidly.

Enduring the pain, Jiang Hongfu said, "Mr Gao, please wait outside. I believe this young lady won't do anything to me."

Meiyun rolled her eyes.

Only after Mr Gao left did Meiyun take out the book and place it before Jiang Hongfu. "Wangfei asked me to give this to you."

Jiang Hongfu's face was filled with confusion. After having beaten him twenty times, she had now sent him a book. He had no idea what sort of mute riddle she was playing.

When Jiang Hongfu opened the book and saw the half-banknote tucked inside, he cried out involuntarily, "How is that possible?" How could this half-banknote be in Han Shi's possession?

Meiyun seemed not to notice Jiang Hongfu's unusual reaction. She said, "Wangfei said that if you want to know the reason, she will naturally tell you once your injuries have healed."

Jiang Hongfu stared fixedly at the half-banknote. Only after a long while did he ask, "Apart from that, did Wangfei say anything else?"

Meiyun shook her head. "Wangfei said that it is enough for you alone to know about this. There is no need to make it known to everyone in the world." With that, she lifted the curtain and walked out.

Mr Gao hurried into the room and saw that Jiang Hongfu now held an additional book, the Analects of Confucius. Mr Gao was puzzled. "What does Han Shi mean by this?"

Jiang Hongfu shook his head and said nothing.