Thousand Dusts Ferry Me - Chapter 20

Yunniang had recovered some of her energy, though her face remained pale. When she heard that her mother-in-law was still ill, she brought Chunxiang with her and carried a bowl of calming soup to visit her mother-in-law.

The old lady of the Fan family, Madam Ding, was forty years old this year. Madam Ding had an elongated face, fair skin, and a short stature. Due to her cold constitution, she always wore a headband, without exception even during the hottest days of summer.

From the age of thirty, she had been a widow for ten years now. Being a young widow afraid of gossip, she rarely went out.

Naturally, she also disliked Yunniang going out.

Knowing her mother-in-law’s disapproval, Yunniang gradually stopped going out as well.

According to Madam Ding’s wishes, it would be best if everyone stayed behind closed doors and lived like wooden blocks.

The maid Yu Ping entered the room carrying a food container, which she opened to reveal a bowl of plain congee and several small dishes.

“Madam, please eat a little,” said Yu Ping as she ordered someone to set up a small table on the bed.

Madam Ding asked, “Where is Erlang?”

“The young master went out to review the accounts. He said it should have been done earlier, but with all the chaos at home, he couldn’t find the time. The shopkeeper has sent many requests. He will likely spend the night at the shop.”

The Fan family owned four silk shops, two spice stores, one medicine shop in Guangling City, and also dealt in the tea business. Their family enterprise was quite substantial.

Fan Erlang wasn’t comfortable leaving everything to the shopkeepers and assistants, so he always handled matters personally and was frequently too busy to get away.

As Madam Ding was eating, the maid Yu Qin entered and said, “Madam, the young madam has come to see you.”

Madam Ding’s hand froze mid-motion while holding her chopsticks. Her hand trembled slightly as she replied, “Tell her I’m sleeping.”

Yu Qin went out to deliver the message, but somehow, after a short while, Yunniang walked straight into the room.

With a clatter, the chopsticks fell from Madam Ding’s hand.

“Mother, I heard you were ill,” Yunniang bent down to pick up the chopsticks and returned them to her, smiling gently. “Are you feeling better now?”

She smiled with soft brows and beautiful eyes, appearing completely innocent, but Madam Ding shuddered as if extremely frightened, and with a pale face said:

“My head feels dizzy. I need to sleep now. Yu Ping, please escort the young madam out.”

Yu Ping quickly agreed, saying, “Young madam, the night is deep and damp. You’ve just recovered from illness yourself. You should rest early.”

Yunniang took the calming soup from Chunxiang’s hand, placed it on the table, and said to Yu Ping:

“You may leave and chat with Chunxiang. I’ll talk with Mother for a while.” As she spoke, she stared into Yu Ping’s eyes.

Yu Ping’s body trembled, then she ignored Madam Ding’s terrified expression and left the room with Chunxiang, one in front of the other.

After they left, Yunniang sat at Madam Ding’s bedside, smiling at her.

Madam Ding shrank back into her bed, laughing nervously, “Now that you’ve seen me, you should go rest.”

Yunniang lowered her head, caressing her tender fingers that resembled spring onions, and said with a melancholy expression, “Mother, I heard you wanted to kill me?”

Madam Ding shook her head repeatedly, “No! How could that be possible!”

“Oh?” Her eyelashes trembled, and she wore a wronged expression that was quite endearing.

As she spoke, she slowly, slowly pulled out a steel needle about the length of a finger from her sleeve, and asked in a coquettish tone, “Really?”

Madam Ding was horrified, her hair standing on end. “Really, I swear!”

Yunniang played with the steel needle, a flash of ruthlessness passing through her eyes. “Then what about those two dog Daoist?”

“I-I-I-I don’t know, I really don’t know!” She was so frightened that she could only stammer denials.

“Mother, you don’t even know how to lie properly.” Yunniang smiled, suddenly grabbed Madam Ding, and stabbed the steel needle into her shoulder!

“Ahh!!!” Madam Ding let out a pig-like scream.

From outside came the sound of maids chatting and laughing; no one heard her scream.

Yunniang pulled out the needle and randomly stabbed her in the abdomen, chest, and back, giggling while she did so.

Madam Ding could only scream in agony. She knelt before Yunniang, begging hoarsely through tears:

“I beg you, please, Yunniang, stop torturing me. I was wrong before. I promise to obey you from now on. Please spare me!”

“Your way of obeying me was to find two Daoists to curse me?”

“I didn’t, I haven’t… don’t kill me, please…”

“Hahaha!” Yunniang suddenly burst into laughter, sounding somewhat deranged. After laughing, she said, “Why would I want to kill you?”

She grabbed Madam Ding’s chin and said with a smile, “How could I bear to kill you? If someone wanted to kill you, I would even protect you. If you died, what would I play with? The screams of an enemy are truly heavenly music, tsk tsk.”

Madam Ding trembled in fear, not daring to speak, hoping her submission would make Yunniang spare her. At this moment, their positions had completely reversed.

Yunniang narrowed her eyes as if thinking of something. “Hmm… if only you had been this tight-lipped with those people.”

“I-I-I-I promise I won’t say anything!”

“What guarantee do you have?”

“I guarantee with my life! If I talk carelessly, you can kill me!”

Pa! Without hesitation, Yunniang gave her a harsh slap, making her face turn sideways and her head buzz.

Yunniang glared with her almond eyes, her pupils frighteningly bright. She said, “I already told you I can’t bear to kill you, yet you still ask me to kill you? Are you trying to make me lose the best toy in the world?!”

“No, no, that’s not what I meant…”

“Let me think.” Yunniang stood up and noticed a small bamboo basket for needlework on the table, with bronze scissors inside.

“This is simple,” Yunniang picked up the scissors. “I’ll cut off your tongue, then you certainly won’t be able to talk!”

She walked toward her with the scissors, smiling.

****

“That night when the two Daoists arrived, our old madam went to find them in the middle of the night after everyone had gone to bed. She only brought one maid, Yu Ping,” Steward Sun said.

Yun Qing asked, “How do you know this so clearly? Did you see it?”

“No… my eldest son is engaged to Yu Ping. She told him herself. A widow knocking on the door of two young men at night—if word got out, it would damage her reputation. That’s why I hadn’t mentioned it before. Please forgive me, fairy maiden.”

Yun Qing gently rubbed her chin with her index finger. “So that’s how it was… but why would she need to do that?” She thought for a moment and asked Steward Sun, “Has your young madam shown any unusual behavior recently?”

“Not that I’ve noticed. Oh… wait, that’s not right.”

“Hmm?”

“A month ago, the old madam said the young madam had stabbed her with a needle. The young master thought this was nonsense, and no one in the household believed her. The old madam only mentioned it once and never spoke of it again.”

They exchanged glances, all forming the same suspicion. This old madam had most likely hired someone to commit murder.

Cheng Suiyan said, “I have a theory.”

Yun Qing knew what he was about to say, as her guess was similar. She raised her hand to interrupt him, “Let’s not discuss this here. Let’s go see the old lady now.”

Steward Sun was startled. “Now? It’s so late, it’s not convenient…”

Fu Xue urgently said, “You’re worried about convenience when lives are at stake? Which is more important, human life or reputation?”

“But…”

“No more ‘buts.’ If your old madam was truly involved in this, that thing won’t spare her. Don’t you believe fairy maden’s words?”

“I believe, I believe,” Steward Sun nodded repeatedly, bowing, “Fairy maiden, I’ll show you the way, and you can go there yourselves.”

****

Yunniang grabbed Madam Ding’s chin, forcing her mouth open. The latter panicked and made muffled cries, desperately trying to pull her tongue back.

Yunniang used the scissors to lift her tongue, and as the cold metal touched the soft tongue, she closed her eyes in despair, tears streaming down her face.

Never in her life had Madam Ding felt such regret. In that moment, her entire life flashed before her eyes.

At home, she had been treated as a “money-losing commodity” for over a decade. After marriage, she was mistreated by her husband’s family. Finally, she had managed to gain some status through her son, and now she couldn’t understand how things had come to this.

Wasn’t life supposed to be that way for everyone? Why had something unexpected happened to her?

Yunniang smiled, “Your tongue is so big, no wonder you’re so noisy. After I cut it off, I’ll stir-fry it into a big plate of sliced tongue. You’ll have to eat it all!” She began to tighten her grip.

Knock, knock, knock. Someone was at the door.

“Old Madam, are you asleep?” It was Yun Qing’s voice.

Yunniang’s expression darkened. She released Madam Ding, put down the scissors, and calmly went to open the door.

Outside stood Yun Qing and her three companions, along with maids who had followed them but had been too slow to announce their arrival.

Yunniang barely glanced at the four people outside, then lowered her head with a blush and asked softly, “Why have the Daoist masters come to my mother-in-law’s bedchamber at night? Is there something urgent?”

“Madam, we have a few questions for your mother-in-law. We’ll leave after asking them. It concerns lives, so please forgive us if we’re being abrupt.”

“Ah? Of course not, please come in.”

They entered the room and saw the old madam with disheveled hair and tear-stained face, lying weakly on the bed.

Yun Qing had never been one to be tactful. She helped Madam Ding sit up and looked into her eyes, saying, “Can you understand what I’m saying right now?”

Madam Ding nodded.

“I’m going to ask you some questions. They concern the lives of dozens of people in the Fan household. Will you answer truthfully?”

She nodded again.

Yun Qing asked, “You hired the Daoists Zhou Shitan and Luo Shuilan to curse and kill someone. Who was it?”

Madam Ding shrank back, her eyes darting around as she shook her head frantically, “I didn’t, I didn’t do anything, I’ve never even met those two people!”

Yun Qing became impatient. She stood up, crossed her arms, and said coldly, “Has anyone ever told you that you’re really bad at lying?”

Jiang Baiyu moved closer to Yun Qing, and a faint lotus fragrance wafted to Yun Qing’s nose.

Jiang Baiyu whispered, “Should we try the Incantation of Truth?”

The Incantation of Truth—the name itself revealed its purpose. Yun Qing raised an eyebrow and glanced at him. “You know it?”

Jiang Baiyu’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. “Yes.”

Yun Qing gave her place to Jiang Baiyu. “Ask quickly.” Then she said to Madam Ding, “He’s about to use the Incantation of Truth on you. When that happens, you won’t be able to hide any of your secrets.”

Madam Ding’s face turned ashen, but she continued to bite her lip.

Jiang Baiyu formed a lotus seal over his chest. His fingers were long and elegant, his movements graceful, making the seal-forming process pleasing to watch.

After completing the seal, he pointed his index finger at Madam Ding’s forehead from a distance, then began to chant the incantation in an extremely soft voice. His pale pink lips moved slightly, like two soft petals trembling in a gentle breeze.

Yun Qing stared for a while, hoping to learn the technique, but his skill was too advanced, and she couldn’t catch a single word.

Madam Ding’s gaze gradually became blank.

After finishing the incantation, Jiang Baiyu asked, “You hired Zhou and Luo to curse and kill someone. Was it to—”

Suddenly, Yun Qing violently raised her arm, sending a gust of wind toward the back of Jiang Baiyu’s head!

Jiang Baiyu raised an eyebrow but didn’t move.

Yun Qing’s hand ultimately stopped at a distance of one finger-width from the back of his head, and between her index and middle fingers, she held a steel needle.

Jiang Baiyu turned around and looked at Yunniang at the door.

“So it was you after all,” Yun Qing said with a cold smile, releasing her fingers. The steel needle fell to the ground.

Yunniang had already lost her former weak and pitiful demeanor. Now her face was cold and stern, her eyes frighteningly dark and bright. Having failed in her attack and been discovered by Yun Qing, she didn’t hesitate for a moment before turning to flee.

All four of them drew their swords. Yun Qing said, “Fu Xue, watch over the old madam.”

“Senior sister, don’t worry!”

The three of them gave chase, causing the maids to scatter and scream in fear.

As he ran, Cheng Suiyan summoned his magical treasure.

“Brows like distant mist, eyes holding frost, Graceful jade steps shine in flowing light. If only the beauty would grant a lasting smile, I’d forsake Penglai’s elixir of immortality—appear!”

A beautiful woman in colorful clothes, carrying a flower basket, appeared floating in mid-air. Cheng Suiyan pointed at Yunniang. “Catch her!”

However, the beautiful woman in colorful clothes stared blankly ahead, unmoved.

Cheng Suiyan said irritably, “Big sister, what’s wrong with you now?!”

Yun Qing heard the sound behind her, turned to look, and then tried addressing the stunned beautiful woman in the air. “Catch her!” She said, pointing at Yunniang.

Whoosh!

The beautiful woman flew toward Yunniang like an arrow.

Cheng Suiyan was momentarily stunned, then chased after them, grumbling sourly, “Just whose magic treasure are you?!”