flstandardbreds Chapter 238 Death of Cousin (1)
Chapter 238 Death of Cousin (1)
Ning Ning rode his horse at full speed into the city and headed straight for the residence of the prefect of Meizhou City.
He was on a trip to handle a case and to visit his uncle Ning Shen, who was the prefect of Meizhou.
Although he was his uncle, when they lived together in the early years, Ning Shen went out early and came back late, busy with official duties, while Yuan Shen studied in the private school at home.
Later, Ning Shen was exiled to Meizhou, and his original self also embarked on an official career, and the two had not seen each other for many years.
In fact, compared with his uncle, the original body was more familiar with his cousin Ning Waner. After all, they both studied in a private school.
Ning Ning arrived at the prefect's residence, and the housekeeper let him in with a smile on his face, "The master was still talking about it this morning, and it's a coincidence that you're here. The master has ordered that he is practicing Zen with Master Lu Ji, so please go straight over when you come."
He led Ning Ning to the hall, and sure enough, Ning Shen was discussing scriptures with a monk. When he saw Ning Ning, he smiled, accepted Ning Ning's greeting, and then exchanged a few words of greeting.
During the conversation, Ning Shen kept wiping his hands with a snow-white handkerchief. He also introduced Ning Ning that this was Master Liaoji, a famous and enlightened monk who was staying here temporarily to preach.
Le Ji looked solemn, but there were dark circles under his eyes, as if he had not rested well.
Ning Shen asked Ning Ning to wait for a moment, "Wan'er also kept saying that she wanted to talk to you again. She got up early to greet me and then went to the pavilion in the garden to enjoy the cool air. Xiaojuan, go and ask the young lady to come over."
The last sentence was a command to the little maid. Sure enough, a clear voice answered and the maid went forward to take the order.
While waiting, Ning Shen asked Ning Ning to listen together. The master's Buddhist teachings were profound and Wan'er also liked listening to them.
Leji said a few humble words and continued the previous topic. Not long after talking, Xiaojuan suddenly ran over in a hurry, "Master, it's bad, something happened to the young lady!"
Ning Shen stood up and said, "How come something happened just after we greeted each other? Come on, let's go and take a look!"
We hurried to the garden, which was filled with the fragrance of flowers but also had an eerie tranquility.
When I walked into the pavilion, I saw Ning Wan'er with a purple face and disheveled hair. She was placed on the couch in the pavilion. There was a circle of marks on her neck and she was no longer breathing!
There were nooses hanging in the pavilion, and everything was in a mess. An incense burner was kicked over to the ground, and some ash spilled out.
Ning Shen beat his chest and burst into tears.
Ning Ning touched his chest. His heart was shaking violently just now. Those were the emotions left by his original body.
Liao Ji put his hands together, closed his eyes and chanted scriptures, I don’t know if he was chanting the mantra for rebirth.
He calmed his thoughts and walked to Xiaojuan, "Miss Xiaojuan, what did you see just now?"
Xiaojuan's voice was choked with sobs. "I, I came to look for the young lady, but I saw her hanging in a noose. I called for someone to help her put her down, but she was already dead, wuwu..."
"Do you know when Wan'er hanged herself?"
Xiao Juan shook her head. "The young lady was in a bad mood today. After paying her respects, she said she wanted to go to the pavilion to relax. When she got to the pavilion, she told me to light some incense and then walk around by myself. She wanted to be alone."
Ning Shen seemed to suddenly remember something, wiped his tears and said, "Quick, pick up the incense ash on the ground. This is Wan'er's favorite incense, she would light it wherever she went, and this burner can burn for two hours. Since Wan'er lit the incense after arriving at the pavilion, and she knocked over the incense burner when she was struggling before dying, we only need to see how much incense ash is left, and we will know when Wan'er died."
Ning Ning nodded, and joined everyone in picking up the incense. When they put everything back, only half of the ashes were left. It was obvious that Ning Wan'er hanged herself an hour after paying her respects. The maid was not with her at the time, and she was the only one in the pavilion.
Ning Shen said tremblingly, "Wan'er has been in a bad mood recently. I didn't expect that she would commit suicide. It's really a misfortune for our family. An Ning, what are you doing?"
Ning Ning kept moving her hands and continued to check the scars. "I don't think Wan'er committed suicide. If someone hangs himself, the wound will only be strangled in front of the neck. How could there be a circle of strangulation marks? I guess someone sneaked in and strangled her to death when she was not paying attention, and then hung her on the noose to make it look like she committed suicide."
Ning Shen's eyes widened. "Wan'er has always been kind to others. Who would harm her?"
Xiao Juan suddenly realized, "I saw Song Wenjie looking over here suspiciously. Could it be that he killed the young lady?"
"Shut up, what nonsense are you talking about in front of the guests!"
Ning Shen shouted angrily, scaring her so much that she quickly lowered her head, shut up, and took a few steps back.
Ning Ning tried to persuade him, "Uncle, how could I be a guest? The most important thing right now is to find out the truth. Who is this Song Wenjie?"
"Oh, he's just a lunatic. He has nothing to do with Wan'er. Alas, such a big thing happened at home. Wan'er's body can't be left like this forever. We have to find someone to bury it. As for reporting to the police, your uncle is an official and knows what to do. Ah Ning, your uncle can only apologize for not entertaining you well. You have come a long way. Go to the guest room and get some rest first."
Ning Shen looked like he didn't want to say more, and called the housekeeper to take Ning Ning to the guest room.
On the way, Ning Ning searched her original body's memory and found out that Ning Shen had mysophobia.
It seems that this problem has become more serious. Not only did he keep wiping his hands, but even when his daughter died, he did not go close to take a look.
Ning Ning seemed to be really tired on the journey. When she returned to her room, she asked someone to fetch her some water for a bath and then had dinner.
At this time, Ning Wan'er's mourning hall had been set up. He went to the hall to pay his respects, said a few words to comfort Ning Shen, and went back to rest early.
At three o'clock in the morning, the mourning hall was silent. Ning Shen was old, and after crying for a while, he was persuaded to go back by the housekeeper, who said that they were worried about his health and suggested that he go back to his room and rest early. Xiaojuan was arranged to keep vigil tonight.
Ning Shen might be too sad, and Ning Wan'er was an unmarried daughter who died at home, which was not auspicious. Ning Shen might feel it would be embarrassing to tell others about it, so the arrangements for the funeral were very simple. He actually just became a hands-off boss and let the housekeeper arrange it.
The housekeeper only let Xiaojuan keep vigil. Even though she was very close to Ning Wan'er when she was alive, Xiaojuan couldn't help feeling uneasy watching her alone in the mourning hall guarding the coffin, with the night wind blowing and the candlelight flickering.
She knelt in front of the coffin, burning paper money and saying, "Miss, you died tragically. It must have been that Song who killed you. The master was concerned about his reputation and wanted to cover it up. I am a nobody, so I can only burn more paper money for you."
She was crying and fiddling with the brazier, when suddenly a voice came over, "Who said you are insignificant? I really want to hear what you have to say."
"Ah! Ghost--Ugh!"
Xiaojuan was startled and screamed, but was held down. "Xiaojuan, don't be afraid, it's me."
"Oh, it's Master Ning. Why are you here at this time?"
"Only by coming here now can we find out the truth. What do you know? You are Wan'er's personal maid. Can you bear to watch her die in vain?"
"This……"
Xiaojuan avoided eyes and stammered.
"Since Miss Xiaojuan refuses to speak, I won't make it difficult for you. However, Wan'er is my cousin, and I can't watch her die in vain. I can only send you to the authorities and accuse you of knowing the truth but not reporting it."
"No, no, I'll tell you everything."
Xiaojuan said that Song Wenjie was a famous talent here, and his ancestors had served as officials, but unfortunately they had fallen on hard times.
Ning Shen asked him to teach Ning Wan'er poetry and literature, and who knew that after a long time, the two of them fell in love with each other.
Song Wenjie proposed to Ning Shen, but Ning Shen was very unhappy and said that they were master and disciple and could not get married.
He also hinted that although the Ning family abided by the rules, if they got married, someone might suspect that they had secretly engaged before the marriage, which would be detrimental to the Ning family's reputation, so they absolutely could not get married, and he also asked Song Wenjie not to visit them in the future.
But Ning Wan'er and Song Wenjie are in love with each other, how can they let go so easily?
They agreed to meet privately in the evening to discuss how to persuade Ning Shen to agree.
They had met privately several times before, and Xiaojuan was always with them.
These two people were indeed polite. When they met, they only said some kind words and did not do anything excessive.
Unexpectedly, this time Song Wenjie took advantage of the darkness of the night and knocked Xiaojuan unconscious. Then, regardless of her struggle, he covered Ning Waner's mouth and treated her rudely, saying, "It's a done deal now. I'm not afraid of your father's objection."