Fall in love with your enemy

Continuing from the last time, Cheng Ling suddenly jumped out. It was really because I was soft-hearted and did a good thing. The southwest courtyard is very far away and she is usually not allowed to come out. But yesterday was my grandfather's death anniversary, so I asked her to burn incense and see Yangyang from afar. When she went back, it was too late and she ran into me and Bian Yuanhu.

But I really don't know who gave her such courage. It's not enough to prove my innocence, she actually dared to say such things in front of the whole family. The third room is fine, the third grandmother and the younger uncle don't care, the second grandmother is too old to make any more trouble, but the second uncle is still staring at me. Is she trying to kill herself?

Besides this, there is also Zheng Lin's fake matter. I know everything she said. I did think about asking her before. After all, what happened back then was what Old Master refused to tell me. Cheng Ling is familiar with both of them and may know them, but it's hard to tell when. Now mentioning that sword tip is almost like poking the second wife in the head...

I sighed. I couldn't bear to sacrifice Cheng Ling, so I had no choice but to pretend to be sad: "Cheng Ling, this has nothing to do with what happened today. Please tell me in private. I understand your painstaking efforts, but don't say some things that are too extreme."

"It's related." Cheng Ling choked up and took a deep breath, still unable to stop crying, but she smiled sincerely when she saw me: "Miss, you just said that the second wife's situation is similar to Madam Zheng's. Then I brought up the past to find more similarities. I have kept all of Madam Zheng's examination records, just to check them for you one day. In fact, wasn't the old man's death due to long-term chronic poisoning? The murderer behind the scenes used the same method to murder the upper echelons of the Fu family three times. Sooner or later, he will cause a disaster."

After hearing this, I was completely hopeless. I closed my eyes and took a breath. Forget about others, but when it comes to the old man, he is just writing the answer on people's faces. The method of food incompatibility was thought up by Old Fu and Second Uncle together. Now that Old Fu is dead, isn't Second Uncle the only one left? I absolutely don't believe that Old Fu didn't tell Cheng Ling.

"Are you looking for death?" I wanted to say it directly, but when I glanced at my second uncle, I became nervous again and lowered my head quickly: "How dare you talk nonsense about grandpa? Old Fu said long ago that he died of illness and overwork." After saying that, he and the people around him turned to the tablet, knelt and bowed. Everyone in the Fu family immediately followed suit, and then stood up and pretended not to hear anything.

Yangyang broke free from my embrace and ran out, but stopped in front of Cheng Ling. I didn’t hug her, because I was a little scared. I just looked at Cheng Ling crying pitifully. Cheng Ling squatted down, tears streaming down her face. She reached out her hand to wipe Yangyang’s tears: "Dear, mommy is not afraid. As long as mommy sees that your sister is taking good care of you now, she won’t be afraid even if something unexpected happens and you die tomorrow... Daddy is gone, and you are mommy’s only hope in this world..."

"How could that be? You are telling the truth. No one in this family dares to touch you." The second uncle said with a smile, but it was obviously not funny.

"Yes, a dead person can spit out much more than a living person. Miss, if I die, you can just pull out my tendons, skin me, and tear me apart for an autopsy. Whoever kills me is the one with a guilty conscience." Cheng Ling covered Yangyang's ears like she was trying to cover her ears and steal the bell, and then wiped away her tears vigorously: "I have handed over everything about Madam Zheng to your room. I am sorry for her careful cultivation. I didn't go to her funeral when she died. Now it's all reported to you, and it's right... You don't have to feel sad for me. I am a person, I have selfish desires, I do it for myself and for my son. Who in this world will be truly good to my son? I can see it with my eyes."

I smiled bitterly. The price I paid for this selfishness was too high. It didn't matter whether the words were sincere or not. Things had come to this point. Regrets would always exist for the dead. I would not understand Cheng Ling, and would never respect her. But I bowed slightly to thank her for today's event and to apologize to the second and third houses on behalf of the eldest house.

"Tinglin, send Madam Cheng back." I gestured, and Ming Tinglin nodded and left with his people.

Second Uncle no longer bothered with her, he was very tired at this moment: "Shishi, do you want to investigate Madam Zheng's matter together?"

"No need, second uncle. My mother's affairs have been going on for too long. I think it's easier to take care of my second grandmother who is right next to me. I just need to study hard on my own for the rest. She and my father have already divorced, and I don't dare to take up everyone's time to deal with her private affairs." I bowed my head.

"Okay, keep asking." The second uncle rubbed his temple.

Gao Xinci came over, pulled my arm, kicked Bian Yuanhu, and squatted down again: "What about you? What do you choose? Stealing or poisoning?"

Bian Yuanhu was trembling with fear and wanted to cry but had no tears: "I...I admit that I stole something..."

"You have to explain what you stole, where you found it, and what you used it for." Gao Xinci said with amusement.

Bian Yuanhu also answered one by one: "Young Madam has a lot of jewelry. She won't be able to tell if I throw some away. There is an iron box under the bed in my room, next to the bed board. Isn't it just for more money..."

My sister-in-law’s eyes widened and she immediately pulled my brother’s sleeve to complain, and my brother patted her hands.

Gao Xinci stood up after he finished asking questions, and nodded thoughtfully: "Jiang Chulan, you are the housekeeper now, so this matter should be handled by you. So please go and deal with these stolen goods."

"Yes, son-in-law..." Lan Lan stretched out his tone, and immediately showed off his power, calling on several managers to go with him.

The word "son-in-law" almost made Gao Xinci laugh to the sky. Seeing that I was showing off, he coughed after being hit by me and said, "Second uncle, I don't know much about the rules. What do you think we should do if Bian Yuanhu steals according to the family rules?"

"After all, he's still a child and he's still in school. Why not give him a chance to correct his mistakes?" The second uncle wanted to laugh it off.

Gao Xinci was dissatisfied, shrugged his shoulders, and squatted down again with a smile on his face: "Hey, stealing doesn't seem to affect your poisoning, right? Besides, if you want to steal things, you shouldn't have sent Shishi away. You should have let her pester the brothers, which would be more convenient for you, right?"

"I..." Bian Yuanhu was stuck and glanced at his second uncle again, thinking that his second uncle should save him at least once?

Unfortunately not.

"Second uncle, Jiang Chulan has been free for a while since he came back, so why not give me another trial?" Gao Xinci pursed his lips. I don't know when he became so playful.

My second uncle was stunned for a moment, but nodded. Then Zuo Qiaofei asked them to go up and lift up Bian Yuanhu. Zhu Wenqing waited with a basin of water. Gao Xinci didn't allow me to watch and asked me to turn my back.

"What?" I was a little surprised.

Gao Xinci took the opportunity to kiss my forehead again, and put his hands on my waist to ask me to turn around: "Hurry up, you are the softest person, you'd better not watch this kind of scene."

I also didn't want the whole family to see him kissing me. I knew I had to pay him for helping me. After all, he hadn't come for a hundred days, so I owed him one. I didn't feel so awkward about it. But kissing him in public would definitely cost extra.

Gao Xinci was thinking of new tricks, and I quietly leaned aside to take a peek. Zhu Wenqing probably didn't smoke, but he casually took out a lighter and threw it over. It seemed that he was prepared. Gao Xinci also staggered to Bian Yuanhu with the thing, picked up a little bit of his clothes, and the next second, flames rose.

The whole room was filled with panicked voices, but Gao Xinci was the only one who said nonchalantly: "You don't have the ability to control the overall situation. Tell me who ordered you to do it."

"Ah! Ah——" Bian Yuanhu screamed in the fire, and no one knew whether he could hear it or not.

Zhizhi was frightened and had let go of his hand long ago. In order to prevent him from rushing towards others, Zuo Qiao held on for a while longer, until the fire really spread to his hair. As soon as Zuo Qiao let go, Zhu Wenqing immediately poured a basin of water on him. The fire was out, but the man was half dead. The grown man sat on the ground, howling with strength he had never used in his life.

"Yes, it was the Second Master who asked me to do this... The Second Master said that if Miss Xishi came, she would be stopped in the next two days. I never thought that he was going to frame her for murder..."

I immediately looked up at my second uncle. His expression was complicated. It was hard to tell whether it was disappointment at betrayal or something else. He was also calm.

"Look, you've really burned your brain and are talking nonsense. Let me speak for you." Gao Xinci smiled with an ambiguous meaning and bowed to his second uncle: "Second uncle, in addition to the second wife and mother-in-law, there is another person who died of long-term poisoning. We all overlooked it."

"Who?" Second Uncle was a little confused about Gao Xinci's behavior.

Gao Xinci lowered his eyebrows and looked at me: "Lin Mo wrote it."

"my brother?"

I was even more shocked. This was the first time I saw a living person being burned on fire, and it was even more rare for me to see the blame put on an unrelated person.

I understood what he meant. I warned my second uncle without embarrassing me at home. What a coincidence, William was still lame, and a big pot fell from the sky and he couldn't avoid it. I didn't know whether I should be glad that I didn't tell Gao Xinci. William told me that his shameless method originated from imitating Lao Fu and my second uncle to kill the old man. Now he has to cry and appeal for injustice.

Second Uncle accepted his answer of shifting the blame. If he continued to investigate, Gao Xinci might find more evidence for him. He had seen the methods used by the Gao family. The Fu family thought that burning a living person was cruel, but others might feel warm. He still had some conscience towards Bian Yuanhu. There was a strong smell of barbecue at home, so he quickly asked Qi Cheng to arrange someone to send him to the hospital, but it had to be run by Zhang Ji and Zhang Mo.

The second uncle cleared his throat: "William is indeed familiar with the Fu family. He is a big suspect, but we have no evidence."

"There is a clue, Uncle, Bian Yuanhu is studying abroad in Heidelberg, right?" Gao Xinci fanned the room expressionlessly, and waited for his uncle to nod: "That's right, a few years ago, the Chen family left and went to the Lu family in Heidelberg. William sent people to follow them. It was at that time that he noticed Bian Yuanhu and had already prepared for revenge today. If you don't believe me, you can ask Sister Yining. But something went wrong and we were saved by our little lucky star Shishi. Otherwise, there would be a rift between the first and second houses. Who knows what would happen, don't you think?"

"Yes, we are a family, there is nothing we cannot believe, but as for Lu Yaohua, you still can't prove that she is innocent?" The second uncle lowered his eyebrows and smiled.

Gao Xinci sighed and asked someone to bring a chair for him to sit down. "I forgot, Second Uncle. After all, I am not familiar with it. I just heard a message. Let Mrs. Lu tell you in person."

I glanced at her. Was Gao Xinci serious? Could Mrs. Lu still speak clearly? Unexpectedly, the old lady really found the courage from nowhere, raised her head and chest and said loudly: "Second Master, Third Master, Madam, I saw Qi Cheng kill the former housekeeper Li Yuanye with my own eyes. He did not die accidentally!"

There was another round of exclamations from the audience. Even I was frightened. What was going on today? Everyone knew whether Li Yuanye had drowned or not, and how many people he had offended over the years. But it was another matter when it was exposed. Wasn't anyone abiding by the rules of superficial peace?

It seemed that there was really no one left. Gao Xinci looked around and took a deep breath, then lowered his head and smiled: "Oh - that's a big deal, killing someone means paying with one's life. Butler Qi, you are really something. Butler Li is so old, how can he get in your way? He won't live for many more years anyway, why would you bother yourself with that?"

Qi Cheng, who had dealt with Bian Yuanhu, felt as if the sky had fallen down as soon as he entered the door. He couldn't even step over the threshold, which I had cut down a bit because it was too high, and fell to the ground with a thud.

Gao Xinci couldn't hold back his laughter any longer, "I think I've figured it out. You really had nothing to do with the poisoning, but if you wanted to accept a bribe, you would naturally protect Zhou Linsong. You thought they were innocent, but you were deceived. Zhou Linsong and his men teamed up with outsiders to kill the second wife for revenge, but you didn't know about this. You were used by others and are also a victim."

It sounded like good words, so Qi Cheng nodded quickly. He knew his second uncle had no intention of saving him anyway. But who would have thought that the next sentence would be even more devastating.

"Just being cheated is fine, and accepting bribes is also okay, but killing Butler Li in order to enjoy the sole power of the housekeeper is a big problem. Who taught you to be so cruel? He is an old man and a contributor to the business with grandfather. Grandpa is still watching." Gao Xinci pointed to the tablet behind him and curled his lips. He took my hand and took credit and hinted: "Then the whole thing is sorted out. I think Mrs. Lu must have seen Butler Qi committing a crime, and Butler Qi was guilty, so he wanted to involve her in borrowing desire to get rid of her, and also protect Zhou Linsong and others. Don't you think so?"

I didn't dare to nod, but looked up at my second uncle. I was completely defeated and he had nothing to say.

Fu Yunyan wanted to argue, but Gao Xinci had already figured this out. He leaned down before he could and looked at Zhou Linsong: "Who among you is the mastermind and who is the accomplice? Explain yourself."

"It's all my fault! I did it all. I've admitted it. Yunyan and the others don't know about it, so they are defending me... They were all deceived by me..." Zhou Linsong's eyes were wide open, as if this was some kind of honor and he was eager to snatch it away. Then Yunyan and the others hugged him and cried.

Like a piece of poisonous meat falling into a group of mad dogs, they are barking in unison for the deadly tenderness.

"Qi Cheng's murder of Li Yuanye needs to be investigated. Take him to the South Courtyard first and let him confess. If he really can't utter a word, then ask Mrs. Lu to testify. As for the one in the outer courtyard, Zhou Linsong will drive him out of the house immediately, and Fu Yunyan and others will make the decision later." The second uncle said with his eyes closed.

The stewards responded with a "yes" and dragged the crowd away. The wailing faded away and the ancestral hall became quiet again. Gao Xinci let go of my hand without a smile and stood up respectfully. My second uncle walked over slowly and greeted him, "Xinci, you are embarrassed by what happened today, but we are all family, so there is nothing to be afraid of. You came all the way here for Shishi's birthday, right? Let someone prepare food and a room for you to rest."

"No need, second uncle. Actually, I just played a little joke on you all. Shishi and I just met last night and we didn't get back together."

"what?"

"Then you kiss my sister?!" Brother Qingyun said abruptly in such a serious situation.

Everyone looked at him in astonishment and quickly ignored him. Second Uncle even felt a little sorry.

Gao Xinci put on a face full of grievance and seriousness, facing his uncle's fake smile, and bowed humbly: "It's urgent, please forgive me. I came to see Shishi for some business, and I can't make it in time for her birthday. I'm sorry. Shishi, let's go, don't miss the business."

I was actually a little surprised that he didn't "take advantage of the situation". I forced myself to feel more guilty, lowered my head and followed him out of the gloomy room.