Chapter 48

Chapter 48: A Witness At that moment, Madam Liu took Ling Jiayue’s hand and said, “Yue’er, I truly never imagined it would be Lingxin, but I also never thought you would order her executed.” “Mother, did I frighten you?” Ling Jiayue asked, clasping Madam Liu’s hand in return. “How could you frighten Mother? I only hate that I’m so incapable, forcing you to get blood on your hands at such a young age,” Madam Liu said. “Mother, I didn’t execute Lingxin. I only instructed Lingxue to have the guards knock her unconscious,” Ling Jiayue said. “Didn’t execute Lingxin?” Madam Liu asked in confusion. “That’s right, I didn’t. Lingxin is going to be very useful, so of course I couldn’t bear to let her die just yet,” Ling Jiayue said playfully. “Why is that?” Madam Liu asked, puzzled. Just then, Ling Jiaxuan also returned after seeing General Luo and the Seventh Prince off. Hearing this, he asked in confusion, “Yes, little sister, why is that?” Ling Jiayue was in no hurry to explain. Instead, she kept them in suspense and said, “Mother, Older Brother, there’s no need to rush. Now that we’ve caught Lingxin, let’s go to Father first. I imagine he’s been anxiously waiting for news.” “Very well. Let’s go to your father first,” Madam Liu said, following Ling Jiayue’s suggestion. The three of them then went to Ling Taian’s courtyard. Before leaving, Ling Jiayue instructed Lingxue, “Go lock her up. Without my permission, no one is allowed to see her. Have her wait there for my interrogation at any time.” “Yes, Miss,” Lingxue replied. She then went out and ordered the young male servants nearby to take Lingxin to the small black room and lock her inside. Madam Liu led Ling Jiayue and Ling Jiaxuan into Ling Taian’s room. At that moment, Ling Zixue had returned to her own room. She ordered Linger to lock the doors and forbade anyone from entering. She was terrified. Whenever she thought of Lingxue being beaten to death before her eyes, her entire body began to tremble. Ling Zixue grabbed Linger and asked, “Has Ling Jiayue already realized it was me? Is she going to execute me tomorrow too? What should I do?” Linger comforted Ling Zixue. “Miss, nothing has happened to us, has it? Ling Jiayue probably hasn’t realized anything about us. After all, it was only Lingxin who had been communicating with Miss Ling Ziqi all along. Please rest assured.” “That’s right, that’s right. It was Lingxin who contacted her alone—it wasn’t us. But shouldn’t we send Sister a message, so she won’t worry?” Ling Zixue said. “Miss, Lingxin has only just been caught. We should wait a while before sending any word.” “That’s right, we’ll wait a while.” Ling Zixue was young, and she had already been frightened into complete panic. At that moment, Madam Liu had just entered Ling Taian’s room with Ling Jiayue and Ling Jiaxuan. Ling Jiayue stepped inside and said, “Father, Older Brother and I caught the mole in the residence. Please get up.” Ling Taian slowly opened his eyes from the bed and asked, “Really? Who is it?” “It’s Lingxin, a household-born servant of our residence. She used to be Ling Ziqi’s personal maid. After Ling Ziqi was driven out, she went to work in the kitchen and took the opportunity to tamper with your food,” Ling Jiayue explained. “Was this her idea alone, or was she acting on someone else’s orders?” Ling Taian asked. “Your daughter believes she was acting on someone else’s orders. After all, she couldn’t have bought this poison powder with her own money,” Ling Jiayue analyzed. “Yue’er, explain why you had her locked up,” Madam Liu asked. Ling Taian, however, did not understand. Madam Liu explained the entire sequence of events to him, after which Ling Taian also asked curiously, “Yes, Yue’er, why did you do this?” “Your daughter believes there is more than one mole in our residence. To catch the others, we must make Lingxin fake her death and reassure the other moles that everything is safe. Only then will we have a chance to catch them. Having Lingxin fake her death is also so she can serve as a witness and lodge a forceful accusation against that person before the emperor,” Ling Jiayue said. “Yue’er, you truly have thought everything through,” Ling Taian praised. “Then, Yue’er, when will you interrogate Lingxin?” Ling Jiaxuan asked. “We’ll leave her locked up for one night first. Only after she has fallen into complete despair will she be willing to testify,” Ling Jiayue said. “Very well, we’ll do as Yue’er says. You’ve all been tired after an entire day, so go back and rest. Cough, cough…” As Ling Taian spoke, he began to cough. “Father, get plenty of rest. We’ll take our leave first.” Ling Jiayue and Ling Jiaxuan withdrew, while Madam Liu rose and poured Ling Taian a cup of water, slowly feeding it to him. After all, the poison in Ling Taian’s body had not yet been cured, and he was still extremely weak. The next morning, Ling Jiayue went to Madam Liu’s courtyard for breakfast as usual. Because of Ling Taian’s condition, Madam Wan and the other concubines came to Madam Liu’s courtyard one after another to pay their respects to Ling Taian. Once everyone had arrived, the courtyard became quite lively. Madam Wan said, “It’s fortunate that Young Master and Miss Ling are clever and vigilant enough to catch the mole in our residence. Otherwise, who knows who the next person to be poisoned would have been? I really wonder how much Lingxin must have hated Master to give him such a potent poison.” “Sister, you should watch what you say. Don’t make such disparaging remarks about Master again,” Madam Chen advised. “You’re right, Sister. I won’t say it again,” Madam Wan said. Only then did she realize that she was in Madam Liu’s courtyard and no longer dared to speak carelessly. After hearing Madam Wan’s words, Madam Liu merely glanced at her, and Madam Wan immediately fell silent, lowering her head to drink the porridge in her bowl. Ling Jiayue could not be bothered to listen to Madam Wan and the others bicker. She quickly drank a few mouthfuls of porridge before setting down her bowl. “Mother, your daughter is full. I’ll take my leave first.” Madam Liu understood what Ling Jiayue intended to do and merely said, “Go.” Ling Jiayue bowed to Madam Liu, Madam Wan, and the others before leaving. Lingxue draped the cloak over Ling Jiayue’s shoulders, and the three of them headed toward the small black room where Lingxin was being held. Lingxin lay in the small black room, covered in wounds. It was the middle of winter, and the cold was biting. She was already injured, and after being left there all night, she had developed a fever and looked as though she was about to fall ill. She appeared especially pitiful. Still, for someone who had betrayed her master, being allowed to keep her life was already the best outcome she could have hoped for. Ling Jiayue ordered Lingxue to open the door. With a creak, it swung open, and a little light entered the room. Lingxin lifted her head to look, thinking that Ling Zixue had come to rescue her. She never expected to see Ling Jiayue. Ling Jiayue entered the room, found a relatively clean chair, and sat down. Cradling her hand warmer, she asked, “Lingxin, do you truly intend to die for Ling Ziqi?” Lingxin replied, “What does Miss Ling mean? This servant doesn’t understand.” Seeing that Lingxin refused to tell the truth, Ling Jiayue said, “In fact, I know exactly whose orders you followed and from whom you obtained the poison. The reason I didn’t kill you is because I want to keep you alive as a witness. Think carefully yourself: will you live and serve as a witness, or die a second time?” Lingxin fell silent. Seeing that she was wavering, Ling Jiayue added fuel to the fire: “You’re a household-born servant of the Ling Residence, and your parents are servants of the Ling Residence as well. If you die, you’ll be free of all this—but have you considered how your parents will live in the Ling Residence afterward? No matter how far Ling Ziqi’s reach extends, she cannot reach the Prime Minister’s residence.” Lingxin gritted her teeth and said, “Miss Ling, this servant is willing to serve as a witness.” Seeing that Lingxin had agreed, Ling Jiayue instructed, “Lingxue, go fetch Doctor Lin to treat her. I need a living witness, so don’t let her die.” As Ling Jiayue spoke, she seemed once more like the Empress who looked down upon all beneath heaven—she did not need to display anger to command awe.