Records of the Lost Cases of Helaitang in the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 53 Xiangtao Pavilion

Wang Cai suddenly asked: "The grandma Sun in the second girl's room was actually hired from outside. Look at her grandeur. She can be the home of more than half of Xiangtao Pavilion. I have always been the second girl's wet nurse."

Mr. Da nodded and said, "Grandma Sun has been with the Second Miss for many years. From Xiangtao Pavilion to Tantangguan, few people know that she was brought back by the Second Miss from outside. She was paid monthly in the first month after entering the house. I was just chosen by the master to be an apprentice for the first month, so I remember it. Speaking of which, Grandma Sun is not very old. She must have suffered a lot in the early years of traveling around the world, so she looks older. Those little girls are They all called her mother-in-law."

A flash of inspiration flashed in Wang Heng's mind and he asked, "What is Grandma Sun's background? Has she ever traveled around the world?"

Mr. Da said: "It seems that he was a juggler. He could dance snakes. He was so poor and sick that he only had one breath left. He was saved by the second lady and brought back to the house. She devoted herself to serving the second lady, but she never admitted it. After all, she is now a somewhat respectable old mother, and it’s okay not to mention all the things she did in her childhood."

The inner courtyard of Wang's residence is really a mixed bag.

Asked here, it seems that there is something wrong.

Wang Hengwen said to Mr. Da: "There are a lot of things going on today, so I won't delay your errands. When Madam is here, I will tell her that you are very careful and attentive in your work."

Mr. Da bowed deeply and said repeatedly: "Thank you very much, Seventh Young Master, for your kind words."

Returning to He Laitang, the gentle breeze in the courtyard brought waves of sweet fragrance.

Wang Cai smelled the fragrance of the flowers and said, "The osmanthus blooms so early this year, August is far from here."

Wang Heng leaned on Osmanthus and said: "The mystery of Huiyun's murder is about to be solved, but I can't figure out why the murderer killed Master Huiyun? I can still understand the motive of Grandma Feng's murder."

Wang Cai was a little confused and looked at Wang Heng waiting for him to continue.

Wang Heng said: "In early summer, you once helped the little girl from Xiangtao Pavilion, the second girl, to catch toads?"

Wang Cai thought quickly, raised his eyes and said, "Are you suspicious of Granny Sun?"

Wang Heng thought for a long time and said: "Let's go to the Xiangtao Pavilion in the backyard early tomorrow morning to look for evidence. We can't doubt anyone out of thin air until the evidence is confirmed."

Xiangtao Pavilion is an embroidery building for ladies, so it is against the rules to visit during the day without any business. Although there are lanterns at night, the light is dim and nothing can be seen.

After working hard for the past few days, I went to rest early this night.

At five o'clock in the morning, Wang Heng stood up like a carp and went to the partition wall to shake Wang Cai awake.

Wang's house doesn't open until three o'clock every day (around four in the morning). The kitchen starts to get busy at Mao o'clock (five o'clock in the morning), and every room goes to receive the court food at Chen o'clock (seven o'clock in the morning). In other words, for more than an hour, almost everyone in the house No one was walking around, let alone in the daughter's back garden.

From He Lai Hall to the backyard, you only need to pass through the Moon Cave Gate. Although it is already early morning, the sky is still early and the surroundings are dark.Two lanterns hung at the entrance of the moon cave, and the dim yellow light dimly illuminated a section of the road leading into the backyard.

Just entering the backyard is a pond, where Wang Cai helped the girl Xiao Shao catch toads.Along the lake, you can reach Xiangtao Pavilion in a few steps.

Since the second girl, Taoist Tanyang, went to Tiandan Temple, only one or two rough ladies were left in a large house in Xiangtao Pavilion to look after the hospital and take care of the sick Granny Sun. No one, usually doesn't come here.

There are no lights in Xiangtao Pavilion, and before dawn, it is exactly the time when sleep is deep.

The two of them had never been to Xiangtao Pavilion before, so they walked around the courtyard to get a brief understanding of the terrain.

Xiangtao Pavilion is built along the water, with a stone boat attached outside the revetment to enjoy the lake view.Inside the whitewashed wall is a two-story hall. On the west side of the hall are two small steps, and next to it is a hall for servants to enter and exit.

Behind the hall, there are thousands of bamboo trees, and there are three small houses next to the bamboo forest. In front of the house, there is a spring, and there are countless flowers and trees. It is a good place.

Because the owner was away, the housekeeper was also neglectful and left the hall door unlocked.

At this time, the morning star was very bright, and Wang Cai walked into the hall, feeling that he could still see the way clearly.Walking forward slowly, it took about a stick of incense to turn back.

"This hall leads all the way to the north gate. It's quite a long way. Many of us go to the north gate, but we don't know there is such a way." Wang Cai said in a low voice.

Wang Heng also said softly, "It seems that although Xiangtao Pavilion is the backyard of a deep house, it is actually very convenient to enter and exit."

For fear of being discovered by those who got up early, the two of them talked as little as possible and walked silently in the blue-gray before dawn, observing every plant and tree carefully.

Walking into the bamboo forest, the birds living in the forest were keenly aware of it. Countless birds flew up together and let out hurried exclamations.

At this time, the first ray of morning light shone in, and his eyes lit up.

The bamboo forest is so big that I don’t know where to start.Looking carefully at the ground, there is a path traced by human footprints leading to the depths of the bamboo forest.At the end of the path, there is a low-lying quagmire surrounded by a few rocks. Maybe it will hold some water during the rainy season, but now there is nothing.

Wang Heng looked back and forth, going around the quagmire again and again, but in the end he was disappointed and found nothing.

Wang Cai took the quagmire as the center and expanded the area to [-] steps around. Suddenly he found two small piles between the bamboos. There were small stone slabs erected on the mounds. Wang Cai squatted down. The stone slabs were engraved with "The Tomb of Daqing" and " "Er Qing's Tomb", these are two small monuments that seem to have been erected for many years.

"That's it. The poisonous snake that bit Master Huiyun to death was indeed raised by Grandma Sun." Wang Heng said: "Why did she have murderous intentions towards Master Huiyun? I really don't understand. I'm going to cross-examine her later." .”

Wang Cai said: "If we didn't catch it on the spot, I'm afraid she might not be willing to plead guilty."

Wang Heng said: "Now that you have an idea, let's give it a try. You can't just sit back and let the real murderer of Master Huiyun go free."

Taking advantage of the fact that it was still early, the two of them fled quickly.

When we came back to the house again, it was already three o'clock in the morning.Wang Cai knocked on the courtyard door loudly, and a thin woman ran over and shouted: "Who is it? The door is not bolted."

Wang Cai bowed and said, "Mom, please pass the message to Grandma Sun. The Seventh Young Master has something to ask her."

While looking at the people in front of her, the old lady gave her a blessing and returned the gift: "Returning to the Seventh Young Master, my surname is Zhang. Grandma Sun is too sick to get up from the bed. She is old and there is no need to be taboo about the defense between men and women. Young Master Why don't you go to her room and ask her."

Wang Heng nodded and asked Mrs. Zhang to lead the way.

Grandma Sun did not live with the maids and old ladies on the ground floor of the hall. The old woman led them to several small houses beside the bamboo forest in the back courtyard.

Mrs. Zhang knocked on the door, then pushed it open and said, "Sister Sun, the Seventh Young Master in the mansion is here to ask you a question. I brought him over." After opening the door, Mrs. Zhang turned around and retreated.

From behind the door came a suffocating smell, the smell of death.

(End of this chapter)