The night breeze rustled, lifting the hem of the robe embroidered with bamboo patterns and caressing the tips of Xie Jinglan’s ink-black hair as it swayed in the wind.
Huo Nian Gong walked silently behind Xie Jinglan, spreading a heavy cloak over his shoulders. “Your Highness, the night air is cold. It would be best to return soon.”
“No rush. The Ji family has guarded Yulin for a hundred years, their entire clan composed of valiant generals, loyal and devoted. They deserve a final farewell.” Xie Jinglan gazed at the direction of the city gate, his deep eyes finally spotting a slender figure walking at the rear.
Still possessing the same unyielding spirit as always, still with that straight and upright posture he remembered.
It seemed that no matter how great the ordeal, it could not bend that slender yet resilient spine.
Tang Di leaped onto the second floor. “Your Highness, the Second Prince is already leading his army towards the Imperial City.”
Xie Jinglan grunted. “Has my second brother sensed something?”
“The Second Prince, trapped in the inferno, was terrified out of his wits. How could he spare a thought for anything else? If it’s hatred he feels, it’s the Marquis of Xuanping’s manor he should be hating right now.”
After all, in the Second Prince’s eyes, the one who set the fire was the Marquis of Xuanping’s manor.
Luring the Marquis of Xuanping’s manor out to intercept, setting fire to surround the current Second Prince – whenever the eldest daughter of the Ji family made a move, it was enough to shock everyone.
Of course, Xie Jinglan did not believe that Ji Zizhao had gone to such lengths merely to frighten the Second Prince.
Now that the Second Prince had returned to the city and entered the palace, the military dispatch he held in his hand was enough to have the entire Ji family beheaded.
Xie Jinglan weighed the fan in his hand and once again turned his gaze to that slender figure.
Ji Zizhao, what will you do next to reverse this seemingly settled, desperate situation?
“Thump, thump, thump… thump, thump, thump…”
The sound of horse hooves suddenly echoed from afar, approaching rapidly.
The Ji family members standing at the city gate turned their heads in that direction, seeing a man nearly forty years old approaching on horseback.
“Whoa!” The man tightened the reins, dismounted with a nimble flip, and strode several steps towards Madam Lin Wanyun.
Lin Wanyun looked at the man who had suddenly appeared before her, her eyes welling up with tears. “Brother…”
Yang Lang looked at his sister, whom he had not seen for many years. Though he felt joy, he found it difficult to smile. “Little sister, do not worry. Father sent me to rush here day and night, fearing you would be without a pillar of support.” Su Dan Novel Network.
Yang Lang was a renowned scholar in Bianjing, having studied under his mother, Lin Yaru.
Lin Yaru was enlightened. When she was pregnant with Lin Wanyun, she had almost lost her life, so from a young age, she doted on her only daughter. Yang Fu, deeply influenced by his wife’s thinking, had allowed his only daughter to follow her mother’s path, despite all the public opinion.
Although Yang Lang did not engage in officialdom, his appearance undeniably represented the intentions of the Yang family in Bianjing.
Regardless of what happened to the Ji family, the Yang family stood with them.
Madam Lin Wanyun knew her brother’s kind intentions and her maternal family’s support. “Brother, rest assured, I can still manage.”
Yang Lang knew this was not a place for conversation, nor did he wish to cause his sister further sorrow. He feigned a change of subject and turned his head, searching. “Zizhao must have grown to a point where I wouldn’t recognize her by now, right?”
Ji Zizhao, upon seeing her uncle, had already walked over. “Zizhao greets Uncle.”
Yang Lang looked at Ji Zizhao, who had bloomed into womanhood, and was momentarily stunned. He remembered seeing Ji Zizhao as just a five-year-old child; now, she truly was…
She had become a graceful young lady!
“A Ji family daughter comes of age, Zizhao has indeed grown up.” Yang Lang’s contentment was genuine.
No matter what others said about his niece being incompetent, he felt his niece was very special. At five years old, she could understand the lessons he taught; how could she be a good-for-nothing?
The sound of hurried footsteps suddenly broke the quiet outside the city gate.
The women of the Ji family tensed up.
Madam Lin Wanyun’s voice deepened. “The army is likely returning.”
Yang Lang heard this and immediately untied the cloak wrapped around him, revealing the mourning attire underneath.
Unlike the mourning clothes worn by the Ji family, the fabric of Yang Lang’s attire was finer and lighter.
Moreover, the mourning period for the minor mourning attire was five months.
For a brother of the bride’s family to wear mourning clothes so thoughtfully was enough to move the Ji family.
What’s more, Yang Lang was the only one from the bride’s family who had come to receive the mourning party for the Ji family.
As the heavy city gates slowly opened, faint flickering lights could be seen through the cracks.
Madam Lin Wanyun suddenly looked around, as if she had thought of something, and trembled violently.
Ji Zizhao noticed her mother’s abnormality, subtly supported her mother’s arm, and softly asked, “Mother, what’s wrong?”
Madam Lin Wanyun was both resentful and anxious. “The grave registry… there is no grave registry!”
In Yulin, any coffin intended for burial in the ancestral grave had to be recorded in the family’s grave registry, and then the Ministry of Households would officially record it.
Without being entered into the grave registry, anyone who buried a body privately would face consequences if discovered by the authorities – the deceased’s body would be whipped, and the living would be punished.
The men of the Ji family had died in battle. According to Yulin’s rules, their bodies could not be kept in the manor; upon receiving the corpses, they were to be sent directly to the ancestral grave for burial.
The old Madam had always felt it inauspicious to keep the grave registry in the manor. Years ago, she had entrusted it to her other two sons for safekeeping.
Now, with the Ji family facing unknown charges, it was understandable that the second and third masters of the Ji family were not present to receive the mourning party. However, they hadn't even sent someone to deliver the grave registry. What was to be done!
Ji Zizhao comforted her mother. “Mother, there’s no need to worry. I will go myself.”
Although Madam Lin Wanyun was worried, given the circumstances, it was the only way. “Be careful in all things. Go quickly and return swiftly.”
Ji Zizhao nodded, and with Qing Zhu and Lian Ju, she turned and headed towards the city.
The residences of the two masters of the Ji family were both in the north of the city. If they walked, it would be dawn before they arrived. Qing Zhu decided to hand over the young lady to Lian Ju’s care for a moment and used her lightness skill to fly and retrieve a horse and carriage from the Ji family stables.
A stick of incense later, Qing Zhu calmly stopped the carriage in front of Ji Zizhao.
Lian Ju helped the young lady into the carriage and said softly, “Why don’t Qing Zhu accompany Miss to the second master’s house, and I’ll go to the third master’s house?”
Since they didn't know whose possession the grave registry was in, splitting up was the safest option.
Ji Zizhao, however, said directly after boarding the carriage, “No need. Go directly to Third Grandfather’s house.”
Qing Zhu and Lian Ju exchanged a glance and, without further words, took their seats at the front of the carriage and began to drive.
Half an hour later, the speeding carriage stopped at the entrance of the Third Master of the Ji family’s manor.
It was already the third watch of the night, and the heavy manor gate was tightly shut.
Qing Zhu jumped off the carriage and walked up the steps to knock on the door.
“Knock, knock, knock… knock, knock, knock…”
“I am Qing Zhu, a随从 (suí cóng - attendant) of the Eldest Daughter of the Ji Family’s General’s Manor. Please trouble the night watchman to open the door.”
“Knock, knock, knock… knock, knock, knock…”
“Our young lady has an urgent matter to discuss with the Third Master of the Ji family!”
“Knock, knock, knock… knock, knock, knock…”
The knocking continued, but the gate of the Third Master of the Ji family’s manor remained tightly shut.
Ji Zizhao lifted the carriage curtain, looked at the tightly shut gate on the steps, her gaze growing colder.
In recent years, the two masters of the Ji family had frequently taken advantage of the Ji Family’s General’s Manor’s reputation to commit misdeeds in the Imperial City, associating with countless unsavory characters.
Now that the messenger had returned to the city, she didn’t believe the two masters of the Ji family hadn’t heard any rumors.
Or perhaps, it was precisely because they had heard rumors that they were now refusing to open the door.
When her grandfather was still alive, Ji Zizhao would never have interfered in the Ji family’s clan affairs. But now that she had taken over the authority of the Ji family, no one could stand in her way.
Not only had the two masters of the Ji family failed to greet the mourning party at the city gate, but the Third Master of the Ji family had also locked his manor gate. It was clear that he intended to distance himself from the Ji Family’s General’s Manor.
For such a fair-weather friend, distancing himself was fortunate for the General’s Manor.
But the grave registry must be handed over!
Ji Zizhao made up her mind and spoke slowly, “Qing Zhu, set it on fire! If Third Uncle Ancestor still doesn’t come out, burn the entire manor to ashes!”