Fire… Fire was everywhere. The thick smoke scorched his throat, making it ache, and his eyes were filled with stinging tears. Yet, he could still see the only exit firmly blocked by the collapsed bookshelf.
Outside, the air was filled with wailing cries. At a time like this, everyone was at the mercy of fate—who would come to save him?
As his consciousness blurred, a hazy figure emerged through the flames. He was about to call for help when he looked up and froze in place.
The figure’s face was pale and eerie, with sharp fangs bared. Blood poured from its mouth, and tears of blood streamed from its eyes. It stared straight at him and spoke in a haunting voice:
“Father, I died so tragically…”
Jia Wangchun gasped sharply and bolted upright, coughing uncontrollably.
Su Cen gestured for Qu Ling’er to bring a cup of tea. Jia Wangchun grabbed it and gulped down a few mouthfuls, finally catching his breath. He calmed himself and began to take in his surroundings in a panic.
His gaze eventually landed on Su Cen. Narrowing his eyes slightly, he asked, “Who are you?”
Su Cen stood and nodded slightly. “Su Cen, from Dali Temple. A pleasure to meet you, Master Jia.”
Jia Wangchun was momentarily stunned, then quickly looked down, fumbling to put on a few articles of clothing. He rose to his feet and staggered toward the door, muttering, “What about the Jia family? What about my Zhen’er?”
Qu Ling’er was about to stop him, but Su Cen raised a hand to signal otherwise. They watched as Jia Wangchun stumbled out the door, only to collapse on the ground, unable to move.
The sky was just beginning to lighten, and faint smoke could still be seen rising in the southeast. The fire had raged all night, and by now, everything was likely reduced to ashes.
Su Cen stood at the doorway, quietly observing. He allowed Jia Wangchun a moment to collect himself before turning to Qi Lin and asking, “Did you find Jia Zhen?”
Qi Lin shook his head. “The courtyard was packed with people. It was impossible to tell who was who. I only found him unconscious in the bedroom and brought him back first.”
Su Cen nodded. Under such chaotic circumstances, finding a single person would indeed be difficult. He couldn’t blame Qi Lin for not succeeding.
Still, the thought of the man who had once dragged him along to brothels and operas now missing left a lingering sorrow in his heart.
Judging that the time was right, Su Cen called out to Jia Wangchun’s back, “Do you know who did this?”
Jia Wangchun froze momentarily, then sprang to his feet, shouting, “He Xiao! That beast, He Xiao!”
“And if you go out now, is it to announce to the world that you survived the night? Do you want the person who tried to kill you to come back and finish the job?”
Jia Wangchun paused, turning back to look at the young man in the corridor. Su Cen’s chin was slightly raised, his gaze cold and piercing, silently scrutinizing him. In those eyes, Jia Wangchun saw a clear understanding of everything.
Avoiding Su Cen’s gaze, Jia Wangchun muttered, “I’ll report it to the authorities.”
“Report it?” Su Cen chuckled disdainfully but said no more.
Jia Wangchun froze again. Right—report it? Report what? He had no evidence. And even if he did, the authorities were in cahoots with He Xiao. Reporting it would only expose him further. His hands fell limp at his sides as he asked despondently, “What do you want?”
Su Cen looked down at the man in the corridor. “I can help you deal with He Xiao. And what I want—” he paused, his voice steady, “is certainly not your life.”
Left with no choice, Jia Wangchun followed Su Cen back into the room. He insisted that he must see Jia Zhen—alive or dead. Until he saw either the person or the body, he wouldn’t say a word.
In truth, Su Cen didn’t need Jia Wangchun to ask—he was going to search for Jia Zhen regardless. If Jia Zhen were dead, that would be the end of it. But if he were alive, He Xiao would certainly not let him go. Considering Qi Lin had been running around all night, Su Cen sent him to rest and assigned Qu Ling’er to search instead.
The room fell into silence. Su Cen sipped his tea with downcast eyes, while Jia Wangchun, still shaken, quickly drifted into a daze again.
Qu Ling’er didn’t disappoint. Before noon, he dragged Jia Zhen back. When found, Jia Zhen was fast asleep, sprawled on the bed of the top courtesan at Chunxiang Pavilion, utterly oblivious to the fact that his next visit might be impossible if he couldn’t afford it.
Qu Ling’er, uninterested in explanations, simply hauled Jia Zhen back to Su Cen’s room. The moment Jia Wangchun saw his son, his eyes turned red. Su Cen allowed the father and son to embrace and cry their hearts out, leaving them alone until lunchtime.
Such a major incident at home naturally couldn’t be hidden from Su Lan. Su Cen had no choice but to tell the truth. He had expected Su Lan, given his relationship with He Xiao, to need time to process the news. Yet, as soon as Su Cen stepped back into the room, Su Lan appeared in the courtyard, insisting that there was no need to keep anything from him—he wanted to know everything.
After a brief standoff, Su Cen relented.
By then, Qi Lin and Qu Ling’er had returned from their meal, and the group entered the room together.
During lunch, Jia Zhen managed to eat a little, but Jia Wangchun kept sighing as he held his chopsticks, barely taking a bite.
Knowing it was futile to push, Su Cen waved for the servants to clear the dishes.
Afterward, they finally got to the heart of the matter. Jia Wangchun accepted the tea Su Cen handed him, sighed heavily, and said, “I know He Xiao has killed someone. He killed that… that person back then…”
“The courtesan from back then, right?” Su Cen interjected.
“You—you know?” Jia Wangchun looked up, confusion flashing in his eyes. “I only found out about their affair because I happened to catch them meeting in secret. How do you know about this?”
“I also know that the courtesan was from the same hometown as He Xiao. She sold her family home to fund his journey for the imperial exams. She likely truly admired him, which is why she didn’t follow him to Suzhou, fearing she’d burden him. Instead, she ended up in Yangzhou, deceived onto a flower boat and becoming a courtesan. She could never have imagined that He Xiao, originally in Suzhou, would come to Yangzhou after saving my older brother and being brought here by him. Nor could she have foreseen that, to marry into the Wang family, He Xiao would resort to such ruthless measures against her.”
“He lied to me again,” Su Lan said, his voice low, his lips pressed tightly together. Each word seemed to be wrenched from his heart. “He told me he had no family and was devoted to the Wang family’s daughter. Back then, he didn’t have his current reputation. He used the few coins he earned from selling paintings to woo her, even standing outside the Wang family’s walls all night. I believed he was sincere. I never imagined he…”
Su Lan clenched his hands tightly, his knuckles turning pale.
Suddenly, a warm touch on his hand made him look over. Su Cen gently patted his hand and said softly, “Elder Brother, it’s not your fault. It’s just that He Xiao is too cunning and his facade too convincing.”
“That should be enough, right?” Jia Wangchun said, picking up the conversation. “I can testify that He Xiao committed murder. That should be enough to bring him to justice and give both the courtesan and my family some semblance of fairness.”
“It’s far from enough,” Su Cen shook his head. “You only witnessed their secret meeting, not the murder. And the courtesan has been dead for years—any evidence on her body is long gone. How can you definitively claim that He Xiao was the one who killed her?”
“But He Xiao had a motive! He must have been afraid that the courtesan would expose their relationship, which would have ruined his chances of marrying into the Wang family. That’s why he killed her. If I can think of this, surely the authorities will too!”
“Motive isn’t evidence,” Su Cen replied. “To file a case, you need solid proof. If mere words could bring down He Xiao, I wouldn’t have needed to come here.”
“What now? Are we just going to let him continue living freely?” Jia Wangchun muttered, picking at his fingers. When he looked up, he met Su Cen’s cold, piercing gaze, which sent a chill down his spine.
Su Cen stared at him until Jia Wangchun averted his eyes, then spoke, “Are you still hiding things at this point? Planning to save it all for the King of Hell when you’re in your coffin?”
“I don’t know anything else,” Jia Wangchun avoided Su Cen’s scrutinizing gaze. “He Xiao has always kept me in the dark about his actions. There’s no way he’d let me know what he’s done. I really don’t know anything else.”
Su Cen took a sip of tea and asked calmly, “Then do you know how your son died?”
“What?” Jia Wangchun froze.
Both Jia Zhen and Su Lan lifted their heads, staring at Su Cen.
Su Cen sighed. He had intended to avoid listing He Xiao’s crimes in front of Su Lan. After all, He Xiao’s success was largely due to his elder brother’s support. Knowing Su Lan’s personality, he would undoubtedly blame himself for He Xiao’s wrongdoings, adding unnecessary guilt.
But with Jia Wangchun still withholding information, Su Cen had no choice but to play his trump card. He gestured to Qi Lin, who soon returned, dragging a trembling man into the room. The man knelt on the ground, huddled in fear.
Jia Wangchun was shocked. “You?”
The man was a former servant of Jia’s household. Two years ago, he had claimed his father had passed away, collected his wages, and left. Yet here he was now, inexplicably appearing in this place.
Su Cen tilted his chin toward the man. “Will you speak now, or wait until we’re in court?”
The kneeling man glanced fearfully at Su Cen before stammering, “I… I was from the same hometown as He Xiao. Two years ago, he approached me and told me to… to add something to the young master’s medicine. I… I didn’t have a choice. He threatened to expose the kickbacks I’d taken from the kitchen purchases if I refused. He also promised to give me a sum of money afterward so I could return to my hometown. He said the poison wouldn’t be detectable and wouldn’t implicate me.”
“You… you!” Jia Wangchun was so enraged that he couldn’t catch his breath and began coughing violently.
Jia Zhen quickly stepped forward to pat his back, helping him calm down after a long while.
Su Cen took a small medicine bottle from Qu Ling’er and showed it to the kneeling man. “Was it this poison?”
The man hesitated, then nodded after a few glances.
Su Cen turned to Jia Wangchun and explained, “This poison is called Thousand-Day Drunkenness. It’s a secret concoction not available on the market. Those poisoned appear perpetually drunk, and no matter how many doctors you consult or tests you run, it remains undetectable.”
“That beast, He Xiao!” Jia Wangchun slammed the table, spilling tea everywhere. Tears streamed down his face as he lamented, “Why did he harm my Xuan’er? What grudge did Xuan’er have against him that he would go so far as to take his life?”
Su Cen lowered his gaze to the man before him and asked, “Who else did you tell about He Xiao and the courtesan?”
Jia Wangchun paused, his tears momentarily ceasing. “You mean…”
“You told Jia Xuan, didn’t you?” Su Cen continued. “At the time, He Xiao had already married the Wang family’s daughter and was trying to partner with the Jia family to combat the illegal salt trade. Jia Xuan must have opposed it, right? He Xiao probably sought a private meeting with Jia Xuan, but as a nobleman, Jia Xuan would have looked down on someone like He Xiao and refused to collaborate. During their conversation, there was likely a heated argument, and Jia Xuan let slip what he knew about He Xiao and the courtesan.
“Though there wasn’t concrete evidence, the matter concerned He Xiao’s standing in the Wang family. He Xiao didn’t know you were the one who told Jia Xuan, so to protect himself and eliminate any threats, he killed Jia Xuan—taking out two major problems in one move.”
“…” Jia Wangchun’s lips twitched, but he was speechless.
He never imagined that, in the end, he had been the one responsible for his own son’s death.
After a long while, Jia Wangchun finally took a deep breath. His voice, now hoarse, was barely audible. “Since you’ve uncovered everything, what more do you need from me? Isn’t this enough to send He Xiao to prison?”
Su Cen gently shook his head. “I’m not after He Xiao—I’m after the Salt Monopoly Decree.”
“You…” Jia Wangchun looked up again, but his eyes had already lost their light. His entire person seemed to age visibly.
Su Cen continued, “If the matter ends here, only He Xiao will be punished. Meanwhile, the salt merchants will continue their rampant corruption, the officials will keep shielding them, and the common people will still have no salt to eat. Taking down one He Xiao won’t solve the root of the problem—there are countless others like him.”
“You’re not still planning to resume your salt merchant business after He Xiao is brought to justice, are you? Thinking that as long as the Salt Monopoly Decree remains in your hands, you can just continue buying salt from the court and selling it as before? Let me be blunt: the Salt Monopoly Decree must be abolished. We’re just looking for a pretext. If you’re willing to take the first step, I can plead for leniency on your behalf. The matter of you passing off private salt as official salt can also be overlooked. The Jia family is already ruined—do you really want to drag Jia Zhen down the same dark path with you?”
Jia Wangchun hung his head in defeat. “I…”
“Listen to him,” Jia Zhen said.
Jia Wangchun suddenly looked up, staring at Jia Zhen, who had remained silent until now. With a sigh, he said, “What do you know?”
“It’s my own incompetence that’s caused you so much worry, Father,” Jia Zhen knelt beside him, meeting his gaze. “I know you wanted to leave me some semblance of a family legacy, but that legacy has already cost us Big Brother and destroyed the entire Jia family. I’m useless—even if you left it to me, I’d probably squander it. All I want now is to seek justice for Big Brother. After that, let’s find a quiet place where I can take care of you in your old age. Let’s leave all this behind. Please?”
Jia Wangchun pressed his lips tightly together. After a long silence, he let out a deep sigh, reached into his robe, and pulled out a small ledger. With trembling hands, he handed it to Su Cen. “I’ve spent my life as a merchant, and the only thing I’m good at is keeping accounts. When I first collaborated with He Xiao, I was cautious and kept records. This ledger contains the bribes He Xiao and I gave to Xue Zhi and others. I documented every transaction, and the money all came from the shop. You can cross-check this with the salt shop’s accounts. I’ve kept this ledger on me at all times—He Xiao doesn’t know about it.” He sighed again. “Is this enough? Everything else burned with the Jia family. This ledger is all I have left.”
With evidence of He Xiao’s collusion with officials, it would be possible to launch a thorough investigation into the salt merchants and the Yangzhou bureaucracy. The Jia family was already finished, and using the Wang family as an example would send a clear message to the remaining salt merchants about the court’s intent to abolish the Salt Monopoly Decree. With the two main pillars toppled, the rest wouldn’t pose much of a threat.
Su Cen accepted the ledger with both hands, his expression solemn. “Thank you.”
Turning around, Su Cen handed the ledger to Qi Lin. “Guard Qi, I’ll trouble you to deliver this ledger and escort Lord Jia safely to the prince.”
Qi Lin tucked the ledger into his robe and asked, “Aren’t you coming with us?”
Su Cen shook his head. “If we all leave together, it’ll alert the enemy. He Xiao has spies watching me. Staying behind will confuse him. But be cautious—once He Xiao realizes Lord Jia’s body hasn’t been found, he’ll know something’s wrong. Watch out for assassins he might have stationed along the way.”
Qi Lin frowned. “What about you?”
“I’ll be here,” Su Lan stood up and said firmly, “As long as we’re in Yangzhou, no one can take anyone from the Su family estate.”
Qi Lin hesitated for a moment but eventually nodded. He turned to Qu Ling’er and said, “You stay here and protect him.”
Qu Ling’er nodded in agreement.
Su Cen added, “Leave once night falls. By tomorrow, I fear it will be impossible to get out of Yangzhou City.”
![Flying Dust [Fei Chen]](https://www.freenovels.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/9k.png "Flying Dust [Fei Chen]")
Omggggg, love how he managed to get everything under control