Lian Erye in the Red Mansion

Seeing that Jia Lian was indeed unharmed, Zhang Yong and the others breathed a sigh of relief and forced the man to kneel in the courtyard.

Jia Lian glanced at him and asked, "Who is this?"

The old women quickly replied, "Reporting to Second Master, his name is Yang Chang, he is Aunt Yang's brother, and he often goes out with the Master..."

Jia Lian understood, and then looked at Zhang Yong and the others.

Zhang Yong immediately replied, "Second Master, he was following Miss Qiu Tong with ill intentions, but we caught him red-handed!"

At this moment, Qiu Tong also came up from behind and quickly knelt down in front of Jia Lian. Pointing at the Yang siblings, she accused them, "Second Master, it was them, it was them who wanted to harm you. I really didn't know the ginseng soup was poisoned. It was Aunt Yang who asked me to bring it to you."

Just now, as Second Master instructed, I went towards the main gate, and sure enough, someone was following me, trying to kill me to silence me. It was him!

Having experienced two life-or-death situations in a short period of time, Qiu Tong was naturally terrified.

If Jia Lian had really drunk the poisoned soup she gave him, she wouldn't have survived. If it weren't for Jia Lian's prior arrangements, she probably would have been silenced by Yang Chang as well!

If Qiu Tong still doesn't understand that she's being used as a pawn by the Yang family at this moment, then she must be incredibly stupid.

Qiu Tong's words shocked everyone.

It turns out that Lady Yang really wanted to murder Jia Lian. Were they courting death?

Yang glanced at Yang Chang, who was kneeling with a pale face, and knew that her brother had lost all hope after seeing that Jia Lian was safe and sound.

But she didn't. She calmed herself down and, when everyone was looking at her, pointed at Qiu Tong and cursed, "You vicious woman! You did something outrageous and you still dare to blame it on me? When did I ask you to send ginseng soup to the boy?"

Even if I really wanted to deliver it, do you think I have no one else with me? Why would I need you to deliver it for me? Don't make false accusations!

Qiu Tong had been meek and submissive in front of Jia Lian, but she wasn't exactly a kind person. Upon hearing this, she pointed at Yang Shi's nose and cursed, "Bullshit! I was about to go check on Master when you suddenly came over and said there was still a lot of ginseng soup left over from the First Madam's soup, and you specifically asked me to take it to Second Master Lian. You dare to deny it?"

Madam Yang also sneered, "Nonsense! When did I ever make ginseng soup for you, Madam? It's obvious you're lying. If you don't believe me, just ask Madam!"

Actually, I didn't make any ginseng soup today. The kitchen can vouch for that. If you don't believe me, just ask the kitchen, and you'll see who's lying.

Upon hearing this, Qiu Tong wanted to find someone to testify for her. But then she remembered that when she received the soup from Yang Shi earlier, there really wasn't anyone else around... How could she have been so stupid? Why hadn't she noticed?

Feeling somewhat regretful, Qiu Tong subconsciously looked at Madam Xing.

However, Madam Xing asked with some doubt, "She definitely didn't bring me any ginseng soup today..."

Qiu Tong was stunned, and a sense of fear crept in. She realized that Yang Shi must have gone to great lengths to frame her and exonerate her.

For a moment, she didn't know how to tell the truth. She just subconsciously turned to Jia Lian and kowtowed, saying, "Second Master, it really wasn't me, it really was her. She really gave me that soup. I didn't know it was poisoned. Otherwise, how could I have dared to bring the soup to you? Please, Second Master, see the truth..."

The east courtyard wasn't very big to begin with, and with such a commotion, even the cooks from the kitchen came. They all said they hadn't seen Yang Shi go to the kitchen today, and of course, they hadn't seen Qiu Tong go there either.

An old woman suggested, "Madam, why don't you send your servants to search the concubine's room? She must have been making ginseng soup, so she'll surely have left some evidence. Then the truth will come out."

At this point, Madam Xing was too preoccupied to think about such things; upon hearing this, she immediately ordered someone to investigate.

Seeing that Yang was still putting up a desperate struggle, Jia Lian felt increasingly cold inside. But then he felt relieved and thought, "Fine, I'm going to kill her today to establish my authority."

Since we want to establish our authority, we can't just execute her without warning; we have to make sure she dies knowing exactly what happened.

Therefore, he said to Madam Xing, "If you want to investigate, Madam, you should also investigate Qiu Tong's room. After all, if I were a concubine and wanted to frame Qiu Tong, even if I cooked soup in her room, I certainly wouldn't leave the stove and soup pot in my own room to be confiscated. I would definitely find a way to secretly put them in Qiu Tong's room."

Upon hearing this, Yang felt a pang in her heart.

It can be said that one wrong step leads to another.

If Jia Lian were dead, that would be wonderful! While everyone is in a state of chaos, as long as someone retrieves evidence from Qiu Tong's room, she can use her prepared testimony to silence Qiu Tong. At that time, who would care whether Qiu Tong lives or dies?

When faced with a major incident, a family like the Jia family almost always thinks about calming the storm as quickly as possible to avoid damaging the family's reputation and honor! In fact, sometimes the truth is not important!

Moreover, she didn't tell her brother the truth either...

In fact, once Jia Lian died, she had prepared for both the good and the bad.

Good, naturally everything went smoothly, all the plans succeeded, not only did they kill Jia Lian, but they also escaped punishment!

Bad...

Even if, after the deed is done, Grandmother Jia and the others cannot suppress the matter and it leads to a thorough investigation by all parties, eventually uncovering the identities of the siblings, then they will simply choose to die.

She had already given Cong'er to Madam Xing for upbringing.

Presumably, even if the matter were exposed, and despite the fury of Grandmother Jia, Jia Zheng, and others, they wouldn't demand the killing of another innocent man, Jia She's only son. He was Jia She's only bloodline; as a first-rank general, Jia She certainly couldn't afford to have no heir!

Therefore, at most, the Jia family simply let her and her brother "die of illness" to end the whole affair.

However, she did not tell Yang Chang about this idea, fearing that her brother would change his mind if he found out.

She felt guilty; she didn't want to drag her brother into this. However, without his involvement, she simply couldn't have accomplished it alone.

Putting everything else aside, she simply couldn't get her hands on something as basic as arsenic!

The government and powerful families have an unusually strict control over poisons. Given her status, any misstep could lead to accusations of malicious intent…

This was Yang's inner scheme. It must be said that she was a ruthless woman. She was willing to risk her life so that her son could obtain the immense wealth that did not belong to him!

But she was ultimately just a woman of limited knowledge.

Her vision, at its furthest, extended only to a few powerful figures within the Jia family. The lives and deaths she witnessed were those of servants like herself.

All she knew was that Jia Lian had become a high-ranking official, and if they waited any longer, they would have no chance at all!

How could she truly know that, given Jia Lian's current status, if he were to die an unnatural death, the resulting commotion would be far more than the Jia family could suppress?

Even if a fourth-rank official is poisoned to death at home just before taking office, the imperial court cannot sit idly by!

Given the Jia family's current capabilities, they simply cannot conceal such a major event.

Once the three judicial departments of the imperial court intervene and confirm her guilt, will her son Jia Cong still want to inherit the family business?

If the emperor were to hear of this and be enraged, not only would the life or death of Jia Cong, a mere illegitimate son, be at risk, but the entire Jia clan would likely face punishment as well.

Once something like this happens, no one can predict what will happen next. It can only be said that greed blinds one's judgment, and ignorance is bliss.

This is the kind of person Jia Lian is wary of.

Seeing that the facts were right in front of him, Yang still refused to confess, so Jia Lian decided to start with the simple things and deal with the accomplices first.

"Tell me, why did you come to this area, and why did you target Qiu Tong?"

Yang Chang, dejected, glanced at Jia Lian with fear upon hearing this.

After seeing that Jia Lian was still alive and had even devised a plan to capture him, he knew that Jia Lian was not going to survive.

But seeing his precious younger sister still resisting, he didn't know how to help her, so he could only hang his head and remain silent.

Jia Lian was too lazy to talk to such a person and simply ordered, "Drag him away and beat him until he tells the truth."

At this moment, a large number of people have gathered in front of this small courtyard.

The steward and his wives were very experienced in dealing with common matters like beatings with a cane. They quickly found a cane, dragged Yang Chang over, pressed him to the ground, and began to beat him.

Jia Lian gave Feng Fei a look, and Feng Fei immediately went over, snatched the board from a servant's hand, and struck Yang Chang hard.

Feng Fei had personally killed enemies on the battlefield. Knowing that the Yang siblings were plotting to harm Jia Lian, he was filled with hatred and wanted nothing more than to kill them. At this moment, he showed no mercy. Almost from the moment he took the board, Yang Chang's muffled groans turned into screams of agony.

Seeing that her brother might lose his life if things continued like this, Yang could no longer control herself. She rushed over and shielded Yang Chang, whose flesh was bleeding profusely, and cried to Madam Xing, "Madam, please have mercy! Second Master Lian is taking revenge on us."

He must harbor resentment towards Cong'er because the master refused to pass the title to him, and therefore he hates us all as well. He wants to use this opportunity to punish us.

Perhaps, this whole scene today was written and directed by Master Lian himself…”

In desperation, Yang reacted with exceptional speed, attempting to drag the high and mighty Jia Lian into the mess, making him unable to deal with them, or at least buying him time.

She believed that once more people of high status and influence arrived, Jia Lian would be hesitant to act against them for fear of causing harm.

It had an effect; as soon as she finished speaking, some people looked thoughtful.

It seems that what Yang said is indeed possible...

Yang was, after all, Jia She's concubine, so even when Feng Fei pounced on her, he didn't dare to strike her with the bright, gleaming board.

Madam Xing, fearing the matter would escalate, advised Jia Lian, "Lian'er, why don't we lock her brother up first and deal with him after the truth is revealed..."

Madam Xing's words were not biased at all. She did not want to protect the Yang siblings, but this was how large families would handle such matters.

First, lock the person up, then let them die "normally," or beat them to death in public. Even if they are just servants, it has a significant impact on the family.

Under normal circumstances, Jia Lian was also willing to act in accordance with the rules of a large family.

However, he was completely enraged today.

He said to Madam Xing, "What you say is true, but isn't this exactly what I'm investigating?"

But they refused to speak, even at the cost of their lives, and their son had no other choice. Even the imperial court, when investigating the case, hadn't forbidden the use of torture.

After giving Madam Xing a perfunctory reply, Jia Lian stood up.

"Since ancient times, a country has its laws, and a family has its laws!"

Anyone who violates these two rules will not be able to escape punishment.

Since my great-aunt still refused to confess, I had no choice but to interrogate her people one by one.

Since Yang Chang intended to kill Qiu Tong to silence her, he is now the prime suspect, which is why I interrogated him. Does anyone not understand this?

As Jia Lian spoke, he didn't expect any response from others. He looked at the housekeepers and their wives, then suddenly raised his voice and ordered, "Why aren't you pulling the concubine away? Do you want so many people to see her lying on the ground, completely losing her dignity?"

The housekeeper's wives were startled and rushed over to pull Yang away.

Just as Yang was pulled away a little, she saw Jia Lian wave his hand downwards. While she was still wondering what Jia Lian's gesture meant, she heard a muffled groan of despair behind her. She quickly turned around to look.

Feng Fei coldly put away her staff and stood to one side, while her brother's head was covered in blood and gore.

"Ahhh!!"

Yang let out a shrill scream, pushed aside the people around her, rushed over and hugged her brother's head. She was so frightened that she trembled as soon as she touched him.

Looking down, he saw his older brother's face wide open, blood seeping from his seven orifices, and his outstretched hand showing no signs of breathing.

"Ah, I'll kill you, you demon..." Yang then went mad and pounced on Feng Fei.

Feng Fei had been with Jia Lian for a year; what cruel scenes hadn't he witnessed?

He knew exactly what Jia Lian meant by ordering him to beat Yang Chang to death, so he carried out the order without hesitation, just as he would kill a captured enemy on the battlefield.

Those who plotted to harm the Second Master should all die.

As for Yang's tickling and kicking, he chose to ignore it without Jia Lian's signal. After all, an unarmed woman couldn't possibly cause him any real harm.

Everyone around was stunned, many with their mouths agape, unable to close them for a long time.

Even if you don't know how hard Feng Fei's blow was, you can tell the outcome just by looking at Yang's reaction.

Many people felt a chill creep into their hearts.

It has been countless years since the Jia family has ever had someone beaten to death on the spot!

Older people know that even during the old Duke's lifetime, such a situation was extremely rare. They only heard of the Duke using military law to govern his household and executing wicked servants more often.

Some people thought that Feng Fei had gone mad and dared to kill someone on the spot.

A small number of people knew that Feng Fei wasn't crazy; he was just carrying out Jia Lian's orders.

They knew that Master Lian was truly enraged today, and that when Master Lian was enraged, he was capable of killing!

Not to mention the servants, even Madam Xing took two steps back upon seeing this, a chill running down her spine. She opened her mouth, seemingly wanting to scold Jia Lian as she always did when he made a mistake, but the words stuck in her throat.

At this moment, she finally understood why she had always felt uncomfortable when facing Jia Lian...

She was afraid of Jia Lian, and afraid of her own son, who was becoming increasingly powerful!

Please remember the original domain name of this book: _wap.