Chapter 105
Chapter 105: Caught the Culprit
“Stop trying to stir up trouble,” Lin Qing Wan said coldly. She knew Second Madam had bad intentions. When Second Madam could not find fault in her cousin, she tried to use Lin Qing Wan herself.
It was not that Lin Qing Wan feared her mother. She simply did not want to see her mother cry.
Second Madam snorted, then said: “Ask your mother and you will know whether I am stirring things up,” and turned to leave with her people.
Lin Qing Wan would never allow her to go to Mother. She rushed forward to block her.
Frowning at the commotion, Xia Meng Yan watched and felt something was off. Madam Jia making a scene was part of her plan, but why did Second Madam believe the rumors so easily? Who had been whispering to her?
She tipped her head toward Nanny Song. Nanny Song bent close, and Xia Meng Yan said in a low voice: “Have Song Mo keep a close watch.”
Nanny Song accepted the order and slipped away.
Lin Qing Wan still failed to stop Second Madam. When Madam Jia learned that her daughter believed an outsider and not her, she got so angry she lay on the bed and refused to eat. Lin Qing Wan wanted to sew Second Madam’s mouth shut. She sat by the bed and kept saying over and over that she was wrong.
Late that night, when the third watch drum sounded, shadows flickered through the back alley behind Main Street. There came a heavy thud.
A low, angry voice cursed, then said: “Useless fool. Can’t you even lift that?”
A bearded gatekeeper stood by the door with his brows pinched into a deep V, then said: “Enough. Move it out fast. It goes on the boat tonight. Tell the buyer to wait for the master’s word.”
“Got it,” the other man said as he slipped a silver ingot into the bearded man’s hand. Seeing the slight smile as the bribe was taken, he tested the water, then asked: “Things are tight here. What about outside?”
“As long as it’s not the Lin family’s property, the master won’t care,” the bearded man replied.
“Great,” the other man said, his face lighting up with excitement.
Suddenly, a cold arrow cut the air and struck the bearded man’s shoulder. The other man spun to run, but fire flared ahead and blocked his way.
A short while later, Song Mo stood outside a study window and reported in a low voice, then said: “Miss, we caught them. Old Master Lin and the Eldest Master are waiting for you in the study.”
Xia Meng Yan had been waiting for his news. She had not expected they would really catch someone so fast. She pulled on an outer coat and, supported by Chun Yue and Nanny Song, headed straight to the front yard.
Lights blazed outside the study. Two men knelt in the courtyard. With Chun Yue’s help, Xia Meng Yan went inside. Her maternal grandfather’s face was dark. Her Eldest Uncle sat in a wheelchair and did not look well either. She bowed slightly, then said: “Maternal Grandfather, Uncle.”
“Come sit by Grandfather,” Old Master Lin said, patting the space beside him on the soft couch.
Xia Meng Yan’s eyes flicked to her Eldest Uncle. [Sitting there is fine in another place, but this is the study.] The Eldest Master read her thought and smiled, then said: “Go on. You may sit there.”
She sat down by her maternal grandfather.
The Eldest Master looked toward the door and gave the command, then said: “Bring them in.”
The two men from the courtyard were thrown to the floor.
“I do not want to hear nonsense,” the Eldest Master said. The warmth left his face, and even a few words carried a heavy pressure.
They pulled the gag from the mouth of the bearded man. He began to beg at once, then said: “Eldest Master, I was wrong. Greed blinded me. I am sorry to the Lin family. Please, for the sake of my years of service, spare me this time.”
The Eldest Master began to count, then said: “One.”
“Eldest Master, it was really only me, I—”
“Two,” he said without expression.
“I will hand over all the money from selling fakes. Please spare my life.”
“Three,” the Eldest Master said softly. A flash of cold intent passed through his eyes. The guard at his side drew his long sword in one smooth motion and cut the man’s hamstring.
A scream tore through the quiet study. The other man collapsed in terror. [Wasn’t the Lin family’s Eldest Master supposed to be gentle and kind, never crossing anyone? How could he be this scary?]
“Shopkeeper Liu,” the Eldest Master said, then added: “You have been with the Lin family for years. You know my temper. I hate nonsense. Tell me who is behind you, and I may yet spare your life.”
Xia Meng Yan covered her belly and silently soothed the child inside, then thought: [Do not be afraid. They are the bad ones.] In her last life, she knew her Eldest Uncle was not as mild as he looked. Seeing it with her own eyes still shocked her.
Old Master Lin frowned, then said: “Yan’er is here. Restrain yourself.”
The Eldest Master came back to himself and looked at Xia Meng Yan with a hint of apology, then asked: “Yan’er, did I scare you?”
“No,” she said evenly, then added: “Please go on, Uncle. Yan’er likes to watch.”
[Without a firm hand, how can anyone manage the Lin family? I am not a saint. I have my own measure of good and evil.]
The Eldest Master nodded with satisfaction, then said: “You are indeed blood of the Lin family.”
Shopkeeper Liu listened to the three of them speak and felt like he had fallen into an icy pit. [A madman is still a madman.] He broke down at last, then said: “I will talk. It was Second Madam Qian’s brother. The fake Snow Swallow Resin came from him. If the Eldest Master does not believe me, ask him.”
They pulled the gag from the other man. He blurted out at once, then said: “Shopkeeper Liu is right. It was Qiao Shan, Second Madam Qian’s brother. He said that shop was under his control and told me to put the fake Snow Swallow Resin on the shelves. Shopkeeper Liu mixed real and fake together to sell. We split the money thirty to seventy.”
Holding her teacup, Xia Meng Yan said nothing.
“How long has this been going on?” the Eldest Master asked, rubbing at his sore legs. The ache told him the tendons were knitting back together. He was in a good mood.
“A year—no, a year and a half. I am not lying,” Shopkeeper Liu stammered.
“Was Eldest Uncle’s injury your doing?” Xia Meng Yan asked suddenly. Everyone in the room froze.
Shopkeeper Liu’s eyes dodged, then he said: “What is Miss talking about? The Eldest Master’s injury came from a startled horse. It had nothing to do with us.”
A spark lit in Xia Meng Yan’s dark eyes. [Nothing to do with you? Really?]
Old Master Lin’s brows rose. He seemed to think of something, and a cold smile pulled at his lips.
“Is that so?” Xia Meng Yan said coolly, then added: “That day, Eldest Uncle went out with Maternal Grandfather to meet guests. I think they passed your shop’s door. Why don’t we call the coachman and ask whether you came close to the carriage that day?”
She had not linked the two things at first, but the way events had grown beyond her plan told her someone was pushing behind the scenes, blowing everything up to trap her in rumor so she would have no heart left for other matters.
At the mention of the coachman, Shopkeeper Liu’s back bent. He gave up, then said: “It was me. But I was only following orders. Second Madam Qian’s brother said that only if the Eldest Master died could Second Master Qian take charge of the Lin family’s business as a matter of course. The drug was given by him. He was in the shop that day too. If the Eldest Master does not believe me, ask the shop clerks.”
The Eldest Master looked at Old Master Lin. Old Master Lin nodded.
The Eldest Master gave the order, then said: “Go invite the Second Master here.”
The man outside took the order and left to fetch Second Master Qian.
Second Master Qian, Qian Heng, had heard that something happened in the front yard. The people he sent to ask were turned back. He never expected his adoptive father would call him in person. On the way, he thought of many possible reasons, but not a face-to-face challenge.
When he heard the Eldest Master’s words, he jumped up and said to his adoptive father and elder brother: “Adoptive Father, Elder Brother, I truly did not know. Selling fake goods means destroying the Lin family, and that gives me no benefit at all. As for taking the family business, that is even more impossible. I have never had such a thought.”
Seeing the two men looking at him, he kicked Shopkeeper Liu, then shouted: “Speak. Who told you to frame me? If you do not say it today, I will chop you up.”
“Second Brother,” the Eldest Master said with a faint smile, then added: “I called you here so we would not be driven apart by lies. The matter is simple. Bring Qiao Shan here and ask him.”
Qian Heng’s head rang, but he nodded at once, then said: “Elder Brother is right. I will bring him over now.”