The Prime Minister’s Daughter and the Marquis’s Fool – Chapter 134
by Little PandaToo Many Bodies, This Slave Didn’t See
After three days of emergency treatment, Qu Yu’s life was saved for the time being, but the damage to his body was something that could never be healed in this lifetime.
Recently, many merchants from out of town had entered the Capital City, taking up residence all over. The inns were filled to capacity, but no one knew what was being carried in the carts these people brought with them.
It was late autumn. The days were bleak, the roads were cold and deserted, and night fell much faster than it had in summer. As soon as the shadows began to lengthen, the pedestrians on the streets vanished.
The Qu family sat in a room, preparing for their evening meal and discussing the latest reports from the capital.
Fourth Uncle Qu and Qu Ting, on the grounds that a general in the field could act at their own discretion, had refused the order to pursue the enemy. However, the local garrison commander, along with General Yu of the reinforcement army, had defied the orders of the commander-in-chief, Qu Jian, and led a portion of their forces to give chase.
Worried that the main army would be ambushed and that a division of forces would give the enemy an opportunity, Qu Jian and Qu Ting had no choice but to lead their troops in pursuit, forced to enter the territory of the Chemu Tribe.
“Fourth Uncle and Third Brother won’t linger in battle. They should return as soon as they’ve caught their target,” Qu Sheng said with certainty.
Qu Jinian nodded, his brow deeply furrowed. “Let’s hope so. For now, let’s eat.” There was a war to be fought outside, and a war to be fought in the capital.
After the meal, Qu Sheng took Lin Xizhao to the Small Courtyard Residence. They had been so busy lately that they had rarely come here.
Their cousin, Jin Mingyi, had clearly made the place her own. When Qu Sheng and Lin Xizhao arrived, she and Zhu Ming’an had everything arranged comfortably for them, even replacing the furnishings in their room with valuable objects.
“You’ve earned quite a bit, hmm?” Qu Sheng asked deliberately.
At her words, Jin Mingyi quickly raised a hand and beckoned. Zhu Ming’an came over with a box.
“Th-th-this, this is what we, I—”
“Oh, let me,” Jin Mingyi interrupted Zhu Ming’an’s smiling stutter.
“These are the silver notes we’ve earned over the past few months. In here are fifty thousand taels’ worth. You helped us out with five thousand taels of gold last time, so this is to pay you back.” After speaking, Jin Mingyi brought over another box. “And this is to repay the silver you lent us initially, three times the amount, not a single tael short.”
Qu Sheng listened, then glanced at Lin Xizhao. She found it a little hard to believe that Jin Mingyi and Zhu Ming’an had earned so much in such a short time. “Is it all clean?” she asked.
“Tsk, what a thing to say. We’ve washed our hearts and changed our faces; we don’t dare cause trouble anymore. This is money earned with a clear conscience,” Jin Mingyi said, her face full of pride.
“Ri, ri… right,” Zhu Ming’an chimed in with a smile.
Lin Xizhao was very fond of the two of them. Seeing them so proud their tails were about to stick up to the sky, she asked softly, “It must have been very hard for you to earn all this money, wasn’t it?”
Jin Mingyi looked at Lin Xizhao and hid her bright smile, her lips pressing down to suppress her grin. She shook her head quickly. “Not hard at all. Though my Ming’an worked quite hard.”
“I, I, I wasn’t, n-n-not hard either,” Zhu Ming’an immediately shook her head as well.
Seeing how adorable they were, Lin Xizhao’s eyes curved as she glanced at Qu Sheng. Qu Sheng’s expression was one of resignation, but she didn’t expose Jin Mingyi’s attempt to show off in front of Lin Xizhao.
“I don’t want this silver. Consider it an investment in your venture.”
“Really?” Jin Mingyi was both shocked and delighted to hear Qu Sheng’s words, her eyes filled with a suppressed smile.
Qu Sheng nodded, exchanged a brief look with Lin Xizhao, and said, “When have I ever gone back on my word?”
Jin Mingyi pouted with a hint of grievance. “You should have said so earlier. You made my heart ache for so long.” With that, she lost control and ran toward Qu Sheng for a hug, but Qu Sheng extended a hand to keep her at a distance. Seeing she couldn’t embrace Qu Sheng, Jin Mingyi turned to hug Lin Xizhao instead, only to be grabbed by the back of her collar by Qu Sheng.
“What are you doing!” Jin Mingyi said, annoyed and a little angry.
Qu Sheng ignored her and pulled her directly over to Zhu Ming’an’s side. Seeing the smile that had just been on Jin Mingyi’s face, Zhu Ming’an proactively reached out to hug her.
“I don’t want a hug anymore.” Jin Mingyi’s mood soured, and her enthusiasm vanished.
“Oh, okay.” Zhu Ming’an stood to the side, not at all angry, still smiling as she looked at Jin Mingyi.
“But I have one condition,” Qu Sheng said to Jin Mingyi.
“I’ll agree to anything except selling my body.” The thought of having to return the money she had just earned had given Jin Mingyi several sleepless nights.
Qu Sheng’s gaze shifted to Zhu Ming’an. “Not you. Miss Zhu.”
Hearing her name, Zhu Ming’an looked up at Jin Mingyi. Jin Mingyi’s expression was puzzled, but she gave no sign as to whether Zhu Ming’an should agree or not.
Seeing all three of them looking at her, Zhu Ming’an thought for a moment and said, “I, I, I also, w-won’t, won’t sell my body. I, a-a-agree.”
“No one is asking you to sell your body. I want you to write a letter home,” Qu Sheng said, her voice dropping slightly.
Lin Xizhao and Qu Sheng returned to the Marquis Residence. At the beginning of choushi,1 Qu Sheng left the residence alone once more.
She didn’t ride a horse. She wore the night-travel clothes that Lin Xizhao had personally helped her put on. She moved through the small alleyways of the Capital City, avoiding the routes of the night watchmen,2 and entered Yan Fengwu’s former residence.
Qu Sheng strode swiftly through the courtyards, soon reaching the one filled with corpses.
“Miss.” Upon hearing of her arrival, Feng Qi had hurried to the courtyard gate to greet her.
Qu Sheng nodded in acknowledgment, her gaze sweeping over the bodies of the martial-arts-trained servants who had been guarding the residence.
“They’re all here. Not one is missing,” Feng Qi said in a low voice.
Qu Sheng tightened her grip on the side sword at her waist. She stared at the corpses on the ground for a few moments, a fiery spark igniting in her eyes.
“Move out.”
Qu Sheng’s two simple words heralded a night of blood and carnage.
At that moment, several hundred masked figures were gathered inside Yan Fengwu’s former residence.
The black-clad figures dispersed from the residence with extreme speed. Feng Qi followed behind Qu Sheng, and they soon arrived at Prince Fucheng’s Residence.
Due to the recent disappearance of his personnel, Prince Fucheng had requested a contingent of the Imperial Guard from the Emperor. But Qu Sheng had already investigated the backgrounds of these guards long before.
Prince Fucheng’s residence was filled with masters, but the commanders who had flocked here from all over Shoulin were formidable fighters, each capable of taking on ten opponents.
The night was silent. A group of people crouched on a wall, watching the outer courtyard of the residence. After two rows of guards passed by on their patrol, they vaulted over the wall. From the last man to the first, each had their nose and mouth covered with a handkerchief soaked in a knockout drug. The moment they passed out, their throats were slit.
The two rows of bodies were swiftly dragged to the bushes at the edge of the wall and temporarily piled together. Then, the assassins approached the houses in the courtyard. They lit sticks of knockout incense, took a breath, and blew the smoke into the rooms through thin bamboo tubes.
A moment later, they entered the houses and killed the sleeping occupants one by one.
The residences of the servants, guards, stewards, as well as the concubines, bed-warming maids,3 and children in the other courtyards all met the same fate, dying by a silent blade.
Qu Sheng stood in Prince Fucheng’s main courtyard, her eyes narrowed as she stared at his still-lit room.
The others brought all the corpses over, piling them up before her eyes.
“A total of two thousand and thirty-two bodies. Excluding the thirty-six people the Princess Consort took with her to her natal home, herself included, there are still—” Feng Qi had been counting the numbers.
“Miss, we’ve brought the Princess Consort.” A group of men, carrying bodies on their backs, slowly placed them at their feet, interrupting Feng Qi.
Feng Qi counted the new arrivals and continued his report. “A total of two thousand and sixty-eight bodies. We’re still missing four.”
Qu Sheng’s expression remained icy. Her eyes shifted, glancing toward Prince Fucheng’s lit room.
“We have half a shichen left,”4 Feng Qi reminded her.
Qu Sheng glanced at the corpses on the ground and strode toward Prince Fucheng’s bedroom.
The door creaked open, and a curse came from within.
“Who is it? Don’t you know this prince dislikes being disturbed when he’s busy?”
Qu Sheng recognized Prince Fucheng’s voice. Her face grew colder. Ignoring his words, she looked up and surveyed the room’s layout.
There were indeed clever mechanisms inside. Qu Sheng threw a dart at a spot on the floor, and several hidden arrows shot out from it.
She stood there, staring at the spot. A moment later, the person inside roared, “Guards!”
He shouted once with no response, then a second time. “Guards! Is everyone dead?!”
As Qu Sheng heard his voice, she also heard the sound of frantic footsteps.
The man inside was shouting so loudly, yet no one came in. The sound of a mechanism had just been triggered, and soon after, the room fell silent.
Qu Sheng waited a moment, then turned and left. She went to a woodshed and stood there. Soon, people emerged from a cellar.
Feng Qi placed his blade against Prince Fucheng’s neck.
Prince Fucheng looked down at the blade, then at the masked Feng Qi, and asked in a panic, “Who are you people?”
“Has Your Highness forgotten who you’ve offended recently?” Feng Qi asked with a cold smile.
“You were sent by Qu Jinian!” Prince Fucheng’s mind cleared in an instant.
“Heh. Your Highness swore a poisonous oath before His Majesty that you had not harmed our Qu family. Why the change of tune now?” Feng Qi asked, his voice low and gravelly.
“Let me go! Whatever Qu Jinian offered you, I’ll give you ten times more.”
“He gave me my life. Can you give me that?” Qu Sheng spoke.
Hearing a woman’s voice, Prince Fucheng was stunned for a moment, but he quickly recognized her.
“You… you’re Qu Sheng?”
Qu Sheng gave a cold laugh and ripped the black veil from her face, meeting his gaze.
The moment he saw her, Prince Fucheng seemed unsurprised that she could speak so clearly.
“Where is the antidote?” Qu Sheng cut to the chase, her eyes cold.
“Let me go, and I’ll give it to you,” Prince Fucheng said.
“I’ll ask you one more time. Where is the antidote?” A frigid light glinted in Qu Sheng’s eyes.
Prince Fucheng was momentarily stunned by her low, intense voice. His Adam’s apple bobbed. “It’s in my room.”
“Take him back to get it.”
Feng Qi rotated the sword in his hand, adjusted his grip, and prodded the still-barefoot Prince Fucheng forward.
As Prince Fucheng left the woodshed, the people inside were also brought out, already dead. Their bodies were carried away as Qu Sheng followed behind.
As they walked through the rear courtyards, Prince Fucheng kept looking around, searching for any sign of his guards or the Imperial Guard, but he saw no one.
As they neared the main courtyard, he spotted a row of what looked like patrolling guards. He broke free from Feng Qi’s grasp and ran barefoot toward them, crying for help. “Assassins! Save this—” But as he got closer, he saw that these men were also dressed in black night-travel clothes. They had stopped walking and were staring at him with cold eyes.
Prince Fucheng’s shout died in his throat. He stood frozen, looking back in despair at Feng Qi.
Feng Qi stared at him, his face devoid of any smile. He strode over, grabbed him by the collar, and dragged him to his courtyard.
When Prince Fucheng saw the mountain of corpses and the streams of blood on the ground, he collapsed, plopping right onto the ground.
Qu Sheng entered through the courtyard’s moon gate, her feet treading through the blood, and stopped in front of him.
“Go get the antidote,” she said coldly.
Prince Fucheng flinched. When he looked at Qu Sheng, a flicker of hope seemed to return to his eyes.
“I’m begging you, let me go. I’ll do anything you want,” he pleaded.
Qu Sheng glanced at him, her brow furrowed. “If you don’t give me the antidote, I’ll cut off both your legs right now.”
Terrified, Prince Fucheng shrank back, his voice trembling as he mumbled, “The antidote, the antidote, the antidote…”
“Miss, there’s no medicine in the room.”
Qu Sheng’s people had already turned the room upside down, even finding all the hidden mechanisms.
Qu Sheng was not surprised by this answer. She looked down at Prince Fucheng on the ground. “Your poison has no antidote at all, does it?”
Her words made Prince Fucheng’s eyes go blank, and despair filled them.
“Let me go! If you let me go, I’ll tell you a secret!” Prince Fucheng crawled on his knees toward Qu Sheng, begging ceaselessly.
But just as he was about to touch her, Feng Qi kicked him away. At the same moment, Qu Sheng drew the side sword from her waist.
Prince Fucheng was knocked to the ground. After a moment of sharp pain, he rolled over, clutching his stomach. “I know… who killed… your Eldest Brother, Qu Ce,” he groaned. “I’m begging you… spare my… dog’s life…”
Qu Sheng’s eyes flickered. She stared at Prince Fucheng on the ground, her brow furrowed as she weighed the truth of his words. “Who was it?”
In the end, she asked.
“As long as… you spare me… I’ll… tell you.” Prince Fucheng was still trying to bargain.
“Help him up. Take him away.” Qu Sheng had him taken away.
As Qu Sheng left the residence, the black-clad figures within vaulted over the walls.
The several hundred people scattered, heading in different directions, but they all eventually converged beneath the East City Gate. Feng Qi appeared not far from the gate and waved a torch. A short while later, a person approached him.
Feng Qi produced a token, and soon the city gate opened a crack.
When Qu Sheng returned to her courtyard, the lamp in her room was already out. But when she pushed open the door, she found Lin Xizhao sitting at the table, her gaze fixed on the entrance.
“Sheng’er.”
The moment Qu Sheng opened the door, Lin Xizhao made out her figure in the silvery moonlight.
Hearing Lin Xizhao’s voice, Qu Sheng paused. Lin Xizhao was sitting there wrapped in a thin robe, as if she had been waiting up for her.
Lin Xizhao stood and hurried over. Qu Sheng took her hand. “Why aren’t you asleep?” she asked softly.
Lin Xizhao shook her head. She knew what Qu Sheng was going to do tonight. How could she possibly sleep?
“Are you hurt?” Lin Xizhao began to check Qu Sheng’s clothes, but the moonlight was only enough to make out her silhouette and features. Dressed in black night-travel clothes, it was impossible to see any wounds.
“I’m fine, I’m fine. It’s done,” Qu Sheng said, holding Lin Xizhao’s hands as they searched her body for injuries.
Lin Xizhao was still worried. She led her into the room and lit the candle lamp.
As the candlelight flared to life, Lin Xizhao took off Qu Sheng’s night-travel clothes. Apart from some splattered bloodstains on the outer layer, the garments underneath were clean.
Lin Xizhao breathed a sigh of relief. “Have the others all left the city?”
“Mhm.” Qu Sheng nodded. Feng Qi had already led them all out.
Lin Xizhao relaxed, but then she heard Qu Sheng say, “Prince Fucheng isn’t dead.”
Lin Xizhao looked at her, confused. Qu Sheng explained, “He knows who killed Eldest Brother.”
Since Qu Sheng’s return, Lin Xizhao hadn’t asked about the antidote. It wasn’t that she had forgotten; it was that they both knew Prince Fucheng never had one.
While researching the antidote, Liu Wuxiang had discovered that no matter what medicine was used to counteract the toxins in Qu Yu’s body, another toxin would rapidly gain the upper hand, causing one of his organs to fail swiftly.
The five poisons were in a delicate balance of generating and counteracting one another; not one could be missing.
If one tried to neutralize all five poisons at once, it would overwhelm Qu Yu’s body. He would die long before the poison was cured.
Although Qu Sheng had asked Prince Fucheng for the antidote tonight, she had only been deceiving herself, searching for a sliver of hope.
When Prince Fucheng saw the bodies of his household and stopped mentioning the antidote, offering up Qu Ce’s murderer in exchange for his life instead, she finally believed what Liu Wuxiang had said.
There was no antidote in this world for the poison in Qu Yu’s body.
The next day at maoshi,5 Qu Jinian dressed in his court attire as usual and went to the morning court session. He petitioned the Emperor to issue an imperial edict recalling the order for the troops on the Northern Frontier to attack.
A portion of the court supported him, while another opposed. Qu Jinian argued against the attack, listing a series of reasons.
“The Chemu Tribe’s soldiers are strong and their horses are sturdy; they are accustomed to galloping across the grasslands. Our soldiers, however, are familiar with fighting in forests and by lakes, using the terrain to their advantage. Conquering the Chemu Tribe is not a matter of urgency. It requires long-term planning and detailed strategy before we launch an attack. Your Majesty, I implore you to issue an edict to recall our soldiers, to preserve our strength so that we may one day wipe out the Chemu in a single stroke,” Qu Jinian said earnestly, holding his white jade ceremonial tablet as he stood before the assembled officials.
“Your Majesty, our army has just won a great victory. If we do not capitalize on this victorious morale and press forward, I fear we may not have such an opportunity again. Marquis Zhengyi’s arguments must surely stem from concern for his own family,” a military official stepped forward to rebut Qu Jinian.
Qu Jinian looked at the official, his brow twitching. “Lord Li, do not use taunts to mix up seeing and hearing. The sons of my Qu family have never been ones to fear death. What I, Qu Jinian, have said today is merely an objective assessment of the situation.”
“Hmph. Your Qu family defied an imperial edict and disobeyed Your Majesty. It is only because Your Majesty cherishes his subjects that he has not decreed a punishment. Marquis Zhengyi should stop recklessly stirring and stubbornly entangling here,” Lord Li continued to mock him relentlessly.
Qu Jinian’s face flushed with anger, but he put on a look of forbearance, snorting through his nose. He took his ceremonial tablet and returned to his original spot.
“Ahem. This Emperor understands everything Beloved Minister Qu has said. However, This Emperor also wishes to give the people of the Northern Frontier a safe and stable home. The Chemu Tribe harasses them periodically, leaving the people there destitute. This Emperor thinks—”
“Your Majesty!” A eunuch official came running frantically down the aisle between the two rows of ministers. He stumbled halfway and fell to the ground, tumbling head over heels.
Seeing his comical appearance, the officials let out a collective laugh. The Emperor, seeing the man’s panic, snapped, “What is the cause for such alarm?”
The Emperor had lost his temper, and the officials quickly bowed their heads.
The eunuch official scrambled to his feet, took a few more steps, and knelt on the ground, prostrating himself. “Your Majesty,” he trembled, “everyone in Prince Fucheng’s residence has been slaughtered!”
His words made the color drain from the faces of all the officials. The Emperor’s expression instantly turned cold. He shot to his feet. “What did you just say?”
The eunuch official’s voice shook as he replied, “Replying to Your Majesty, Prince Fucheng did not come to court today, nor was a request for leave submitted, nor was any verbal message sent. This slave took some men to inquire, but who could have known…”
“Speak!” the Emperor roared, glaring at him.
The eunuch official’s arms trembled. “Who could have known that we would find a mountain of corpses in Prince Fucheng’s courtyard!”
The Emperor’s eyes widened again. “And Prince Fucheng?”
“There were too many bodies. This slave didn’t see.” When he saw the scene, he had pissed and shat his pants in fear and hadn’t dared to look closely.
Prince Fucheng’s residence was empty. He had his men call out for a long time with no answer, so he had no choice but to leave quickly and report back to the palace.
“Guards!” The Emperor descended directly from the dais, leaving the officials behind as he led his men to Prince Fucheng’s Residence.
The sky outside was gradually brightening. The Emperor had the Imperial Guard surround Prince Fucheng’s Residence like an iron bucket.
The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, the Minister of Justice, the Left and Right Censors-in-Chief of the Censorate, and the Capital Prefecture Magistrate all arrived at the scene.
The bodies of a thousand people were piled up, occupying more than half of Prince Fucheng’s courtyard. The stench of blood filled the air. The Emperor held a handkerchief to his nose and mouth, his brow furrowed as he carefully watched the corpses being carried out one by one.
The bodies of the Princess Consort and several of Prince Fucheng’s concubines were found, but Prince Fucheng himself was not among them.
“Your Majesty, a preliminary investigation suggests there were over a hundred assailants. Their footprints are complex and difficult to distinguish at the moment. After the murders, they scattered in all directions, but the bloodstains disappear about a hundred zhang6 from the residence. They must have changed their footwear,” the Capital Prefecture Magistrate, having handled many cases, reported his observations to the Emperor.
“This Emperor does not want to hear this! The few of you, you have three days to bring the culprits to justice! Find Prince Fucheng, dead or alive! If This Emperor does not see him, watch your own heads!” the Emperor snapped, flinging his sleeve.
The officials all bowed their heads in silence. A case of this magnitude, to be solved in three days, was forcing a person into a difficult situation, especially since there was more than one culprit.
They had just heard that the Princess Consort had not been in the residence yesterday but had returned to her natal home, yet she had been brought back and killed, and not even her maids and servants were spared. The mastermind of this crime was surely no ordinary person.
“What, you can’t do it?” The Emperor’s anger flared again as he saw their bowed heads.
“Your Majesty, Prince Fucheng’s fate is currently unknown. This humble subject has already ordered the city gates sealed. Furthermore, the number of culprits is enormous, and they are vicious and merciless. Please grant this humble subject more time,” the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review said with his head bowed.
Never since the founding of Tiansheng had such a sensational case occurred. Massacres of entire households had happened before, but here in the capital, right at the foot of the Son of Heaven,7 and to a prince of the blood…
What kind of hatred was this, and who possessed such capability?
An inkling of a suspicion was already forming in the Emperor’s mind. He looked at the officials in charge of the case, glanced at the corpses still being carried away, and said in a low voice, “Start the investigation with Qu Jinian.”
The Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, along with personnel from the Ministry of Justice, arrived at the Qu Marquis Residence to request an audience with Qu Jinian.
After the morning court session, Qu Jinian had just finished his breakfast and was about to take a returning-to-the-cage sleep8 when the steward reported that people from the Court of Judicial Review were here to see him.
Qu Jinian’s eyes narrowed for a moment. He lifted his chin slightly. “Let them in.”
The author has something to say:
Qu Jinian: “My daughter killed them. Go find her. Why are you looking for me?”
Qu Sheng: “…Father!”
Footnotes
- The period between 1 AM and 3 AM in the traditional Chinese timekeeping system.
- In traditional China, night watchmen (dǎgēngrén) would patrol the streets at night, beating a gong or drum to announce the time and watch for fires or criminals.
- A ‘tōngfáng’ was a high-ranking maid who also had sexual duties, but held a lower status than a formal concubine. They were often personal attendants who had grown up with the master.
- A ‘shichen’ is a traditional Chinese unit of time equal to two hours. Half a shichen is one hour.
- The period between 5 AM and 7 AM.
- A ‘zhang’ is a unit of length equal to approximately 3.3 meters.
- An idiom (tiānzǐ jiǎoxià) referring to the imperial capital, a place directly under the emperor’s authority. A crime committed here is seen as a direct challenge to the throne.
- The term used is ‘huílóngjiào,’ literally ‘returning-to-the-cage sleep,’ a colloquial and vivid term for going back to sleep after having already woken up once.
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