As Hua Zhi reached beneath the viewing platform, she halted and lifted her head, spotting several familiar faces. Their expressions were filled with shock, suspicion, and even a subtle hint of rejection. The young masters and ladies of Jin Yang were more tight-knit than anywhere else, and more exclusionary than even the capital.
She didn’t greet anyone, instead continuing forward.
The room was dimly lit, requiring an oil lamp even during the day. Standing at the doorway, Hua Zhi made out two blurry figures.
The deputy commander explained, "These two are the internal and external managers of the horse racing track. The others are locked in another room."
Hua Zhi nodded, then abruptly turned and stepped outside. "Bring one of them out."
The relatively young deputy shrugged, casually pointing at one of them and gesturing toward the door.
The chosen man trembled as he exited the room. Having stayed inside for so long, he was immediately blinded by the sunlight upon emerging from the shadows and shut his eyes tightly.
Li He was perceptive. Just as Bao Xia was about to fetch a chair for her mistress, she saw him already carrying one over with his long limbs. She thanked him, took the chair, placed it behind her mistress, and helped her sit down.
Lu Peiyu watched the scene with an ambiguous smile curling his lips. He wanted to see what skills this person, entrusted with significant authority by the head of the Seven Constellation Bureau, possessed, and slowly strolled closer.
Hua Zhi looked at the man before her, who kept his head lowered and appeared extremely nervous, and asked gently, "Are you the internal or external manager of the horse racing track?"
"R-replying to the young lady, I am the external manager."
"What are your usual duties?"
"I... I lead the staff in serving the guests who come to the horse racing track, and I handle miscellaneous tasks as well."
Hua Zhi nodded. "How long have you been here? Are you from the Zeng family?"
"I am a servant of the Zeng family. I’ve been here since the horse racing track was established."
"Are you aware of the Seven Constellation Bureau?"
The servant stole a glance at the young lady before burying his head even deeper. "I... I’ve heard of it."
"The eldest young master of the Zeng family has already been executed. I am here on behalf of the Seven Constellation Bureau to ask you some questions. You must answer truthfully."
The servant’s legs gave way, and he knelt on the ground. "I... I wouldn’t dare lie."
Having achieved her goal, Hua Zhi stopped intimidating him and began firing questions one after another. "Have there been any tall, sturdy strangers who frequented this place? Did Zeng Xianglin ever do anything that struck you as unusual? Has anything out of the ordinary happened at the horse racing track? Also, do you know where the horses for this track come from?"
Lu Peiyu lowered his crossed arms and took a step closer, pricking up his ears.
The servant swallowed hard, his nervousness evident. He spoke with extreme caution, afraid of misspeaking. "I... I’ve seen tall, sturdy men here many times. They would come to the horse racing track on days without races. Sometimes they would race horses, other times they came to treat the horses. They were very knowledgeable about horses and could solve any problem. That’s why no horse has ever died at the track so far. Oh, and they were also the ones who supplied the horses."
Realizing he had spoken too enthusiastically, the minor manager hunched his shoulders and continued cautiously, "Whenever they came, the eldest young master would personally accompany them and forbid anyone else from getting close. Once, a servant took the initiative to serve tea, and the eldest young master immediately gave him ten lashes, scarring his face, and dismissed him from the horse racing track. Later... later I inquired and found out that the man had been sent away to a manor."The minor steward lifted his head, which had been lowered all this time. "Actually, we all know the young master was trying to protect us. Those people... were very fierce. I once saw them even whip the young master. The young master... the young master has always treated us very well."
Hua Zhi felt he probably wanted to say the young master was a good person, but because she had invoked the Seven Constellation Bureau and mentioned that Zeng Xianglin had been executed, he changed what he was about to say.
Indeed, how could one say a master who protected his subordinates wasn't good?
"Did they come frequently?"
"Not exactly frequent - they would come once or twice a month."
Hua Zhi pondered for a moment. "Count how many people they had in total."
"Sometimes the same people would come, sometimes different ones..."
"Give me a rough estimate." Hua Zhi leaned forward slightly. "Think carefully, this matter is very important."
The steward quickly nodded and turned aside, counting on his fingers.
Hua Zhi stood up and walked toward the house. Only the other steward remained inside. She found a chair to sit in, repeated the identity she had mentioned earlier to psychologically pressure the other party, then asked, "What are your responsibilities?"
"This humble one dares to ask - are you surnamed Hua?"
Hua Zhi's heart stirred. "Yes, I am Hua Zhi."
"This humble one dares to ask the young lady one more thing - have you previously visited the Zeng family?"
Many thoughts quickly flashed through Hua Zhi's mind. She took out two account books. "Are you asking whether I obtained these two items?"
The steward knelt down and kowtowed to Hua Zhi, then looked at the people behind her.
Hua Zhi turned around and saw that General Lu had also entered. "They are all trustworthy."
"This humble one has been presumptuous. The young master had instructed that if something happened at the horse racing track and the visitor was a young lady surnamed Hua, we should speak without reservation. He also told me to give this to you."
The steward knelt-walked several steps to the table in the room, laid the table on its side, pressed on one of the table legs and forcefully pulled out a wooden plug about an inch thick. The inside was actually hollow. The steward reached inside and felt around for a moment, retrieving a rolled-up paper which he presented to Hua Zhi with both hands.
Hua Zhi silently accepted it, gaining a deeper understanding of how strongly Zeng Xianglin had wanted to protect his family. Regardless of what was recorded on this paper, this interlocking scheme - if she hadn't personally visited the Zeng family to inquire because she wanted to protect them, she wouldn't have obtained those two account books from the madam. If she hadn't obtained those two account books, this steward wouldn't have retrieved this thing to give to her.
This was Zeng Xianglin's deepest love for his family, and also his repayment for her keeping her promise.
The paper consisted of two thin sheets. Hua Zhi slowly smoothed out the edges and corners, and what came into view was a letter - one that nearly made her jump up in shock.
"Very glad that the young lady has seen this letter, proving that I entrusted the right person. When you came to Jin Yang last year, I had already guessed your identity. But I have been stumbling and crawling alone for too long, so long that I no longer dared to harbor any hope. Young lady, have you ever felt that the Peng Family's development has been too smooth? To prevent Zhu Ling from becoming suspicious, I provided considerable cover from behind. Young lady must remember this merit for me, and include it when settling accounts, to win a chance of survival for my Zeng family."To this day, I have no regrets, for from the very beginning, I had no choice. I could not sacrifice my family for the greater good. If I wanted my family to live, I had to die myself—a dishonorable death. You don’t know how much I longed for this day to come. I feared that if I didn’t die soon, I would cause more deaths. When I set that trap in the Yu family, I was fully prepared to capture you and the leader of the Seven Constellation Bureau in one fell swoop. Clearly, I lost—but losing is better than going mad.
Over the years, I’ve uncovered some things. Aside from Jin Yang, who previously died at your hands, there are still thirty-seven members of the Chao Li Tribe left. In the government office, aside from Zhu Yan, the advisor by Lü Xinming’s side is also one of them. Additionally, I once overheard them mention a person named Ao, whom they refer to as the Wise Man. Jin Yang’s current state was his idea. I believe this is the person you’ve been searching for. I sincerely hope Daqing endures forever.”
There were no final instructions, no requests—the letter ended abruptly.
PS: First, sending a revised chapter. This chapter has been heavily edited, with over half of the next chapter’s content incorporated. I’ll try to revise another chapter as soon as possible.
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