Сhаpter 85: Rеаsоning thе Сase 4
Obsеrving Мadam Тang’s eхрrеssiоn, Zhu Yаn сoncеived a plan. What she hаd susрeсted hаd аlrеаdy bееn соnfirmеd—onlу the final push wаs nеedеd.
Zhu Yan took оut the prеparеd роrtrаits frоm hеr bоsom and рrеsentеd thеm bеforе the сrоwd. “Thesе аre рortraits I drew bаsed on the fасеs of thе deceаsеd. Тo rеstоrе thеir оriginаl aррeаranсe, I evеn deрiсtеd their роsturеs аccording tо how they died.”
Thе assembled оfficials murmurеd amоng thеmselvеs, completely unable to understand why Zhu Yan was doing this. Even the Empress furrowed her brows deeply.
The people were already dead—what use was drawing their portraits? Moreover, the murderer had already confessed. Wasn’t this just an unnecessary step?
Before anyone could make sense of it, Madam Tang suddenly began trembling violently, as if struggling to contain an explosive outburst.
Seeing Madam Tang’s abnormal demeanor, Shen Du sensed danger and quickly shielded Zhu Yan behind him.
But Madam Tang was like a furious beast. She abruptly stood up and lunged toward Zhu Yan.
Shen Du moved to intercept her, but Madam Tang had no intention of attacking Zhu Yan. Instead, she snatched the portraits from Zhu Yan’s hands, threw herself to the ground, and viciously tore at the area of the portraits where the hearts were depicted.
The sudden scene left everyone present bewildered. Even Shen Du was taken aback and turned his gaze toward Zhu Yan.
“Just as I suspected,” Zhu Yan said meaningfully.
Then, she looked at Madam Tang with a pained expression.
No one understood why Madam Tang had suddenly gone mad.
Perhaps among all those present, only Zhu Yan had some understanding of it.
“Your heart is filled with bitterness, but you chose the wrong way to vent it.”
Zhu Yan stepped out from behind Shen Du and approached Madam Tang’s side. “Tell me the reason. Once you speak it out, you won’t suffer so much anymore.”
“What do you know!” Madam Tang suddenly turned and pushed Zhu Yan to the ground.
Shen Du, worried for Zhu Yan, hurried forward to restrain Madam Tang, but Zhu Yan pleaded on her behalf, “Don’t hurt her.”
Everyone was baffled by Zhu Yan’s plea.
The murderer before them had clearly tried to kill her, yet she was pleading for mercy. Was she insane or foolish?
“She, too, has her own hardships,” Zhu Yan said with compassion. “Do not harm her further.”
Perhaps moved by Zhu Yan’s sincerity, Madam Tang did not struggle this time. Instead, she relaxed entirely.
Shen Du released his hold, helped Zhu Yan to her feet, and stood to the side, asking with concern, “Are you alright? Were you hurt?”
“I’m fine,” Zhu Yan shook her head, then turned her gaze back to Madam Tang.
Madam Tang had calmed down. She carefully held the torn portraits in her hands and pressed them against her chest.
Two clear streams of tears traced down her cheeks. Taking a deep breath, she said, “It wasn’t my fault. They betrayed me first. It was them—all of this was caused by them. I treated him so well, so why did he betray me?”
Zhu Yan lowered her eyes. “The ‘him’ you speak of—is it your first husband?”
Madam Tang tightly closed her eyes, unsure whether it was regret or sorrow, but tears continued to fall uncontrollably. “Yes, it was him.”
Madam Tang finally began to speak freely. Everyone present fell into silence, listening to her account.
Madam Tang’s family background was fairly decent, and she had a younger sister who was quite beautiful.However, when she was young, her younger sister was abducted and never heard from again. When the two sisters finally reunited, her sister had become a courtesan.
This was already an unfortunate story, but what made it even more tragic were the events that followed, which Madam Tang never could have anticipated.
She brought her sister back home. At that time, she was already married to her first husband, Xiao Ruiqi.
But not long after, she discovered that her husband had actually become involved with her sister. How could she bear such a betrayal?
To preserve her dignity, she offered her sister a cup of poisoned wine, never expecting that her husband would drink it instead.
After her husband passed away, her sister also disappeared.
After a long search with no results, she eventually discovered her sister’s body, long dead, in her husband’s tomb—and the two were found in an embrace!
Perhaps recalling these past events, the memory of driving her sister to death and accidentally killing her husband deeply disturbed Madam Tang, causing her mind to become confused. Just after recounting everything, she began shaking her head vigorously.
“No… that’s not right, it wasn’t like that, it wasn’t like that.”
All of this was spoken by Madam Tang herself, but after saying it, she immediately denied her own words, leaving everyone present utterly bewildered.
“Yes…” Madam Tang seemed almost delirious, crying and laughing at once. “It should have been like this: that woman wasn’t my sister at all. She was just a courtesan who seduced my husband. She deserved to die. Instead of living a decent life, she chose to seduce another woman’s husband. What purpose did a woman like her have in living? She should have been torn limb from limb, skinned alive, humiliated by the world, and mocked by everyone.”
In a short span of time, Madam Tang presented two completely different versions of the story.
Although some people didn’t understand, clever individuals like Zhu Yan, Shen Du, and the Empress had already grasped the underlying reason.
Betrayed by her husband and having driven her sister to her death—such a blow was too heavy, and it was only natural for her memories to become disordered.
“So then…” Seeing Madam Tang crying and laughing uncontrollably, Zhu Yan quickly intervened. “So you killed those women who resembled your sister?”
“They all deserved to die, and so did those wretched men,” Madam Tang declared with an air of righteousness. “Why couldn’t those men associate with decent women? Instead, they lingered around courtesans from the Blue Pavilion. Didn’t they know those women would drag them into a pit of fire?”
“That’s just your personal opinion,” Zhu Yan retorted. “Not everyone in the world lacks self-control. Those born into the life of a courtesan are already unfortunate; they don’t intentionally seek to ruin others’ lives.”
“Heh…” Madam Tang began to laugh, her demeanor growing increasingly deranged. “Actually, at first, I blamed myself. If it weren’t for me, my sister wouldn’t have died, and my husband wouldn’t have died either. If it weren’t for my jealousy… I wouldn’t have lost both of my loved ones at once.”
“So you regret it,” Zhu Yan continued. “The reason you arranged the bodies in an embracing pose was a form of granting them peace, wasn’t it?”Madam Tang smiled through her tears, nodding repeatedly. "Madam Shen is indeed clever, hitting the nail on the head. Everyone here... everyone, I look down upon, but you alone I admire, Madam Shen. Not only do I admire you, I envy you. Why is it that you can receive a man's protection? Why is it that you can earn a man's loyalty? While I have nothing at all."
"..." Zhu Yan was at a loss for words. When had she ever received a man's loyalty? Was she referring to Shen Du?
Little did she know that in a few months, she would die at the hands of this very man.
"What about accomplices?" Zhu Yan, sensitive to this topic, quickly shifted the focus. "It must be difficult for you alone to carry out so many cases. Did you have help?"
"Yes, and no," Madam Tang continued. "Sometimes I would deceive those men, telling them there was something buried below and having them dig the pits themselves. Other times, I would lure two people together to the spot, kill them, and then dig the pit myself. So, I hardly needed any accomplices. In this regard, Madam Shen has underestimated my abilities."
Zhu Yan nodded slightly. She had indeed underestimated her.
"One last question," Zhu Yan's expression turned unusually serious. "Among those you killed, there is a pattern you may not have noticed yourself—the ages of the victims have been decreasing. Why is that?"
"Because I have grown old and can no longer find targets of the same age as them. So, I turned my attention to younger people. Heh... times have changed, and without realizing it, so much time has passed."
"Indeed, times have changed. I suppose you never imagined we would actually capture you."
All the questions were finally clear to Zhu Yan. Having obtained the answers, she stood up and bowed to the Empress.
"Your Majesty, the truth of the case has come to light, and the true culprit has confessed. As for how to deal with her, I leave it to Your Majesty's discretion."
The Buddha Hall fell silent. The entire case was finally resolved, and the Empress felt a weight lifted from her mind.
Yet, the thought that the culprit was the widow of a loyal official made it difficult for the Empress to decide.
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