Zheng Yunni, of course, could not leave. Before she even reached the gates of the residence, she was stopped by the Embroidered Uniform Guards and quickly brought into the front courtyard.
Huo Weilou sat calmly in the main seat. His face showed little anger, yet those cold eyes alone were enough to strike fear into anyone’s heart.
Zheng Yunni lifted her chin slightly. “Marquis, you should know that the seventh day of the third month is the date of my marriage to the Second Prince. This was a marriage bestowed by His Majesty. If Grandmother had not met with misfortune, I should already be entering the capital with her these past two days.”
Huo Weilou rubbed the black jade ring on his finger, his expression unreadable.
Zheng Yunni bit her lip. “Though three people have died in this household, none of it concerns me. Marquis, to detain me—do you truly suspect that I could be the murderer?”
Huo Weilou’s gaze remained heavy and silent. Eunuch Fu smiled pleasantly, trying to soothe her. “Miss, the wedding on the seventh day of the third month is still far off. Today is only the fifteenth of the first month. Even by waterway, the journey to the capital takes but half a month. There is no need to be so anxious.”
Zheng Yunni dared not offend Huo Weilou, but she dismissed Eunuch Fu without regard. “Eunuch, a royal wedding is full of complex rituals. It is not as simple as you imagine.”
Eunuch Fu kept smiling. “True, it is not simple, but neither is it overly complicated.” He paused, then added gently: “When His Majesty was wed, I was the one to lead his horse. So I know a little of these matters.”
Emperor Jianhe had been made Crown Prince while still young. To lead the horse at his wedding was a role reserved only for trusted attendants. Zheng Yunni had assumed Eunuch Fu was merely a servant from the Princess’s household, but now realized he was in fact one of the Emperor’s men. Her lips pressed tight, her face paling.
Zheng Wenan, sweating slightly, spoke: “Marquis, forgive us. We are not disregarding the rules. But since the killer has not yet been caught, and given Yunni’s noble status, we feared for her safety. We thought it better she enter the capital sooner.”
The Second Prince’s betrothed—indeed, a most exalted identity. Eunuch Fu’s brows lifted slightly, his smile growing even warmer.
Huo Weilou’s brows did not move in the slightest. “Until the case is clear, no one may leave.”
Zheng Yunni’s brows furrowed. She wanted to speak but forced herself to hold back. After a long pause, she ground out a few words between her teeth: “Very well, then I shall obey the Marquis…”
After Zheng Yunni finished speaking, she bowed and turned to leave the front courtyard.
Zheng Wenan wiped the sweat from his brow and said, “Marquis, forgive us. Yunni is still young and headstrong. She did not mean to offend you.”
Huo Weilou lifted his gaze toward him. “Was it Nanny Yu who advised you to send Zheng Yunni to the capital ahead of time?”
Zheng Wenan froze, his mouth opening but unable to form a reply. “Marquis, this was a decision I made after careful thought…” Lowering his eyes, his expression grew uneasy.
Huo Weilou’s phoenix-like eyes glinted with coldness as he looked at him. “At this point, you should learn from your fourth brother. The Anqing Marquisate was once a family of high rank, but now it is already at the end of its strength. Your three elder brothers are gone. If you cannot see clearly, then even if the Second Prince truly becomes Crown Prince one day, how many days of glory will your house have left?”
Cold sweat poured down Zheng Wenan’s face like rain. Emperor Jianhe had not yet named a Crown Prince, and discussion of succession was forbidden at court. Yet Huo Weilou dared to speak so openly—and he was not wrong. For generations, the Anqing Marquisate had been mediocre, its fortune nearly exhausted. Their only chance lay in the Second Prince being named Crown Prince, with Zheng Yunni as Crown Princess and, one day, Empress of the realm.
Zheng Wenan swallowed with difficulty. “Marquis, everything I know… I have already spoken.”
Huo Weilou gave him a sidelong glance, then waved his hand to dismiss him.
Zheng Wenan bowed and withdrew. As he left, his back appeared hunched.
Eunuch Fu watched and sighed. “This Fifth Master is not skilled at concealing things. Even an old servant like me can see he is hiding something. If matters drag on like this, are they not afraid that the young lady’s marriage to the Second Prince will truly face complications?”
At these words, Huo Weilou’s eyes darkened slightly.
For the Anqing Marquisate, nothing was more important than Zheng Yunni’s marriage to the Second Prince. Only by solving the case quickly could the marriage proceed without reproach. Yet at such a critical juncture, both Zheng Wenyan and Zheng Wenan were evasive.
Could it be that the Marquisate harbored some secret even more important than Zheng Yunni’s marriage?
Huo Weilou pondered for a moment, then summoned the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had kept watch at the ancestral hall the previous night.
The guard reported: “Last night, Fifth Master Zheng went to the ancestral hall and stayed for an hour before leaving. During that time, there was no sound from within. After he left, Nanny Yu remained before the Zheng family memorial tablets, chanting scriptures. At dawn, the chanting ceased for about the time of one incense stick, then Nanny Yu returned to her quarters in the left wing to rest.”
The guard paused, then added: “Marquis, there must be a hidden chamber inside the ancestral hall. Shall we search it?”
Huo Weilou tapped his fingers against the armrest of his chair, his gaze steady. “Give the order—”
But before the word “go” left his lips, another Embroidered Guard suddenly strode quickly into the front courtyard. His steps were urgent, his expression grave. Entering the hall, he spoke in a deep voice: “Marquis, the ancestral hall is on fire!”
“On fire?” Huo Weilou’s eyes narrowed. The sudden change was startling, yet his two words remained calm and steady.
The guard nodded. “Yes, it is on fire. The blaze is immense—it cannot be saved.”
Huo Weilou had intended not only to search the ancestral hall but the entire Marquisate. Yet before the order could be given, the hall had already caught fire. A dark gleam flickered in his eyes as he rose and strode outside.
The Anqing Marquisate had stood for more than a hundred years. Once the residence of a prince of the former dynasty, it was later purchased by the Zheng family, renovated and transformed into its present form. The ancestral hall, in particular, had been thoroughly rebuilt.
Ancient pines and cypresses towered like a canopy, but now tongues of flame and thick smoke rose from the hall’s roof, igniting even the treetops.
By the time Huo Weilou reached the edge of the bamboo grove, he knew the fire was beyond saving. Crossing the grove, he stood at the gate of the ancestral hall’s courtyard. The snow around him had melted under the blast of hot wind, leaving the path muddy.
Nanny Yu sat collapsed beneath an old pine, her hair disheveled, her face streaked with soot and tears. “Your servant is guilty. I have shamed the ancestors of the Zheng family…” She repeated this over and over, her expression a mix of terror and remorse.
Soon, Zheng Wenan and the rest of the household arrived in panic. Bo Ruoyou, accompanied by Chun Tao, followed behind the Second Madam and Zheng Xiao to the fire’s edge.
Among the crowd, Huo Weilou immediately spotted Bo Ruoyou. Her usually calm face showed a trace of shock—she had not expected the ancestral hall, such a vital place, to burn. Quickly, her gaze turned sharp and investigative, assessing the scene with professional scrutiny.
A pang of regret stirred in Huo Weilou’s heart once more.
At that moment, Zheng Wenan stormed up to Nanny Yu. “Nanny! How could this fire happen?”
Nanny Yu fell to her knees before him, kowtowing. “Your servant is guilty. Last night I prayed for the old lady’s blessing until dawn before resting. Then suddenly the fire broke out. I tried to save it, but the flames were too fierce…”
Her voice broke with sobs. Seeing her like this, Zheng Wenan could no longer bring himself to scold her. Instead, he turned to Huo Weilou. “Marquis, the ancestral hall always keeps its eternal lamps burning. With the dry weather, it must have been Nanny Yu’s negligence that caused the fire. Forgive us for alarming you. Please return to the front courtyard to rest—allow me to handle matters here.”
Zheng Wenan’s face was full of grief. But Huo Weilou did not even look at him. “The fire started in the rear wing. Does the rear wing also keep eternal lamps burning?”
Huo Weilou had been inside the ancestral hall before and knew that the memorial tablets were all placed in the main hall, with the eternal lamps burning there as well. Yet now, flames roared and surged, and the roof behind the main hall had already collapsed—most likely because that was where the fire had first started.
The blaze had spread wide, threatening to consume the entire hall.
Hearing this, Zheng Wenan’s eyes showed panic even through the drifting smoke. Huo Weilou had already ordered the Embroidered Uniform Guards: “Search the surroundings.”
The guards moved at once. Bo Ruoyou, hearing this, also wished to step closer, but after only two steps forward, a voice sounded from behind her right side. “You—come here.”
A sudden chill ran down Bo Ruoyou’s back. Without turning, she knew it was Huo Weilou calling her. She turned, and indeed, Huo Weilou was watching her intently.
Bo Ruoyou walked to his side and bowed. “Marquis—”
Huo Weilou gave no reply, his gaze returning to the burning hall. At first, Bo Ruoyou was puzzled, then she understood his intent. Her heart stirred, and she refrained from moving forward, instead quietly stepping back to stand behind him.
The cold wind howled, fanning the flames higher. With a thunderous crash, even the roof of the main hall collapsed. The noise startled the onlookers, who cried out and retreated. Amid the swirling smoke, the scorching wind before Bo Ruoyou suddenly eased. She lifted her eyes and saw Huo Weilou standing directly in front of her, his broad shoulders unyielding, as though shielding her from the sky itself.
At that moment, a drifting piece of black ash settled softly onto his shoulder. Bo Ruoyou’s heart trembled—she almost reached out to brush it away.
But just then, Bo Ruoyou caught a faint yet pungent smell at the tip of her nose. She narrowed her eyes and turned, immediately seeing Nanny Yu in the distance—ignored by all—staring at the burning ancestral hall with a look of grim resolve.