Another One Killed
Jiang Zhaoying had long anticipated this move from her. With a nimble sidestep, she dodged the attack, her gaze icy as she stared at Madam Song, who nearly stumbled. In a voice only the two of them could hear, she mocked, “See, you can’t hit me.”
This sudden remark startled Madam Song. Her eyes widened as she glared viciously at Jiang Zhaoying. In her panic, she broke into another fit of hysterical weeping and cursing. “What kind of fate is this? I bring a daughter-in-law into the house, and she ends up killing her own husband. And now she dares to disrespect her mother-in-law! This is bullying our Marquis’s household for having no one left! Today she killed one, who knows if she’ll come for me tomorrow, or for Mingji, or Qinghuan? I don’t believe it… I don’t believe your Jiang family, with its prestigious Chief Astronomer, couldn’t have calculated that you’re a life-taker. You deliberately targeted us, a household of widows and orphans, to harm us!”
Tears streamed down Madam Song’s face, and she swayed unsteadily, yet inwardly she was nearly jumping for joy. This Jiang woman had been carefully selected by them. With Song Chengyu’s death pinned on Jiang Zhaoying, she would never be able to turn her life around or cry injustice. She would have no choice but to resign herself to being trapped in the Song residence for the rest of her days, burdened with guilt and sin, forced to carefully curry favor with every member of the Song family.
Madam Song had meticulously examined the dowry list. The Jiang family had truly spared no expense, preparing such a lavish dowry that she and the others had been too excited to sleep for several nights.
“Madam Song, who knows better than you whether I was the one who killed Song Chengyu?”
“You…”
Madam Song panicked, staring at Jiang Zhaoying in shock. Why was this unfolding differently from her plan? Logically, after such a major incident, Jiang Zhaoying, a sheltered young lady raised in the inner chambers, should have been terrified out of her wits, allowing them to berate and manipulate her as they pleased.
“If it wasn’t you, then who? Chengyu was always healthy and robust, as everyone saw. It was you who killed him!”
Knowing he was to feign death, Song Chengyu had spent the previous month inviting friends out for drinks, conversations, and outings, showcasing his robust and refined side to the fullest. Now, every noble young master and lady in the capital could testify on his behalf!
Listening to her unreasonable accusations, Jiang Zhaoying looked at Madam Song with mocking eyes as if she were a fool, yet her heart remained quietly suspended, filled with anxiety. Shu Yun hadn’t returned yet—she didn’t know if her outing had gone smoothly or if the letter had reached her eldest martial brother’s hands. Would her second martial brother believe her? Would her father comply?
“Is Young Master Song really dead?”
A bold onlooker asked this before pushing through the crowd to check by the wedding bed. He then stumbled back abruptly, his face pale, and hurriedly returned, trembling as he exclaimed, “Dead! He’s dead, truly dead!”
“Then it must have been her who killed him! Young Master Song was in excellent health—I drank with him just two days ago.”
“Logically, the Jiang family should have known about Miss Jiang’s fate. And as you all saw, her dowry was far more lavish than what others give when marrying off their daughters. This clearly shows they were guilty, using the Song family as a scapegoat for a trial marriage, right?”
“If he had died even a day later, she wouldn’t have admitted to being a husband-killer. Oh, Madam Song, why keep her around? Why not just bury her with Chengyu? If she leaves the Song residence with all that wealth, and some foolhardy man steps forward to marry her, wouldn’t that just lead to another death?”
“Perhaps she isn’t even human, but a demon that seduces men and drains their life essence. Look at those eyes of hers—they’re as bewitching as a vixen’s. Madam Song, if I were you, I’d have her beaten to death immediately, then take people to the Jiang residence to demand justice.”
…
As these words fell,
an inexplicable chill seeped through the courtyard, startling the gathered guests into taking a step back. Especially the relatives of the Song clan, whose gazes toward Jiang Zhaoying were nearly murderous.
Madam Song watched their reactions with satisfaction, weeping mournfully as she shook her head at the ladies nearest to her.
“You don’t understand—Chengyu adored her. If he knew I wanted her dead, he would surely blame us.”
Prompted by Madam Song’s insinuation, everyone’s eyes turned even colder toward Jiang Zhaoying, as if she truly were a fox spirit that ensnared souls and consumed vitality.
This shameless display infuriated Jiang Zhaoying to the point of gritting her teeth. No wonder… no wonder she had been deceived in her past life, and everyone around her had become accomplices in her demise.
Of course, Madam Song didn’t truly wish for her death—otherwise, how could she seize her dowry, support Song Chengyu and Shen Yuefu in secret, and fill the holes in the marquisate’s finances?
Seeing Jiang Zhaoying standing firm and unafraid, Madam Song clenched her teeth, turned, and threw herself onto the bed where Song Chengyu lay. Clutching his hand, she wailed bitterly.
“A wife should bring virtue. Look at what you’ve married! If I had known bringing her into our home would kill you, I would never have agreed to this marriage!”
While weeping and lamenting, she kept stealing glances at Jiang Zhaoying from the corner of her eye, her heart burning with impatience.
Why hadn’t this wretched girl come forward to admit her fault yet? She needed to force Jiang Zhaoying to pledge—in front of the Song clan elders and all the nobility of the capital—that she would remain a widow in the marquisate, serve Madam Song for life, and guard the marquisate forever.
“Mother.”
Song Qinghuan, her face still bearing traces of childishness but her eyes already sharp with malice, threw her arms around Madam Song, crying out through tears.
“I have no big brother to protect me anymore. Who will care for Mother now? Who will look after us? Who will defend our Song household?”
Song Mingji understood their scheme at once. With reddened eyes, he glared furiously at Jiang Zhaoying.
“You brought misfortune upon my elder brother, turning our Song family’s joyous occasion into a funeral. Even so, Mother cannot bear to take your life. Shouldn’t you say something?”
If she were sensible,
she ought to kneel before Mother immediately, vowing to devote herself wholeheartedly to protecting the marquisate, raising them, and securing their futures.
Jiang Zhaoying listened, seeming to ponder for a moment before nodding.
Madam Song, Song Mingji, and Song Qinghuan felt a surge of joy—once she spoke the words herself, their plans would be secured!
“I suppose I should say something.”
Jiang Zhaoying slowly turned, her cold gaze sweeping over the crowd of onlookers filling the courtyard.
“I, Jiang Zhaoying, am no bearer of a husband-cursing fate. Moreover, I have been in the Song residence for merely two hours, yet they blame Song Chengyu’s death on me. Such in-laws are not worth keeping. Therefore… I should seek a divorce!”
“You dare speak of divorce? How dare you even utter such words? Jiang Zhaoying, you bring death upon a man right after marriage. I’d like to see who in this world would still dare marry you!!”
Madam Song trembled with agitation upon hearing her mention divorce, then pointed angrily at a pillar and shouted.
“You cause a man’s death and think you can simply walk away? There’s no such principle under heaven! If you dare leave, I’ll dash my brains out right here!”
Jiang Zhaoying glanced at the pillar behind her and took a step to the side.
“If you insist on this course, I dare not stand in your way. Madam Song, please proceed.”
Madam Song felt a surge of bitter frustration stuck in her throat, unable to be expressed or suppressed. With so many eyes fixed upon her, she was cornered into a dilemma. Gritting her teeth, she closed her eyes and feigned a weak, half-hearted collision with the pillar.