Soon, an elderly eunuch in red robes entered the chamber, his face twisted in a lecherous sneer. “The Zhenxi Grand General’s feigned suffering nearly deceived the entire realm, but it couldn’t escape the Emperor’s discerning eyes.”
“You embezzled military funds, causing massive casualties and defeat for our army. Then you secretly hoarded spoils of war and transferred them elsewhere. The Emperor is enraged and has specially dispatched me to confiscate the General’s Mansion. The entire Ling clan is to be exiled to the Northern Desert.”
Ling Cang slammed the bed frame in fury, roaring, “Framed… I’ve been framed… Pfft…”
He stared at Su Nuan’s delicate, pale face and deliberately spat a mouthful of blood onto it. A little filth would ensure her safety.
Su Nuan only felt a warm, metallic wetness on her face. She wiped at it hastily, smearing the blood across her features.
Ling Cang convulsed twice then lay still, his eyes wide with unresolved grievance.
“General… husband… husband?”
Su Nuan snapped back to reality and threw herself onto Ling Cang’s body, weeping bitterly. In these two days since her rebirth, all her pent-up sorrow and injustice came pouring out in heart-wrenching sobs.
With the General dead, what meaning did her second chance at life hold?
Her eyes sharpened with determination. Desperate times called for desperate measures. She decisively pulled out her golden hairpin and, drawing on medical knowledge from her previous life, swiftly pricked several acupoints on the General’s body. Soon, color returned to his face and his chest began to rise and fall faintly.
At that moment, the elderly eunuch grabbed Su Nuan and dragged her away from Ling Cang. After a brief examination, he declared, “The convicted official Ling Cang, recognizing the gravity of his crimes, has died from vomiting blood.”
“Take all the female relatives to the front courtyard. They are not permitted to bring even a needle or thread. Shackle them and prepare for exile to the Northern Desert.”
Su Nuan quickly knelt and pleaded, “Your Excellency, if an exiled convict dies within the capital, it would be seen as an accomplice silencing witnesses through murder.”
“Now that I’ve preserved the General’s last breath, sparing you from implication, might this humble woman beg a favor?”
The eunuch’s face darkened, beads of fearful sweat forming on his forehead. Indeed, Ling Cang must not die in the capital.
Squinting, he asked, “What is your request?”
Knowing she couldn’t ask for too much, Su Nuan replied, “Now that only widows and orphans remain in the General’s Mansion, I beg Your Excellency to spare us the shackles.”
The eunuch snorted coldly. “Women must wear leg irons. No exceptions. Hurry outside to assemble for the journey.”
Su Nuan breathed a sigh of relief – her request had been granted. In her previous life, she had worn shackles until they reached the next town, where she paid to have them removed.
She wrapped Ling Cang in a bedsheet and carried him out on her back.
The courtyard had gathered a few people. The Ling family servants had all scattered, none willing to stay and face certain death.
Among them was the younger matriarch, her mother-in-law Xue Shi, who reached out to steady Su Nuan with trembling hands. “How is my Cang’er?”
Su Nuan nodded, meeting the woman’s gaze. “My husband still clings to life.”
Xue Shi stiffened. Clinging to life? That meant he was beyond saving.
She bit her lip hard, refusing to cry, and instead tightly embraced a five- or six-year-old girl standing beside her.
The child was exquisitely beautiful, her large eyes filled with terror and tears, yet she stubbornly refused to let them fall – truly worthy of being a general’s daughter.
Su Nuan scanned the courtyard but couldn’t find Ling Yun. Had the rascal run away?
Just as she wondered, two soldiers dragged a blood-soaked Ling Yun into the courtyard and threw him to the ground.
Ling Yun lay motionless, a bloody gash on his forehead clearly made by a soldier’s sword hilt.
In her previous life, Su Nuan had spent countless idle days studying medical texts, and her skills now rivaled those of an established physician.
She checked Ling Yun’s pulse; although it was chaotic, there was no life-threatening danger.
Xue Shi could no longer hold back her tears, which streamed down her face, yet she did not utter a single sob.
Su Nuan comforted her, “There’s no danger to his life.”
Xue Shi nodded, her beautiful eyes filled with stubbornness and pride. She had always believed she acted with integrity and dignity, unwilling to bring shame to the General’s Mansion.
The eunuch seemed to have come prepared and said, “Examine him. Make sure he doesn’t die.”
The imperial physician carrying the medicine box responded, “Yes.”
The physician lifted Ling Yun’s eyelids, checked his pulse again, and then took out a silver needle, inserting it into Ling Yun’s philtrum.
Ling Yun cried out in pain, “Ouch… How dare you, old man, prick me with a needle?”
“Mother… Mother, where are you? This nasty old man is bullying me, waaah…”
Ling Yun’s reaction left everyone dumbfounded.
The old eunuch frowned and asked, “What’s going on?”
The imperial physician replied, “He’s been struck on the head and has lost his senses.”
The old eunuch gave an “oh” of acknowledgment. As long as he wasn’t dead, it was fine.
The imperial physician’s eyes flickered as he whispered, “Get them out of the city as soon as possible. Traveling with injuries will drain half their life even if they don’t die. We can’t let them die in the capital.”
The old eunuch’s eyes shifted thoughtfully. The situation indeed wasn’t suitable for imprisonment, so he said, “The Emperor has ordered them to leave the city immediately.”
Listening to their conversation, Su Nuan recalled her past life. Although Ling Yun hadn’t lost his senses back then, traveling with injuries had indeed drained half his life.
Seeing her mother-in-law comforting Ling Yun, she took her sister-in-law’s hand and reassured her, “Don’t be afraid. Your sister-in-law will protect you.”
The young girl looked at Su Nuan and forced a smile that was uglier than crying.
At the gate, matrons conducted body searches. Fortunately, they only performed a symbolic pat-down and did not demand the removal of clothing, a laxity that was suspicious.
The five of them waited at the gate to be shackled. Su Nuan, sharp-eyed, spotted Su Liren in casual clothes calmly watching the commotion. He seemed unaware that his home had been emptied.
Su Nuan’s mind raced, and she immediately wailed as she rushed toward him, “Father! Father, have you come to take me back?”
Su Liren’s face was icy cold as he pulled a piece of paper from his robe and threw it at her. “You have entered the General’s Mansion and are now its daughter-in-law. From today onward, I am no longer your father.”
Su Nuan picked up the severance letter with a heartbroken (yet inwardly overjoyed) expression, quickly scanning it. The severance was absolute—not only would they have no contact for life, but she was even forbidden from paying respects on his death anniversary.
She sneered, tucked the letter away safely, and said, “Thank you.”
I wonder if that scumbag father will be sentenced to beheading when he discovers his home has been emptied and stolen official silver from the palace has inexplicably appeared there?
Whatever the outcome, the thought alone was deeply satisfying.
Xue Shi asked worriedly, “Are you all right?”
Su Nuan shook her head, “I’m fine. Mother, please take care of Grandmother.”
When they reached the city gate, Su Nuan glanced back at the city filled with sin, vowing to return and wash it clean with blood.
Only at the city gate did she realize the exile group was massive. Anyone living in the city who was related to the Ling family had been exiled.
However, those exiles were clearly much better off than Ling Yun’s group—at least they had bundles of belongings.
An old man snorted and said, “Your Ling Cang actually committed the heinous crime of embezzling military funds. He deserves to die.”
Su Nuan looked up and retorted, “Who are you? When my husband was in his prime, didn’t you benefit from his glory?”
“Look at you, old as you are, yet you bite the hand that feeds you.”
Xue Shi also spoke coldly and distantly, “Third Uncle, if it weren’t for my husband risking his life to earn achievements back then, all of you would still be mud-legged peasants in the countryside.”
“It seems you only share prosperity but not adversity. Today I’ll make this clear: those willing to live harmoniously with me, step forward. Those unwilling, get lost.”
Su Nuan looked up at her mother-in-law. In her previous life, she had always thought of her as a delicate young lady. Now it appeared that was only because the other had been indulging her, thus treating her gently.
No one in the clan moved, likely wanting to draw clear boundaries.
The escorting officers grew impatient and began herding the crowd onward. The procession of over a hundred people was quite massive, with loud weeping everywhere.
When they reached Three-Mile Slope outside the city, Su Nuan spotted a covered donkey cart ahead. A young man sat on the carriage shaft, staring fixedly at the procession.
Su Nuan found his figure familiar. Only when they drew near did she exclaim in surprise, “Why is it you?”