Chapter 435 Dying of Rage

As soon as the words left his mouth, Ji Nanchuan kicked Meng Shi square in the chest, sending her flying across the room before she slammed into the ground.

"You foolish woman! Now you're scared? Where was that sense earlier?"

"If you hadn't insisted on keeping Hua Feixue around in the first place, would she ever have gotten the chance to get close to the Wu family?"

"You've stirred up a huge mess, and it's all because of your stupidity! Look at what you've done to this fine marquis estate!"

"Meng Shuyuan, I, the Marquis, divorce you!"

Ji Nanchuan moved to fetch paper and brush to write the divorce decree. Seeing this, Meng Shi forgot the pain and lunged forward, crying, "Marquis, please don't do this!"

Ji Qingfeng's expression shifted dramatically as well. "Father, you cannot!"

"Mother has worked her fingers to the bone for this household for over twenty years. Even if she has no great achievements, she's still earned her keep. If you divorce her now, what will people say about you? What will they think of the Yongning Marquis estate?"

"Does Father want to be known as a heartless man?"

Ji Nanchuan's fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked. He ground his teeth and said, "I don't give a damn about that anymore! I've put up with her long enough. If I keep putting up with her, she'll destroy this entire estate."

"Qingfeng, my mind's made up. Don't bother trying to talk me out of it."

Ji Qingfeng's expression changed slightly, and he immediately dropped to his knees in front of Ji Nanchuan.

"Father, please reconsider."

"Grandmother is sick in bed and still needs Mother to take care of her. None of us three brothers are married yet, and Qingqing's situation still hasn't been sorted out. There are a lot of things that need Mother to handle."

"If you divorce her, the whole estate will fall apart. Then the century-old legacy of this household will really be finished!"

"Please, Father, for the sake of us three brothers, don't divorce Mother."

In this dynasty, a divorced woman only had two options.

Either she shaved her head and became a nun, spending her days in front of the Buddha's lamp.

Or she'd be hounded to death by people's gossip and scorn.

After all, no family could accept their daughter being cast off by her husband—they saw it as a disgrace.

Especially since Meng Shi was already up there in age and the mother of four kids!

If Ji Nanchuan divorced her, she'd really have nothing left but death.

She was his own mother, after all. Ji Qingfeng couldn't stand to watch her be cast aside by Ji Nanchuan.

He paused for a moment, then said, "Father, if you still insist on divorcing Mother, then I'll kneel here and won't get up until you change your mind."

Ji Nanchuan saw how stubborn his son was and let out a helpless sigh. "Qingfeng, you... ugh..."

"Fine. I, the Marquis, won't divorce Meng Shi, but I'm taking back control of the household. From now on, nothing in this estate, big or small, goes through her hands anymore."

"Also, Meng Shi is confined to the estate. Other than taking care of your grandmother, she's not allowed to go anywhere."

Ji Qingfeng breathed a silent sigh of relief. He knew that compared to divorce, this was already the best possible outcome for Meng Shi!

He walked over and helped Meng Shi to her feet, trying to comfort her.

"Mother, you've worked hard for so long. From now on, just take some well-deserved rest."

Meng Shi's eyes welled up, tears streaming down like rain, and her throat tightened with emotion.

To think that she, the matriarch of a marquis household, had once enjoyed such glory and splendor—only to fall this low one day.

Just then, a servant came in to report, "Marquis, officials from the yamen are here. They say they're investigating the murders of Second Master Meng and Young Master Wu. Please come out and see them."

Hearing this, Ji Nanchuan and Ji Qingfeng forgot all about Meng Shi and hurried to the front hall.

In the courtyard, two bodies were still lying on the ground. Chen Huaxiu was clutching Wu Chaoyang's body, her voice hoarse from crying.

Ji Qingqing stood off to the side, looking like she'd lost her soul, not saying a word.

Wu Jinxi was overwhelmed with grief. He couldn't hold it in anymore and rushed at Ji Qingqing, raising his hand to slap her across the face.

"How could you kill your own brother? He thought of everything for you—he even went so far as to ruin Ji Yuntang's face for you, just so you could become the Crown Princess in glory without any worries! How could you bring yourself to do it?"

Ji Qingqing, having been slapped by Wu Jinxi, was not one to swallow such an insult. She immediately slapped him back.

"He did that for me? He did it for his own wealth and glory!"

"You two know better than anyone what kind of men your sons were. I hadn't seen you for sixteen years, and you never raised me for a single day. Why should I show any mercy?"

"Don't forget, my current situation is all thanks to you. Are you saying you're allowed to ruin my life, but I'm not allowed to take revenge?"

"I wanted you to taste the pain of losing a son!"

"You—you—you unfilial daughter!" Wu Jinxi's chest ached with rage. His vision darkened before his eyes, and he saw multiple afterimages of Ji Qingqing. His head grew heavier and heavier.

Then, his body tilted, and he collapsed straight to the ground.

Ji Qingqing stepped forward and kicked Wu Jinxi. "Get up! If you're going to die, go die somewhere else. Don't play dead in front of me!"

She kicked him several times, but the man on the ground showed no reaction at all.

Ji Qingqing began to panic. She was about to call for help when she heard the sound of the door being broken down.

Immediately after, soldiers rushed in. "The yamen is conducting official business. All unrelated persons, leave at once!"

The front hall and rear courtyard were surrounded. A guard stepped forward, checked Wu Jinxi's breath, and reported to the prefect beside him.

"Your Honor, another one is dead."

Ji Qingqing: "..."

Ji Qingqing: "!!!"

She never imagined that she had only exchanged a few words with Wu Jinxi—and he just died?

How was that possible?

Wu Shijie was utterly terrified. He collapsed to the ground, eyes wide, and could no longer hold back his sobs of utter despair.

They had thought coming to the capital would be a turning point in their fortunes, but instead it had become the place where their family members met their end.

Perhaps it was fate's cruel irony—the ones who killed Wu Jinxi and Wu Chaoyang were none other than the very sister they had so desperately wanted to see.

How bitterly ironic!

Wu Shijie could no longer contain his emotions. He stood up, pointed at Ji Qingqing, and accused her, "It was her! She killed my brother and angered my father to death!"

"Your Honor, you must avenge my father and brother."

The capital's prefect, Zhao Chengjiu, was over forty, with a bit of a paunch.

He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, his head throbbing.

This case involved the reputation of the Marquis of Yongning's household, and even the Crown Prince was implicated.

The would-be Crown Princess had publicly killed her own younger brother, who had in turn murdered her maternal cousin—it was a messy, shocking affair.

Since Ji Huaiche was at the Dali Temple, they couldn't take the case there without it being a conflict of interest.

The Ministry of Justice also dared not handle it, fearing it would incur the emperor's wrath, so the case was assigned to him from above.

Poor guy—he was just a lowly prefect, yet he had to deal with such a thorny case.

Zhao Chengjiu felt nothing but a throbbing headache.

"Arrest Second Miss Ji and the Wu family's mother and son first, and bring them back to the yamen for questioning."

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