The Gradually Revealed Truth

As Zhou Yan stepped out of the courtyard, he saw Ma Yan walking toward him.

He raised a hand slightly to stop Ma Yan's approach, then turned his head to look at Steward Huang. "I must trouble you to prepare a room for me, Steward Huang. I need to contemplate and prepare for how to deal with this vengeful spirit."

"No problem at all, Master Mage, please follow me." Steward Huang said hurriedly.

Soon, the group arrived outside a room. It was a guest chamber, spacious and elegant.

After Steward Huang had someone bring refreshments and tea, he took his leave.

Once the others had moved away, Ma Yan went to close the door.

Only then did Zhou Yan remove his cloak, look at Ma Yan, and ask, "Well? What did you find out?"

"I found out that although Dong Lei has a poor reputation outside, his reputation within the mansion is quite good. He isn't harsh to the servants. Situations like Cuier's sudden death have happened in the mansion before, and Dong Lei always handled the funeral arrangements properly," Ma Yan said with a slight nod.

Zhou Yan raised an eyebrow, nodding thoughtfully.

He had previously assumed that Dong Lei had something to hide, which was why he was so concerned about Cuier's funeral, and that perhaps Cuier's death was not simple.

But now it seemed that this speculation could be dismissed.

"Furthermore, there are no issues between Master Dong and his wife. The two were together when they were still humble, and their bond is very deep. Even after he took a concubine, Master Dong spent most of his time with his wife, and everyone in the mansion holds the wife in high regard..."

"The concubine comes from a scholarly family, is proficient in all the arts, and is kind to others. Aside from being a bit haughty, there are no other issues..."

"The relationship between the wife and the concubine is also very good. It is said that when the concubine first entered the household, it was the wife who personally arranged it for Master Dong..."

"..."

Zhou Yan's brow furrowed tightly. The information coming back from every aspect indicated that there were no problems.

Yet, the more this was the case, the more he felt something was wrong.

Perhaps it was because everything was too perfect!

To a certain extent, having no problems was the biggest problem of all...

"...By the way, that Cuier wasn't the wife's maid, but the concubine's maid." Ma Yan seemed to recall something and added.

Zhou Yan's body jolted, and he looked at Ma Yan. "What did you say? That Cuier was the concubine's maid, not the wife's?"

"That's right, why?"

Ma Yan's expression was puzzled. "Everyone in the mansion says that if it weren't for Cuier protecting her mistress at the critical moment, the concubine would likely have followed in the wife's footsteps and been killed by that vengeful spirit as well."

Zhou Yan thought of the situation he had discovered on Cuier's corpse, as well as the situation regarding the concubine, and suddenly felt he had discovered something.

"We came to the wrong place this time, but there is no turning back now."

Zhou Yan said this, leaving Ma Yan somewhat confused.

He did not explain, wanting only to resolve the matter of the vengeful spirit as quickly as possible.

As for the other secrets within the Dong Mansion, he only wanted to stay as far away as possible.

Even just guessing a sliver of the truth had already made Zhou Yan feel like he was sitting on pins and needles.

"Brother-in-law, you should leave the mansion, find a place to rest nearby, and wait for me outside tomorrow morning," Zhou Yan said to Ma Yan.

Ma Yan's gaze flickered as he looked at Zhou Yan, then he nodded.

"Alright."

A moment later, Zhou Yan called for Steward Huang and had him escort Ma Yan out of the mansion.

As for himself, he went to the concubine's courtyard.

"Where is Master Dong?" Zhou Yan asked.

Steward Huang bowed slightly and said, "During the first half of the night, the Master keeps vigil for his wife. In the second half, he goes to comfort the concubine."

Zhou Yan's eyes flickered, and he nodded slightly.

He sat on a stone bench in the courtyard, surrounded by many young and strong servants holding torches, creating a rather imposing atmosphere.

Inside the room, besides the concubine herself, there were several maids keeping her company.

"Steward Huang, you should sit down too. I have some things I would like to ask," Zhou Yan said to Steward Huang.

Steward Huang excused himself and sat down.

"Master Mage, please feel free to ask whatever you wish."

Zhou Yan did not stand on ceremony and said directly, "Before I arrived, two other mages came. What has become of them?"

This question made Steward Huang's expression somewhat awkward.

However, it seemed he had received instructions, so he said, "Well, those two mages were both quite badly injured, and they both left the next day."

"Hmm, I heard that they both died?" Zhou Yan asked again.

"Cough..."

Steward Huang gave a dry cough and hurriedly defended, "Master Mage, please do not listen to the rumors outside. When those two mages left us, although they were indeed heavily injured, there was absolutely no danger to their lives.

But for some reason, after they left, they suddenly died of unnatural causes..."

Speaking to this point, Steward Huang found himself unable to continue.

It seemed that no matter how he phrased it, the matter was inextricably linked to the Dong Mansion.

Zhou Yan, however, was neither angry nor prone to outbursts; instead, he continued to ask calmly, "By the way, has this cousin of your concubine stayed in your mansion the entire time, or has he been out?"

Steward Huang did not seem to expect Zhou Yan to ask about Zhuang Hua, but after a moment of thought, he replied, "That is not the case. The young master cousin has been out twice, both times to contact Western doctors for the concubine."

"Did he manage to contact any?" Zhou Yan asked quickly.

Steward Huang did not know why Zhou Yan was so interested in the young master cousin, but he answered truthfully nonetheless, "No. It seems there was some trouble; the Western doctors have yet to arrive. Otherwise, the young master cousin would not be so anxious."

Zhou Yan pondered for a moment before asking again, "The Dong Family holds considerable power in Shen City. Do you know what kind of Western doctor this young master cousin was trying to contact?"

"That, I am not clear on. The Master has always detested Western novelties and has always kept his distance from them," Steward Huang said.

Immediately after, Steward Huang looked at Zhou Yan and asked, "Master Mage, is there something wrong with the young master cousin?"

Steward Huang was a shrewd man; how could he not sense that something was amiss given how meticulously Zhou Yan was questioning him?

Yet, no matter how he looked at it, Steward Huang could not detect anything out of the ordinary.

"I have some suspicions, but I cannot be certain. Perhaps I am mistaken."

Zhou Yan knew he could not hide his intentions from the other party, so he simply replied in a detached tone.

Then, he sat quietly in his place and said nothing more.

Finding it impossible to gauge Zhou Yan's thoughts, Steward Huang had no choice but to take his leave helplessly.

After he left, he hurried to the mourning hall and recounted his entire conversation with Zhou Yan to Dong Lei.

Dong Lei was silently burning paper offerings; he was the only one in the mourning hall.

Suddenly, his hand trembled slightly.

Although he recovered quickly, it did not escape the notice of the old servant who had followed him for many years.