CMWKSD -Chapter 178 The Massacre

Jiu Yue leaned forward slightly, her red lips parting: “A village massacre…”

Minister Jiang’s whole body shook violently, trembling like chaff, staring at Jiu Yue. Stammering, he asked, “You… you know everything?”

Jiu Yue smiled: “Minister, you flatter me too much. I’m just a mere woman—how could I possibly know anything?”

“But I do know you. Your entire clan, all nine generations—soon to meet your ancestors again. It seems your tireless search for that perfect place wasn’t in vain, was it?”

“Don’t you agree, Minister?”

Hearing this, Minister Jiang could no longer maintain his composed demeanor from moments ago. “You… no, you can’t… how could you possibly know this?”

Jiu Yue clicked her tongue a few times: “Minister, you’re really ignorant. Haven’t you heard that throughout history, the best treasures are always buried in graves? I simply make bold guesses and carefully verify them.”

“I never imagined, never imagined… Minister, you truly are skilled and daring.”

“To carry out such deeds, placing your Jiang family ancestors in a spot like that… you truly aren’t afraid that your forebears would be devoured by restless spirits, are you?”

Minister Jiang trembled violently, cold sweat streaming down his face.

As it happened, the phrase village massacre was just Jiu Yue’s guess. If she guessed wrong, it wouldn’t matter—she had many ways to torment people. If one guess failed, there would always be the next.

Yet, unexpectedly, her ruse turned out to be true.

After Minister Jiang became the Salt Patrol Inspector, he embezzled at least several million taels. Everyone knew that salt taxes were the bulk of the state treasury.

The sight of so much silver dazzled Minister Jiang.

With so much wealth, he felt it wasn’t safe to leave it just anywhere. Where could he hide it without arousing suspicion?

Minister Jiang racked his brain for several days and nights.

By chance, during a trip home to pay respects to his ancestors, he saw the slightly aged ancestral tomb.

A plan formed in his mind: he decided to relocate the ancestral grave, leaving a hollowed spot where the silver could be conveniently buried. Later, he could retrieve it as he pleased and spend it freely.

But Jiang was also superstitious.

Since the grave would be moved and silver buried, it had to be a significant spot. So he hired a geomancer and a monk to search for the optimal tomb location.

The final site they found for the ancestral tomb was nearly as grand as a mausoleum. After careful selection, he chose that place.

But unfortunately…

The center of the chosen tomb was a small village. The village had less than 200 people.

For his selfish desires, and fearing that the silver’s hiding place would be discovered, Minister Jiang made a ruthless decision: he ordered the massacre of the village.

Coincidentally, that year, the Lingsu County area experienced over half a month of rain.

The rain wasn’t heavy enough to flood homes seriously, but some roofs leaked. However, it was far from causing any deadly floods.

Yet in that year, when Minister Jiang moved the tomb…

Though there were no floods in Lingsu County, he falsely reported that 173 people had drowned—all villagers of Peach Blossom Village.

Disaster relief was provided, and no one suspected otherwise.

Investigations by Shao Qing revealed that the Jiang family ancestral tomb was located precisely in Peach Blossom Village, Lingsu County.

Jiu Yue merely made an educated guess: Peach Blossom Village couldn’t have possibly been chosen for a tomb if a little rain could drown so many.

Jiu Yue had a habit of thinking critically about human nature—she never underestimated the capacity for evil. When analyzing someone, she always imagined them at their cruelest, vilest extremes.

So, she casually said “village massacre” to test Minister Jiang. Who would have thought… her guess would actually be correct?

“Village massacre!”

“Embezzlement!”

“Seizing farmland!”

“Buying offices and selling titles!”

“Raising secret guards—do you have some?”

Jiu Yue enumerated each crime; with every accusation, Minister Jiang and the Jiang family trembled.

“Looks like those plotting rebellion aren’t really me,” she murmured, then glanced at Jiang Qingqing’s swollen face.

“Oh, right—there’s also the matter of abducting and murdering virtuous girls… three or four? Minister Jiang probably doesn’t even remember.”

“Tsk tsk tsk. These crimes sound disgusting to even hear. And to think, your Jiang family comes from a scholarly lineage, yet produced something like this.”

Jiang Qingqing glared fiercely, but dared not act rashly. She knew that today’s calamity—even her mother’s death—was triggered because she had drugged Ji Yiqing, injuring him. Jiu Yue’s arrival was because of that.

But accustomed to pride, she could not bow to Jiu Yue. So all she could do was glare with all her might.

Jiu Yue looked at Jiang Qingqing, stifled a laugh, and traced her finger along her jaw, lifting her swollen face gently: “I hope you’ll keep glaring at me a little longer.”

She then looked up at the sky, dark and foreboding, and casually said: “In a little over an hour, Minister, you’d better be at court, right?”

Whether it was exactly an hour didn’t matter—Jiu Yue didn’t even know how to tell time. What she needed was just that window of time. One hour, two hours—enough to vent her anger.

Minister Jiang raised his head sharply.

The eldest Jiang son and several other sons leapt toward him: “Father!”

Jiu Yue pointed to the papers in Shao Qing’s hands: “In one hour, these will appear in court.”

Thinking further, Jiu Yue added: “Shao Qing, make sure to tell the eldest brother about the Peach Blossom Village incident. This is a major achievement—who knows how much silver could be found in the Jiang ancestral tomb? Such credit cannot go to others.”

Shao Qing nodded quickly: “Yes.”

Minister Jiang had no time for anything else. At his advanced age, he immediately knelt before Jiu Yue: “What do you want?”

Jiu Yue said nothing.

In desperation, Minister Jiang began to plead: “Silver? Office? Promote your husband? Anything, just say it—I can do it all!”

Jiu Yue glanced lightly at Jiang Qingqing.

“Tonight, you won’t be sleeping. In an hour, you’ll need to ask my husband for leave.”

No sooner had she spoken than the eldest Jiang son lunged at Jiang Qingqing.

Jiang Qingqing screamed miserably: “Brother!”

Then her face received a harsh slap.

Minister Jiang quickly looked up at Jiu Yue.

Jiu Yue, propping her chin, watched with great interest.

Minister Jiang steeled his heart—this calamity was caused by his own daughter. Naturally, she would be the one to make amends. A single daughter he had cherished for so many years—this was enough! If not for her, how could this disaster have occurred tonight?

Minister Jiang picked up a knife from the ground, but then hesitated—killing her outright would surely displease Jiu Yue, given her previous sadistic tendencies in the hunting grounds. So he fetched a small knife instead.

Minister Jiang had five sons in total, both legitimate and illegitimate, and two daughters. The eldest daughter was already married off. Only the youngest daughter remained—Jiang Qingqing, the baby of the family, the apple of their eyes.

Everyone watched.

The family who had once doted on Jiang Qingqing gathered, weapons in hand—knives, sticks, even the fourth son had guards fetch the stable hands…

And all charged forward.