TGCFNM -Chapter 447 Received a Threatening Letter

The next day.

Chu Ling and the others left early in the morning and drove straight to the Zhuang Manor in their carriage.

The servants at Zhuang Manor, seeing the Wan family emblem on the carriage and then spotting Chu Ling’s head suddenly pop out, were so startled that their eyes widened, and they hurriedly ran inside to report.

Chu Ling, who had just leaned out to greet them, froze: “……”

“Master, you scared everyone off.” Wan Sanjin also poked his head out.

Chu Ling pressed against the window frame: “I haven’t even said a word, yet the Zhuang servants seem to have recognized me… Great, I’m far too well-known in the capital now.”

Wan Sanjin suddenly raised an eyebrow: “Master, you were already famous in the capital before… the famously eccentric Miss Chu…” The last two words were whispered, but his expression clearly betrayed that he was trying not to laugh.

Chu Ling clenched her fist and gestured at him, and Wan Sanjin immediately made a ‘seal your mouth’ gesture and sat back down.

A short while later, Zhuang Tianyou rushed out in a hurry, carrying something in his hand. Wan Sanjin had him get straight into the carriage and sent Zhang Dong to the Tang residence.

Once Zhuang Tianyou was on the carriage, he handed the items to Chu Ling: “Master, Brother Tang and I each took responsibility for part of the investigation. This is what I’ve found.”

Chu Ling nodded and opened the booklets, going through them one by one.

“The victims are mostly from wealthy or noble families—some are children of established families, others are sons of newly wealthy families. The injuries vary: some severe, some mild; some even had their legs nearly broken…” Zhuang Tianyou paused, a strange look on his face, “But after questioning them, none of them remember having wronged anyone, let alone who would treat them this way.”

Chu Ling and Wan Sanjin exchanged a glance. They could already guess who was behind it: it was likely Chu Yue, who foresaw the future and struck preemptively.

“By the way, the Chang family has given up on the investigation.” Chu Ling looked at Zhuang Tianyou. “Miss Chang will also be buried soon.”

Zhuang Tianyou’s expression was stunned: “They gave up on the investigation? But Miss Chang… she was beaten to death!”

Chu Ling nodded.

Zhuang Tianyou furrowed his brows: “Something’s not right here.”

“Even if it’s not right, there’s nothing that can be done,” Wan Sanjin stated bluntly. “The Chang family has abandoned the case. What can anyone else do?”

Zhuang Tianyou took a deep breath: “Miss Chang was indeed a proud person, but I truly don’t understand what she did to deserve being beaten to death…”

Chu Ling, on the other hand, considered the intrigues of the imperial harem and guessed that perhaps Miss Chang had used certain methods after entering the palace, which led to retribution in this life.

Just as they were talking, the carriage stopped again, and Wan Sanjin went off to fetch someone.

A short while later, Tang Yang also got on the carriage, handing Chu Ling a booklet: “Master, this is the list of those who were attacked this time. Their injuries range from light to severe. None of them know who they had a grudge with, except for one person…”

Tang Yang pointed to a name in the booklet: “Zeng Tianqi.”

Chu Ling followed his finger: “Zeng Tianqi… severe knee injury, bedridden… Xu Gong’s friend?”

Tang Yang nodded: “The two are very close. According to Zeng Tianqi, after Xu Gong was caught for murder, he tried to distance himself from him, but still received a letter. The letter gave him one last chance: either immediately convince the Zeng family to leave the capital, or stay in the capital and wait for death.”

“A vague, unsigned letter like that… Zeng Tianqi obviously didn’t believe it and just set it aside. But then he was attacked during the Lantern Festival.”

Tang Yang spoke as he pulled out a letter and handed it to Chu Ling.

Chu Ling took the envelope, removed the letter, and after reading it carefully, frowned. “Written with the left hand?”

“A left-hander?” Wan Sanjin looked curiously and then suddenly realized, “Ah, they deliberately wrote with their left hand. The handwriting is neat, but the pressure isn’t fully controlled.”

Tang Yang was surprised. “Sir, Master Wan, you can even notice such subtle differences—truly admirable.”

Wan Sanjin was silent for a moment. “No, it’s because I’ve done it before—my hand shakes.”

Tang Yang: “…”

Chu Ling folded the letter and handed it back to Tang Yang. “Even if the Zeng family doesn’t believe it, they’ll surely have someone investigate who delivered this, right? Did they find anything?”

Tang Yang shook his head. “Nothing.”

Chu Ling put away the two books and said in a low voice, “The person who came was forceful, meticulous, and highly capable. Not only could we find nothing, even the authorities couldn’t. The Chang family even gave up investigating… In short, until we know their purpose, I advise the students of Canglan Academy to be careful.”

Zhuang Tianyou frowned. “It’s true… all those attacked were students from Canglan Academy.”

“Anyway, for now, don’t go alone. Try to move in groups of three to five. Better yet, have someone pick you up,” Chu Ling advised.

Tang Yang asked curiously, “But Sir, later there won’t be anything as lively as the Lantern Festival. Could something still happen?”

Chu Ling shrugged. “Not necessarily. Once the first strike happens, anyone who finds someone alone can easily leave no trace.”

Wan Sanjin patted his thigh and warned seriously, “Think about it—so chaotic, so many people—they’ll find an opportunity. Especially on a dark, windy night, no one around, a narrow alley… they could be hiding there, throw a sack over you, knock you out, and take you away.”

Tang Yang’s heart tightened. “I’ll warn the other students to be careful.”

Zhuang Tianyou also frowned, nodded, then looked at Chu Ling, hesitating before speaking: “…Sir, we actually received a letter too.”

Chu Ling was surprised. “You also received a threatening letter?”

Zhuang Tianyou shook his head. “No, Sir. Back then I asked Nangong Han to invite you to the country estate. If a sudden murder hadn’t occurred, I actually wanted to discuss a formula for the plague with you.”

Chu Ling’s expression turned puzzled.

“The letter we received was actually a prescription for treating the plague. The sender asked our Zhuang family to go to Anma County to help treat the people there. If we did, we could gain fame throughout the land,” Zhuang Tianyou explained.

Chu Ling was so shocked she was momentarily speechless.

Wan Sanjin furrowed his brows. “Someone sent you a letter saying there’s a plague in Anma County? When was this written?”

Zhuang Tianyou thought for a moment. “About three months ago?”

Wan Sanjin was astonished and looked at Chu Ling. “Sir, wasn’t that around the time we were heading to Anma County?”

Zhuang Tianyou’s expression was strange. “Back then, my grandfather thought the letter was suspicious and didn’t want to believe it. He only kept the prescription for the time being. Later, when you cured the plague in Anma County and selflessly shared the prescription, we realized… it was actually true. Afterwards, we even compared the formulas and found that your use of herbs differed slightly from the prescription, but the differing herbs were interchangeable.”

Chu Ling was a bit stunned, then suddenly asked, “Perhaps… do you know the Huang family?”