The head of the Red Mansion

Chapter 39 Guessed
The stench in the Shuntian Prefecture prison was unbearable.

Zhou Rui had diarrhea so badly she was almost collapsing.

"help me."

He climbed to the cell door and pounded on it, but no one answered.

But then another sharp pain shot through my stomach, and another round of 'popping' began.

Zhou Rui was too weak to climb to the toilet, and of course he couldn't stand up either. At this point, he could only let the warm stuff come out from behind him like a dead dog, soaking his pants and then his shirt.

Grandpa Zhou, who used to be flattered wherever he went, had never suffered such humiliation.
Suddenly he seemed to understand something, and immediately bit his finger, wanting to write something down, but...

A drop of blood splattered on the ground, but Zhou Rui hesitated to write it down.

Because of the money, the lady wouldn't be willing to kill him immediately, and the master... knows nothing.

The master only cares about what he can get his hands on right away. If he falls, the master will immediately make another fortune. Moreover, he can even leave a son for Lai Da and give him several hundred taels of silver to settle down. So he will care even less about the life or death of this servant from another household.

Therefore, the eldest master can also be ruled out, so...

Zhou Rui's lips trembled a few times; he already had a pretty good idea of ​​who had made the move.

No wonder there isn't a single yamen runner here.

Just as he was resigned to his fate and about to die, footsteps approached from afar.

Zhou Rui hurriedly looked over and saw it was a yamen runner. Could it be that he had guessed wrong?

"What's going on?"

"My lord, my lord, I have an upset stomach. Please... please fetch a doctor for me!"

Zhou Rui's hope rekindled, and he pulled a gold melon seed from his collar. "Please, please."

"Wait!"

The constable accepted the gold melon seeds and, quite diligently, ran out as quickly as possible.

With hope in his heart, Zhou Rui hurriedly and laboriously got up, first taking off his pants, and then moving to a cleaner place.

But as soon as I finished doing all that, I felt a sharp pain in my stomach again.

"Ah~"

He couldn't help but scream in agony.

Amidst the simultaneous discharge of feces and urine, he was overwhelmed by wave after wave of excruciating pain and completely lost consciousness.

But the doctor arrived quickly, first administering pills, then acupuncture; the entire series of rescue procedures were performed very professionally.

Zhou Rui's breathing finally stabilized.

"The patient's condition is very bad."

Doctor Zheng's hands were covered in some unknown substance, and his complexion was not good. "It depends on tonight's situation. If it stabilizes tonight, there's still hope; if it doesn't..."

"Doctor Zheng!" The clerk, who had been alerted, was also there. Upon hearing this, he quickly bowed and asked, "May I ask if it's a sudden illness or poisoning?"

This?
Dr. Zheng glanced at the food box they were carrying and shook his head slightly. "It's not entirely an emergency. Judging from his pulse, he has severe internal heat and toxins. He's probably had diarrhea for the past few days, but it just hasn't been taken seriously."

what?
The clerk bowed and said, "Then I would like to trouble Doctor Zheng to check if there are any incompatible items here?"

It just doesn't seem right that one of the big servants suddenly fell ill and died in their prison.

The official suspected that someone wanted to silence him.

"no!"

Doctor Zheng examined them carefully. "They are all ordinary items. If you don't believe me, you can send someone to check again."

"Not at all, thank you very much, Dr. Zheng."

Even if the clerk still had doubts and wanted to send someone to investigate further, he wouldn't say anything at this point. "Thank you for your trouble today. Just write down a medical record here so that the Prefect can review it."

These are the rules in prison.

The prisoner can't just die in a daze.

"It should."

Doctor Zheng immediately wrote down his pulse diagnosis.

Zhou Rui's wife, who was in the next women's prison cell, was holding her two children, feeling drowsy.

It's been several days now, and the wife still hasn't been able to get her out. Their family...

Knowing that Zhou Rui had another family outside made her feel like the sky had fallen.

Although she had grown up with her wife since childhood, her wife's decision to marry Zhou Rui was intended to keep an eye on him.

As it turned out, this bastard actually bought another house right in front of her and embezzled so much money...

Won't the wife forgive her?

Zhou Rui's wife closed her eyes and couldn't help but cry.

She not only caused the mistress to lose the rent from the manor in spring and autumn, but also caused her to lose her job in the manor.

Now, the master probably has all the lucrative positions in his hands. The madam must hate her to death, she…

Thinking of the contemptuous look in the jailer's eyes today, Zhou Rui's wife slowly pulled out the handkerchief from her waist.

They'll be dealt with by his wife; her whole family won't escape unscathed.

But if she dies, the wife might remember the good things she did for her and leave a way for her two children to live.

After all, even the Lai family had children who survived, so she...

As night deepened, the handkerchief was finally hung on the prison door.

……

At the Rongguo Mansion, Jia Zhu spent the entire morning reading.

"what's wrong?"

When I looked up, I saw that Laifu looked anxious, obviously something was wrong.

"uncle!"

Lai Fu's face was somewhat pale. "Didn't you tell me to keep an eye on Zhou Rui's situation? I just received news that Zhou Rui and his wife both passed away last night."

what?
Jia Zhu was shocked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

Lai Fu dared not lie. "The government reported that Zhou Rui had been suffering from diarrhea since yesterday afternoon. They invited Doctor Zheng from Baohetang, and although it stopped temporarily, he still died of rectal bleeding last night."

Zhou Rui's wife hanged herself in the middle of the night, and the lady of the house is currently grieving.

Jia Zhu: "..."

How could there be such a coincidence in the world?
But the murder happened inside the Shuntian Prefecture prison...

Jia Zhu frowned deeply. "Have the valuables that Zhou Rui hid been returned?"

“My uncle sent men to bring her back,” Laifu said. “But judging from Madam’s appearance, she probably lost quite a bit as well.”

Once you enter the government office, you're bound to be ripped off.

"...Has Uncle returned?"

"No."

Laifu sensed something was off about the old man's voice, so he became more cautious in his reply, "But the eldest madam has already sent someone to find the eldest master."

That's good.

but……

Jia Zhu, holding the book, couldn't help but pace around the room a couple more times.

His father always valued his reputation and would never easily kill anyone.

Since Zhou Rui and his wife were both his mother's people, his father was even less likely to lay a hand on them.

Mother……

Could it have been made by my mother?
That's not right either. Even if my mother's influence extended to the Shuntian Prefecture, it would be extremely difficult to kill someone without leaving a trace.

that……

Jia Zhu suddenly stopped, "Your eldest uncle came to see Mother yesterday, didn't he?"

"Yes!"

Lai Fu is honest and reliable.

But Jia Zhu's expression gradually changed.

Now that my uncle has taken action, do you think he can deal with just one servant?

The mother apologized to her aunt in the East Mansion, but the apology was rejected. However, the aunt showed no shame or anger and seemed to be in a good mood.

Jia Zhu harbored a terrifying suspicion.

Women from wealthy and powerful families often die in childbirth, and that aunt...

Thinking of the two midwives beside his aunt, Jia Zhu's heart gradually calmed down.

But if we can't start from the inner quarters, where can we start?
Jia Zhu put herself in her maternal uncle's shoes.

My eldest uncle was extremely protective of his own and had a good relationship with my mother. My eldest aunt, after that rumor, went all out and even forced the family to repay the national treasury debt. This alone offended my eldest uncle.

The Wang family also owes money.

Since everything the eldest uncle had in the army basically came from the Jia family, what he wanted to eliminate was his aunt's support.

Uncle Jing has become a monk, and Auntie now relies on Brother Zhen.

After figuring all this out, Jia Zhu's face grew even paler.

He plopped down in a chair. "Go," he said, panting, "find out who Brother Zhen always takes with him when he goes out."

(End of this chapter)