After transmigrating into the book, I helped my mother reconcile with her divorced husband.

Lujiazhuangzi, Linxian County.

The deputy steward gathered all the servants, maids, old women, and tenants on the estate. Those standing at the front silently pondered whether the steward had discovered their misdeeds, wavering between confessing and being exposed. Those at the back were mostly tenant farmers, only summoned during holidays, and now they were whispering amongst themselves, speculating about some major event that had occurred on the estate.

The deputy steward stood at the forefront, dressed in a narrow-sleeved blue robe, his expression calm. However, this calmness vanished upon hearing the sound of horses' hooves outside the door. He coughed lightly and looked back, and the small movements and conversations abruptly ceased.

"The Marquis has arrived, and so has the Madam."

As the announcement was made, some people craned their necks, some stood on tiptoe, and others peered curiously into the doorway.

The lady is a frequent visitor, but the marquis is only known by name and never seen in person. It is quite a spectacle for the lady and the marquis to appear together.

The deputy steward bowed his head and greeted him at the door. He saw the Marquis, dressed in a blue robe, handsome and dashing, exactly as rumored. The lady was still dressed as usual, but there was a hint of unfamiliarity in her expression. Before he could think further, he stood before Lu Huai, cupped his hands, and said, "This humble servant, Lu Yong, greets the Marquis and the lady."

Lu Yong was promoted by Xie Chaoyun.

He was originally a tenant farmer on the estate, and had attended a private school for a few years. He knew how to keep accounts and do calculations. When Xie Chaoyun first came, the manager deliberately made things difficult for her and gave her a hard time. It was Lu Yong who helped her sort out those messy accounts.

The steward was related to Old Madam Lu by marriage, and since this was the Lu family's estate, Xie Chaoyun couldn't dismiss the steward. So, she gave Lu Yong the title of deputy steward and had him keep an eye on the steward at the estate.

Lu Yong did his job very well.

This was Lu Huai's first time visiting his own estate, and he was somewhat disdainful of the surroundings. His gaze fell on the servants, and he asked, somewhat perfunctorily, "Is everyone here?"

"Reporting to the Marquis, apart from the steward and his family, everyone else is here." Lu Yong bowed his head and answered respectfully, glancing at Xie Chaoyun out of the corner of his eye.

The lady seemed more unhappy than before. It seemed the rumors in the capital were true; the Marquis had brought other people with him on his return trip. Thinking of all the sacrifices the lady had made for Lu over the years, Lu Yong felt sorry for her.

Lu Huai, oblivious to Lu Yong's unusual behavior, said with some displeasure, "Didn't the steward know that my wife and I were coming?"

"Reporting to the Marquis, the steward is dead." Lu Yong came to his senses and examined Lu Huai's face. "His wife and two children are in the mourning hall. They didn't come for two reasons: first, they were afraid of offending the Marquis and his wife; second, his mistress was causing trouble in the mourning hall with her men, so they probably couldn't come."

Xie Chaoyun walked up to Lu Huai and said, "Lord Marquis, we came to Lin County today to deal with his matter."

Ten years passed peacefully, but as soon as Ji Wanwan returned to the capital, a series of chaotic events began to unfold. First, there was the Zhu family, then the clinic, and now the Lu family's estate. Xie Chaoyun's sixth sense, as a female general, told her that the sudden death of the steward was intricately linked to Ji Wanwan's return to the capital.

On the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, the steward was on night duty at the estate as in previous years. On the morning of the sixteenth, he was found dead in his own bedroom, the door wide open. He was already stiff when he was found. The steward was only wearing his undergarment, his right sleeve rolled up to the middle of his forearm, and his left sleeve rolled up to his elbow. There was crab roe on his fingertips, wine stains on his front, and two unopened boxes of mooncakes on the table.

Judging from the scene alone, it appears that he died from a sudden illness.

Lu Yong dismissed the servants on the estate and led Lu Huai and Xie Chaoyun to the bedroom where the incident had occurred.

"The room was filled with messy footprints, and there were signs of intimacy on the bed, but no signs of arguing or pushing. I asked the doorman, and he said that his wife and mistress had both been there. His wife carried a food box containing wine, dishes, and mooncakes. The mooncakes were mixed with five kinds of nuts, and the doorman even gave her one, confirming that it was not poisoned. The mistress carried a basket, which she didn't let the doorman see, but I guessed it also contained wine, dishes, and mooncakes."

“The mistress arrived first and left in less than half an hour.” Lu Yong pushed open the door, and a foul, pungent odor rushed towards him. Lu Huai frowned and took two steps back.

Seeing this, Lu Yong waved his sleeve and explained, "To avoid disturbing the scene, the things inside the house were confiscated, and the dishes and snacks have already gone bad."

Touching the crawling maggots made Lu Huai feel nauseous, so he stood three steps away from the door.

Xie Chaoyun seemed unfazed, stepping over the threshold into the house: "When did you arrive, Madam, and when did you leave? Since it's a murder case, was it reported to the authorities? Was a coroner summoned? What did the coroner say?"

"The steward's wife arrived at 1:15 PM and stayed for about half an hour. She even greeted the servant at the gate before leaving," Lu Yong said, bowing his head. "After confirming the steward's death, I immediately sent someone to report to the authorities and notified the steward's family. The government sent a coroner, but he couldn't determine the cause of death. Not only that, strange things have been happening on the estate..."

Seeing that Lu Yong didn't continue, Xie Chaoyun asked, "What strange thing?"

Lu Yong looked up and saw her bright eyes like stars, her delicate eyebrows like ink, and a touch of composure added to the gentleness he remembered. Their eyes met, and he quickly looked away, stammering, "Let's talk about the coroner's autopsy results first. There were no obvious external injuries, no old illnesses, and no signs of poisoning. We can't find the cause of death, and there are no other clues. According to the customs of our neighboring county, we should be laid to rest as soon as possible."

Lu Yong paused for a moment: "The steward's mistress's surname is Ruan, we'll call her Madam Ruan. This Madam Ruan made a scene at the funeral, claiming that the madam had killed the steward, and that she had evidence. However, that evidence was really not presentable. Just when I was in a dilemma and couldn't make a decision, the steward came back to life."

"Fake corpse?"

Xie Chaoyun was stunned; she had only ever seen these three words in storybooks.

Lu Yong gave a bitter smile: "I know this is hard to believe, but those who were keeping vigil all saw it. The steward... he sat up from the coffin, and not only that, he also made a sound like a cat meowing. The whole process lasted for fifteen minutes. After the steward lay back down in the coffin, we found... he had torn his own groin to shreds."

Xie Chaoyun's face turned ashen, and she turned away. Even after ten years of marriage to Lu Huai, she still couldn't bear to hear such vulgar words.

Lu Huai, who was standing outside the door, took half a step forward upon hearing this: "Why is this dead man scratching his crotch? Is he uncomfortable because he has something stuffed in his crotch?"

"My lord!" Xie Chaoyun's face turned even redder: "The point is not the things, but that the person in charge is dead. The dead cannot move."

Lu Huai said "Oh," and looked at Lu Yong: "Judging from your expression, could it be that his actions are related to the cause of death that Madam Ruan mentioned?"

Lu Yong nodded slightly awkwardly and stammered, "That's right. According to that Madam Ruan, the steward's wife put the poison in that place... She also produced a piece of evidence to prove that this was not the first time the steward's wife had done this."

"Physical evidence?" Lu Huai asked curiously, "What kind of physical evidence?"

“A man’s undergarment that had been soaked in medicine.” Lu Yong struggled to find the right words.