Silence filled the air.
Zheng Chi looked at Zheng Hao lying motionless in a pool of blood, and at last, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
He turned to Zheng Qian, slowly reached out, and gently wiped the blood from her cheek.
Leaning closer, he pulled her into an embrace, unable to hold back.
"Well done. Clean and decisive."
Zheng Qian: "..."
The hug was brief. Before she could react, her cat suddenly let out an angry cry, leaping onto her shoulder and baring its teeth at Zheng Chi.
Knowing who resided inside that cat, Zheng Qian couldn't help but find the reaction both amusing and oddly comforting.
She picked up the cat.
Looking at Zheng Hao's corpse on the ground, she explained,
"If we didn't kill him, there would be endless trouble. If he failed this time, he would try again. Next time, he might target you or me."
Zheng Hao had brought oil—he clearly had no intention of leaving her alive.
Was he planning to burn her body after killing her, or burn her alive directly?
Zheng Qian believed it was the latter.
Compared to him, she had given him a swift death—far kinder.
"Indeed, endless trouble," Zheng Chi said.
The reason Zheng Chi hadn't acted earlier wasn't because he intended to spare Zheng Hao, but because he wanted to put on a show for Zheng Qian.
He had planned to let Zheng Hao go in front of her, then kill him afterward.
He didn't want to kill in front of her—because he had seen her save lives.
What he didn't know was that Zheng Qian was a military doctor. Killing and saving were both part of her duty. She was both healer and warrior.
Showing mercy to an enemy meant endangering oneself and one's allies.
In this case, that meant risking both herself and her brother.
"Let's go first. Shi Yong will take care of the rest," Zheng Chi said.
Zheng Qian nodded.
They took Zheng Chi's carriage to the back entrance of the Wen residence and met Wen Jin.
Hongluan stood behind Wen Jin. The moment she saw Zheng Qian, her eyes filled with tears.
"Miss!"
Zheng Qian beckoned her over.
Then she turned to Wen Jin and thanked her sincerely.
"Jin'er, thank you for helping this time."
"You went out of the city to have fun with your brother, right? I told my mother. She understands—we also like to go out and play," Wen Jin said with a smile, then glanced at Zheng Chi, her face faintly flushing.
Zheng Chi merely nodded at her.
Wen Jin was beautiful and naturally sweet, very likable. But Zheng Chi showed no interest at all.
Perhaps he simply didn't like naïve people.
"We'll head back now," Zheng Qian said. "I'll invite you to visit our house another day."
Wen Jin agreed happily.
The siblings didn't return home immediately. Instead, they stayed overnight at an inn and only went back the next day.
At the residence, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
The Third Madam hadn't yet realized her son was missing. The Marquis and Old Madam didn't care either.
But when Zheng Qian and Zheng Chi returned, Zheng Yutan was terrified, her heart pounding wildly.
Where was her third brother?
Had he been beaten badly?
She didn't dare show any of it.
A day later, the Third Madam finally noticed something was wrong.
"Where is the Third Young Master?" she demanded.
"The young master went out the night before last and hasn't returned," a maid replied.
At first, she assumed he had gone to pleasure houses and gotten entangled with some woman.
But after searching the entire city and still finding nothing, she began to panic.
Meanwhile, the authorities discovered burned remains on a remote road outside the city.
A carriage—and the person inside—had been burned.
The body was almost completely destroyed.
But a jade pendant survived the fire. On it was engraved the character "Zheng."
The officials went from house to house investigating.
When they reached the Marquis residence, the Third Madam came out personally.
The moment she saw the pendant, her legs gave out and she collapsed to her knees.
It was her son's.
The entire household was shaken.
Zheng Yutan, upon hearing the news, felt her blood turn cold. Her teeth chattered uncontrollably.
The dead had been identified: Zheng Hao.
The Third Madam wept bitterly, demanding justice.
The investigation quickly revealed that Zheng Hao's servant had purchased a barrel of oil.
The servant claimed ignorance.
"I don't know what the young master needed it for, I truly don't!"
The Third Madam had him beaten to death on the spot.
After several days of investigation, the officials concluded:
The carriage likely overturned. The oil spilled. A lamp inside shattered, igniting the fire.
Zheng Hao was trapped and burned alive, while the horses broke free and fled.
Zheng Yutan knew the truth.
It was Zheng Qian.
Zheng Qian had burned him—because he had gone there to kill her.
Yet Zheng Qian returned unharmed, while her brother died.
Zheng Yutan dug her nails into her flesh, saying nothing.
If she spoke, she would implicate herself.
And worse—she suspected Zheng Chi was involved.
She convinced herself:
"It must have been Zheng Chi. He killed Third Brother, and Zheng Qian helped burn the body."
She never suspected Zheng Qian directly.
How could a woman dare to kill?
"Third Brother, I won't let you die in vain," she swore, eyes burning with hatred.
"When I become Princess Consort of Prince Yu, I will avenge you!"
The Third Madam's husband rushed back to the capital.
The case still had unresolved mysteries—she would not let it go.
At the same time, the Seventh Uncle also returned—and went straight to find Zheng Qian, bringing a child with him.