The Dudu Mansion was completely silent, and the servants had already rested. Except for the dim lights in the house of the Marquis, only the courtyard of the Dudu Mansion where the remains of Tantai Zhilin and his wife were parked was still lit. This courtyard was heavily guarded. There are people guarding both inside and outside. Even people from the Governor's Mansion are not allowed to approach easily.
The entire Governor's Mansion was shrouded in darkness, giving off a solemn but cold atmosphere.
"Old Manager, if the relationship between the Governor and his wife is not as close as it seems in front of others, why would the wife be willing to commit suicide for the Governor?" Qining stared at the Old Manager: "This does not make sense from a rational point of view."
Manager Hou nodded and said, "Exactly. This old slave has also seen too much of the world's human feelings. If he follows the dead, his love has reached a very deep level. But my wife will not have such deep affection for the governor." He shook his head and sighed: "In fact, in the old slave's opinion, the friendship between the Governor and his soldiers is even greater, especially General Shen. The Governor and General Shen are life-and-death brothers, and they have a deep friendship."
"Yes, will General Shen be at the Governor's Mansion tonight?"
"General Shen went to the military camp before dusk." Mr. Hou said: "After the death of the governor, General Shen worked day and night. When he heard that there was something going on at the military camp, General Shen rushed over to deal with it."
Qi Ning thought for a moment and then asked: "Old manager, what do you think of General Shen's personality?"
"Master Hou, General Shen is a good man." Manager Hou said immediately: "Since he followed the Governor, General Shen has been working hard and helping from the side. The success of the Donghai Army today is inseparable from General Shen's hard work. . And General Shen also fulfilled his brotherly duty to the Governor...!" After a pause, he said: "The Governor fell seriously ill the year before last, perhaps due to overwork. He lay in bed for ten days, and it was General Shen who Take care of it yourself.”
"Then madam...?"
Manager Hou smiled bitterly and said: "As I said just now, the relationship between Madam and the Governor is not very good. Although Madam was also taking care of her at the time, but... the two of them hardly talked. After General Shen came over, the Governor only talked and laughed. Get up, the Governor and General Shen were chatting and laughing those days, Madam...Madam was pushed aside." He lowered his voice and said: "Master Marquis doesn't know something. After you arrived in the East China Sea that day and examined the body of the Governor, that night, General Shen... General Shen hid in the room alone and cried for a long time...!"
"General Shen is crying?"
Manager Hou nodded and said: "After the death of the Grand Governor, General Shen made proper arrangements, lest the news leak out, he personally guarded the Governor's Mansion. When the Marquis came, I think General Shen finally felt a little more relaxed, and he burst into tears that night. Then At night, the old slave had something to discuss with him, and he happened to meet him, and the other people... the others didn't know." He sighed and said, "General Shen and the Grand Governor are brothers in life and death. They have been together for so many years, and now the Grand Governor After leaving, General Shen was naturally extremely sad. Thanks to him for holding on for more than ten days, he only vented his anger when the Marquis came over...!"
"A sweetheart!" Qi Ning also nodded and sighed, leaning forward slightly, and asked: "Old manager, when my wife passed away, she left a suicide note. You have also read that suicide note. Are you sure it was written by my wife?" Keep it? Is it possible that someone else stole the pen?"
Manager Hou waved his hand and said: "Master Hou, I can vouch for this. That suicide note must have been left by my wife."
"Oh?" Qining said, "Why is the manager so sure?"
"Handwriting." Mr. Hou said: "Although Madam is a woman, she has some knowledge of writing. She also likes calligraphy and painting. When she has nothing to do, she entertains herself, but she doesn't want to be seen by others. Those calligraphy and paintings were later burned. Except for her personal maid, I am the only one who has seen it. Moreover, if the madam needs something, she doesn’t ask for it in person. She just makes a list and gives it to the old slave to buy. Not many women can write, so the madam’s handwriting, the old slave You can remember it clearly, and even if others haven’t seen it, it’s difficult to imitate it.”
Qining held his chin in his hand, pondered for a moment, and then said: "In other words, the suicide note was indeed left by the madam, but the content in the suicide note may not be the true words of the madam. The madam is only in her thirties, a good age, and Not long after she gave birth to the young master, even if she really had a deep love for the governor, she would not commit suicide for the sake of the young master. What's more, she had a cold relationship with the governor and his wife, so she would not abandon the young master and follow the governor. go… !"
Manager Hou nodded and said: "Although this truth cannot be told to outsiders, in fact it is this truth."
"Old manager, do you know if the Governor has another woman?" Qining hesitated for a moment, then finally asked: "Does he have another girl he likes?"
Mr. Hou's expression tightened and he said solemnly: "Master Hou, the Governor is not that kind of person. Mr. Hou has been very strict in his upbringing since he was a child, and he especially has high hopes for the Governor. Apart from drinking some wine, the Governor has no other hobbies. This is especially true when it comes to women. The Governor's biggest hobby is reading military books. He made an oath very early on to be loyal to Chu and help Chu to dominate the world. For this reason, he puts all his thoughts on military affairs. , I rarely interact with people.”
"oh?"
"People from the big families in Donghai have invited the governor to banquets several times over the years, but the governor never paid attention." Manager Hou said sternly: "Back then, Jiang Mantian came to visit several times, and the governor only said that local affairs belong to the local government. Go ahead and take care of it, he is a soldier and only looks after military affairs. The affairs of the major families have nothing to do with military affairs and there is no need to meet each other, so Jiang Mantian and the others have not even sat down and talked with the Governor."
Qi Ning was a little surprised. Manager Hou continued: "Jiang Mantian's fleet was trading at sea. In the early years, it still needed escort by official ships. The governor only left it to General Shen to handle these matters and never interacted with those families."
Qi Ning nodded slightly, thinking that Tantai Zhilin was really a cautious person.
After all, the imperial court originally ordered the Donghai Navy not to interfere in local government affairs because it was worried that the Tantai family, which held military power, would get too close to local merchants. With soldiers and food, even if the Tantai family had no other intentions, the imperial court would definitely If any minister is wary by the emperor, there will naturally not be any good results. The Tantai family certainly understands this. Tantai Zhilin has been the commander of the navy for many years. , keeping a distance from the local gentry in the East China Sea is naturally a means to protect the Tantai family.
Seeing that Qi Ning was thoughtful, Mr. Hou said cautiously: "Master Hou, if the Governor is really murdered, I beg you to find the real culprit, otherwise... otherwise the Governor will die with his eyes open!"
"Don't worry, Mr. Manager, I will do my best." Qining was about to stand up when he suddenly thought of something and asked: "Mr. Manager, there is one more thing I want to ask you."
"Master Marquis, please speak!"
"It is said that the Governor came back from the military camp this time to see the young master." Qi Ning whispered: "I wonder how many days the Governor stayed in the mansion?"
"The Grand Governor is indeed back for the young master." Mr. Hou said: "Since the birth of the young Master, the relationship between the Grand Governor and his wife has been much better than before. In the past, the Grand Governor did not express any concern for his wife in front of us. However, after the birth of the young master, the Governor occasionally expressed his greetings to Madam." After a pause, he continued: "In the past six months, the Governor has come back more often, five or six times a month, although most of them stay overnight. Then he left, but it was very different from before. When he came back this time, the governor was in a good mood and said he would stay with his wife and young master for three days. The old slave saw this and was very happy in his heart. "
"Are you saying that the Governor is in a good mood when he comes back this time?" Qining's expression tightened.
Manager Hou nodded and said: "When the Governor came back, the old slave was waiting at the gate. The Governor also talked a lot with the old slave. He seemed to be in a good mood. He also brought back a basket of various kinds of shells, saying that he wanted to Play for the young master."
"It seems that the birth of the young master has indeed opened up the governor's heart." Qi Ning seemed to be saying to Mr. Hou, and seemed to be talking to himself. After thinking for a while, he continued to ask: "Who are you, Mr. Hou?" Are Tiandu serving at the side of the Grand Governor?"
Manager Hou nodded, and Qining immediately asked: "How many days will it take until the Governor returns and commits suicide?"
"Three days!" Manager Hou said without hesitation: "I remember that the Governor was going back to the barracks early the next morning, so that night he asked the kitchen to cook more good food. The Governor ate the same food as the soldiers in the barracks. , every time I come back, the old slave will ask the kitchen to put some thought into it." He smiled bitterly: "That night, the governor suddenly committed suicide, and the old slave didn't think of it at all. After dinner that night, the governor went to the study, and it was almost midnight , the governor hasn’t returned to the house yet, so the madam sent someone over to send a message and asked the old slave to tell the governor to go back to his room and rest.”
"Why didn't Madam just send someone else over instead of asking someone to trouble the old manager again?"
"When the Governor is in the study, no one else is allowed to disturb him." Manager Hou explained: "Except for the old slave, no one else dares to go there. It must be because of this that Madam behaves like this."
"So the boss realized something was wrong?"
"My wife took the initiative to send someone to invite the Governor back to the house. The old slave was happy and immediately went to the study." Manager Hou recalled: "The lamp was lit in the study. The old slave called several times, but the Governor never answered. The door opened Unable to push it open, it was locked from the inside, and no one answered, the old slave felt that something was not right, so he immediately went over to report it to the madam, and the madam brought two maids over, and then...!" At this point, the circles in his eyes returned again. reddish.
Qining's expression became more serious and he asked in a low voice: "Old manager, before that day, did Madam ever send someone to ask the Governor to go back to his room to rest?"
Manager Hou pondered for a moment, shook his head and said, "It seems not. The governor came and went in a hurry before. He came back to stay for one night and only went back to his room to rest at midnight." He narrowed his eyes slightly and was silent for a moment. , and finally said with absolute certainty: "That's the first time. Madam has never had anyone urge the Governor before!"
Qi Ning took a deep breath and looked at the oil lamp, his eyes as bright as knives.