Chapter 378 - Chapter 378: Chapter 378 Wei Jinyi is Dead_1 (1/2)
Chapter 378: Chapter 378 Wei Jinyi is Dead_1
“What’s the rush? Isn’t the second young master back in Huzhou Prefecture? Why are you getting so skittish?” Lady Yun asked.
“The second young master…he met with bandits on the road…unfortunately…unfortunately he…died…” The servant cautiously reported the news, panting for breath.
Upon hearing this, both Lady Yun and Wei Yichen’s faces changed dramatically.
“What did you say? The second young master? Dead?” Wei Yichen stepped forward, grabbing the collar of the servant’s clothes to question him.
“There’s…there’s no mistake. It is the second young master. Guard Jing said so himself!”
“Where is Guard Jing?” Wei Yichen asked.
“He’s injured. He’s in the front yard…”
We Yichen briskly let go of the servant and headed rapidly toward the front yard.
Lady Yun, too, rose urgently and was helped by Cuiping to hasten to the front yard.
In the front yard, Jing Hu was kneeling on the ground, his hair and clothes tattered and dirty.
“Where is Jinyi?” Wei Yichen asked, stepping forward.
Jing Hu slowly turned to what lay behind him.
There lay two stretchers behind him, each covered by a white cloth.
Wei Yichen paused, his movements slowing as he gazed at the stretchers covered by the white cloth. He remained silent for a long while.
It was then that Wei Ruo ran over.
The moment she saw the stretchers, the color drained visibly from Wei Ruo’s face.
Wei Ruo moved toward the stretchers, but when she was two steps away, Wei Yichen stepped in front of her, his arm outstretched to prevent her from getting any closer.
“It might not be Jinyi,” Wei Yichen said to Wei Ruo.
“Let me see!” Wei Ruo insisted.
We Yichen looked at Wei Ruo’s resolute gaze and said, “Let me check first, don’t be hasty.”
Wei Ruo did not heed Wei Yichen. With a forceful push, she pushed past Wei Yichen walked up the the stretchers where she slowly lifted the white cloth.
Underneath lay a frigid corpse covered in multiple knife wounds and now showing signs of decay, making it impossible to identify.
The only hint of the corpse’s identity was the tattered clothing which was recognizable as something Wei Jinyi would usually wear.
The appalling sight of the corpse made all, including Wei Yichen, turn their heads away. For Lady Yun, who had just arrived, it was nearly too much, and she almost fainted.
Wei Ruo did not flinch, rather she examined the corpse closely.
“Ruo, don’t look,” Wei Yichen tried to pull her away. The scene was too cruel.
Wei Ruo did not listen, her gaze remained glued to the corpse as she asked Jing Hu, “Guard Jing, what exactly happened?”
Kneeling on the ground, Jing Hu explained, “I was escorting the second young master to the north. After his arrival in Huzhou Prefecture, we were ambushed by bandits. Despite our desperate resistance, we were hopelessly outnumbered and at a disadvantage. In the end, the three of us were overwhelmed, and both the young master and Xiaobei were killed…”
Assailed by self-blame, Jing Hu continued, “It’s my fault. I failed to protect the second young master! I deserve to die! I should commit suicide as an apology, but I could not let his body be left unattended in a strange place. So I did my utmost to transport his corpse back to Taizhou prefecture. My traveling expenses were exhausted, and I alone had to carry two corpses which slowed me down. It has taken more than ten days for me to return.”
The delay of over ten days combined with the hot weather had resulted in a considerable level of decomposition of the body.
Wei Yichen furrowed his brows, his eyes filled with sorrow, his fists clenched, after a long while he ordered, “Notify our father.”
Wei Yichen immediately sent someone to summon Wei Yilin who was still at school, and called for Xiumei to come and look after Wei Ruo, “Take care of the young lady, don’t let anything happen to her.”