Chapter 20: Equal Distribution of Favors

Every snake flickered its long, forked tongue, a sight that was truly hair-raising and terrifying. Lin Pianran, suppressing her fear and disgust, instantly swept every last one of the snakes into her spatial storage.

Only then did she let out a soft sigh of relief. She had always been squeamish about such slithering creatures. These revolting things were best returned to their source; it would be a shame to waste them. After all, having the person who orchestrated this malice suffer the consequences of her own schemes was the most fitting outcome.

As for the culprit, Lin Pianran didn’t even need to think twice to know it was Lin Chuyao. That girl had always been arrogant and willful, a person who lived to take advantage of others and would never suffer the slightest loss. Having been taught such a harsh lesson today, she was certainly not going to let the matter rest. That was why she had resorted to the vicious tactic of using venomous snakes to attack.

However, she did not realize that Lin Pianran was even more inclined to hold a grudge and would never swallow such an insult. Those snakes could not be kept in her space for too long; if they died, they would be wasted. It was better to return them one by one right now.

With this in mind, Lin Pianran headed out, marching straight toward Lin Chuyao’s quarters. Then, a second thought struck her: if venomous snakes appeared only in Lin Chuyao’s room, it would surely arouse suspicion. She decided to spread the "bounty" evenly, delivering a few snakes to every room in the Lin household. After all, there were plenty to go around. As for who would be harmed or who would survive? That was none of her concern.

Crouching low, Lin Pianran first crept into Lin Chuxie’s room, which was the closest. She was fast asleep, snoring softly like a dead pig. Lin Pianran took the opportunity to sweep every valuable object and piece of furniture in the room into her spatial storage, leaving only the lonely bed behind for its owner. She then released a few snakes into the room and slipped out through the back window.

Next was the room of the Second Madame, Wang Yanwan. Surprisingly, she had not yet retired; faint, flickering light still spilled from the room. Lin Pianran hid beneath the window to eavesdrop.

Inside, Wang Yanwan was sitting by her bed, weeping incessantly. "I never imagined Xuan'er's leg would be so severely injured! He is still so young; what are we to do? My son! Oh, woe is me..."

Standing beside her, her personal nursemaid comforted her patiently. "Madame, let us find other imperial physicians tomorrow for a proper consultation. Do not rely on the words of just one or two. The world is vast, and there are many doctors with exceptional skills. We can surely find another way! Perhaps the Head Physician of the Imperial Academy is even more skilled. We could petition Consort De tomorrow to have him come for a diagnosis; would that not be more reliable? Please, do not grieve so much. Crying will not help, and if you ruin your health, what will become of the young master?"

Wang Yanwan finally took the advice to heart and ceased her sobbing. "Then I shall go to sleep now. At the crack of dawn, I will go to seek an audience with Consort De and ask her to have the Head Physician treat Xuan'er's leg. I believe Xuan'er’s leg will surely heal!"

After she finished speaking, there was a rustling of activity in the room—presumably, she was washing up. Lin Pianran waited another cup of tea’s time until the light was extinguished and silence returned.

The February air was still quite cold. Fortunately, Lin Pianran was dressed warmly; otherwise, squatting in the corner at this hour would have been a trial. After waiting another interval, she decided to play it safe and sprayed some anesthetic inside. Masking her face, she slipped in, quickly emptied the room of its contents, dropped a few snakes, and retreated.

Using the same method, she visited the rooms of Lin Chuyao, Lin Chuyan, and Zhao Yurou, clearing out everything in each room as if a swarm of locusts had passed through, leaving absolutely nothing behind. The only difference in her treatment of them was that she gave Lin Chuyao a few extra snakes—a special consideration for her efforts. Tomorrow, their fates would depend on their own luck.

Finally, Lin Pianran arrived at the quarters of the Old Matriarch. In the entire Lin household, this sixty-something-year-old woman was the most venomous, the most detestable, and the most shameless. She appeared benevolent and spoke in soft, gentle tones, but in reality, she was the one who devised the schemes and made the final decisions in the Lin family—a rotten, scheming old hag.

It was she who had orchestrated the connection with the Jing Prince’s mansion to force her to become a concubine; she who had forced her eldest son, Lin Aodong, to shove her into the bridal sedan; she who had bribed the nursemaid beside Su Qingfeng to poison her; and it was even this old crone who had ordered Lin Chuyan to steal her jade pendant and usurp her identity as the daughter of the Guardian Duke. Her list of crimes was endless; every atrocity was either her own doing or carried out under her directive.

This old woman was rotten to the core, a truly unforgivable beast. For such a malignancy, Lin Pianran’s plan was to excise her first so she could never cause harm again. By pulling out this poisonous tooth, the Lin family would lose its greatest support. Lin Pianran was certain the family would scatter like loose sand and lose all its lethal edge. Without the Old Matriarch to mediate and balance their interests, her two sons and two daughters would easily be provoked into turning against one another, never to be united again.

With this thought, Lin Pianran’s resolve to eliminate the Old Matriarch hardened. She approached the window, finding the room inside perfectly tranquil. She sprayed in the anesthetic, waited a moment, and then climbed inside.

The Old Matriarch’s room was clearly furnished with far more luxury and elegance. Lin Pianran discovered a pair of exquisite white jade Ruyi and a yellow jade comb—items that had belonged to her, stolen by the Lin daughters, and now ended up in the Old Matriarch’s collection. She also found a four-panel landscape screen; the painting was said to be the work of a master and was quite expensive. Lin Pianran had fallen in love with it at first sight and spent over three thousand taels of silver to acquire it, only for Lin Chuyan to snatch it away two months ago.

To think it was here with the Old Matriarch! The old hag was truly shameless. Too proud to demand things directly, she had simply sent her granddaughters to steal them for her. Perhaps she had assumed that, under normal circumstances, Lin Pianran would never have the audacity to enter her room.

However, every treasure in the Old Matriarch’s room would now belong to her. To vent her spite, Lin Pianran emptied the entire room into her space, even taking the quilt off the Old Matriarch’s body. Since the woman wouldn’t be waking up, it didn't matter how she was treated.

Lin Pianran then drew a dagger from her space and swiftly slit the Old Matriarch’s throat, sending her to meet the King of Hell in her sleep, without a sound.