The Guan family was a renowned scholarly lineage in the capital. Old Master Guan had once held a third-rank official position. The prefect was the eldest son of the Guan family. Although Old Madam Guan's family was of equal standing to Old Master Guan's, she was not favored by him.
The reason for this was that he had a childhood sweetheart, a cousin with whom he shared mutual affections. Unfortunately, her family fell into decline, and the Guan family refused to allow her to marry into the family. He was forced to marry a wife he did not love, enduring great humiliation.
Finally, upon the birth of their legitimate son, he received his mother's consent to take his cousin as a concubine.
Only then did Old Madam Guan understand that her husband's coldness towards her was because his heart belonged to another. She blamed the Guan family for concealing the truth so well; had she known, she would never have married him.
Alas, it was too late. Utterly disappointed in her husband, she henceforth ceased to concern herself with the affairs of the household. She confined herself to her own courtyard each day, focusing on raising her son.
Even so, the other woman was not satisfied, believing she had usurped her position. She resorted to numerous underhanded tactics, both overt and covert. With great difficulty, she raised her son, who, to her credit, successfully passed the imperial examinations and entered the Hanlin Academy. He then married a suitable daughter-in-law.
However, their good fortune was short-lived. The daughter-in-law died during childbirth, passing away not long after.
When Guan Tianyi was about ten years old, he fell ill. He felt unwell all over, and despite seeing many doctors, none could diagnose his ailment. His condition worsened, and he eventually took to his bed.
A few years later, Old Madam Guan began exhibiting the same symptoms. At that time, Prefect Guan, then a Hanlin scholar, heard that many esteemed medical families lived in seclusion in the south. He used the excuse of taking his son and mother to seek medical treatment to request a provincial posting in that region.
They stayed there for five years. Initially, Prefect Guan suspected the old concubine in the household, but he lacked evidence.
Now that his son and mother had been cured, he dispatched his trusted assistant back to the capital to inform them of this development. That very night, he heard sounds of things being smashed in the concubine's courtyard.
To cast such a gu, one must prick a finger with a needle, creating a small opening, and then release the gu worm. The worm, guided by the scent of blood, would enter the body through the tiny wound.
Only a few people had close access to them. The old lady distinctly remembered that shortly before she fell ill, a servant woman around her would often reminisce about their youthful days of embroidery, piquing her interest. She decided to embroider something, but having not held a needle for a long time, she was clumsy and accidentally pricked her finger, drawing blood.
At the time, she had no suspicions. After all, who among women embroidering had never pricked their finger?
Now, upon hearing Wu Caiwei's account, she instinctively felt that the woman was highly suspicious. Furthermore, when she moved south, the woman had used an excuse to remain in Jincheng and had not accompanied them.
With a target in mind, the matter became much simpler. The prefect immediately sent a message back, instructing his people to investigate the matter thoroughly, regardless of the cost or the methods employed.
Not long after, a message arrived confirming that the old concubine in the household had indeed been responsible. It also revealed that she had bribed the midwife during the madam's difficult labor. Upon hearing this news, Master Guan was overcome with grief. His wife had been intelligent and beautiful, their hearts had been in harmony, and their love had been deep.
Over the years, many had urged him to remarry, but he could never forget his wife. Every day, he would take out her portrait, gaze at it, and touch it, as if she were still by his side.
Knowing now that she had been murdered was an unimaginable blow to Prefect Guan's heart. He locked himself in his room and wept profusely. He then sought out Wu Caiwei and asked if she possessed any medicine that could cause excruciating pain without revealing any signs of illness. She immediately nodded.
That day, she prepared many medicinal herbs and, working through the night, refined several pills. She handed them to Master Guan. She felt no remorse; those who dared to harm her man must pay the price.
Soon after, news arrived from the capital that the old master and the old concubine in the household had both fallen ill. Doctors came and went, but none could diagnose the cause.
The old concubine, recognizing the familiar method, was both shocked and enraged. She harbored secret resentment but lacked any proof. She had been able to raise those gu worms because she had once saved a maidservant who hailed from Miao territory. The old concubine assumed that others had also cast gu on them and hastily summoned the maid. However, the maid could definitively state that there were no gu worms in their bodies, though she was unsure of the poison.
The two suffered day and night. Finally, the old concubine could bear it no longer. She confessed to Old Master Guan, suspecting that Old Madam Guan had poisoned them and that this was an act of revenge for her past misdeeds.
Old Master Guan merely dismissed her confession with a light remark about her foolishness and then dispatched someone to the south to find his son and demand the antidote.
When the prefect received the news, he scoffed. His father's suffering was well-deserved; the concubine's audacity was entirely due to his indulgence.
When the steward from the household arrived, he feigned ignorance and refused to confess.
Not long after, he learned of Wu Caiwei's deeds and suspected that the poison likely originated from her. However, no matter how subtly he probed, she offered no response, and he returned unsuccessful.
Old Master Guan was furious, claiming to be ill and requiring his grandson to be at his bedside to provide filial care. Guan Tianyi happily packed his belongings. He had initially thought it would be difficult to deal with them given the vast distance, but now that they had come to him, he would not be blamed.
Upon his return to the mansion, he immediately paid his respects to his grandfather. Old Master Guan was initially pleased, but what followed left him speechless, with bitterness he could not express. His grandson was outwardly sweet-tongued and his words were pleasant to hear, but he was clumsy. He would either knock over the medicine bowl onto the bed, making a mess, or, despite his grandfather's clear dislike for certain foods, he would insist they were good for his health and force them into his mouth.
He was also incompetent at serving others; the water for washing his face was either scalding hot or icy cold.
After only one day, Old Master Guan could not bear it any longer and quickly sent him away. He much preferred the comfort of being served by the maids.
While the old master was somewhat relieved, Guan Tianyi began to act arrogantly within the mansion, repeatedly ordering the steward to fetch things for him. Whenever the steward claimed they were unavailable or lacked funds, he would loudly proclaim, "Regardless, I am the legitimate eldest son. Why should others have something I cannot? Moreover, this will be my estate in the future. Those illegitimate sons will only receive a small portion and be expelled. Surely you know who your master is?"
Upon hearing this, the old concubine cursed incessantly, regretting that she had not killed him outright. One mountain cannot accommodate two tigers; if this estate were to fall into his hands, her own household would suffer greatly.
This was only the beginning. From then on, he went to the accounting office daily to withdraw funds, demanding thousands of taels each time. When the accounting office refused, he would insist on reviewing the account books.
Hearing this, Old Master Guan was so angered he nearly collapsed. Thinking that given his years of illness and lack of schooling, his grandson could not possibly understand the account books, he directly instructed the steward, "Let him examine them. I refuse to believe he can find anything of significance within."