Minister Pei of the Privy Council had just finished dressing with the assistance of his maidservants when he heard a blood-curdling scream echoing through the residence.
"What's going on?" Minister Pei waved the maids away and addressed his personal attendant. "Go and find out."
The attendant had barely pulled open the door when Pei Zhishuo burst in, vomiting as he ran. "Grandfather... ugh... Grandfather... ugh..."
Minister Pei recoiled several steps. "Have you gone mad?" he exclaimed. "Why are you vomiting in my room?"
Pei Zhishuo finally managed to stop retching, his face pale as he wiped his mouth. "Grandfather, something terrible has happened in our household... all the servants... You... you should go outside and see for yourself!"
He was at a loss for words to describe the horror.
Minister Pei, protected by his attendant, stepped outside. The courtyard near his quarters seemed normal, but the screams were coming from further away.
"Bang!"
Along the corridor, maids were shrieking in terror, while several servants collapsed, only to have black insects crawl out of their bodies.
A revolting stench permeated the entire Pei residence, filling the air with an unbearable, nauseating odor.
Minister Pei immediately covered his nose and mouth with his sleeve. "Miao Linlin! Where is Miao Linlin? Bring her to me at once!"
The insects, once emerged, sought new hosts, but upon reaching the perimeter of Minister Pei's courtyard, they seemed to encounter something terrifying, scattering in all directions and causing more servants to scream and flee in panic.
Even the personal attendant was horrified. The fallen servants' bodies were rapidly decomposing, their insides already devoured by the parasitic insects.
Fortunately, Minister Pei had foresight. Ever since Miao Linlin had married into the family, he had placed three-edged sword, neem bark, and hedge mustard in the corners of key courtyards and instructed the kitchen to daily prepare soups with cinnamon, perilla, and patchouli for the family members.
While these measures were useless once the insects had entered the body, they effectively repelled the parasites when they were still outside. The potent scent, akin to poison for the insects, caused them to instinctively avoid the area.
As a result, only the servants were affected today, while the family members' quarters remained untouched.
Miao Linlin was awakened by frantic knocking on her door. In her Miao Borderlands, she was accustomed to sleeping late, and being disturbed so early left her in a foul mood.
Pei Sinian held her, seeing his young wife's frown, and his temper flared. Grabbing a vase from the bedside, he hurled it at the door. "You ignorant fools! Do you know you've disturbed Madam's rest?"
"Master..." the servant outside stammered, trembling. "There's... there's something strange happening in the house. Many servants have been... their bodies are empty. Minister Pei of the Privy Council has ordered us to summon Madam immediately!"
"Ghosts? Empty bodies?"
Miao Linlin's eyes snapped open, and she quickly sat up, grabbing her clothes from the screen and throwing them on. She opened the door, her eyes wide with shock. "What did you say? Where? Take me there at once!"
This sounded eerily similar to what happened when her insects had taken over someone's body.
The servant led Miao Linlin toward Minister Pei's courtyard, passing by numerous servants who collapsed mid-step, their skins sloughing off to reveal a pile of rotting flesh.
Tiny black insects emerged from beneath the skin, flying toward Miao Linlin and her guide.
The servant accompanying her screamed in terror, but Miao Linlin struck the small drum at her waist. The insects exploded mid-air, splattering the servant with foul blood.
He stared in horror, his teeth chattering. It was Madam... She was behind all this.
Too terrifying... far too terrifying.
Throughout the journey, Miao Linlin continued to beat her drum, while unaffected servants watched in horror as their friends collapsed before the First Madam's feet. She showed no emotion, no sympathy, as if it were an honor for these people to become food for the insects.
Her callousness was beyond what any normal person could comprehend.
"Father-in-law!"
When Miao Linlin reached Minister Pei, she was covered in the blood and filth from the exploding insects, reeking horribly.
Yet she seemed oblivious to it, matter-of-factly saying, "Father-in-law, we must search the residence immediately. I suspect the Jiang family has discovered our plan and sent Jiang Yulin to infiltrate us."
Her waist drum contained the mother insects, while Jiang Yulin's body harbored hundreds of male insects that had mated with the mother insects. Once the males emerged, they would reproduce thousands of offspring, which could only survive near the males.
Originally, she had planned to use this to devour the entire Jiang family, but now, with all the insects inside the Pei family members, it meant the males were nearby.
Minister Pei clenched his teeth. "Send people to search. We must find that person at once."
"Everyone, get out of the way!"
Before Minister Pei's orders could be carried out, officials from the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Punishment, Ministry of Personnel, and the Imperial City Guard arrived in force.
A massive group stormed into the Pei residence: "Official business! Clear the area!"
The authoritative voice came from an officer of the Ministry of Justice, his aura of authority and bloodshed silencing any resistance.
Moreover, they carried a search warrant with the emperor's seal, indicating that the ruler had approved this action.
Dead bodies!
So many dead bodies!
So many corpses with hollowed-out insides, leaving only rotting skins.
The stench was unbearable!
Even passersby outside the Pei residence were overwhelmed by the revolting smell, yet their curiosity was piqued.
"What's happening at the Pei residence? Are they boiling night soil? It smells awful."
"Why are so many soldiers gathered here? Has something happened to the Pei family? This smell... it reminds me of decaying corpses."
"How can you tell? Have you seen dead bodies before?"
"I grew up in the mortuary, dealing with corpses daily. That's how I know."
"Move along, move along. Don't interfere with official business."
Someone handed a bag of coins to the gatekeeper. "Officer, we're just ordinary citizens. What harm could we cause? We're just curious about what's happening at the Pei residence. Why does it smell so bad?"
The guard weighed the bag, satisfied, and whispered to the inquirer, "The Ministry of Justice received an anonymous tip that the new daughter-in-law of Minister Pei of the Privy Council, the one from the Miao Borderlands... she practices witchcraft and uses the household servants to cultivate insects, committing atrocities and showing no mercy. The report claims nearly a hundred people in the Pei family have died, and more will perish if we don't act quickly."
"What?"
"Using humans to cultivate insects? That's monstrous. She's gone too far, relying on Minister Pei of the Privy Council's backing to do as she pleases."
"Human lives are so cheap now? With the stench from this residence, there must be at least fifty to sixty dead. Truly, she's abusing her position."
"But why would the Pei family allow her to raise so many insects? Could it be... they're planning a rebellion?"
Jiang Yankun, accompanied by Leader Ma, led the way, unstoppable as they advanced.
Today, they were determined to bring down Minister Pei of the Privy Council, or Jiang Yankun would renounce his surname.
