Chapter 52 This old lady must have been cursed with black magic

She had hoped to use the threat of death to cow Xie Ning.
Yet, in the end, this fellow was actually going to drag the entire Marquis's Manor down with her to the grave!
An unprecedented wave of terror and humiliation surged into the old matriarch's heart.
She felt as though her heart were being ruthlessly gripped by an invisible, massive hand, the pain choking her to the point of near suffocation.
"Very well, then, let us consider the matter settled so delightfully."
Xie Ning clapped his hands together, appearing thoroughly pleased with this outcome.
"I shall go right now to defy the imperial decree. As for the lot of you, do not sit idly by; best make your preparations. Wash your necks clean and simply wait at home for the imperial decree to arrive at your doorsteps."
Having said this, finding the scene dull and no longer willing to gaze upon this flock of frightened, witless fools, he executed a dashing turn. With his hands clasped behind his back and a leisurely stride, he sauntered casually out of the courtyard.
Left behind was an entire courtyard of people, dumbstruck and scared out of their wits.
Xie Ning strolled leisurely out of Fusheng Hall.
As he walked, he offered a cold chuckle, easily picturing the extraordinarily colorful expressions on the faces of those people back in the courtyard right at this moment.
Fear, astonishment, and... utter bewilderment.
That was precisely how it should be.
When dealing with a bunch of ungrateful wretches who always tried to push their luck, one simply could not reason with them.
The more reasonably one spoke to them, the more insufferable they became.
One had to be harsher, more unreasonable, and crazier than they were.
You had to instill fear right down into the marrow of their bones.
Only then would they learn to behave.
Xie Ning’s mood unaccountably improved once more.
The verbal thrashing he had just delivered was utterly exhilarating, clearing his mind of all vexation.
Qingfeng and Mingyue hurried to catch up with him, both of their faces bearing a trace of thinly veiled peculiarity.
"Young Master, what you did just now was... simply..."
Qingfeng racked his brain for a long while, yet could not find a suitable word to describe it.
"Too fierce?"
Xie Ning glanced at him sideways and smiled.
"Well... it certainly was something."
Xie Ning's imposing aura earlier had simply been off the charts.
Single-handedly, he had subdued the entire Marquis's Manor, from the old matriarch at the top down to Marquis Jia at the bottom.
That feeling was even more thrilling than debating a whole group of scholars in the Imperial Garden.
"Heh, look at how easily startled you two are."
Xie Ning scolded them with a smile.
"If I genuinely wanted to die, would I bother wasting so many words on them? To deal with that crowd, you have to use harsh medicine. If you don't frighten them out of their wits, they'll never learn what the word 'death' truly means."
Xie Ning was abundantly clear on this in his own mind.
Whether it was Jia Yibo or the old matriarch, the only reason they dared to act so domineeringly in his presence was simply because they relied on their status as elders, banking on the fact that he cared about his reputation and wouldn't dare do anything to them.
Well, he simply refused to play into their hands.
Reputation?
Having transmigrated into this world, he certainly hadn't come for the sake of some damned reputation.
What he wanted was to exact vengeance freely and live a life of carefree comfort.
Whoever dared to make him uncomfortable, he would make their entire family uncomfortable.
"However, Young Master..."
Qingfeng's face revealed a fresh hint of worry.
"With such a grand display, angering the old dowager to that extent... what if she truly does something desperate..."
"Rest assured."
Xie Ning waved a hand, his expression entirely confident.
"She won't die. People of her sort cherish their lives above all else. When she used death to coerce me just now, it was merely an attempt to force me into submission."
"Now that she realizes this trick is useless against her and might even drag her down with it, you could lend her ten times the courage, and she still wouldn't dare to actually die."
Xie Ning had always been a sharp judge of character.
This old matriarch had been living a life of pampered luxury in the Buddhist temple for all these years.
She claimed to be praying for her daughter's blessings, but in truth, it was merely an excuse to find a tranquil place to escape reality.
Such a person was both selfish and cowardly; how could she possibly possess the genuine courage to die?
"Then... what shall we do next?"
Mingyue asked softly.
"The old dowager has clearly set her mind on opposing you. I fear there will be no end to the troubles hereafter."
"Troubles?"
Xie Ning sneered.
"She isn't a trouble; she is a pitiable creature."
He halted his steps, glanced back in the direction of Fuan Hall, and his gaze grew somewhat profound.
"A pitiable creature whose mind has been clouded by grease and whose eyes have been blinded by villains."
Qingfeng and Mingyue exchanged glances, both looking puzzled.
"Young Master, do you mean..."
"I suspect this old matriarch might have something wrong with her head."
Xie Ning stroked his chin and mused aloud.
"When I drew close to examine her earlier, I noticed her brow was shrouded in darkness, her eyes were devoid of spirit, and her vital essence was scattered. This is not the physiognomy of a normal person. Add to that her upside-down logic and stubborn, unrepentant words and actions just now..."
A sharp glint flashed across Xie Ning's eyes.
"I suspect she has likely been tampered with by someone."
"Tampered with?"
Qingfeng and Mingyue cried out in simultaneous alarm.
"You mean... cursed by someone, much like the Grand Princess previously?"
"Not entirely the same."
Xie Ning shook his head.
"The Grand Princess was subjected to the Four Yin Death-Jinx, which was meant to take her life. But what is on this old matriarch looks more like a method of mental control."
Xie Ning thought for a moment, using a term they could easily understand.
"To put it simply, she has been brainwashed and had a spell cast upon her. It makes her fiercely believe in a certain person or a certain narrative, unable to extricate herself. The one who brainwashed her is unlikely to be that blockhead Jia Yibo, but he was certainly involved in it."
Hiss...
Qingfeng and Mingyue drew in a sharp breath of cold air simultaneously.
They had not expected such sinister and bizarre trickery to be at play here.
That Marquis Jia was truly vicious; he hadn't even spared an elderly woman in her seventies or eighties.
"Then... what are we to do?"
Qingfeng asked anxiously.
"If the old matriarch remains under his control, she will surely continue to oppose you, Young Master."
"Breaking it isn't difficult either."
A cold, sharp arc curved at the corner of Xie Ning's mouth.
"A mental illness requires a mental cure. The root cause of why she was brainwashed by Jia Yibo ultimately stems from the fact that my mother's death back then left a massive knot in her heart."
"As long as we can reveal the truth of what happened back then to her, letting her see Jia Yibo's true colors, she will naturally snap out of it."
"But... but all those years have passed, where are we to find the truth of the past?"
Mingyue wore a look of deep distress.
"We go to a certain place."
Xie Ning cast his gaze toward the outskirts of the city and spoke calmly.
"The Great Buddha Temple. The old matriarch lived there for over a dozen years, and Jia Yibo must have visited her there frequently. That place is bound to hold quite a few clues."
"Besides, I've always found it strange: how could a proper Great Buddha Temple ever tolerate Jia Yibo playing such crooked, evil tricks within its walls? That temple is likely problematic as well."
With that, Xie Ning narrowed his eyes.
It seemed imperative to pay a visit to that Great Buddha Temple.
Just as he was contemplating how to arrange for someone to investigate the temple, a guard from the Grand Princess's Manor came running over in hurried steps.
"Young Lord Xie."
The guard bowed respectfully to Xie Ning.
"Her Highness the Princess has sent me to relay a message to you."