A crescent moon hung in the sky.
Seventeen-year-old Xie Xian stood behind the courtyard wall, looking at the woman kneeling there, and said softly, “Concubine, keep watch here. I’ll go deliver food to Mother.”
This was precisely the time when the guards changed shifts. Only after Xie Xian confirmed there was no one in the courtyard did she hurry forward carrying the food box.
In the center of the courtyard knelt a woman. Her white garments could no longer show their original color, her full head of black hair was disheveled, her expression desolate.
The woman had been kneeling here for many days already. Her body seemed to have reached its limit, as if she might faint at any moment.
“Mother…” Xie Xian hurriedly reached out to support her. “Quickly eat something.”
Yun Chu raised her eyes to look at the newcomer, her voice hoarse. “Xian’er…”
“Mother need not say much.” Xie Xian brought out meat porridge and passed it over. “Only after eating will you have the strength to save the Yun family. Mother, eat quickly.”
Nearly three months had passed since the Yun family’s disaster. The entire clan was imprisoned, with only married-out daughters temporarily unaffected.
At first, Mother had rushed about everywhere seeking connections to save the Yun family members, but with the crime of treason, no one dared interfere.
Finally, when there was truly no other way, Mother knelt in the study courtyard, hoping Father and elder brother would step forward and petition His Majesty to reinvestigate the Yun family treason case.
Currently, Father was a third-rank official in the Ministry of Revenue, and elder brother was the Grand Secretary of the Cabinet—the youngest Grand Secretary in history.
If elder brother was willing to step forward, this matter would definitely have a chance to turn around.
However, Mother had been kneeling here for nearly three months, yet elder brother and Father both avoided seeing her.
Xie Xian felt heartbroken for her mother.
Without Mother, without the Yun family, how could elder brother have had such smooth sailing, risen so meteorically, and reached the pinnacle of ministerial power?
Now that the Yun family was in trouble and Mother knelt pleading, elder brother remained aloof…
Moreover, elder brother had controlled all the servants around Mother, not allowing anyone to bring Mother water or food…
Xie Xian stopped her train of thought and poured a cup of hot water for Yun Chu, passing it over.
However, just at this moment, a figure rapidly approached, then raised a foot and kicked over the bowl of hot water.
Hot water splashed onto Xie Xian’s hand. She couldn’t help crying out, raised her head, and said incredulously, “Kang’er?”
Xie Shikang said coldly, “The Yun family committed treason—she is a criminal’s daughter. That the Xie family gives her shelter is already benevolent. How can we give her food? Just because the Yun family rebelled, our Xie family was nearly implicated too. She doesn’t deserve to eat a single grain of rice from our Xie family!”
“Fourth Young Master…” Concubine Jiang hadn’t managed to stop him earlier. She stumbled forward, grasped Xie Shikang’s arm, and said with anguish, “Fourth Young Master was born premature, palm-sized. Even your concubine mother didn’t want you. It was Madam who brought you back to Yusheng Residence and carefully looked after you, and sought famous physicians everywhere to treat your illness. Later, she even went to Qingzhou multiple times to find divine physicians to cure you… Without Madam, there would be no you today. How can you say such things to Madam?”
Xie Shikang gritted his teeth. “But because the Yun family rebelled, because she’s surnamed Yun, the Xie family has also drawn His Majesty’s suspicion. What if His Majesty also believes our Xie family participated in the rebellion? Everyone in the Xie family would definitely be thrown into prison too…”
Yun Chu’s heart felt no ripples.
From the moment the Yun family’s disaster struck, she had seen these Xie family members clearly.
All her past efforts had become a joke.
She didn’t want to dwell on those past events. She only hoped Xie Jingyu and Xie Shi’an could have even a little bit of conscience and step forward to testify for the Yun family.
Xie Shikang raised his foot and kicked over the entire box of food.
Meat porridge and various foods scattered on the ground.
The next moment, Xie Shi’an walked out, saying coldly, “What is this about?”
Before Xie Shikang could speak.
Yun Chu raised her head. “Shi’an, you’re finally willing to come out and see me. I beg you, petition His Majesty to thoroughly investigate this case. I beg you!”
“Mother is an elder—how can you kneel to me?” Xie Shi’an bent down to help Yun Chu up.
But Yun Chu had knelt for too long. Her two legs had long lost mobility, her knees stiff. As soon as she stood, she fell back down again.
Concubine Jiang and Xie Xian hurried forward, supporting her from left and right, letting her lean on Concubine Jiang’s body.
“Although I am Grand Secretary, I don’t have the ability to change His Majesty’s mind.” Xie Shi’an said slowly. “I cannot help the Yun family. Mother, stop kneeling.”
“Shi’an!” Yun Chu’s voice was hoarse with desperation. “The treasonous letters the court found are fake—forged handwriting. As long as you bring an experienced calligraphy master, they’ll definitely be able to identify it! Shi’an, I know you have the ability to find a calligraphy master, and the ability to have His Majesty re-examine the evidence…”
Seeing Xie Shi’an remain silent.
Her voice became even more hoarse. “For the sake of raising you, for the sake of giving everything to pave your path, please help the Yun family. Shi’an, I beg you…”
A mocking laugh rang out inappropriately.
Everyone looked up to see Xie Shiwei returning in his armor.
He currently served in the military camp and could only return every few days, his entire bearing imposing and authoritative.
“I always thought Mother was an intelligent person.” Xie Shiwei’s face was full of mockery. “Things have come to this point, yet Mother still can’t understand why? Those letters…”
“Shiwei!” Xie Shi’an shouted sternly. “Some words should be said, some words should not!”
Yun Chu felt as if struck by lightning.
Her weak body couldn’t help swaying.
In just an instant, she understood details she had never considered before.
“It was you, it was you…” Yun Chu’s throat could barely speak anymore. “You imitated my father’s handwriting to write those treasonous letters…”
Back then, Xie Shi’an was highly valued by his teachers at the Imperial Academy, but his calligraphy was slightly inferior. So she had asked Grandfather to step forward and find a renowned master for Xie Shi’an. That calligraphy master was precisely the teacher who had taught her father calligraphy in the past. So the seeds of disaster had been planted so early.
But how did that letter get onto her father’s desk…
Yun Chu’s gaze fell on Xie Shiwei’s face, then she gave a miserable laugh.
Xie Shiwei had been unruly and troublesome since childhood, always fighting with people. So she had used the Yun family’s connections to send Xie Shiwei to the military camp for training.
Over ten years had passed, and Xie Shiwei had transformed from that troublesome child into a third-rank general in the military camp, able to freely enter and exit the camp.
It must have been Xie Shiwei who placed that letter on her father’s desk.
“Ha ha ha!” Yun Chu’s broken voice was full of despair. “So the ones who ruined the Yun family were you—the sons I raised with my own hands… No, I’m the one who killed the Yun family. It was my poor judgment of character, my nurturing of tigers that became threats. It was me—I killed Grandfather, killed Father and Mother, killed elder brother, harmed over a hundred members of the Yun family…”
“Mother, it’s not your fault…” Xie Xian cried. “They’re the ones who are wrong. They don’t know gratitude and have turned to bite the hand that fed them…”
“Xie Xian!” Xie Shiwei roared angrily. “Whose side are you on? Don’t forget—you’re surnamed Xie!”
“I’d rather not be surnamed Xie! I detest having Xie family blood flowing in my body!” Xie Xian broke down shouting. “What great evil did I commit in my past life! To be family with a group of cold-blooded, heartless monsters like you!”