Zhou Ye: “My young master. His name was Wu Buwei. He had just turned fifteen.”

Pei Xiao exclaimed: “He was Wu Shunian’s son?”

Xie Zhifei frowned: “Those who survived that war weren’t father and son, but grandfather, father, and grandson—three generations?”

Yan Sanhe: “How did he die?”

“Wu Buwei was my master’s grandson, also Shunian’s son. Three generations of single succession, only this one sprout. He died of smallpox, died in my arms.”

Zhou Ye’s eyes were cold.

“The last words he left me were: Uncle Zhou, tell Father I don’t hurt, not at all.”

“Wu Shunian, where were you at that time?” Xie Zhifei suddenly shouted.

His shout was truly too loud, startling both Yan Sanhe and Pei Xiao.

“I was outside the door. Aye feared I’d be infected and absolutely wouldn’t let me enter.”

At some point, Wu Shunian had opened his eyes. “I replied to him: ‘Good child, Father has wronged you.'”

“Because I didn’t let Shunian see the child off one last time, he wanted to stay with him longer, so we kept vigil for seven days. Seven days later, buried at the top of Daming Mountain, interred with his grandfather.”

Zhou Ye’s face couldn’t hide his sorrow.

“A wordless monument was erected before the tomb, two pine and cypress trees planted behind it, with a large stone beside. If you want to go, it should be easy to find.”

Hearing this, Pei Xiao felt very strange.

Why would we go?

What does this have to do with resolving my maternal grandmother’s heart demon?

And why are they speaking so specifically, including year, month, and day—what’s the intention?

He instinctively looked up at Yan Sanhe—

Only to see Yan Sanhe’s face deathly pale, eyes wide open, staring fixedly at Wu Shunian.

What’s wrong with her?

Pei Xiao quickly turned to look at Xie Zhifei—

Only to see Xie Zhifei covered in sweat from head to toe, his two hands on the table clenched into fists, making cracking sounds of bones splitting.

What’s wrong with him too?

Pei Xiao’s heart instantly jumped to his throat. Just as he was about to speak, Xie Zhifei suddenly rose, grabbing Zhou Ye by the collar.

The black-clothed men, seeing this, all drew their swords and surrounded them.

Li Buyan and her two companions, who’d been leaning against the water vat listening to the story, also jumped up in shock, each drawing their swords.

In the blink of an eye, the atmosphere in the courtyard became tense as drawn bows.

Pei Xiao felt his hair stand on end, saying in a low voice: “Xie Fifty, what are you doing?”

At this moment, even Xie Zhifei’s eyeballs were trembling, making low growls like a trapped beast in his throat, but not saying a single word.

That originally smiling handsome face had somehow twisted out of shape, the veins on his forehead bulging one by one as if about to burst through skin.

This Xie Fifty—Pei Xiao had never seen him like this in twenty years of life.

“Xie Zhifei!”

Yan Sanhe also stood up, very boldly reaching out to cover his hand gripping Zhou Ye’s collar.

The coldness in her palm made Xie Zhifei’s hand loosen slightly.

Yan Sanhe immediately pulled hard.

Xie Zhifei was yanked back into the armchair, his mouth twitching as if wanting to say something, but unfortunately, nothing came out.

“Zhou Ye.”

Yan Sanhe looked at him, her voice colder than ever, her speech slower than ever.

“You’ve gone to such great lengths, told such a long story—are you trying to tell me that the Zheng family’s annihilation wasn’t done by Wu Guanyue and his son?”

“What, what?” Pei Xiao was shocked.

“The Zheng family case occurred in the eighth year of Yonghe during the Ghost Festival—that’s the fifteenth of the seventh month.”

Because of resolving Yan Xing’s heart demon, Yan Sanhe had firmly etched this date in her mind.

“Wu Guanyue died four years earlier. On the tenth of the seventh month, Wu Shunian’s son Wu Buwei passed away, the body was kept for seven days—meaning the funeral was on the seventeenth of the seventh month.

That means the Zheng family’s annihilation had a different culprit. Wu Guanyue and his son were wrongly accused.”

Wrongly accused?

Pei Xiao scoffed: “Don’t joke around. How is that possible?”

“The Master was wrongly accused.”

Ah Qiang walked over with a cold face. “At that time, we were all outside the door accompanying the Master. When the young master passed, I even cried!”

“I was there too!”

“I was there too!”

“I was there too!”

“I can swear to heaven!”

“I can also swear to heaven, a poisonous oath!”

The black-clothed men spoke up one after another.

Pei Xiao felt the world before him change color.

The Zheng residence case shocked the world. If Wu Guanyue and his son were truly wrongly accused, then who was the real culprit?

If Wu Guanyue and his son weren’t wrongly accused, then what was their purpose in doing this?

He instinctively looked at Yan Sanhe, only to see her long black lashes trembling slightly, her face also looking struck by lightning.

Deathly silence!

Suffocating deathly silence.

After a long while, Yan Sanhe raised her chin toward Wu Shunian. “I have a few questions.”

Wu Shunian looked at her and smiled gently.

Aye was right—among these six people, this youngest girl was the most unfathomable.

“Little girl, ask away.”

Yan Sanhe: “You say you were wrongly accused. Besides what you’ve said above, what other evidence is there?”

Wu Shunian: “None!”

Yan Sanhe: “Without evidence, how can I believe what you’re saying is true?”

Wu Shunian: “Haven’t you heard the saying—when a person is about to die, his words are kind? I have no need to deceive you.”

Yan Sanhe shook her head. “The saying ‘when a person is about to die, his words are kind’ can’t just sweep this aside. I resolve thoughts and dissolve demons—I must speak of cause and effect, right and wrong.”

“Well said!”

Xie Zhifei said with a dark face: “This case—besides the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate’s joint investigation, the Embroidered Uniform Guard was secretly investigating. Four departments working together—how could they investigate the wrong case?”

At this moment, Zhou Ye suddenly laughed coldly. “I also want to know—clearly four departments working together, how could they investigate the wrong case?”

Xie Zhifei was provoked by this and grew angry again. “Zhou Ye, don’t forget you’re an official of Hua Kingdom.”

Zhou Ye’s brow pressed down. “I’m sorry, Third Master, but I only recognize the Wu family as my masters.”

Xie Zhifei gritted his teeth. “This is treason, a capital offense, your nine generations should be executed.”

Zhou Ye raised his chin, smiling contemptuously: “I came into this world alone. I have no nine generations.”

“You…”

“I what?”

Their eyes met, both gazes as cold as ice shards.

“Aye!”

Wu Shunian’s voice held a tremor. “Help me up!”

Zhou Ye’s blade-like gaze swept across Xie Zhifei, then bent to help Wu Shunian up.

Wu Shunian swayed, steadied himself, then pushed away Zhou Ye’s hand and moved his legs step by step forward.

He walked very slowly, each step as if walking on a blade’s edge.

Finally, he reached the water vat, gripped the rim, and looked back deeply at Xie Zhifei.

“There are six fish in this water vat. Do you know why six, Third Master?”

Why?

All six hearts asked.

Wu Shunian said lightly: “They represent the six times I went to Hua Kingdom’s capital.”

A thunderbolt struck Xie Zhifei.

The person the Embroidered Uniform Guard had searched mountains and crossed waters to find had been coming and going right under their noses?

This…

The audacity was truly enormous!