The wind rose in wave after wave!

Ji Yinshu’s hand at the lapel of her robe rested on her abdomen, her slender fingers slightly curved, tightening bit by bit.

Her eyes lowered somewhat.

She turned to face Uncle Fu, seeing him with his head bowed, one hand on the table, fist clenched tight, his already weathered brow furrowed. In his heart, pain gnawed like countless ants. Combined with his unhealed illness, his pale face showed unbearable suffering and bitter distress.

Ji Yinshu continued, “After the fire at Duke Yuguo’s residence, that person hurried back to the capital. He practically dug through all the dozens of coffin tombs buried on Lin Mountain, finally finding his son’s charred corpse. He changed him into clean clothes, scattered much ginger powder in the coffin to preserve the body, reburied the grave, then left the capital again, returning to Jinjiang’s Yi Zhuang. Day after day, he dealt with corpses, and in a flash, ten or twenty years passed.”

Ah!

Speaking to this point, there was no need to guess anymore.

That person, if not Uncle Fu, who else could it be?

She walked over step by step, her lips moving for a long while. “The young heir you took from the capital twenty years ago—that’s the current Wei Yi, isn’t it!”

Wei Yi!

Duke Yuguo’s young heir was actually Wei Yi?

“Who would have thought that Duke Yuguo’s young heir was still alive in this world!” she said. “Perhaps fate plays tricks on people, or perhaps Heaven took pity.”

After hearing those words, Uncle Fu’s body, thin as bones, trembled violently!

His aged pupils tightened slightly, and he looked at Ji Yinshu with astonishment, tears swirling in his eyes, words choking repeatedly in his throat.

Who knows how much time passed before he finally spoke. “I should have known that even if I could deceive others, deceive everyone in the world, I could never deceive you, Master Ji.”

Ji Yinshu met his gaze filled with profound grief.

“Uncle Fu, some things simply cannot be concealed.” She took out the orange-blood colored jade and the yellow handkerchief, rubbing them together in her palm. “This jade and this half handkerchief—I imagine these were what you entrusted to Wei’s father and mother twenty years ago. And this jade pendant and the character ‘Xu’ on the handkerchief, I originally thought it was a name or a courtesy name, but actually, from the moment I obtained this jade, I was thinking in the wrong direction.

“This isn’t a name at all, nor a courtesy name, but rather the honorific title of an estate. When the late emperor was alive, on a whim, he bestowed the title ‘Xu’ upon Duke Yuguo’s residence. Very few people knew that at the time, Duke Yuguo had someone craft two jade pendants based on the character ‘Xu,’ to serve as command tokens for mobilizing his hundred-thousand-strong army outside the capital. One piece he tucked into the young heir’s swaddling clothes when he was taken from the capital. The other, six years after losing contact with the young heir, he entrusted to Old General Li far away in Qingzhou. And this yellow handkerchief—if I remember correctly, two years ago I saw the other half in your hands. And before Lady Wei died, she spoke an incomplete sentence. I believe at that time she wanted to tell me that Wei Yi wasn’t her biological son.”

Uncle Fu nodded. “That’s right, everything you said is correct. But the secret of the Duke’s jade pendant—how did you know about it?”

Of course, it was information from Old General Li!

Connecting everything together, she could deduce that this jade token was that tiger tally.

She only said, “You don’t need to know that. What I want you to tell me is—what exactly happened back then?”

Uncle Fu shook his head, wiped away tears, and in a hoarse voice slowly recounted, “Twenty years ago, when the new emperor ascended the throne, the Duke feared the new emperor would emulate the late emperor, which is why he ordered me to secretly take the young heir and the Third Madam away from the capital. The Third Madam died of illness on the road, and the young heir wasn’t even a month old. I traveled north all the way to Jinjiang. At that time, I happened to meet Master Wei and Lady Wei. After careful consideration, I entrusted the young heir to them and never contacted Duke Yuguo’s residence again.

“Who could have known that six years later, Duke Yuguo’s residence suddenly caught fire, and my son also died. After I returned to the capital, I dug on Lin Mountain for a day and a night, finally discovering a charred corpse wearing my son’s silver bracelet. I knew it was my son. For a white-haired person to send off a black-haired one—how painful that is! Later, I secretly investigated in the capital for a long time, but regarding the fire at Duke Yuguo’s residence that night, I couldn’t find a single clue. It was as if someone had deliberately erased it all. And besides the current emperor, who else would have such ability? The Duke predicted this outcome, which is why he spared the young heir from perishing in the flames.”

His tone was filled with distress!

“Then, among those seventy-three people, who was the one missing?”

“When I stayed in the capital for several days back then, I searched, but there was no news at all.” He paused, then hastily continued, “Master Ji, I know you’ve already taken on the Lin Mountain Case. Can you promise me you’ll definitely find the truth of what happened back then, and give the Duke and everyone in Duke Yuguo’s residence justice?”

Ji Yinshu nodded silently. “I’ve already taken on the Lin Mountain Case. Sooner or later, the truth of this case will come to light.”

Absolutely resolute!

Seventy-two people, seventy-two lives, destroyed in flames in a single night. One could imagine that on that night, Duke Yuguo’s residence was like being trapped in the fierce fires of hell.

Screams, cries for help, weeping…

Just closing her eyes, Ji Yinshu seemed to see the scenes from that night flashing before her eyes.

It blocked her chest with unbearable distress.

Uncle Fu said nothing more, only wiped away more tears.

Ji Yinshu collected her emotions and handed the scroll painting she had brought to Uncle Fu.

Rising, she said, “Keep this portrait as something to remember him by.”

She prepared to leave.

But Uncle Fu called out to her, “Master Ji, I beg one more thing of you. Regarding the young heir’s matter, I hope…”

Before he could finish—

With her back to him, she said, “Rest assured. Since I closed the door to speak with you about this secret, it naturally reveals my intention. I promise that before the Lin Mountain Case is solved, no one will know Wei Yi’s identity, and no one will know that Duke Yuguo’s young heir is still alive. Moreover… I don’t want Wei Yi to know all this. Such an identity and such a past are more than he can bear. I would rather he remain as he is now forever.”

Perhaps after returning from the Yuguo residence, she shouldn’t come back to take him to the capital.

But rather let him stay in Jinjiang for his entire life!

That would mean she was destined to break her promise to Wei Yi.

She tightened her collar, took a deep breath, then pushed open the door and left, closing that door once again.

Inside the room, the candle flame trembled with weak light, reflecting on Uncle Fu’s weathered face. With trembling hands, it took him a long time to gradually unfold the painting before him, revealing the portrait whose features bore some resemblance to his own. He touched the face in the portrait, tears streaming from his eyes, choking until he couldn’t make a sound.

And at this moment, outside the door!

Not far away, behind a pillar, a figure was concealed.

Wei Yi stood there in a daze, his gaze tightly following Ji Yinshu’s figure as she emerged from the door and departed.

Those eyes, always clean and clear, were now so calm they revealed not a trace of emotion.

Only his hands hanging at his sides gripped his robe tightly, gripping until his fingertips turned white.