Inside the room.

Jingrong stood with his hands clasped behind his back before a large shelf, admiring the many small clay animals displayed upon it.

All twelve zodiac animals were there!

And each one was crafted lifelike and vivid.

It must be said, although that boy Wei Yi’s mind wasn’t particularly sharp, his skill at molding clay figures was truly excellent. In the future, he could set up a stall making sugar figurines and such—it would definitely be a profitable venture.

It seemed this child wouldn’t starve to death after all!

The corner of his mouth lifted slightly as he continued admiring the neatly arranged animals on the shelf. Recalling how Wei Yi had once slept hugging his clay animals, he found it truly endearing.

During this time, without Wei Yi by his side, things had indeed been much quieter. He actually missed him a bit.

Suddenly—

“Wei Yi is happiest when he’s making these clay figures!”

The voice came from the doorway.

He turned his head and saw Ji Yunshu standing there.

She stepped inside and walked to his side, looking at the clay animals on the shelf.

“He really loves these little animals and treasures them dearly. Back then, he spent an entire afternoon making them. As soon as the sun came out, he would carry them outside one by one to dry them in the sun. He wouldn’t let anyone help or touch them. The maids laughed at him for being stingy, but he still happily bustled about by himself. I still remember when he accidentally broke a rabbit—he was heartbroken and sad for an hour or two before he recovered. In the end, he even buried the broken rabbit in the earth. It seems that in this world, only he could be so innocent.”

Whenever she talked about Wei Yi’s amusing anecdotes, a smile always graced her lips.

Jingrong listened quietly.

She continued, “When we left Jinjiang, he had already learned to recite poetry and recognized many characters. I wonder, after these several months, how is he now? Can he recite even more poetry? Does he recognize even more characters? Is his handwriting still as crooked as before? Has his tutor taught him other things? Is he still as clueless about everything as before?”

Her voice grew softer and softer, more and more choked up…

Her eyes reddened!

In her mind, she was imagining Wei Yi’s growth and changes over and over again.

At the root of it all—was he doing well now?

Jingrong said, “Good people will ultimately receive good fortune.”

“Will they?”

“Yes, they definitely will!”

Absolutely certain!

Ji Yunshu reached out and took down a small pig from the shelf, gently cradling it in her hands, stroking it over and over, as if she were stroking Wei Yi’s head.

Jingrong turned his head to look at her. He opened his mouth, as if words had been deliberated in his throat for a long time. Finally, he spoke a sentence: “Wei Yi is fine.”

Hmm?

Ji Yunshu’s hands tightened around the clay figure as she asked, “Why do you say that?”

“Jing Yi told me.”

“Jing Yi? Explain yourself clearly.”

Jingrong composed himself. “The person was indeed captured by Jing Yi, but I don’t know where he’s hidden him. I only know that right now Wei Yi is very safe and won’t be in danger for the time being.”

For the time being?

Ji Yunshu seemed to only hear the key words. She put down the clay figure and grasped his arm with one hand, anxiously pressing, “For the time being? What do you mean ‘for the time being’?”

Jingrong’s eyes lowered slightly as he said earnestly, “To put it plainly, Wei Yi is now Jing Yi’s chess piece. What he wants is for this Prince to leave the capital. Only when he ascends to the throne will he return Wei Yi safe and sound.”

Uh!

She understood.

So—

Jingrong hadn’t agreed to that condition at the time.

Of course, she could understand that too.

“We both know what kind of person Jing Yi is. This Prince should have chosen to leave the capital for Wei Yi’s sake, but… when he truly ascends to the throne that day, he won’t release the person—he’ll kill them. The first person he’ll want to kill will be either Wei Yi or this Prince.”

“I understand.” Her brow furrowed. She fell silent for a moment, then slowly released her hand from Jingrong’s arm and turned away. “In the capital, you have your Imperial Father, your own blood brothers, people who would die for you, and even a roof over your head. But Wei Yi only has me.”

Silence fell in the air.

Only the fine sound of rain outside and the rustling of wind against the window remained.

After a long while, Jingrong’s eyes showed unfathomable depths as he affirmed, “This Prince promised you that I would definitely rescue Wei Yi safely. At that time, if he’s harmed even a fraction, this Prince will let you harm me an inch. Return one chi for every chi—this is my promise.”

Return one chi for every chi!

Her downcast eyes lifted as she turned her head, meeting Jingrong’s cold yet resolute gaze.

Their eyes met!

Yet neither said anything more.

That night, Jingrong stayed at Bamboo Creek Garden.

But Ji Yunshu couldn’t sleep peacefully no matter what, tossing and turning in bed.

The light drizzle outside gradually turned into heavy rain.

The sound of rain was like thunder!

She lay on her side with her eyes tightly closed, trying to make herself fall asleep, but a moment later she opened them again, because it seemed that the moment she closed her eyes, she would recall the dream she’d had in the study earlier.

It wasn’t terrifying!

It was frightening.

Such a dream had been tormenting her almost since Yu Manor, lingering at the tip of her heart, refusing to leave for a long time.

The next day, Jingrong left early in the morning.

Ji Yunshu woke up in the early morning and dressed before going outside.

As soon as she went out, she saw maids sweeping the courtyard.

“Master is awake.”

“Where is the Prince?”

“The Prince left early in the morning in a hurry. It seemed like there was some urgent matter. Since Master was still resting, he didn’t call you.”

Urgent matter?

Probably something related to Jing Yi.

Because it had rained all night, the courtyard was muddy and the flowers and grass had died. The maids had started cleaning up early in the morning. In just a short while, they had tidied everything and even scattered some chrysanthemum water, which was very fragrant.

There was no trace whatsoever of the aftermath of heavy rain.

After Ji Yunshu finished breakfast, she sat in the courtyard for a while, quietly thinking about some matters. Then she took a gourd ladle, scooped water to wash her hands, and went to the hall where the coffins were stored.

She had just started working with the skeleton that had been removed from the coffin when Jing Zhaoyin arrived.

As always, he remained extremely courteous toward Ji Yunshu.

As soon as he entered, he adjusted his waist and patted the rainwater from his official robe, saying, “Master Ji, good morning.”

Brother, it’s not exactly early anymore.

Actually, Ji Yunshu wasn’t surprised at all that Jing Zhaoyin would come.

If that fellow didn’t come, he probably wouldn’t deserve his title of Jing Zhaoyin.

After all, he had to manage the Linjing Case!

“What brings Jing Zhaoyin here on this visit?” She still asked the question.

Jing Zhaoyin had originally wanted to step forward, but seeing Ji Yunshu gesturing with that skeleton in her hands, he thought for a moment and actually took a small step backward instead. Then, with a grinning smile, he said, “Knowing that Master had come to Bamboo Creek Garden, I should have come yesterday to pay my respects, but truly there were too many matters to handle. Right now the entire court is in complete chaos, so I was delayed and didn’t come over.”

His words seemed to carry some complaint.

Ji Yunshu didn’t understand. “Oh? The court is in chaos? How chaotic is it?”

However chaotic it might be, how bad could it really get?

Jing Zhaoyin let out a sigh…