The attack on Yun Que’s parents naturally aroused the suspicion of Shen Du and Zhu Yan.

Zhu Ying seized this opportunity to proudly boast about her earlier decision to Shen Du.

“I told you the Jinxiu Lane case was connected to them. If we hadn’t kept them protected at the Shen residence, they might have been eliminated long ago.”

As they walked side by side towards the guest room, Zhu Yan couldn’t stop bragging to Shen Du, “Thanks to my level-headed decision, clever planning, and foresight. Otherwise, you’d be regretting it now.”

Hearing Zhu Yan’s self-praise, Shen Du remained silent, only walking beside her and occasionally glancing at her with interest.

Upon reaching the guest room, they found Yun Que’s parents inside.

Faced with the arrival of Zhu Yan and Shen Du, the elderly couple appeared flustered. They hurriedly served tea and invited the two to sit.

The pair politely took their seats. Noticing Yun Que’s absence, Zhu Yan got straight to the point, “Uncle, Aunt, you surely understand why we’re here. I hope this time you can tell us the truth. If not for yourselves, then consider Yun Que’s future.”

Yun Que’s mother’s face instantly turned pale. She glanced nervously at her husband before lowering her head, mumbling, “What do you mean, Madam Director? We don’t quite understand.”

Zhu Yan’s lips curled into a smile, her eyes turning cold, “You don’t understand? Let me be frank. We’ve already learned why you were attacked in Chang’an. If you still intend to hide something, even our great Director Shen won’t be able to protect you.”

As she finished, Zhu Yan quickly nudged Shen Du under the table. Shen Du, understanding her cue, put on an aloof expression.

“My wife speaks the truth. It was her idea to keep you at the Shen residence initially. Now that such a significant incident has occurred, if you don’t confess everything to me, I won’t be able to help you.”

Hearing Shen Du’s words, the couple’s expressions worsened. They exchanged uncertain glances, seemingly undecided.

Seeing their hesitation, Zhu Yan let out a cold laugh, feigning impatience, “Husband, since they refuse to speak, we needn’t waste more time here. After all, Uncle and Aunt are elderly and can’t withstand this back-and-forth. I’m too timid to invite trouble. Why don’t we pack their belongings and have them leave the Shen residence under the cover of night?”

“Very well,” Shen Du replied with an indulgent expression. “Those shady characters prefer to act at night. We shouldn’t meddle in these affairs. After all, it’s not our concern; we should stay out of it.”

The couple exchanged a knowing smile and prepared to leave. At this moment, Yun Que’s father couldn’t sit still any longer.

“Wait, Director, Madam Director…” Yun Que’s father’s face was filled with difficulty. He called out to stop them but struggled to speak, opening his mouth several times without uttering a complete sentence.

The two sat back down, with Zhu Yan fixing a piercing gaze on Yun Que’s father.

“Uncle Yun, the Jinxiu Lane case involves many people. Even if you hide things from us now, do you think they’ll let you off? Yun Que is still so young. Surely you don’t want to watch her fall into danger?”

Before Yun Que’s father could respond, her mother quickly interjected, her face streaked with tears and full of guilt, “We’ve wronged them. It’s our fault, but we were forced into this situation. If we had meddled, our entire Yun clan would have been wiped out.”

As she finished speaking, Yun Que’s mother broke down in tears, covering her face. Her husband quickly embraced her to comfort her.

Nodding, Yun’s father looked seriously at Zhu Yan and Shen Du, “Years ago, when we received those documents, we realized they were fake. We intended to inform Master Kong immediately, but that very night we were threatened by mysterious individuals. They made an example of a branch family, forcing us to keep quiet about the matter. Over the years, they’ve targeted our clan members at the slightest sign of trouble. The reason they didn’t kill us two was to maintain the appearance of the Jinxiu Lane case’s authenticity and avoid arousing suspicion. So… we’ve been keeping our promise all this time, not daring to seek justice for Jinxiu Lane. But who knew… things would change with Yun Que.”

Yun Que’s mother nodded in agreement. Then, as if remembering something, she grabbed Zhu Yan’s arm, pleading, “Madam Director, Great Director, you hold high positions of power. We beg you, please help Yun Que. We two are old and our deaths wouldn’t matter, but Yun Que is still young. Please, you must help her.”

Zhu Yan naturally understood the meaning behind Yun Que’s mother’s words. She immediately assured them that since they had told the truth, she and Shen Du would certainly protect them all.

Shen Du ordered the couple to be taken into custody but secretly assigned Jing Lin and numerous brothers from the Internal Guard to protect them.

When Yun Que learned of this, she couldn’t accept it and caused a commotion. It took Zhu Yan quite some time to calm her down.

In Zhu Yan’s words, their actions were meant to draw out the snake, and the elderly couple’s safety was guaranteed by the Internal Guard, so Yun Que could rest easy.

Sure enough, on the very night the elderly couple was imprisoned, they were attacked by unknown assailants.

The attackers were highly skilled, engaging in a fierce battle with the Internal Guard brothers until Jing Lin managed to gain the upper hand.

Just as Jing Lin was about to deliver the final blow to the attacker, a cold arrow suddenly flew out of the darkness, striking the assailant.

The black-clad figure was thrown far and fell to the ground. Another group quickly approached, controlling him with swords.

Jing Lin recognized the newcomers with surprise, “What are you doing here?”

This group was from the Judiciary, and due to La Luo’s involvement, neither side wanted to escalate tensions.

“We were just passing by and heard a commotion, so we came to investigate. Unexpectedly, we’ve caught a thief. It’s just as well; we’ll take him to the Judiciary for questioning. You need not concern yourselves.”

“This is no ordinary thief,” Jing Lin quickly interjected. “He might be the culprit from the Jinxiu Lane case years ago. You can’t take him away.”

“Oh?” The Judiciary members feigned surprise. Using his sword, one of them lifted the mask off the black-clad figure, revealing Chen Huoe!

“What a coincidence,” remarked one of the Judiciary members. “We thought it was just a common thief, but it turns out to be connected to such a major case. This is excellent; taking him back will be quite an achievement. Thank you, Brother Jing Lin.”

With that, they prepared to leave with the captive, disregarding Jing Lin’s wishes. When Jing Lin moved to stop them, the Judiciary members blocked his path.

“What’s this? Does Brother Jing Lin wish to interfere with Judiciary matters?”

Of course, that wasn’t Jing Lin’s intention. He wished he could avoid seeing those Judiciary people for the rest of his life.