Yan Sanhe did not collapse.

She took the case file, turned to page six, and read through it word by word, then sat down in a chair.

She just sat there like that.

The candlelight cast a layer of sorrow over her, making her look like a motionless stone statue without vitality.

Xie Erli wanted to say something more, but his father’s icy glare cut across, and he quickly retreated to the side.

Xie Daozhi had cleared his name and suddenly gained the upper hand. Logically, he should feel relieved, yet his heart still hung with a blade—

This woman’s true purpose in demanding an explanation from him had not yet been revealed.

“Miss Yan, I know this truth is difficult for you to accept, but these are the facts.”

Xie Daozhi decided to take the initiative this time.

“Call it a tragic coincidence, call it ill fortune—whatever you like. But ultimately, none of this has anything to do with me.”

Yan Sanhe was pulled back to reality by these two cold sentences.

She slowly raised her head, gazing into Xie Daozhi’s pupils.

“If there had been no case, if it hadn’t been July sixteenth, would you have let them enter the residence?”

“That question has no meaning.”

Xie Daozhi’s face darkened. “I’ve given you the explanation you wanted. Now you must fulfill your promise.”

“Father, Miss Yan only seeks the truth. Setting everything else aside, her persistence alone is moving.”

Xie Erli sighed. “Kowtowing in apology is unnecessary—just please tell us your true intention, Miss Yan!”

One playing bad guard, one playing good guard—their cooperation was perfectly harmonious.

Yan Sanhe looked at the father and son, her gaze indescribably cold. Her legs bent as she knelt on the ground. Before the two could react, three loud thuds—bang, bang, bang—she had already finished kowtowing.

“I don’t like owing people.”

Yan Sanhe rose, straightening her back. “I’ve repaid the debt. My heart is at ease.”

Her features were most captivating at the eyes and brows, yet also most unsettling. The Xie father and son, seeing her eyes full of cold detachment, were both stunned.

“What I’m about to say is somewhat uncanny. You’d best prepare yourselves mentally.”

Yan Sanhe’s voice carried no emotion. “When Grandfather died, his body lay in state for seven days. On the last night, the coffin lid suddenly split open.”

“What?”

Xie Erli blurted out in shock.

Yan Sanhe gave him a cool glance. “Folk legend says a coffin that won’t close is because the deceased had an unspoken wish in life. Over time, that wish transforms into a heart demon.”

“This, this, this…”

Xie Erli was shocked to the extreme. He turned his head and saw even more astonishment on his old father’s face.

“I invited a master. The master said that before Grandfather died, his mind was thinking about a letter.”

Xie Daozhi started, pointing at the letter on the desk: “Is it this one?”

Yan Sanhe: “I sorted through Grandfather’s belongings. He didn’t have many letters. The one that could leave such an obsession in his heart should only be this one.”

Xie Daozhi felt his legs weakening, yet vaguely guessed something. “Then your coming to the Xie household…”

“The master said that to close the coffin, the obsession must be dissolved.”

Yan Sanhe looked at him steadily: “This is my true purpose in coming to the Xie household!”

Xie Daozhi was completely shocked. Living half a lifetime, this was the first time he’d heard of such a strange matter.

But why—

Why did this young woman, standing with hands clasped behind her back, speaking so calmly and composedly, appear so serene and mature?

Wasn’t she afraid at all?

“What is dissolving an obsession?” he asked.

“Finding the knot in his heart and untying it.”

“How do you dissolve an obsession?”

“To untie a knot, you need the one who tied it.”

“I… am his heart knot?”

“That letter is his heart knot. The letter was written to you. Grandfather didn’t know the truth about the three deaths before he died. In his heart…”

Yan Sanhe paused: “You are the one who tied the knot.”

Xie Daozhi’s heart trembled. “What must I do?”

“Bathe, change clothes, light incense. During one incense stick’s time, you clearly explain what happened from beginning to end.”

Xie Daozhi looked at her cold eyes and asked hesitantly: “If I explain clearly, the coffin will close?”

“The prerequisite is…”

Yan Sanhe: “You must be willing to dissolve the obsession for him.”

Xie Daozhi’s heart suddenly stirred. “What if I’m not willing?”