Yun Chu presented her token, and the guards at the entrance let her pass.

She led Madam Luo inside. Upon reaching the dungeon entrance, she spoke: “I’ll just take young Zhan inside. Madam Luo, please wait here.”

Madam Luo understood that the Court of Judicial Review’s dungeon was an important court location, not accessible to just anyone.

She stood waiting by the side door.

Yun Chu led the child into the dungeon as a damp, gloomy atmosphere rushed toward them. The child shrank back in fear.

This place held death row inmates—major court criminals whose fate had only one outcome: beheading.

She walked through the narrow corridor until she reached the cell where Qin Mingheng was held. Standing outside the cell were people from Prince Pingxi’s manor, who immediately bowed to Yun Chu.

Yun Chu said calmly: “Open the door.”

The guard took out his key and unlocked the cell door.

“Young Zhan, relax,” she said gently. “The person inside is your father. Don’t be afraid.”

Luo Zhan followed Yun Chu over the threshold and entered the cell.

Qin Mingheng was covered in wounds, half-conscious. He only opened his eyes when he heard the commotion.

He had assumed it was routine interrogation, but unexpectedly, upon opening his eyes, he saw Yun Chu again.

He knew Yun Chu would definitely come back to find him… But before he could say anything, he heard a childish voice.

“Father… what happened to you? Who beat you…”

Luo Zhan’s eyes widened, unable to believe what he was seeing.

Qin Mingheng also couldn’t believe he was seeing the child: “You—how did you get here?”

“Madam Luo personally handed young Zhan over to me,” Yun Chu smiled. “Young Zhan, your father made a small mistake and is receiving punishment, just like… if you don’t study properly, your teacher would also strike your palm, understand?”

Luo Zhan seemed to half-understand.

Yun Chu casually picked up a branding iron and placed it in his hands: “This thing is quite interesting. Take a look—is it fun?”

A six or seven-year-old child was easily attracted to strange and curious objects. He immediately grabbed the branding iron and began playing with it curiously.

Sparks scattered, making Qin Mingheng’s eyes blaze with fire as well.

“Yun Chu!!” He wanted nothing more than to lunge forward and snatch away that branding iron. “I knew you were a venomous woman, but I never imagined you could be vicious to this extent!”

He hadn’t taken Yun Chu’s threats seriously because in his heart, Yun Chu was so kind, so pure—she absolutely couldn’t harm an innocent child…

Was the Luo woman an idiot? How could she hand the child over to Yun Chu!

The Luo woman valued young Zhan as her own life—how could she so easily give the child to a venomous woman!

Yun Chu completely ignored Qin Mingheng and said to Luo Zhan with a smile: “Pick it up and press it against the wall. See what happens.”

Luo Zhan obediently pressed the branding iron against the wall. The damp wall, upon contact with the high-temperature iron, made sizzling sounds and continuously emitted white vapor.

“If this thing were pressed against a person, do you know what would happen?”

Yun Chu knew that at this moment, she was thoroughly and completely a wicked woman, using a child’s curiosity to force a father to compromise.

But she had no other choice.

She had to use the fastest method to learn the truth of everything.

Yun Chu took the branding iron from Luo Zhan’s hands, placed it in the glowing red fire pile to heat for a while, then picked it up and held it directly toward Luo Zhan’s face.

The tender child looked at the branding iron curiously, his small face turned red by the firelight. If Yun Chu moved forward just a little bit, if the child made one careless move, that branding iron would touch the child’s skin.

Qin Mingheng nearly broke down.

He had been in this cell for so long and experienced every kind of torture. When this branding iron was pressed against his chest, that sensation made him wish for death.

Young Zhan was still so small—he absolutely couldn’t endure it.

Even if he could endure it, with a brand mark on his face afterward, how could he live?

“Young Zhan, come here, lean closer…”

Yun Chu’s voice carried enticing persuasion.

Qin Mingheng struggled violently, his chains clanking.

Luo Zhan turned his head to look at his father.

Just this one movement brought the branding iron closer.

Qin Mingheng saw the child’s hair curling from the high temperature…

“Yun Chu, I’ve lost! I admit defeat, all right!” he roared. “Whatever you want to know, I’ll tell you everything! Is that acceptable?”

“Clang!”

Yun Chu threw the branding iron back into the fire pile.

She spoke: “Take the child out.”

The guard outside entered, pulled the child out of the cell, and closed the door as well.

Qin Mingheng glared at her through gritted teeth: “What do you want to know?”

“Everything. All of it.” Yun Chu sat down in the chair. “Let me remind you—my patience isn’t that good.”

Qin Mingheng knew she would do it.

They say one night as husband and wife brings a hundred days of affection, yet she had cruelly murdered the person who shared her pillow. She truly was no longer the pure and kind Yun Chu he had once admired.

How could he still harbor illusions about her?

He spoke: “Five years ago, on the night of your wedding to Xie Jingyu, after I brought you to Marquis Xuanwu’s manor, I went to bathe. When I came out, I saw Prince Pingxi.”

Yun Chu’s heart was seized by a large hand.

She didn’t even dare breathe forcefully as she listened to Qin Mingheng continue.

“Relying on his status as a prince, right under my nose, he took you away. It was him—he took your chastity!”

“Yun Chu, the person who ruined your chastity was Prince Pingxi. If you want revenge, you should go find him. Why should I bear all of this!”

“I loved you so much. I was willing to exchange everything for that night with you… I brought out the Qin family’s heirloom treasure, but Prince Pingxi—what did he give up?”

“He admired your beauty, coveted your jade body, but he didn’t dare propose marriage to the Yun family. Why? Because he’s an imperial prince, because your father is a military general—the Emperor would absolutely never allow a Yun family daughter to marry him!”

“All he dared to do was take you from my hands!”

“He didn’t dare take any risk at all. He feared the matter would be exposed, feared breaking ties with the Yun family, feared arousing the Emperor’s suspicion, so he pinned this blame on my head!”

“I may be despicable and shameless, but Prince Pingxi is even more despicable and shameless—he’s a coward!”

Yun Chu’s heart trembled.

The man from that night was indeed Prince Pingxi!

And those two children Prince Pingxi suddenly had, those two children without a birth mother—could they be… her poor pair of twins…

Thump! Thump! Thump!

She heard the sound of her own heart beating violently.

Did it still matter who the man from that night was?

What mattered was that the children were alive.

The children—both children—were alive and well. They had already grown so big.

This was the best news she had ever heard.

Tears burst forth from her eyes.

Yun Chu couldn’t control it at all. Tears of joy streamed down her face.

“That’s right—Prince Pingxi’s two children are your children. I never dared speak of it because Prince Pingxi threatened me not to reveal it!” Qin Mingheng said word by word. “Once the Emperor learns that Prince Pingxi’s two children were born to the Yun family’s legitimate eldest daughter, what do you think the Emperor would do? Prince Pingxi, that selfish coward—to preserve himself, he would rather wrong the two children by denying them a mother, would rather abandon you… But if one day he needs your Yun family, he’ll definitely use the two children as bargaining chips to force the Yun family army to fight for him… He’s truly too shameless. He’s not worthy of being the father of your children…”

“He’s a thoroughly rotten person, even more despicable and shameless than Xie Jingyu!” Qin Mingheng roared. “Yun Chu, in this world, only I truly love you. The thing I most want to do is marry you as my wife…”