Liu Suyi coldly interrupted, “Enough. Qiqi is your sister-in-law.”
Having served as the mistress of the Houfu for so many years, Liu Suyi’s authority instinctively made Jin Xue’er shrink back in fear.
“Is she worthy!”
Lin Huilan stepped in front of her daughter, her tone dripping with sarcasm. “Liu Suyi, for someone who’s the daughter of a Grand Tutor, I never expected you’d accept a country bumpkin as your daughter-in-law.”
“Then again,” she continued, “with the Shizi dead, that dead girl born to that country wench is the Shizi’s only heir.”
She emphasized the word “heir,” a mocking smile curling at the corners of her lips. “Why don’t you wait until Yanzhi has a son and adopt one as your grandson?”
The Shizi was dead. His only heir.
Every word from Lin Huilan felt like salt rubbed into Liu Suyi’s wounds.
Liu Suyi’s face paled, grief washing over her at the thought of her son dying so young.
“Mother.”
Cheng Qiqi steadied Liu Suyi and said, “Although the Shizi is gone, in our hearts, he will always be a hero. As for some people who are still alive, they’re merely breathing to make up the numbers.”
Her gaze fell on Lin Huilan. Compared to the Shizi Jin Mozhi’s bravery and skill in battle, Jin Yanzhi was nothing but a wastrel—good only for eating, drinking, and having fun, utterly hopeless.
“Qiqi, you’re right.” Liu Suyi’s blurred vision gradually cleared.
“Hah.”
Lin Huilan sneered. “A hero? If it weren’t for the Shizi, would we be locked up in this prison? Would we be facing confiscation and exile? We’ve all been dragged down by Jin Mozhi!”
“He’s the lucky one, dead and free of it all, leaving us here to suffer.”
The more Lin Huilan thought about it, the angrier she became. Since they were all going to be exiled anyway, she fixed her gaze fiercely on Liu Suyi. “It’s all your fault! It’s all because of your precious son that we’ve ended up like this!”
“I’ll fight you!”
She charged at Liu Suyi. With exile looming, Lin Huilan had no intention of holding back anymore.
Wasn’t Liu Suyi just relying on having been born into a good family?
Otherwise, the position of Zhongyong Hou’s wife would never have been hers, and Lin Huilan wouldn’t have been reduced to a concubine!
It was all her fault!
The look in Lin Huilan’s eyes as she stared at Liu Suyi was one of pure hatred, as if she wanted to devour her alive.
“Mother, be careful.”
Seeing Lin Huilan charging like a madwoman, Cheng Qiqi pulled Liu Suyi aside and stepped in front of her!
Since Liu Suyi had shown her protection earlier, she would never allow anyone to bully her in return.
“Concubine Lin!”
Cheng Qiqi caught Lin Huilan’s raised hand, her voice icy. “How dare you disrespect the mistress?”
Before her transmigration, she came from a wealthy family. Her parents, fearing she might be bullied, had sent her to learn various combat skills from a young age. Facing a woman like Lin Huilan, who had spent her life confined to the inner quarters, Cheng Qiqi had the upper hand completely.
“Let go.”
Lin Huilan frowned, thinking to herself that this country girl certainly had a strong grip.
Protected behind her, Liu Suyi glanced sideways. Jin Suian had fallen asleep on Cheng Qiqi’s shoulder, looking sweet and adorable. Cheng Qiqi flung Lin Huilan’s hand away with such force that Lin Huilan stumbled backward several steps.
Seizing the opportunity, Liu Suyi swiftly kicked Lin Huilan and said coldly, “If it weren’t for my Mo’er, the Houfu would have fallen long ago. How could you have ever enjoyed its wealth and glory?”
Jin Xue’er, who had been frightened into silence, could only cling to Lin Huilan’s sleeve.
Clang, clang, clang.
The cell door was struck loudly, and the jailer shouted sternly, “No fighting!”
Everyone in the cell was startled by the clanging noise.
“Mother!”
When Liu Suyi saw Old Mrs. Jin being carried in, worry instantly filled her eyes. The old lady had always doted on Mo’er the most, and now that the Houfu was in trouble, and she was advanced in years…
Cheng Qiqi stood in the corner holding Jin Suian, watching as Old Mrs. Jin was brought in, along with… members of the Jinjia collateral branches?
Cheng Qiqi’s pupils contracted sharply. It seemed the emperor was determined to eradicate every last trace!
The small cell, which originally held only five of them, was suddenly crowded with seven or eight more people, making it feel cramped!
“Sister-in-law, how could the Shizi defy the emperor’s orders? Now look, we’ve all been arrested.”
“Second sister-in-law, we never embezzled military funds. Why were we arrested too?”
“That’s right, we’re all innocent…”
One after another, complaints were directed at Liu Suyi, who snorted coldly, “What? When you all came begging for Mo’er’s help back then, you weren’t saying this, were you? Now that Mo’er is in trouble, who do you want to blame?”
Liu Suyi walked over and sat down beside the unconscious old lady. Even though she had long witnessed the fickleness of the world, her heart still felt cold. The eldest, third, and fourth branches of the family had many children, yet not a single one was capable, often relying on Mo’er to clean up their messes. And now, Mo’er had just died!
Mo’er.
Liu Suyi silently shed tears. The Houfu had been raided, and they were locked up in the imperial prison. She wondered if anyone had prepared Mo’er for his final dignity.
The mass burial ground!
“The Cui Jia truly deserves to die!”
In the shadows, Zhongshan and Zhishui, who had been guarding the Shizi’s body all along, watched as Cui Lie’s men secretly swapped out the body and discarded it like trash in the mass burial ground. Their eyes turned bloodshot with rage, wishing they could tear those two guards limb from limb!
“Zhongshan.”
Zhishui grabbed Zhongshan’s hand, gritting his teeth as he reminded him, “Don’t ruin the Shizi’s plans!”
“You’re right.”
Zhongshan took a deep breath, his gaze burning as he stared at the two guards. He swore he would make them pay if he ever crossed paths with them again!
Guard A: “Still calling him Shizi? Once he’s dead, he’s just trash to be thrown into the mass burial ground.”
“He’s just a criminal. The master said to dump him anywhere.”
Guard B said, glancing back at the Shizi lying among the pile of corpses. “Let’s go quickly. This place gives me the creeps.”
The two guards drove the carriage away at breakneck speed. As soon as they left, Zhongshan and Zhishui rushed toward the pile of corpses.
“Shizi.”
Only when Zhongshan and Zhishui drew near did they realize the Shizi was still wearing the clothes he had died in on the battlefield, without even a shred of dignity!
When Zhongshan saw the fresh wound on the Shizi’s abdomen, he pounded the ground and cursed, “That bastard surnamed Cui! He even had to desecrate the Shizi’s body!”
“This is too much! After all the Shizi’s years of service, even if he had no achievements, he had his share of hardships. How could he be treated like this after his death!” Zhongshan’s heavy breathing betrayed his fury.
“Hurry and change his clothes. If they come back, we’re finished!”
Zhishui spoke as he swiftly began removing the clothes.
“I’ll do it.”
Zhongshan replaced the body with the one they had prepared earlier, then worriedly asked, “What if they come back? Will they realize this isn’t the real Shizi?”
“Don’t worry, this human skin mask is flawlessly made. Besides, this is a mass grave—a little blood here is perfectly normal, right?” Zhishui reached out and smeared some blood from the nearby clothes onto it!
Zhongshan and Zhishui hoisted the Shizi onto their backs and hurried away.
“Hurry, someone’s coming!”
Hearing the commotion, Zhishui didn’t even have time to run and instead hid behind a nearby hill, shielded by tea trees. Zhongshan and Zhishui exchanged a glance. “Zhishui, I’ll hold them off later. You take the Shizi and go!”
“Wait.”
Zhishui held him back. Watching the approaching torchlight and Cui Lie on his chestnut horse, he took a deep breath. “We can’t outrun him. He must be here to destroy the evidence!”
Zhishui’s eyes darkened, a surge of overwhelming fury rising in his heart. Cui Lie, Cui Jia—once the Shizi recovers, none of them will be spared!