Yu Zhizhi smiled and nodded. Then she took a neatly folded letter from her sleeve and handed it to the old man.
“This is a letter written by Yun Yuqing. It can verify my identity,” Yu Zhizhi explained.
Although he could confirm it with the Prime Minister’s Residence, she had prepared the letter in advance to save time.
After verifying the handwriting, the old man respectfully said,
“The master, madam, and young master have gone to a neighboring city. They won’t return to the capital until tomorrow. Miss, please come in with this old servant.”
“Alright.”
No one knew who had leaked the news, but somehow the story had already spread throughout the capital.
In less than half a day, the entire city was buzzing with talk of the real and fake legitimate daughters.
It was completely unexpected.
After all, Yu Zhizhi’s reputation had never been particularly good. Once people learned she was actually an impostor, many began gossiping about her behind her back.
“She deserves it! Yu Zhizhi finally got what was coming to her!”
“Exactly. She always acted so superior, as if she were someone important.”
“She used to rely on the Prime Minister’s Residence to back her up and acted arrogant and overbearing. I heard her real parents are just merchants. With such a huge fall in status, she’s probably hiding somewhere crying her eyes out.”
“She offended plenty of people before. Now that she’s lost her identity as a noble daughter, she’ll become the laughingstock of every influential family.”
…
At that moment, Qi Yize, the eldest son of the Duke Protector’s Residence, was hurrying toward the study with an anxious expression.
As he passed a decorative rock garden, someone suddenly called out to him.
“Young Master Qi, please wait!”
Turning around, he saw Zhao Yi, the Sixth Prince’s personal guard.
“Young Master Qi, did you go to the Prime Minister’s Residence to cause trouble for Yu Zhizhi?”
Qi Yize had indeed intended to seek justice for his friend.
However, when he arrived at the Prime Minister’s Residence, Yu Zhizhi was nowhere to be found.
Instead, he learned a shocking secret from the servants there.
Yu Zhizhi was not the Prime Minister’s wife’s biological daughter.
Immediately, he secretly sent people to spread the news throughout the city.
Now the entire capital knew about it.
Although he had not personally confronted Yu Zhizhi, he felt he had at least avenged his friend.
Patting Zhao Yi on the shoulder, Qi Yize grinned.
“Come on. Let’s go see your master in the study. You’ll find out soon enough.”
Seeing the sly smile on Qi Yize’s face, Zhao Yi became even more curious.
The two entered the study.
Qi Yize sat down as though he owned the place, took a sip of tea to wet his throat, and dramatically announced:
“Yun Jin, I’ve got earth-shattering news! Yu Zhizhi is a fake legitimate daughter. She isn’t the Prime Minister’s wife’s biological child!”
Zhao Yunjin had been handling official matters.
Hearing this, he paused his brush and looked up, waiting for him to continue.
Qi Yize eagerly went on.
“Sixteen years ago, the Prime Minister’s wife and Yu Zhizhi’s biological mother happened to visit the same temple for blessings on the same day. They also gave birth on the same day.”
“When one of the Prime Minister’s enemies found out, they bribed the midwife and switched the newborn girls.”
“It wasn’t until a few days ago that the Prime Minister discovered that the daughter he had doted on all these years wasn’t actually his own.”
Zhao Yi clapped his hands in delight.
“Wonderful! Yu Zhizhi must be crying miserably now!”
A mysterious smile appeared on Qi Yize’s lips.
“I didn’t see her myself. I heard she returned to her biological parents’ home two hours ago and exchanged places with the real daughter. Even if she wasn’t crying before, she’s probably bawling her eyes out by now and too embarrassed to show her face.”
Zhao Yunjin narrowed his eyes slightly.
His deep voice carried a hint of amusement.
“You were the one who spread the news, weren’t you?”
Qi Yize widened his eyes in surprise before breaking into a mischievous grin.
“As expected, I can’t hide anything from you. Who told her to go too far? Not only did she throw herself at you, she even insulted you. Drunk or not, that’s no excuse!”
Zhao Yi quickly agreed.
“Young Master Qi is right. She dared offend His Highness. It’s outrageous. But is Yu Zhizhi still drunk? I can’t believe she willingly left the Prime Minister’s Residence.”
Qi Yize scratched his head.
“That surprised me too.”
It was completely unlike Yu Zhizhi.
How could she possibly bear to leave the Prime Minister’s Residence?
“Not only that, she even wrote a pledge promising to sever all ties with them. She left empty-handed, without taking a single thing. Either she’s gone mad, or that real legitimate daughter is exceptionally capable.”
The guard Zhao Wu, who had been quietly listening, finally asked the important question.
“Young Master Qi, do you know what her biological parents do?”
Qi Yize nodded.
“They’re merchants. In the capital, they’re considered a modest family at best.”
At that moment, none of them noticed the slight curve at the corner of Zhao Yunjin’s lips.
A rare smile.
Interesting.
This was nothing like her usual behavior.
Although he had only met her a few times, he had often heard stories about the foolish things she had done.
This time, however, she had made an unexpectedly wise decision.
A smart person would leave immediately after learning they were the fake daughter.
If she stayed in the Prime Minister’s Residence, at best she would lose favor.
At worst, she might lose her life.
After all, two tigers cannot share the same mountain.
Meanwhile, the very person everyone was enthusiastically discussing was sleeping soundly in bed.
“Miss!”
“Miss, are you awake?”
Yu Zhizhi was awakened by Uncle He’s shouting.
Rubbing her eyes, she slowly opened them.
Her mind was still foggy.
After a moment, she finally remembered where she was.
“Uncle He, do you need something from me?” she asked.
“Boss, it’s me!”
The voice sounded extremely familiar.
After thinking for a moment, Yu Zhizhi remembered.
It was He Yang, the original owner’s faithful sidekick.
He Yang was the grandson of the Director of the Imperial Medical Institute.
He and the original owner had grown up together and were very close.
The two of them were partners in mischief, constantly causing trouble wherever they went.
The original owner loved dragging him along on shopping trips, meals, entertainment, cockfights, and even cricket matches.
Yu Zhizhi got up and walked to the door.
The moment she opened it, she was stunned by the sight before her.
Standing there was a round figure who looked like an enormous ball of meat.
Seeing her expression, He Yang immediately puffed out his cheeks in grievance.
“Boss, you’re making fun of my figure again!”
Yu Zhizhi quickly waved her hands.
“No, no. I actually think you look quite cute like this.”
He had to weigh around two hundred pounds.
His cheeks were plump and squishy.
She suddenly had the urge to pinch them.
They looked like they would feel amazing.
The moment He Yang heard the compliment, a bright smile spread across his face.
At that moment, he looked exactly like her favorite cartoon character:
Lazy Goat.