The news of Xie Tingzhou kicking open Ye Zhen’s door and discovering her high fever quickly reached the Marquise’s ears.
Furious, the Marquise twisted the handkerchief in her hand.
With Ye Zhen running a high fever, she now had a legitimate reason to skip the vigil.
If word of what she had said outside Ye Zhen’s door reached the Marquis, it would appear as though she had deliberately slandered her daughter-in-law.
“What a scourge.”Ye Zhen seemed specifically bent on ruining her plans—truly her nemesis.”
Once she dealt with Ye Zhen, she would deal with him next.
The sudden loss of her son had hit the Marquise hard. The day’s events had already drained her energy.
Thus, upon learning that Xie Tingzhou had only stayed briefly before leaving and taken no further action, the Marquise, after her initial anger, didn’t dwell on it.
Instead, it was Xing Ze who couldn’t help but ask, “Master, is Shaofuren truly ill?”
He hadn’t entered the room, but he had heard everything clearly inside.
Initially, when Wan Xing tried to stop them, he had assumed Shaofuren wasn’t in the room. To his surprise, not only was she there, but the master had even written her a prescription.
Xie Tingzhou nodded and removed his outer robe.
The previously bandaged wound was now stained with fresh blood.
Seeing this, Xing Ze hurried to fetch medicine. “It was fine earlier—how did it start bleeding again?”
Xie Tingzhou’s expression was unreadable. “Ye Zhen did it.”
“Shaofuren?”
Even the usually composed Fuguang looked astonished. “Wasn’t she ill?”
How could she have touched the master’s wound?
There had been no sounds of a struggle—how had she managed it?
Xie Tingzhou didn’t mention that he had been the one to lunge at Ye Zhen.
Unbidden, his mind flashed to Ye Zhen’s scorching body and the woman’s feverish breath by his ear. Xie Tingzhou narrowed his eyes dangerously.
Ye Zhen had recognized him.
And he had confirmed once again that Ye Zhen possessed martial skills—and not mediocre ones at that.
“Send someone to investigate the estate where she grew up.”
Who exactly was she? Who had taught her martial arts? Why had she hidden her abilities all these years after marrying into the Marquis Estate? What was her goal? And what was her connection to that assassin?
Years of tacit understanding between master and subordinates meant no explicit instructions were needed—both understood exactly what to investigate.
Fuguang accepted the order and left.
Xing Ze finally realized that Ye Zhen was the one who had used stones as hidden weapons in the mountains.
If Ye Zhen were merely an ordinary woman, the master wouldn’t bother investigating her.
In that case, Ye Zhen must have gone out tonight but returned just in time.
“Master, should we investigate Ye Zhen’s movements tonight?”
“No need.”
Burning up like a hot iron yet still risking going out—it was highly likely she had gone to thwart the Marquise’s scheme.
Whether true or not, they would know by morning.
Early the next day, the moment Ye Zhen opened her eyes, the sound of urgent hoofbeats echoed outside.
Marquis Zhongyong had returned.
The Marquise stumbled into his arms, weeping mournfully. “My Lord, I’ve finally waited for you.
But our Yun Zhou… he can no longer call you Father… My Lord, my heart is torn apart. If not for my attachment to you and the children, I would have followed him…Her bone structure was excellent, and years of dedicated maintenance meant that even without her usual meticulous makeup, she didn’t appear disheveled. Instead, she exuded a pitiable, fragile beauty.
The Marquis had always adored this aspect of her beauty.
But today, he had no patience for it. “What exactly happened? How did Yun Zhou end up at the estate?”
Xie Yunzhou’s death had grieved him for three years.
To learn that his deceased son had been alive, only to be killed again…
Upon receiving the news, he had ridden through the night without rest, desperate to uncover the truth sooner.
The Marquise’s eyes brimmed with tears. “I don’t know why Yun Zhou is here either. But I heard from the Head of the Village that Granny Feng settled them at the estate…” She recounted how she had fallen ill and how Granny Feng brought Ye Zhen to the estate to gather night dew for her. Sobbing, she continued, “On the first day the night dew was delivered, Granny Feng sent a message saying she wanted to surprise me. I suppose she had discovered Yun Zhou was still alive. At the time, I was too ill to think much of it. If I had known… I would have crawled here to see our Yun Zhou. Marquis, I am filled with such regret. I don’t know how much he has suffered these past three years…” She beat her chest desperately, overwhelmed by agony.
The Marquis Zhongyong watched her with deep distress and held her hand. “Enough, don’t harm yourself. Go on.” But the Marquise seemed unable to speak further, shaking her head in despair as tears streamed down her face. She collapsed weakly against the Marquis.
The Marquis then turned to her maid, who hurriedly explained, “Marquis, that night, everyone from the estate went into the mountains. Only Shaofuren and Granny Feng, along with a few others, remained. Everyone else died, yet Shaofuren was unharmed. She has always been restless in the residence…” Aligning her story with the Marquise’s, the maid embellished details, accusing Ye Zhen of having improper relations with male servants in the residence. “Shaofuren claimed she woke up and went into the mountains after finding no one at the estate, but Granny Feng and the others were right there. She only reunited with the Head of the Village and the others at daybreak, and it was her maid who insisted on reporting to the authorities, exposing the Second Young Master’s identity. Thus, the Lady grew suspicious and wanted to verify whether her wounds were genuine. But Shaofuren refused repeatedly and even had the County Magistrate summon the Heir and Old Madam Wang…”
After listening to Zizhu’s account, the Marquis’s face darkened. He immediately ordered Ye Zhen to be brought in and sent someone to fetch Old Madam Wang. Meanwhile, he held his frail, helpless wife and went to stand by Xie Yunzhou’s coffin. There is no greater sorrow than losing a child in middle age—a pain he had already endured, one that pierced his heart. Now, he was experiencing it again. For the person who had caused his son’s death, he wished he could tear them apart, sinew and bone.
Thus, the moment Ye Zhen entered the room, she was met with the Marquis’s murderous gaze. Tall and imposing, with the fierce aura of a battlefield veteran, he was terrifying when he glared with a stern expression. Wan Xing shrank back in fear. Ye Zhen subtly stepped in front of her and calmly bowed in greeting.
The Marquis did not bid her rise. Instead, he strode over to Ye Zhen and looked down at her from his height. After a long pause, he demanded, “Ye Shi, why did you harm Yun Zhou?”
Ye Zhen was not surprised by his accusation. He disdained the trivial matters of the inner household and had entrusted everything to the Marquise, trusting her completely. “Yesterday, as soon as Mother arrived, without even examining the scene, she concluded that I had killed my husband. Today, Father does the same. Yet all the evidence at the scene indicated that Chi Heng was the one who killed my husband.” She countered, “Why are Father and Mother so certain that my husband was not killed by Chi Heng?”
“Outrageous!” The Marquis erupted in fury, his presence as overwhelming as a collapsing mountain. “Yun Zhou was not the kind of man to engage in illicit affairs with another man! How dare you slander your own husband like this?” He had not been unaware of the rumors. But the Xie family consisted of honorable men who stood firm between heaven and earth—there had never been anyone so morally corrupt. Yun Zhou’s martial skills were mediocre, but that was because his mother hoped her two grandsons could support each other. Thus, she had Yun Zhou pursue a civil official career, so he could assist his elder brother, who followed the path of a military general, and avoid fraternal conflict.
Yun Zhou had also performed exceptionally well, studying diligently with remarkable talent and knowledge, making Marquis Zhongyong immensely proud of him.
How could such a son possibly lie beneath a man?
Marquis Zhongyong found it difficult to believe, thus firmly dismissing it as baseless nonsense.
Ye Zhen was not intimidated by his imposing manner and asked again, “Father, you are often away from home. Have you ever truly understood your son-in-law?”
This version of Ye Zhen was entirely different from the daughter-in-law the Marquise knew, and she suddenly felt inexplicably uneasy.
So, clutching her chest, she weakly pointed at Ye Zhen and said, “My son is already dead, and you still aren’t satisfied with how much you’ve harmed him.”
Ye Zhen calmly replied, “Mother, your bookstore supports many impoverished scholars. My husband’s reputation for talent came about in this way. If Father does not believe it, a simple investigation will reveal the truth.”
“Ye Zhen, how dare you!”
The Marquise’s heart sank. How could Ye Zhen know about these matters?
Leaning her forehead against Marquis Zhongyong’s shoulder, she said, “Marquis, please control her. Yun Zhou has suffered enough; he cannot endure further humiliation from her.”
Her eyes subtly glanced toward the door—why hadn’t the County Magistrate arrived yet?
Then she heard Ye Zhen continue, “I am not speaking recklessly. This matter was personally disclosed to me by my cousin, Ye Wantang. Although my aunt has died in battle, given her connections, what my cousin uncovered is unlikely to be false. I also believe that, given my cousin’s status as the legitimate daughter of a first-rank general’s household, she would not falsely accuse my husband without cause. If even my husband’s talent and knowledge can be fabricated, then what is real? Why couldn’t it be true that my husband favors men?”
Under the weight of her words, the furious Marquis Zhongyong gradually calmed down.
Seeing this, the Marquise grew increasingly anxious.
Just as she was about to say more, she caught sight of the County Magistrate’s Master Secretary hurrying over in her peripheral vision.
She breathed a sigh of relief and silently curved her lips into a faint smile.
Ye Zhen was doomed!