Xi Cai’s heart lurched, and she finally opened her eyes.
She could disregard everything else, but she could never stop worrying about Xi Xiao and Xi Tan.
She straightened up and stared at him. “Where are they? Have they been brought here too?”
Yang Xun did not answer. He stood outside the cell, his shadow stretched thin and long by the light shining through the small window near the ceiling. It looked like a piece of silk that could be blown away by the slightest breeze.
He lowered his eyes to look at her. His gaze seemed to hold both pity and scrutiny, as though he were weighing her worth.
After a long silence, he ordered the jailer to open the door, then entered with a food box in his hand.
As he crossed the threshold, he briefly braced his left hand against the doorframe. The movement was so slight that it was almost impossible to notice.
He walked toward her step by step, then crouched down and opened the food box, pushing it closer to her.
“These are freshly steamed honey cakes from Yunlu. They’re still warm. Have some.”
Xi Cai had no time to care about cakes or anything else. She asked anxiously, “Tell me, where are my younger siblings now? Are they being held somewhere? What are you planning to do with them?”
Yang Xun did not even raise his eyelids. He calmly poured her a cup of floral tea and handed it to her.
“I heard you haven’t had a single drop of water. If you keep this up, I’m afraid you won’t live long enough to see your family again. Be good and eat something first. Then I’ll tell you about their situation.”
Xi Cai gritted her teeth in anger. However, since she still did not know what had happened to Xi Xiao and Xi Tan, she had no choice but to hold back. She could not afford to offend him just yet.
She reached out to take the cup he offered. Her fingertips trembled slightly. After two days without food, she felt as though all her strength had drained away and she might collapse at any moment.
Yang Xun frowned. He placed the cup in her hand, then took out a handkerchief and dampened it. Taking her other hand, he carefully wiped it clean before picking up a small plate of honey cream cakes and holding it out to her.
“An innocent person who starves herself to death before her name can be cleared isn’t showing integrity. She’s simply acting as though she’s guilty and accepting punishment before the verdict is even given. You’ve lived too sheltered a life, Madam. When you’re older, you’ll understand the importance of knowing what to endure and what to give up.”
Xi Cai thought bitterly, Does getting older really make you more experienced in this sort of thing? It seems you’ve decided to keep finding ways to harm the Xi family.
Her clear, cold eyes held countless unspoken words, but he deliberately ignored them.
When she made no move to take the cakes, he held the plate closer.
“I heard you like these. Your husband bought them especially for you.”
Xi Cai reluctantly raised her hand and picked up one.
“Is this my last meal before execution?”
Yang Xun said it was not. He tilted his head slightly and looked at her.
“How could I bear to let anything happen to you?”
The corners of his mouth curved upward, but there was no smile in his eyes.
“You haven’t been by my side these past few days. I’ve hardly been able to sleep at night. I simply haven’t told you.”
Xi Cai let out a cold laugh.
“I’m already in this state, yet Marquis Yanling still finds time to make fun of me. Let’s not discuss anything else. I only ask that you tell me how Xi Xiao and Xi Tan are doing. Have you hurt them?”
Yang Xun could not completely hide his disappointment. He removed the scarf covering his neck.
“I didn’t hurt them. They hurt me instead. You and I are husband and wife, bound by the closest ties, yet your heart belongs only to your siblings. That is truly heartbreaking.”
Only then did Xi Cai notice the wound on his neck. It was about an inch long, a thin line of blood. If he had waited a little longer before showing it to her, the wound might already have healed.
But the injury itself was not the most important thing. What mattered was that Xi Xiao and Xi Tan had attempted to assassinate him—and failed.
However, this was no time to dwell on regret. If she wanted to find out where the two children were, she had to keep playing along with him.
She put on a remorseful expression and said, “They’re young and didn’t understand the consequences of their actions. They offended you, Marquis. I hope you’ll be magnanimous and won’t hold it against them.”
Yang Xun smiled graciously. His smile was warm and gentle, like jade, yet as cold and merciless as a blade.
“We’re all family. If I truly intended to punish them, what was in this food box wouldn’t be cakes. It would be their heads.”
Xi Cai stared at him in horror.
He immediately softened his voice to comfort her.
“Don’t be afraid. I captured them alive, and neither of them was injured.”
As he spoke, he gestured toward the plate.
“Madam, the cakes are going to get cold.”
Xi Cai had no choice but to put one into her mouth and take a bite. Then she hurriedly asked again, “Where exactly are they now?”
“At our home. I didn’t hand them over to the guards, nor did I send them to the Sili Office. The fewer people involved in this matter, the fewer complications we’ll have. Besides, I know you’re worried about them, so I came here to tell you personally and put your mind at ease.”
He made himself sound so considerate that anyone might have been moved to tears.
But Xi Cai knew better. Yang Xun never did anything without a reason. By keeping her siblings at the Marquis’s estate, he had given himself another way to hold the Xi family hostage.
“Does the Sili Colonel know about this? Aren’t you afraid you’ll be implicated?” Xi Cai asked, setting down her teacup. “Marquis, you should let them go. Even if the guards catch them, that would simply be the Xi family’s fate. We wouldn’t dare drag you into our troubles.”
Yang Xun fell silent.
After a while, he let out a faint sigh.
“You’ve always resented me. No matter what I do, you refuse to appreciate it.”
Good heavens! He’s still putting on an act at a time like this.
Xi Cai felt that the two of them had developed a strange understanding. Whenever they looked at each other, they seemed compelled to push their hypocrisy to the limit.
She desperately wanted to ask him what the point of all this was. Hadn’t he already achieved his goal?
Was he trying so hard to make her eat because he wanted her alive to witness the day he had her father killed?
Her hatred ran so deep that it felt as though blood were pouring from her heart. Yet she still had to endure it. When a man had the audacity to put on such a performance, she had no choice but to play her part alongside him.
Xi Cai quickly brought out her strongest weapon: a pitiful expression and a sorrowful voice.
“I know you’ve treated me well, Marquis. That’s why, even though my younger siblings committed such an unforgivable offense, you were willing to overlook it. But the Xi family has already fallen into such a miserable state. How could we possibly accept any more of your kindness? If the whole family is to be punished, then sparing those two children would already be more kindness than I could ever repay.”
Their words passed back and forth, while beneath the surface, sparks flew like flames in a battlefield.
Yang Xun studied her face. His gaze moved across her expression like a measuring tape, carefully assessing every change.
At last, he relented.
“Madam, don’t worry. With you still here, the Xi family won’t fall.”
Xi Cai was immediately taken aback. She began to examine his words carefully, trying to understand what he really meant.
He raised a hand and lightly touched her cheek, then casually mentioned, “Some of your family’s relatives and friends are also working to help you. Take Xie Qiao, for example. He’s a favored student of the Shangshu Ling. Over the past two days, he’s visited his mentor’s residence several times to ask how the charges might be dismissed. It’s true that hardship reveals who your real friends are.”
Xi Cai could not hide her emotion.
“My aunt must be so worried that she doesn’t know what to do. Back when the world was in turmoil, five siblings in my father’s family were forced to flee, and some were killed. In the end, only my father and my aunt survived. The Xi family has so few people left that our household is practically empty…”
This was not the reaction Yang Xun had expected.
He had mentioned Xie Qiao because he wanted to see how she would respond. Instead, she had smoothly shifted the subject to her aunt.
Just like that, Xie Qiao’s efforts to save the Xi family had become nothing more than obedience to his mother’s wishes.
She had managed to turn the situation around with a few seemingly harmless words. It was a remarkably skillful move.
Yang Xun gazed at her. His eyes had initially been as cold as ice, but in an instant, their expression softened like spring waters.
“It seems the people of the Xi family all value the bonds between siblings. Your aunt is like that, and so are you.”
As he spoke, he slowly rose to his feet. Perhaps he had been crouching for too long, because his movements seemed a little strained. Yet just when someone might have thought he was showing signs of exhaustion, he straightened his back and regained his usual flawless composure.
“The food in prison isn’t good. I’ll have meals delivered to you every day, and you mustn’t skip any of the three meals. This is a serious case, so the investigation will take several days. Since you refuse to come home with me, you’ll have to make do here for now. I’ll come and get you when the time is right.”
With that, he strode away.
The heavy prison door slammed shut, and the lock clicked into place.
Through the narrow gap, Xi Cai could see only half of his figure. His narrow waist was outlined by a gold-and-jade belt, while the black gauze robes below it flowed down like a dark waterfall. His sleeves billowed like ink clouds, spreading and folding in layers with every step.
The strip of light shining through the gap grew narrower and narrower. His silhouette gradually faded from view.
Xi Cai had been holding herself together the entire time. Only after he had left did she finally allow herself to relax. She sank back down with a weary sigh.
She had been imprisoned for several days, and all that time she had hoped to see her mother again. Yet everyone had disappeared as though they had vanished into thin air. She had no idea whether they were alive or dead.
For someone who had always been free to come and go as she pleased, suddenly being confined like this was terrifying.
She turned to look at the small, plate-sized window high in the wall. Through it, she could see a tiny patch of blue sky. She could only wait for a bird to pass by occasionally, staring blankly at that little piece of sky for an entire day.
This imprisonment had also made her hate Yang Xun completely.
Earlier, when she had seen the pastries, she had been terribly hungry. Yet because they had come from his hands, the thought of eating them had made her feel sick.
Unless she herself died, she would make him pay for what he had done.
She began to consider whether she should lower her pride and give in a little. If she could persuade him to show mercy and release her parents, she could slowly find a way to wear him down afterward.
After all, he was already living on borrowed time. She refused to believe he could withstand her relentless attention day and night.
Once her fighting spirit returned, she found a new direction in life.
Xi Cai pulled the food box toward her and forced herself to eat, one bite after another, until she was full. That evening, the jailer brought her a straw mat and a thin quilt. They would have to be enough to help her endure yet another long night.
The next day, just as Yang Xun had promised, both breakfast and lunch were prepared especially for her.
When the food box was passed through the opening in the cell door, she did not take it. Instead, she clutched her stomach and asked the jailer, “Is my husband at the Sili Office?”
“He is, Madam,” the jailer replied. “He just finished questioning a suspect. Are you feeling unwell? Is there something you’d like me to tell him?”
Xi Cai nodded.
“I want to see him. Please pass the message along for me.”
“Yes, Madam. Please wait here. I’ll go right away.”
She watched the jailer hurry away, then continued clutching her stomach as she retreated to the corner. She buried her face in the crook of her arm.
Another long and agonizing wait began.
After what seemed like forever, she finally heard footsteps approaching. The measured, unhurried rhythm was unmistakable. Just hearing it was enough to make her blood boil.
The footsteps stopped outside her cell.
“Madam, you wanted to see me?” Yang Xun asked calmly through the bars.
Xi Cai remained in the same position. She neither spoke nor moved.
Puzzled, he gestured for the jailer to open the door. Then he stepped inside, observing her as he slowly approached.
Almost at the same moment, Xi Cai caught the scent of medicine coming from him. It was stronger than before, so strong that it completely overpowered the fragrance of his clothes.
“I heard you’re feeling unwell.” He crouched in front of her, his voice carrying just the right amount of concern. “Where does it hurt? Should I call a physician to examine you?”
Only then did she lift her head slightly, revealing a pair of eyes filled with pain.
“My stomach hurts terribly,” she murmured. “I’m afraid I’m going to die.”
He looked confused.
“Your stomach hurts? Did you eat something bad?”
She shook her head.
“No. It’s my monthly problem.”
“Your monthly problem?”
Having never been close to a woman, he genuinely had no idea what she meant.
Xi Cai’s face flushed red. Although she had chosen this excuse to show him a little weakness, actually explaining it to him was still terribly embarrassing.
Unfortunately, he seemed incapable of understanding unless she spelled everything out.
She had no choice but to blurt out, “My period is coming. When it comes, my stomach hurts. If the pain gets bad enough, I’ll vomit, break out in a cold sweat, and have trouble breathing. Then I might just die!”
The more he listened, the more astonished he became.
Although his expression remained composed, confusion filled his eyes. Clearly, this was something completely outside his experience.
“Come out with me. Stop being so stubborn. Staying alive is what matters most.”
But she refused to move.
“My parents are still in prison. I don’t know whether they’re alive or dead. How can I leave on my own and enjoy my freedom while they’re suffering in there?”
His brows drew together.
“Everyone says the Censor’s household is well educated, yet the daughter of the Xi family has turned out to be so foolishly devoted to filial duty.”
Her response was perfectly reasonable.
“Is it foolish to be filial? I have to set an example myself before I can teach my future children how to behave. I can’t tell them to stand by their family in times of trouble if I’m the first to abandon everyone when disaster strikes.”
Yang Xun felt a faint throbbing at his temples.
“Then what do you intend to do? You’re unwell, yet you refuse to leave. You insist on suffering here in prison.”
In response, tears gathered in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks as soon as she blinked.
Yang Xun sighed.
Forget it.
A civil official like Xi Jiyuan was hardly impossible to deal with. If Yang Xun wanted to destroy him, he could do so at any time. Since he had already considered letting him off the hook, whether he did it sooner or later made little difference.
Besides, this rebellious woman looked beautiful even when she cried, like a pear blossom covered in rain.
A wife as beautiful as Xi Cai, with such a good reputation, would undoubtedly be useful to him in the future. Since she had finally softened her attitude, he might as well grant her wish.
He raised his sleeve and gently wiped the tears from her face.
“I’ll take care of your father’s case properly. Now, will you come out with me, or do you intend to keep waiting here?”
Xi Cai had already made up her mind. She could not leave just yet.
As far as Yang Xun was concerned, she was not important enough to influence his decisions. There must be some other reason he had changed his mind.
As long as she remained in prison, she could serve as a reason for him to hurry things along. She had already spent several days here, so waiting another day or two would not make much difference.
“I want to wait for my parents,” she insisted stubbornly.
Yang Xun did not force her. He slowly straightened up, his movements still measured.
“Then I’ll have someone bring you some medicine and whatever else you need. Don’t worry. The case will definitely be concluded by tomorrow or the day after at the latest.”
Xi Cai nodded.
“All right. I’ll wait for you.”
He glanced sideways at her.
“What should you call me? Are you still going to address me as Marquis?”
She had no intention of changing the way she addressed him.
“You’re an official, and I’m a criminal. We aren’t on the same side anymore.”
So, if he wants them to be on the same side again, he needs to take action as soon as possible. Is that what she means?
Yang Xun gave a faint, mocking smile. He told her to take care of herself, then turned and left.
As for whether she was truly ill or merely pretending, he saw no need to investigate.
The real reason he had decided to spare Xi Jiyuan was that someone even more urgently in need of elimination had already fallen from power. If he wiped out every member of that faction in a single sweep, the commotion would be far too great.
Meanwhile, the Shangshu Ling and the Sili Colonel were waiting for his news so they could decide what to do next.
As soon as Yang Xun returned, they questioned him.
“How is your wife?”
He sat back down, reopened the documents before him, and answered in a voice as calm as still water.
“She has caught a chill and feels a little unwell. It’s nothing serious.”
The Sili Colonel could not resist asking, “Is she still refusing to return home?”
Yang Xun shook his head.
“Let her be.”
Although he said they should let her be, everyone understood the situation. The investigation was becoming increasingly urgent, and if anything happened to the Marquis’s wife while she was in prison, the consequences would be serious.
Therefore, the truth was uncovered very quickly.
The investigation confirmed that the Censor-in-Chief had maintained ordinary official relations with the two princes and had no private dealings with them.
The King of Yue and the Jingyin were also released as part of the same decision. The Jingyin was ordered to resume his post, while the King of Yue was instructed to return to his fief immediately and forbidden to enter the capital without permission.
After spending five or six days in the Sili Prison, the group finally emerged into daylight again. Every one of them looked disheveled and exhausted.
Representatives from their respective households had been waiting outside the government office. Each family collected its head and took them home.
The Xi family’s carriage was also waiting in the alley.
After so many days apart, Xi Jiyuan and his wife finally saw their daughter again. Their emotions surged, and they were about to approach her when the black-wheeled carriage of the Marquis of Yanling pulled up in front of them.
Once the carriage stopped, Yang Xun stepped down and bowed respectfully to Xi Jiyuan and his wife.
“Father-in-law, Mother-in-law, you’ve suffered greatly. Consider these days in prison a trial you had to endure. Now that the storm has passed and your innocence has been established, everything will gradually return to normal.”
Xi Jiyuan knew perfectly well how many schemes Yang Xun had employed behind the scenes. However, this was not the time for an open confrontation.
He returned the greeting with a smile that did not reach his eyes.
“You’ve worked hard, my good son-in-law. I know how much effort you’ve put into this case.”
Their silent battle was still raging when Xi Xiao and Xi Tan jumped down from an ox cart behind them. Both children rushed over in tears to welcome their parents and elder sister.
They looked from one family member to another. Everyone had been worn down by the ordeal, and the two nearly burst into loud sobs.
Seeing this, Madam Xi hurriedly covered their mouths.
“Quiet! Don’t let people laugh at us!”
Yang Xun had another opportunity to take credit for himself.
He spoke gently and reassuringly. “Your younger siblings have been staying at my residence these past two days. They haven’t been disturbed or mistreated. Please rest assured, Father-in-law and Mother-in-law.”
Xi Jiyuan merely nodded and instructed the family servants, “Let’s go home.”
As for his eldest daughter, he could not bear to leave her behind, yet he could not take her home with him either. He looked at her reluctantly before giving her a few words of advice.
“Go back to the Marquis’s residence and take good care of yourself. Once you’ve recovered your strength, return to Dayangshu Street. We’ll all sit down and have a proper family reunion meal.”
Xi Cai agreed. Together with Xi Xiao, she helped support her parents and saw them safely into their carriage.
As she watched the carriage slowly pull away, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.
But before she could even turn around, that maddening voice sounded beside her ear again, lingering like a restless ghost.
“Madam, come home with me.”