Madam Yun still had no evidence proving who was lying.
So she could not rashly accuse either Zexuan or Zijun.
Looking at Yun Zijun’s pale face, she ultimately couldn’t bear to be harsh.
“Take a hot bath first and get some rest. I’ll have a physician examine you later. Be careful not to catch a cold.”
Yun Zijun nodded weakly.
“Mm.”
“Mother, Yun Ziyao is vicious at heart. She must be severely punished.”
Yun Zexuan spoke indignantly.
“The Crown Prince sent her to the Laundry Bureau for three years, hoping to temper her temperament. Who would have thought she’d only become worse—”
“Zexuan.”
Madam Yun interrupted him.
“Rao’er is not that malicious.”
Yun Zexuan’s expression changed instantly.
“Mother?”
Yun Zijun also froze, staring at her in disbelief.
Turning to Yun Zijun, Madam Yun asked directly,
“Jun’er, do you think Ziyao is a cruel elder sister?”
“This…”
A flicker of panic crossed Yun Zijun’s face before she hurriedly shook her head.
“O-of course not. Sister has a kind heart…”
“Jun’er, you’re still speaking well of her even now.”
Unaware of Madam Yun’s unusual mood, Yun Zexuan looked at Yun Zijun with displeasure.
“She kicked you into the lake. If I hadn’t been there, how would you have saved yourself after falling into the water?”
“She deliberately wanted to drown you!”
“Yun Ziyao is cruel and venomous—a snake-hearted woman. You don’t need to defend her. She’ll never appreciate your kindness.”
Yun Zijun lowered her eyes.
Her eye sockets reddened as she put on a look of grievance and endurance.
“She is my elder sister, the legitimate daughter of the Yun family. She was cherished since childhood.”
“After I returned, I took her identity away from her. I was already in the wrong.”
“How can I compete with Sister for affection?”
“Even if she’s dissatisfied with me, that’s only natural.”
“I won’t blame her…”
Hearing this, Madam Yun suddenly felt a chill in her heart.
“Jun’er.”
She looked at the girl as though seeing her for the first time.
“Did Ziyao actually push you into the river?”
“Mother…”
Yun Zijun bit her lip as tears streamed down her face.
“I…”
Madam Yun felt exhausted.
Suddenly, she remembered Yun Zijun’s first year after returning to the Yun family.
She had always been anxious and insecure, shrinking back at every turn as though afraid of being thrown out.
Madam Yun could understand those feelings. After all, the girl had suffered greatly growing up outside the family.
But every time, she would simply look at Madam Yun—or at the Chancellor—with tear-filled eyes.
When asked whether Ziyao had bullied her, she would only cry.
She cried pitifully.
She cried with restraint.
Yet not once had she ever given a direct answer.
Suppressing her growing dissatisfaction, Madam Yun said calmly,
“I will investigate this matter thoroughly.”
“If it truly was Ziyao’s fault, I will punish her appropriately.”
She reached out and tucked the blanket around Yun Zijun.
“Get some rest. Stop overthinking.”
Yun Zijun nodded weakly.
“Mm.”
Madam Yun stood and left the room.
As she stepped over the threshold, she suddenly remembered Ziyao’s earlier words:
“Big Brother has improper feelings toward Little Sister.”
An uncomfortable feeling rose in her heart.
Over the past three years, Yun Zexuan and Yun Zijun had been inseparable.
He protected her constantly.
Spoiled her constantly.
Far beyond what was appropriate between siblings.
Turning back toward the room, Madam Yun saw Yun Zexuan sit beside the bed and gently stroke Yun Zijun’s forehead.
The motion was so natural.
As if he had done it countless times before.
Madam Yun’s brows furrowed.
“Zexuan, Jun’er has maids to care for her, and the physician will be here shortly.”
“You should return and continue your studies. Don’t neglect your lessons.”
Yun Zexuan was startled.
“Yes, Mother.”
Madam Yun turned and left.
Watching her retreating figure, Yun Zexuan felt a bad premonition arise in his heart.
“Big Brother, what’s wrong with Mother today?”
Yun Zijun tugged nervously at his sleeve.
“Why do I feel like she’s acting strangely?”
Yun Zexuan looked at her.
“You think so too?”
Yun Zijun nodded.
“Mother doesn’t seem very happy.”
More accurately, she no longer seemed as close to them.
In the past, whenever Yun Zijun caught a cold or felt unwell, Madam Yun would rush over personally with ginger soup and nourishing tonics.
Her face would be full of worry.
Whenever Yun Zijun felt wronged, Madam Yun would hold her and comfort her gently.
But today…
Madam Yun had seemed distant.
“Could Yun Ziyao have said something to Mother?”
Yun Zexuan frowned.
Remembering the scene earlier, when Yun Ziyao had shouted for help in panic, his face darkened.
“She must have complained first and twisted the story.”
Yes.
That had to be it.
That vicious and cunning woman.
Unable to wait any longer, Yun Zexuan said,
“You rest first. I’ll go explain everything to Mother.”
“We can’t let her misunderstand us.”
Yun Zijun nodded softly.
Yun Zexuan instructed the maids to take good care of the second young lady before turning and leaving.
When he arrived at Jing’an Courtyard, he saw Nanny Zhou escorting a physician out of the room.
His steps slowed involuntarily.
Upon seeing him, Nanny Zhou appeared slightly surprised before bowing.
“Eldest Young Master.”
“Mother summoned a physician?”
Nanny Zhou nodded.
“The eldest young lady fainted after suffering a shock. Madam invited a physician to examine her pulse.”
“Madam also instructed this servant to bring the physician to examine the second young lady afterward—”
“She’s obviously pretending.”
Yun Zexuan interrupted coldly and strode into the room.
“Mother! Yun Ziyao wasn’t traumatized at all. She’s faking her fainting spell!”
“At her courtyard earlier she was perfectly energetic. Not only did she kick Little Sister into the lake, even I wasn’t her match!”
Hearing his voice, Madam Yun turned toward the doorway.
As she listened to him repeatedly accuse Yun Ziyao of various crimes, anger rose within her.
Her eyes became cold.
The moment Yun Zexuan crossed the threshold, he met her gaze.
His heart skipped a beat.
Uneasily, he asked,
“Mother… what’s wrong?”
“Your sister is lying on that bed right now.”
Madam Yun pointed toward the unconscious Yun Ziyao.
Her expression was dark with anger.
“Her body is covered in scars. She has been tortured beyond recognition.”
“And yet you, her elder brother, feel not the slightest compassion.”
“Instead, you repeatedly call her vicious.”
“Zexuan, do you truly hate your own sister this much?”
Yun Zexuan’s face changed.
Instinctively, he tried to defend himself.
“But Mother, what I said is true! Ziyao, she—”
“Ziyao spent three years in the Laundry Bureau suffering every hardship imaginable.”
Madam Yun cut him off coldly.
“The physician has just examined her.”
“He says her body is frail. She is malnourished.”
“The scars covering her body are only the visible injuries. Her internal injuries are even more serious.”
“The current Ziyao is so weak that even walking and speaking require tremendous effort.”
“Forget kicking people into a lake or slapping someone.”
“Zexuan…”
Her eyes were filled with disappointment.
“Is the vicious person you described really my daughter Ziyao?”
Yun Zexuan froze.
“Mother, I’m telling the truth! Yun Ziyao is pretending—”
“Enough!”
Madam Yun closed her eyes briefly.
She was utterly disappointed in him.
“Return to your room.”
“For the next few days, without my permission, you are forbidden from setting foot in Tingyu Pavilion.”
Yun Zexuan’s expression changed dramatically.
He wanted to say more.
But Madam Yun had already turned her back to him, radiating rejection.
Clenching his fists, he knew this was Yun Ziyao’s scheme.
Yet he also understood that now was not the time to argue.
Madam Yun believed Yun Ziyao.
No matter how much he explained, it would be useless.
However, after calming down, even Yun Zexuan began to feel that something was off.
Yun Ziyao really had looked unwell.
Even before being sent to the Laundry Bureau, she had been a delicate noble lady incapable of lifting a chicken.
Where had she gotten such strength?
He recalled the ruthless expression on her face earlier.
The force of the kick that had left his chest aching.
The cold ferocity with which she had kicked them into the lake.
It was as if she had become a completely different person.
A sense of unease settled in his heart.
Casting one last cold glance at the unconscious Yun Ziyao, he bowed to his mother and withdrew.
Madam Yun sat beside the bed and held Yun Ziyao’s thin, bony hand.
Remembering the physician’s words, tears streamed down her face uncontrollably.
“The injuries on the eldest young lady’s arms were caused by whipping instruments such as rattan canes.”
“New wounds overlap old ones. She appears to have been beaten almost every day.”
“The eldest young lady is terribly thin—nothing but skin and bones.”
“It is obvious she was never allowed to eat her fill.”
“She is physically weak, lacking strength in her limbs, and has suffered chronic malnutrition for years.”
“There is scarcely any flesh left on her body.”
“The calluses on her palms are thick, and her hands are rough and cracked from years of heavy labor.”
“Constantly soaking them in cold water during winter would also cause severe cracking and prevent proper healing.”
“The eldest young lady bears heavy emotional burdens.”
“The dark circles beneath her eyes indicate chronic sleep deprivation.”
“She has lived in fear every day, unable to enjoy a single night’s peaceful rest.”
“Madam… if her condition is not carefully treated, she may have only three to five months left to live.”
“Even with meticulous care, I cannot guarantee how long she will survive.”
“She has carried grief and resentment in her heart for too many years.”
“If that emotional knot cannot be untied soon, then even if she eats delicacies from the mountains and seas at every meal, or consumes precious medicines as though they were food, it will all be useless.”
Every time Madam Yun remembered those words, her heart felt as though it were being torn apart.