Chapter 132: Two Karmic Lines
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The thought set his heart ablaze.
Yu Zhi Yi, however, seemed oblivious to the repulsive desire flickering in his eyes. She calmly retracted her gaze and turned to Yu Meng Qin, posing a seemingly unrelated question: “Four years ago, did the eldest young master visit Shangyang County?”
Yu Meng Qin frowned. “What of it if I did? And what if I didn’t? What relevance does this have to today’s events?”
Yu Zhi Yi shook her head. “None at all.”
Her frankness only deepened Yu Meng Qin’s cold expression. He felt as though this foster sister was mocking him.
Madam Yu’s expression grew increasingly pained. “Yi’er, did you truly arrange for people to beat them just to vent your anger?”
Instead of answering, Yu Zhi Yi countered with a question: “You call it venting, so you know what they did?”
Madam Yu was momentarily speechless.
After a pause, she redirected the topic, only to circle back. “Was it really your doing?”
Her evasiveness and apparent inclination to shield the perpetrators were glaringly evident. If this had been her past life, Yu Zhi Yi would have been heartbroken. But now, she found it laughable.
“If I were truly the type to retaliate for a few harsh words, then after you nearly killed me in the palace last time, wouldn’t I have sought to kill your entire family? In that case, there wouldn’t have been so many troubles afterward, would there?”
Madam Yu was once again at a loss for words.
Yu Meng Qin spoke coldly. “Because of your previous act of violence, your suspicion this time is far too great.”
“But last time, I could have easily blamed it on ghosts or deities and absolved myself of guilt. Wouldn’t that have been simpler?”
Yu Meng Qin’s brows knitted tightly, as if noticing for the first time how sharp his foster sister’s tongue could be.
With a dark expression, he demanded, “Prove it!”
“What?”
“Prove that you didn’t orchestrate the attack. Only then will we believe you.”
Yu Zhi Yi almost laughed outright. In fact, she did laugh. “Why should I prove it?”
Her gaze swept around the room. She noticed that everyone, including Official Gong of Jingzhao Prefecture, seemed to agree with Yu Meng Qin’s proposal, waiting for her to clear her name.
Seeing their reactions, Yu Zhi Yi smiled coldly and declared, “Investigating a case is the responsibility of Jingzhao Prefecture. While I may currently be a suspect, I am cooperating with your investigation. However, unless you have evidence proving that I ordered or carried out the attack, no one has the right to force me to clear my own name, nor can you restrict my freedom.”
She looked directly at Official Gong. “Am I correct, Official Gong?”
“Yes, yes,” he replied, wiping sweat from his brow. Though this young woman appeared gentle and composed, her clear, piercing gaze made it impossible for him to argue against her.
Moreover, what she said was the truth.
Yu Meng Qin’s jaw tightened, the sharpness of his features resembling a blade capable of cutting through necks.
He sneered. “Aren’t you supposed to be a so-called master of divination? Why not cast a fortune and reveal the true culprit to prove your innocence?”
“But you won’t dare! Because you are the mastermind!”
Yu Zhi Yi: “…”
“You have two choices: admit guilt or admit incompetence.”
Yu Zhi Yi rolled her eyes. “I choose to wait for Jingzhao Prefecture to solve the case.”
“If you’re dissatisfied, go beat the grievance drum. Perhaps His Majesty will hear your plight and grant special permission for me to use divination to uncover the culprit.”
Yu Meng Qin’s gaze turned venomous. “You still dare claim you’re not guilty?”
“Tch!” Yu Zhi Yi didn’t bother hiding her disdain. “Yu Meng Qin, who do you think you are? I am a fifth-rank official personally appointed by His Majesty. Though I have yet to assume my position in the Ministry of Justice, my rank is legitimate and indisputable.”
“And you? By what authority do you command me? Are you my superior or the Emperor himself?”
“Don’t forget, on that day in the palace, it was your family who severed ties with me to shift the blame. The Yu family raised me for seventeen years, and I repaid that debt by taking on the blame, saving the lives of seven masters and one hundred and twenty-eight servants of the Yu household.”
“I am no longer a part of the Yu family. I owe you nothing. As strangers, you have no right to point fingers at me. Is that clear?”
“Since this is your first offense after cutting ties, I will let it slide. But if there is a next time… According to the Great Sheng Empire’s Legal Code, if a commoner disrespects a superior, the lightest punishment is twenty slaps to the face, and the harshest is one hundred strokes of the rod!”
Her ethereal voice carried a commanding weight, each word landing like a heavy blow on Madam Yu’s and Yu Meng Qin’s hearts.
Madam Yu grew flustered. “Yi’er, we’re family. How could you let a minor misunderstanding…”
Yu Zhi Yi chuckled coldly. “Misunderstanding? What a convenient scapegoat. Unfortunately, this isn’t a misunderstanding. I refuse to be wrongfully accused without seeking justice.”
“I’ve said it before. You only get one chance to overstep your bounds. If you provoke me again…”
Her unwavering stance frightened Madam Yu. Though she had once controlled Yu Zhi Yi through emotional ties, those ties had since been severed. The Yu family matriarch and son left in disgrace, their injured companions in tow.
As they exited, a fresh dollop of bird droppings landed squarely on Yu Meng Qin’s head. Meanwhile, Yu Jian Ren tripped, smashing his eye against the stone lion at the entrance. Though not blinded, his eye swelled shut instantly.
The onlookers from Jingzhao Prefecture were dumbfounded, but Steward Wu Shan quickly recovered and exclaimed, “Serves them right!”
In a dilapidated house, a tiger-headed boy of twelve or thirteen with bright, lively eyes appeared troubled.
“Father, did we cause trouble for Sister?”
The middle-aged man, of similar age to Minister Yu Chun Yue but more robust and healthy, furrowed his brows deeply. Rolling up his sleeves despite the chilly early winter weather, he revealed muscular arms.
Hearing his son’s words, he sighed. “Let’s wait and see. If Jingzhao Prefecture does trace it back to us, you’ll leave the capital for a few days and return once the matter cools down.”
The boy hesitated. “If that’s the case, I’ll confess. I can’t let Sister endure any more suffering from the Yu family.”
The man shook his head. “I’m the one who fought them. Nobody died. At most, I’ll serve a year or two. In the meantime, you must protect your sister.”
Seeing the boy’s reluctance, he added with a wry smile, “Even if you confessed, they wouldn’t believe you.”
The boy, though not small or frail, was still just a child barely reaching an adult’s shoulder. The idea of him singlehandedly defeating two grown men was absurd. His father’s involvement would be far more plausible.
Tears welled in the boy’s wide, round eyes. He nodded resolutely. “Father, don’t worry. I’ll protect Sister.”
The man wiped his son’s tears and sighed deeply. “We owe her too much.”
Suddenly, Yu Zhi Yi felt a pang in her chest. She clutched at her heart, taking several deep breaths to ease the sensation. When it finally subsided, she sat upright, puzzled. Pulling out a set of five emperor coins, she cast a divination for herself.
The result was unclear, but one thing was certain: she now bore two additional karmic lines.