Chapter 067

Chapter 67: Someone Is About to Sweat Buckets

People in the hall wore curious looks. Odd glances kept landing on Minister Yu, whose face was slick with cold sweat.

Minister Yu said nothing.

The situation was clear now.

If Chancellor Du and Duke Ding Guo had not lied, then Yu Jiao Jiao and Yu Zi Xuan had.

And as their father, he could not escape blame.

With two senior ministers pulled in, he could no longer stay hidden. He stood and said: “Your Majesty, Xuan and Jiao Jiao are young and ignorant. Please calm your anger.”

“When Yi’er lived in our house, she did show an obsession with the mystic arts, but none of us ever saw her skills. So Xuan and Jiao Jiao had doubts.”

“Your Majesty, they never meant to deceive you. They were only worried about bad consequences. Please be appeased.”

The emperor wore an amused look.

So it was fake after all. Even if the Yu clan kept her at home for the sake of reputation, they could not treat her as truly one of them.

He looked at the calm Yu Zhi Yi and asked: “Young Madam Du, will you still perform? If you step down now, I can treat it as if nothing happened.”

Whether it was the brother and sister jumping out to accuse her, or Minister Yu smoothing things over in public while secretly backing his own two children and pushing Yu Zhi Yi aside, she showed no change in mood.

The faint smile on her face never faded.

She said, “Thank you, Your Majesty, but I will still perform.”

Yu Jiao Jiao ground her teeth in secret. [Why does this woman love making a scene!] [Does she like to hog the spotlight that much!]

Then a voice said, “Sister, stop making trouble. Your Majesty is willing to give you a chance; you should take it!”

Madam Yao could not stand it anymore and said to the speaker: “Third Young Madam Zhang keeps calling her sister, but what she’s doing doesn’t look like family at all. If you truly cared for Yi’er and had a good relationship with her, you would at least know that she has real skill.”

She turned to the emperor and said: “Your Majesty, not long after Yi’er’s wedding, she saw that my mother would soon face disaster and told me to go home to help her through it.”

“Later, I followed Yi’er’s advice and truly saved my mother’s life.”

Madam Meng, though she did not like her own daughter-in-law, absolutely had to back Yu Jiao Jiao at a time like this. She said with a cutting smile: “Since your honored mother did not meet with trouble, how did Madam Du know for sure that she would have? ”

People in the hall had begun to believe Madam Yao after her real example, but once they heard Madam Meng’s point, they felt it made sense.

Right. If nothing happened, how can you claim trouble was certain to happen before? It’s like me getting through today safely; you can’t say I was fated to die and only lived because some passerby saved me.

Madam Meng let out a chilly laugh and said: “Madam Du, you’ve lived in the inner quarters and don’t go out much. You don’t know the tricks of Martial World swindlers; there are plenty.”

Madam Yao was cut off by this sudden turn and, for a moment, could not answer.

Seeing her choke, Madam Meng felt smug.

The gates of the Chancellor’s Manor and the Duke’s Manor may look similar, but in truth they are worlds apart.

After all, the Duke’s Manor of the Zhang family is a century-old house.

And what is Chancellor Du? A down-and-out upstart who happened to win the emperor’s favor. How dare he marry a woman from the same family as ours.

And that woman even outshone their own daughter-in-law of the Duke’s Manor!

Madam Meng had held this breath in her chest for a long time, and today she finally found a chance to vent.

She added, “Also, these days Madam Du praises her daughter-in-law to everyone, saying she is sensible and skilled, and that the protective bracelet she made not only lengthens life but also protects its master and can block fatal harm.”

She glanced around the hall and said: “Listen to how ridiculous that sounds. Who would believe it?”

Many people looked toward Madam Yao’s wrist, but her sleeves were wide, so no one could see the bracelet. Even so, they nodded and echoed her.

“I heard that so-called protective bracelet is made of jade. Wearing jade long-term nourishes the body, so saying it lengthens life isn’t too much. But that’s the effect of jade itself. It has nothing to do with being a ‘protective bracelet.’ As for blocking fatal harm… I don’t believe it.”

“I don’t believe it either. If such a treasure existed, people would fight over it. How could we have never heard of it?”

Similar remarks piled up. Madam Yao grew anxious: “I’m telling the truth…”

She even wanted to mention that Chancellor Du was saved from an assassination last time by a Defensive Jade Pendant.

But the hall was too noisy, and no one heard her.

Of course, even if they had, no one would have believed it.

Yu Jiao Jiao had never found her mother-in-law so pleasing to the eye. She looked at Yu Zhi Yi with open pride. [Impostor, your lies are exposed in public. You must be sweating now.]

Yu Zhi Yi was not sweating at all, but she knew someone else would be soon.

Seeing Madam Yao so eager to defend her, she patted Madam Yao’s hand and said quietly: “Mother, trust me.”

At once Madam Yao felt her anxiety and anger fade. Her mind cleared. She was still worried, but not as hot-headed and dizzy as before.

Yu Zhi Yi looked at the emperor and said evenly: “Since so many people doubt me and even talk of the crime of deceiving the ruler, I will speed things up and do a divination on the spot for someone here. If I’m right, won’t that prove my ability?”

The emperor’s interest was caught. He said: “Granted.”

Yu Zhi Yi smiled and slowly looked around. Seeing Madam Meng and Yu Jiao Jiao gearing up to say more, she cut them off ahead of time and said: “Everyone, be at ease. The person I choose absolutely cannot help me cheat.”

Madam Meng fell silent.

Yu Jiao Jiao also fell silent.

Mother-in-law and daughter-in-law both snorted at the same time, annoyed that Yu Zhi Yi had predicted their move.

Yu Zhi Yi said lightly: “Madam Zhang, you then. Forgive the offense.”

Her tone was gentle, and though she said “forgive the offense,” she kept smiling, which did not look sincere at all.

Madam Meng’s face darkened a little, but with the emperor present she could not explode.

Besides, she did not believe Yu Zhi Yi could figure out anything. Acting generous, she said: “No matter. I also want to see Young Madam Du’s skill.”

Yu Zhi Yi smiled and said: “I will not disappoint you.”

Looking at her pretty smile with a hint of mischief, Madam Meng suddenly felt uneasy.

Realizing she was actually wavering, she grew angry at herself. [She’s just a girl who plays at gods and spirits. What am I afraid of?]

Yu Zhi Yi slowly began to speak.