Chapter 068

Chapter 68: Little Yong and Little Mei

Yu Zhi Yi said: “Your Majesty, I will write down the results I am about to deduce and also Madam Zhang’s reactions. You can compare what I write with what happens to see if I am right.”

The Emperor had no objection.

Soon, a palace attendant brought paper and brush.

Shielding her writing with a wide sleeve, Yu Zhi Yi moved her other hand quickly across the page. Very soon she set down the brush, blew the ink dry, folded the sheet, and handed it to the eunuch.

Madam Meng showed open disdain.

Yu Jiao Jiao watched with a look that said she was ready for a show, thinking: [Even if this fool gets lucky and guesses something right, as long as Madam Meng denies it, who can prove the truth? Predicting someone’s reaction is even more ridiculous. If she were really so amazing, why couldn’t she beat me back at Yu Manor?]

The Emperor glanced at the paper, his expression shifting a little. When the Empress looked over, he put the sheet away and said calmly: “I have seen it. Begin.”

Yu Zhi Yi nodded. She looked at Madam Meng, then past her to Duke Yong, and asked: “My lord duke, do you know how your sister died?”

Duke Yong had been sitting at ease, watching like everyone else. He had not expected the fire to leap onto him, and on a topic he treated as forbidden. His face sank at once as he said: “If you want to make trouble, do not drag the dead into it.”

A flash of panic crossed Madam Meng’s eyes, but she quickly steadied herself and scolded: “Young Madam Du, mind your bounds!”

Ignoring the couple’s attitude, Yu Zhi Yi looked back to the Emperor and said: “Your Majesty, next I am going to tell a story. In this story, I will use false names for all the people.”

“More than twenty years ago, there was a noble young master called Little Yong. His family had many brothers and sisters, but he was the eldest legitimate son. So after his father passed away, he would inherit the family estate, while the other brothers and sisters would only receive a portion of money and property.”

“Little Yong’s clan was very rich and powerful. Every unmarried son or daughter in that house was a prize in the eyes of outsiders. Men wanted to marry Little Yong’s sisters to climb onto that great tree, and women wanted to marry Little Yong or his brothers to become pampered ladies.”

“Little Yong had a full-blooded sister. She was graceful, beautiful, kind, and gentle. Little Yong loved and respected his sister very much.”

“That is the background of my story.”

“After Little Yong came of age, the girls who wished to marry him were as many as fish in a river. But his family’s gate was high, his standards were high, and he had no heart for romance. After a while, he still had not chosen any young lady.”

“In the same city there lived a modest family. Compared to Little Yong’s clan, there was no comparison at all. For the daughter of that house to marry into Little Yong’s family was like dreaming with open eyes.”

“But that house had a daughter with strong goals and strong drive. Let us call her Little Mei.”

“At first, Little Mei did not dare to dream of marrying someone like Little Yong, a golden boy. She did not even dare to think of it in her sleep. But heaven gave her a chance.”

“One day on the street, she happened to pick up a painting scroll that the servant walking ahead had dropped. She wanted to return it, but the servant moved too fast and she could not catch up. So she went into the shop the servant’s young master had just left to ask the shopkeeper that young master’s name, so she could give the painting back.”

“Yes. The young master whose servant lost the painting was Little Yong.”

Madam Meng slapped the table and said: “Nonsense! I never picked up any painting, and I never asked about anyone!”

Duke Yong’s face was unreadable. The Emperor and everyone in the hall, however, were interested and asked: “And then?”

Even Du Zi Heng, who had been sunk in shock and hurt after learning that You Bing Yue and Prince Xiao Yao shared a closeness beyond friendship, was drawn in and waited for the next part.

Smiling at Madam Meng, Yu Zhi Yi said: “Madam Zhang, do you think you destroyed all the evidence that you schemed your way close to your elder sister-in-law? Do you think that because the shopkeeper from back then has died, there is no witness left?”

Madam Meng snapped: “I already said I did not. Stop slandering me! I met my sister by chance. We were not only sisters-in-law, we were dear sisters. Do not foul our feelings!” [She had indeed counted on there being no living proof. She could not admit it.]

Yu Zhi Yi let out a soft breath and said: “Madam Zhang, even a hundred careful moves have one slip. You tore up the secret notes that recorded the duke’s sister’s routines, and after you rose to power you removed those people from the world. But one solid piece of proof remained because of your oversight.”

She turned to the Emperor and said: “Your Majesty, Duchess Yong has a private estate on the outskirts of the capital. In its storeroom there is a row of cabinets. In the gap between the leftmost cabinet and the wall, a painting is wedged. That painting is the one she picked up back then.”

“It is a portrait. The person in the painting is the duke’s sister.”

Duke Yong rose to his feet and asked: “Is what you say true?”

Of course he remembered that painting. He had painted it himself for his sister as a gift for her seventeenth birthday. That year, his sister had just become engaged, and the thought of parting from her soon filled him with sorrow. He poured all his feelings into that painting, so the memory was clear and bright. [It had never been delivered, and the regret still lingered to this day.]

Madam Meng was already flustered. She wanted to speak, but Yu Zhi Yi said first: “Your Majesty, I have written the location of that estate on the paper. Send people to search, and they will surely find the painting.”

“No…” Madam Meng tried to stop it, but Duke Yong shot her a cold look. She felt as if she had fallen into an ice cellar, and the words died in her throat.

Duke Yong looked at Yu Zhi Yi and asked: “If what you say is true, why did she not return the painting? Using it to approach me would have been easier than approaching my sister.”

“Not so,” Yu Zhi Yi said. “When the duke was young, his only goal was to protect the nation. He had no heart for love. He turned away every matchmaker who came to his door. At the time this was a well-known story in the capital.”

“After Madam Zhang learned your identity from the mounting shop, she asked the shopkeeper about the girl in the painting and learned the girl was your sister, and that the two of you were very close. She judged that rather than try to approach you, it would be better to approach your sister.”

“The facts proved she was right.”

“She staged a hero-saves-the-beauty act and, as a lifesaver, won your sister’s trust. After that, she had a proper reason to come often to Duke Yong’s Manor. From your sister she learned many of your likes. For example, she learned you were set on going to war, so she forced herself to study military books.”

“When you discovered she understood military strategy, were you not very pleased?”

Duke Yong was silent. He had been very pleased. His requirements for a future partner had never been high, as long as they shared common ground. And Madam Meng achieved that.