Chapter 129

Chapter 129: Do Not Let Her Bother Me Again

A good family broke apart like that. Li Feng wanted revenge, but had no path. He did not even know who the real culprit was. The day he heard news of his wife, all he learned was that the offender was staying at the magistrate’s house, so he rushed there to ask for his wife. He never learned which lord from the Capital had taken her.

After that, he could not even find a target to accuse of robbing a commoner’s wife. Every time he tried to go to the capital to petition, men stopped him on the road. He sold his fields to fund the trip, but before he left the county, robbers took all his silver. He could have lived by processing medicine, but his father-in-law’s clinic closed after that incident, and no one would buy their medicines anymore.

As for studying, the academy expelled him for so-called bad character. In these times, without a recommendation, he could not continue taking the exams. With no official future, no fields, and no clinic, begging seemed like his only path. Luckily, he still had some strength and a bit of wit. He could live by hunting. Though no city shops dared buy from him, he could keep the game to eat, and so he stayed alive.

When Steward Wu Shan first read Li Feng’s file, he hesitated. To ruin a living man that badly, the one who stole his wife was surely powerful. Even so, Li Feng met every rule, so the steward submitted the file to Yu Zhi Yi to decide.

Just then, a runner reported that Yu Jiao Jiao was kneeling outside, and Yu Zhi Yi was about to perform a quick divination. She set the file down and rose, saying: “Come on, let’s go take a look.”

Outside, Yu Jiao Jiao cried loudly. Many onlookers who did not know the truth felt both sad and angry. Someone shouted: “An ungrateful person like that dares to talk about charity? This must be a scam!”

Another person added: “That makes sense. There is no such thing as free pies from the sky. If this so-called charity is a scheme, everything fits.”

A third voice fanned the flames: “Minister Yu’s family treated her so well, and she had a wolf’s heart. As soon as they lost their office, she turned her face and drove them to live beyond the city while she enjoyed luxury in Chancellor’s Manor. Minister Yu should never have kept her back then. He should have let her and her wicked mother die together!”

Yu Jiao Jiao looked pained as she said, sounding careful: “Please don’t say that. Sister was very young back then. If they hadn’t kept her, she could not have survived!”

She seemed to defend Yu Zhi Yi, but every word accused her of ingratitude. In the crowd’s eyes, a ten-year-old had no way to live alone. If not for Yu Manor, she would have died. The scolding grew louder.

Yu Jiao Jiao covered her face and let out tiny “ying-ying” sobs. Yet if anyone pulled her hands away, they would see her eyes were dry, without the least bit of tears. They would also see no real sorrow, only hidden smiles. [Why are the days of the Yu Clan and mine getting worse while that wretch thrives and wins fame?] [Use public pressure to force Yu Zhi Yi to pay up and help the Yu Clan live well.] [Even if we cannot restore our past glory, we will show everyone the Yu Clan is still a tiger, still full of promise.]

Before her smug plan could bloom, an airy voice poured over her like cold water, saying: “Yu Jiao Jiao, you truly have no brains. Must Master Yu pay an even heavier price for your foolishness before you are satisfied?”

Her pride faded, and her mood steadied, though she hated that feeling. She forced herself into sadness and said: “Sister, I admit I wronged you and made you sad, but this has nothing to do with our parents. You cannot ignore them.”

Yu Zhi Yi looked at her as if at a fool and said: “That day you brought a fake miracle doctor and almost killed Her Highness the Empress Dowager. To dodge blame, you dragged me into it. Master Yu and Madam Yu understood your scheme and still chose to help you, shoving me out as a throwaway shield.”

She continued, crisp and clear: “Cutting off kinship was said by that couple with their own mouths. His Majesty and Prince Xiao Yao both witnessed it. Now, after you dragged them down, they lost their posts and even lost the gold token that could have saved their lives if disaster struck. If I were you, I would stop jumping out to make trouble. The next time you do something terrible, there will be no gold token to block the disaster.”

The crowd gasped. Someone exclaimed: “So the Yu Clan cut ties on their own, and they used the fake daughter to take the blame for the real daughter, then treated her like a chess piece?”

Yu Jiao Jiao had expected Yu Zhi Yi to bring up that day, so she did not panic. She raised her voice and said: “I admit I was wrong, but are you completely without fault? If you hadn’t kept your abilities hidden from the family, how would we have made such a choice?”

Yu Zhi Yi’s eyes said plainly, What are you talking about, as she answered: “I never hid anything. You simply never believed me. You treated everything I did as a scheme, a trick to fool you.”

Not wanting to hear more nonsense, Yu Zhi Yi cut her off and said: “As for your claim that the Yu Clan cannot survive, His Majesty only demoted Master Yu. He did not confiscate his estate.”

She went on, matter-of-fact: “So the hundreds of thousands of taels your clan earned from business, and the tens of millions of taels that Official Yu took in bribes, are still sitting untouched in the moneyhouse. Unless you six siblings throw silver into the street every day, even if you sit and eat without working, it would take you centuries to run out.”

Yu Jiao Jiao snapped, nearly screaming: “You are making that up!”

From the shadows, Second Young Master Yu Ming Yu also barked: “Yu Zhi Yi, do not slander us!”

Hearing that familiar cold voice, Yu Zhi Yi was not surprised. She looked toward a certain spot in the crowd and smiled slightly as she asked: “Take it as nonsense if you like. Now, can you take your sister away?”

Yu Ming Yu stared, voice low and chilly as he said: “Yu Zhi Yi, do not think that because you tied yourself to Chancellor’s Manor you can sit steady as mistress. Without your maiden family behind you, let us see how long you can be pleased.”

Yu Zhi Yi smiled lightly and said: “You need not worry about how long I will be pleased. Just remember this: do not let your sister come and provoke me again. Otherwise, if I get unhappy, I might say things that should not be said.”

She added, calm and final: “When that happens, do not be angry, because anger will not help you.”