A flash of coldness crossed Ye Jingyan’s handsome, scholarly face when he heard the first half of her sentence, but it vanished as quickly as it came. The second half, however, made him pause for a moment. "Sister, where do you want me to go?"

Ye Chutang explained succinctly, "She claims I drove Second Aunt to hang herself and that my crime is grave. So, I’d like to ask Shuntian Prefecture to investigate this thoroughly."

Hearing her say such a thing was utterly bizarre.

This was especially true for Ye Shixian. She knew perfectly well that if she didn’t intervene now, things would go terribly wrong!

So, before Ye Jingyan could speak, she suddenly cried out, "Why go through all that trouble! Shaoyao! You go right now!"

Shaoyao’s heart trembled. "M-Miss..."

But seeing Ye Shixian’s resolute expression, she didn’t ask again. With a quiet acknowledgement, she headed toward the Shuntian Prefecture government office.

Ye Jingyan frowned slightly, but he didn’t think there was anything wrong with what his sister had said or done.

He tilted his head slightly, his gaze lingering for a moment on the blood-stained silk cloth clutched in Ye Shixian’s hand. He said in a deep voice, "Since Second Aunt went so far as to write a letter in blood, it must naturally be investigated to the very end."

The crowd finally realized that it wasn’t just Ye Chutang who was not to be trifled with; her seemingly gentle and reserved younger brother was no pushover either!

Ye Shixian’s heart sank. She subconsciously wanted to hide the blood letter, but the moment her wrist moved, she felt the countless gazes fixed on her and barely managed to stop herself.

She pursed her lips.

’What’s there to worry about!’

’This blood letter really was written in my mother’s blood! Even if the government investigates, that’s the only conclusion they’ll reach!’

Ye Chutang glanced behind Ye Jingyan. "Where’s A Feng? Didn’t he come back with you?"

Ye Jingyan paused for a moment before replying, "After class, he went to ask Lord Master some questions, so he was delayed a bit. But before I came, I already asked Qiao Zimo to go inform him."

’So that’s what happened. It figures.’

’That kid actually couldn’t hold back and went to find Feng Zhang today. A little earlier than I expected.’

’He’s like a newborn calf, completely unafraid of the tiger.’

Recalling what the Eldest Princess had said before, Ye Chutang silently prayed for Ye Yunfeng in her heart for three seconds.

"Alright, let’s go."

Ye Jingyan lifted his gaze.

The next moment, he saw Ye Chutang get back into the carriage and instruct the carriage driver:

"Go to—"

She paused, then turned to Ye Shixian and asked, "Where are you living now?"

Ye Shixian was stunned for a moment. When she realized what was happening, a wave of immense humiliation washed over her!

’Ye Chutang actually wants to go to my home!?’

Ye Chutang also seemed a little surprised by her reaction. "What happened to Second Aunt hasn’t been cleared up yet. We certainly can’t just go straight home. Otherwise, how could you be at ease?"

Ye Shixian was completely at a loss for words.

Before she came, she had made thorough preparations. Her plan was practically flawless, and she was determined to use this opportunity to drag Ye Chutang through the mud, leaving her with no way to recover!

But for some reason, the situation was gradually slipping from her control, and everything had started to become strange.

But now she was in a predicament she couldn’t back out of, so how could she possibly say the word "no"?

After holding it in for a long time, Ye Shixian finally spat out through clenched teeth, "Of course I won’t let you get away so easily! But I will never allow you to take a single step into my mother’s residence! You’re not worthy!"

Ye Chutang didn’t bother bickering with her, simply nodding in agreement.

"She was my Second Aunt, my relative. But even if she were just a stranger I had once lived with under the same roof, I would still see her off. How could I bear to let her embark on her final journey alone?"

For some reason, Ye Shixian suddenly staggered.

A sharp pain shot up from her ankle, but she seemed not to feel it, staring blankly at the ground and then at the blood letter in her hand.

Her hand began to tremble unconsciously.

Ye Chutang’s gaze swept over her coolly, as if she hadn’t noticed anything unusual.

"Let’s go."

...

Naturally, Ye Shixian refused to ride in the same carriage as them. She insisted on walking back, so the carriage followed her slowly.

Inside the carriage, Ye Chutang leaned back, her eyelids lightly closed.

Anyone who didn’t know better would have thought she was out for a leisurely trip.

Ye Jingyan, however, knew very well that a tough battle lay ahead.

He’d had his suspicions before arriving, and seeing his sister only confirmed them.

’Mrs. Gao’s death is most likely connected to Ye Shixian!’

But the thought was too chilling, too horrifying, so he didn’t say anything more.

His sister clearly had her own plans.

Xiao Wu snuggled beside him, looking a little listless.

Remembering Ye Chutang saying that she had been frightened, Ye Jingyan suppressed the anger welling up inside him and carefully pulled Xiao Wu into his arms, letting her lean against him more comfortably.

"Xiao Wu, are you hungry?"

Xiao Wu shook her head.

The look in Ye Jingyan’s eyes grew colder. Xiao Wu had been doing much better before, almost no longer afraid of riding in carriages, but today—

After a long while, the carriage finally came to a stop.

Ye Jingyan lifted the curtain. "Sister, we’re here."

He was about to carry Xiao Wu down, but he suddenly froze.

Ye Chutang slowly opened her eyes. "What’s wrong?"

For a moment, Ye Jingyan didn’t know what to say. He simply turned aside, a peculiar expression on his face.

Ye Chutang finally saw the scene outside and was stunned as well.

"A Feng?!"

...

Ye Shixian had walked the entire way and was already exhausted in body and mind.

Just when she finally saw the familiar street and thought she could breathe a sigh of relief, she saw the young man sitting in front of her gate and froze in shock.

She couldn’t help but close her eyes and rub them hard. When she opened them again, she found that the person hadn’t disappeared! 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"Ye Yunfeng!?"

Ye Shixian would never have dreamed that this person, at this moment, would appear in this place!

Ye Yunfeng had dragged a chair from somewhere and was sitting squarely in the middle of the main gate, bold as brass. Two servants stood cowering behind him, suspicious blue and purple marks on their faces.

Even a fool could see what had happened here!

Ye Shixian was about to go mad with rage—Ye Yunfeng was actually so bold as to bully them right at their own doorstep!

Hearing her cry, Ye Yunfeng looked over. Taking in Ye Shixian’s colorful expression, he raised a sharp eyebrow.

Ye Shixian strode forward, her voice sharp. "What are you doing here!? What do you think you’re doing!?"

Only then did Ye Yunfeng stand up, an innocent look on his face. "I’m helping you, of course, Cousin!"

He raised a hand and pointed toward the main gate behind him.

"As soon as I heard something happened to Second Aunt, I rushed right over. After Second Uncle was exiled, I know a lot of people in the capital have been secretly trying to trip you up. If they heard this news, they’d probably just kick you while you’re down. Who knows what terrible things they might do? So, I came—"

"With me guarding this place, no one who wants to play tricks can come in or out of this gate as they please!"

Ye Yunfeng smiled, revealing a small canine tooth, his expression the very picture of sincerity.

"So, will this do?"