Madam Su nodded. "No wonder you didn't know your mother and brother had come to the capital."

Shi Wenxia and Yun Tianbai were both taken aback. "They're still alive? They've come to the capital?"

Madam Su beckoned to Hongyu, "Quickly go to the west courtyard and invite the Shi family mother and son over."

Yun Tianbai was even more surprised that this mother and son were actually living in his house.

Soon, the Shi family mother and son arrived. Upon seeing Shi Wenxia, ​​they were surprised, delighted, and heartbroken, and they embraced and wept for a while.

Shi Wenxia's father was the one who betrayed the military deployment of the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun. Yun Hou did not tell Yun Tianbai about this, so Yun Tianbai did not know that the deputy general Shi, who was once relied upon by his father and later died on the battlefield to save his father, had been secretly imprisoned.

This is one of the reasons why he can bring Shi Wenxia into the Yun Mansion so openly today.

Three months ago, he was shocked to find Shi Wenxia in Liaozhou, dressed in rags. From her story, he learned that she had been sold to the north by a kidnapper, and had managed to escape. Since Ningguta was nearby, she planned to go there to find her cousin. Unexpectedly, she encountered Yun Tianbai on the way—a stroke of pure luck.

So when Yun Tianbai received news of his mother's death and rushed back to the capital, he took her with him.

He had originally planned to return to the Liaozhou border battlefield to make meritorious contributions, so he could only settle her at home for the time being.

Unexpectedly, her mother and younger brother also lived in the house.

He said with a smile, "What a coincidence! In that case, let my cousin, aunt and cousin-in-law settle in at the Yun family first."

"No!" A dignified voice rang out.

Duke Yun Yue strode in, his gaze upon the mother and her two children exuding an air of absolute authority. “You are not permitted to reside in the Yun residence.”

When Shi's mother saw Yun Yue, her face lit up with joy. "Big cousin, I'm Uncle Yun's seventh cousin. Do you still remember me?"

Yun Yue sat down in the main seat next to Madam Su, then nodded and said, "I remember that I asked my mother to arrange your marriage with Shi Dazhu. It's just a pity that Shi Dazhu became a traitor. Our Duke's Mansion cannot take in the family of a traitor."

The Shi family, mother and her two children, were all greatly shocked.

Shi Wenxia screamed, "This is impossible!"

Yun Yue sneered, "Five years ago, when he was a scout, he disappeared for a few days. I thought he had just gotten lost, but I never imagined he had been captured by the Northern Di people. He was only released because he betrayed the defenses of the Sixteen Cities of Yanyun. I have investigated this matter thoroughly, and the evidence is irrefutable. The Emperor will issue an imperial edict soon. According to the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty, traitors who sell out their country are to be executed along with their entire family, even up to nine generations. The current Emperor is merciful, and since he ascended the throne, there has never been a case of executing nine generations of a family. But your Shi family, I'm afraid, is in grave danger. So, Tianbai, do you still want to take in that mother and her two children?"

Yun Tianbai's mind started buzzing again. Something was wrong with this too!

The difference is too great!

In his previous life, Deputy General Shi Dazhu sacrificed himself on the battlefield to save his father. Before his death, he entrusted Shi Wenxia to the Yun family.

But why has Shi Dazhu been labeled a traitor this time?

Will historians also be executed along with their entire families?

Shi Wenxia collapsed to the ground, her face deathly pale.

Shi's mother was also swaying precariously, but was supported by her eight-year-old son, Shi Xing.

Both of them felt their legs go weak and couldn't believe it.

Shi Wenxia reacted quickly, kneeling as she approached Yun Yue, pleading, "Lord Duke, please save us, please save us!"

Yun Yue's face was icy. "A country has its laws, and an army has its regulations. Shi Dazhu caused the fall of our three cities of Yanyun, leaving our people displaced and suffering the ravages of war. Even the Emperor cannot show favoritism. You should leave as soon as possible. Otherwise, once the imperial decree is issued, even my Yun family will be unable to hide the families of a few traitors. Otherwise, how can my Yun family face the brothers who died in the three cities of Yanyun and the people who suffered from the war?"

These words struck like a bolt from the blue, shattering all of Shi Wenxia's illusions.

Impossible, impossible. Did she come back to life just to watch her entire family be executed?

Why did my father go from being the Duke's benefactor in the previous life to a traitor in this life?

Something must be wrong here.

She pleaded, "My lord, my father has always been loyal to you. He could never be a traitor. He's been framed! He must have been framed!"

Yun Yue sneered, "This case was personally supervised by the Duke himself. Are you implying that the Duke framed him?"

"No, no, no..." Shi Wenxia didn't know how things had turned out this way, so she could only cry and plead with Yun Tianbai, "Cousin, that's not what I meant. I don't want to die, please save me..."

Yun Tianbai's expression was also extremely bad. Although he favored Shi Wenxia in his previous life, he had grown up on the battlefield with his father since childhood, and the concept that national righteousness was of paramount importance was deeply ingrained in his mind. Naturally, he could not take in the family of a traitor who had harmed the border soldiers and people.

However, Shi Wenxia's plea for help suddenly enlightened Shi's mother.

She knelt prostrate before Yun Yue, pleading, "Lord Duke, the crime does not apply to married daughters. Xia'er is ten years old this year and is of marriageable age. Even if my entire Shi family is to be executed, the Emperor has not yet issued the decree, so there is still a glimmer of hope. If you can arrange a marriage for Xia'er, it can save her life. Please, cousin, grant my request!"

Suddenly, Shi Wenxia's eyes lit up as he looked at Yun Tianbai with hope.

She knew from Yun Tianbai's gesture of turning three fingers on his right hand that Yun Tianbai was also reborn, but she didn't dare let him know that she was also reborn for the time being.

She believed that given Yun Tianbai's affection for her in her previous life, he would surely grant her mother's request.

But Yun Tianbai hesitated.

If the Shi family were executed, Shi Wenxia would become the daughter of a disgraced official.

As a military general, he married the daughter of a traitor, which could easily cause him to lose some of the morale of his troops.

Even in the imperial court, even if it is just his concubine, it is hard to guarantee that she will not become a handle used by those civil officials to attack him in the future.

Shi Wenxia was all too familiar with Yun Tianbai's expression at this moment. Knowing that he was beginning to hesitate and waver, calculating the gains and losses, she immediately burst into tears, "Cousin, if you don't agree, I really won't survive, waaaah—"

Seeing this, Xiao Youran added with a smile, "Big brother, you managed to rescue this sister from being sold to the Northern Border by beggars, which shows that you two are quite destined for each other. Why don't you agree to marry her, so that she won't be executed?"

Seeing a glimmer of hope, Madam Shi knelt down and kowtowed to Madam Su again, "Madam Duchess, my daughter Xia is still young. Please arrange a marriage for the two of them and save her life."