Chapter 78: The Prince Collapses, Faith Collapses

The candlelight in the Hall of Supreme Harmony flickered, casting Xiao Jin's face half in light and half in shadow, a reflection of his shattered heart. Shen Qingyue's screams as she was dragged away still echoed through the hall, but all he could think of was Yun Zhi's face—the face of her three years ago, in her wedding dress, eyes gleaming as she said, "I wish to be with the prince for the rest of my life." The face of her silent silence, tears streaming down her face, the face of her face when he had given her the abortion drug. The face of her face when she was shoved to the ground by Lord Wang, and he had turned to protect Shen Qingyue, the face of her face with the dead silence in her eyes.

"No...it's not like that..." Xiao Jin stumbled back, bumping into the jade vase stand behind him. The celadon vase clattered to the ground, shattering into pieces, a reflection of his current worldview. He clutched his hair, his knuckles white, his voice trembling with an uncontrollable tremor. "I didn't mean to...Zhi'er, I didn't know..."

All the officials held their breath, no one dared speak. Everyone knew Prince Duan's partiality for Shen Qingyue and his harshness towards Yun Zhi, but no one imagined that this partiality was a deception, or that this harshness was so outrageously wrong. Someone quietly glanced at Yun Zhi. She was still kneeling on the ground, her back straight. There were a few pieces of porcelain shards on her plain clothes, but she acted as if she didn't see them. Her eyes were fixed on the emperor's throne, not even a glance at Xiao Jin.

"You don't know?" Yun Zhi's voice suddenly rang out, calm and without a ripple, yet like a blunt knife, it slowly cut into Xiao Jin's heart. "Your Highness doesn't know that Prime Minister Shen is colluding with the enemy, or that Shen Qingyue faked her death, but Your Highness knows. Back then, when I was pregnant with your child, you personally brought me abortion pills. You know that I was publicly humiliated by Your Highness, yet you protected Shen Qingyue and said I was 'ungrateful'. When you knew that the entire Yun family was executed, I knelt at the gate of the palace and begged you to see the evidence, but you had the guards drag me away, saying I was 'the daughter of a guilty minister, unworthy of begging for mercy.'"

With every word, Xiao Jin's body trembled more violently. He had never dared to dwell on these things, but now, as Yun Zhi spoke them out, word by word, each word burned like a red-hot iron, searing his heart. He suddenly remembered the night when Yun Zhi had taken the abortion drug. After drinking it, she walked up to him, leaning against the wall, and asked, "My Lord, is this child so annoying?" At the time, he had only coldly replied, "You are not worthy of bearing my child." Now, thinking about it, the despair in her eyes was inflicted by him.

"I... I was deceived by Qingyue back then! I thought the Yun family was collaborating with the enemy!" Xiao Jin rushed forward, trying to grab Yun Zhi's hand, but she dodged sideways. His hand froze in mid-air. Looking at Yun Zhi's cold face, his heart felt like a piece was being torn out, the pain so severe that he could hardly breathe. "Zhi'er, I know I was wrong! I will make it up to you! I will clear the name of the Yun family, make you my consort, and give you the entire palace! Whatever you want, I'll give it to you!"

"Your Highness can't give it to me." Yun Zhi finally turned her head, but not to look at him. Instead, she looked at the sky outside the palace. There, the dark clouds had dispersed, revealing a faint ray of light. "Your Highness can't give me my dead child, can't give me the lives of the 173 members of the Yun family, can't give me the suffering I've endured for the past three years, and certainly can't give me 'innocence'—my innocence wasn't given by Your Highness. I earned it bit by bit myself, and it was earned by the lives of these witnesses."

Her words were like a bucket of cold water, pouring down on Xiao Jin's head. He suddenly realized how ridiculous and cheap his so-called "compensation" was in the face of Yun Zhi's pain. He looked at the scar on Yun Zhi's arm that hadn't yet fully healed—it was from falling when she startled a horse in the paddock. At the time, he had thought she was "careless," but now he knew it was a deliberate fall to distract him and save Xie Heng.

"Zhi'er..." Xiao Jin's voice was filled with tears. He couldn't hold back his tears and they fell on the gold brick, leaving a small wet mark. "I know I was wrong. I know I'm a bastard. You can hit me, scold me, or kill me, but don't treat me like this... Don't look at me like a stranger..."

He had never felt so humble in his life. He was the high and mighty Prince Duan, the emperor's trusted brother, and the prince revered by all officials. But in front of Yun Zhi, he was like a child who had done something wrong, and could only plead helplessly, but he couldn't even get a glance from her.

Yun Zhi didn't say anything more, nor did she look at him. She turned back to the emperor and kowtowed solemnly, her forehead hitting the golden brick with a dull sound. "Your Majesty, the Shen family has confessed their guilt. The evidence is irrefutable, and the witnesses are all here. I implore Your Majesty to issue an order to exonerate the entire Yun family, restore their reputation as loyal and righteous, and severely punish the Shen family's accomplices who participated in the frame-up of the Yun family! To restore justice to the world and clear the name of the deceased!"

Her voice was firm, carrying an undeniable power. The emperor looked at her, then at Xiao Jin, who collapsed on the ground, tears streaming down his face. He sighed inwardly and said in a deep voice, "I feel guilty for the injustice done to the entire Yun family. I will immediately issue an edict to exonerate the Yun family, restore Yun Xiao's title of Marquis of Loyalty and Bravery, and bury the entire Yun family with honor. All of Shen's accomplices will be thoroughly investigated by the Dali Temple, and not a single one will be spared!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Yun Zhi kowtowed deeply, a subtle tremor finally creeping into her voice. But it wasn't because of Xiao Jin, but because she could finally offer comfort to the departed souls of the Yun family. She slowly stood up, still not glancing at Xiao Jin, but bowed once more to the Emperor. "This humble servant's wish has been fulfilled. I beg Your Majesty to allow me to leave the palace and never again interfere in court affairs."

Xiao Jin suddenly looked up, tears blurring his vision. He looked at Yun Zhi's resolute back and suddenly panicked—she was leaving, she was leaving him completely! He got up, stumbled forward, and tried to grab her sleeve, but she dodged him again.

"Zhi'er, don't go!" Xiao Jin's voice was filled with frantic pleading. He grabbed the guards beside him as if they were grasping at their last straw, "Stop her! Don't let her go! I am Prince Duan! I order you to stop her!"

The guards looked at each other, no one dared to move. The emperor frowned and said coldly, "Xiao Jin! Have you had enough of this? Yun Zhi is a meritorious official. If she wants to leave, who dares to stop her?"

Xiao Jin's hands drooped helplessly as he watched Yun Zhi walk towards the palace gate. Her back was thin but determined, without a trace of nostalgia. He suddenly remembered that three years ago, Yun Zhi had done the same, walking out of the palace step by step. At that time, he thought she would not be gone for long and would eventually come back to beg him. But now he knew that if she left, she would never come back.

"Zhi'er..." Xiao Jin's voice became weaker and weaker, and finally only sobs remained. "I know I was wrong... Can you please come back..."

He slumped to the ground, watching Yun Zhi disappear outside the palace gates. He saw the sympathetic and disdainful gazes of the officials, the disappointment in the emperor's eyes. Suddenly, he felt that everything he had—the title of prince, the power of the palace, the glory he had once possessed—was a joke. He had protected the wrong person, hated the wrong person, and in the end, he couldn't even keep the person he wanted most.

An overwhelming wave of regret and panic washed over him like a tide. He clutched his chest, curled up on the ground in agony. Flashes of the entire Yun family being decimated flashed before his eyes, along with Yun Zhi's desperate eyes and Shen Qingyue's hideous smile. These images intertwined, forming a vast web that trapped him tightly, leaving him in agony.

At this moment, his worldview, his beliefs, and his pride completely collapsed, shattering into pieces.

Outside the palace gate, Yun Zhi paused and glanced back toward the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Her eyes held no trace of nostalgia, only a sense of calm. She took a deep breath, turned, and walked toward the palace gate—there, Xie Heng and Liu Zhong were waiting for her, waiting to take her away from this place of suffering.

But she didn't know that Xiao Jin's crazy regret had just begun; and no one knew whether she could really be free in the future, or whether there would be new waves.