Chapter 96: The candle breaks the situation and hides the truth, Ye Yu is worried about protecting Ziwei
The night wind whipped the candlelight across the window paper, stretching the figure in the west wing out of focus. The old postman sat slumped in a rattan chair, blood seeping from his coarse trouser legs leaving a small, dark red stain on the gray floor tiles. He clutched the dry food Xiaoyanzi had handed him, his hands still shaking.
"Eat slowly, no one's going to snatch it from you." Ziwei handed over the kettle, brushing the old postman's dusty hand with her plain sleeves. Her voice was as gentle as the spring rain in Jinan, "You said you knew my mother? Do you know what happened to her later..."
"I know! Of course I don't!" The old postman gulped down a mouthful of water, a muddy sound coming from his throat. "Miss Yuhe is a good girl. Back in Jinan Prefecture, who didn't praise her talent, kindness, and gentleness? But just because... just because she witnessed the dirty deeds of that bastard official E Min, he still holds a grudge against her to this day!"
"Emin?" Xiaoyanzi slammed her hands on the table, causing the celadon teacup to jingle. Her light yellow skirt flew up with her movements, and her eyes were blazing with anger. "I told you there was something wrong with the way he looked at Ziwei. Turns out he has something to hide!"
Xiao Jian had just unfastened the soft sword from his waist. Night dew dripped down the hem of his dark robe. He wiped the scabbard with a cloth and spoke in a voice as deep as thunder weighing on the clouds: "Twenty years ago, E Min was the prefect of Jinan. Under the pretext of disaster relief, he withheld grain and seized fertile farmland. Miss Yuhe accidentally witnessed these things and tried to persuade him. I didn't expect that this would lead to a grudge."
The old postman slammed his thigh, grimacing in pain but unable to rub it. "That's right! It was him! Before that Master Hong returned to the capital, he specifically asked me to look after Miss Yuhe. He also left me the half jade pendant as a token of trust, saying he would definitely send someone to pick her up in the future. But E Min was afraid the Master would come back to investigate, so he'd been secretly keeping an eye on Miss Yuhe all these years, until... until she disappeared, and then he set his sights on her daughter!"
"Master 'Hong'..." Ziwei's fingertips gently stroked the jade pendant in her arms. The jade was warm but could not warm her cold fingertips. Tears welled up in her eyes. "My mother said before she died that my father's surname was 'Hong' and he was a nobleman from the capital. She asked me to bring the jade pendant to him... So... So it really is..." She didn't finish her words and her voice was choked with sobs.
Xiaoyanzi quickly supported her trembling shoulders, the warmth of her palms passing through the fabric. "Don't panic, we have evidence now! Emin was afraid you'd find your father, afraid your father would know he was corrupt and perverted the law, so he was in a hurry to kill him!" She suddenly leaned close to Ziwei's ear and lowered her voice. "I'm telling you, I vaguely know who your father is. He's not an ordinary person. As long as we hand over the evidence of Emin's guilt, he will definitely give your mother and you justice!"
Ziwei suddenly looked up, her tearful eyes flashing with panic and anticipation: "You...you know who my father is?"
"Shh..." Xiaoyanzi pressed her index finger to her lips, glancing out the window. "I can't tell you now. Walls have ears. But I promise, as long as there's solid evidence, your father will recognize you." She turned to the old postman, her eyes brightening dramatically. "Uncle, you just said E Min had a rosewood box? Does it contain the account books of his embezzled money?"
The old postman nodded repeatedly, his gray beard trembling. "It's undeniable! Last year, he forced me to forge false testimony about Miss Yuhe's affair. I saw it with my own eyes in his study! The box was locked tightly, and the word 'Jinan' was engraved on it. He treasured it like his life!"
Xiao Jian sheathed his cleaned soft sword. The sound of metal clashing was particularly clear in the night. "The account book is key. E Min has many followers in the court. A head-on confrontation will only alert them." He looked at Xiao Yanzi, his eyes filled with warning. "Don't act rashly. The palace is not like the martial arts world. Don't act rashly."
"I know my limits!" Xiaoyanzi pouted, then quietly pulled out a small copper key from her sleeve and twirled it around in her hand. "I just thought that Emin would definitely go to the next palace banquet. Maybe I could take advantage of the time to toast him and see if he has the key to the box."
"Absolutely not!" Ziwei held her hand, her fingertips cold. "There are so many people at the palace banquet, what if he finds out..."
"Don't worry, I'm very good at light martial arts. Even if I'm discovered, he can't catch up if I run!" Xiaoyanzi patted her chest. Suddenly, she remembered something and took out a peace amulet from her bosom and stuffed it into Ziwei's hand. "This is what my mother asked for. Wear it to keep you safe."
The moonlight outside the window grew brighter, filtering through the lattice onto the jade pendant in Ziwei's hand, revealing its delicate winding branches. Ziwei gripped the amulet and jade pendant tightly, her fingertips whitening from the strain, but her eyes grew firmer. "My mother waited her entire life, not for wealth and glory, but simply to let Dad know she'd never broken her promise." She raised her eyes to Xiaoyanzi, her gaze as clear as a spring. "Ci'er, I want to find him myself. Even if... even if he doesn't recognize me, I'll give him my mother's letter."
Seeing the stubbornness in her eyes, Xiaoyanzi suddenly remembered Ziwei kneeling outside the palace gate in her previous life. Her heart softened and she nodded heavily, "Okay! I'll go with you! Let's find the account book first, so that the corrupt official Emin has nowhere to hide, and then we can go find your father with dignity!"
Xiao Jian looked at the two girls' clasped hands, a hint of warmth flashing in his eyes before he regained his composure. "I'll notify Liu Qing and Liu Hong tonight and have them clear out a secret room in the warehouse outside the city and house the old postman there first. I'll check the account book issue. You stay in the mansion and don't go out. E Min has suffered a loss, so we'll definitely double the search."
The old postman suddenly knelt down with a plop, turbid tears streaming down his wrinkles: "Thank you, young lady! Thank you, young master! You are good people... If Miss Yuhe is still alive, she will definitely bless you!"
Xiaoyanzi quickly helped him up, her nose sore: "Uncle, please don't be like this, this is what we should do." She turned her head to look at the dark night outside the window and clenched her fists - Emin, you have ruined Aunt Yuhe's life, and you want to kill Ziwei. In this life, I will make you pay for these evil deeds!
The flickering candlelight casts the three people's shadows on the wall, like a silent painting. The night breeze outside the window still blows, but it seems to carry a hint of warmth, foreshadowing that this feud spanning twenty years will finally usher in a different ending under the protection of these young and determined figures.
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