I hooked my arm through Emperor Hong’s, laughing softly. “Imperial Uncle, you’re overthinking. I’m not Mother, and An Jin is not Father. How could we possibly repeat her path?”
But he has provoked your relationship with Yun Qiao, forcing you to make the decisive decision to completely eliminate Yun Qiao, which shows his ruthless and ambitious nature. Emperor Hong glanced at me. “A Yao, Yun Qiao indeed did something wrong, and I will give her sufficient punishment, but I cannot tolerate someone with ulterior motives who wants to turn you sisters against each other for their own benefit! Whether it’s An Jin or that unknown man hidden in Yun Qiao’s residence, whoever does such a thing will not be spared by me.”
I said in astonishment, “Imperial Uncle, you misunderstand him. He is not the one who provoked my relationship with Yun Qiao, but rather—”
“Enough,” Emperor Hong sighed. “You will understand soon. Guards!”
Two court attendants appeared and knelt before Emperor Hong. “Your Majesty, please command.”
Emperor Hong raised his hand. “Bring her up.”
“Yes.”
I watched as the pale-faced High Priest was pulled up by the attendants and knelt down before Emperor Hong and me.
Emperor Hong glanced at her. “Speak. Repeat to the Prince of Yu what you previously told me.”
“Your Majesty…” The High Priest looked at me, clearly hesitant.
“Don’t worry. That man has been brought out, so you need not be concerned.” Emperor Hong’s expression was calm but authoritative. “Tell the truth.”
The High Priest lowered her head, remained silent for a moment, and finally spoke: “Prince of Yu, I previously lied to you. In fact, the one who met with me and tampered with the golden cup was not Prince Ning himself, but… the subordinate of Grand Minister Cen.”
My heart was in turmoil, and I barely maintained my composure. When I spoke, my voice was almost trembling. “Why?”
She mumbled, “I was threatened before, so I lied to you. Later, when I accused Grand Minister Cen and Prince Ning, it was for the same reason.”
“Who threatened you?!” I finally lost control and rushed in front of her, asking sternly.
“I, I don’t know,” she hesitated, timidly glancing at me. “It was a prison guard.”
“A prison guard threatened you?” I was furious.
“Enough, take her away,” Emperor Hong waved his hand. “A Yao, let me explain.”
An ordinary prison guard had taken the personal item of the High Priest’s loved one, threatening her with his life to lie to me, and then forcing her to testify against Grand Minister Cen and Prince Ning. Emperor Hong had the man transferred from the prison and arranged a meeting, which finally made her tell the truth.
“If you still don’t believe, I can have that subordinate of Grand Minister Cen brought over for a confrontation.”
I felt a chill, like a cold wind blowing over me after sweating, causing waves of trembling.
The familiar method suddenly reminded me of the impersonation case in Qi Kingdom years ago, when the Ministry of Personnel official changed his testimony after talking to An Jin once. Although I didn’t want to admit it, I could no longer deceive myself.
Emperor Hong looked at me with compassion. “Whose man this prison guard is, I need not say more. A Yao, think about it yourself.”
At that time, I thought, since you’ve already discovered something, rather than letting you worry, I might as well tell you the truth.” He held me in his arms, patting me intermittently. “Anyway, you would find out someday.”
“Then why didn’t you just make up some excuse to fool me?”
“I don’t want to lie to you, not even a little bit.” He suddenly fell silent.
I emerged from his embrace, sat up straight, and stared into his eyes. “Brother Jin, you will never lie to me, right?”
He was stunned and did not answer for a long time.
I persistently looked into his eyes, determined to get an answer.
Finally, he lowered his head and murmured, “I’m sorry, A Yao. I did indeed lie to you.”
The imperial uncle was right; everything was An Jin’s scheme. He knew I couldn’t bring myself to act against Yun Qiao, so he forced my hand through the golden cup incident. The arrest of the high priest and the Ministry of Personnel’s upheaval were all related to him.
He even knew I would go to the high priest to confirm the golden cup matter and had made arrangements in advance. In the end, he would force the high priest to implicate Yun Qiao, trying to push her into a desperate situation. Next, he would even make evidence appear at the right moment before the three departments, completely sealing their fate.
I never thought An Jin’s carefully planned scheme would one day be used against me. I had finally become another chess piece in his hands, arranged to move as he wished.
“It’s my fault.” Each word seemed difficult to say. “A Yao, will you forgive me?”
“Why?” I stared blankly at his embarrassed face.
“I was just afraid you would go soft, that Jiang Yun Qiao cannot be left alive…”
“Why have you become like this?” I unconsciously distanced myself from him. He looked very sad, wanting to grab my hand, but I dodged.
I blinked and sat there in a daze.
It turned out that the person who had changed was not just An Jin, but myself as well. Mother was right; people always change. With changes in environment and circumstances, everyone undergoes transformation. An Jin and I were changing in different directions, and that’s why we were growing further apart.
“Whenever there’s a conflict between husband and wife, the problem usually doesn’t lie with just one person,” my mother said earnestly. “A Yao, no matter what your son-in-law did to hurt you, you should first think about whether you’ve done something to make him uncomfortable. His heart towards you is truly something heaven and earth can bear witness to…”
Perhaps feeling more relaxed, I actually laughed when I heard her say this. “Heaven and earth can bear witness? Mother, that doesn’t sound like something you’d say.”
“It’s what your father taught me,” my mother also laughed.
We looked at each other and smiled. Just then, my older brother and Miao Yin walked in, holding my little niece Miao Miao.
“A Yao is here?” my brother happily walked over. “Perfect, let’s have a nice meal together today.”
“Great!” I happily waved to Miao Yin and Miao Miao.
“I took Miao Miao, but as soon as I held her, she was about to cry, so I quickly handed her back to Miao Yin.
“This child,” Miao Yin apologetically looked at me. “Why be afraid of your own aunt?”
I sighed. It was normal that Miao Miao didn’t recognize me.
From the moment I left home, I went directly to Prince Ning’s residence. Prince Ning was about to embark on a journey, and the mansion was in complete disarray. The place Jiang Yunqiao was going to was called Raozhou, far from the capital and known for frequent earthquakes. Those officials who usually fawned and curried favor now avoided her like the plague, with even the servants mostly gone. The entire Prince Ning’s residence appeared exceptionally desolate and quiet.
Only Ah Fu remained, still laughing innocently and playfully, which made my heart ache. Jiang Yunqiao, seeing me arrive, handed Ah Fu to her consort and accompanied me for a walk.
“What brings you here?” Despite her fallen status, she still smiled quite freely and at ease.
“Came to see Ah Fu,” I smiled at her. “Am I to blame?”
She shook her head. “I said long ago, it’s each person’s own ability, win or lose. Once defeated, why blame heaven and others? But about the gold cup incident—”
“I know you didn’t do it,” I shook my head. “I heard Raozhou isn’t a good place. If you need anything after you go, be sure to send someone to tell me.”
