“It is all right, Eldest Young Lady.”
A'han reached out and took the glass-like object from Lan Yi's stiff fingers.
“Have a good sleep. Leave everything to me.” He tightly gripped the water bottle, lowering his eyelashes, his tone as calm as if he weren't discussing a matter of life and death. “Just act as if you know nothing. Even if the truth comes to light, the Divine Lady will not blame you.”
Lan Yi was stunned for a moment.
Once she snapped out of it, she abruptly sat up in bed and grabbed A'han's wrist.
“Give it to me,” she said, her voice trembling.
A'han did not move, nor did he speak.
He only kept his eyes lowered, gazing at Lan Yi, a faint smile gracing his lips.
“A'han, I command you,” Lan Yi's voice suddenly rose an octave, “give it to me!”
A'han shook his head.
Looking at his calm demeanor, a sour ache swelled in Lan Yi's chest, and something inside her collapsed completely.
“You are a fool!” Her tears finally fell uncontrollably in large droplets, splashing onto the bedding and their clasped hands. “I don't love you at all! I have been using you from the very beginning! Did you hear me? I don't love you! It is not worth it! It is not worth doing this for me!”
She practically shrieked these words.
A'han's eyelashes trembled slightly.
“It does not matter,”
he said softly. “I am willing to be used by you, Eldest Young Lady. I am also glad that I still have value to be used.”
“To die for you is A'han's honor.”
“You should not shed tears for someone like me.”
Lan Yi's sobs caught in her throat.
“A'han, the child cannot be without a father...”
She threw herself into A'han's arms, hugging him tightly. She buried her face in his chest, listening to his heartbeat.
*
The temple.
The dome was high and distant, and the lights fell like scattered silver, winding down along the exquisite carved patterns.
It was serene and dreamlike.
However, this tranquility was soon completely shattered by an extremely discordant sob.
On the sofa, a small, snow-white fox sat on its haunches, its large tail drooping over the edge. It cupped its face with its two little paws, its eyes filled with unshed tears.
It sniffled. A translucent screen hovered in the empty air before it, displaying a frozen image of the two people leaning against each other in the dim room.
“Host, sniff, Lan Yi and her hidden guard are truly a pair of ill-fated lovers. I ship them so hard...”
Yun Shu was speechless. “You are an artificial intelligence. You don't even have human emotions. What kind of ship are you even shipping?”
“Host, you are so cold and heartless,” the little fox sighed. “The young couple is suffering so much, yet you are still setting a trap for them instead of helping them.”
Yun Shu glanced askance at it. “Who said I didn't help them? Haven't I given them a chance? As for whether they live or die, that depends on their own choice.”
The little fox felt a bit melancholy. “It feels like every hateful person has a pitiful past.”
Yun Shu pulled the little fox into her arms.
“I agree. People are not born good or evil. The formation of personality depends on environmental factors, and people behave differently under different circumstances.”
She stroked the little fox's tail.
“Then shouldn't you sympathize with them even more, Host?”
The little fox asked in confusion.
“Sympathy is sympathy, but a wrong is a wrong. If they do something wrong, they must face the consequences.”
“You are truly righteous to a fault,” the little fox grumbled.
“All right, cut the chatter. It is time to draw the net and round up those wicked people in one fell swoop, earning a massive amount of Shock Value.”
Yun Shu picked up the little fox and left the temple, heading straight toward the Fang Estate. Along the way, everyone she encountered passed right by her, as if she and the little fox were completely invisible.
*
Since Cui He and the others could not find any evidence in the Fang Estate, they could do nothing to Lan Yi.
They could only start with the account books, following the clues until they traced them back to Uncle Fu, the butler.
They discovered that a month ago, Uncle Fu had secretly changed an ingredient in Governor Fang's prescription, causing his body to reject the nourishing tonic.
“Junior Brother Fang, if this medicinal ingredient had not been swapped, your father should have been able to hold on until this winter with this medicine,” a female student who understood medicine sighed.
A misty veil of tears covered Fang Shuo's eyes. “Why did he want to harm my father? My father was supposed to finish my capping ceremony, and then happily return to the heavens to serve as an immortal official...”
By the end, he was sobbing uncontrollably.
Seeing this, Chen Zhi was deeply moved.
“Junior Brother Fang, the urgent matter at hand is to have the butler, Uncle Fu, arrested, lest he flee to escape punishment!”
Cui He handed a clean handkerchief to Fang Shuo and comforted him somewhat awkwardly, “What is the use of crying? Instead of wasting time being sad, it is better to catch the real culprit quickly to bring the truth to light, helping Governor Fang reclaim his immortal status.”
Fang Shuo took the handkerchief and wiped his tears.
“You are right. The matter hasn't been fully investigated, and my father died under suspicious circumstances. I must pull myself together.”
Immediately, he turned and shouted toward the door, “Someone, bring Uncle Fu to me!”
Before long, the old butler was brought over, escorted by two servants.
“Uncle Fu, the Fang family has always treated you well. Why did you harm my father? Why on earth did you harm my father!”
With bloodshot eyes, Fang Shuo grabbed the old butler's collar.
A flash of panic crossed Uncle Fu's eyes, but he quickly regained his composure, crying out in feigned innocence, “Young Master, I have been wronged! How could this old servant possibly harm the Master!”
“You... you are still denying it!”
Fang Shuo gritted his teeth in anger, his hands trembling, but he had no idea how to make the man speak the truth.
Cui He looked at the useless Fang Shuo.
“Step aside, let me question him.”
Fang Shuo stepped aside dejectedly.
Although Cui He was only a child, the things she had experienced were far beyond what ordinary people could imagine. Stared at by her eyes, which were as clear as bright mirrors, Uncle Fu felt inexplicably terrified.
“Uncle Fu, answer me. On the fifteenth of last month, what were you doing in the estate all day?”
After pondering in secret for a moment, Uncle Fu said, “This old servant was in the estate all day, helping Madam Lan manage the accounts.”
“Liar!”
Cui He looked at him coldly. “On that day, you clearly paid a visit to the medical clinic in the city. Do you want me to send someone to bring the shopkeeper here to confront you and clear this up?”
Uncle Fu panicked, but he still tried to make excuses. “Per... perhaps this old servant is too old and remembered incorrectly.”
“Remembered incorrectly?” Cui He sneered. “Then how do you explain changing Governor Fang's prescription without authorization?”
“This... this...”
Uncle Fu had not expected Cui He and the others to investigate so quickly, finding the tampered account book in just two days.
Knowing that the matter could no longer be concealed, he simply tore off his disguise. His sinister gaze swept across everyone present. “Even if you found out that I killed Governor Fang, it is useless. Because you are all about to die from poison! Hahaha!”
Rate on N.U.
