Grand Tutor Rong remained silent for a long time with his eyes closed.
At that moment, his youngest daughter, Rong Su, rushed in and knelt before him. "Father! My brother-in-law died unjustly, and the Marquis of Anning is even more wronged! For my sister’s sake, please help them!"
The mention of his eldest daughter made him clench his fists in anguish.
Everyone knew that the eldest daughter of the Rong family had once been the talk of the capital—a woman even the Empress Dowager had praised unreservedly.
Yet she had passed away so young, leaving behind a child who was now an orphan...
A sharp pain gripped his heart. Seeing this, Chu Ruoyan also knelt. "Grand Tutor, I may not understand grand principles, but I know this much—by family ties, you are our kin through marriage, and by duty to the state, you and my father-in-law served the same court. I beg you, for the sake of both family and country, lend your aid to save the Third Young Master!"
After a long silence, Grand Tutor Rong let out a self-deprecating laugh. "The Third Young Madam is quite eloquent. ‘Family and country’—how could an old man like me refuse such a plea?"
Chu Ruoyan’s face lit up with joy. Rong Su exclaimed, "Father! You’ll help?"
He nodded slowly. "In all my years as an official, I’ve always remained neutral, never involving myself in court factions. But now, it seems I must make an exception... Su, leave us for now."
"Yes!"
Once Rong Su had gone, Grand Tutor Rong fixed his gaze on Chu Ruoyan. "Third Young Madam, I can petition the Emperor for a public trial of this case. But that alone won’t be enough."
Chu Ruoyan pondered. "Are you concerned about insufficient evidence? Ji He, who served by the heir’s side, can testify..."
She explained the details, but Grand Tutor Rong shook his head. "Ji He can only prove that the city defense plans were stolen by that orphan girl, absolving Yan Zheng of guilt. But his testimony alone cannot implicate the Marquis of Pingjing as the mastermind."
Chu Ruoyan understood immediately. "Ajiao!"
Ajiao had to speak—she had to point the finger at the Marquis of Pingjing!
Otherwise, all their efforts would be in vain.
"Rest assured, Grand Tutor. I will go see Lord Cao now and ask for his mediation!"
"Cao Yang?" Grand Tutor Rong was taken aback. "So that’s how it is. I had wondered why he, with no prior ties to the Yan family, would suddenly step forward to save the Third Young Master. It was you..."
Chu Ruoyan nodded sheepishly.
Grand Tutor Rong smiled. "Then go. But remember—speed is crucial. Once I’ve contacted a few ministers, I’ll head to the palace immediately."
"Thank you, Grand Tutor!"
After leaving the Rong residence, she first instructed Yulu to take Wen Jing back to the Yan family, then ordered Meng Yang to summon Ji He. The three of them hurried without pause to the Ministry of Revenue.
When Cao Yang heard that the Yan family’s young madam sought an audience, his head throbbed with frustration.
"Marquise of Anning, don’t you think you’re pushing too far? This is the Ministry of Revenue—the Ministry of Revenue!"
He felt as though he’d been stuck with an irremovable nuisance. But Chu Ruoyan only looked at him in confusion. "Am I not permitted to come to the Ministry of Revenue? Then I shall wait for you at your residence."
The mention of his residence reminded Cao Yang of his elderly mother. Who knew what tales this woman might spin in front of her? He rubbed his temples. "Fine, fine. What is it you want?"
Chu Ruoyan smiled. "It’s about Ajiao... I heard that on the day the Emperor released the Marquis of Anning from prison, he also handed her over to you?"
Cao Yang grew wary. "What of it?"
Chu Ruoyan repeated her conversation with Grand Tutor Rong. Cao Yang was stunned. "You even convinced Grand Tutor Rong?"
That grand tutor had stood firm in court for thirty years, adhering strictly to neutrality!
He never took sides, never engaged in factional struggles—which was precisely why the Emperor trusted him so deeply.
How had he been drawn into this?
Chu Ruoyan didn’t deny it. She simply met his gaze. "Will you help or not?"
Cao Yang made up his mind instantly. "I’ll help!" With Grand Tutor Rong involved, even if things went awry later, the blame wouldn’t fall solely on him.
At the Ministry of Justice’s interrogation chamber, Chu Ruoyan waited with Meng Yang and Ji He. Before long, Cao Yang brought the prisoner in.
Even someone as composed as Chu Ruoyan couldn’t suppress a gasp at the sight of the woman. "You’re Ajiao?"
She was barely recognizable as human.
Her entire body was soaked in blood, her hair a tangled mess obscuring her face—only the skin around her eyes remained unmarred.
Cao Yang scoffed. "This criminal is stubborn. Nights of interrogation haven’t loosened her tongue. If not for the Emperor’s order to keep her alive, a few rounds of torture would’ve broken her."
Meng Yang shook his head beside him. "It wouldn’t have worked. Lord Cao, you don’t understand. When she was in our custody, we exhausted every method, yet she refused to speak. It was only because we had no other choice that we released her, hoping to lure out the true mastermind..."
At those words, Ajiao, who had lain motionless like a corpse, slowly lifted her head.
Her matted hair parted as she rasped, "What... did you say...?"
Meng Yang sneered. "You didn’t know? With your pitiful skills, did you really think you escaped us? It was all a ruse! The young master ordered your release to trace you back to your handler—"
Ajiao’s pupils shrank to pinpoints. "You beasts! Heartless beasts!"
"Got the energy to curse now? Good. Then tell us—how did the Marquis of Pingjing command you? Speak!" Meng Yang yanked her hair back. Ajiao laughed coldly. "It was Yan Zheng who ordered me! He told me to steal the city defense plans!"
"You—!"
Meng Yang was seething when a hoarse voice interrupted from behind. "Step aside..."
He hesitated, then moved.
Ajiao studied the disheveled figure before her, a flicker of recognition crossing her face. "You... who are you...?"
"If you don’t recognize this voice, perhaps you’ll remember this face?"
Ji He suddenly swept his hair aside, revealing the grotesque scars covering the left side of his face.
Ajiao screamed. "Ji He? How are you alive?"
"You ask how? Ajiao, you truly have no conscience. You deceived me with promises of marriage, coaxed the secrets of the city defense plans from me, then set a fire to burn me alive. Tell me—did you ever imagine I’d survive?"
Ajiao turned her face away, but Ji He gripped her throat. "Look closely! This is what you did to me! Ajiao, I’ll never understand—the Yan family treated you with nothing but kindness. When you fell ill, the mistress herself kept vigil at your bedside for two sleepless nights. How could you bear to send them to their deaths?!"
Ajiao shut her eyes, impervious to his words.
Ji He, overcome with fury, nearly strangled her before Cao Yang shouted, "Pull him off!"
Meng Yang dragged Ji He away just in time. Ajiao lay gasping on the ground.
None of them—not Meng Yang, Ji He, nor Cao Yang after days of interrogation—had managed to break her.
Then Chu Ruoyan spoke softly. "Ajiao, you loved the heir, didn’t you?"
The orphan girl trembled violently, her head snapping up.
The woman’s gaze was sorrowful, almost pitying. "You’re covered in blood and filth, yet the skin around your eyes is untouched... Yan Zheng once said the heir adored his late wife’s eyes. Yours resemble hers. That’s why you kept them pristine—for him, wasn’t it?"
As if her most hidden secret had been laid bare, Ajiao snarled, "Lies! All lies!"
"If it’s a lie, why are you so enraged?"
Ajiao fell silent briefly before letting out a shrill laugh. "He was a fool! I warned him not to stand guard, but he wouldn’t listen. His death is his own doing—don’t blame me!"
"Is that so?" Chu Ruoyan's voice suddenly softened. "But he's already dead. Are you happy?"
Ajiao froze.
Happy?
She wasn't happy at all. Though she resented how he never looked at her properly, when she fell ill, he would brew her medicine and buy candied fruits. When she sprained her ankle, he carried her ten miles back to the military camp. Even when soldiers teased her, he would shield her and scold them fiercely. How could she bear to see such a good man die?
"Ajiao, I know the Marquis of Pingjing sent you with a mission, but things have come to this. You’ve already completed your task. Don’t you want to live for yourself now?"
The woman’s voice was low and coaxing. Ajiao’s gaze grew dazed. "Live for myself?"
"That’s right. The young master is dead, but those he cared for are still alive. If you save them now, perhaps when you meet him in the afterlife, he won’t hate you so much..."
The prison cell was so silent a pin drop could be heard.
Everyone’s breathing unconsciously grew heavier.
Because they saw Ajiao’s expression shift from sorrow to joy, then back to sorrow. She lifted her head, nearly helpless as she asked, "H-he really won’t hate me?"
Chu Ruoyan nodded. Clutching the chains, Ajiao whispered, "Fine... I’ll confess. It was the Marquis of Pingjing. He sent me to steal the city defense plans..."
The moment she spoke, the room erupted in excitement. Cao Yang urgently called out, "Someone! Prepare the confession statement!"
The document was written in a flash. The final stroke was barely dry before it was brought for Ajiao to sign.
Yet just as her severed finger was about to press onto the paper, Prince Yu’s voice suddenly rang out—
"By the decree of the Empress Dowager—summon the orphan girl Ajiao for an audience!"
