Ye Shixian’s blood boiled, and her vision swam.

A torrent of curses was on the tip of her tongue, but it was as if something was blocking her throat. She couldn’t get a single word out.

Even in her wildest dreams, she would never have imagined that Ye Yunfeng would be here, waiting for her!

And the things he’d said—in the entire Capital City, weren’t he and his siblings the ones who most wanted to kick her while she was down? How dare he put on such a hypocritical act!

Her nails dug into her palms. Each word seemed forced through gritted teeth. "This is my home! What right do you have to interfere?"

Ye Yunfeng blinked, asking with feigned curiosity, "Huh? Isn’t this Murong Ye’s residence? Has he already given you the deed?"

There was no greater way to twist the knife.

Everyone in the Capital City knew that Ye Heng’s assets had been seized and his house confiscated. Ye Shixian and Mrs. Gao had been thrown out with nowhere to go. They were only able to find a place to stay thanks to Murong Ye’s charity.

Even a fool knew what his intentions were.

But knowing was one thing; saying it so openly was another. It was utterly humiliating.

After all, Ye Shixian was an unmarried young woman. What did it make her, accepting Murong Ye’s goodwill, taking his money, and living in his house?

It was no different from being a kept woman.

Most people, however, were wary of Murong Ye’s family background and wouldn’t risk offending him over a bit of gossip. Even if they whispered behind her back, they had a tacit agreement not to mention it to her face.

Ye Yunfeng’s question had ripped away that final veil of modesty!

Since being confrontational wasn’t working, she could only try a softer approach.

Tears streamed from Ye Shixian’s reddened eyes as if they cost nothing. "This may not be my house, but my mother and I live here, so this is my home. Now that she’s dead, are you going to hound me like this?!"

It was an eloquent plea. Anyone with a soft heart would feel a great deal of sympathy for her upon hearing it.

Unfortunately, Ye Yunfeng wasn’t buying it. His nerves were sometimes thicker than rope.

"What are you talking about?" Ye Yunfeng spread his hands, looking utterly innocent. "I only said this house isn’t yours. I never said you weren’t Second Aunt’s daughter!"

Someone in the crowd of onlookers let out a low chuckle, which quickly died down.

Ye Yunfeng gestured toward the house. "I was just thinking that since you’re Second Aunt’s only remaining family, you must be overwhelmed now that something has happened to her. That’s why I rushed over to help."

He sounded so incredibly earnest. Anyone who didn’t know better would think he was on the best of terms with Ye Shixian’s family.

Ye Shixian was so furious she wanted to grab a knife. "You!"

"A Feng."

Ye Chutang alighted from the carriage and called to him calmly.

"Shixian is grieving. Watch your words; don’t be offensive."

When Ye Yunfeng saw her, he hurried over to explain, "Sis, how is what I said offensive? We all know what Second Aunt was like. Why would she suddenly kill herself for no reason? I think there’s something fishy going on here!"

He crossed his arms, looking thoughtful. "Second Uncle’s case implicated a lot of people. Who knows if one of them couldn’t stomach the resentment and decided to strike a fatal blow!"

Ye Shixian truly couldn’t fathom how he could say such a thing.

’Looking at the entire Capital City, the ones with the deepest grudge against us are right in front of me!’

Ye Jingyan patted Ye Yunfeng’s shoulder. "You mean well, but it won’t be good if you mess things up. Fortunately, Sis already had Shaoyao report this to the government. The people from Shuntian Prefecture should be here soon."

This news settled Ye Yunfeng’s nerves, and he nodded vigorously.

"Don’t worry! I’ve been here for a while. In that time, no one has entered or left the residence. I guarantee I haven’t given anyone with ulterior motives an opportunity to tamper with anything!"

Ye Chutang nodded. "In that case, we won’t go in either. We’ll just wait out here."

The onlookers were dumbfounded.

They had seen people starting trouble, but they had never seen the tables turned quite like this!

Just moments ago, wasn’t it Ye Shixian accusing Ye Chutang of driving her mother to her death? How had the situation flipped so completely that Ye Chutang and her siblings were now the ones blocking Ye Shixian’s doorway?

Ye Shixian glared at the siblings, her anger reaching its peak.

She quickly ran through everything in her mind one more time. Certain that she hadn’t left any loose ends, she took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.

’No matter what, my mother did hang herself, and she did leave this letter written in blood. Even if the government investigates, they won’t find anything!’

’When the time comes, Ye Chutang will never be able to escape the accusation of driving her aunt to suicide!’

’This alone will be enough to completely ruin her!’

’From now on in the capital, it won’t matter that she owns Yunlai Tavern, and it won’t matter that she has the Long Princess Mansion and the Dingbei Marquis Mansion backing her. Her reputation will be utterly destroyed!’

’Success or failure all comes down to today!’

Ye Shixian closed her eyes, then turned to face the main gate and dropped stiffly to her knees.

"Mother! Your daughter will get justice for you today!"

As she spoke, hot tears streamed down her face, silently soaking into her clothes.

It was a truly heart-wrenching sight.

Ye Yunfeng couldn’t stand to watch. "Her own mother is dead, yet instead of arranging the funeral rites, she still has the energy for such a pathetic act?"

Ye Chutang said, "They are mother and daughter, after all. How could she not be heartbroken? It’s only natural for her to cry."

Ye Yunfeng snorted.

He had seen many people who had lost their parents and loved ones before. Some wailed in grief, others stood numb and frozen. During the famines, when refugees dropped dead one by one along the road, some people had no reaction at all, simply digging a pit to bury the body and moving on.

But he had never seen anyone like Ye Shixian. Her mother dies, and she does nothing about it, instead grabbing a blood-written letter to stir up trouble, all while refusing to report it to the authorities.

Suddenly, the sound of urgent footsteps approached.

The crowd turned to look, and someone shouted, "The people from Shuntian Prefecture are here!"

A group of guards hurried over, led by a man in an official’s uniform with a harried expression.

Ye Jingyan said in a low voice, "That’s a fifth-rank official uniform. It’s Zhang Qian, the Chief of Administration for Shuntian Prefecture."

Ye Chutang nodded.

No one heard his words, and naturally, no one noticed that a mere fourteen-year-old Imperial College Student was so familiar with the officials serving in the capital’s various government offices.

Even without having met the man, he had deduced his identity from his uniform alone.

The crowd quickly parted to make way.

Zhang Qian’s gaze immediately fell upon the graceful young woman standing behind the crowd.

He wiped the sweat from his brow and quickened his pace.

"Someone reported a death here? What exactly is going on?"

Ye Chutang stepped forward and bowed. "This humble daughter, Ye Chutang, greets you, Your Excellency."

Zhang Qian’s eyebrow twitched.

Of course he recognized the young woman before him! Her name was practically legendary!

For an ordinary case, he wouldn’t have had to come in person. But the moment he heard *she* was involved, his head began to throb, and he had scrambled to bring his men over.

Who didn’t know who her backers were?

Zhang Qian’s lips were dry. He raised a hand. "Let’s dispense with the pleasantries. We should get to the case as soon as possible."

His eyes scanned the area and finally landed on the kneeling Ye Shixian.

"It was you, wasn’t it? You claimed Ye Chutang killed your mother. Where is the body?"