Chapter 172

The words were crude, but honest. Unlike some people who say one thing and do another.

Fu Tingjun's nose tingled, and she smiled, saying, "I was just worrying about what to do if Zuo Junjie refused to be honest. Luckily, Uncle Yang helped me come up with a good idea!"

Yang Yucheng and Jin Yuanbao were startled and looked at Fu Tingjun in unison.

Fu Tingjun's gaze was clear and bright, her expression sincere and earnest—one look made it obvious she was speaking from the heart.

The two couldn't help but exchange a smile.

Zuo Junjie, whose head was still ringing from the slaps Yang Yucheng had dealt him, had a face swollen like a steamed bun, curled up and groaning.

Yang Yucheng stepped forward and kicked him a few times. "Stop your damn antics and get up to answer the questions."

Zuo Junjie stiffened his neck and shouted, "Fu Tingjun..."

The words had barely left his mouth when Yang Yucheng's kicks came flying in.

Zuo Junjie broke out in cold sweat from the pain and begged for mercy repeatedly: "Stop hitting me, stop hitting me, I won't dare again, I won't dare again..."

"You really don't know when you're well off." Yang Yucheng spat at his face. "If it weren't for my sister-in-law wanting to question you, do you think you'd still be breathing?" With that, he stomped his foot on Zuo Junjie's face and ground it in. "Speak properly now. If you dare say one more wrong thing, I'll show you what real beating means!"

The coarse sand and gravel of the cellar scraped against Zuo Junjie's face, leaving streaks of blood both deep and shallow, causing him a sharp sting of pain.

Zuo Junjie widened his eyes and stared fixedly at Fu Tingjun.

But Fu Tingjun merely smiled faintly, a trace of disdain showing between her brows. "Zuo Junjie, why did you frame me?"

"I didn't frame you." Zuo Junjie glared at Fu Tingjun, a flicker of malice flashing in his eyes. "The bellyband was something you gave me—it's just that 'a graceful lady is a gentleman's good match'... If you didn't want anyone to know, I could have kept my mouth shut. Why accuse me of framing you?"

Fu Tingjun was so angry her face flushed red.

Yang Yucheng stepped forward to kick him again.

But Fu Tingjun stopped him.

She looked coldly at Zuo Junjie. "Do you know that because of you, Moxiang died, Zheliu died, Jiancao died, and even Xuerong, who hadn't even let her hair grow long in my quarters, died too! Yet even now, you don't think you've done anything wrong, and you still spout nonsense and slander others. How did our Fu family raise such a degenerate like you?"

"Why did the Fu family raise this degenerate? You should go ask your eldest uncle about that." Zuo Junjie's mouth twitched, a hint of mockery appearing between his brows. "If it weren't for the chastity arch, would the Fu family have fed and clothed me? Would they have paid for my schooling? Don't act all sanctimonious here. What the Fu family gave me isn't even a tenth of what my elder sister gave. You don't need to use that condescending tone—this is what I deserved, what my sister traded her whole life for."

"As for the deaths of those maidservants—was it because of me? It was because of you! If you hadn't been so proud of your status and refused to marry me, how would those people have been caught up in this disaster? When you accuse me, shouldn't you also reflect on yourself?"

Looking at Zuo Junjie, who twisted right and wrong so blatantly, Fu Tingjun felt that anything more she said would be superfluous.

But Yuwei couldn't hold back and jumped out, pointing at him and cursing: "You're shameless!"

"When I'm speaking with your young lady, when did it become your turn, you lowly slave girl, to interrupt?" Zuo Junjie snorted coldly. "Or has your young lady fallen so far that she can't even maintain such decency anymore?"

"You bastard!" Yuwei stepped forward to tear into him. "How dare you insult the mistress..."

"Yuwei," Fu Tingjun called her back. "When a person has no shame, there's nothing they won't do. He's already thrown away his shame now—talking to him is pointless."

Yuwei looked at Zuo Junjie, who wore a completely unconcerned expression, and stamped her foot hard, turning her face away.

Fu Tingjun then asked him, "Zuo Junjie, have you made up your mind not to talk?"

"I've said everything I need to say—what more do you want me to say?" Zuo Junjie sneered. "Or do you want me to help you frame someone else? Unfortunately, I, Zuo Junjie, am not that kind of person. You've miscalculated!"

"What a silver tongue!" Fu Tingjun mocked. "Too bad it's you who has miscalculated! Don't think that just because you won't talk, I have no way. Don't forget, the eldest sister-in-law is still in the Fu household! And from what the family says, Eldest Aunt is very angry that the eldest sister-in-law secretly let you go, so much so that she made her move to the Tingxiang Pavilion in the back garden. You grew up in the Fu family, so you should be familiar with Tingxiang Pavilion. It's surrounded by water on three sides—damp and cold in winter, plagued by mosquitoes in summer. Even the more respectable old maidservants in the household wouldn't live there..."

Zuo Junjie remained unmoved.

Fu Tingjun felt someone tug at her sleeve.

She followed the direction and saw Jin Yuanbao looking at her.

"What's the matter?" she asked in a low voice.

Jin Yuanbao's lips twitched, and after a long moment, he murmured, "Sister-in-law, this Zuo Junjie is cold and wicked. No matter how you question him, I doubt you'll get anything useful out of him. I think... perhaps we should try a different approach..."

"A different approach?" Fu Tingjun asked, puzzled. "What kind of approach?"

Jin Yuanbao exchanged a glance with Yang Yucheng, a hint of embarrassment on their faces. He lowered his voice and said, "Perhaps... perhaps we should use torture..." As he spoke, he carefully studied her expression.

A warmth spread through Fu Tingjun's heart.

They wanted to help him. They knew she was using the wrong method, yet they were afraid of leaving her with a cruel impression, which was why they hesitated so. But despite that, they ultimately chose the approach that was best for her.

Without a moment's hesitation, she said, "Then let's do as you suggest—use torture!"

Jin Yuanbao and Yang Yucheng's faces lit up with relief. "The cellar is cramped and narrow. Please, sister-in-law, go upstairs and rest for a while. If there's anything you wish to ask, just leave it to us."

They were thinking of her so considerately—she couldn't possibly retreat now.

Besides, this was ultimately her own affair.

Fu Tingjun summoned her courage: "Let's question him together!"

"How can that be?" Yang Yucheng said urgently.

Jin Yuanbao, however, pondered for a moment, then said, "Very well, let's interrogate Zuo Junjie together!"

"Jin Yuanbao!" Yang Yucheng shot him a dissatisfied glare.

Jin Yuanbao said solemnly, "Capturing Zuo Junjie is only the beginning. Some things we can help sister-in-law with, but some things she must face alone. Going through this will also help her build her courage."

Yang Yucheng said no more.

Fu Tingjun, however, was filled with gratitude.

Yang Yucheng thought for a moment, then went up and fetched a wooden bench and a pair of pliers. He then tied Zuo Junjie back onto the bench.

When Jin Yuanbao had tugged at Fu Tingjun's clothing, Zuo Junjie's heart had already begun to sink.

He knew that now that he had fallen into Fu Tingjun's hands, there was no way he would come out of this well.

But judging from Fu Tingjun's dress, her living quarters, and the way she spoke and acted, Jin Yuanbao and Yang Yucheng were likely her husband's men. His only chance now was to deny everything to the end, gambling that Jin Yuanbao and Yang Yucheng would relay his words to her husband, thereby sowing suspicion in her husband's mind and stripping her of his support... Then he would have confidence he could escape.

Zuo Junjie pricked up his ears, straining to hear what they were saying. Unfortunately, Yuwei and A Sen were blocking the way, and their voices were too low—he couldn't hear a thing.

When he saw Yang Yucheng come in carrying a pair of iron pliers, a sense of dread immediately washed over him. When Yang Yucheng tied him to the bench, that feeling only intensified.

He couldn't help but struggle: "What are you doing? Let me go! Don't be fooled by that woman Fu Tingjun..."

Hearing this, Yang Yucheng slapped Zuo Junjie's cheeks hard, and they immediately turned bright red. "I told you, whatever my sister-in-law asks, you answer. If you don't answer well, I'll show you what it means to be beaten." As he spoke, he flashed a somewhat roguish smile and said, "And right now, I'm about to start hitting you!"

That smile, and that strange way of tying him up, both made Zuo Junjie's heart race with panic.

"No, no, no!" he cried out in terror. "Everything I said is true—I wasn't lying..."

"Did I say you were lying?" Yang Yucheng raised an eyebrow, looking at him with a "are you an idiot" expression, then picked up the iron pliers and snapped them open and shut in the air with a "clack-clack."

Zuo Junjie's skin crawled.

Yang Yucheng then smiled and said, "Sister-in-law, you may begin your questioning now?"

Fu Tingjun didn't know what he intended to do, but since he said they could begin, he must be ready.

"Zuo Junjie!" she said with a stern face. "I'll ask you one more time—why are you framing me?"

Zuo Junjie looked at the iron pliers in Yang Yucheng's hand and hesitated for a moment.

If he changed his story now, wouldn't that be admitting he had been lying?

Zuo Junjie gritted his teeth and said, "I'm not framing you..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Yang Yucheng crouched down, grabbed his hand, and with a "crack," snipped off the tip of his pinky finger.

The fingers are connected to the heart.

Zuo Junjie let out a blood-curdling scream.

Fu Tingjun had never witnessed such a scene. Her heart pounded violently, and she couldn't help but close her eyes. But then she remembered her resolve from moments ago and immediately opened them again—though she dared not look at Zuo Junjie's hand.

Yuwei, meanwhile, had gone pale as a sheet, trembling as she clutched Fu Tingjun's arm.

Yang Yucheng, Jin Yuanbao, and A Sen, however, remained completely composed. Yang Yucheng even said in a languid tone, "I've heard that without a thumb, a person can't write anymore. I wonder if that's true?"

"Don't cut off my thumb, don't cut off my thumb!" Zuo Junjie, terrified out of his wits, begged and pleaded repeatedly.

"Then answer my sister-in-law's question quickly!" Yang Yucheng suddenly lost his temper, standing up and stomping down on his back. "Let me tell you, a man without a thumb may not be able to write, but at least he can still walk. But if I crush your spine, you'll be lying in bed for the rest of your life, eating, drinking, and shitting right where you are!" With that, he pressed down hard with the tip of his foot.

Zuo Junjie let out a miserable scream.

"I'll talk, I'll talk!" He was like a drenched dog, all his earlier bravado gone. "This really has nothing to do with me. It was Young Master Yu—the top scholar of the Jiachen year, Yu Jingxiu—who made me do it."

Fu Tingjun stood there, stunned.

Yang Yucheng and Jin Yuanbao exchanged glances.

"You're lying," Yuwei shrieked sharply. "How could it be Young Master Yu? How could it possibly be Young Master Yu?"

Yang Yucheng crouched down, but before he could make a move, Zuo Junjie cried out urgently, "It's true, it's true! Young Master Yu wanted to break off his engagement with Ninth Miss, but the elders in his family would never agree. So he had to come up with this plan. And he promised that once it was done, he would ensure I passed the imperial examination..."