Chapter 173

Yang Yucheng slapped Zuo Junjie across the face with a sharp crack. "You still won't come clean? I may not have eaten pork, but I've certainly seen pigs run! You think passing the imperial exam is that easy? And you're promising to guarantee he passes? If you want to shirk your duty, at least come up with a better excuse! You'd better start telling the truth..." As he spoke, there was another crack as he snapped off another one of Zuo Junjie's fingers.

Zuo Junjie's miserable screams echoed through the cellar.

"I'm not lying, I swear I'm not lying!" Zuo Junjie groaned and begged for mercy repeatedly. "I begged my way all the way to the capital just to find Young Master Yu... I knew he would definitely come to the capital to take the exam... I never expected that he would actually become the top scholar!" When he said this, his tone was envious and jealous, with a hint of resentment. "I was afraid of being discovered by the Fu family, and afraid that Young Master Yu would deny everything... But if I didn't go to him, who else could I go to?" He muttered. "If the elders of the Yu family found out, Young Master Yu wouldn't just deny it—he'd probably turn the tables on me, and I'd be the one to suffer in the end... Now Young Master Yu serves in the Bureau of Messengers. I saw him several times and wanted to approach him, but he was always surrounded by people. I looked like a beggar and couldn't get anywhere near him, so I had to think of another way... Who knew I'd be discovered by you people? I had to flee to Daxing County that very night and wait for the heat to die down before returning to the capital. I didn't dare go back to Tanzhe Temple, so I begged near the Yu residence. Finally I learned that the second young master of the Ji family on Bensi Hutong was in the same examination cohort as Young Master Yu, and the two families were related. When Young Master Yu had days off, he would often visit the Ji family... I managed to get my hands on a long robe and calculated that yesterday was his day off. I went to loiter in front of the Ji residence early in the morning, but Young Master Yu never showed up..." He then shouted harshly at Fu Tingjun, "If you don't believe me, you can ask Young Master Yu! Liu Shutong of Minnan, just like Zhuo Jingting who serves by the emperor's side, was implicated in the imperial examination fraud case of the twenty-third year of the Xiping reign. But later Zhuo Jingting became an advisor to Prince Mu's mansion, while Liu Shutong made a living taking exams on behalf of others... He promised back then that he could arrange for Liu Shutong to help!" Then he added maliciously, "Maybe the title of top scholar was obtained for him by Liu Shutong!" A glimmer of resentment flashed in his eyes.

That glimmer stung Fu Tingjun's nerves. She snapped back to her senses and stepped forward to stand in front of Yuwei. "You said Young Master Yu wanted to break off the engagement. Why?"

Zuo Junjie was momentarily stunned, then said, "I don't know. I just heard Young Master Yu say once that he would never become the Fu family's son-in-law."

Fu Tingjun was taken aback.

"Why?" she murmured to herself, her face as pale as paper.

"You'll have to ask Young Master Yu about that!" Zuo Junjie said with a hint of schadenfreude.

Fu Tingjun's gaze turned icy cold.

"Don't worry. I'll confront Young Master Yu myself." She looked at Zuo Junjie with a cold smile. "If what you've said is true, I imagine Young Master Yu will be very interested to hear that you're in my hands. But if you've been spouting nonsense..." She didn't finish the sentence, but let out a few mocking snorts, clearly not believing a word he said.

Others might not have met Young Master Yu, but he had dealt with him before.

Fu Tingjun was just a young woman raised in the inner chambers—how would she know what kind of methods Young Master Yu possessed? When the time came, Young Master Yu would probably convince her with a few words and have her hand him over... If that happened, he would become meat on Young Master Yu's chopping block...

The thought flashed through his mind, and Zuo Junjie's face turned deathly pale.

"No, no, no," he said, a terror in his voice that even he didn't recognize. "You can't hand me over to Young Master Yu! He bears ill intentions toward the Fu family... You don't know this, but back then the matter wasn't beyond saving. It was Young Master Yu—I don't know what he said to your father, but your father wrote to First Master Fu, and that's why First Master Fu suddenly changed his mind and wanted to kill me..." He stopped abruptly, realizing he had misspoken, then fell silent. But then, fearing Fu Tingjun didn't understand the gravity of the situation, he paused and continued, "Regardless, this is a matter for the Fu family. Why don't you hand me over to your father? Let him negotiate with the Yu family. I promise I'll testify on your behalf when the time comes..."

Fu Tingjun was stunned. "You're saying the matter could have been salvaged back then, but it was because of Fifth Master that First Master changed his mind?" A strange look flickered in her eyes.

Zuo Junjie grew uneasy as well.

Though it was said that parents were never wrong in the eyes of their children, if Fu Tingjun were to dwell on this and harbor resentment toward First Master Fu and Fifth Master Fu, how could she possibly hand him over to the Fu family?

He couldn't help but argue, "Young Master Yu twists the truth and is extremely eloquent. I suspect your father and First Master Fu were also deceived by him..."

Fu Tingjun's expression softened slightly at this.

Yang Yucheng grew frantic.

Zuo Junjie was a wolf with a thief's heart—saying one thing one moment and another the next. For his sister-in-law to negotiate terms with him was no better than trying to skin a tiger!

He needed to find a way to warn his sister-in-law.

But with Zuo Junjie present, how could he do anything that might tarnish her reputation?

He looked anxiously toward the resourceful Jin Yuanbao.

Jin Yuanbao's brow was slightly furrowed, clearly not entirely approving of Fu Tingjun's approach either.

Seeing that Jin Yuanbao shared his concerns, Yang Yucheng couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Then he heard Fu Tingjun say, "In that case, why don't you write me a guarantee? Nothing elaborate—just write down everything you just said. If what you claim is true, I'll naturally seek out Young Master Yu to settle the matter. But if you're merely spouting nonsense... never mind anyone else, even my Uncle Yang here has several thousand ways to make you regret what you've done today!" By the end, her tone carried a hint of menace.

Yang Yucheng felt embarrassed.

But Zuo Junjie was not afraid.

He had spoken the truth.

And what Fu Tingjun was fixated on was nothing more than clearing her name and reclaiming her innocence! As long as he agreed to testify on her behalf, she would surely pay any price, wouldn't she?

He pondered.

It was only a guarantee. If he didn't write it, Fu Tingjun would certainly think he was lying.

Why not write a guarantee and hand it over, letting the Fu and Yu families squabble among themselves?

Perhaps when the clam and the crane fought, the fisherman would reap the spoils—and that fisherman might just be him!

With that thought, Zuo Junjie said, "Bring me brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. I'll write it out and affix my seal."

Fu Tingjun glanced at Yuwei, who promptly turned and left the cellar.

Yang Yucheng seized the opportunity to approach Fu Tingjun, but Jin Yuanbao reached her side first and said in a low voice, "Sister-in-law, earlier you pleaded with him earnestly, yet Zuo Junjie disregarded his eldest sister entirely. Now he claims to fear for her wellbeing... His attitude changed so abruptly that I suspect treachery... Perhaps you'd like me and Yucheng to interrogate this Zuo fellow again?"

"No need," Fu Tingjun said. "I only want a written guarantee from him. As for its authenticity, I believe that once I go see Young Master Yu and then the Master, I'll know soon enough!"

Jin Yuanbao knew she had already made up her mind. His eyes brightened, and he silently stepped aside.

Yang Yucheng was puzzled.

Zuo Junjie, catching fragments of the exchange, felt greatly reassured.

The Fu family had been looking for him all along.

Rather than being at Young Master Yu's mercy, he would prefer dealing with the two Fu masters. After all, his eldest sister was still a daughter-in-law of the Fu family—and possibly the one who might earn the Fu family a fourth chastity archway. And he was the sole heir of the Zuo family; his sister would never stand idly by and watch him die... As long as he didn't fall into Young Master Yu's hands, there would always be a chance. If he fell into Yu Dagong's hands, given how far things had escalated, Young Master Yu would have no choice but to silence him permanently.

So when Yuwei brought in the writing implements, he even took a moment to deliberate over his wording before writing out a guarantee and handing it to Fu Tingjun.

Fu Tingjun took the guarantee and, escorted by Yuwei and A Sen, left the cellar without giving Zuo Junjie another glance.

Zuo Junjie, looking at Yang Yucheng's cold expression, felt the excruciating pain of the iron clamps on his fingers surge back like a tidal wave.

"Madam Fu! Let me out of here!" he cried out in terror. "This matter should be left to your father to decide! Don't do anything rash—Young Master Yu is no pushover..."

"Since you're so afraid of Young Master Yu," came Fu Tingjun's clear, slightly contemptuous voice from outside the cellar, "for your own safety, I think it's best you stay put in that cellar until this matter is fully resolved!"

Zuo Junjie was stunned.

Jin Yuanbao shot Yang Yucheng a meaningful glance, then turned and climbed up the cellar ladder.

Yang Yucheng chuckled darkly, crouched down beside Zuo Junjie again, and took out his pliers, snapping them open and shut in the air with a "click-clack."

Zuo Junjie's face went pale. "You—what are you doing?"

"Nothing much," Yang Yucheng said with a grin. "Since you've already written your guarantee and my sister-in-law has me guarding you here, we've got time to kill. Why don't I test whether you've been telling the truth..."

"No—!" Zuo Junjie let out a shrill scream.

Jin Yuanbao, already out of the cellar, frowned impatiently at the sound and called down, "Don't kill the man—Young Master Yu might want to see him." Then he closed the cellar hatch and hurried over to Fu Tingjun, who stood in the middle of the courtyard with a somewhat dazed expression.

His sister-in-law must be upset over Zuo Junjie's remark that "your father wrote to First Master Fu, and that's why First Master Fu suddenly changed his mind."

"Sister-in-law," he said hesitantly, "Zuo Junjie is just a cornered dog lashing out. Don't take his words to heart..."

"Among Ninth Master's good brothers, you've always been the calmest and most resourceful," Fu Tingjun said, offering him a faint smile. "Don't offer such insincere consolation again in the future."

That smile lingered lightly at the corners of her lips, like thin mist in the forest—ethereal, translucent, as if a single gust of wind would scatter it into nothingness.

Jin Yuanbao lowered his head in shame. "Sister-in-law..."

"I'm just teasing you!" Fu Tingjun said with a gentle laugh. "No need to be so solemn." Her expression then turned wistful. "Actually, I've had vague suspicions in my heart for some time now—I've just been avoiding them, afraid to think too deeply. It's just as well that Zuo Junjie spoke the truth today..."

Jin Yuanbao felt a pang of sorrow.

What could have driven Fifth Master Fu, a biological father, to abandon a woman as fine as his sister-in-law?

He took a deep breath, mustering his courage. "Sister-in-law, if you think I'm of any use, let me run errands for you?"

"Without you all, this matter truly couldn't be accomplished!" Fu Tingjun laughed at his words. "Even if you hadn't offered, I would have troubled you regardless."

Hearing this, Jin Yuanbao let out a sigh of relief. He smiled and made a deep bow to Fu Tingjun. "I am at your command, sister-in-law!"

Fu Tingjun laughed.

Though she had lost much, she had also gained much.

Heaven was always fair.

Thinking of the beautiful people and moments in her life, she had nothing left to resent!