The next day, the Prince of Commandery personally visited the Marquis of Jinxiang's residence to confront Lady Fan about the outrageous things Han Zhi had done. Initially, seeing Lady Fan's weary and haggard appearance, he felt a tinge of shame and guilt, thinking that his mother had been overly aggressive, making him reluctant to face her.

  But as he listened to the reports that had just arrived from outside, his expression changed abruptly, his face shifting between anger and disbelief as he looked at the bewildered Lady Fan. After coughing a few times to clear his throat, he asked, "Aunt, did you know that Cousin was hiding someone at his estate in Tongzhou?"

  Hiding someone? Who could he be hiding? Lady Fan didn't understand at first, but noticing Qiuju's discreet hand signals, she suppressed her questions and slowly shook her head. "He's rarely at home, spending most of his time at the estate. He even moved his study to Tongzhou. The people I sent couldn't meet him, so how could I know anything about his affairs?"

  That was true. Han Zhi had always had a strained retionship with Lady Fan. When he was a child, he had been gravely ill, and it was because of Lady Fan's despair that she had almost taken both their lives, poisoning herself and attempting to poison her son, nearly sending them both to an early grave. If not for his mother's intervention, if not for her kindness in alerting his uncle and bringing physicians from afar, Han Zhi would not be alive today.

  Reflecting on this, Zhou Weiqi's eyes flickered. His mother had once been so compassionate towards his aunt and cousin, so why was she now unwilling to lift a finger to help, showing such disdain for them?

  Lady Fan noticed his distracted expression and coughed softly, pulling him back to reality. She looked at him with concern and asked, "Did something else happen?"

  Han Zhi had been left unguided since childhood. Han Zhengqing himself was far from a model of virtue, so what could he teach his son? And Consort Fan, having complete control over Han Zhi's circle, left her powerless to intervene. A once-promising child had been raised with a twisted disposition, feared by anyone who saw him. Even after arranging a marriage with the Zhang family, when the Zhang family encountered misfortune, Han Zhengqing, ever the opportunist, immediately withdrew from the engagement, fearing entanglement.

  Hearing Lady Fan's question, Zhou Weiqi's face flushed with anger, devoid of his usual polite smile. He replied, "He actually sheltered a criminal wanted by the imperial court, forged identity papers for him, and hid him at his estate in Tongzhou. When Magistrate He came by to investigate the gambling den, he accidentally discovered this!"

  Lady Fan's face turned deathly pale, unable to utter a complete sentence. She had heard of tragedies at gambling dens often enough in high society; even if someone were detained by the Jinyiwei, money could usually smooth things over, as long as the censors weren't involved. But harboring an imperial fugitive was a serious crime...

  Her hands, resting on her knees, twisted her handkerchief into a knot. Although her heart was bitter, she maintained an expression of disbelief, her voice trembling as she asked, "An imperial fugitive... Why would he even think of hiding an imperial fugitive?"

  Han Zhi had done such things before. They had managed to silence Zhang Tianhe in the northwest by first securing his legitimate children to coerce his compliance.

  However, even if these people had obtained identities and household registration, they should have long left the capital.

  But Han Zhi had kept Zhang Yuan's son, Zhang Run, in the capital. The Prince of Commandery was filled with frustration, annoyed by Han Zhi's continuous blunders, ever since Han Yueheng's situation. His tone became harsh, "Who knows what Cousin was thinking? If he had saved a Zhang family daughter, perhaps it could be seen as rescuing a damsel in distress since they had a marriage agreement. But he coldly watched the Zhang family's daughter hang herself without a flinch, only to save the Zhang family's young master instead."

  What a farce.

  His unmasked mockery and disdain were like a knife plunging into Lady Fan's heart. She covered her mouth and coughed a few times, her eyes showing a flicker of confusion, but her expression remained calm, resembling a serene statue of a deity.

  Why save the young master instead of the young dy? The answer was obvious. He also wondered how Lady Fan had raised him to prefer men over women.

  The Prince of Commandery stormed out without even sipping his tea, furious at the mess Han Zhi had left him to clean up. He still had to find a way to address this matter, even write to his uncle in the northwest to expin the situation.

  Later, Qiuju entered the room slowly, crouching beside Lady Fan and, seeing her bloodshot eyes, couldn't help but feel sorrowful. "My Lady, there's news. The estate steward arranged for the nursemaid to be sent to the capital through a security bureau... she should arrive within these days."

  Lady Fan's once darkened eyes suddenly sparkled, as if a small fme had been ignited within them. She let out a ugh, her beautiful eyes bright for the first time, as though they were ready to set everything in the room abze. "Good! Good! She will have her day, too."

  A lifetime of endurance, a lifetime of sacrifices, she had no more room to retreat.

  She still remembered when she had given birth to Yueheng; she had lost all will to live. Han Zhi had vanished without a trace in Suzhou, Han Zhengqing was tormenting her daily, and the nanny from the pace sneered and taunted her constantly.

  Bleeding after childbirth, she endured these cold remarks, with no family members even sending a red egg. She somehow remembered one of the nanny's cutting words, "It would be better if you were dead; it would all be over."

  Yes, staying alive only meant more suffering. She'd be better off ending it all with her daughter. Let them do whatever they wanted; she didn't care anymore.

  But just as she tightened the white silk around her neck, the door was kicked open, revealing Consort Fan's startled and Han Zhengqing's angry faces.

  They clearly wanted her dead, but they had come to "rescue" her, letting Han Zhengqing witness her smothering the child with a pillow, the child's legs kicking wildly...

  Many times, she had thought about compromising, resigning herself to fate, and simply living her days peacefully. But Consort Fan would not let her live in peace. It was as if she wouldn't be satisfied until she had tormented her to the brink of exhaustion, leaving her half-dead. If living in such a broken state could bring Consort Fan's satisfaction, she would have been willing to live quietly, keeping her head down for a lifetime. Yet, even after a few brief years of calm, Consort Fan returned, like a malicious ghost haunting her, refusing to let her take even a single breath of relief.