If you force me to take the blame, I'll spend a day in jail and gain a year's worth of spi

Outside the prison, the sky had darkened at some point, and a light drizzle began to fall, carrying the chill of late autumn, wetting the mottled stone steps and the cold ground.

In the rain, several figures looked extremely disheveled.

The once luxurious brocade robes and skirts worn by Qin Xuehua, Zhang Wanning, Zhang Heng, and Jiang Luohan were now filthy.

They were forced to kneel in the mud by a group of fierce, black-armored guards. The rainwater mixed with mud washed away their carefully applied makeup.

The once high-ranking young masters, ladies, and daughters of the Marquis's mansion are now no different from the lowest prisoners.

Jiang Luohan knelt in the cold mud, her body trembling from the cold and fear. Her carefully drawn eyebrows and eyes were blurred by the rain, making her look even more disheveled.

Her heart was filled with endless regret and resentment. This resentment was not directed at Prince Jing and Prince Qi, who had captured them, nor at the "Young Master Zhang" she was about to meet, but was all poured out on Zhang Heng, who was equally disheveled beside her.

Zhang Heng, that madman, that idiot.

If he hadn't provoked Li Dagang and Mo Di, if he hadn't condoned or even ordered his servants to kill them, how could they have ended up in this state?

She painstakingly cultivated her position in the Yong'an Marquis's mansion, sparing no expense, thinking she would enjoy all the riches and honors. But before she could enjoy them for long, she was about to go to hell with him.

She hated Zhang Heng's stupidity and shortsightedness, hated Qin Xuehua's indulgence and pampering, and hated Zhang Wanning, the troublemaker, even more.

He hated everyone in the Marquis's mansion, feeling that it was these lunatics who had dragged her down.

She forgot how much effort she had put into currying favor with the Marquis's family.

Qin Xuehua and her daughter Zhang Wanning were also ashen-faced, their hearts consumed by endless regret and fear.

Although they loved Zhang Heng, the hatred in their hearts could not be erased after being harmed by him to such an end.

Moreover, they just couldn't understand why, just a few days ago, they were still the high and mighty mistresses and young ladies of the Marquis's mansion, enjoying the flattery and fawning of countless people.

How did I become a prisoner in the blink of an eye, kneeling in this cold, dirty mud, awaiting an unknown fate?

And the source of all this... seems to point to Zhang Yu, who was forced to take the blame by them.

Yes, ever since Zhang Yu left the Marquis's residence.

No, it's as if the Marquis's mansion has been plagued by misfortune ever since they decided to force Zhang Yu to take the blame.

First, the alchemy workshop had an accident, and then the freight station.

In the end, he even became a prisoner.

Could it be... really related to that good-for-nothing?

No, it's impossible.

He's just an incompetent people-pleaser, how could he possibly have such power?

It must be a coincidence.

Qin Xuehua and Zhang Wanning frantically denied that terrible association in their hearts. They absolutely refused to admit that it was their shortsightedness and ruthlessness that had sown the seeds of their destruction today.

They blamed their mistakes on fate, on Zhang Heng's stupidity, and even on Zhang Yu's "bad luck," which seemed to make them feel better.

Zhang Heng himself was filled with remorse.

His hair was disheveled, his face was pale, and he had long lost the imposing presence he once had as the Marquis of Yong'an.

He regretted it, regretted that he shouldn't have forced Li Dagang and Mo Di to come down... But what's the use of regretting it now?

It's too late!

He only hoped that the mysterious "Young Master Zhang" would show mercy and spare his life.

As the group shivered in the rain, each harboring their own secrets, they kept wondering who this "Young Master Zhang" really was.

Are they members of the imperial family?

Is he a holy son of a reclusive sect?

Or is he a rising star in the imperial court?

What kind of bargaining chips should they offer to secure a glimmer of hope?

A light yet chilling sound of footsteps came from the depths of the rain.

The group of people subconsciously looked up.

A stunningly beautiful woman, dressed in a light purple palace gown and with a tall, graceful figure, walked slowly towards them, holding an oil-paper umbrella.

The raindrops hit the umbrellas around her, splashing up tiny droplets, but they couldn't get her wet at all.

She was extremely beautiful, with a cool and noble temperament, especially her phoenix eyes, which at this moment were devoid of any emotion, as if she were looking at ants on the ground.

It was Xiao Fenghua.

She walked up to the group, stopped, and looked down at the four kneeling in the mud. Her voice was cold and devoid of any warmth:

"Let's go, Young Master Zhang wants to see you."

Young Master Zhang?

Qin Xuehua, Zhang Wanning, and Zhang Heng were all taken aback, their hearts filled with doubt and uncertainty.

Young Master Zhang?

How did Young Master Zhang end up in the imperial prison?

Only Jiang Luohan's body trembled violently the moment she heard the words "Young Master Zhang".

A conjecture that she had pondered repeatedly, yet found too absurd to delve into, exploded in her mind like a thunderclap.

All the clues connected together pointed to a possibility that chilled her to the bone, yet she vaguely felt it was incredibly close to the truth.

Could it be... really him?

Yes, there must be some inside story that Zhang Yu knew that made two princesses lower themselves to serve him.

In fact, she had already made this guess when she learned Xiao Fenghua and the other person's identities outside the Chamber of Commerce, but she had been deceiving herself all along.

Jiang Luohan felt a chill run from the soles of her feet straight to the top of her head, even more piercing than the cold rain.

She suddenly raised her head and looked at Xiao Fenghua, but the moment she met Xiao Fenghua's cold phoenix eyes, all the words stuck in her throat.

Xiao Fenghua's eyes said it all.

That wasn't the look one gives to a stranger prisoner; rather, it was... a look tinged with a mixture of disgust and pity, as if looking at a group of pitiful creatures about to be judged.

"take away."

Xiao Fenghua didn't give them any more time to think, and gave a calm order to the black-armored guards behind her.

The fierce guards immediately stepped forward, roughly dragged the four men out of the mud, and shoved them toward the depths of the prison.

The rain is getting heavier.

The icy rain mixed with mud streamed down Qin Xuehua and the others' faces, indistinguishable between rainwater and tears of despair.

They didn't know what awaited them, but the words "Young Master Zhang" and Xiao Fenghua's cold attitude were like a heavy boulder, making it hard for them to breathe.

When Jiang Luohan guessed that the young master Zhang, whom the entire royal family treated with utmost respect, might be Zhang Yu, she was no longer so panicked.

Last time, because of his obsession, Zhang Yu had no choice but to let her go.

Therefore, she was convinced that Zhang Yu still had feelings for her and would not make things difficult for her.

Little did she know, Zhang Yu had already devised a way to deal with her obsession.

To deal with a sycophant, just take action against the dog's owner; that will definitely make the dog hesitate to act.

"Walk!"

As they pondered, the black-armored guard gave a low shout and roughly shoved Qin Xuehua and the others forward.

Unlike Qin Xuehua and the other two who were filled with fear and confusion, Jiang Luohan's feelings were quite complex.

After guessing that the young master Zhang was most likely Zhang Yu, her initial panic and coldness gradually faded away, and she even felt a faint sense of anticipation.

She was confident that, based on her understanding of Zhang Yu's "devotion," as long as she lowered her pride slightly and showed remorse and dependence, Zhang Yu would soften and fall at her feet again.

At that time, she could not only get out of her current predicament, but might even turn misfortune into blessing and become the woman of this young master Zhang, whom even the royal family had to curry favor with.

She even began to fantasize about how to rely on Zhang Yu's favor to trample the two princesses, Xiao Fenghua and Xiao Meier, under her feet.

She was the mistress of the house, while the two princesses were merely concubines; the thought of it excited her.

Thinking of this, Jiang Luohan almost couldn't help but laugh out loud.

She even felt that the cold shackles on her hands were a unique embellishment to her upcoming "flying to the top".

She looked into the deep passageway ahead, her eyes no longer filled with fear, but rather with anticipation and calculation.

Just as Qin Xuehua and the others were filled with anxiety, and Jiang Luohan was indulging in unrealistic daydreams, the passageway came to an end.

They finally met the mysterious Young Master Zhang.