The legitimate daughter returns to the capital and embarks on a splendid life, tearing apart the fak

Doctor Du licked his chapped lips and spoke with difficulty, "Your Highness, Second Miss, you are right. I forgot to mention earlier... I have indeed known Madam Liu for a long time."

Yun Jin pressed further, "How exactly did you two meet?"

The physician from the Du family glanced at Xiao Jingyan, met his calm and indifferent gaze, swallowed hard, and then continued:

"I...I met her in the southern border region. Back then, she wasn't called Liu Zhixue, she was called Ayi."

Yun Jin asked in surprise, "She's from Southern Xinjiang?"

Doctor Du nodded and continued, "Yes, she is a maidservant of the First Madam of the Mu family in Southern Xinjiang. My mother once treated the First Madam of the Mu family, and I followed my mother in and out of the Mu family, so I know her."

Xiao Jingyan was already seated in his chair, leaning back and lightly tapping his fingers on the table. He asked with a puzzled look, "How did she, a maid from the Mu family of Southern Xinjiang, end up in the Central Plains and even change her name?"

The physician, Du, shook his head: "I truly do not know this. When I met her in Jizhou, she had already become Liu Zhixue, the young lady of the Liu family in Jizhou."

As for how she became Liu Zhixue, I asked her about it before, but she was very evasive, only saying not to ask, as asking too much would not do me any good.

Yun Jin thought about Liu Zhixue's past and asked, "How did Liu's stepfather and the young master of the Liu family die? Was it her...?"

Doctor Du hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "Yes. They were all killed by Madam Liu... She wanted to seize the Liu family's property, so she asked me for medicine, the kind of slow-acting poison that gradually drains a person's energy and spirit. After drinking the medicine, the Liu father and son grew weaker day by day, and outsiders just thought they died of illness."

Yun Jin's expression darkened. She hadn't expected this woman to be so ruthless. It seemed that she hadn't been careful enough before.

Suppressing her emotions, she continued, "And what about her mother? The biological mother of Zhenliu Zhixue, how did she die?"

The physician from the Du family stiffened slightly and remained silent for a while before speaking: "Liu's mother... died on the way to Jiangnan. After selling her property in Jizhou, Liu took her mother south with her. On the way... her mother discovered the truth and realized that she was not the real Liu Zhixue."

Then…she pushed her into the river. It was nighttime, and no one saw anything. The next day, they just said it was an accidental fall, and they never even recovered her body.

Xiao Jingyan's fingers paused lightly on the table. He looked up at Physician Du and asked, "I have another question for you: how did Lady Liu and Consort Shu meet?"

The physician from the Du family trembled slightly and remained silent for a long while before speaking with difficulty: "Your Highness, this matter... Lady Liu has never explained it to me in detail. I only know that Consort Shu knew her before she entered the palace, but as for how they met, I truly do not know."

Xiao Jingyan didn't speak, but just looked at him calmly, tapping his finger on the hilt of the knife on the table.

The physician, Du, was terrified and quickly added, "This humble servant wouldn't dare deceive Your Highness! I was merely working for Lady Liu; she doesn't tell me many things. As for how she met Consort Shu, I only overheard her slip of the tongue once after drinking..."

"What did you say?" Xiao Jingyan asked.

"She said," Doctor Du swallowed hard, trying to recall, "that she and Consort Shu had been friends since childhood, closer than anyone else. She also said that Consort Shu's background was unknown to others, but she knew it all."

Yun Jin and Xiao Jingyan exchanged a glance.

Childhood friendship?

Consort Shu is a noblewoman in the capital, while Liu Zhixue is a maid in the southern border. One is in the capital and the other is in the southern border. How could they possibly have been friends since childhood?

Yun Jin frowned slightly and asked, "Consort Shu is from the capital, and her father is Minister Qiu of the Ministry of War. You said that Liu Zhixue and she have been friends since childhood, but that doesn't make sense."

The physician from the Du family hurriedly said, "Second Miss, I also found it strange at the time, so I asked one more question. Madam Liu didn't elaborate, but just smiled strangely and said, 'The daughter of the Qiu family in the capital may not have grown up in the capital.'"

Xiao Jingyan leaned back in his chair, his eyes filled with meaning, and said, "That's an interesting statement."

Yun Jin tilted her head to look at him: "What do you know?"

Xiao Jingyan did not answer immediately, but instead asked, "How did Liu Zhixue meet Yun Heting, and what was her purpose in coming to the Yun family?"

The physician, Du, shook his head: "I truly do not know this. When I came to the capital, she lived alone in a courtyard in the south of the city. She introduced me to the Yun family as their physician. I only learned later that she was actually Lord Yun's mistress. And the eldest daughter of the Yun family was actually her biological daughter."

Yun Jin thought for a moment and then asked, "What you've done is what harmed my mother and my brother. Does my dear grandmother know about this?"

The physician from the Du family paused for a moment, then nodded: "He should know. When the old lady was still at home, Liu was extremely flattering to her and won her favor."

Yun Jin nodded and fell into deep thought. She went through Doctor Du's words in her mind and felt that things were getting more and more complicated. She never expected that Liu Zhixue was actually from the Southern Frontier.

What exactly was her purpose in approaching the Yun family? And why did she want to push the Fifth Prince to the throne? Was it for the Fifth Prince himself, or for the position itself?

The whole thing is getting more and more confusing.

Seeing him deep in thought, Xiao Jingyan turned to Physician Du and asked, "Are you aware that Madam Liu leaves the manor every month to meet someone?"

The physician, Du, shook his head again: "Your Highness, I truly know nothing about this matter. She is the eldest young lady's tutor in the manor, while I am merely a physician. One of us works in the inner courtyard, and the other in the outer courtyard, so we rarely have any contact. She only sends someone to find me when there is a problem."

Hearing their conversation, Yun Jin snapped out of her reverie, took out a portrait from her sleeve, unfolded it, and handed it to Physician Du: "Do you recognize this person?"

The physician, Du, raised his eyes, his gaze falling on the portrait, and his pupils contracted sharply: "It's him?"

Yun Jin quickly pressed, "Do you know him?"

The physician, Du, swallowed hard. "He is the eldest son of the Mu family in Southern Xinjiang!"

Xiao Jingyan suddenly stood up: "Mu Yanqing? It's him? He's been in the capital for so many years, what exactly is he trying to achieve?"

The physician, surnamed Du, replied with a wry smile, "Your Highness, you've really put me in a difficult position. If you two hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have known he'd come to the capital. How would I have known the reason behind this?"

Yun Jin and Xiao Jingyan exchanged a glance, and Xiao Jingyan suddenly asked, "Where did you get that Cold Jade Powder?"