"The laws of Da Wu Country state that stealing is illegal."
Yun Wanye squinted his eyes and spoke in a gloomy tone, "This Yang Xin'er dared to steal right from the top of the Duke Mansion. Truly audacious."
"And then there's Xu Qingqing. It's said that if the beam above is not straight, the one below will be crooked. With such a dishonest mother, I see her as quite suspicious too."
"Father, as I see it, why not send this mother and daughter pair straight to the Government Office to see the officials?"
At that time, he would arrange things nicely at the office and certainly ensure that the mother and daughter die in prison, leaving Xu Qingqing no chance to harm Yun Wanyao in the future.
Also, Yang Xin'er dared to compete with Mother for Father. Truly doesn't know the meaning of death."
"No, no, Aunt, I didn't do it, I really didn't."
Upon hearing his words, Xu Qingqing instantly turned pale with fright, her face drained of color, as she fell beside Lady Yun, clutching her dress and begged.
"You frightened Xiao Si."
Lady Yun kept a cold expression, dismissively pushing her away, and Yun Wanqing nodded repeatedly in her heart.
[Exactly, exactly, Mother is right. You ingrate, don't come near me; I'm afraid you'll contaminate me.]
It was evident that Xiao Si genuinely disliked Xu Qingqing to a certain extent. Lady Yun lowered her head to tease her, her eyes slightly drooped, concealing the faint chill within them.
"Your mother committed theft, and the evidence is irrefutable. I've caught her with stolen goods. She must be taught a lesson. As for you, for years, the Duke Mansion has gone above and beyond for both of you; you're not young anymore, you should find somewhere else."
"What?"
Xu Qingqing's legs gave way, nearly collapsing to the ground, tears falling like broken beads, as she murmured with reddened eyes.
"Is Aunt trying to drive me away?"
"What else? Should the Yun Family continue to support you two for a lifetime? If you really don't want to leave, then go to the Government Office and sit in prison."
Yun Wanye reprimanded coldly, his exquisite and beautiful eyes darkened, shrouded with hostility.
He always felt that Mother was too merciful to Xu Qingqing and shouldn't simply drive her out of the mansion.
However, Mother couldn't hear the younger sister's heart and didn't know how despicable Xu Qingqing truly was. She still treated her as a junior, but this was already quite commendable.
The rest was up to him.
Once Xu Qingqing was driven out of the mansion, she would be left without support. At that time, he could deal with that woman however he pleased, decide whether to kill or keep her for torment, all depending on his mood.
Lady Yun had similar thoughts, planning to deal with Xu Qingqing after casting her out.
Everyone in Haojing's noble families knew about how the Yun Family supported this mother and daughter. If they died in the Duke Mansion, it was inevitable that some unfavorable rumors would circulate.
It's not worth tarnishing the family's reputation over people like them.
The youth's sinister and ruthless demeanor frightened Xu Qingqing, who knelt before Lady Yun with a thud, crying and pleading.
"Oh, Aunt, it was Mother who stole, not Qingqing. Qingqing had no knowledge or involvement in this, I beg Aunt not to take it out on Qingqing."
"Qingqing has nowhere else to go; leaving the Duke Mansion is tantamount to sending Qingqing to her death. Aunt loves Qingqing so much; does she really have the heart to banish Qingqing?"
In this situation, the dreadful old woman Ye Xiwei had firmly resolved to discipline Mother, leaving her with no choice but to sacrifice her mother to preserve herself.
"Husband, I'm tired. Please take care of this matter."
Yet Lady Yun didn't spare her a glance, a second of performance attached to her, closing her eyes and feigning reluctance.
She had always loved Xu Qingqing, and if she suddenly made up her mind to banish her, wouldn't it cause the three father and son and the little one to suspect?
Better to leave it to her husband; seeing Yun Wanye's adverse attitude towards Xu Qingqing, surely as long as she didn't change her mind to keep Xu Qingqing, Yun Wanye would find a way to persuade his father to send her away.
The three father and son and the little one were successfully fooled by her performance, genuinely believing she was reluctant.
But this was a golden opportunity they absolutely wouldn't miss.
With a single command from the Duke, the servants immediately dragged Xu Qingqing away mercilessly, showing no leniency despite her pleas.
Once tossed out, Xu Qingqing remained unyielding, attempting to break back in, only to be beaten up by the servants.
Soon she'd have a bruised face, fleeing while covering her head.
[Oh, the plot is really unraveling; Xu Qingqing actually got kicked out. Is Mother really not supporting her anymore? Has she become clear-headed after Yang Xin'er wounded her?]
[Or is it that the breakdown triggered by Yang Xin'er harming Mother set off a chain reaction, causing the subsequent plot to unravel uncontrollably?]
What?
In the original plot, Yang Xin'er was supposed to successfully harm Mother, but now the plot was exposed and ended?
After hearing the successive heart sounds, the twin siblings vaguely understood the meaning of breakdown. Now, hearing these words, they were shocked and bewildered.
Could it be that Mother could also hear the younger sister's heart?
Previously sparing Xu Qingqing was merely a performance to avoid arousing their suspicion?
If that was true, Mother truly gave a convincing performance, successfully deceiving them.
Since Mother could hear the younger sister's heart, what about others?
The siblings immediately began to suspect each other, their father, every servant in the mansion, and everyone in the world.
It seemed imperative to devise a way to test it out; hearing family members hear the younger sister's heart wasn't alarming, but if any outsiders could hear it, the younger sister would be in grave danger.
Yun Zheng was also somewhat surprised but quickly realized. Yes, Lady Yun must also be able to hear Xiao Si's heart.
Otherwise, she always cherished those Yang Xin'er and her mother, treating Yang Xin'er like a little sister, how could she suddenly make up her mind to confine her to the storage room?
Even those letters were probably arranged by Lady Yun for Nanny Wang to retrieve.
Because she heard Xiao Si's heart, she could timely detect Yang Xin'er's intention to harm her and decisively take action.
Otherwise, if her personal belongings fell into Lin Wei'an's hands and someone manipulated them, Lady Yun would lose all dignity to live.
At this thought, Yun Zheng shuddered, seemingly understanding Xiao Si's heart sound, how Lady Yun was harmed by Yang Xin'er.
Soon, he thought about the matter similar to the siblings; since he and Lady Yun could hear Xiao Si's heart, what about others?
His eyes swept over the siblings without revealing anything, but he saw those two looking ordinary, he couldn't discern anything.
No, he must think of a way to test it out. Yun Zheng furrowed his brows tightly.
"Reporting to the Duke, Lady, upon hearing that the young lady had returned to the mansion, King Qi came to pay a visit."
"He came~"
Upon hearing the steward's report, Yun Wanyao lowered her head and slightly curled her lips, feeling sweetness and anticipation.
Speaking of it, ever since being forcibly sent to the woman's academy by Father, she hadn't seen him again.
[Wait a minute, Mo Yuanhao, King Qi? Isn't that the male lead? Oh no, he's here to ruin things for Sister.]