Bai Yinan was stunned.
He stared with wide eyes at He Kang'an, who was crawling forward while crying. His eyeballs almost popped out of their sockets.
He Kang'an crawled all the way to He's bedside without any hindrance. His face was streaked with tears and snot.
"Cousin, I only did those immoral things for you. Now that something has gone wrong, how can you shift all the blame onto me?
Where in the world is there someone as heartless as you!
It's bad enough that you've harmed your own granddaughter, but now you even want to harm your cousin who has served you for so many years. Even if I haven't made any great contributions, I've at least put in a lot of effort!"
"Shut up!"
He was so angry that her chest heaved violently. She almost fainted.
She glared at He Kang'an. "You scoundrel! How much did that bitch bribe you to come and bite me like this?"
Hearing this, He Kang'an cried even louder. "Cousin, I'm not biting you. It was you who forced me to buy it... Right! When I brought the Ice Cold Powder here yesterday, you told me to give it to your personal maid. That maid can testify..."
"You said it yourself that she's the old madam's personal maid. How could she testify against her own mistress for you?" Feng Linyuan interjected coolly.
Hearing this, He Kang'an first stopped crying in a daze. Soon, his tears flowed even more freely. "My lord, my lord, you have to believe me. It really wasn't me... I have no grudges against Zheng'er. Why would I want to harm her?"
Seeing this, Feng Linyuan glanced imperceptibly at Bai Yinan, who was clearly deeply shocked by the truth before him. Then he said, "I don't trust anyone. I only trust evidence."
"Evidence? Where is there any solid evidence left... When cousin called me over, there were only her and her personal maid in the room. She gave me the silver and told me to find my own carriage instead of using the one from the General's Mansion..."
As He Kang'an spoke, he sobbed and cried.
Gradually, his cries grew softer. When he raised his hand to wipe away his tears, his eyes suddenly lit up. He suddenly raised his head excitedly and said, "Right! Evidence! I have evidence!"
"What evidence could you possibly have!" He retorted quickly.
He Kang'an straightened up defiantly. "Cousin, do you think that just because you've destroyed all the evidence, I really don't have anything left..."
As soon as he said this, He almost immediately glared at He Kang'an fiercely. Her look was so menacing that He Kang'an felt a chill run down his spine.
He shivered and heard He almost spit out a sentence through gritted teeth. "He Kang'an! You'd better watch what you say. He Lin and He Zhen are still young. If anything happens to you, they won't have their father to take care of them!"
"Mother!" Bai Yinan couldn't help but cry out.
This was a blatant threat!
He looked at He in disbelief. Her face was distorted with anger. He suddenly realized that he seemed to have never really known his mother.
However, He's words still had an effect. He Kang'an almost immediately shut his mouth. He stared at He in horror but didn't dare to say a single word.
Feng Linyuan watched the scene with interest. He Kang'an seemed to have stopped talking, but Bai Yinan was looking at He with a complex expression he had never shown before.
It was a look that was a mixture of strangeness, disappointment, and even a hint of disgust.
This was a look that the former Bai Yinan would never have shown to his mother.
Feng Linyuan smiled softly.
His laughter attracted everyone's attention.
Under everyone's gazes, he calmly stopped smiling. He lowered his head and quietly looked at He Kang'an. "Do you think that after His Majesty finds out the truth and discovers that you dared to deceive him, your wife and children at home will still be able to enjoy your care?"
He Kang'an suddenly raised his head. "What does my lord mean?"
Feng Linyuan dusted off his robe. His thin lips parted slightly as he uttered eight words. "The crime of deceiving the emperor means the entire family will be executed."
He Kang'an immediately slumped to the ground. His face was ashen and his lips were pale. His whole body trembled like a leaf.
He had never regretted anything as much as he did now. He should have known better than to get involved in this mess. He should have flatly refused when He asked him to buy the Ice Cold Powder.
Now, on one side was He, his cousin whom he had always been afraid to offend. On the other side was the current emperor.
Although neither of them was easy to deal with, if he had to choose between the two, there was no need to hesitate.
His eyebrows furrowed. He quickly made a decision.
"My lord, I'll talk!" he shouted.
"He, Kang, An!" He was almost out of her mind with anger.
But He Kang'an didn't care about her anymore. He just turned around and said to He, "Cousin, I'm sorry. If I cover for you, that's the crime of deceiving the emperor!"
Then he told Feng Linyuan the whole story.
"I've been working for cousin for more than ten years. I know that cousin has never liked Yinan and his three children.
But I never thought that one day, she would actually try to kill her own granddaughter.
Early yesterday morning, she called me into her room and said that she wanted to avenge Di'er. She told me to buy the Ice Cold Powder.
I tried to persuade her. I said that Zheng'er is no longer the bullied daughter of a junior official. She's now the wife of the Marquis of Dingyuan. Even if the Marquis of Dingyuan's Mansion is in decline, a lean camel is still bigger than a horse. I can't afford to provoke them.
But cousin was so angry about Di'er's death that she lost her mind. She only wanted to avenge Di'er. She wanted Zheng'er to pay with her blood. She wanted the Marquis of Dingyuan's Mansion to be childless.
I had no choice. She forced me, so I had to go."
"What about the evidence?"
He Kang'an nodded like a chicken pecking rice. "Yes, yes, yes. The Ice Cold Powder is extremely difficult to store. When I bought it, Xinglin Pavilion gave me a special bag, which was then placed in a heavy wooden box.
If you touch the bag directly with your hands, your hands will easily be injured by the Ice Cold Powder, leaving purple and blue bruises that won't fade."
As He Kang'an spoke, he rolled up his sleeve, revealing the bruise on his wrist.
"This is the injury I got when I gave the Ice Cold Powder to the maid."
Hearing this, Bai Nianjin finally understood everything.
"Are you saying that the maid also has a bruise on her hand?" His eyes were bright with hope.
But to his surprise, He Kang'an shook his head.
"The maid was very smart. After seeing me get injured, she didn't touch the bag directly with her hands. She just took a look inside to make sure it was okay. Then she told me to put the bag back in the wooden box and take it away."
"What kind of evidence is this..." Bai Nianjin was a little annoyed.
But to everyone's surprise, Feng Linyuan was smiling. His eyes swept around the room meaningfully. "This is actually the most useful evidence of all."
Bai Yinan and Bai Nianjin were both confused. They stared blankly at Feng Linyuan, waiting for him to continue.
Feng Linyuan just smiled. He gathered his sleeves and stood up. He said loudly, "The old madam brought a lot of servants from the General's Mansion when she came. Now that the two masters are not feeling well, why aren't they here to serve?"