"I am being framed. Don't you think someone is manipulating things behind the scenes, targeting the Yang family?" Wu Qingzhi was furious, wondering who was targeting her at this critical juncture. If Wu Caiwei were in the capital, she would reasonably suspect her, but now she was at the border. Besides, such matters were generally unknown and difficult to investigate.
"I know some people want to sow discord between us, but you must clarify certain things. For example, why was our son born two months prematurely yet healthy? Why did your belly look like it was five months along when you were only three months pregnant? Others thought you were carrying twins." Yang Zhongqing stared at her, his glasses unblinking. In fact, these questions had been buried in his heart for many years. In the past, he would always find excuses for her. When he was out suppressing bandits for a period, his mother was at home, and he thought with his mother watching, nothing too serious could go wrong.
But now, with these matters coming to light, he felt deeply unsettled. If they weren't clarified, he couldn't sleep at night.
"Fine, so even if no one tried to sow discord, you harbored suspicions about me. You heartless man, how many slanders have I endured for you over the years? You only believe what outsiders say and don't consider how many reputable elder physicians examined me, none of whom found any problems. Besides, some people are naturally plump, and their nutrition is all absorbed by the child. Didn't our son come out plump and robust?" Wu Qingzhi looked at him with tear-filled eyes, feeling immensely wronged.
"Do you know why I kept contacting Zheng Rui recently? The Emperor said you had contact with remnants of the previous dynasty and ordered me to comply with his instructions, or our Yang family would be annihilated. Colluding with remnants of the previous dynasty is a crime punishable by extermination of the entire clan." Although he didn't know the Emperor's motive for giving him these orders, Yang Zhongqing felt a sense of grievance whenever this was mentioned.
"Are you saying your recent contact with the Zheng family mother and son was not voluntary?" Wu Qingzhi was stunned and looked at him in disbelief. Why didn't he explain it to her? This led her to seek out those people and nearly get herself into trouble.
"Do you think I genuinely liked that brat from the Zheng family? He's an ungrateful wretch. No matter how good we are to him, the Zheng family still comes first in his heart. Instead of trying to build a relationship with him, why don't we have another child and raise them anew?" Yang Zhongqing looked at her with surprise. At the time, he hadn't told her due to the Emperor's orders, believing his wife understood him and was of a simple disposition. He hadn't told her because he feared she might let slip something and bring disaster upon herself. He hadn't expected her to misunderstand so completely.
"Why didn't you say so earlier?"
Seeing her questioning gaze, Yang Zhongqing suddenly remembered another matter and looked at her suspiciously. "If I recall correctly, it was you who implicated the former crown prince in his capture. Why didn't they reveal your involvement? As far as I know, some people escaped, yet they didn't seek revenge on you."
"What do you mean? You still suspect me. They just want to see us, husband and wife, fight. If you continue like this, you'll truly fall into someone's trap." Wu Qingzhi faltered for a moment, then quickly composed herself. No matter what, she could not admit anything.
"With the rumors spreading like wildfire, do you think the Emperor wouldn't investigate? You're going to bring ruin upon our entire Yang family," Yang Zhongqing felt a sense of powerlessness, as if he had been wrong from the very beginning. If he hadn't married her and had lived a peaceful life with Zheng Nian'er, wouldn't everything be different?
The moment she saw his expression, Wu Qingzhi understood everything. Suppressing her tears, they finally fell. "You regret it? You actually regret it. After marrying you, I worked myself to the bone, and I didn't even dare to attend social engagements, because at banquets, I would see others looking at me with strange eyes. Do you know how much I suffered? And what did I get in return?"
Mentioning this made Yang Zhongqing angry again. It was precisely because he knew she had endured so much hardship with him over the years that he had tolerated her so much. Even when he knew she had sought people to deal with the Zheng family mother and son, he had turned a blind eye, which had led to this great disaster.
Just as he had thought, as soon as the Emperor heard the news, he immediately dispatched people to investigate. The rumors in every street and alley were so vivid, it was as if they were explicitly stating that the Yang family's two children were the former crown prince's. This was utterly intolerable!
Regardless of any discord he had with the Third Prince, the Emperor was of the Gao family, and the empire remained the Gao family's. Furthermore, at present, the enemy was merely confined to those two cities with no signs of advancing. However, if remnants of the previous dynasty were allowed to roam under his nose, and if on some future banquet, ministers brought their wives and children into the palace, they could conspire from within, placing him in a perilous situation.
Some things, when investigated, would reveal the truth. During an outing years ago, Wu Qingzhi had unintentionally saved the former crown prince. At the time, she was merely a young lady of a good family, and feared that contact with an unrelated man would damage her reputation. She had her servants conceal the matter.
Finally, she secretly brought him back to her home to recuperate. However, no matter how well it was hidden, someone had seen. Out of respect for their young mistress, they dared not say anything and had never mentioned it for all these years. But with the Emperor sending people to investigate, it was different. To conceal it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor, and they feared for their lives.
The servants of the Wu family from that year, having no choice, revealed everything they knew about the connection between the two, recounting it in full detail.
Within a few days, the Imperial Guards surrounded the Yang residence, and Wu Qingzhi was sent to prison. Many servants of the Yang family were taken to the Shun Tian Fu. Without any need for torture, those servants confessed everything they knew, hoping the Emperor would spare their lives.
Seated in her prison cell, Wu Qingzhi hugged her two children tightly, tears streaming down her face. It was one thing for her to die, as she had made mistakes from the beginning. But her two children were innocent. From birth, they had believed they were Yang family children. This sudden change was unbearable, and they did not want to die.
Unfortunately, the Emperor had zero tolerance for remnants of the previous dynasty. Soon, they were taken to the execution ground to be beheaded. The Yang family, for harboring remnants of the previous dynasty, was originally slated for execution. However, the Emperor, in consideration of Yang Zhongqing's years of diligent service and numerous military achievements, commuted their punishment, reducing them to commoners.
The day he left the Yang residence with his mother, Mother Yang wailed inconsolably, returning to the days of the Yang family's decline. She had once thought that was the nightmare of her life, only to find herself back there after a twist of fate. Thinking of the perpetrator, her heart ached with regret.
When the news reached Wu Caiwei, she felt a sense of relief. She could surmise that the deaths of the original host and her child years ago were closely related to Wu Qingzhi and the remnants of the previous dynasty behind her.