Chapter 212: A Series of Schemes
Ye Heng remained silent. He felt it was beneath him to waste another word on such people.
Another inmate spat on the ground. "Quit asking! The man’s no commoner! He’s a Lord! Nothing like us!"
His words immediately drew the attention of several others, who all turned to look.
"A Lord? From which government office?"
"For real?"
"I’d bet on it! Just look at the clothes he’s wearing. Does he look like a commoner?"
"Hah! Who cares what his background is? Now that he’s in here, he’ll have to bow his head just like the rest of us. He probably committed some major crime. There’s a world of hurt waiting for him!"
Several of the men burst into jeering laughter.
Locked up here all day, their greatest pleasure was sizing up and gossiping about the newcomers.
Ye Heng, who clearly came from a different background than the common folk, naturally drew even more of their attention.
Ye Heng’s jaw tightened. He took a deep breath, trying his best to ignore their taunts and chatter.
When he was first imprisoned, he had been truly panicked and had even doubted that person at one point. But now, with so much time having passed and still no news from the outside, he felt he must have been wrong.
’If Su Pei’er were really dead, Su Wei would have already stormed in with his men. And if that person wanted me dead, they would have acted swiftly, not dragged this out for so long.’
’So... something must have gone wrong somewhere, leading to this situation.’
’After all, I still hold plenty of leverage. He wouldn’t be so rash as to abandon me.’
Thinking this, Ye Heng felt a little calmer.
All he could do now was wait.
Faint moonlight streamed in through the narrow window. Looking up, he could just make out the cold, distant moon.
Ye Heng clenched his fists and exhaled slowly.
...
Ye Chutang had a busy day and was truly exhausted. After returning home, she tidied up briefly, then hugged Xiao Wu and slept soundly through the night.
Ye Shixian, however, did not sleep a wink all night.
In her entire sixteen years of life, she had never experienced such a moment of utter helplessness, with no one to turn to for help.
"Miss, you haven’t slept all night. How can your body take it? Please, go and get some rest."
Shaoyao pleaded.
But Ye Shixian didn’t move. Her eyes were unfocused, staring blankly, as if she were in a stupor.
Seeing her like this, Shaoyao’s heart filled with worry and fear.
’Anyone can see the Ye Family is in serious trouble this time. All that’s left is the Young Miss, a sheltered young lady. What are we going to do?’
"Miss, perhaps we could..."
Before she could finish, a noise suddenly came from the courtyard. A thought flashed through Ye Shixian’s mind, and she immediately shot up to look out the window.
"Is that Mr. Murong?! Has he come?!"
When she saw it was only the guards changing shifts, the light in her eyes instantly died.
Her lips deathly pale, she staggered back and collapsed into her chair.
She had been thinking all night and had come to believe that her only hope was Murong Ye.
He had sworn to her that he would plead for her father before His Majesty. Yet an entire night had passed with not a single word from Murong Ye.
Shaoyao saw through her thoughts and couldn’t help but say, "Miss, don’t lose heart. Mr. Murong is devoted to you. How could he bear to stand by and watch you suffer? He must be working on a plan!"
How could Ye Shixian not hope for the same?
She nodded and murmured, "You’re right. The incident yesterday was so sudden, he must have been caught off guard. And with the Heir of Duke Dingbei involved this time, it’s even more difficult to handle..."
At this, the image of that tall, aloof, and otherworldly figure surfaced in her mind again, and she silently wrung her handkerchief.
’Under those circumstances yesterday, he showed absolutely no mercy!’
"So be it!" Ye Shixian closed her eyes, gritting her teeth. "Father is innocent, anyway. We just have to wait for them to uncover the truth!"