Chapter Forty-Three: Departure

After Shen Yi had completed the task as instructed by Yan Heru, he returned immediately, not daring to delay even for a moment. The pressure Yan Heru exerted on him was almost identical to that of the Ninth Prince, which made Shen Yi begin to doubt whether the person before him truly was Yan Heru at all.

Yan Heru was supposed to be nothing more than the unfavored sixth young lady of the Yan family, not even born of the main wife, so how could she possess such an intimidating presence?

Shen Yi could not comprehend it, but he knew one thing for certain: he had to report back as soon as possible. He was not clear on the specifics, but he was sure that Yan Heru was no longer the same naive girl who had just entered the Prince’s residence.

“Princess, it’s done,” he reported.

Yan Heru nodded in satisfaction at his return. “I do not know how you managed to let such a grown person slip past you, but I hope you will be more vigilant from now on. Do not let idle people wander into my courtyard again.”

“Yes,” he replied.

“Very well. You may go,” she said coolly.

Shen Yi accepted his orders and departed. He made a mental note of the Princess’s transformation, intending to report it to the Prince upon his return. This time, he dared not be careless. For the Sixth Prince to have slipped silently into the Princess’s residence right under his nose was, from any perspective, a grave failure on his part—his own dereliction of duty.

Was Shen Heyue truly this formidable now?

Shen Yi had always known that only Shen Hezhi and a few of his close friends could stand up to Shen Heyue. Though he himself could not defeat Shen Heyue, he had never failed to notice his arrival before. This meant that Shen Heyue’s martial skills had advanced yet again.

For Shen Hezhi, this was hardly good news.

A sudden anxiety welled up in Shen Yi’s heart.

After tidying up, Yan Heru prepared to leave her chambers, only to be surprised by the arrival of her so-called father.

Master Yan entered her courtyard, his face twisted with fury. He marched in, brimming with anger, and wasted little time before venting it by smashing whatever he could find in the garden.

Yan Heru, just stepping outside, was greeted by this scene: a man in a violent rage, taking out his wrath on the flowers and plants. She simply leaned quietly against the doorframe, watching him unleash his temper.

Master Yan noticed Yan Heru’s presence but, wanting to make a display of his authority, decided to let her witness just how angry he was.

If it had been before, his sixth daughter would have rushed forward in fear, anxiously asking whether she had done something wrong.

He had to admit, the scenario he’d constructed in his mind was a good one. If she had been the Yan Heru of old, she would indeed have done exactly as he expected.

But the Yan Heru before him now...

“You! Do you not even know what you’ve done wrong?” Master Yan finally halted his outburst—after all, everything in the courtyard had been bought with his own silver.

“Oh? What have I done wrong? It was you, Father, who came to my courtyard at the break of dawn, raging and smashing things. Why are you asking me what I’ve done wrong?” Yan Heru looked him straight in the eye, unafraid.

“You… you…!” Master Yan was so incensed he could only point at her, at a loss for words.

At that moment, Yan Heru poured fuel on the fire: “I most detest being pointed at by others. Though you are different from other people, Father, I can only forgive you this once. If it happens again, I will snap your finger without hesitation.”

“You unfilial girl! Last night you angered your grandmother into falling ill—do you mean to drive your father to his sickbed as well?” Master Yan’s voice trembled.

The words ignited a fire in Yan Heru’s heart. No longer able to contain her emotions, she let them erupt.

“Yan Yangchu, as a father, have you ever fulfilled your responsibilities, even for a single day?!”

His name—Yan Yangchu.

“I…” For years, no one in the household had addressed him by name. He was taken aback, but her words left him unmoved.

“You have never once done your duty as a father. Do you even understand what truly happened? Was it really my fault? Last night, the evidence was presented in black and white before Grandmother, yet she refused to admit anything.

The Vice Minister of the Court of Judicial Review was there, and even he could not make the matron confess!

Father, did you not think to ask why Grandmother came last night, why she brought a strange man into my chambers? Did you know? She slandered me! She besmirched your daughter’s reputation!” Yan Heru stared at him in anger.

Her accusations made Master Yan stumble back a step. “Why would your grandmother frame you? If you hadn’t done anything, why would she treat you this way? All these years, has she ever punished you for your mistakes? Hasn’t she always protected you?”

He collected himself, his demeanor softening, but his words remained cold and cutting.

Yan Heru looked at Yan Yangchu, his face righteous and unyielding, and suddenly she laughed.

“Oh, so that’s how it is. I understand now.” She had calmed down.

“So, you are all one family, and I am the outsider. Yan Heru and Yan Hecheng—we are not truly members of your Yan clan, are we? Fine. Ha! Very well!” Her laughter was wild, almost frantic.

Master Yan watched her laugh, his gaze cold and detached. He neither tried to stop her nor offered any explanation. He regarded her as if she were a stranger.

“Yan Yangchu, remember what you have done today. From this day forth, there is no bond between father and daughter.”

Yan Heru turned to leave. Master Yan, momentarily stunned, rushed to block her way. “Stop! Did I say you could leave? After committing such a grave mistake, you think you can walk away?”

He barred her path, but when Yan Heru looked up at him, he felt a pang of unease.

She stepped closer, looking him straight in the eye, and said, word by word, “My mistake? Do you have proof? If not, as the Princess of this household, I am leaving now. Do you dare to stop me?”

Master Yan fell silent. Now that she had invoked her status as the Princess, he had no grounds to stop her.

Seeing his silence, Yan Heru skirted around him and made to leave. At the threshold, she paused, did not turn around, and left him with one final remark.

“You are not a worthy father, only a man driven by self-interest.”

Yan Heru was gone.

Master Yan watched her departing figure in silence for a long time, then finally sighed and made his way toward the old matron’s quarters.

This matter was far from over. The old matron’s crimes would not be forgiven simply because she had fallen ill.