Inside Heavenly Prison, Zhang Heng hurried in with Qin Xuehua, Zhang Wanning, Zhang Qingyue, and the others.
They had just seen Prince Jing's army retreat outside. Uneasy and full of questions, they had tried to find out what was going on, but no one would tell them anything.
The imperial family had ordered everyone to keep their mouths shut. Anyone who dared to say too much might as well be asking for their entire clan to be wiped out.
Since they couldn't get any answers, Zhang Heng and the others didn't want to waste more effort. It had nothing to do with them anyway.
They entered Zhang Yu's cell and immediately saw Heir of Prince Rui, Xiao Yun, kneeling helplessly to one side.
"Huh?"
"What's this...?"
Zhang Heng froze.
A flicker crossed Zhang Qingyue's eyes as she calmly speculated, "Could Zhang Yu be playing some new trick with Heir of Prince Jing again?
"Last time, he put on that 'President Du makes a personal appearance' act. This time, has he actually found someone... who looks a lot like Heir of Prince Rui, Xiao Yun, to play a part?"
It never crossed her mind that he might be the real deal. She assumed Zhang Yu had hired an actor to attract attention.
At that, Zhang Wanning became interested at once.
He strode forward and, without a moment's hesitation, grabbed Xiao Yun by the head and twisted his face up toward her.
The formation's power had pinned Xiao Yun in place, so he could only let her manhandle him. Humiliation and fury filled his eyes, but he didn't dare say a word.
He was afraid of Zhang Yu, so he didn't dare offend Zhang Yu's family either. He could only endure it in silence.
What he didn't know was that he had mistaken their feelings.
Zhang Yu would have loved to see the Zhang Family suffer.
"Well, well."
Zhang Wanning took one look at Xiao Yun's face, paused in surprise, then burst out laughing.
Her voice brimmed with mockery and amusement. "Zhang Yu, you're something else.
"But I'll give you this: the actor you found really does look the part.
"That expression, that little look of humiliation in his eyes—he's doing a great job. How much did you pay him?"
She took Xiao Yun for a "performer" hired by Zhang Yu and insulted him at every turn.
Qin Xuehua stepped forward too. She frowned at Xiao Yun kneeling on the ground, her face twisting with disgust and displeasure.
She scolded Zhang Yu from inside the cell, "Zhang Yu, what kind of nonsense are you up to now?
"First you brought in a fake President Du, and now you've got a fake Heir Apparent kneeling here. Haven't you embarrassed our Marquis Estate enough?
"Do you have to summon the whole Capital City to come laugh at us?"
In their eyes, Zhang Yu was nothing but a clown throwing a tantrum for attention, even trying to "blackmail" the Marquis Estate.
Hiring people to put on a show fit his usual image of "raging uselessly" and "having crooked intentions" perfectly.
Inside the cell, Xiao Sheng heard this and nearly laughed out loud in fury.
Looking at this bunch of blind Zhangs, he felt a wave of absurdity crash straight into his head.
A fake Heir Apparent?
An act?
These people had quite the imagination.
"Outrageous!"
Xiao Sheng couldn't hold back any longer. He pointed at Zhang Wanning and Qin Xuehua and snapped, "You ignorant women! How dare you show such disrespect to Heir of Prince Rui? Do you mean to make an enemy of the imperial family?"
He knew Zhang Yu's relationship with his family was terrible, so he didn't hold back at all.
"Enough, Your Highness."
Qin Xuehua cut him off at once, adopting the air of an elder reprimanding a junior.
"I know you and Zhang Yu are close, but that doesn't mean you should let him carry on like this.
"Having a fake Heir Apparent kneel here—what sort of behavior is that?
"If the real Heir of Prince Rui finds out, will our Marquis Estate still be able to live in peace?
"Get up already. Stop acting."
She didn't believe for a moment that the "Xiao Yun" before her was real. She assumed Xiao Sheng was playing along with Zhang Yu.
Qin Xuehua's words nearly made Xiao Sheng choke. He pointed at her, his finger trembling. "You... you people... you're simply unreasonable and hopelessly foolish."
He was too angry to say anything more.
These people were beyond saving.
They had no idea what they were dealing with.
Zhang Wanning ignored Xiao Sheng's anger and turned toward Zhang Yu in the cell, scolding him sharply.
"Zhang Yu, you're still wasting your time with all these ridiculous theatrics?
"Do you have any idea how much trouble that Chen Dongpeng you found has brought down on Dingsheng Workshop?"
"The Earth Fire Formation at Dingsheng Workshop is completely out of control now, and the alchemy furnaces keep exploding. The losses are enormous.
"On top of that, we can't deliver a huge number of orders. Do you have any idea how much we'll have to pay in compensation?"
"This mess is all your doing. You'll take full responsibility."
Zhang Heng hurried forward too, chiming in with an expression of "heartfelt anguish" and "righteous indignation."
"Eldest Brother, I know you're angry, but you can't drag the Marquis Estate down with you.
"Dingsheng Workshop is the backbone of the Marquis Estate. Because of the person you found, it's all but shut down now.
"How are we supposed to live from here on? You have to find a way to fix this. Otherwise, I'll never forgive you."
Qin Xuehua joined in, her voice icy. "Zhang Yu, we let you get away with your antics before, but this time you've caused a disaster. You owe the Marquis Estate an explanation.
"Even if you die in Heavenly Prison, I'll never forgive you."
The three of them sang the same tune, shamelessly dumping all the blame for Dingsheng Workshop and all its losses onto Zhang Yu.
They acted as though Zhang Yu were the culprit and they were the innocent victims.
Inside the cell, Zhang Yu calmly swept his gaze over these shameless "family members." A cold smile curled at his lips.
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