Reborn into the palace, she seduces the emperor's heart, driving the chief minister to madness!

Chapter 5 is definitely not something a sheltered young woman should have.

The Ministry of Justice prison was dark and damp, filled with a foul stench of decay and mold.

Chu Qingyin, draped in a black cloak that covered her from head to toe, followed cautiously behind her cousin Cui Minghao.

Her heart was pounding, partly because she was about to see her brother whom she hadn't seen in a long time, and partly because she was worried that her plan would be exposed.

"Cousin, you really don't need to come to a place like this."

Cui Minghao turned to look at Chu Qingyin, his brows furrowing slightly. "It's cold and damp here. You've just recovered; don't catch a cold again."

Chu Qingyin forced a smile: "Cousin, don't worry, I'm fine. Being able to do some charity for those prisoners will make me feel better."

Cui Minghao sighed and didn't say anything more.

The group continued walking inside, and every time they passed a row of wooden fences, Xianglan and the jailer would hand out two fresh white steamed buns.

"Thank you so much, kind sir!"

The prisoners expressed their gratitude.

Chu Qingyin didn't listen to a word, her gaze sweeping across each cell, trying to find that familiar figure.

However, after almost all the prison meals had been distributed, there was still no sign of his elder brother, Chu Tianheng.

Just as Chu Qingyin was about to test the waters, she caught a glimpse of a tightly locked iron door out of the corner of her eye.

Seemingly sensing Chu Qingyin's questioning gaze, Cui Minghao stopped and turned around, saying, "Cousin, this place holds serious criminals. You shouldn't go in. Let's go look somewhere else."

Chu Qingyin's heart tightened, but she pretended to be innocent and naive: "Cousin, what kind of serious criminals are locked up inside? Why are they so harsh?"

Cui Minghao hesitated for a moment, then lowered his voice and said, "The most wanted criminal inside is the former Grand General of the Nation, Chu Tianheng."

Hearing her brother's name, Chu Qingyin's heart clenched tightly.

"It was him?"

She suppressed her surging emotions and feigned curiosity, "I've heard of his reputation for a long time, but I've never met him. Cousin, can I just take a look through the iron fence and absolutely not get closer?"

Cui Minghao frowned: "This..."

"Cousin, I'll just take a look, just one look is enough."

Chu Qingyin tilted her head back and blinked her dark eyes.

The original owner already had a delicate and charming face, and due to her recent recovery from a serious illness, her features became even more pitiful and fragile.

Cui Minghao thought about how his little cousin had lost her mother at a young age and had never asked him for anything over the years, so he finally relented: "Alright, but you can only take a look, and then you'll leave."

He took out the key and opened the iron gate.

Chu Qingyin walked quickly to the iron fence and peered eagerly inside.

In the dimly lit cell, a tall and burly man hung with his arms outstretched on the rack of torture instruments. Despite his disheveled appearance and numerous wounds, Chu Qingyin recognized him at a glance as her own elder brother, Chu Tianheng.

In that instant, my heart felt like it was being gripped tightly, and tears welled up in my eyes.

“Brother…” Chu Qingyin’s lips moved, her low, hoarse voice trembling slightly.

The sound was barely audible, and even Cui Minghao beside him didn't hear it. But whether it was the siblings' connection or something else, in the prison, the half-dead Chu Tianheng slowly raised his head.

When Chu Tianheng saw a man and a woman standing behind the window through the fence, his eyes first showed confusion, and then a hint of surprise flashed across them.

Was it just his imagination?

Those eyes... they look like my younger sister's.

No, how could it be Yinyin?

The jailer said that his sister had died of illness in the palace half a month ago.

His poor sister, that proud little peacock, must have suffered a lot of injustice in the palace after the family's downfall...

Chu Tianheng felt a deep sorrow in his heart and painfully lowered his head again.

Not far away, Chu Qingyin gripped the fence tightly, her heart breaking.

She desperately wanted to shout, "Brother, it's me! I'm still alive!"

but……

"Cousin, we should go," Cui Minghao reminded her from behind.

Chu Qingyin snapped out of her daze, took one last reluctant look at her brother, then wiped away her tears, turned around and said, "Okay."

Cui Minghao noticed that her voice sounded a little hoarse and asked in surprise, "Cousin, is that your voice?"

Chu Qingyin coughed lightly: "It's probably because of the strong musty smell here, my throat feels a little sore..."

"Sigh, I told you long ago that a young girl like you shouldn't be in a place like this. Let's go."

"Yes."

Chu Qingyin forced back her tears and followed Cui Minghao outside.

On the way, she tentatively asked, "Cousin, General Chu has been imprisoned for so long, why hasn't His Majesty made a decision yet?"

Cui Minghao glanced at her: "The emperor's heart is unfathomable, how would I know?"

After a pause, he sighed and said, "Moreover, there are many suspicious points in the case of the Chu family, and Consort Chu has only recently passed away. His Majesty is probably thinking of the old friend and can't bear to do it."

Feeling attached to old friends, unable to bear it?

Chu Qingyin almost laughed when she heard this. If she really couldn't bear it, how could she have punished the entire Chu State Duke's family based solely on Lu Zhiheng's one-sided story?

No wonder emperors are so heartless.

"Cousin, is General Chu in danger of losing his life in prison?"

Although he didn't know why his cousin was suddenly so concerned about Chu Tianheng, Cui Minghao still replied, "Don't worry, he's not an ordinary criminal. Before His Majesty convicts him, the Ministry of Justice won't do anything to him."

With these words, Chu Qingyin felt somewhat at ease.

As they spoke, the two walked out of the prison and arrived outside the Ministry of Justice.

The warm winter sun shone on her, dispelling some of the cold and dampness. Chu Qingyin took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.

"Cousin, thank you so much for today."

"Don't say that. We're family. It's rare for you to come to me asking for help."

Cui Minghao waved his hand and looked at his little cousin with concern: "But you shouldn't come to places like this in the future. If someone sees you, it won't be good for your reputation."

Chu Qingyin could sense that the other person was genuinely concerned, and nodded: "I understand, cousin, I won't come again."

Even if I come again next time, I will definitely rescue my brother as well.

"Cousin, you should go back first. I still have some official business to attend to," Cui Minghao said.

Chu Qingyin nodded, bid farewell to Cui Minghao, and turned to walk towards the carriage that had been waiting for her on the street.

The carriage slowly drove away from the Ministry of Justice.

Chu Qingyin leaned against the soft cushion, closed her eyes, and kept replaying the image of her brother's disheveled and haggard appearance in her mind.

"Lu Zhiheng, Pei Yuanling..." she muttered through gritted teeth in her heart.

She will make them pay the price, one by one.

Across the street not far away, a pair of long, narrow, dark eyes were fixed on the carriage that was leaving in front of the Ministry of Justice.

Lu Zhiheng narrowed his eyes slightly, recalling the scene of the girl in the light purple dress talking to the official in the green robe.

If he remembered correctly, the Cui family and the Qiao family were related by marriage.

But this young lady Qiao has just recovered from her illness, so why did she rush to the Ministry of Justice to find her cousin? What important matter could she possibly have to do?

She recalled the complex emotions that flashed in Chu Qingyin's beautiful eyes when she saw her at the Minister's residence earlier.

Although it was only for a moment, that look in her eyes was definitely not something a sheltered young woman should have.

Seeing her at the Ministry of Justice now only makes things more suspicious...

This Miss Qiao doesn't seem as innocent as she appears.

After the carriage had gone far away, Lu Zhiheng knocked on the carriage window without any expression and ordered, "Follow it."