She remarried a cold-faced, powerful man, and the scumbag regretted it and cried his heart out.

In the deepest part of the imperial prison, the clanging of chains was particularly jarring, mixed with the delirious babbling of a madman, echoing in the empty stone chamber.

Lin Yu unfolded his oilcloth umbrella to shield the rain curtain at the top of the passageway, but it still couldn't stop the damp and cold atmosphere from hitting him.

"A beauty's hair...must be combed with fine wine..."

Gu Changfeng was disheveled, and his once magnificent brocade robe was now filthy and torn to shreds. Where was the former demeanor of a young master from a prominent family?

His hands were bound by heavy iron chains, clanging loudly. He would sometimes laugh foolishly, sometimes cry bitterly, muttering to himself, looking exactly like a madman.

"Hehehe... Beauty... Where is my beauty? My beauty... I want my beauty..." Gu Changfeng chuckled foolishly, his eyes vacant and unfocused.

Outside the prison, Jiang Jin'an stood with his hands behind his back, quietly watching Gu Changfeng, who was acting erratically inside.

Tong Qingyun stood behind him and lowered his voice: "Sir, is Gu Changfeng... really insane?"

Jiang Jin'an didn't answer, but stared at Gu Changfeng as if trying to see through him.

Inside the cell, Gu Changfeng was still talking to himself. He grabbed a handful of straw, stuffed it haphazardly into his mouth, chewed it a few times, and then spat it out, making his face filthy.

“Beauty…there is no beauty…it’s all fake…it’s all a lie…” Gu Changfeng suddenly burst into tears, “Father! Save me! Father! I don’t want to die! I don’t want to die!”

He cried so hard that his voice was hoarse, tears streaming down his face, and he curled up into a ball.

Lin Yu hesitated, scratching his head. He looked at Jiang Jin'an and said tentatively, "Young Master, I don't think Gu Changfeng is faking it. He can't possibly be acting crazy like that, can he?"

Jiang Jin'an remained noncommittal, her gaze sharp as if she wanted to see right through Gu Changfeng.

He stepped into the cell, his gaze as cold as a knife, and landed on Gu Changfeng.

Gu Changfeng seemed to sense something, and suddenly looked up, his gaze unfocused as he looked at Jiang Jin'an. Suddenly, as if he had seen a ghost, he lunged at the prison door, his ten fingers gripping the cold iron bars tightly, his fingernails stained dark red with rust, a shocking sight.

He tilted his head, staring intently at the crystal-clear jade pendant at Jiang Jin'an's waist, drool dripping down his chin as he chuckled foolishly, "This jade... can be exchanged for ten jars of Drunken Immortal Wine!"

Upon seeing this, Lin Yu frowned and instinctively stepped forward to stop him, but Jiang Jin'an raised his hand to stop him.

"Who...who are you? Don't come any closer! Don't come any closer!" He suddenly shrank back into the corner, trembling all over. "Go away...go away...I don't know anything...I don't know anything..."

Jiang Jin'an stood in the center of the cell, looking down at the prisoner with a cold smile: "Young Master Gu, how have you been?"

Gu Changfeng was startled and continued talking to himself incoherently.

"My beauty... my beauty... where is my beauty? Where have you hidden my beauty? I want my beauty! I want wine! I want..."

His voice grew softer and softer until it was almost a murmur.

Jiang Jin watched quietly until his performance came to an end, then spoke again, her voice calm yet carrying an air of authority: "Young Master Gu, there's a limit to feigning madness. Do you think you can escape punishment like this?"

Gu Changfeng shook his head, babbling incoherently. The chains were digging into his wrists, drawing blood, but he seemed oblivious. "Punishment? What punishment? I don't know... Don't kill me! I'm a madman! A madman's words don't count!"

“The madman’s blood is quite red.” Jiang Jin’an squatted down and stared into his eyes.

His kneeling motion startled several rats, which squeaked and scurried into the crack in the wall. "The Imperial Prison has seventy-two instruments of torture, each one capable of making one wish for death but unable to live. The torture chamber is still missing a lantern made from the young master's skin."

The chilling voice seemed to come from the depths of hell, carrying a terrifying coldness.

Gu Changfeng shrank back and shrank back, the back of his head hitting the stone wall with a dull thud.

A putrid stench suddenly filled the air.

Jiang Jin'an's tone suddenly turned cold, like frost in winter, ruthless and merciless: "The Duke of Dingguo's mansion has colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country, smuggled weapons, and squandered government silver on the northern border map. Every single one of these acts constitutes a crime punishable by the extermination of the entire clan. Do you think that by feigning madness, you can protect your family and escape this calamity?"

"No...no...no..." Gu Changfeng screamed in denial, "We didn't...we didn't collude with the enemy...we didn't smuggle...we're innocent! We're innocent!"

Jiang Jin'an's eyes showed even more mockery: "Injustice? The secret letters between the Duke of Dingguo's mansion and the Northern Border are all in the Imperial Study. The evidence is irrefutable. You still dare to say you're innocent?"

Gu Changfeng's crazed expression cracked: "It's the Northern Border! They're using hematite as leverage... Father said this is to find a way for the soldiers to survive!"

He crawled on his knees and grabbed Jiang Jin'an's clothes, "Those secret letters are all forgeries! The arms ledgers are..."

"Boom——"

Thunder cleaved the sky, and torrential rain lashed against the air vents of the prison.

Jiang Jin'an shook off Gu Changfeng and said, "Lin Yu, get paper and pen."

"I'll tell you! I'll tell you everything!" Gu Changfeng slammed his forehead against the ground. "Last autumn hunt, the Chief Secretary of the Prince Qi's residence sent over indigo clay... saying it could be used to forge Father's private seal! And those weapons..."

His words caught in his throat, and he couldn't say anything more.

Jiang Jin'an bent down and grabbed Gu Changfeng by the back of the neck, the force almost crushing his bones: "Do you think that by falsely accusing the Prince, you can overturn the case for the Duke of Dingguo's mansion?"

Gu Changfeng froze, his eyes flickered, and his lips moved as if he wanted to say something but dared not.

The madness faded, and fear and struggle emerged.

Suddenly, the sound of a lock turning came from the shadows.

Jiang Jin'an turned his head and looked over. At the end of the passageway, half of an apricot-yellow hem flashed by—that was the uniform of the Crown Prince's close attendants.

Lin Yu gripped the hilt of his knife, ready to give chase, but Jiang Jin'an stopped him with a look.

Jiang Jin'an ignored the suddenly appearing attendant from the Eastern Palace and instead abruptly changed the subject, asking a seemingly unrelated question: "Do you still wear the wolf fang thumb ring that His Highness the Crown Prince bestowed upon you during last year's winter hunt?"

Gu Changfeng's pupils suddenly contracted. He suddenly remembered that day in the warm pavilion of the East Palace, where incense wafted and the air was as warm as spring. Wen Huaizhang played with the rhinoceros horn cup in his hand and said with a light laugh, "My third brother is most skilled at watching from the sidelines and reaping the benefits."

Jiang Jin'an released his grip and watched Gu Changfeng slump to the ground like a rag doll.

He took the handkerchief Lin Yu handed him and carefully wiped his fingertips. "Relay Prince Gu's words verbatim, without missing a single word, to the Emperor."

As the thunder roared again, Gu Changfeng's mournful howls echoed from the depths of the imperial prison, lingering for a long time.

Tong Qingyun suddenly noticed a very slight curve at the corner of the young master's lips.

That smile was colder than the deepest torture chamber in the imperial prison, startling him so much that he hurriedly lowered his head and stared at the ants struggling in the cracks of the blue bricks.

Jiang Jin'an stepped out of the prison gate, the torrential rain pouring down on the Qilin pattern on his shoulder, making the black color even deeper.

The faint sound of bells could be heard through the rain.

The stage in the Nine-Layered Palace is finally about to be unveiled.