463 Confession
Madam Qin took all the blame and never mentioned Su Xiaoling’s identity.
“I was thinking of kidnapping you and proposing marriage to your parents after the deed was done. Although it is illegal and immoral to do so, I knew that I had to do it. I never expected that you would be the Crown Prince’s fiancée. Fortunately, the heavens were kind enough to not let me make a huge mistake. For this, I specially sent my daughter-in-law and son away because I was afraid that they would stop me if they found out. Now that the matter has been exposed, I will not shirk responsibility and am willing to be punished.”
“It’s just that this matter started because of me alone. Crown Prince and Wisdom King, please be lenient. On account that my deceased hubby has served the country for many years, on account that my son has served the Great Zhou for many years, don’t pursue his fault. This matter was started by me alone. Let me bear it alone.”
After Madam Qin finished speaking, she kowtowed. She hit the ground heavily and let out a heavy groan.
She wanted to sacrifice herself to protect her son and her unborn grandson. She knew that the Sun family would be implicated, but as long as they did not take responsibility, they would just be neglected. If it was more serious, they would be stripped of a few ranks and chased out of the capital. This outcome was the best.
She took the blame because she didn’t want the worst outcome to be in the Sun family.
“For the sake of your son, you can harm others at will? What is the life of an ordinary person to you?”
Su Xiaoling was in disbelief and anger. Could a woman’s life be destroyed so indifferently?
Madam Qin was silent. She admitted her crime and did not defend herself.
“Mother-in-law, what happened?”
“Mother, Mother…”
Zhou Wenjing and Sun Yangxin’s worried voices could be heard from outside. They had returned from paying their respects to Buddha. When they saw that their home was in ruins and that there were soldiers guarding it, Zhou Wenjing instantly panicked. She subconsciously looked at Sun Yangxin.
Sun Yangxin was still very weak and needed Zhou Wenjing’s support. He quickly calmed down and asked the servants for the reason before rushing over with Zhou Wenjing.
Zhou Wenjing lowered her head, not daring to look into Sun Yangxin’s eyes.
When they arrived at Madam Qin’s courtyard, Zhou Wenjing immediately shouted.
As soon as the two of them entered the main hall of the courtyard, Madam Qin covered her face and cried. “My son, I’ve let you down. I don’t have the face to see you anymore. It’s all my fault for being vicious and harming the Sun family.”
Zhou Wenjing released Sun Yangxin’s arm and staggered to Madam Qin. She knelt down and asked in tears, “Mother-in-law, what’s going on?”
As Zhou Wenjing cried, she sized up Madam Qin’s expression.
Madam Qin’s face was filled with shame and self-blame. When their gazes met, Madam Qin lowered her eyes in shame. “Wenjing, my good daughter-in-law, I don’t know how to face you. For so many years, you worked hard for the family and took care of my son with all your heart, but I didn’t care about your feelings. Now that I made a huge mistake and even implicated you, I’m so ashamed that I want to die right here.”
Madam Qin conveyed what she wanted to say to Zhou Wenjing. Zhou Wenjing was smart and understood immediately.
Zhou Wenjing looked at Madam Qin in a daze. Tears fell like rain, but she didn’t say anything.
Her hands unconsciously landed on her abdomen. For the sake of her grandson, Madam Qin willingly admitted all her sins.
“Young lady, why are you at my house?”
Sun Yangxin was shocked to see Su Xiaoling.
In the end, Sun Yangxin shifted his gaze to Madam Qin. He asked with difficulty, “Mother, w-what did you do?”
Why did the girl he had met on the street come to his house?
This matter even affected the Wisdom King. Sun Yangxin felt like he was about to explode. During this period of time, he had been trapped in the residence and knew very little about what had happened outside. He had resigned himself to his fate when Zhou Wenjing got pregnant, but now that such a thing had happened, he really felt a headache.
“It’s all my fault. It’s my fault. She looks too much like Mianmian. I wanted her to become your concubine and ease your pain of missing her. But she’s a good girl. I was afraid that her family wouldn’t agree, so I had evil plans. Now, I’ve harmed others and suffered the consequences. I have nothing to say to defend myself. It’s just that I’ve implicated you and Wenjing. I feel deeply guilty for that.”
Madam Qin’s guilty apology made Sun Yangxin understand the vicious thing she had done. It also made Zhou Wenjing understand what to do.
Sun Yangxin was in disbelief. He staggered two steps back in shock. “You, you, how could you do this?”
Madam Qin lowered her eyes in shame. “I know I was wrong. Fortunately, the heavens opened their eyes and did not let me make a bigger mistake. I deserve to be punished for my evil deeds. Please punish me, Your Highness and the Crown Prince.”
“Mother, you’re a fool.”
Sun Yangxin’s heart ached. He was angry and in pain. He looked at Zhou Zhi and Zhou Heng, lifted his robe, and knelt down. He begged with difficulty, “Your Highness, Crown Prince, this is all my fault. If it weren’t for me, my mother wouldn’t have made a mistake. Please punish me, Your Highness.”
“My mother is almost 70 years old. She’s in her sixties and her body is weak. All of this was caused by me, the sinner. It should be my responsibility!”
Sun Yangxin kowtowed heavily. Even if Madam Qin made a mistake, he could not watch her go to jail. After all, she was his mother. How could he bear to do that?
Sun Yangxin’s words made Madam Qin panic. Almost immediately, she said with a trembling voice, “No, no, no, this is all my fault. My son is an official. This has nothing to do with him. It’s all my fault.”
“Mother-in-law, it’s my fault. If I hadn’t told you about this, you wouldn’t have done this.”
Zhou Wenjing sobbed. She looked up at Su Xiaoling and asked in a choked voice, “Miss, do you still remember me?”
“We’ve met many times at the market.”
Zhou Wenjing took the initiative.
Su Xiaoling recognized Zhou Wenjing.
“It’s not your fault. If it weren’t for my viciousness, I wouldn’t have had the intention to harm others.”
Madam Qin sighed helplessly. In the end, it was all her fault. Everything that Zhou Wenjing did was also what she wanted.
“For the sake of a missing woman, my son has let you down for more than 20 years and wasted your youth. However, I still feel that he has been wronged. This is my son. For him, even if I have to be a vicious person, I’m willing. I only hope that he can live happily for the rest of his life. The little girl is not the person he misses, but her appearance is 70% similar. In order to not let my son have any regrets, I lost my conscience. Now, I’ve suffered the consequences of my own actions. The heavens have opened their eyes.”
Madam Qin was deeply remorseful. Zhou Wenjing had concealed many things from her, but wasn’t she doing that because of her Mother-in-law’s pressure? In this world, which woman was willing to push another woman into her husband’s room? She had dug her own grave!