Chapter 25: Chapter Xi Wenzhe rarely overslept.
Years of discipline had made waking early a habit so deeply ingrained that even after a restless night, his body still stirred shortly after dawn.
The moment he opened his eyes, however, he felt a familiar headache pressing against his temples.
The events of the previous night immediately surfaced in his mind.
The fire.
Li Mei.
Su Yueqing’s strange thoughts.
The evidence Dong Li had found.
And his mother’s inevitable reaction once she learned the truth.
Xi Wenzhe sat up slowly and rubbed his forehead.
He had barely finished dressing when a servant hurried into the courtyard outside.
"Young Master, the Duchess has arrived."
His hand paused.
For a brief moment, he closed his eyes.
As expected.
Nothing escaped his mother’s eyes for long.
"Let her enter."
A moment later, the doors opened.
Lin Meiyun walked inside with several maids following behind her.
Unlike her usual elegant and gentle appearance, there was a coldness in her expression today that immediately made the atmosphere inside the room become heavy.
Xi Wenzhe stood and greeted her respectfully.
"Mother."
Lin Meiyun nodded once before taking a seat.
She did not immediately speak.
Instead, she calmly accepted the tea a servant offered her before finally raising her eyes toward her son.
The silence stretched.
Xi Wenzhe knew that look.
It was the look she always wore whenever she was waiting for someone to confess before she exposed everything herself.
"Is there something you would like to tell me?" she asked finally.
Her voice was calm.
Xi Wenzhe remained silent for a moment before replying.
"No, Mother."
Lin Meiyun stared at him.
Then she suddenly laughed.
It was not a pleasant laugh.
It was the laugh of someone who had just lost patience.
"Is that so?"
The room instantly became colder.
Xi Wenzhe lowered his gaze slightly.
Without another word, Lin Meiyun turned toward one of the maids behind her.
"Bring it."
The maid immediately stepped forward carrying a cloth bundle.
Before anyone could react, Lin Meiyun grabbed it and threw it onto the floor.
The bundle rolled across the ground and stopped near Xi Wenzhe’s feet.
The moment he saw it, his expression changed.
He recognized it immediately.
It was the very same bundle Dong Li had recovered from Li Mei’s quarters.
The room fell silent.
Lin Meiyun’s eyes narrowed.
"Do you think I do not know what happens inside my own household?"