Chapter 19. The worst, the worst, the worst.

Qin stared blankly at Xiao Qiyu, seemingly not understanding what he was saying at all.

Not only Qin Shi, but everyone in the room seemed to freeze, staring in astonishment at the young man who appeared to have suddenly grown up.

As is well known, Qilang was aloof from a young age and never concerned himself with family matters, big or small.

While everyone was still in a daze, Xiao Qiyu instructed the maid in a firm tone that left no room for doubt: "Fetch water and soak salted citron to feed Grandmother."

The maidservant instinctively did as instructed, but as she moved, she couldn't help but glance at Madam Qin, and her movements became hesitant.

Qin Shi reacted instantly, walked up to Xiao Qiyu, her expression anxious, and pleaded earnestly: "Seventh Brother, this is absolutely not allowed! The old lady is old and can't withstand such reckless treatment. As the saying goes, illness enters through the mouth. Think about it, what kind of thing can be consumed after being soaked in salt water for more than twenty years? If it were dried tangerine peel or ginseng, I would have nothing to say, but look at that salted citron, it's dark and rotten, how can it look like it's fit for consumption?"

Xiao Qiyu remained calm, her long, narrow phoenix eyes clear and bright. She asked, "Then may I ask if Second Aunt has any other effective remedies to solve this urgent problem and save my grandmother's life?"

Qin was speechless, her face turning pale and then dark. She simply put on a stern face and said, "No matter what, there is no room for discussion. It's not enough for someone to take responsibility. You are just a child, it's not your place to be in charge."

Xiao Qiyu's tone suddenly turned serious, and her eyes sharpened: "My nephew is married and no longer a child. Second Aunt, please be careful what you say."

Qin stared blankly at the aloof young man before her, feeling a chill run from the back of her head to her heels. With a dazed expression, she said, "Seventh Brother, when you were young, your parents were always arguing. You were raised by the old lady, and you never spoke from morning till night. I was worried that you would become sullen, so I had your third brother take you wherever he went. Occasionally, when you played late, I would have your third brother take you to my courtyard to stay overnight. Have you forgotten all of this?"

Xiao Qiyu resolutely turned his face away and scolded the maids: "What are you all standing there for? Do as I say!"

The maids hurriedly fetched warm water to soak the citron, no longer daring to hesitate for a moment, clearly treating his words as an imperial edict.

Madam Qin was so angry that she trembled all over. Just as she was about to stop her, an old woman ran into the room and shouted, "It's terrible, Madam! Fourth Madam says she was slapped for no reason and can't be a human being anymore. She's threatening to hang herself!"

"That bitch!" Qin gritted her teeth, her eyes blazing with fury. If she had a knife in her hand, she probably wouldn't have waited for Xue to hang herself before she could chop her up.

Looking at Xiao Qiyu again, Qin Shi's eyes reddened as if she was about to cry. Finally, she said with disappointment, "You can do whatever you want, I don't care anymore!"

Madam Qin turned and left, asking the old woman, "Where did that wretched woman hang herself? I'll watch her die today!"

Fearing something might happen, Zhang hurriedly followed after him. Before leaving, she glanced at Xiao Qiyu with worry and couldn't help but sigh.

Xiao Qiyu's mind was entirely on his grandmother. He watched as the maid fed his grandmother water made from salted citron, his eyes glued to her, his fists clenched, like a lifeless statue.

Just then, his sleeve was gently tugged.

Xiao Qiyu turned his head and met a pair of bright almond-shaped eyes.

Cui Ying blinked, her long eyelashes trembling slightly, as if she was still in shock.

"Thanks to you just now." Cui Ying said softly, her cheeks still flushed from the confrontation with Qin Shi. "What your second aunt said just now was not without reason. I couldn't find a reason to refute it. If it were just me, I might have just let it go. Xiao Qiyu, I am very grateful to you."

The girl's eyes were clear and intensely focused.

Xiao Qiyu stared at those long eyelashes that resembled butterfly wings, momentarily stunned, and his hands, which had been clenched tightly due to nervousness, loosened slightly.

This was the first time he had heard Cui Ying speak human language.

In any other situation, he would have immediately retorted with a sarcastic remark, asking where her sharp tongue had gone, how come she was so fierce in front of him but became a paper tiger in front of elders? Who would expect this troublemaker to respect the elderly?

Little piece of trash.

He really wanted to curse her like that.

But his gratitude towards Cui Ying was genuine, as it concerned his grandmother's life.

"What's the big deal?" The cold statue finally seemed to come to life.

The boy's voice, which he tried to sound relaxed, sounded somewhat awkwardly lazy: "I just happened to be there. In any case, you were thinking of Grandmother. I'm grateful to you, so you don't need to thank me."

He's talking nonsense.

We should be grateful.

Xiao Qiyu thought to himself: Be grateful to me, you must be grateful to me, you can't not be grateful to me.

The room fell silent. Cui Ying looked up at Xiao Qiyu's upright face, a conflicted expression gradually appearing on her face. She lowered her head and furrowed her delicate brows: "And also—"

Xiao Qiyu assumed she was still worried about him and assured her, "Don't worry, even if Grandmother gets sick from drinking it, I'll take the blame. You don't need to worry about it."

Cui Ying: "But..."

Xiao Qiyu: "There are no 'buts'. I, Xiao Qiyu, am a man of my word."

Cui Ying: "You have a hole in your butt."

Xiao Qiyu: "..."

Xiao Qiyu: "What did you say?"

Cui Ying couldn't point directly at him, so she held up one finger and described it carefully: "On the left buttock, near the root of the thigh, there's a hole about the size of my fingernail, and you can see the flesh inside."

Xiao Qiyu: "..."

It must have been from riding horses every day.

He had said long ago that silk couldn't be used for riding clothes; the material was too delicate, and you could snag it just by touching it. How could it possibly be used for riding? But his grandmother said that linen was unbearable to wear in the summer, so she insisted on making him a silk outfit herself, saying it was breathable.

That's great, it's more than just breathable.

He was almost out of breath.

Perhaps sensing that Xiao Qiyu was about to die, Cui Ying raised her hand and swore, her bright eyes blinking with sincerity: "Don't worry! I will absolutely not tell anyone about the hole in your butt! I won't tell anyone!"

As soon as he finished speaking, all eyes in the room turned to Xiao Qiyu's trousers.

Xiao Qiyu's lifeless eyes darted around as he stared at Cui Ying, gritting his teeth and laughing angrily: "Yes, that's right, louder still, there's still the big yellow dog at the West Corner Gate who hasn't heard us yet."

Cui Ying immediately fell silent. As if to redeem himself, he took off his shawl and wrapped it around Cui Ying's waist in a few quick movements. The curve of the shawl perfectly covered the hole. He said sincerely, "See? No one will notice now!"

Xiao Qiyu looked down and saw a pink shawl embroidered with peony patterns wrapped around her waist. When she looked up again and met Cui Ying's harmless face, her brows furrowed, and she couldn't help but ask, "Cui Ying, did you do this on purpose?"

"I didn't!" Cui Ying shook her head, not forgetting to tie a beautiful and gorgeous bow on the shawl. "Look at yourself, isn't it beautiful?"

She couldn't help but burst out laughing.

Xiao Qiyu remained silent.

She did it on purpose.

He must be out of his mind to believe that she would genuinely be good to him.

Cui Ying, the worst, the worst, the worst.

Xiao Qiyu felt a burning sensation in his throat and suddenly wanted to stuff a piece of salted citron into his mouth to cool it down. He ripped off his shawl, intending to tie Cui Ying up and throw him back to Qiyun Pavilion.

At this moment, the imperial physician exclaimed in delight, "That's wonderful! The old lady's breathing is smooth again!"

Cui Ying and Xiao Qiyu exchanged a glance, no longer caring about irritating each other, and quickly went to guard the bedside.

On the bed, Wang Shi had not yet opened her eyes, but the redness and purple on her cheeks had obviously faded a lot, the rise and fall of her chest had become much smaller, and even her grayish lips had regained some color.

Xiao Qiyu unconsciously held her breath and called out softly, "Grandmother?"

At first, Wang did not react, but when Xiao Qiyu called out again, her eyelids twitched slightly and her fingers moved.

“Grandmother,” Xiao Qiyu called out again.

Madam Wang slowly opened her eyes, her aged lips moving slightly as she uttered a hoarse, slow voice: "...Is this my Yu'er?"

Xiao Qiyu grasped his grandmother's hand, suppressing the tears welling in his eyes, and tried his best to keep his voice steady: "It's me, I'm here."

Hearing his voice, Wang did not look at him. Her gaze was empty and distant as she murmured, "Yu'er, I had a dream. I dreamt of your mother."

"I think I should probably go find her."

"I shouldn't have let her marry into the Xiao family. I need to go and apologize to her."

Xiao Qiyu shook his head, his voice suddenly becoming sore: "No, Grandmother will be safe and sound and live a long life. Your grandson cannot live without you."

Wang raised her hand tremblingly, stroked her grandson's face, and gave a faint smile, quite relieved: "Yu'er has grown up, married a wife, and can take care of himself now."

Xiao Qiyu: "No! I can't!"

Like a child trying to prove himself, he excitedly listed his shortcomings: "I eat irregularly, I don't wear enough clothes when it's cold, I lose track of time when I start practicing martial arts, and I don't know how to control my speech. I just offended my second aunt..."

"I have a bad temper, I'm unpopular, I have no friends, I'm not likable, even my own father doesn't like me..."

Wang's eyes reddened instantly, and she choked out, "No, she's lovable, my Yu'er is lovable."

Xiao Qiyu stood up and turned to show her grandmother: "Look, the pants you just made for me, I wore them for less than three days and they already have a hole in them. I'm such a worry. You have to keep an eye on me and mend them properly, otherwise it would be too embarrassing for me to go out wearing such tattered pants."

What was supposed to be an extremely emotional scene turned into a tearful laugh for Wang Shi after watching for a while: "What hole is there? Although Grandmother is dying, her eyes are still bright. You little rascal, stop lying and trying to fool Grandmother as if she were senile."

Xiao Qiyu was stunned: "No hole?"

Just now...

A thunderous roar echoed in his mind, and Xiao Qiyu suddenly realized what was happening. He forced back the tears welling in his eyes, turned his head, and shouted angrily:

"Cui Ying!"

Cui Yingben was secretly wiping away tears; her small handkerchief was almost soaked through.

Upon hearing the angry shout, she stopped wiping her tears, her ears perked up instantly, and without looking up, she turned and ran as fast as she could.

A note from the author:

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