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In her previous life, Chai Heng married Yang Yan for the sake of her family. The marriage between two declining clans was once a joke in the capital. But Chai Heng didn't care; both sh...
Chapter 26 Fate Cui Miao saved him in his previous life
Chai Heng thought, so what if he was a careless general? At least he wouldn't rack his brains to use the most cruel means to deal with her.
"When you marry a man and live with him as a couple, face is the most useless thing. I should not have lived two lifetimes without understanding this truth." Chai Heng didn't even raise her head, hinting at him expressionlessly.
For a moment, the entire car became very quiet again.
The distance from the Imperial Guards to the Marquis's residence wasn't far, only about two incense sticks' worth of travel time. Chai Heng dismounted from the sedan chair, walked around the back garden, and entered the flower hall. She was greeted by the table of food Yang Yan had ordered prepared in the small kitchen. He hadn't touched a single bite, presumably because he'd been waiting for her until now.
Out of sight, out of mind. Chai Heng pretended not to see anything and turned to go to the bedroom.
Zhou Jiu had been waiting for these two people at home for a long time, and the dishes on the table had been reheated many times. When he finally saw them come back, he saw that both of them looked unhappy.
"Sir, the lady has come in... I'll heat up the food again and send it to her." Zhou Jiu said with a stiff face.
"No need, just pour it out." Yang Yan understood that she would not eat it even if he gave it to her.
"But sir, you haven't eaten anything yet, what should you do with this?" Zhou Jiu glanced at a red rope with a few copper coins tied to it placed next to the square table. He remembered that this was something his master had specially asked for from the monks in the temple.
Yang Yan took a look at the red rope and fell into a long silence.
In his previous life, he had asked her for that red string when he passed by Wan'an Temple. The old monk there had told him that the string could bless a person with a long and safe life. He didn't know why he thought of her, even though he felt she was so suicidal that she couldn't possibly die too young.
Before leaving for Yongzhou, he was wearing that red string. Realizing his words had been harsh, he reflected that while he had never skimped on her basic needs, they had been together for half their lives, and he hadn't given her anything decent. He thought, returning from Yongzhou, he'd use this as a way to make up for his harsh words that night. Who could have imagined she would die like this?
Yang Yan never believed in gods or Buddhas in his life.
But after Chai Heng died, he would also wonder if the old monk from Wan'an Temple's encounter with him that day was fate. If he had given her the red string earlier, would she not have died?
So in this life, he came back early and went to Wan'an Temple to ask the old monk for this early. He thought that according to the development of the previous life, his relationship with Chai Heng should not have been broken at this time, and she should be very happy to receive the gift from him.
I just didn't expect things to turn out like this.
If Zhou Jiu had asked him this question in the past, he would have definitely said, "Throw it away." But at this moment, he rubbed his tired brows and said, "Send it to the study."
Zhou Jiu rarely saw his master look so depressed, so he couldn't help but sigh and said, "Then we should ask a driver to take Madam to the Jingwei Division tomorrow. If she doesn't show up at twilight hour, I'll report back to you, sir."
"Um."
He knew that if he did this, Chai Heng would hate him. But what he feared more than her hatred for him was that she would really leave and never come back to him.
"Okay." Zhou Jiu nodded.
*
The previous night's "I like it" was just a casual remark from Chai Heng, but Cui Rushi had taken it seriously. The next morning, Chai Heng had just arrived at the Jingwei Division when he spotted a tall, upright young man standing in the courtyard. As Yang Yan had described, the young man had dark skin, but a very handsome appearance, thick eyebrows, and was brandishing a scimitar. He stood tall and sturdy.
Seeing her, Cui Rushi came out with a smile: "This is my eldest son, Cui Miao. He is about the same age as you. You should have a good chat. He is also friends with your senior brother Lu Shichu. When your senior brother heard that I introduced my eldest son to you, he said that I had found a good match for you."
Chai Heng thought that her senior brother had never liked Yang Yan. As long as it wasn't Yang Yan, in his opinion, it would be a good marriage for her to be with anyone.
Thinking of this, I looked up and looked at Cui Miao carefully, and actually felt that he looked familiar.
This face.
She seemed to have seen it somewhere.
She suddenly remembered that she had seen this man the night before her death in her previous life. At that time, she was trapped in a trap that Ji Gang had dug for her and could not climb out. Her broken left leg was powerless. It was this man who used a rope to pull her out, allowing her to climb out of the pit with difficulty.
Later he asked her if she wanted him to take her home. At that time, she didn't know where her home was, and she didn't know whether the cold and icy Marquis Mansion where Yang Yan lived could be considered her home, so after hesitating, she still refused him.
At that time, Chai Heng thought he was just a young general patrolling the city, but he never imagined that he was Cui Rushi's eldest son.
"My eldest son is tall and handsome, so he won't make you stare at him." Cui Rushi saw that Chai Heng looked at Cui Miao for a long time without saying anything, and couldn't help but tease him.
Chai Heng said, "Master Cui, you're joking. I just feel that your son and I have some kind of fate from a previous life."
She knew that she would have to leave the capital sooner or later, and she still had a few days left, so she didn't want to waste anyone's feelings. However, this person had saved her in her previous life, so she still wanted to treat him to a few drinks.
She speaks bluntly.
Cui Miao misunderstood, and the words "fate in the previous life" made Cui Miao blush immediately.
"Miss Chai, I met you once before when I was at home, and I've been very fond of you. Today, there's a magic show in the city, and I heard from others that the various Bermuda tricks are very interesting. Miss Chai, would you be so kind as to let me accompany you?"
Cui Miao thought for a long time before he came up with a complete sentence.
"OK."
Chai Heng agreed without thinking.
*
Yang Yan had never imagined that Chai Heng would actually go out with such an unknown person. When Zhou Jiu sent the driver to the Jingwei Division to pick her up but failed, and told him that Chai Heng had actually gone out with Cui Miao, Yang Yan did not believe it.
If this person was Lu Shichu, he would still believe it.
But Yang Yan didn't believe that she would go out with someone she had only met once.
So, even though Zhou Jiu reported it.
He was still immersed in his pile of documents, not even looking up: "It's normal for her not to want to come back. It's really impossible for her to go out with Cui Miao. She is not a casual person."
"But the people sent out to look for the lady saw it with their own eyes and said that it was the lady. And the lady was with Mr. Cui and looked very happy, especially when she was smiling."
Hearing Chai Heng smiling at Cui Miao, Yang Yan temporarily put aside the pile of documents in his hand. She hadn't smiled at him for a long time.
"How happy are you laughing?" he asked.
Zhou Jiu didn't know how to describe it. "The person who went out to look for Madam said that she and Mr. Cui were just sitting in the inn eating and chatting. It was fine at the time, but later on, I don't know what they talked about, but it seemed like they were getting along very well, and Madam was smiling particularly happily. As for how happy she was, I didn't see it, so it's hard to say."
Seeing that his master was becoming unhappy.
Zhou Jiu was afraid he might go crazy, so he quickly added, "You can't go and drag the lady back now. You're already holding her captive, which is no different from imprisonment. Going there now will undoubtedly make your relationship even worse."
In fact, even if Zhou Jiu didn't say it, he wasn't going to pull Chai Heng back.
Too harsh measures will only backfire.
Yang Yan now knew this very well: "If she doesn't come back at twilight hour, then she doesn't have to come back. As long as she returns to the Marquis' Mansion before curfew, it will be fine."
"As for that Cui Miao," Yang Yan said, "It's like meeting someone new and different. The novelty is temporary. After a while, she'll find that the so-called Cui Miao isn't that great after all."
Zhou Jiu was somewhat surprised to see his previously narrow-minded father suddenly become more open-minded. However, he had been saying too many things these days, and constantly reminding him wasn't a good idea. So he nodded and respectfully withdrew.
Chai Heng was indeed very happy during the day he spent with Cui Miao.
Cui Miao was a warm and generous person, very similar to her fellow senior brothers on Furong Mountain, and quite different from the others in Shangjing.
After just one day, Chai Heng couldn't possibly have any romantic feelings for him, but she did enjoy being his friend. Especially since Yang Yan didn't come to bring her back today, she felt a long-lost sense of freedom, so she stayed out until very late.
When she returned, she found Yang Yan sitting in the house waiting for her.
"During your shift, you were out having an affair with your young lover. Chai Heng, you're really getting bolder these days."
Sure enough, people who are used to being bad people won’t say anything nice.
"I only went out with the young master of the Cui family when I was off duty. I would never leave my post without permission," Chai Heng said, and couldn't help but hint at him, "I'm not like some people who, for their own selfish interests, instigate their friends to bend the law for personal gain all day long."
Even now, she still felt that the five whips he had given her were just a lesson for Xue Ruyue.
Trust is like a bowstring. Once it is broken, it can never be restored to its original state.
Yang Yan knew the damage had already been done, and that anything he said was just a cover-up for her. But when he heard her still thinking this, a dull pain suddenly pierced his heart.
He didn't explain any further, but continued to ask, "Are you so happy to go out with your young master?"
"It's natural to be happy to go out with a destined person." Especially since this person saved her in her previous life.
Yang Yan sneered: "What kind of fate can he have with you?"
"In my previous life, he saved me when you wanted me to die." Chai Heng said frankly.
Hearing this, Yang Yan's fingers gripping the cup tightened completely.
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The author has something to say: It’s updated, a little late, but thank you for your continued support.