Xu Jixin staggered and grabbed the sandalwood armchair for support. His knuckles turned blue from the excessive force. His eyes were filled with shock, anger and disbelief as he looked at Xu Zhuohua.

He let out a suppressed growl, and the veins on his neck bulged like withered vines: "Do you know what you're doing, Xu Zhuohua! You've got some nerve!"

His trembling voice contained not only the brother's anger at his sister's willful and reckless behavior, but also a deep fear of the impending danger.

Xu Zhuohua lowered her eyes and tightly gripped the kapok flower jade pendant. The icy touch spread from her fingertips to her heart, but she could not suppress the turbulent waves surging in her chest.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "Second Brother, I know what I'm doing." Her voice was soft, but it sounded like she was using all her strength to support it. "These past few days I've thought it over repeatedly. The mess surrounding the arms dealing has already dragged Cheng Muyun into it..."

She took a half step back, the dim light slanting across her pale face through the carved window lattice, making her eyes appear even more unfathomable: "Didn't you just say that Cheng Muyun has the Cheng family behind him, and that Cheng Yuguang is protecting him?"

She paused, her nails digging deep into the warm, smooth patterns of the jade pendant. "But what about the Xu family? Once the truth comes out, those wolves and tigers won't give us any chance to breathe."

Xu Jixin clenched his fists, his eyes bloodshot, and gritted his teeth as he said, word by word, "The Xu family has so many people; it's not time for you to step up yet. You can't do this!"

"Let's just consider it as repaying the Xu family for raising me all these years. Anyway, my mind is made up, and my second brother can't stop me no matter what he says."

Xu Zhuohua's words were like poisoned silver needles, piercing Xu Jixin's heart and causing a metallic taste to rise in his throat.

He gazed at the frail figure before him, and memories suddenly flooded back—as a child, Zhuohua would always timidly shrink into the corner of the ancestral hall. While the maids laughed and played, she could only clutch her faded old handkerchief and gaze longingly at the passing carriages and horses outside the window.

The way the Xu family has taken care of this adopted daughter over the years is utterly ridiculous; even the maids' new clothes for all four seasons are more exquisite than hers.

Yet this neglected adopted daughter stepped forward during the turbulent times on the Eastern and Southern routes, single-handedly protecting the Xu family's lifeline.

If Xu Minghua hadn't stubbornly refused to marry into the Cheng family, the Xu family probably wouldn't even remember having such an adopted daughter. She would likely have been tortured to death by those hypocritical villains long ago.

Thinking of this, Xu Jixin's eyes reddened and his brows furrowed into a tight knot.

He strode forward abruptly, gripping Xu Zhuohua's shoulders tightly, his voice trembling: "The Xu family doesn't want your repayment! We just want you to live a peaceful life!"

A metallic sweetness, like rust, rose in Xu Zhuohua's throat, and a bitter taste surged in his heart, almost bursting through his throat.

She bit her lower lip hard, her nails digging deep into her palms, trying to keep her voice steady: "I want all of you to live peacefully and safely."

The dim light outlined her thin yet stubborn figure. The moment she turned around, the tears she had suppressed for so long finally burst forth, streaming down her pale cheeks.

She quickened her pace, staggering, and hurried out of the room.

"Don't go, Zhuohua!" Xu Jixin chased after him like a madman, but was stopped by a dark figure the moment he stepped out the door.

A chilling aura swept over him, and when he looked up, he met Zhang Qi's unfathomable eyes.

A hand with distinct knuckles stood across the doorway, like an insurmountable wall of bronze and iron.

Xu Jixin grabbed Zhang Qi's forearm as if he had grasped a lifeline, "Zhang Qi, go stop Zhuohua, she can't take over the Eastbound South Line."

Zhang Qi pushed Xu Jixin's hand away and slowly pushed him into the house. "I'm sorry, Second Young Master, I only listen to Madam."

Xu Jixin watched Zhang Qi turn and leave, and suddenly realized something.

He shouted, "Are you going to lock me up?"

Zhang Qi had already reached the door, turned around and closed it. "I'm sorry, Second Young Master, Madam instructed that if you don't reach an agreement, you will be locked up until she finishes all her work."

Xu Jixin slammed his palm heavily on the carved wooden door, the sandalwood grain digging painfully into it, and the bronze animal head on the door knocker vibrating loudly.

His thin suit jacket tilted precariously during the violent movement. "Zhang Qi! Open the door!"

He roared hoarsely, but was held firmly against the door frame by the other party's iron-like arms. Xu Jixin was a scholar and was no match for Zhang Qi, who had spent years in the military camp.

The crisp sound of metal latches clicking came from outside the door, and Zhang Qi's cold voice pierced through the door panel: "Young Master Xu, Madam's mind is made up."

Before the words were finished, the footsteps had already faded into the distance.

Xu Jixin staggered and crashed into the door panel, his forehead hitting the door with a dull thud, but he felt no pain at all.

He pounded frantically on the locked wooden door, his knuckles gradually bleeding: "Xu Zhuohua! If you dare to take over arms dealing, I'll never acknowledge you again!"

"The Xu family's affairs should be resolved by the men of the Xu family!" He slid down the door panel and sat on the ground, his suit trousers brushing against the cracks in the blue bricks. "Can't you just stay put?"

Only then did Xu Jixin understand why outsiders so vehemently disliked Xu Zhuohua when they said she had a strange temper and an outspoken personality. He used to think that Xu Zhuohua was quite adorable.

When he could no longer persuade Xu Zhuohua, he realized that Xu Zhuohua's stubborn nature was really annoying.

Xu Zhuohua's personality is exactly the same as Cheng Muyun's—stubborn to the extreme! No wonder they're husband and wife; they're truly two different kinds of people who can't sleep in the same bed.

————

The cell was filled with the heavy stench of blood and the musty smell of decay in the dead of night. Cheng Muyun tossed and turned on the rough straw mat.

As he tried to move his stiff back, the wound on the back of his neck suddenly burst open, and warm blood trickled down his spine. A sharp pain, like being bitten by a venomous snake, instantly swept through his body.

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