Chapter 15 The Scheming Woman: Just who exactly is this Ninth Uncle? ...

She was protected by Yu Jingliang, while Yu Qingxue was accompanied by Yu Liuzhu.

The two teams were evenly matched.

Only Shen Linlang, caught in the middle, looked at her tear-streaked face and felt so sad that she couldn't speak. At the same time, she suddenly realized that she seemed a bit superfluous.

She was shocked, completely unaware that her daughter, who had always been closest to her, had become so close to her sister-in-law. Torn between conflicting emotions, she couldn't bear to scold her daughter, but her anger was directed at Yu Jingliang.

"Erlang, how dare you speak to your aunt like that? Apologize to your aunt right now!"

"I didn't say anything wrong, why should I apologize?"

"You bastard, I told you to apologize, so apologize."

From childhood to adulthood, it was always his fault, even if it wasn't. His mother's heart was always biased!

Years of resentment and dissatisfaction had driven Yu Jingliang to the point where he could no longer tolerate it. He roared, "I did nothing wrong! I won't apologize!"

This roar completely enraged Shen Linlang.

"Kneel down!"

Yu Jingliang clenched his fists, veins bulging on his forehead. He finally knelt down, but he was still not convinced. "Mother, you are always like this. No matter what Tang'er does, it is right, and no matter what I do, it is wrong."

"You...you scoundrel! You did something wrong, and you even dragged Tang'er into it! She's your own sister!" Shen Linlang was furious, her chest heaving violently. Her youngest son was born as strong as a calf, while her daughter was weaker from a young age. She doted on her and took better care of her. Wasn't it only right that she should?

"I don't want a sister like that!" Yu Jingliang shouted again. "She's a troublemaker! When she was little, she fell down on her own and insisted that I pushed her. You didn't believe me, you only believed her, and you even punished me with family discipline."

"Second Brother, how can you still remember something from so long ago?" Yu Liuzhu looked heartbroken. "How old was I back then? I was only two years old. I don't remember anything. Whatever you say is true."

Yu Jingliang was two years older than her, and was only four years old at the time, but because the impression was so deep, she still remembers it to this day.

Not only this matter, but another thing also kept Yu Jingliang in his heart.

That year, the brother and sister contracted chickenpox. Despite the risk of contracting it herself, Shen Linlang personally cared for Yu Liuzhu, leaving him with the servants. He remembered crying and begging for his mother, but Shen Linlang never came to see him even once.

"I remember it clearly, she fell by herself!"

"Erlang, many years have passed, Tang'er has forgotten, why are you still holding onto this?" Shen Linlang was both angry and annoyed, her voice tinged with helplessness.

Luckily there were no outsiders present, otherwise it would have been truly embarrassing.

"She forgot, so is that my fault?" Yu Jingliang had expected this answer, gave a bitter smile, and then slowly stood up.

The young man's eyes were bloodshot as he suppressed a ridiculous grievance in the eyes of others. "I think Ali and I are the real siblings. We were born of a mother, but we didn't have one to love us."

When Xie rushed over, this was what she heard, and her vision went black.

She quickened her pace, and when she saw Yu Qingxue and Yu Liuzhu on one side, and Yu Jingliang and Shen Qinglu on the other, her heart was filled with indescribable complex emotions.

"What's going on here? I could hear you arguing from far away. Aren't you ashamed?"

“Grandmother.” Shen Qinglu smiled happily at her, her face still wet with tears, “I don’t know what they’re arguing about. She also said I’m shameful and embarrassing.”

She pointed at Yu Qingxue, looking puzzled.

Yu Qingxue said with resentment, "Mother, I..."

“Grandmother, let me tell you.” Yu Jingliang took a deep breath and said, “When I brought my little sister Ali to play, my aunt was clearly there, but she said that she was running around. When Alin came to find me, Ali happened to be there too, and she scolded Ali for being shameless without even asking what happened. I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I talked back to her.”

“Grandmother, Aunt is only being strict because she loves you so much.” Yu Liuzhu glanced at Shen Qinglu, feeling that all the blame lay with this cousin. “Ali’s personality is such that she only causes trouble when she comes out. It’s really a headache.”

“Ali didn’t cause any trouble; she’s very well-behaved and sensible,” Yu Jingliang retorted without hesitation.

"Second brother, you've only known her for a short time, how can you know her temperament? Aunt raised her since she was little, she knows her best..."

"Enough!" Madam Xie couldn't bear to listen any longer. Her gaze was sharp and sorrowful. She stared at Yu Qingxue for a long while before gesturing for Shen Qinglu to come to her side.

"From now on, Ali will stay with me, and we won't have to bother anyone else."

"grandmother!"

"Mother!"

Shen Qinglu seemed startled by the simultaneous voices of Shen Linlang and Yu Liuzhu, and clung tightly to Xie Shi.

Xie's heart was filled with bitterness.

Born of a mother, but unloved by one...

Now, besides her as the grandmother, who else can protect this child?

Before anyone else could say anything, she made the final decision: "My mind is made up, it's settled then."

*

The spring night was chilly; even with the bright moon hanging high, its boundless silver light was cold. The cold moonlight shone on all things in their stillness, and also on those who couldn't sleep.

The sound of striking the wooden dummy echoed one after another as the boy struck the dummy with precise and accurate punches. He seemed to be a diligent and good young man who practiced martial arts diligently, but the force of his palm strikes seemed to carry an intention of venting his frustration.

After an unknown amount of time, Yu Jingliang got tired of fighting and sat down to rest on a stone bench nearby.

Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming in. When he turned around, he immediately exclaimed, "Ah Li!"

He quickly realized something was wrong, "Why are you alone?"

Shen Qinglu came alone, without anyone following her.

"I stole these. I don't want anyone to see them, or they'll be unhappy." She said solemnly, then took out a few pastries wrapped in a handkerchief and handed them to Yu Jingliang. "Second Brother, these pastries are delicious. I've never eaten anything so delicious before."

Although the moonlight wasn't as bright as during the day, making it impossible to discern what kind of pastry it was, Yu Jingliang already recognized it as lychee pastry just by its aroma. This was because Yu Liuzhu enjoyed it, and it was a common pastry in the mansion.

He took the snacks and suddenly felt even heavier.

Perhaps there really are children in this world who are born to be disliked by their parents; he was like that, and so was Ali.

Shen Qinglu sat down beside him. As she sat down and looked at the surrounding scenery under the moonlight, she felt a vague sense of familiarity. It was as if she had a dream where she and someone were sitting like this, watching the moon and counting the stars.

"Ah Li, thank you for coming to see me," Yu Jingliang said sincerely.

In the past, when he was scolded or wronged, no one in the family would comfort him.

Of course, there are people outside, such as my uncle.

“When I was five years old, my mother beat me, and my uncle happened to see it. To comfort me, my uncle took me to the best place in the whole Donglin City to see the stars. It was on a night like this that I was especially happy.”

As he spoke, he suddenly became interested, "Ah Li, would you like to go to the highest place to see the stars?"

Shen Qinglu naturally wanted to go out and see, so she nodded.

*

The highest point in Donglin City is not in the Forbidden Court Changming Palace, but in the Daxuankong Temple outside the palace.

The Da Xuan Kong Temple was first built in the previous dynasty and has been a royal temple in every dynasty. There is a Void Tower in the temple, which is the tallest building in the entire Donglin City.

The temple is closed at night, but Yu Jingliang has a way to deal with it.

He led Shen Qinglu over the wall and entered with practiced ease.

After walking for a while, they could vaguely hear the sound of weapons clashing and see figures flying in the distance. Shen Qinglu subconsciously grabbed his arm.

He seemed to recognize the person among them, and his expression and demeanor changed.

"Ah Li, head south and find a place to hide. I'll come find you later."

As soon as he finished speaking, he darted away a long distance.

Having no other choice, Shen Qinglu had to do as he said.

The temple was filled with Buddhist energy and the scent of sandalwood; it was eerily quiet.

Strangely, while there was a flurry of swordplay over there, there was absolutely no sound elsewhere. The further south she went, the quieter it became. She wasn't particularly afraid; if she was, it was that Buddha might actually see through her and realize she was a ghost from another world, possessed by another body.

She chose a pagoda that was sheltered by trees, curled up, and hid herself away.

After an unknown amount of time, someone came towards them and gradually approached.

"You went to the Jade Mansion again today?"

The voice was faint, like the first snow of winter, carrying a sense of loneliness and coldness.

The other person replied, "When I went to find Yu Jingliang, I also ran into that Miss Ali, and I also met Madam Yu and Miss Yu, as well as Lord Yu's sister."

It's Mu Lin!

She involuntarily leaned forward, wanting to hear more clearly, since the other person had mentioned her.

"No matter who it is, if you've met them three times, you should know what kind of person they are."

Mu Lin hesitated for a moment, then finally said, "Uncle Jiu, I think I may have misunderstood her. She is not that kind of scheming person."

The moonlight was as clear as water, just like the temperament that Mu Hanshi exuded.

He didn't speak, but waited quietly for Mu Lin to continue.

Having already started, Mu Lin naturally couldn't give up halfway, so she added, "I asked her if she remembered what happened three years ago, and she said she had forgotten, which is enough to prove that she didn't have any intention of getting close to me."

She's the one saying that!

Shen Qinglu was quite surprised. Mu Lin had met the original owner three years ago. What was the big deal? Why did she have to explain it to others?

Just as he was pondering this, that voice, light and cold like drifting snow, rang out again, "You went to the Yu residence three times and encountered her three times. If you think these are not coincidences, then what are they?"

"I...I don't know, but I just feel like she's not that kind of person."

What kind of person is she?

Shen Qinglu chuckled inwardly. It was true that she was a green tea bitch, but her three encounters with Mu Lin might really have been coincidences. She didn't know about the first one, and she could swear to God that she didn't intentionally get close to him on the other two occasions.

Who exactly is this Uncle Nine?

He had never met her, spoken to her, or interacted with her, so how did he know her true nature and even imply to Mu Lin that she was a scheming woman?

She instinctively wanted to see what the other person looked like, and before she could even move slightly, she heard that extremely faint voice ask, "Who's there?"

In a short while, Mu Lin arrived in front of her.

"Miss Ali?!"