Chapter 87

The scene froze for a moment. Gu Mingxi was about to cry, and the words she wanted to express her heart were stuck in her throat.

If Zhou Jingchen was angry or surprised, they had ways to deal with it. After all, they had anticipated many possible scenarios before coming, but they hadn't expected Zhou Jingchen to show no reaction to their presence. This made the Gu family very embarrassed, and Gu Mingyi immediately felt that the situation was difficult. If Zhou Jingchen didn't treat Gu Mingxi specially, it would be difficult for the Gu family to overcome Zhou Jingchen's defenses and gain his forgiveness.

Gu Mingyi secretly glanced at Gu Mingxi, hoping that Gu Mingxi could come up with a solution.

But what solution did Gu Mingxi have?

She stared blankly at Zhou Jingchen, oblivious to the look he was giving her. Not only that, but the moment her gaze shifted downwards, landing on Zhou Jingchen's hand gripping Ye Jia's wrist, she felt as if struck by lightning. Gu Mingxi couldn't understand why the usually aloof Zhou Jingchen would be so affectionate with a village woman.

Although the person in front of her was indeed good-looking, she looked at her critically and did not dare to say that she was more beautiful than Ye Jia. But Gu Mingxi secretly felt that beauty was not just about appearance, and a village woman was always a village woman!

Ye Jia was not annoyed by Gu Mingxi's stare. She just raised one eyebrow and looked at her quietly.

Gu Mingxi quickly lowered her head. The corners of her pursed lips shrank, as if she was about to cry.

Zhou Jingchen didn't show any emotion at all, and even looked a little impatient. It was very awkward to ask the Gu family to be so close. Zhou Jingchen really had lost his patience. He lowered his head and whispered to Ye Jia, "Let's go, Jia Niang."

Ye Jia glanced at Gu Mingyi.

Their eyes met, and for the first time, Gu Mingyi saw Ye Jia's face clearly. Her features were unusually bright, her features clear and upright, her expression calm and composed. Despite her shabby clothes, she didn't show the slightest bit of the fear he'd imagined.

Gu Mingyi was stunned, but Ye Jia had already withdrawn her gaze, and Zhou Jingchen protected her as they walked out.

The couple's behavior immediately made Gu Mingyi lose his composure. In fact, he had been in Luntai for more than ten days, and although he had only been dealing with Zhou Jingchen for three or four days, he had been rejected every time.

Sensing something was amiss, he immediately raised his lips and stepped forward to stop her: "Yun'an, come to think of it, I wasn't polite enough to greet my sister-in-law the last time I saw her. How about I treat you to a visit at Yu Man Lou this time? It just so happens that you and Mingxi haven't seen each other for a long time. Mingxi has been thinking about you ever since the incident at your house. Now that he has come all the way here, we should catch up..."

Gu Mingyi stood in front, and Zhou Jingchen gradually became unhappy.

He glanced at Gu Mingyi lightly, and Gu Mingyi's smile froze instantly.

...The person before him was Zhou Jingchen, not one of those playboys in Yanjing who were at his mercy. Gu Mingyi instantly broke out in a cold sweat and came to his senses.

In fact, as soon as the incident at Prince Jing's mansion began, the Gu family hurriedly sent servants to cancel the engagement. While this was reasonable, their eagerness to distance themselves from the relationship was rather despicable. Some of the Gu family's fence-sitters, in their quest to align with the new emperor, undeniably took some steps to further their misfortune. While not the head of the family's doing, Gu Mingyi's words at this moment seemed rather frivolous.

He paused, a little hesitant to speak rashly. "...Even if we're not reminiscing about the past, we're still old acquaintances. Yun'an, could you spare me a moment? You have some misunderstandings about the Gu family. If these misunderstandings aren't resolved, it will truly bring grief to those close to you and joy to those against you."

After saying this, he was afraid that his words were not meaningful and winked at Gu Mingxi who was crying beside him.

"Brother Yun'an..." Gu Mingxi stood there in a daze for a long time before finally receiving her brother's gaze. Zhou Jingchen's cold attitude reminded her of many bad things in her previous life.

Uncontrollably, she recalled her own short life: the neglect of her children, the disdain of her husband, and her death by hanging in the Zhu family's backyard before she was thirty. If only she had been bolder in her previous life, hadn't coveted wealth, had she gritted her teeth and followed Brother Yun'an to Beiting, sharing his joys and sorrows. Would everything have been different? Would Gu Mingyue have used excuses to manipulate the relationship between her and Brother Yun'an, robbing her of the warmth and care that belonged to her?

Because of a momentary lapse of judgment, I became a stranger to Brother Yun An for the rest of my life.

In her previous life, Gu Mingxi had been regretting her marriage ever since. She constantly compared and regretted. She regretted that her new husband wasn't as good-looking, as charming, as talented, or even as charismatic as Zhou Jingchen. The more she compared, the more she found it unacceptable. This led to a miserable life. Now, back to being fifteen or sixteen, Gu Mingxi thought she could start all over again. Back to her pre-marriage days, when Zhou Jingchen was still in Beiting. There had to be a chance to save the situation; that was her hope before she arrived...

"...Actually, it wasn't my wish to come and cancel the engagement. It was the wet nurse who made the decision."

Gu Mingxi clenched his fists beneath his sleeves, his nails digging deep into his flesh. "She just loves me too much. She nursed me from childhood and couldn't bear to see me suffer even the slightest. That day, she took advantage of me not noticing and took the token without permission to go to the palace and say those words. Brother Yun'an, I've been looking forward to marrying you since I was a child. How could I have done that? It was the wet nurse who did it. After my parents found out that she acted without permission, they sold her out..."

As soon as the words fell, the surroundings fell into dead silence.

Whether it was Ye Jia, Gu Mingyi, or even the broker who had overheard everything, they were all dumbfounded. They looked at Gu Mingxi speechlessly, as if they didn't understand whether she was truly stupid or just pretending to be.

"I'm the one who makes the decision?" Ye Jia hadn't wanted to speak, but hearing such a lie for the first time, she couldn't help herself. Even as a modern person from the later generations, she knew that the hierarchy between master and servant in feudal society was as strict as heaven and earth. The rules of aristocratic families were even more strict and demanding. How could a servant, so concerned about their master, cancel his or her marriage while the master wasn't paying attention? Didn't Gu Mingxi even think twice before saying such things?

As soon as the words fell, the already tense atmosphere around them became even more awkward, and Gu Mingyi's face turned pale.

Gu Mingxi glared at him: "Why are you butting in! I'm talking to Brother Yunan!"

"Gu Mingyi!"

Before Ye Jia could speak, Zhou Jingchen frowned when he saw Gu Mingxi's attitude towards Ye Jia. "Take care of your daughter from the Gu family."

Gu Mingxi's face instantly turned the color of liver, and the surroundings fell into a dead silence. The Gu family members nearby were in a state of mixed emotions. Zhou Jingchen's attitude towards Gu Mingxi naturally made them feel ashamed.

Gu Mingyi couldn't laugh anymore and stood stiffly aside.

After a long moment, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Gu Mingyi had already sensed before arriving that their trip to Beiting would be unlikely to yield any results. After all, as a similar-aged man with whom he'd interacted extensively, Gu Mingyi knew Zhou Jingchen all too well. His gentle, refined demeanor was merely a facade; he possessed a shrewd mind and a ruthless temper.

But he made it clear that the Gu family elders simply didn't believe him and refused to give up, insisting on using the relationship between Gu Mingxi and Zhou Jingchen, which had lasted for more than ten years, as an excuse. He had tried to persuade them, but the elders wouldn't listen. As the younger generation, they had no choice but to go.

...that's all. Unless they were to tie the couple to the carriage and force a resolution today, their relentless pressure and constant harassment would only incur Zhou Jingchen's disgust and resentment. The only thing Gu Mingyi hadn't anticipated was that Gu Mingxi's actions had no effect; Zhou Jingchen made no exceptions for her.

"Mingxi, come here." Gu Mingyi made a decision immediately, "Since Yun'an still has things to do, it's only right that we talk another day."

Gu Mingxi didn’t understand why her brother said that. She didn’t want to leave, so she turned her head and looked at Zhou Jingchen aggrievedly.

Zhou Jingchen pulled Ye Jia away from the brothel.

Outside the brothel, Si Nan sat on the rafters of the mule cart, watching the carriage. Seeing the two men emerge, he immediately jumped down and opened the door. Zhou Jingchen helped Ye Jia up. After Ye Jia climbed in, she lifted the curtain and glanced at the Gu family members in the brothel, who were still staring at them eagerly. Gu Mingxi's eyes, unable to conceal the resentment, stared at her intently.

A fierce look flashed in Ye Jia's eyes and he lowered the car curtain.

The carriage door slammed shut, and Zhou Jingchen got on and closed the door. Xilai, who had arrived a little late and hadn't gotten on yet, stood below and exchanged glances with Zhan Lin.

Xilai: "...I'll walk back by myself and buy some vegetables at Caishikou on the way."

Zhan Lin looked at her for a long moment, then nodded. He turned around and sat down on the rafters outside the car, while Si Nan also climbed onto the other side.

With a flick of the whip, the mule cart started moving slowly.

The carriage was unusually quiet. Zhou Jingchen lowered his head, lost in thought, his fingers tapping unconsciously on his knees, his brow furrowed. Ye Jia glanced at him a few times, unable to help but ponder as well.

The Gu family's behavior was truly strange. Even a fool could guess, listening to Gu Mingxi's lame lies, that the Gu family must have done something to take advantage of the situation at Prince Jing's mansion. Otherwise, given Zhou Jingchen's personality, he wouldn't even bother to pretend to be polite. But why were the Gu family so inconsistent? Could they have seen something? Or perhaps the Gu family had committed some grave mistake, earning them the Emperor of Yanjing's disdain?

The Gu family acted as if they had foreseen Zhou Jingchen's rise... Ye Jia's heart sank. Could it be that someone else knew the outcome just like her?

What else could they do? The Gu family already had a daughter deeply favored by the new emperor. Even if Gu Mingyue privately disliked the Gu family, to outsiders, they were inextricably tied to the Great Yan court. Given Gu Mingyue's rising power, the Gu family had no need to curry favor with someone whose family had been shattered and who had nothing left.

So is there a time traveler? Gu Mingxi? Not quite.

Ye Jia couldn't help but suspect Gu Mingxi, because this world was originally a Mary Sue romance novel. In other words, many of the events that happened revolved around a few key characters. More precisely, they were closely related to the heroine, Gu Mingyue.

There is also a very dramatic story about the two sisters of the Gu family.

Ye Jia had lost track of much of the book's plot, only the main characters and their relationships. It was worth noting that the heroine, Gu Mingyue, and the supporting actress, Gu Mingxi, were born within a few days of each other. By sheer coincidence, Mrs. Gu unexpectedly gave birth prematurely on her family's farm. Less than seven days after Gu Mingyue's birth, she was swapped with Lin, then a farmhand.

In other words, before Gu Mingyue was recognized as a member of the Gu family, she had been staying at the She family's farm.

The Lin family didn't treat her well. Although they didn't often beat or scold her, she did suffer a lot in her childhood. Gu Mingxi, who had taken her place, was raised in the She family for only a hundred days before being taken back to Yanjing by the Gu family.

Lin Zhuanghu's wife was reluctant to leave her own daughter, so she followed her to the Gu family as Gu Mingxi's wet nurse.

It would have been fine if Gu Mingyue had remained unaware of the truth, but when she was twelve, she overheard the drunken conversation of Lin Zhuanghu and began to doubt her identity. It then took her a year to approach the She family's mistress, shocking the She family with her face that bore a 90% resemblance to Gu She.

The She family discovered something was wrong and immediately took her to the Gu family in Yanjing, where the old story was exposed.

Even if everything were restored to its former state, Gu Mingyue's resentment would remain lingering. Furthermore, Mrs. Gu She, having personally cared for her daughter for so long, felt a deeper bond with her than her own daughter. Not only was she unwilling to return Gu Mingxi to her former position, she was also resistant to even admitting the affair. Ultimately, the Gu family adopted the pretense of twins and kept both girls as their own.

Such behavior naturally made Gu Mingyue feel resentful.

During the years the two women shared the same care, Gu She often reprimanded Gu Mingyue for her misbehavior and often treated her with partiality due to conflicts between her and Gu Mingxi. This led to Gu Mingyue's deepest hatred for the Gu family. Then, by chance, she gained the favor of the new emperor. After entering the palace, she enjoyed exclusive favor, and the Gu family was unable to take advantage of the opportunity to gain even a single benefit.

Ye Jia suspected this was one of the reasons the Gu family was thinking of Zhou Jingchen again. However, these reasons weren't enough to justify them risking their entire family's lives to provoke Zhou Jingchen. There must be something else behind this. And that reason must be their certainty that Zhou Jingchen could be reinstated.

...Who could come back and persuade the entire Gu family to place a bet after seeing the outcome, and act so resolutely?

The curtain on Ye Jia's side of the car was lifted and hung on a hook, and light shone through the window, making Ye Jia's skin white and translucent. Ye Jia was so lost in thought that she didn't notice Zhou Jingchen's eyes quietly falling on her.

The mule cart lurched through the neighborhood, the shadows of the houses lining the street shone through the windows. As the mule cart moved, they slid over the two of them. Zhou Jingchen rested his hand on Ye Jia's furry cheek, bathed in sunlight, his turbulent emotions gradually calming. The memories of his past life were too horrific, and Zhou Jingchen didn't want to recall them unless absolutely necessary. But if some foolish people insisted on disrupting things, he couldn't be blamed for being cruel.

Beneath Zhou Jingchen's drooping eyelids, his eyes revealed a sinister murderous intent beneath his calmness.

He wasn't actually a bloodthirsty person, but he had killed too many people in his past life, and having blood on his hands made him feel like he couldn't wash away the thick, bloody smell that had seeped into his bones. This was also the reason Zhou Jingchen's love of cleanliness.

His slender fingers rested on his knees, tapping more and more slowly. He concealed the fierce gleam in his eyes and fixed his gaze on Ye Jia's crimson lips.

"Jia Niang."

Ye Jia was lost in thought when she turned around unexpectedly and found that someone was already right in front of her.

Her eyes widened instantly, but she found that Zhou Jingchen had grabbed her chin and pressed his warm lips against hers.

He would kiss Ye Jia sometimes, but mostly at night, lingering and lingering. Even during the day, he would restrain himself by simply brushing against her forehead or the side of her neck. He pried her lips open like this, his tongue grazing hers and sucking relentlessly. This was the first time he had ever been so aggressive and demanding.

Before she knew it, Ye Jia was lifted onto his lap, her whole body facing him as he held her in his arms. If it weren't for the difficulty of concealing her movements in the mule cart, he would have obviously taken off her panties and started to act recklessly.

They kissed for who knows how long, until Ye Jia collapsed in his arms, and Zhou Jingchen finally let go with restraint: "Jia Niang."

"Um?"

"Jia Niang."

"……Um."

"Jia Niang."

Ye Jia: "..." So what happened?

Honestly, Ye Jia had been a bit irritated. While she might appear proactive, she was a complete pessimist when it came to relationships. If a third person were to appear in a relationship and start to feel insecure, she'd probably withdraw. After all, fighting a weak woman to the bitter end was foolish. Her pride wouldn't allow her to fall into such a pitiful situation, nor would she allow her life's value to be defined solely by competing with women to win a man's favor.

There are so many men in the world, there is no need.

Zhou Jingchen buried his cheek in Ye Jia's shoulder, his arms around her. Ye Jia looked down at his dark hair and could vaguely sense his emotions. It was obvious that the Gu family's appearance had disrupted Zhou Jingchen's original plan. The unexpected change made him a little irritated.

For some reason, Ye Jia couldn't help but reach out and stroke his head. She stroked Zhou Jingchen's hair for a while with the same technique she used to stroke him.

Zhou Jingchen felt like laughing at her compliance, but he didn't refuse.

After a long while, Zhou Jingchen suddenly raised his head: "Does Jia Niang feel very concerned?"

"Hmm?" He said this so suddenly that Ye Jia couldn't follow his thoughts.

"Do you care a lot? That Miss Gu."

Ye Jia: “…”

Their eyes met, and a smile appeared in Zhou Jingchen's eyes. Ye Jia narrowed her eyes: "...Does this make you happy?"

"Yeah." Zhou Jingchen made no secret of his happiness, "Jia Niang cares about me."

Ye Jia: "...So?"

His eyelids moved slightly, and he tilted his head to look at Ye Jia, and said again: "Don't give up on me easily, you promised me."

Ye Jia: "..." Does this guy have some kind of X-ray vision? Or does he have the ability to read minds?

"I don't actually have such a good temper," Zhou Jingchen said with a hint of gentleness, but his eyes looked straight into Ye Jia's. "Not only am I not a gentleman, but I'm also not as broad-minded as Jia Niang thinks. If you provoke me, you must treat me well in the future."

Ye Jia didn't think he was joking and stared at him in silence. Suddenly, she wanted to correct him: "...Who provoked who? Don't take this opportunity to misidentify me and put the blame on someone else."

"Well, I provoked him." Zhou Jingchen also admitted, "I am a stingy man."

Ye Jia: “…”

Okay, got it. Ye Jia wordlessly reached out and covered his eyes, really not wanting to see him laugh. Before she could even think of backing out, this man snatched her hammer away.

The mule cart creaked to the gate of the courtyard. Zhan Lin and Si Nan stood outside, gently reminding them, "We're here." Not daring to disturb them, they waited quietly outside. Ye Jia's clothes were a little wrinkled, and it took a long time to straighten them. She got off the cart and went back to the house. Zhou Jingchen, who got off a step later, didn't follow her, but went to the kitchen instead.

After waiting for a long time, he came into the room smelling of medicine. Ye Jia, who was sitting on the bed sorting her bag, felt her back stiffen.

Zhou Jingchen calmly closed the door, grabbed Ye Jia as she was about to leave, and led her straight into the inner room. That afternoon, the two of them didn't leave the house again. Even in broad daylight, Ye Jia didn't dare to scream. When pushed to the point of extremes, tears welled up in her eyes, and she wished she could bite Zhou Jingchen to death.

The two of them quarreled in the house until dark. Ye Jia was so hungry that she didn't want to move, so Zhou Jingchen finally let her go.

He was leaving the next day, and Ye Jia was naked in his arms, her hair soaking wet. Her eyes seemed filled with moisture, misty and strangely bright. Zhou Jingchen had already removed his hairpin, and his dark hair was spread out, wrapping around Ye Jia like a long black snake. Both of them were drenched in sweat, and Ye Jia was held in his arms.

Zhou Jingchen then started talking again: "Jia Niang, when you return to Dongxiang Town, discuss this with Ajiu and ask him to allocate some useful people to the Zhou family."

"Hmm?" Ye Jia mumbled from his nose and glanced at him weakly.

"Just in case."

Zhou Jingchen naturally thought of what Ye Jia was thinking, and he understood it even better than Ye Jia did. In fact, in a previous life, the Gu family poured all their efforts into Gu Mingyue. After all, Gu Mingyue was deeply favored and even gave birth to a son for the new emperor two years later. Old Gu Qichao dreamed of the Gu family producing an empress and becoming the emperor's father-in-law. However, things didn't go as planned. Despite receiving the Gu family's unwavering support, Gu Mingyue didn't show gratitude and instead used the family as a stepping stone to sell out.

Actually, many things cannot be summed up in one word.

Zhou Jingchen thought for a moment and told Ye Jia some things about the Gu family.

In reality, Zhou Jingchen's account was similar to what Ye Jia knew, though more concise. He didn't elaborate on the relationship between Gu Mingyue and Gu Mingxi, which made sense. After all, for aristocratic families, having a daughter taken away by mistake was not a disgrace. Especially since Gu Mingxi and Zhou Jingchen were engaged in a marriage personally chosen by the Emperor, it was naturally kept secret.

"Based on my understanding of Gu Mingyi, he's quite vicious and won't give up easily." Zhou Jingchen's eyes flashed with murderous intent. "I'll arrange for some people to take you back. From now on, you must stay at home for a long time."

Ye Jia heard him speak so seriously and laughed, "Could it be that Gu Mingyi still wants to kill me?"

As soon as she finished speaking, Zhou Jingchen lowered his eyes and kissed her without saying anything.

Ye Jia suddenly stopped laughing: "Does he have the guts to do that?"

"Jia Niang, when the noble families fight for power and profit, no one will leave without blood on their hands." Zhou Jingchen didn't dare to conclude that Gu Mingyi would definitely take action. After all, whether Gu Mingyi dared to provoke him was another matter, but it was necessary to be just in case.

Ye Jiayuan didn't think about death, but after hearing Zhou Jingchen's words, he had to be cautious.

After all, looking at it from another angle, killing her and pretending it was an accident wouldn't be too difficult. This reminded Ye Jia of the original owner's death. Was it someone else's doing that the original owner was beaten to death by a client less than a year after being sold to a brothel?

Some things can't be thought about too deeply, because they are terrifying. It seems that the money I earned has come in handy, and it's time to hire some thugs to guard the house.

The two of them snuggled up to each other quietly on the couch. After a long while, Ye Jia finally smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'm lucky enough not to die so easily. I've been busy all afternoon and I'm starving. Let's get up and have dinner."

Zhou Jingchen felt relieved after hearing her say this: "Jia Niang, please be more patient with me."

Xilai made dinner, and it was indeed not tasty. But Ye Jia was too weak to cook, so she just ate a little to fill her stomach. Zhou Jingchen left in a hurry at night. When he came back, it was already midnight. Ye Jia was sleeping soundly on the couch, and he woke her up. The clothes on her body were still put on by Zhou Jingchen. When Ye Jia opened her eyes, she saw four women standing in the yard who seemed to have a very low presence.

As soon as Ye Jia sat down, the four women knelt on the ground: "Master."

Ye Jia: “?”

"This is a specially trained maidservant, and her martial arts skills are quite good." Zhou Jingchen said softly, "From now on, she will serve you and mother closely."

Ye Jia hadn't expected him to be so efficient. He'd already found someone the moment she finished speaking. Zhou Jingchen seemed to see through her thoughts and said, "I've been looking for them for a long time, but I just haven't had the time to send them home. Now that they're in Luntai, I'll send them over."

Ye Jia's gaze fell on the four women, all of varying heights. The tallest was at least 5'7", the shortest a foot shorter than Ye Jia. But Ye Jia didn't know if it was an illusion, but she felt that if these women remained silent, they would blend into the night. She hadn't known that even royal families trained secret guards these days, and it seemed as if these four standing before her were the very people Zhou Jingchen had sent letters to Yanjing asking for.

After the four people met Ye Jia, Zhou Jingchen waved his hand, and they bowed and disappeared into the yard.

Ye Jia was shocked, as if he had lost track of time. Zhou Jingchen didn't have time to say much; he would be leaving for Yongzhou to pick someone up in just an hour. He still had some things to explain to Ye Jia: "Pay close attention to the situation in Li Beizhen over the next few days. If there's any sign of trouble, don't be greedy. Prioritize your family's safety."

After explaining all this to Ye Jia, he left in a hurry without even taking a short rest.

Ye Jia had originally wanted to wait until daybreak, but Zhou Jingchen had already left. Feeling incredibly energetic, she didn't bother going back to sleep. She arranged for Lai Xi to pack her bags, and under cover of darkness, she and her four shadowy guards set off for Dongxiang Town.

Not to mention that when the Gu family found the small courtyard, it was already deserted. Let's say that by then Ye Jia had already returned to Dongxiang Town.

Unfortunately, it was a rare rainy day when Ye Jia returned. She arrived at the Zhou family's courtyard wetly. Yu Shi hurried out with an umbrella. Before she could be happy to see Ye Jia, she heard Ye Jia say, "Mom, let's move to the Chen Mansion."