Chapter 85 I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else.
His words were very soft, like looking back at fleeting memories from many years ago, leaving a sense of loss.
However, to Le Jin's ears, it was like a venomous scorpion raising its sharp stinger, piercing her eardrum with lightning speed. After a piercing ringing in her ears, she could hear nothing but her own frantic heartbeat. All the surprised sounds from others seemed shrouded in a fuzzy gray fog, isolating Le Jin from the world. It was as if she were the only one left in the entire universe.
He was asking her why she wouldn't acknowledge him.
In what capacity did he ask the question? In what capacity did she answer it?
The strangest thing is, why would he ask that? Did he really recognize her?
All the dreadful questions rushed into Le Jin's mind at once. She stood there dumbfounded, staring at the terminally ill person in front of her, almost like a fool.
Meng Shutai was shockingly thin. He used to be beautiful and plump, especially his pair of bright eyes, which seemed to hold the sunshine of the whole world. But now he was withered, his thick, long eyelashes pressed against his mouth and nose like a hand, suppressing his breathing, pressing down on his thin eyelids as if bullying him, covering the watery light that was gushing out of his eyes like drowning.
Seven years. He's so different now. Le Jin couldn't help but wonder, what kind of life has he been living for these past seven years? He was once a magnificent and elegant peony, but now he's just a skeleton.
But who can be blamed for this? Her? Of course not! He brought it upon himself.
Wasn't he supposed to disregard life? Why did he act like his soul had been scattered the moment she "died"? Who knows if he's just playing the victim again? Besides, he's never seen her real face, so how does he know she's the former "Le Jin"?
Absolutely impossible, a million times impossible.
Le Jin's breathing and heartbeat gradually returned to normal, and she even regained some of her composure.
"What do you mean, sir? I don't understand."
Meng Shutai chuckled, "You don't understand?"
His face instantly became even more translucent, making him look even more like a ghost.
"We've been husband and wife, don't you understand?"
Le Jin's strong back slumped several degrees instantly, her heart felt like it was about to burst from his words "we were husband and wife," and her whole body went numb from her chest to her fingertips...
"Husband and wife? What husband and wife?!"
She dared not move. Yuanfang was shocked and reached out to block Le Jin, his eyes scanning the crazy man in front of him.
Who comes up to a young girl and calls themselves her "husband"? How shameless!
"Qing Si has never had a husband, so how can there be any 'marriage' between them?"
At this moment, Yuan Fangsui's figure towered like Mount Tai in Le Jin's eyes.
“Qing Si? That’s not her name. Her name is Le Jin. She’s the wife I married seven years ago with a grand wedding procession. On that day, our wedding money was scattered all over Luoyang…”
Meng Shutai's breath was shallow, but his words were like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, causing the mirror-like surface to shatter with a "thud".
Meng Cizhang stammered in shock, swallowing hard several times before managing to keep his voice from slipping. "Brother, this isn't sister-in-law. Sister-in-law passed away seven years ago..."
"She's not dead."
Meng Shutai suddenly raised his voice, his chest heaving as he coughed uncontrollably. Yuan Jingming quickly patted him on the back to help him catch his breath, his gaze falling on Le Jin and Yuan Fangsui, his tone full of apology:
"Shutai must be having an attack of his illness. Fangsui and Lady Qingsi, please don't take offense."
"Her name isn't Qing Si! She is..."
"My name is Qing Si."
Meng Shutai clutched his chest, panting heavily. Before he could stop Yuan Jingming with a single sentence, Le Jin interrupted him.
Her eyes were clear and bright, as clear as the first sunlight. "I am Qing Si, who came from Chenji Mountain with Xuan Shengzi. I am not the 'Le Jin' that you mentioned."
Yuan Fang nodded frantically to the side, standing firmly on Le Jin's side without hesitation.
"My lord married his wife seven years ago, but Qing Si was only ten years old at that time, wasn't she?"
He scooped up his whisk with both hands, and it fluttered in the air like a nimble tail. "Young master, how old are you? Twenty-eight. You don't seem like a suitable match for my Qing Si at all!"
Meng Shutai's coughing stopped for a moment, and he stared at Yuan Fangsui in disbelief. However, in just one glance, his rage suddenly crumbled, and he fell silent like a defeated army.
Compared to him, Yuanfang was in the prime of his youth, with a radiant and full-bodied appearance, like a lively and bustling spring, while he himself was only barely holding on to prevent the coffin from closing completely, thanks to a stubborn obsession he couldn't swallow.
That youthful life, just standing before Meng Shutai, was enough to terrify him. Now, pale and fragile as a snake shedding its skin, what could he possibly use to refute Yuan Fangsui?
Men are extremely sensitive to provocations, doubts, and attacks from other men, and of course, they are also vulnerable. Yuanfang felt a smug, itchy feeling in his heart, as if a little claw was comfortably scratching him.
This person was the one who disrespected Qing Si and randomly identified people, so don't blame him for speaking recklessly and hurting his feelings.
Seeing that Meng Shutai was not in good condition, Yuan Jingming scolded Yuan Fangsui in a low voice, then turned to Meng Cizhang and told him to help Meng Shutai back quickly, and to treat today's events as a misunderstanding.
Le Jin stood behind Yuan Fang Sui, watching them talk back and forth in a daze, without saying a word. After Meng Shutai turned around, she tugged at Yuan Fang Sui's sleeve, also wanting to leave.
"Wait a minute."
Meng Shutai suddenly called out to them, shook off Meng Cizhang's hand, and staggered to her side.
He was much taller than Le Jin, and even though he was now as thin as a skeleton, he still had to look down at her when standing in front of her. Le Jin didn't even want to look at him, and she also kept her eyes down, only feeling two cool gazes on the top of her head, like a block of ice on her head, and goosebumps rose all over her body.
"I'm sorry, I mistook you for someone else."
"But you and my wife really look alike, especially your eyes..."
As Meng Shutai spoke, a bleak autumn wind rose in the maple forest, and bright red maple leaves suddenly fluttered down in swathes, like butterflies carrying fiery flames. A few fell on his shoulder and were blown away, as if the snow-white leaves deliberately refused to stay, extinguishing the flames and leaving him alone in solitude.
"The way she looks at me is almost exactly the same as the way you look at me."
"Seven years have passed, and I miss her every single day, constantly hoping that she can come back to me..."
Meng Shutai kept rambling on, and Le Jin's heart tightened more and more, almost making it hard to breathe. She was not worthy of the deep affection of a madman.
Le Jin said impatiently, "The person is gone, my lord, please accept my condolences." After saying that, she took Yuan Fang's hand and quickly left the maple forest without looking back even once.
Having known Qing Si for a year, Yuan Fang sensed something was wrong when he first saw her get angry. He couldn't help but turn around to look, only to be startled.
The gaunt and emaciated Meng Langjun stared intently at Qing Si's hand, which was holding his, with eyes as deep and unfathomable as an eagle or a wolf, as if he were about to pounce, tear, and devour her at any moment.
He noticed Yuan Fangsui looking at him, slowly raised his eyes, and stared at Yuan Fangsui with an icy gaze, devoid of any emotion, like a soulless puppet, evoking a kind of inhuman horror.
Yuanfang suddenly felt a chill on his back, and looked away without turning back to look.
——
Inside the Qili Garden, Le Jin led Yuan Fang to her room and stuffed a list of supplies from the table into his arms.
"These things are essential before we set off. It will be too late to buy them along the way, you know?"
After giving her instructions, she picked up the teapot, poured herself a cup of tea, and gulped it down in one go, which calmed her agitated heart a little.
What kind of spirit is Meng Shutai? How can he recognize her from her eyes?
This is incredible...
But she remembered standing far away, not even glancing at him, not even making eye contact! He floated over and asked her directly why she pretended not to know him…
Le Jin felt a chill run through her body, as if she had fallen into a swamp filled with icy water. Struggling would only make her sink deeper, while not struggling would only make her feel the biting cold, which would freeze her to death.
"Qingsi! Qingsi!"
"Huh?" Yue Jin was brought back to her senses by Yuan Fang's call. She saw him and asked with a smile, "What are you thinking about? I've spoken to you twice and you haven't responded."
Le Jin forced a smile, "I wasn't thinking anything. What did you just say?"
"I said these things are simple, but when you go shopping, do you want to go with Sheng Yi, Sheng Er, and Sheng San? That way you can pick out some things you like."
That's good, but going out to shop won't be a one-time trip; it means she'll have to go in and out of the Meng residence many times...
"What's wrong with you? You seem restless as soon as you get back."
Seeing that Yue Jin looked blank and a hint of sorrow on her face, Yuan Fang's heart leaped into his throat. He squeezed Yue Jin's hand and found it was frighteningly cold.
Le Jin had been holding on, but upon hearing his concern, her breathing became completely disordered.
She gripped Yuanfang's hand in return, her grip much stronger than his. "Can we leave here as soon as possible? The sooner the better."
"I...I'm a little scared of that Young Master Meng, his appearance..."
Le Jin moved her lips but said nothing more. Yuan Fang suddenly realized and nodded slowly: "That person is a bit crazy. I don't even want to have anything to do with him, let alone you."
"It's alright, since I decided the date for the ceremony anyway. I said tomorrow would be an auspicious day, and they wouldn't dare say anything."
He paused, glanced at Le Jin, then lowered his gaze again, looking as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.
Le Jin was puzzled and shook his hand: "What do you want to say?"
Yuanfang pursed his lips, a blush rising to his cheeks. "I think... if you're afraid that Meng Langjun will come looking for you, why don't you move into my room? They wouldn't dare cause trouble here..."
He suddenly pulled his hand back, his voice distorted and unnatural: "I didn't have any ulterior motives! No, no... I just remembered something about that Young Master Meng, it's a bit creepy, and I don't know if I should tell you..."
It turned out that Meng Shutai had returned to Zhenyuan alone. On the way back to find him, Meng Cizhang and Yuan Jingming, along with Yuan Fangsui, asked, "How did you know he went back to his own courtyard?"
Meng Cizhang could only smile helplessly, sighing repeatedly, but ultimately said nothing. Yuan Jingming remained silent for a while, then said to Yuan Fangsui, "Since Fangsui has come here to avert disaster for Shutai, there's no need to hide anything from you."
“Inside Zhenyuan, there is his deceased wife. Shutai has been with her all these years, never separated for a single day. Forcibly taking him away these days has reached the limit of his endurance, so he must have returned to his wife’s side at this moment.”
Yuanfang was dumbfounded: "Your Meng family buried your young mistress in your own courtyard?"
Meng Cizhang shook his head and stammered, "No, my sister-in-law... hasn't been buried yet, she's still in my brother's house."
"Qingsi? Qingsi?"
Yuanfang shook the dazed Lejin and said regretfully, "Oh dear, I shouldn't have told you that. Did I scare you? To be honest, my collar is all wet..."
He chattered away, trying to liven things up, but Le Jin remained motionless, like an ice sculpture.
“There was a woman… lying in my uncle’s house.”
“The dead man is lying there…”
Le Jin's heart was churning with emotions, like a fully charged meat grinder pulverizing her internal organs. She never imagined that seven years! That madman Meng Shutai had actually kept that corpse in the house for seven years.
She thought the corpse was that of an innocent person who had been murdered again over the years, but it turned out... it was her.
It's always been her.
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Author's Note: Yuanfang Sui (smug version): How old are you now, old man? ???
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