Suspicion arises
The cold wind howled, and Xiao Jiangsheng felt as if his whole body had frozen. He slowly turned his head, his throat tight, and his voice carried a hint of dazedness: "...What did you say your name was?"
Xie Xiangsi hastily wiped away her tears, struggled to her feet, her thin body trembling slightly. She choked back sobs but spoke with unwavering resolve, "Xiao Yan, brother, it's me, Xiao Yan..."
"Born in the early winter of the twenty-ninth year of Zhaohua, my father said that my elder brother was born to be a general, and my younger sister was born to be joyful."
As she approached Xiao Jiangsheng step by step, two lines of clear tears fell onto her clothes with each movement. Jie Xiangsi's lips trembled as she smiled and said in a trembling voice, "This is the best blessing Father has given to you and me."
Upon hearing the meaning that only the two siblings knew, Xiao Jiangsheng's eyes suddenly reddened. Looking at the unfamiliar face before him, his tone was filled with disbelief, fear, and anticipation. After a long while, he whispered, "Sister?"
The next second, a warm figure rushed into his arms and tightly gripped his clothes.
"elder brother!"
All the grievances, fears, and loneliness he had felt since his rebirth erupted at this moment.
Jie Xiangsi buried her head tightly in Xiao Jiangsheng's chest, tears streaming down her face, letting his hand gently stroke her hair, just like when she was a child and Xiao Jiangsheng would always comfort her gently.
"Yan Yan, don't cry, your brother is here, don't cry..."
Xiao Jiangsheng's voice was also a little hoarse. He comforted Jie Xiangsi and told her not to cry, but he himself was in tears.
"elder brother."
"Um?"
"elder brother."
“Brother is here.”
"..."
Jie Xiangsi called out in a muffled voice in his arms, and he responded to her call.
Only after the surging emotions gradually subsided did Jie Xiangsi lift her head from Xiao Jiangsheng's embrace, sniff, and was about to say something when the sound of several rapid hoofbeats came from afar on the wind.
Getting closer and closer.
Xiao Jiangsheng frowned instantly, and his aura suddenly turned cold.
Upon hearing this, Xie Xiangsi's heart clenched, and she quickly gripped his sleeve, saying urgently, "It's Zhou Yanzhi's men! Brother, you must leave quickly!"
Xiao Jiangsheng was about to nod when he suddenly stopped. "Then what will you do?"
They had just recognized each other; how could he leave her alone here?
"I'm fine!" Xie Xiangsi said quickly. "I have a plan. You should leave now!"
Xiao Jiangsheng was pushed back two steps by her. He looked down at her deeply, and seeing her resolute attitude, he said nothing more. He picked up Yang Hui with his back to his hand, turned around and flew towards the misty cliff not far away, quickly disappearing from sight.
Jie Xiangsi quickly rolled on the ground, making herself look disheveled, as if she had just been through a fierce battle.
Then he quickly removed the hairpin from his head, took a deep breath, and without blinking, slashed his neck.
The force was controlled perfectly; blood gushed out instantly, flowing down the neck in a horrifying yet not fatal manner.
Just as they finished doing all this, the sound of horses' hooves approached from afar.
Staggering, he lunged at Zhou Yanzhi, who was lying on the ground, and shielded him with his body. Just as Ji Feng and the others were dismounting, his forehead slammed heavily onto the frozen ground, and his vision went black. After a weak gasp, he fainted, feigning that he had been injured while protecting Zhou Yanzhi.
When Zhou Yanzhi slowly woke up, this was the scene he saw.
The first thing that catches the eye is a blinding red. A thin, frail person clings tightly to him, with drops of blood oozing from the torn wound and spreading dark stains on his black robe.
Zhou Yanzhi's pupils contracted, and he hurriedly sat up and pulled the person into his arms. He took out a bottle of wound medicine from his pocket and then pulled out a clean handkerchief to cover the wound. However, he still watched helplessly as the white handkerchief was stained red.
"My lord!" Ji Feng and the others anxiously surrounded them.
Zhou Yanzhi immediately turned his head with red eyes, "What are you still standing there for? Hurry up and find a doctor!"
Startled by the ruthlessness in his eyes, Ji Feng quickly nodded in response.
...
Inside the Yang residence, Zhou Yanzhi waited anxiously under the eaves. Seeing the doctor emerge from the room, he rushed forward and asked urgently, "Doctor, how is my cousin?"
The doctor bowed respectfully and said, "Please rest assured, sir. Fortunately, the person who attacked you did not use much force. The wound looks horrifying, but Miss Biao did not lose much blood and is fine. She just needs to rest quietly for a few days."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanzhi breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thank you very much, doctor."
He gestured for Jifeng to see the person off, then turned and went inside.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, looking at the thick bandage wrapped around Jie Xiangsi's neck, Zhou Yanzhi's eyes were filled with self-reproach.
"Cough cough."
Two soft coughs suddenly came from outside the beaded curtain, breaking the silence inside the room.
Zhou Yanzhi looked up at the sound and saw Liu Su.
After tucking Xie Xiangsi in and carefully lowering the gauze curtain, Zhou Yanzhi quietly walked over, cupped his hands in greeting, and said, "Uncle Liu."
"Your Highness," Liu Su stepped aside to avoid his bow, then his gaze fell on the bed behind the beaded curtain, and he asked softly, "Is Miss Jie alright?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanzhi shook his head, "The doctor said there's nothing to worry about, I just need to rest."
Liu Su nodded. "It's good that there's no problem."
After saying that, he looked at Zhou Yanzhi, as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.
Sensing that he had something to say, Zhou Yanzhi glanced behind him and then invited Liu Su to go with him to another room in the Bamboo Garden.
I opened the window, and a cold wind rushed in.
Liu Su stood by the window, glanced at the swaying green bamboo outside, and sighed inwardly. He turned to Zhou Yanzhi and said in a deep voice, "Your Highness, since you call me 'Uncle Liu,' there are some things I've said without thinking."
Zhou Yanzhi quickly spoke up, "Uncle Liu watched me grow up and treated me like his own son. If you have anything to say, Uncle Liu, please speak freely."
Upon hearing this, a hint of gentleness appeared in Liu Su's eyes, but he then sighed and said softly, "Is Ce'an truly committed to Miss Xie for the rest of his life?"
"She is the only one in my life, and I will never be faithful to her until death." Zhou Yanzhi spoke without the slightest hesitation, his tone firm and unwavering.
Liu Su stared at him for a moment, then suddenly said, "But what if she's lying to you?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanzhi's fingertips trembled violently. The doubts he had deliberately ignored were now bluntly pointed out by Liu Su, like a fine needle piercing his body today, making his heart tighten.
Before he could respond, Liu Su continued, "Ce'an, you have been in the Dali Temple for many years and have handled countless cases. It is impossible that you do not know the difference between self-injury and injury caused by others."
He added, "The injury on Miss Jie's neck is from the outside to the inside, from top to bottom, in a single direction, and the injury is deeper at the end, which is consistent with her own exertion habits. This is a typical self-injury."
He paused, then softened his tone: "And when he's wounded, aiming for a fatal blow, the initial wound is usually the deepest and the direction is often chaotic, never this orderly."
Looking down at Zhou Yanzhi's unconscious grip on his clothes, Liu Su finally softened his tone, sighed, and continued, "Ce'an, I know you don't want to doubt Miss Xie, but..."
He patted Zhou Yanzhi on the shoulder.
"There are many suspicious points in this matter. Think about it carefully."
Having said that, he turned and walked out, leaving Zhou Yanzhi alone by the window. The cold wind swirled snowflakes onto his shoulders, but he was completely unaware.
...
Returning to the gate of Jiexiangsi, Zhou Yanzhi hadn't even entered when he heard a woman's clear laughter coming from inside, along with the cries of several eagles mixed in with that laughter.
"Wu Gou Lang," Xie Xiangsi said with a smile in her voice, "if you picked this flower especially for me, then call out to me."
As soon as she finished speaking, a small, hesitant cry came from inside the room.
Immediately afterwards, a silvery laugh rang out from inside the room, "Wu Gou Lang, Wu Gou Lang, how can you be so funny?"
Perhaps provoked, the falcon cried out several more times, its voice tinged with shame and indignation, as if in defiance.
Unfortunately, the volume wasn't high, and it sounded more like she was being coquettish, which elicited a low, muffled laugh from Jie Xiangsi.
Zhou Yanzhi stood outside the door, listening to the sounds coming from inside. He pursed his lips helplessly, and the doubts that Liu Su had stirred up in his heart seemed to have faded a bit.
As he pushed open the door, he saw Wu Goulang flapping his wings and pouncing towards Xie Xiangsi's face, as if to retaliate for her earlier actions.
Upon seeing this, Zhou Yanzhi quickly called out, "Wu Gou Lang!"
Upon hearing its master's voice, Wu Goulang immediately abandoned its attack on Jie Xiangsi, turned around and flew towards Zhou Yanzhi, landing steadily on his raised arm, making two soft "cooing" sounds, sounding inexplicably aggrieved.
It had come to see this woman out of kindness, even bringing a flower with it, and yet she teased it like this.
If it weren't for... if it weren't for the fact that she had picked up a few feathers for it before, it wouldn't have come to see her!
Upon seeing Zhou Yanzhi enter, Xie Xiangsi's smile instantly faded, and a hint of guilt appeared in her eyes. After all... she had just bullied this eagle so badly.
Unconsciously, Jie Xiangsi twirled the small flower Wu Goulang had given her and asked, "Cousin, what brings you here?"
Zhou Yanzhi smiled faintly, his gaze falling on the gauze around her neck, and said gently, "You saved me, so of course I have to come and thank you."
Upon hearing the word "thank you," Jie Xiangsi felt even more guilty. She chuckled awkwardly and waved her hand, saying, "Cousin, you're too kind. You were injured while saving me, so there's no need for thanks."
After saying that, as if remembering something, a hint of self-reproach appeared on her face. She looked up at Zhou Yanzhi and asked cautiously, "Cousin, Yang Hui...?"
If you really look into it, Yang Hui was actually someone she let go.
She would definitely support what her brother wanted to do.
Zhou Yanzhi snapped out of his daze and saw her face full of guilt. He gently comforted her, "It's alright, you don't need to blame yourself. I've investigated the Yangqu case pretty thoroughly, and the evidence is sufficient. Whether Yang Hui is involved or not doesn't really matter."
Jie Xiangsi nodded, feeling a slight sense of relief.
But at that moment, Zhou Yanzhi suddenly said, "Cousin, why...why did you call that man in black 'brother'?"
Upon hearing this, Jie Xiangsi's heart tightened.
I was too excited at the time to notice whether Zhou Yanzhi was unconscious or not.
Fortunately, she had already thought about what to say if Zhou Yanzhi asked.
Composing herself, Jie Xiangsi stammered, "Cousin...cousin."
Zhou Yanzhi responded, "Hmm?"
She looked up and met Zhou Yanzhi's eyes, then said shyly in a low voice, "Is it possible that I wasn't calling for the man in black, but for you, my cousin?"
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