21 Quarrel
◎ "I have never liked Zhao Qiuxin."◎
Cui Huaifeng looked at the jade pendant in Jiang Yan's hand without much reaction. He said frankly, "It's a relic of Zhao Qiuxin."
Jiang Yan laughed out of anger when he heard this. A bloody smell surged in his throat. He felt even more ridiculous that he was so naive to think that he could keep him warm.
He promised himself to live a good life, but then he secretly kept his ex-wife's belongings.
Besides, he was alone when he first entered the mansion, so when did this thing appear? If there was an opportunity, it would only be after Zheng Pu entered the mansion, and he would have brought the relic here specifically. Such thoughtfulness is truly touching.
Seeing Jiang Yan's gloomy face, Cui Huaifeng continued to explain, "Zhao Qiuxin gave this jade pendant to someone else. I just gave it to her as a favor."
Jiang Yan didn't believe it, but instead figured out his previous doubts. "Why did you suddenly stop letting me touch you? You're so afraid of contact with me. Is it because of the jade pendant that reminded you?"
Cui Huaifeng didn't like her saying that, but he still patiently tried to explain, "It has nothing to do with the jade pendant or even Zhao Qiuxin. It's because I'm pregnant..."
“That’s enough!”
The repeated mention of "Zhao Qiuxin" from his mouth was piercing and infuriating. Jiang Yan could no longer bear it and slammed the jade pendant to the ground. It shattered instantly, just like them.
Cui Huaifeng took a look at the lonely and shattered pieces of the jade pendant, then raised his head to look at Jiang Yan, who was staring at him fiercely.
"I was wrong. You are husband and wife. It's normal for you to have her in your heart. What's wrong with keeping her relics as a memory?" Jiang Yan couldn't help but sarcastically.
"I have never liked Zhao Qiuxin." Cui Huaifeng looked straight at Jiang Yan with a firm look in his eyes.
Jiang Yan sneered, a hint of sadness hidden deep in her eyes. She took a deep breath to calm herself down, and after a while, she said in a trembling voice, "Do you believe what you said?"
After saying that, she turned around and left without looking back.
Cui Huaifeng stared at Jiang Yan's resolute back for a long time, wondering what he was thinking.
None of the servants dared to move when they heard the noise. Zheng Pu was worried about his master, so after Jiang Yan left, he hurried into the room first. He only breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that Cui Huaifeng was fine.
Zheng Pu looked at the broken jade pendant on the ground. He knew that this promise had to be fulfilled, even if it was broken.
He bent down, picked it up with one hand, and placed a handkerchief in his palm with the other hand to place the broken jade.
Cui Huaifeng retracted his gaze, squatted down, and said softly, "Let me do it."
Cui Huaifeng picked up a piece of deep red jade, but was distracted for a moment and cut his finger on the sharp edge. He stared blankly at the blood beads that came out of his fingertips and slid down into a line.
"Master! What's wrong with you...Ah! Let me do it." Zheng Pu walked over, carefully took away the broken jade, and then took a new handkerchief to press on Cui Huaifeng's wound to stop the bleeding.
"Does it hurt, master?" Zheng Pu was quite worried.
Cui Huaifeng looked down at the red bloodstains on the handkerchief before he came to his senses.
The wound on the fingertip didn't hurt, or even feel anything, but my heart and abdomen ached slightly.
————
Jiang Yan left the palace and went straight to the princess's residence, and unexpectedly found that the princess had entered the palace.
Jiang Yan was turned away, and she felt even more annoyed. She decisively turned the carriage around, but Ye Guifan was not at the mansion either. Jiang Yan felt like she wanted to eat him.
The housekeeper of the Ye Mansion glanced at Jiang Yan in the carriage from afar, sweat on his forehead, but he remained calm.
Jiang Yan was determined to find Ye Guifan, so Zhu Jin used both deception and coercion to negotiate with the housekeeper. Knowing that the two were on good terms and knowing that he couldn't afford to offend Prince Yi, the housekeeper revealed Ye Guifan's itinerary: she had actually gone to Shuilan Pavilion.
Jiang Yan was puzzled. Didn’t Ye Guifan always look down on prostitutes? Why did he go there?
But she didn't have time to think about it. She just wanted to know Ye Guifan's location, so she ordered the carriage to rush to Shuilan Pavilion.
There was singing and dancing in the Shuilan Pavilion, and the lights were bright.
Jiang Yan told Zhu Jin to wait outside. She got off the carriage and as soon as she stepped into the hall, the greasy scent of cosmetics hit her in the face, giving her a headache and frowning.
She suddenly thought of Cui Huaifeng. He didn't like to wear makeup, and he had a faint, unique, cool fragrance on his body. Only when you got close could you smell it, which made people feel inexplicably at ease, like a clear spring among the green bamboo mountains after rain.
While Jiang Yan was distracted, the madam came over, fanning herself and saying warmly, "Sir, you look unfamiliar. Is this your first time here? We..."
"Where is Ye Guifan?" Jiang Yan asked concisely.
The madam raised an eyebrow. It seemed that he was not here for pleasure but to cause trouble. "What is Ye? This slave does not know."
Jiang Yan looked at the madam expressionlessly and took out a gold ingot.
The madam's eyes lit up, but after weighing the pros and cons, she decided not to accept the offer. She knew which was more important, the Minister of War or the gold.
Jiang Yan's eyes had been silently locked on the madam. He subconsciously glanced quickly to the northwest while thinking. In fact, his eyes were very natural, but Jiang Yan was still keenly aware of it.
Jiang Yan looked up and took a quick look at the layout of the upstairs, and he had an idea of what was going on. Without further ado, Jiang Yan immediately went upstairs and searched for the largest private room on the northwest side.
The madam suddenly felt something was wrong, whispered a few instructions to the people around her, and hurried over to stop Jiang Yan.
"My dear gentleman, you can't go in!"
Jiang Yan pretended to be deaf and dumb, and walked steadily and quickly. Even when the madam chased him closely, she was always half a step behind.
Jiang Yan made less than half a circle on the west side before locking onto his position. At this moment, several thugs rushed over, flanking Jiang Yan from both sides and blocking him at the door. The brothel owner, who was out of breath chasing Jiang Yan, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Jiang Yan coldly looked at the aggressive thugs across from her. A few strong women posed no threat to her. She had experienced both battles and the ups and downs of officialdom, and the current situation was special, so she didn't need to hide her edge as usual.
Jiang Yan narrowed his eyes, looking intimidating without being angry, and shouted with full energy: "Get out of the way!"
Several people were shocked and stunned.
Jiang Yan didn't even look at them, took a step forward, and pushed the door open. The noise in the box stopped immediately.
Ye Guifan was lazily sitting in a chair, looking rather displeased at the sudden interruption. Once he saw who was at the door, he smiled again and asked, "Why are you here?"
Jiang Yan had a cold face and said nothing.
Ye Guifan looked at the madam and her group and ordered, "You guys go down first. You are my friends."
The madam rolled her eyes, closed the door tactfully and left.
There was a man playing the piano sitting opposite Ye Guifan. Jiang Yan entered the room and sat next to Ye Guifan. Seeing this, the man stood up and was about to pick up the piano and leave.
Ye Guifan hurriedly said nervously: "Zhaohong, you stay."
The man paused after hearing this, then sat down again with his brows lowered.
Jiang Yan looked between the two of them, as if she understood something, but she didn't want to ask more questions.
Ye Guifan turned to Jiang Yan, "What's going on?"
"nothing."
"Let me guess, there won't be a quarrel, right?" Ye Guifan tried.
Jiang Yan's heart was touched, his brows were furrowed and he said nothing.
Ye Guifan picked up the teapot on the table and poured tea for Jiang Yan. "You came at the right time. This is freshly brewed Longjing tea. Try it."
Jiang Yan picked up the cup and drank it down in one gulp, as if this could help suppress the sadness in his heart.
Ye Guifan didn't ask any more questions or say much. He turned to the man and said softly, "Zhaohong, continue."
Luo Zhaohong nodded, her slender fingers danced on the strings, and beautiful and sad music sounded.
Jiang Yan made herself a cup of tea, and this time she savored it carefully while listening to the music. But for some reason, she couldn't taste anything.
————
It was already late when Jiang Yan returned from Shuilan Pavilion.
Jiang Yan entered the mansion, and a servant beside him came forward to take the cloak.
"Would Your Majesty like to have dinner?"
"Need not."
Jiang Yan paused and asked casually, "Where is Zhengjun?"
"Zhengjun is in the bedroom. Your Highness, would you like to come over?"
"No need." Jiang Yan walked to the other side and went straight to the study.
That was her original plan, but after going around in circles, she couldn't help but turn back and walk towards where he was.
【Author’s words】
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2024-04-29 00:13:59 and 2024-05-01 00:13:59~
Thanks to the little angel who irrigated the nutrient solution: 1 bottle of Tea Green Zi Shi Sha Xinghe;
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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