Chapter 71 Chapter 71 Chasing Wife
Ji Yang was stunned, half of his face quickly turned red, and a little bloodstain appeared at the corner of his lips, but he did not move.
"You bastard!" Madam Ji shouted angrily, her eyes red. "Do you know that the only reason you were able to escape from Liangzhou alive was because Jiang Huaice risked his life to secretly pave the way for you?"
Ji Yang looked up suddenly, his eyes full of surprise: "What did you say?"
"The Jiang family has never harmed you. When Ah Ci entered the mansion, I wanted to help you both get along, so that you wouldn't have to bear any resentment or let her down. But what about you? You ignored her, misled her, and now you've divorced her, all for... a maid of unknown origin?"
Ji Yang felt a hollowness in his chest, as if someone had ripped away the last layer of his dignity. He clenched his fists, his voice low and stiff, "Why didn't you tell me something so important earlier?"
Madam Ji sneered: "Say it earlier? Are you willing to listen?"
Ji Yang's chest heaved, his brows etched with a violent storm. He seemed about to say something, but in the end, he simply lowered his hand, his voice barely audible, "But now... what's the point of saying this?"
"I had already let go of the old grudge in Liangzhou, but she...stabbed me in the heart."
"The knife in your heart wasn't given to you by Jiang Ci!" Madam Ji, still furious, reached out and grabbed the front of his shirt, causing him to stumble half a step. "You still don't understand what you've done? Come with me—I'll show you with my own eyes where this knife in your heart came from!"
She turned around and walked quickly into the inner courtyard, and Ji Yang followed with a sullen face.
Inside the house, the incense burner was curling, and Chu Yao sat quietly on a chair, a cup of hot tea beside her untouched, her hand resting on her abdomen, her eyes so soft that one could almost mistake her for a gentle woman waiting to be married.
As Ji Yang entered the room, his expression froze: "Why is she still here? Isn't this the maid Jiang Ci brought back from Ningling? Why didn't she leave with her?"
Madam Ji slowly turned around, looked at him, and asked word by word, "What did you do to her when you were drunk?"
Ji Yang was completely shocked, his eyes becoming fierce. He stared at his mother in disbelief, his lips trembling. "Mom, I'm your son. Don't you understand me? Do you think... I would treat her like that after getting drunk..."
Before he finished speaking, he had already drawn his sword from his waist. He walked up to Chu Yao and asked coldly, "Whose child is in your belly? You'd better tell me clearly."
Chu Yao's face turned pale, her body trembled, and she instantly fell to her knees, a look of panic on her face: "Governor...that night...I was also forced into a corner...That day you called me into the room to serve tea, I...I never thought..."
Before she could finish her words, Ji Yang's sword was already on her shoulder.
"When did I call you? If you dare to say another word, I will kill the evil child in your belly today!" Ji Yang growled, biting each word and forcing murderous intent from between his teeth.
Chu Yao's face suddenly turned pale, she collapsed to the ground, crying tremblingly: "I dare not! I... I am just afraid... I am just afraid that the child in my belly will have no name or status..."
"Status?" Ji Yang laughed in anger, turned around and growled at Madam Ji, "Listen to what she said. Even if Jiang Ci wasn't around, I wouldn't even look at someone like her."
There was a chill in Ji Yang's eyes. He slowed down his pace and slowly approached Chu Yao.
She was kneeling on the ground, her face as white as a sheet, her hands clutching her abdomen tightly, her whole body trembling like a sieve. But that weak and pitiful appearance was extremely disgusting to Ji Yang.
"Every lie you tell is just a smear campaign." His voice was so low it seemed to be squeezed out from the bottom of his throat. "Since you dared to bear this evil child, you should pay the price."
He suddenly grabbed her collar and lifted her up from the ground.
"Killing you in this room will pollute my mother's place." His tone was extremely cold, and he was about to drag her out.
“Commander—!” Chu Yao screamed and struggled desperately, but she couldn’t shake his arm at all. She cried out, “I was wrong! I really didn’t mean it… I was too scared, I—”
"Afraid?" Ji Yang sneered, "You're quite courageous. You bite me without blinking an eye. Or maybe you haven't heard of my name?"
Before he finished speaking, there was a sudden sound of hurried footsteps coming from the gate.
"Commander--wait!"
Yue Bai stumbled in, his forehead covered in cold sweat. When he saw Ji Yang dragging Chu Yao out, he immediately knelt on the ground with his hands outstretched, blocking the two of them.
"Commander-in-Chief! The child... is mine. It's mine and Miss Chu's!"
These words were like a heavy hammer dropping to the ground, and the whole house suddenly became dead silent.
Ji Yang paused, not moving for a long moment. Chu Yao suddenly looked at Yue Bai, her eyes filled with shock and fear, looking at him like a lifeline.
Yue Bai knelt on the ground, his forehead touching the ground, his voice trembling:
"It was me... I didn't want her to be a slave in the mansion for the rest of her life. I didn't want my own child to be a slave after he was born. It was my idea to let her marry you, to use your name to pray for a good family background for the child. I was afraid that if we got married secretly, the child would have a low status and be looked down upon..."
"She never intended to harm you and the Madam. Everything was arranged by me, Governor...if you want to kill someone, kill me."
After listening to this, Ji Yang did not move for a long time, but a sneer suddenly appeared on the corner of his mouth.
He let go of her hand, and Chu Yao fell to the ground, crying intermittently.
Ji Yang slowly lowered his eyes and looked at Yue Bai who was kneeling at his feet. His Adam's apple moved slightly and he suddenly laughed softly twice, but that smile was chilling to the bone.
"Yue Bai, you have been with me for many years, how have I treated you?"
Yue Bai gritted his teeth, not daring to raise his head: "The governor has been very kind to me, and I know I was wrong."
Ji Yang's smile gradually faded, replaced by a mixture of fatigue and hatred.
He threw the sword to the ground with a loud bang.
"Before her death, your mother entrusted you to me, asking me to protect you for the rest of your life. I thought you were loyal and honest, and would never betray me. But you... actually stabbed me in the back for a woman."
His eyes seemed to see through this young man who had been with him for several years - strange and absurd.
"I won't kill you."
"But if you still have any blood in you, end it yourself."
After saying this, Ji Yang turned around and walked away steadily without even looking back.
The cold light of the sword reflected in the lamplight. Yue Bai knelt there, hesitant to move. Chu Yao crawled to his side, crying and trembling, hugging him tightly, and kept begging in a low voice: "Yue Bai, what should we do..."
The sound of rain outside the door has stopped, but the sky has not cleared up yet. The dark clouds are hanging low, making it almost impossible to breathe.
Madam Ji stood at the threshold, her dignity undimmed, her eyes coldly observing the farce unfolding within. Before her, Chu Yao collapsed to the ground, weeping miserably. Yue Bai knelt to pick up the sword, his hands trembling slightly, his eyes filled with a deathly intent.
He slowly raised his sword, turned around and looked at Chu Yao, a sad smile appeared on the corner of his lips:
"Yao'er... take good care of our child. I'll be leaving first."
The sword was about to pass across the neck horizontally——
Suddenly, a voice called out, "Wait a minute!"
Everyone was startled and turned to look.
A maid in coarse blue clothes ran out from the corridor, her face pale. It was Lin Chun.
Madam Ji's eyes darkened, and she asked in a cold voice, "Who are you?"
Lin Chun bowed her head and replied, "I am the new maid, Lin Chun, helping to sweep the backyard. I…I have something to report to Madam."
Madam Ji narrowed her eyes, remained silent for a moment, then raised her hand to signal, "Yes."
Lin Chun stood up carefully, walked to Madam Ji's side, lowered her voice, and reported everything she had overheard that night about the conspiracy between Chu Yao and Yue Bai - how they had deliberately planned it, how they wanted to cling to the title of governor in order to gain a high position in the family, without missing a single detail.
With every word, Madam Ji's expression grew colder, and by the time Lin Chun finished speaking, she had completely withdrawn all the warmth from the corners of her lips.
Her eyes were like blades, falling on Chu Yao.
Chu Yao was so frightened that she collapsed on the ground, her lips trembling, her face pale, and she couldn't even utter a word in defense.
Lin Chun stepped aside, lowered his eyebrows and looked submissive, but his heart was still beating wildly.
Madam Ji spoke slowly, her voice as clear as frost:
"Yue Bai, considering your mother's years of service to me, I will spare your life today."
She tilted her head slightly and stared at him. "You were originally a loyal and honest child, but you were bewitched by a few words from such a vulgar and low-brow woman, and nearly caused a catastrophic disaster. Do you know how much dirty water my Ji family would have to bear if she succeeded today?"
Yue Bai knelt on the spot, his body frozen, tears falling to the ground.
Madam Ji raised her hand, waved her sleeve, and said coldly:
"Come here—sell Chu Yao into slavery, sign a document declaring her a slave, and banish her from Fengdu City. You are not allowed to set foot back!"
As soon as these words fell, several old women rushed in from the outer courtyard, holding ropes and binding cloths.
Chu Yao screamed in fear and crawled to Madam Ji, kowtowing desperately, sobbing: "Madam, please spare my life... It's my fault, I was bewitched... Madam... please have mercy on me, please—"
Yue Bai also rushed forward, knelt a few steps, and grabbed Madam Ji's clothes tightly, tears streaming down his face.
"Madam, please... let her go this time. She's pregnant, and she knows she's wrong... She knows she's wrong..."
Madam Ji lowered her eyes, her gaze as cold as ice.
"I only spared her life because I knew she was pregnant. This is the limit." Her tone was light and calm, yet it carried an undeniable coldness. "If you dare to ask for more, I will send you both to hell, and we will become a pair of doomed lovers, so that you can continue to be together in the afterlife."
Yue Bai's hands froze.
He gritted his teeth, slowly let go of Madam Ji's clothes, knelt down on the ground dejectedly, and dared not say another word.
Several maids immediately stepped forward and pulled Chu Yao up with all their might. She cried heartbreakingly, her face covered in tears and snot, but she still refused to give up:
"Yue Bai—didn't you say you would protect me forever? Didn't you say you would marry me—!"
Yue Bai closed his eyes, said nothing, and banged his forehead hard on the ground. He wanted to commit suicide just now to apologize to the governor with his death.
Ji Yang returned to the room where Jiang Ci had slept.
The room still held her scent, the furnishings were the same, nothing seemed to have changed, yet there was a sense of emptiness everywhere. She had packed in a hurry, leaving a few embroidered handkerchiefs in a corner, and the birthday gift he had given her, quietly placed on the table, not taken away.
Ji Yang stood in the room, motionless, his eyes slowly sweeping over the soft couch where she had sat and the window frame where she had leaned. Every inch seemed to be torturing his heart.
He slowly clenched his fists, cold sweat dripping from his palms. After a long moment, he finally released them.
He looked back at the open door. There was no one outside and even the wind was still.
That day, she stood before him, tears in her eyes, but every word she said was sharp. She said she didn't want to share her husband with anyone else, and that he was a coward, who dared to do something but not to admit it...
It turned out to be this incident. No wonder Chu Yao had been inexplicably cold since she left his room that day. He should have noticed it a long time ago.
Ji Yang looked out the window. The leaves of an osmanthus tree in the courtyard moved slightly. He guessed that Jiang Ci was also sitting here, embroidering the tiger talisman for him, stitch by stitch.
He felt as if a bowl of boiling liquor was poured into his throat, burning his internal organs and making them tremble.
He thought she was fooling around, and because he was worried about Zhong Si's orphan, he was distracted and didn't have the patience to ask her the reason.
"She believed me..." he murmured, his voice almost inaudible, "She believed me, but I didn't even ask a question."
Footsteps were heard outside the house. Lu Linchuan came without knowing when.
He stood by the door, looking at Ji Yang who was in the room with a serious expression, and sighed slowly, saying: "My lord, what happened between you... is just a misunderstanding."
"That day was indeed rushed. Zhong Si's death was a huge blow to you. You were confused and she misunderstood. Why not get her back before it's too late?"
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