Chapter 80 "You're such a rotten person."...
"...What time is it?"
Leng Cuizhu rested her head on the man's shoulder, staring at the full moon outside the window.
"Around 9 PM."
Why did they stay inside for so long?
"You haven't gone out yet, so isn't Leng Zhen still stuck in the yard as punishment?" She hurriedly got out of bed, but was grabbed by the arm and pulled back.
"I... I need to go out and see... He's been staying there for so long, his body can't take it."
"Ignore him."
"And what about you? What about your servants? It's so late, they must be tired too..." She was forced to look up. "Uh, wait a minute, are you even listening to me?"
The man took a moment to answer, "No."
It was almost dawn when the two of them finally got dressed and went out of the house to walk into the courtyard.
The night was cool and still. Leng Zhen lay on the ground, fast asleep, her hands still bound by hemp rope.
The servants sat on one side, some playing cards, others dozing off, without disturbing each other.
"One against six! Oh, sir, you've arrived."
Yin Yuan asked expressionlessly, "What's going on?"
"Young Master Leng insisted on sleeping, and we couldn't stop him! We just pulled him up from the ground, but he couldn't stand for long before lying down to sleep again. He was probably too tired to stand up."
Leng Cuizhu released the man's hand, walked to Leng Zhen, and squatted down to examine the scratches on his face.
"Yin Yuan, why don't you find a doctor to take a good look at the injuries on his face? Don't let him get disfigured." She was already angry when she saw Leng Zhen, and if his face was ruined, wouldn't she be driven to the brink of collapse if she had to live in the same house with an ugly man who loved to act like a jerk every day?
Yin Yuan looked down at his empty palm and said, "Hmm."
Her gaze shifted downwards, catching sight of Leng Zhen's drafty robe. She took off her cloak and draped it over him.
Just then, a cold wind blew by: "Achoo!"
"Sigh, the wind is so strong, I'm going back inside."
She rubbed her nose, which was red from the cold, wrapped her arms around herself, and was about to get up when a light blue overcoat was draped over her shoulders, the fur collar still warm.
She looked up.
Yin Yuan's figure appeared somewhat frail in the darkness, his long, graying hair half-draped over his shoulders, and his listless expression was perfectly complemented by his refined and otherworldly face. The dark circles under his eyes and the black mole on his neck... all the sorrow was accentuated by his fair skin, giving him a unique charm.
"I was thinking, how about I go and apologize to Lord Chen in a few days? It's nothing for a boy to get hurt. Leng Zhen has been to jail several times, so this injury is nothing to worry about. But Jiang Mimi is a girl after all, and this might be the first time she's been hit. Besides, Leng Zhen started it..."
Yin Yuan neither praised nor criticized her, but helped her up.
She took the man's hand and continued, "Will you come with me? Okay?"
"Um."
She chose a sunny day and waited for Yin Yuan to finish his shift before going to the Chen residence with him.
Halfway through the carriage ride, she realized she hadn't brought any gifts to apologize to, so she hurriedly pulled Yin Yuan out of the carriage to buy some things.
"Shall we buy her some rouge and powder and some fashionable fabrics? Young girls usually like these things."
Halfway there, she noticed and asked, "What's wrong? Are you in a bad mood? Or are you still feeling unwell from your cold?"
Although Yin Yuan always wore a half-dead expression, his low spirits were particularly noticeable today. He barely acknowledged her and didn't even bother to reply with an "um".
Yin Yuan looked away: "It's nothing."
"oh."
"Oh dear, this rouge shop is packed with customers. I want to buy from this one." She rolled her eyes, shook off the man's hand, and walked into the shop with a smile.
She picked out the rouge in the shop and chatted casually with the shop assistant for a few minutes before Yin Yuan quietly came in to pay. After paying, he turned around to look for her, but she had already left the shop with the rouge box.
The same thing happened when they bought hair accessories and hair flowers; the two didn't exchange a single word from beginning to end.
Back in the carriage, Yin Yuan finally found his chance: "What do you mean?"
"Nothing," she replied. "I saw you were thinking about something, so I didn't want to bother you."
"Have you encountered any difficulties in government affairs?"
The man stared at her for a long time before looking away: "It's nothing."
She nodded, examined the rouge box in her hand, opened the lid, dipped a little rouge onto her fingertip, and muttered to herself, "This color is delicate, suitable for Miss Mimi. I hope she will like it..."
The man sat to one side with his eyes lowered, like a stone statue.
Upon arriving at the Chen residence, she disembarked from the carriage first, followed by Yin Yuan. The two walked one after the other without exchanging a word.
The Chen residence was just like the last time I visited; the paths were winding and secluded, and one could easily get lost if one wasn't careful.
The servants led them for quite a while, but instead of reaching the hall, they somehow ended up back at the main gate, forcing them to start all over again.
"How much longer until we get there?" Leng Cuizhu's feet ached from walking.
The servant held the map, looked at it again and again, sweating profusely: "I'll be there soon!"
“Haven’t we been here before?” he said, pointing to the raccoon dog on the ground. “The cats that have stayed here haven’t changed.”
"Hahahaha..." The servant scratched his head. "Oh right, it seems we've gotten lost again."
Leng Cuizhu: "Shall we go back the way we came?"
"How do I get back the way I came?" the servant asked, clutching the map. "I don't remember how I got here..."
"Uh." She turned her head and looked at Yin Yuan. "Then let's rest here for a while? Maybe we'll remember it later."
"Or we can wait for Lord Chen to come and rescue us."
"Sigh," the servant said with a mournful face, "Alright..."
She stood side by side with Yin Yuan, with several servants surrounding them and fanning them.
She raised her hand to shield her eyes and muttered under her breath, "It's so sunny, there's not a breath of wind at all."
The servant explained, "Hey, with all these twists and turns, the wind gets scattered halfway through, no wonder it's hot!"
She wiped her sweat with a handkerchief as she walked past Yin Yuan toward a shady corner.
The man remained silent, following behind her. He walked when she walked and stopped when she stopped.
She turned her head: "My lord, aren't you hot like this?"
"……No."
“But I’m so hot, I don’t want you to come with me. With you around, I feel so hot and bothered.” She took off the lotus-red handkerchief from her waist, stuffed it into the man’s hand, and said dismissively, “Here, wipe your sweat if you’re hot, and wrap yourself up if you’re cold.”
He lowered his head, clutching the still-fragrant handkerchief in his hand: "...What do you mean?"
"Can you please stop asking such stupid questions?" Leng Cuizhu crossed her arms. "Don't you already know the answer?"
Upon hearing this, the man lowered his eyes, dismissed the servants, and said, "Lingniang, I really don't know what to say to you."
"Yes, I know perfectly well what's going on with your secrets."
Now, Cheng Lengcui was completely puzzled.
"What……"
Yin Yuan: "Sizhi has found evidence of your murders and arson again and presented it to me. I am very troubled by this and do not know how to deal with it."
"Should I keep this a secret? Or is there someone else besides me who can protect you?"
"Ah," she murmured, momentarily stunned, head bowed, "this, this..."
The man glanced at her and said indifferently, "You're a terrible person." Then, he wiped the thin layer of sweat from his forehead with the handkerchief in his hand and carefully folded it.
Leng Cuizhu couldn't understand what "evidence of murder and arson" meant. She had never done those things. Besides, why wasn't Si Qing's matter over yet? Didn't we agree not to investigate anymore? "I didn't kill anyone, and I didn't commit arson... You have to believe me."
"Hmm." The man stroked the twin lotus flowers embroidered on his handkerchief. "We'll talk about it when we get back."
After a while, Chen Xun finally arrived with his men, and upon seeing her and Yin Yuan, he quickly apologized.
"Alas, it's all my fault! The roads in this manor have been repaired, many have been leveled and rebuilt, and they're not the same anymore. It's my fault for not distributing the new maps to the servants so they could remember them clearly." He bowed and scraped. "My lord, my lady, shall we go? I've already had the maids brew tea, and we're just waiting for you two!"
“My lord,” Leng Cuizhu pointed to her neck, “what happened to your neck?”
“Ah,” Chen Xun smiled, touching the red mark on his neck, “My cat at home is naughty and got scratched.”
"You keep cats?"
"Yes, I recently got a tabby kitten. She's only three months old and she's incredibly cute and affectionate."
"..." Yin Yuan's expression darkened further as he watched the two people in front of him chatting and laughing.
He gripped the crimson handkerchief tied around his waist tightly and walked past the two men without a second thought.
Chen Xun: "Hey, sir, what's wrong? Are you in a hurry to go to the outhouse because of an upset stomach? The outhouse isn't in that direction."
Seeing this, Leng Cuizhu chuckled dryly and explained, "He's preoccupied with government affairs. It's alright, don't worry about him."
"Hehe, okay, okay."
"By the way," she turned her head, "why don't I see Miss Mimi? Isn't she at the manor?"
"No, no, she's at home. It's just... she's injured and very depressed, and she doesn't dare to come out and see anyone."
Upon hearing this, her tone turned serious: "My lord, I am truly sorry... If there is anything I can do to help in the future, please feel free to ask me. I will do my best to make up for the mistakes my child has made."
"Oh, my wife, what are you saying?" Chen Xun sighed deeply. "Children are often rough, it's not a big mistake! But since you've said so, I'll have to trouble you to be more understanding about Mimi's marriage in the future!"
"Okay." She nodded in agreement.
After the start of autumn, Yin Yuan finished handing over his duties in the county and cleared Si Qing of any involvement. He then began to arrange for the relocation.
Leng Cuizhu knew that she would be moving after the start of autumn, so she and Leng Zhen packed up their belongings a few days ago, waiting for the servants from the Yin family to come and pack them.
"Oh, right," she suddenly remembered, "Leng Zhen, did you clean the attic and restore it to its original state?"
Leng Zhen lowered her head and ate her food: "It's been ready for a while."
"Don't worry, even if I'm found out, it's my own business. It won't implicate you, and I certainly won't drag you down with me."
She chuckled and said, "You'd better think that way."
“Oh, by the way,” she paused, “I found tobacco in your pocket yesterday. You’re smoking?”
Leng Zhen didn't even look up: "Yes."
"I put it in my pocket and forgot to take it out."
She was slightly surprised by Leng Zhen's frankness. But that surprise was fleeting.
It was actually expected that Leng Zhen would smoke, after all, her fathers were all the kind of people she found unbearable—regardless of which father it was.
Did you buy it with the money you earned from selling medicinal herbs?
He reached for some food: "I bought it with the money I earned from selling myself."
She retorted, "Won't people be suddenly frightened by someone like you?"
"No way," he replied with a smile, propping his chin on his hand. "I'm just as beautiful as my mother, why would I be scared?"
"Why do you talk like that..."
Leng Zhen put down her chopsticks: "Mom, I'm not eating anymore, I'm having a craving for a cigarette."
"I'm leaving now, goodbye."
She gritted her teeth and stared at Leng Zhen's departing figure.
She couldn't win the argument... He was too shameless; she couldn't win at all.
"That's enough. There's no need to argue with a madman," she shook her head and got up to clear the table.
After collecting the bowls and chopsticks in the kitchen, she removed the winnowing basket covering the water vat and reached in to touch the sleeping rooster inside.
"Dodder, remember to wash the dishes when you wake up. I have to go out, I'll bring you donkey meat sandwiches when I get back tonight."
"Hmm," the rooster mumbled sleepily, "I don't want donkey meat sandwiches."
"What would you like to eat?"
"force."
-----------------------
Author's Note: There will be red envelopes in this chapter!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
