Chapter 7 Elder Brother Huaijin [Hate Value Decreased by 4]
Rubbing his temples, Qin Jin lowered his head in a headache.
Forcing back the tears in her almond-shaped eyes, Xue Rongyue's delicate nose turned a peach color. She pouted, seemingly disdainful, and held her head high as always, like a proud and noble peacock.
He had seen this demeanor of hers since she was a child. He sighed slowly and, without resorting to his usual confrontational style, said in a deep voice, "Xue Rongyue, your brother Huaijin and I used to be very close friends who could talk about anything."
My elder brother, Huaijin.
The words hadn't been mentioned for many years. Xue Rongyue seemed to freeze in place, a bitter taste rising from the tip of her tongue, and her expression turned somber.
She was called Xue Erniang because she also had her brother's protection.
On her eighth birthday, the Xue family held a grand banquet, with guests flocking to the house. She wore a pomegranate-colored skirt made of the most fashionable patterned fabric, and her hair was adorned with an exquisite hairpin bestowed upon her by the palace. She demurely accepted the flattery and ingratiation from the guests.
After the banquet ended, she picked out the best birthday gift she had received and happily went to her brother's courtyard. However, before she even stepped into the courtyard, she smelled a thick, inky smell of medicine and heard the sobbing coming from inside, which went from suppressed to broken.
Her heart sank to the bottom. She ripped off the red flower from her temple and ran in fear and confusion, heading straight for the figure on the bed.
Her elder brother had always aspired to be a great general, and his physique was always much stronger than that of other boys his age. But now, he lay thin on the bed, looking even weaker than her. The once dashing young man, who would kneel down and gently stroke her hair whenever he saw her, now had his eyes closed, so weak that he couldn't even lift his hands.
Her mind went blank. She knelt blankly in front of her brother's bed, still in a daze, tears streaming down her face.
She sat there for an unknown amount of time, listening to the helpless sighs of the imperial physicians and the heated arguments of her parents, until the night watchman's drum sounded.
The older brother, who had been in a coma, finally opened his eyes. Amidst the heated argument, he listened to the midnight watchman's drum outside. He forced a smile, barely managing to pull out a curve, and looked at him with a mixture of regret and relief, as if he had a lot to say. In the end, he only said, "Fortunately, I was able to let you have a happy birthday."
Then, he closed his eyes and never woke up again.
The imperial physician said that young Master Xue's lungs and internal organs had been damaged. He had drunk twelve bowls of medicinal soup to prolong his life, and he had reached his limit by now. Her brother, in order to let her celebrate her birthday happily, endured the torment of pain and died on the second day after her eighth birthday.
Before her eighth birthday, she was the second wife of the Xue family. Her father was extremely powerful, her mother was kind and gentle, and she had her elder brother to protect her. After she turned eight, her elder brother died, her parents divorced, and her father was stationed in the military camp, leaving her alone in the mansion.
At the age of eight, her family was destroyed.
A gentle spring breeze stirred ripples on the lake, restlessly blowing the stray hairs at Xue Rongyue's temples, and the tears that rushed out of her almond-shaped eyes were blown away along with the handkerchief in her hand.
When Xue Rongyue came to her senses, tears were already streaming down her face. Her pride did not allow her to shed tears in front of others, especially since the person in front of her was Qin Jin. Gritting her teeth and cursing under her breath, she roughly wiped away the tears dripping onto her cheeks.
Qin Jin turned around, his gaze falling on Chun Tao swirling in the lake, his voice low and hoarse: "That sword was designed by your brother Huai Jin and forged by skilled craftsmen found by Madam Cui. Neither in the past nor in the future, I will take out my anger on this sword."
After wiping her eyes until they were red and swollen, Xue Rongyue barely managed to stop her tears. She was stunned by those words, her fingertips stiffened on her face, and her breath caught in her throat.
Staring intently at Qin Jin, Xue Rongyue's voice was tense and trembling: "That sword..."
She bent down to pick up the handkerchief that Chunfeng had discarded on the waterside pavilion, and hung it on the vermilion railing. Qin Jin took two steps back, turned his head slightly, and revealed his thick eyebrows, straight nose, and sharp, arrogant profile. His gaze was restrained and fell on her three inches in front of her.
He sighed almost imperceptibly: "Go back to the manor, the sword is still here."
The sword is still there.
Without having time to bid farewell to Princess Yu'an, Xue Rongyue hurriedly returned to the manor with Jingnu. In the end, she found the long sword, which had been placed at the bottom of a box and had been polished until fine lines appeared on it, in the manor's storeroom among the festival gifts sent by the Qin family.
Jingnu, ashamed, apologized: "It was all my negligence when I was counting the festival gifts that prevented me from discovering it in time."
Although Xue Rongyue and Qin Jin were at odds, the Xue and Qin families were, after all, prominent and powerful clans in Chang'an. Without any conflict of interest, why would they become enemies over what they considered to be just a minor squabble between two juniors? Therefore, during festivals, the two families would still maintain superficial courtesy and exchange gifts.
Since the Xue family had no mistress, these trivial matters were handled by Xue Rongyue. Because of her feud with Qin Jin, the festival gifts sent by the Qin family were all counted by the maid, and after confirming that everything was correct, they were piled up in the storeroom to gather dust. If it weren't for this time, Xue Rongyue wouldn't have even glanced at these items if they had just been left to rot.
Jingnu suddenly realized, "No wonder the Qin family postponed the Lantern Festival gifts by half a day. I found it strange at the time, but now I realize it must be because of this sword. The Prince of Qin really didn't take advantage of the situation..."
Gently stroking the longsword, Xue Rongyue's fingertips brushed over the various rubies on the scabbard, her eyes lowered in silence.
Although her antagonism with Qin Jin can be traced back to their infancy, and they are said to be incompatible by birth charts, even with such a long-standing feud, upon closer examination, there was actually a period when the two shook hands and made peace.
The year she was born, a prince rebelled, and her father was ordered to lead an expedition to suppress the rebels. Her mother and brother followed him, while she, still an infant, was taken to the palace to be raised by the Empress Dowager. She grew up in the palace until she was four years old, when her father finally returned in triumph. However, children are often shy around strangers, and she cried and refused to return to the palace, so she continued to be raised in the palace.
Her father was busy with work, so her mother and brother often came to visit her.
Especially his elder brother, who was only a little over ten years old at the time, didn't have many rules when walking around in the palace.
She was initially very resistant to this suddenly appearing older brother, especially resentful that he had been taken to their parents' side while leaving her behind.
She often walks ahead with her head held high, unwilling to acknowledge him.
Until that time, her brother came to the palace to visit her and happened to catch her fighting with Qin Jin. Although she and Qin Jin were the same age, she loved to eat when she was young and was tall and fat, with a figure that could take the place of two Qin Jins. She always dominated Qin Jin in the fight.
Later, Qin Jin became smarter and would always secretly call for help. When her brother came over, she was fighting two people by herself and thought she was not at a disadvantage, but her brother thought it was not the case.
Enraged, the elder brother flew into a rage and kicked Qin Jin and the sixteenth prince, who had come to help, to the ground.
The elder brother had practiced martial arts since childhood. How could Qin Jin and the sixteenth prince, two children raised in luxury, be a match for him? The elder brother took them by the hand and beat them until they were bruised and swollen, and dizzy.
At that time, Xue Rongyue, who was only slightly taller than the stone benches in the Imperial Garden, looked at the scene before her with her round little belly full of food. Her round eyes shone as she experienced the benefits of having an older brother for the first time.
Later, her brother was forced to apologize by their father, who rushed over. However, it is unknown what her brother said to Qin Jin. From then on, Qin Jin and the Sixteenth Prince became her brother's shadows, calling him "brother" all the time. She became even more furious and resentful that Qin Jin had taken her brother away, and she became even more opposed to him.
However, under his brother's tutelage, Qin Jin became increasingly tolerant and gentle towards her. Many times, even when he was clearly angered by her, as long as his brother coughed lightly, he would obediently lower his head and pretend that he hadn't heard anything. Sometimes, when he was really angry, he would just say "I won't argue with you" and then run away.
As they spent more time together, Qin Jin became less responsive to her advances, which she found boring. She stopped deliberately provoking him, and with her brother's guidance and support, the two of them were able to tone down their sharp tempers and dine together at the same table.
Sometimes, Qin Jin would imitate his older brother, smiling at her with his eyes crinkled, and calling her "Second Mother" in a deep, muffled voice.
The large, ornate gems inlaid on the scabbard were a gift from Qin Jin.
Because she often watched her brother and Qin Jin practice martial arts, she started to clamor to learn martial arts and swordsmanship as she grew older. However, her father disapproved, and she could only feel sad and disappointed. It was her brother who told her that he would personally teach her swordsmanship when she turned eight.
She waited and waited, hoping and hoping, and finally her eighth birthday was approaching. But her brother was sent to Liangzhou by their father and could not come back to celebrate her birthday. She made a fuss and refused to let go of her brother's horse reins. Helpless, her brother dismounted and promised her that he would return on time.
On the morning of her birthday, her mother handed her the long sword that had been prepared beforehand, pointing to the blade and saying, "This sword was designed by your brother according to your preferences."
He then pointed to the sword sheath and said to her, "These magnificent gems were specially found for you by Prince Qin. Hurry up and thank him."
Qin Jin stood to the side. Because of his martial arts training, he was now as tall as a cypress and much larger than before. He was no longer the child who couldn't even beat her.
With a touch of arrogance in his handsome features, he gave a light hum, his expression revealing his pride: "I know you like big, bright gems. These are tributes sent from outside, far superior to the ordinary jewels in the Treasure Pavilion."
She was gently nudged by her mother, and under her mother's tender gaze, she felt inexplicably uncomfortable. She turned her head away and hummed for a long time before finally uttering a barely audible "...thank you."
The mother smiled and said, "Young Master Qin has gone to great lengths; your second mother is very pleased."
Qin Jin's face suddenly turned red, and he lowered his head shyly, avoiding Xue Rongyue's gaze. He cleared his throat, scratched his head, and pretended to be mature and indifferent: "Hey, it's nothing, as long as Second Madam likes it."
Swallows perched on the branches, chirping and chattering, a testament to the arrival of spring. Xue Rongyue rubbed her sore and swollen eyes, slowly exhaling a breath of stale air. Under Jingnu's worried gaze, she gradually pulled her thoughts away from her past memories.
Just then, a system notification sounded—
[Congratulations, host! We have detected an increase of 1 in the favorability rating of your target, Qin Jin.]
[Congratulations, host. We have detected that the hatred level of the target Qin Jin has decreased by 4, and is currently at 78.]
A note from the author:
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Xue Rongyue: Seize the young master? Wife Shi Ba?!
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