Chapter 15
Before Jiang Mian could contain her emotions, she was suddenly met with a pair of dark, cold eyes.
She hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward and gently bowed: "Cousin."
"Um."
Shen Ji stepped down from the carriage and looked at the clever and lively young lady in front of him. She wore a light pink silk dress, had a delicate face, and a hibiscus hairpin in her hair that was quite eye-catching.
Thinking of the threat she had just received, she was still in a bad mood. She had intended to say goodbye to him and then leave, but Shen Ji suddenly called out to her, "Jiang Mian."
She paused slightly.
Perhaps because she had feelings for him, every time he called her name, it made her heart flutter.
His deep voice, slightly cold, called her name again and again. She curled her fingertips, feeling a little uncomfortable.
When he turned around, he had already put on a docile expression: "What's wrong, cousin?"
Who was that person just now?
Jiang Mian was somewhat surprised. Her first reaction was that her cousin was not the type to ask about things he didn't want to do. Why would he suddenly ask about it? Then she thought about how much he had seen or heard earlier.
At this moment, Jiang Mian was both annoyed by Jiang Chong's sudden arrival and conflicted by Shen Ji's sudden question.
For a moment, she suddenly felt that the person in front of her controlled everything in the Shen family and could help her escape this situation. On the other hand, she also felt that if she told him today, it would be difficult to persuade him in the future.
Moreover, she already had a way to deal with it.
Jiang Mian pursed her lips, then suddenly took a step back: "It's nothing, not an important person. I'm a little tired today. If you don't have anything else to do, cousin, I'll go in first."
After saying that, she turned and left without waiting for Shen Ji to speak.
The person behind her frowned, a look of confusion and uncontrollable emotion flashing in their eyes for the first time. Jiang Mian was very different from usual today.
...
"Young master, you're back."
The snow had just melted, and Yun Qing was playing with the cat in the courtyard when she saw Shen Ji walk in. She went up to him and said, "Miss Wu came this morning and brought a box of pastries as an apology to you."
Shen Ji stopped in his tracks, his handsome brows furrowing again, before his gaze swept over and fell upon the white cat.
After not seeing each other for a few days, Matsumoto relaxed comfortably by the table leg and ate a whole round dumpling.
Shen Ji calmly withdrew his gaze, took a step forward, and seemed unmoved by those words.
However, as soon as he entered the study, he saw a food box on the desk. He reached out and opened it, and the pastries inside were soft and squishy, clearly made by someone.
"Yun Qing," Shen Ji called out, closing his eyes briefly.
"Go and find out who was talking to Jiang Mian at the northwest gate at noon."
Yun Qing was somewhat confused. Why was the young master investigating this? Could it be that Fifth Sister was the key person in their plan?
Shen Ji pinched the bridge of his nose. He shouldn't be concerned about Jiang Mian's affairs, but as if drawn by an invisible force, he unconsciously focused his gaze on her.
From that day in the Buddhist hall, she knelt on the ground, vulnerable and helpless. His sword was so close to her; if he had been heartless and ruthless, perhaps all the contact they had had these past few days would have been lost.
But that one time, he softened.
I shouldn't have been soft-hearted, but somehow I let her go.
He wanted to see what she wanted to do, or rather, why she wanted to approach him.
...
Jiang Mian returned to Birou Garden and briefly recounted the scene to Yunji. Yunji was somewhat worried: "Madam, you shouldn't have gone to see him. They've taken so much advantage of you. Most of the property and deeds left by the master have been seized by them. Now they've come to you again, asking me to look after you. Madam, you can't tolerate this. They only pick on the weak. They're doing this because they think you're easy to talk to."
"I know, if Jiang Chong wants to take advantage, he'll have to see if he has the ability."
"So, you have an idea?" Yunji's eyes lit up. She knew that her young lady was no pushover.
Jiang Mian whispered a few words in her ear, and Yun Ji's eyes darted around before she looked at her with bright eyes and said, "This servant will go and do it right away."
Jiang Mian blinked. Jiang Chong had underestimated her.
In the past, she had to pretend to be kind because of past affection and because she was living under someone else's roof. Now that they have become increasingly outrageous, she no longer needs to tolerate them.
She deliberately acted as if she was reluctant to agree, just to make Jiang Chong think that she was afraid of being blackmailed by him.
Given Jiang Chong's personality, he would surely feel that she had taken advantage of his weakness and dared not speak out, thus becoming even more unrestrained and arrogant.
Now she's probably enjoying herself in some restaurant, and all she has to do is get rid of this trouble through someone else.
Sure enough, when Yunji rushed to Yunfu Inn, she happened to see Jiang Chong, who was completely drunk, in the lobby.
She walked up to him with disgust and asked the shopkeeper, only to find out that he had come to Jeju Island half a month ago and was a big spender, and that he was a regular at the brothels on this street.
Yunji frowned, having already made up her mind.
Back at the manor, she told Jiang Mian everything she had found out. After listening, Jiang Mian lowered her eyes, and what she had heard was roughly the same as what she had thought.
Jiang Chong was a greedy and lustful man, but he was good at pretending.
She didn't know how he got the injury in his sleeve. Even if her uncle would beat people when he was drunk, that was all in the past. Now that he was all grown up, how could he be beaten like he was when he was a child? Besides, she had seen with her own eyes that beneath his hypocritical exterior lay a ruthless heart.
To get rid of his entanglement, the only solution is to find someone with greater power to suppress him and prevent him from making the same mistake again.
However, getting him to back down won't be so easy.
We need to find someone even more shameless and miserly than him, someone who would never dare to come to Jeju Island in his lifetime. Otherwise, he will be like a leech, impossible to shake off.
But who should I turn to?
Jiang Mian was troubled for half a day. Yun Ji saw that she was frowning and felt sorry for her. "Miss, why don't you go out for a walk? You haven't been out much since you came to Jizhou. Maybe going out for a walk will make your mind clearer."
Jiang Mian sighed helplessly, then a thought flashed through her mind. She pursed her lips, but her eyes suddenly lit up.
Got it!
Perhaps the young master of the Feng family could lend her a hand at the banquet at Tingzhu Pavilion that day.
After gaining a clearer understanding, Jiang Mian immediately sent someone to inquire about the places Young Master Feng frequented. Within half a day, Jiang Mian knew everything about Young Master Feng.
Feng Liangyu was a notorious playboy in Jizhou, who bullied others by relying on his power. His favorite places to go were Hua Man Lou and Qian Jin Ge, both of which were brothels.
This person's temperament is unpredictable. When he's happy, he can throw away a fortune, but when he's unhappy, he can take a life at will. For example, a few days ago, he was drunk and someone tripped him. When he woke up, he beat that person to death.
The young ladies of the city, hearing of his infamous reputation, dared not marry him.
After pondering for a while, Jiang Mian whispered a few words in Yun Ji's ear. The next day, Yun Ji put on a bamboo hat and went out through the back door.
Qinghui Hall.
Yun Qing reported everything he had found to Shen Ji, and couldn't help but add at the end, "That scoundrel is a scoundrel. He clearly came to Jizhou with the intention of extorting money. Young master, should I..."
He made a silent, decisive move to end it all.
Shen Ji curled his fingertips and gently tapped the table. His deep voice was as clear as ever, his eyes dark: "Where is Jiang Mian?"
Yun Qing was slightly taken aback: "The Fifth Miss is at Birou Courtyard."
Shen Ji frowned. Three days had passed. Knowing Jiang Mian's personality, she would probably try to curry favor with him and ask him to step in and resolve this trouble.
But why hasn't she come looking for me yet?
For three whole days, if Yun Qing hadn't investigated the matter thoroughly, he wouldn't have even known that she was being blackmailed.
Shen Ji pursed his lips, as if something was heading in an uncontrollable direction, but strangely, he didn't resist it.
"Young master, when did this box of pastries disappear?"
Yun Qing glanced at the food box that Jiang Mian had brought and was surprised to find that the pastries inside had disappeared. Could it be that the young master had eaten them all?
The words came out without any thought.
"Matsumoto is a glutton."
"From now on, don't feed it too much."
Shen Ji didn't raise his eyes, and said in a deep voice.
Yun Qing lowered his eyes respectfully this time, his surprise subsiding. He knew it! The young master wouldn't eat such ugly pastries. It was probably Song Yuan who had run away for a few days and came back round and plump.
"If the young master has no further instructions, I will take my leave."
"Um."
Shen Ji seemed somewhat distracted.
He sat quietly on the soft chair for a while, then suddenly realized that he couldn't seem to calm down.
At this time of day, he would usually be reading and writing, but now, after writing a few lines, he suddenly thought of her by the carriage, sweetly calling his name.
The word "cousin" seems to have become some kind of ambiguous curse.
The wolf-hair brush in his hand danced across the paper, unconsciously pouring out the two characters "Jiang Mian," the strokes powerful yet gentle. He lowered his eyes and stared at it for a long time, feeling that he might be going crazy.
He suddenly couldn't understand Jiang Mian.
He initially thought she had come here with a purpose, fearing she might be a spy sent by those people. After several tests, he discovered she knew nothing.
They have some clever tricks up their sleeves, but they are easily seen through.
Later, after he felt she had no value, she suddenly leaned on him.
It's very similar to a little tabby cat he met when he was a child, who would pretend to be crippled time and time again in order to trick him into giving her food.
He noticed it from the beginning, but at that time his father was busy with official duties all day, and his mother was sentimental, so playing with the cat became one of his rare pleasures.
Once, he saw it still limping towards him, but he didn't pay attention. Later, he realized that it was really injured. He didn't know when it had been injured, and what was originally pretending to be lame had become real lameness. He suddenly had some indescribable emotions.
Jiang Mian now resembles that tabby cat; she appears cunning, but it's merely a facade born of necessity to survive.
Shouldn't she have continued to rely on him? Why did she give up halfway?
The tabby cat I remember has a new owner.
Could it be that Jiang Mian is the same?
Shen Ji suddenly crumpled the paper into a ball, his temple throbbing twice. He shouldn't have done this, he shouldn't have thought so much.
I shouldn't let her cloud my judgment.
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