After changing the medicine, Jiang Chuting remembered to take out Xiao Jiu's apprenticeship gift to look at.
He knew the boy wasn't sincerely seeking apprenticeship and wouldn't prepare any elaborate apprenticeship gifts. But when he took out the thickly folded paper from the envelope and unfolded it, he found it was just a plain white sheet of paper without a single ink spot. He shook his head and chuckled softly.
Smoothing the white paper with my fingers, my thoughts drifted to Lin Zhi, that child. His personality was nothing like his father's.
Jiang Chuting rested his elbows on the wooden table, propped his forehead up, and slowly fell into deep thought.
I don't know if Lin Zhi went home.
He was really just thinking about it; he never expected to fall asleep like that and then have a dream.
The dream was still related to Yun Zique.
He rushed to the door, wearing only his underwear, shirtless, and without shoes, and vomited while leaning against the doorframe. Lin Xi, lying on the bed, covered herself with the blanket, her shoulders exposed, her long hair disheveled, her eyes red, crying uncontrollably, sobbing, "Zi Que, Zi Que, are you really this disgusting? I'm a woman, how can you insult me like this?"
Yun Zique coughed and choked, his throat dry and hoarse, his eyes bloodshot. He sneered as he gasped for breath, turning back to stare at her with a terrifying expression. "I insulted you? Knowing I don't like you, you still drugged me. Isn't that self-humiliation?! Do you even know what shame is?!" His teeth chattered with rage. "Lin Xi, just thinking about what you did to me last night... makes me feel like every inch of my body is overflowing with filthy stench! I wish I could die right now!"
Lin Xi's body trembled. She shook her head violently, tears streaming down her face. "Even if... even if you don't like me, I'm a woman. If my reputation is ruined, I'll be the one who suffers. You can't do this to me, you can't..."
Yun Zique laughed in fury: "How righteous and stern you are! Lin Xi, do you know why I have hated everything about the Lin family since I was a child? It's because you all use yourselves as women as shields, taking it for granted that you can do despicable things that violate morality! Your mother is one, and so are you! Every single person in your Lin family is abnormal; it's a den of madmen!"
"What are you saying..." Lin Xi looked at him with wet eyes, raised her hand to wipe away her tears, and choked out, "I can't help it if you think like this, Zi Que. I've liked you since I was a child, and I will never let you be with that person. In short, if you want me, you must stay in the Lin family, marry me, and you are not allowed to go anywhere. Otherwise, my mother will not let him go."
"It's hopeless, hopeless." Yun Zique ignored her, his face deathly pale. He staggered a couple of steps and slowly collapsed to the ground. A resolute light suddenly shone in his dark eyes as he murmured, "One day, one day, I will take you all down with me..."
It took Jiang Chuting a long time to finally pull herself out of this depressing dream.
His cheeks were already soaked with sweat, and his chest felt like it was blocked by a huge rock, making it difficult to even breathe.
Jiang Chuting clutched her chest, her eyelashes trembling with tears, and she whispered that name in anguish: "Zi Que, Zi Que, Zi Que..."
When Zi Que was with him, he was cheerful and loved to laugh. Although he occasionally looked depressed, she had never seen him so repressed, painful, and on the verge of collapse, as if he were being fried in a pan of oil all the time.
He began to doubt again: was this really just a dream? He and Lin Xi had a child because he was drugged? What exactly did Zi Que go through back then at the Lin family?
Jiang Chuting's silent tears streamed down her chin and fell onto the white paper in front of her, soaking a large patch.
"Is this how you treat my apprenticeship ceremony?" The boy's voice rang out from the doorway.
Jiang Chuting didn't respond. She quickly wiped away her tears and looked up at the person who walked in.
Xiao Jiu must have already soaked in the medicinal spring; his spirits and complexion are much better than before, and his lips have returned to their normal red color. He is about the same height as Lin Zhi, dressed in brocade robes, with a handsome face, dazzling arrogance, and an air of nobility that is hard to describe.
Xiao Jiu sat down opposite Jiang Chuting, her bright black eyes scrutinizing his tear-stained face, and asked, "Why are you crying so sadly? Who is Zi Que?"
Jiang Chuting had already composed herself and said calmly, "It's none of your business."
"You are my master. How can a disciple's concern for his master be unrelated to me?" Xiao Jiu argued vehemently, staring at him as she continued, "Who is Zi Que? You ruined my apprenticeship ceremony for him. You must think my apprenticeship ceremony wasn't sincere enough, right? Master, please don't dislike me, it will hurt me." She called him "master" so naturally, her tone affectionate, as if she were pleading with an elder. She was completely different from the fierce person she had been in the Jiying Hall.
"No, you're overthinking it." When Mo Lin became an apprentice, he kowtowed three times. When Wei Jia came to become an apprentice, Mo Lin even gave him two plates of pastries. Jiang Chuting had no intention of taking Xiao Jiu as a disciple, and he wouldn't care what gifts Xiao Jiu gave. He lowered his eyes, folded the white paper back up, put it in the envelope, stood up, walked to the bookshelf, and tucked it between the books.
Xiao Jiu noticed his actions, her eyes flickered, and she looked at him with her chin in her hand, saying, "Master, what I'm giving you isn't just an ordinary blank piece of paper, but a promise. You can fill it in as you like, because I really can't think of anything that's worthy of you. In the future, write down whatever you want on this piece of paper, and as long as I can do it, I will definitely fulfill it for you. What do you think? You're the only one in the whole world who gets this kind of treatment."
Jiang Chuting didn't know why he suddenly acted well, nor would she easily believe him, but she knew his unpredictable nature and that she had to go along with him. She smiled and said, "It's very precious, I will keep it safe."
Xiao Jiu smiled brightly, her eyes crinkling.
The next day, Wei Jia finally found some peace and quiet and sat down at his desk to practice calligraphy. Jiang Chuting picked up a book and read it beside him, keeping him company and supervising him.
Xiao Jiu didn't need to soak in the medicinal spring, and having nothing else to do, she came over too. Upon seeing Wei Jia's handwriting, she immediately looked at it with disdain, her eyes full of disgust. She gave a blunt critique: "Not only is your handwriting ugly, but you also made so many mistakes. Are you stupid?"
"Where did I write it wrong! Where am I stupid?" Wei Jia was slow-witted after all, completely unaware that the person in front of him was not someone to be trifled with. He pressed his arm down over his writing, put on airs, and glared at him angrily: "How dare you talk to your senior brother like that?"
Xiao Jiu laughed twice as if she had heard a joke, then glanced at his little face and said in a slightly drawn-out tone, "Senior brother? If I call you senior brother, would you dare to answer?"
Wei Jia really dared to do that.
Jiang Chuting understood his foolish apprentice. Just as the apprentice was about to retort again, he tapped him on the head with a scroll and said sternly, "Don't make a sound. Concentrate on practicing calligraphy."
Wei Jia shrank back, rubbed his head, and ignored Xiao Jiu. Xiao Jiu rolled her eyes, not continuing the conversation.
After writing two more pages, Wei Jia could no longer sit still. Jiang Chuting asked him to write a few more words, so he threw himself into Jiang Chuting's arms, wrapping his arms around his straight and slender waist and acting spoiled, "No, no, my hands hurt from writing, and I'm hungry, Master."
Xiao Jiu gazed at this scene with her beautiful eyes for a moment, then casually picked up her teacup and took a small sip.
Wei Jia's laziness was truly innate and difficult to correct. Jiang Chuting didn't force him, gave him a plate of snacks, and let him go play. He cheered and ran off.
Xiao Jiu glanced at Wei Jia's departing figure, making no attempt to hide her dislike for him, and snorted coldly, "This kind of stupid disciple should just die."
He said it so naturally, it just came out of his mouth. Jiang Chuting's heart skipped a beat. She looked up at him, frowned, and said with disapproval in her eyes, "Xiao Jiu, don't say that in the future. Wei Jia just doesn't like to study, he's not a bad person."
This was the first time Jiang Chuting had ever called him that.
Xiao Jiu propped her chin up with one hand and tapped lightly on the wooden table with the other, smiling at him with her eyes crinkling. "I was just kidding. I know, I know, I will follow Master's teachings."
Just then, a commotion came from the stairs. Jiang Chuting looked up and saw Mo Lin, his face deathly pale, being carried back by two subordinates. He must have gone to the disciplinary hall to receive his punishment.
When Mo Lin came in, his eyes glanced at him, intentionally or unintentionally.
Jiang Chuting met his eyes, her expression unchanged, she didn't say a word, and her gaze only darted around before she looked away.
Xiao Jiu took in the two people's behavior and found it very interesting, silently curling the corners of her lips.
Mo Lin was taken back to his room. Even with the best medicine, he would be bedridden for at least half a month. Two days passed quickly, and Jiang Chuting hadn't visited him.
That night, Jiang Chuting heard some strange noises coming from Xiao Jiu's side. Thinking that he had suddenly been poisoned, she decided to get up and go check on him.
When they arrived, they found that he had made a mistake during his practice, had coughed up blood, and was already half-conscious.
Mo Lin was being helped over, and they were about to help him recover when Jiang Chuting saw that he was already covered in sweat and had bulging veins on his forehead, clearly unable to take care of himself. If he came, Xiao Jiu would definitely be in danger. After a moment's hesitation, she said calmly, "I'll do it."
He stepped forward and helped Xiao Jiu up, placing his palms against Xiao Jiu's back with his inner energy. Jiang Chuting frowned slightly; he noticed that Xiao Jiu's internal energy was unusually disordered. This wasn't the first time the child had encountered such a problem today.
Jiang Chuting never expected that helping out this time would place such a heavy responsibility on her shoulders.
—He was to accompany Xiao Jiu to soak in the medicinal spring.
As he suspected, Xiao Jiu had not only been poisoned but also encountered some problems with his cultivation, requiring the help of someone with profound internal energy to regulate his breathing. Mo Lin had been the one to do this before, but Mo Lin was injured, so he wanted to entrust the task to him.
After Mo Lin was injured, Jiang Chuting didn't come to visit. He was bedridden and could only send someone to fetch him if he needed to discuss something. Fortunately, he managed to get him to come. Mo Lin said, "The effects of the meditation will be better after soaking in the medicinal spring, so I want you to accompany him." His master was indeed his master; when his master took action, he was far superior to him. He couldn't argue with that.
Jiang Chuting, with one hand behind his back, pondered briefly before saying to Mo Lin, who was lying on the bed with his head turned to the side, "You'd be more at ease sending your men." He had only acted out of necessity before, with Mo Lin and his subordinates watching over him. Now, Mo Lin was actually trusting an outsider like him to guard Xiao Jiu.
In Mo Lin's heart, he was still a shameless homosexual. Wasn't he afraid that Mo Lin might have feelings for Xiao Jiu?
He felt that Mo Lin's trust in him came from somewhere rather inexplicably.
Mo Lin knew what he meant, and after a moment's hesitation, he said, "You are Xiao Jiu's master, so there's nothing to worry about. Besides, your internal strength is better than mine, making you more suitable." Most importantly, this was actually the Ninth Prince's idea, and he was just following orders.
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