The beaded curtain swayed, and Shi Rong walked in first, followed by Shi Xi and her maidservants.
"Why are you looking for me in such a hurry? What's wrong?"
As soon as Shi Xi entered the room, she saw that Shi Lan's face was moist and there was still some moisture on her temples. She knew that Shi Lan had just gotten up from a nap, so she glared at her in annoyance.
Shi Lan glanced at the maids around her and waved her hand, saying, "There's no need to serve here. You can all go outside and wait."
Shi Xi glanced at Shi Lan, who was trying her best to hide her smugness but still showed it. A vague idea came to her mind, so she turned to Bi Cao and waved. Bi Cao nodded slightly and led the maids standing by the door out.
Shi Rong looked at the two sisters staring at each other, feeling puzzled. However, thinking of Shi Lan's past scandals, he couldn't help but feel a little uneasy.
Seeing Shi Rong's expression change slightly and his jaw tighten, Shi Lan smiled gently, "Big brother, don't be afraid, I won't let you be blamed this time."
Shi Rong chuckled but didn't say anything.
Two years ago, Shi Lan broke her father's favorite inkstone. At the time, Shi Rong was practicing calligraphy there. Shi Lan said righteously, "Brother, don't worry, I did it. I won't let you take the blame." When her father returned, she had already finished her happy day trip to the study, enjoying good food and drink and sleeping soundly. Shi Rong was severely criticized by his father and made to copy half of the Analects, supposedly to help him cultivate his character and refine his mind. He also used his savings from the past six months to buy an inkstone to compensate his father.
A year ago, Shi Lan broke her mother's favorite "Blooming Flowers and Wealth" decoration. Shi Rong happened to come over to pay his respects, and Shi Lan patted his chest and said, "Big brother, don't be afraid. When Mother comes back, I will tell her that I broke it." As a result, Shi Lan happily played all day and went home. He was scolded by his mother for not watching his sister properly. Luckily, he was not scratched by the shards, or he would have been in big trouble.
Six months ago, Shi Lan became interested in browsing the ancient books treasured by her father, but she got too excited and accidentally spilled tea...
Just thinking about the incredibly strong beating he received with the rattan cane made Shi Rong's back ache.
Shi Xi glanced at Shi Lan. Although she had heard that this little tyrant had become much more obedient recently, how could his bad nature be changed in a day?
"Speak up if you have something to say. Things are in a mess at home, and your older brother has to rush out," Shi Xi urged Shi Rong to speak when she saw that Shi Rong looked like she was about to run away.
Shi Lan pouted, "I only called you all over because I knew my older brother was going out."
Shi Xi looked at her, quite puzzled.
Shi Lan placed the jade pendant on the table and pushed it towards the two of them.
"Look what this is!"
Shi Xi glanced down and said, "It's just a jade pendant, nothing special."
Shi Rong glanced at it casually, then his dark eyes narrowed and his gaze suddenly sharpened.
Shi Lan chuckled, picked up the jade pendant and shook it, "Big brother, doesn't it look familiar?"
Shi Rong pursed his lips, his expression quite unpleasant. "Where did you get this from? Don't you know that men and women shouldn't touch each other? You're not young anymore, how can you accept things from men outside your family?"
Shi Lan pouted and glanced sideways at Shi Rong. "Brother, you're already a scholar, how can you still be so impatient? You're blaming me without even asking what happened. Be careful, or I'll tell Father."
Shi Rong was furious and wanted to say something, but then he turned to look at Shi Xi and swallowed the words he was about to say, sitting down in a chair to the side in a huff.
Shi Lan twirled her fingers around the necklace, swinging it casually. "Big brother, this wasn't given to me by some stranger. I found it myself."
Shi Rong jumped to his feet, pointing at Shi Lan and saying, "Nonsense! It's one thing for you to act recklessly all the time, but why are you acting recklessly about something like this? Do you even know that this jade pendant belongs to you..."
Shi Rong gritted his teeth and swallowed the last few words with great difficulty.
Shi Lan snorted and said, "Is it an antique, or is it my future brother-in-law's?"
Shi Rong's face flushed red, and his eyes instinctively turned to Shi Xi.
Shi Xi watched the two of them go back and forth until Shi Lan revealed the truth, at which point she suddenly smiled.
“So it was his,” Shi Xi turned to look at Shi Rong. “Brother, you don’t have to be like this. It’s just a jade pendant. I can handle it. Besides, I trust Lan’er. She knows what she’s doing.”
Shi Lan kicked off the chair, puffed out her chest, and came up to Shi Rong. She snorted, "Sister, you trust me more than I do. You would just accuse me of having affairs with other men."
Shi Rong looked somewhat embarrassed, put on a forced smile, and bent down, "Good Lan'er, I acted rashly. I know I was wrong, and I deserve to be punished. Here's what we'll do: I'll go find someone first, and when I come back, you can punish me however you want.
After saying that, he got up and prepared to make a run for it.
Shi Lan, quick-witted and agile, grabbed his robe. "Brother, don't be in such a hurry. Don't you want to know how this jade pendant came about?"
Shi Rong paused, "How did you get it?"
Shi Lan nodded, a smile playing on her lips, "I found it where Shi Yi was kidnapped."
Shi Rong took the jade pendant off his chubby finger, brought it close to his eyes to examine it carefully, and his expression turned serious. "I only recently learned about Shi Yi's matter. How did you get this?"
Shi Lan said, "I sent people to follow them, wanting to see what was going on, but we saw a group of masked men kill people and then take Shi Yi away."
Shi Rong lowered his head and fiddled with the jade pendant for a moment, then turned to look at Shi Xi, "What do you think about this?"
Shi Xi's face was cold, her dark eyes dull and lifeless. "I have no opinion."
Shi Lan pouted and said, "Ning Zhan has already hooked up with Shi Yi, what can I possibly think?"
Shi Rong looked at her coldly and scolded, "Shut up. You're getting old. How can you say such things? I should really ask my mother to hire a governess to discipline you properly."
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