Chapter 160 I won't take it to heart
Chun Tao wanted to follow, but she was stopped: "You stay at the clinic, don't come with us."
She walked quickly to the teahouse, stood at the door and looked through the window—sure enough, Pei Zhi was sitting inside, Su Qingyao was wearing a pink dress, holding his arm, with a smug smile on her face.
Pei Zhi frowned, as if he was saying something, but Su Qingyao not only didn't let go, but moved even closer to him.
Ye Wanning felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her, chilling her to the bone instantly. She turned and left, tears welling in her eyes—she should have known that Pei Zhi, like those other wealthy young men, only cared about family interests and would never truly care for her.
"Wan Ning!" Pei Zhi's voice came from behind, tinged with urgency. He had just pushed Su Qingyao away when he saw Ye Wan Ning's back and quickly chased after her.
Ye Wanning didn't stop; she quickened her pace. Pei Zhi caught up with her, reaching out to grab her arm, but she dodged him.
"Don't touch me. I understand that Prime Minister Pei has to balance family relationships. You don't need to explain to me. Miss Su is your cousin. It's only natural that you two are close. I won't take it to heart."
Pei Zhi looked at Ye Wanning's red and swollen eyes and felt a pang of pain in his heart: "It's not what you think. Su Qingyao was holding my arm, and I was just about to break free when you arrived."
"I don't want to hear it." Ye Wanning interrupted him, turned around and looked at him, her tone distant, "Lord Pei, we are only husband and wife in name. You don't need to cause conflict with your family for my sake."
Pei Zhi's hand, which was outstretched in mid-air, froze. He stared at Ye Wanning's resolute back, his whole body trembling, his clenched fists turning white at the knuckles. He had forgotten that after her rebirth, she had built up a strong defense in her heart, and the slightest carelessness could anger her; but he hadn't expected that Su Qingyao's clumsy trick would actually provoke her anger.
He didn't chase after her. He knew Ye Wanning's temperament; she must be sulking right now. Explaining further would be pointless and only make her dislike him more. He could only wait until she calmed down before trying to persuade her.
Back home, Ye Wanning closed the door to the inner room. Looking at her mother's portrait on the table, tears finally streamed down her face. In her past life, because she had naively believed her stepmother's words, thinking her father still loved her, she had suffered the fate of a destroyed family. In this life, she had thought Pei Zhi would be different, but in the end, he was just like everyone else, continuing his ambiguous relationships with other women because of family ties.
"Mother, was I too foolish?" Ye Wanning touched the portrait of her mother, choking back tears. "I thought I could protect myself, but I still get upset because of these things..." She wiped away her tears, sobbed for a while, then wiped them away again and rallied herself. She couldn't let this little thing shake her resolve; the road to revenge was long, and she couldn't let Pei Zhi disrupt her determination.
In the following days, Ye Wanning tried her best to avoid Pei Zhi. When he came to the clinic to deliver snacks, she had Chun Tao accept them on his behalf; when he sent someone to deliver warm clothes, she had her apprentice return them; even when they met on the road, she would take a detour and not even give him a glance.
Pei Zhi saw this and was anxious, but he stopped actively seeking her out. He understood that Ye Wanning needed space right now, and pushing her too hard would only push her further away. He could only secretly arrange for guards to stand watch outside the clinic every day to ensure her safety.
Seeing Ye Wanning and Pei Zhi having a cold war, Su Qingyao was secretly delighted. She then poured cold water on Ye Wanning in front of Old Madam Pei: "Grandma, you're right, my cousin-in-law. I only said a few more words to my cousin, and she got angry and even returned all the things my cousin gave her. She's so insensible."
Madam Pei frowned, her dislike for Ye Wanning growing stronger: "As a daughter born to a concubine, it's already a great fortune for her to marry Pei Zhi. Yet she dares to act so shrewishly. She really doesn't know how to respect her elders."
These words quickly reached Ye Wanning's ears, but she didn't take them seriously. She no longer cared about Old Madam Pei's opinion of her; as long as she could get revenge, nothing else mattered.
That day, Ye Wanning was seeing patients at her clinic when she suddenly heard a commotion outside. She went out and saw several officials carrying a stretcher with an unconscious man lying on it. The officials shouted anxiously, "Madam Pei, save our lord! He suddenly fainted, and even the imperial physicians can't find the cause!"
Ye Wanning quickly stepped forward to take the man's pulse. The pulse was weak, and the man's face was pale, clearly indicating that he had been poisoned, but she couldn't determine what kind of poison it was. Just as she was about to examine him further, Pei Zhi suddenly rushed over, his face grave: "This is the Minister of Personnel. He just returned from out of town this morning and suddenly fainted."
Ye Wanning ignored him and continued examining the Minister of Personnel, finding a trace of black powder under his fingernails. This was a poison found only in the Western Regions, and only the root of a snow lotus from the Western Regions could cure it.
"I need the root of the Western Regions Snow Lotus. Can anyone help me find it?" Ye Wanning asked, her gaze sweeping across everyone's faces before finally settling on Pei Zhi.
"I'll go!" Pei Zhi immediately agreed. "You wait here, I'll be right back." With that, he ran out quickly.
Watching Pei Zhi's departing figure, Ye Wanning felt a strange sensation in her heart. He was still the same as before, always the first to help her when she needed him, but she still couldn't trust him.
Pei Zhi quickly retrieved the roots of the Western Regions snow lotus, his clothes covered in dust. Ye Wanning took the roots, quickly brewed medicine, and fed it to the Minister of Personnel. Not long after, the Minister of Personnel woke up, his complexion much better.
The officials thanked Pei Zhi and Ye Wanning one by one. Pei Zhi stood aside, watching Ye Wanning bustling around, wanting to say something, but not knowing how to start.
Ye Wanning finished tidying up the medicinal herbs and turned to walk into the inner room. Pei Zhi reached out to stop her: "Wanning, what do you want to say?"
Ye Wanning looked at him, remained silent for a while, and then nodded: "Okay, I want to say."
The window in the inner room was open, and a cool breeze stirred Ye Wanning's skirt. She sat at the table, looking at Pei Zhi, her voice calm: "What do you want to say?"
Pei Zhi sat opposite her, took out a note from his pocket, and placed it on the table: "I'm sorry about Su Qingyao. I've already taught her a lesson, and she won't bother you again."
Ye Wanning picked up the note on the table. It was an apology letter from Su Qingyao, written in messy handwriting, clearly forced to be written. She tossed the note aside without saying a word. She knew Su Qingyao wouldn't give up so easily, but she didn't want to get entangled with Pei Zhi any further.
"Is there anything else?" Ye Wanning asked, her tone somewhat indifferent.
Pei Zhi looked at her and sighed inwardly, "I know you don't believe me, but I hope you understand that I am sincere towards you. I will not let Zhao Dechang and the others hurt you again."
Upon hearing the name "Zhao Dechang," Ye Wanning's expression shifted slightly. Zhao Dechang was her stepfather in her previous life, the one who had caused her birth mother's death and embezzled her dowry. In this life, she would not allow him to escape justice again; she would make him pay the price.
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