Although this wasn't the first time Qian Huailin had tried to keep things mysterious, Ji Qian couldn't resist and chopped off half of his hair with a swift motion.
Qian Huailin was looking down, pretending to be deep, when he suddenly saw strands of black hair falling to his left. He instinctively reached out to catch them, only to remember that his arms were still in Ji Qian's hands.
"You'd better get straight to the point; my razor won't wait for anyone."
As Ji Qian spoke, she took out a whetstone that had been tucked into her pocket at some point, and sat down next to Qian Huailin to sharpen her knife.
This was Ji Qian's first time sharpening a knife, but her movements were exceptionally skilled, even displaying a sense of rhythm.
Ying Xu, who had received long-term dance training, unconsciously started tapping his feet when he heard the sound, which startled Mi Yesi, who moved closer to Han Mengyao.
Qian Huailin, who was closest to Ji Qian, felt as if every cut she made was grinding against his body.
Watching Ji Qian sharpen the knife at an increasingly rapid pace, Qian Huailin felt a chill run down his spine. In his haste, he didn't bother to organize his thoughts and quickly confessed everything he had been hiding:
“Wan Niang does hate me because she believes that I killed Huai Shu and Jing Xuan.”
Why would she have such an idea?
Ji Qian was a little confused. She thought it would be some kind of tragic love story, but it turned out to be a family drama!
Qian Huailin felt ashamed when he mentioned this matter. Although he had been regarded as unorthodox by his family for many years, he had, after all, been well-versed in the classics and was inevitably influenced by the traditional idea that "family scandals should not be made public."
“Before I passed away, I had not shared a room with Wan Niang for seven or eight years. According to the timeline, Jing Xuan should not be my son.”
"Ah...ah?!" Everyone felt like a badger passing through a melon field, almost getting hit and killed by a flying melon.
Compared to the others, Ji Qian appeared much calmer.
Having encountered countless ghosts since childhood, she had long witnessed the diversity of the human species, so this matter did not bother her at all. She calmly pressed on with her questions:
"So, according to you, Wan Niang thinks you would deliberately kill her son because you're not Qian Jingxuan's biological father?"
To Ji Qian's surprise, Qian Huailin shook his head, denying the statement: "Yes, but also no."
If it weren't for the genuine sincerity in his eyes, Ji Qian would have suspected that he was playing a trick on her.
Even the usually oblivious Mi Yesi found this answer outrageous:
"Wait, how did this turn into a multiple-choice question?!"
Seeing the situation becoming increasingly complicated, Madam Qian quickly jumped in to deny her son's words:
"Don't listen to this kid's nonsense. Our whole family saw him come back and stay for two months that year."
Moreover, shortly after he left, Wan Niang was diagnosed with pregnancy. During that time, Wan Niang didn't leave the house alone at all. How could Jing Xuan not be his son!
After saying this, Madam Qian turned around and pointed at Qian Huailin's nose, cursing:
"You brat, all you do is spout nonsense all day long. Wan Niang is such a good girl. She is filial, sensible, and well-educated. She is a thousand times better than you, an unfilial son!"
I wish she were my child! You bastard, you're trying to smear Wan Niang! I'll beat you to death!
As she spoke, Madam Qian took off her shoes and tried to slap them at Qian Huailin, but she missed because she couldn't touch him.
Qian Huailin also felt wronged: "But I followed my master to cultivate on the mountain for those two years and never went home!"
Before his death, Qian Huailin would often dream of the scene when he returned home after two years, and Wan Niang happily held the child and went out to greet him.
Qian Huailin had also questioned it, but everyone in the Qian family, from the master to the guards, and even the neighbors next door, insisted that they had seen him return home two years ago.
Over time, Qian Huailin had no choice but to accept his fate.
However, due to this unsolved case, Qian Huailin was never particularly close to Qian Jingxuan.
"That night, Jingxuan was supposed to go to the backyard with us, but I was worried that he would disturb my older brother and sister-in-law, so I sent him to play in the frontyard."
Who knew that such a thing would happen in the end.
As Qian Huailin spoke, he looked up at Ji Qian and said, "Thank you. If you hadn't told me that Jingxuan was still alive, I would have thought that I was the one who killed Jingxuan."
"No, then are you Qian Jingxuan's father or not?"
Miyesi felt like she understood, but also like she didn't:
"It can't be that you have a twin brother impersonating you, can it?"
"Are you talking about the plot of 'The Fallen Young Master: My Sister-in-Law is a Little Sweet'?" Ying Xu felt that the plot sounded very familiar, as if it was a web series he had acted in before.
Mi Yesi was so engrossed in listening to the gossip that she completely forgot the person in question was standing right next to her. Caught red-handed, she quickly steered the conversation back to Qian Huailin.
"Go on, tell me, is Qian Jingxuan your son or not?"
When pressed by Mi Yesi, Qian Huailin shook his head again: "I don't know either."
Upon hearing this, Madam Qian was about to kick him again, but Master Qian quickly stopped her.
Ji Qian ignored Madam Qian's actions and continued to stare intently at Qian Huailin: "Then what about the matter of you killing Qian Huaishu?"
Qian Huailin lowered his head even further: "This matter is indeed my responsibility."
When the topic shifted to her youngest son, Madam Qian stopped struggling, and Mr. Qian sighed heavily without saying anything.
"When Huai Shu was born, his mother was already over forty years old, and because she had been seriously ill before giving birth, her energy and physical strength were not as good as before."
Huai Shu was frail from a young age and was more demanding than other children. His mother was so worn out that she packed Huai Shu and the servant who was responsible for taking care of him together and sent them to my courtyard, asking us to help look after them.
At that time, Wan Niang and I had been married for only a year and had no children yet, so Huai Shu became Wan Niang's first child.
At the time, I was focused on passing the imperial examinations and had no time to take care of my child, so Wan Niang took care of Huai Shu by herself until he was five years old.
It wasn't until Wan Niang became pregnant that my mother came to take Huai Shu away.
To put it bluntly, perhaps for Wan Niang, Huai Shu was her first child.
When the past is mentioned, Qian Huailin seems to be in a different world.
Qian Huaishu's time in the world was too short, and he lived in his study for many years, so he didn't even have time to remember what the child looked like.
"The year Huai Shu left was the year before I passed the imperial examination. At that time, I was studying like a madman, and I even needed Wan Niang to remind me to eat."
I was writing an article in the yard on the day of the accident when a sudden downpour started.
In a panic, I grabbed the article and ran into Huai Shu's room.
Huai Shu was taking a nap at the time, but I brought the damp and cold air from outside into the room, and that night Huai Shu began to have a high fever that wouldn't go down.
Huai Shu held on for a full month, but unfortunately, he couldn't hold on in the end.
Huai Shu was only ten years old when he left. Because of his poor health, he had not even started his formal education.
After that, Wan Niang harbored much resentment towards me, until my relationship improved somewhat after I passed the imperial examination and was away from home for an extended period.
Having finally figured out the source of Wan Niang's hatred for Qian Huailin, Ji Qian pondered for a moment and then made a bold decision: "Let's go, let's dig up your body!"
"ah?"
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