Chapter Five: Past Events
Cheng Qing was half-carried and half-dragged into the west wing by Qiao Yuan.
The door slammed shut with a bang, shutting out everything from the outside.
The pent-up anger in Qiao Yuan's chest, mixed with the stinging sensation from the alcohol and Lin Tang's cold words, instantly found an outlet.
He almost violently pressed Cheng Qing against the door, his burning, alcohol-scented kiss landing heavily with a punitive intent, while his hands began to frantically tear and grope at her thin robe.
Cheng Qing let out a short gasp, which was immediately silenced. Her body, however, moved lithely and bonelessly to meet him, her arms wrapping around Qiao Yuan's neck like water snakes. Intermittent moans escaped her lips, like the most effective soothing balm. She knew all too well how to calm this raging beast.
She tilted her head back, enduring his plunder, but out of the corner of her eye, she glanced through the crack in the door toward the brightly lit but empty hall.
Qiao Yuan closed the door, cutting off her view.
Behind the door, Qiao Yuan turned his back and said, "I just wanted you to put on a show with me."
Cheng Qing's face was still flushed with emotion, but Qiao Yuan's words were like a bucket of cold water being poured on her.
She gritted her teeth, but could only say in a gentle tone, "...I understand, Mr. Qiao..."
...
In the hall, Lin Tang slowly raised her eyelids and looked at the huge black and white photograph hanging on the opposite wall.
In the photo, the young Lin Jintang is wearing a simple, modified student uniform. Her jet-black hair is styled into two thick, shiny braids. She is standing in front of Tongji University's iconic clock tower, holding a half-unrolled architectural sketch in her hand. Sunlight falls on her youthful face, her smile is bright and confident, and her eyes are filled with anticipation for the future and a pure passion for the beauty of architecture.
The cold glass of the picture frame reflected the figure of another woman in the hall at that moment.
She wore a moon-white cheongsam, and her hair was neatly styled in a high bun, but it couldn't hide the few strands of premature gray hair at her temples.
Time and the clash of swords have long since worn away all the edges and brilliance of the girl in the photo, leaving only a face weathered by wind and frost, eroded by pain, and frozen by betrayal.
An indescribable sense of sorrow and exhaustion, like an icy tide, instantly overwhelmed her.
Lin Tang closed her eyes, turned around, and tapped her cane on the cold, hard floor tiles.
...
Ah Chen had been standing behind the lady, and he was hesitating whether to say a few more words to her when Cheng Qing gracefully came downstairs, swaying her hips.
When Ah Chen saw Cheng Qing, he was so shocked that he almost covered his eyes. It turned out that Cheng Qing's already thin cheongsam had been torn by Qiao Yuan, and now she was only wearing an inner skirt, revealing her slender white arms and legs.
Cheng Qing walked gracefully to Lin Tang, her sheer inner skirt outlining her young and full figure. Her slender white arms and legs gleamed softly under the dazzling crystal chandelier, creating a striking contrast with Lin Tang's dignified brocade cheongsam. She tilted her head slightly, a faint smile playing on her lips, but her eyes, like tiny hooks hardened with ice, were fixed on Lin Tang.
"Madam hasn't rested yet?" Cheng Qing's voice was languid and hoarse, as if it had just been touched by rain, with the last syllable deliberately drawn out. "Madam's legs are not in good condition, it's not suitable for her to stand for a long time."
Lin Tang simply stood there quietly, her face frozen in calm, not even her eyelashes fluttering. It was as if the nearly naked, provocative woman in front of her was nothing more than a breeze blowing through the corridor, unable to stir up the slightest ripple.
Just then, the door to the west wing creaked open.
Qiao Yuan's tall figure appeared at the door. He had just drunk a few glasses of wine and was a little drunk, but when he woke up with a start and heard the noise downstairs, he hurriedly put on a bathrobe and came out, tying the belt haphazardly, revealing his muscular chest.
But his appearance only made people more likely to misunderstand.
His face was gloomy, with lingering anger and impatience from being disturbed still visible between his brows. Seeing the scene in the hall, his eyes instantly flared with even greater irritation and anger, and he almost immediately shouted, "Cheng Qing! What nonsense are you spouting! Go back now!"
Cheng Qing seemed not to hear her, and instead took another half step toward Lin Tang, her voice trembling with grievance and tears, "Master Qiao... I was just worried that Madam's legs would hurt from standing for so long... I wanted to advise Madam to rest early..." As she spoke, she glanced defiantly at Lin Tang out of the corner of her eye.
Qiao Yuan's gaze was forced to fall on Lin Tang, who remained silent, like a solitary iceberg, silently radiating coldness.
"Enough!" Qiao Yuan roared again, rushing down the stairs and grabbing Cheng Qing's slender wrist with such force that Cheng Qing cried out in pain. He wanted to pull her back and end this embarrassing farce.
Just then, Lin Tang finally moved. She slowly and gracefully turned around to face Qiao Yuan and Cheng Qing, who was nestled in his arms. Her back was straight, her chin slightly raised, and all the vulnerability and sorrow that belonged to "Lin Jintang" vanished instantly, leaving only the arrogance and coldness of "Madam Qiao," the head of the gang who controlled all affairs.
"Qiao Yuan," she said calmly, "if you want to take her as a concubine, that's your business, and I, Lin Tang, can't interfere."
Qiao Yuan's movements suddenly froze.
Lin Tang's gaze swept coldly over the two of them before she continued, "Besides, I've already said that I don't object to this. However, I designed this house, and I don't want some people causing trouble here!"
After Lin Tang finished speaking, she stopped looking at any of them, leaned on her ebony cane, straightened her back, and walked step by step toward the stairs leading to her room.
"Tang'er..."
Qiao Yuan was at a loss and wanted to call out to her, but he only saw the cold back of her head. He felt as if all his strength had been drained away. He suddenly let go of Cheng Qing and staggered back a step.
Cheng Qing rubbed her reddened wrist, looking at Qiao Yuan's distraught appearance, both shocked and frightened. She timidly tried to tug at his sleeve: "Master Qiao..."
"Get away!" Qiao Yuan suddenly flung her away, letting out a desperate roar like a wounded beast, his voice hoarse and broken.
A flash of mockery crossed Cheng Qing's eyes, but her face was genuinely filled with grievance. "Mr. Qiao, I just wanted to take care of Madam..."
"Alright!" Qiao Yuan saw right through the woman's affected manner and said impatiently, "If you're going to stay here, you're not allowed to offend Madam."
"Yes," Cheng Qing said, her eyes reddening with grievance. The sight of her made Qiao Yuan lose his composure. She looked so much like Lin Tang from the past; back then, she would shed tears for him, revealing her vulnerability. But now…
Qiao Yuan's heart softened again, and he waved his hand, saying, "Go back to your room, and don't come down without my permission."
He stopped looking at anyone, turned around, and went straight to his study. With a loud bang, he slammed the door shut, leaving Cheng Qing standing alone in the middle of the hall, his face ashen.
Ah Chen was already so frightened that he huddled in the corner, not daring to breathe.
In the hall, only the cold light cast by the lamps and a deathly silence remained.
...
Ignoring the sounds behind her, Lin Tang climbed the stairs step by step. The heavy brocade cheongsam rubbed against the handrail, making a soft rustling sound. It was so heavy that it almost dragged down her straight back. The old wound on her right knee began to ache again, as if countless tiny ice needles were repeatedly piercing her bones. She gripped her cane tighter, her knuckles turning white with force. The carved edges under her fingertips dug deep into her flesh, trying to use this sharp pain to suppress the dull, stabbing pain.
Lin Tang finally stepped onto the last step. The corridor was deep and secluded, with only a sliver of dim light shining through the crack in the door to her room at the end. It was a light that Ah Xiu had specially left for her.
In this house, there is probably only this one lamp, which is truly waiting for her return.
Lin Tang didn't immediately push the door open and go in. Instead, she lingered in the shadows outside the door, leaning against the cold wall. She slowly and deeply inhaled, then exhaled with extreme slowness. The desolation and exhaustion in her chest, which almost tore her apart, did not dissipate with this brief pause. Instead, it rose silently like an icy tide, engulfing her mouth and nose, and a suffocating feeling pressed heavily on her heart.
She closed her eyelids slightly.
What lay before him was not the nauseating confrontation in the hall just moments before, nor Qiao Yuan's furious and distorted face, nor Cheng Qing's deliberately displayed young body.
It was the sound of gunfire.
Sharp, piercing sounds tore apart the marchers' impassioned slogans.
"Uh..." A suppressed whimper, like that of a wounded cub, escaped uncontrollably from Lin Tang's tightly closed lips.
Two lines of cold liquid, without warning, shattered the icy calm on her face, silently sliding down her cold cheeks and splashing onto the dark floor, leaving two small dark spots.
She opened her eyes abruptly, her gaze meeting a bottomless abyss of coldness and the lingering pain of the desperate girl from five years ago. She forcefully wiped the dampness from her face with her fingertips, a gesture bordering on self-harm. When she looked up again, all her vulnerability and pain were forcibly suppressed back into that unfathomable depths.
Lin Tang arrived at the door of her room and slowly pushed it open.
In the room, under the warm yellow light, Ah Xiu was standing by her side. Upon seeing her enter, her face immediately filled with worry and a hesitant expression: "Madam, you..."
"Get out." Lin Tang's voice was terribly hoarse. She was too tired to explain or say another word to anyone.
Ah Xiu opened her mouth, but ultimately swallowed her words, only responding softly with "Yes," bowing as she withdrew and gently closed the door behind her.
Lin Tang walked step by step to the large Western-style brass bed covered with brocade bedding. She slowly sat down, her back still straight, but her shoulders slumped uncontrollably. She didn't even have the strength to take off her coat and shoes, and just stared blankly at the gloomy rainy season outside the window.
In the room, only her suppressed, almost inaudible breathing could be heard, radiating an aura of despair in the cold light.
I don't know how much time passed, but extreme exhaustion finally overwhelmed all the churning thoughts and piercing pain, and my heavy eyelids, as if weighed down by lead, slowly closed.
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