Chapter 158 Unappreciative
"This lash is because you caused Jiang Ran's injury!"
"This lash is because you refuse to repent!"
The whip lashed his back, and Si Yanxiao felt a burning pain in the wound, making his nerves tense.
"This lash is because you ignored my advice and insisted on doing things your own way!"
Old Master Si voiced his accusations, giving a reason with each lash of the whip. Si Yanxiao listened, but gritted his teeth and refused to bow his head.
Jiang Ran frowned slightly as she watched the bloody scene, a hint of reluctance flashing in her eyes.
She counted carefully; the old master Si had lashed her nine times in total. Si Yanxiao hadn't uttered a sound from beginning to end, until the old master stopped, put the whip on the table, and gave him a long and earnest lecture.
After he finished speaking, Si Yanxiao slowly stood up. He staggered, and Jiang Ran instinctively wanted to help him up, but seeing the coldness in his eyes, she paused and did not go forward.
Then he went upstairs to his room. Old Master Si watched his back until he disappeared around the corner, then he sighed softly, a look of heartache on his face.
Jiang Ran noticed the change in his expression, and helplessly took two steps forward, gently comforting him.
Old Master Si lowered his eyes slightly, it was unclear whether he had taken her words to heart, and then left the villa.
Jiang Ran tried to stop him but failed. She sighed inwardly and then went into the kitchen to resume her "old profession" of brewing Chinese medicine for him.
On the other side, after Si Yanxiao returned to his room, a look of pain appeared on his face. His lips were tightly pressed together, and his expression was troubled.
I quickly changed into some clothes, being careful not to let the blood stick to my shirt, and then curled up on my side on the bed to clear my mind.
I wanted to rest, but the pain in my back kept coming, making it impossible for me to fall asleep.
After an unknown amount of time, a sudden knocking sounded at the door. Si Yanxiao felt an instant surge of annoyance and shouted sharply, "Get out!"
The knocking paused slightly, but only for a moment, before it resumed.
A surge of irritation flashed through Si Yanxiao's mind. He wondered who was so oblivious to his mood to bother him at this time.
With a furrowed brow, he struggled to get up and open the door, only to see Jiang Ran standing outside, holding a bowl of Chinese medicine in her hand. The bitter smell instantly filled his nostrils.
Si Yanxiao's expression instantly turned cold, and he was about to close the door when Jiang Ran blocked it before he could.
Seeing this, Si Yanxiao frowned and coldly rebuked, "What are you doing?!"
Jiang Ran raised an eyebrow and lifted the Chinese medicine slightly: "Deliver the medicine."
"No need," Si Yanxiao replied coldly, but Jiang Ran was not prepared to give up and slipped into the house.
Si Yanxiao didn't expect her to do such a thing, and coupled with his injuries, he couldn't stop her for a moment.
Just as she was about to kick her out, Jiang Ran walked into the house as if no one else was there, placed the Chinese medicine on the table, and said, "No matter how dissatisfied you are with me, there's no need to make things difficult for your own body."
Although they spoke with a righteous air, they had other thoughts in their hearts.
If it weren't for the fact that she needed to create opportunities to spend time with him and take the chance to absorb spiritual energy to promote her own cultivation, she wouldn't have bothered to come up here and cause trouble. Doing such a thing would be pointless and would only result in being ridiculed in return.
It's a real-life example of putting in a lot of effort for no reward.
Hearing her words, Si Yanxiao's eyes sharpened, and he hesitated slightly. He didn't bother to argue about what happened outside, and walked straight up to her, giving her a cold look.
The atmosphere instantly froze, and Si Yanxiao scoffed, "You don't need to put on an act in front of me. Aren't you tired of being two-faced?"
"It's really a waste for you to stay in the Si family. You should learn how to 'change faces'."
His words were full of sarcasm. Jiang Ran pursed her lips and asked, "What do you mean?"
"The literal meaning, don't you understand?" Si Yanxiao's lips curled slightly as he replied coldly.
Seeing Jiang Ran's puzzled expression, a hint of sarcasm flashed in his eyes, and he continued, "The old man arrived so timely and knows everything. Isn't it because you secretly informed him?"
"No wonder you know about Zhu Wei. So the two of you have been exchanging information all along. If that's the case, why pretend to be a good person?"
Jiang Ran instantly understood the meaning behind his words. No wonder he was so hostile towards her; he had mistakenly thought she was the one who had informed on her.
Thinking of this, Jiang Ran suddenly let out a cold laugh, and Si Yanxiao frowned, his face showing displeasure.
Jiang Ran looked up and met his gaze, her eyes full of disdain: "You have time to question me, why don't you go and ask the people around you who leaked this information?"
Upon hearing this, Si Yanxiao's expression changed. Seeing Jiang Ran's self-righteous demeanor, he couldn't help but feel hesitant.
He didn't have any evidence to prove that Jiang Ran was the one who told him, but after thinking it over, there were very few people who knew about this matter. Who else would betray him besides her? So he subconsciously assumed it was her.
Jiang Ran noticed the change in his expression, a hint of helplessness flashed across her face, and her tone softened slightly as she sighed softly, "This matter has become such a big fuss, it's hard for the old man not to know about it."
"If Ah Chen doesn't get into trouble, that's fine, but if something happens to Ah Chen, do you think the old man is just a figurehead?"
Si Yanxiao listened, a thoughtful expression crossing his face.
Jiang Ran continued, "So you don't need to have such a big prejudice against me. You and I are not on opposite sides."
"Heh..." Seeing that she was about to play the emotional card, Si Yanxiao suddenly scoffed coldly: "You don't need to put on an act here, get out!"
As he spoke, his voice involuntarily rose a few decibels, which aggravated the injury on his back. He frowned slightly and looked troubled.
Seeing that he wouldn't budge and that the negotiation had failed, Jiang Ran's eyes darkened. She suppressed her anger and, considering that he was a patient, decided not to argue with him.
Then, a hint of impatience flashed across his face, and he replied coldly, "Whatever."
After saying that, he turned and left.
"Wait!" Si Yanxiao's voice suddenly came from behind. Jiang Ran stopped in her tracks, thinking that he was about to change his mind. A sense of hope rose in her heart, and she turned around to look.
But then he raised his chin, gesturing towards the medicine on the table: "Take your things away!"
Seeing this, Jiang Ran's face turned cold. She turned around, picked up the medicine, and poured it into the washroom in front of him, coldly replying, "Throw it away! You're ungrateful for my kindness!"
Then he stepped out of the room and slammed the door shut, his voice tinged with resentment.
As soon as she stepped outside, she ran into Si Youlin. Seeing her unpleasant expression and a hint of anger in her eyes, Si Youlin looked surprised and asked softly, "What's wrong?"
Jiang Ran's expression softened slightly, and she shook her head: "It's nothing."
As he spoke, he walked downstairs. Si Youlin raised an eyebrow, looking puzzled, and quickly followed behind, asking questions relentlessly.
Jiang Ran stopped and glanced at his school uniform before asking, "You just got back?"
"Mm." Si Youlin nodded.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Ran pondered for a moment, then glanced at Si Yanxiao's room, and a plan came to her mind.
Chao Siyoulin waved to him, signaling him to come closer, and then recounted what had just happened, seemingly casually complaining, "I tried to help him out of kindness, but he gave me a cold shoulder and refused to accept my help."
Si Youlin was still preoccupied with the matter of using family discipline when he suddenly heard her say that. His eyes flashed and he suddenly realized his role.
After offering a few brief words of agreement, he made an excuse to visit Si Yanxiao and left.
Jiang Ran watched his retreating figure, her eyes slightly narrowed. She had deliberately revealed this matter to him; she had clearly stated her thoughts. What they did next was up to them.
As she expected, Si Youlin understood her predicament and took the initiative to go upstairs to take care of Si Yanxiao.
"Knock knock knock—"
Si Youlin knocked on the door for a long time, but there was no response from inside. He had a vague premonition of something bad, so he pushed the door open and went in.
Si Yanxiao was lying on the bed, curled up in a ball.
Si Youlin slowly called out, "Daddy?"
She called out twice but received no response. She quickly went to the bedside and saw Si Yanxiao with his brows furrowed and an unusual flush on his face.
Si Youlin reached out and touched his forehead; it was indeed burning hot.
Realizing he had a high fever, Si Youlin quickly reached out and nudged him, calling softly, "Daddy? How are you?"
Si Yanxiao was completely unaware, his eyes were tightly closed, and a faint struggle flashed between his brows.
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