Upon suddenly hearing those words from his mouth, Xin'er's heart skipped a beat. She secretly thought something was wrong and was afraid of giving herself away. She didn't dare to answer easily and instead asked in confusion, "What do you mean by that seemingly random sentence?"
She dared not answer directly, and her eyes looked very unnatural. Su Jiafeng had a bad feeling and questioned her again, "Do you know Jin Gege, the maid in the Fourth Prince's mansion?"
The fact that he had already asked this question was enough to prove that he already knew some of the inside information, but she was not sure how much he knew, so she answered very briefly, "I recognize her. I used to be her maid."
Hearing her admit it with her own ears, Su Jiafeng's dark eyes couldn't hide her disappointment. "Girl Jin and my sister have always been at odds. As her maid, you came to me to find out about my sister and then try to harm her, didn't you?"
Caught off guard, Xin'er hurriedly denied it, "I left the Fourth Master's mansion long ago. I am no longer in a master-servant relationship with Princess Jin. I did not harm Princess Su!"
He didn't want to doubt her, but the series of events were too coincidental, forcing him to become suspicious. "Recently, someone has been using my sister's engagement to frame her. It just so happens that I told you this secret a few days ago. If it wasn't you who leaked it, then who was it?"
"There are no secrets in this world. Maybe someone else leaked it. What makes you so sure it was me?"
It seems she won't shed a tear until she sees the coffin! With a sneer, Su Jiafeng mocked, "Wasn't that ten taels of silver you received from Princess Jin? Why would she give you anything for no reason? You must have done her a great favor!"
How could he know about the silver? Xin'er was shocked and couldn't understand where things had gone wrong. "Who told you such nonsense?"
Her answer was irrelevant, and Su Jiafeng had already seen through her deception. "Listen to what you said yourself! What, are you feeling guilty? Aren't you a habitual liar? Keep making up excuses!"
She had only mentioned the money to her father last night. Could it be that Su Jiafeng was nearby at the time? Xin'er pretended to be calm and said, "I have served Princess Jin for many years. She was worried that I would be helpless after leaving the manor, so she helped me out."
Her reasoning seemed reasonable, but it couldn't stand up to scrutiny at all, and there seemed to be no point in continuing. He was too lazy to argue any further. "Since you're unwilling to admit it, then there's nothing more to say."
His gaze was unusually cold, no longer as gentle as usual. Xin'er's heart pounded like a drum. She quickly took two steps to block his way. "Hey----where are you going?"
Looking ahead, Su Jiafeng resolutely said, "Go and tell the Fourth Prince about this matter, and let him make the decision."
Just that one sentence was enough to send shivers down Xin'er's spine. "Don't go! You can't tell!"
Glancing at her sideways, Su Jiafeng felt even more suspicious. "If you're innocent, you have nothing to fear. Since you didn't do it, why are you afraid of an investigation?"
"I..." Su Jiafeng was already suspicious of her. If she didn't say something, he probably wouldn't let it go. After hesitating for a long time, Xin'er finally said in a sad voice:
"Actually, my mother had a grudge against Su Gege. She had harmed Su Gege and eventually committed suicide out of guilt. As a result, the Fourth Prince kicked me out of the mansion."
She not only knew his sister, but they also had a deep-seated hatred for each other. Su Jiafeng secretly regretted her lack of precautions and that she had let a wolf into the house. "So what? You want to avenge your mother, so you turn around and try to kill her?"
“No!” Xin’er shook her head in denial, without any hatred in her eyes. “My mother did make a mistake. I have no right to avenge her, and I did not intend to harm Su Gege. But Fourth Master does not think so. Once he listens to you, he will definitely doubt me, so you cannot go.”
"If you have a clear conscience, why are you so nervous?"
"Even if you're innocent, you're still afraid of being framed! You don't know how terrifying it is in a big mansion. Sometimes when they can't find the murderer, they'll just find a scapegoat. Brother Su, for the sake of our acquaintance, just pretend you don't know anything!"
Xin'er pleaded desperately, grabbing his wrist to stop him from leaving. Su Jiafeng couldn't bear to see her so pitiful and vulnerable, and he wavered for a moment. But when he thought of the humiliation his sister had suffered, he felt he shouldn't be soft-hearted.
"My sister's injustice cannot be suffered in vain; I must seek justice for her!" After saying this, Su Jiafeng tried to break free, but her hand slipped from his wrist and finally landed in his palm.
She knew she was a young woman and shouldn't take a man's hand, but she really didn't know what else to do, so she resorted to this method.
Clutching his hand tightly, Xin'er's eyes glistened with tears as she pleaded repeatedly, "Brother Su, please, please don't go!"
Seeing that she showed no remorse and only tried to downplay her faults, Su Jiafeng angrily flung her hand away, her eyes blazing with fury. "I just want to hear the truth, but you've been lying to me the whole time! Lan Xin, you've disappointed me so much!"
The matter has reached a stalemate. If she lets him go to the Fourth Master's mansion, she's doomed! But if she tells the truth and begs him, there might still be a chance to turn things around.
Desperate, Xin'er decided to take a gamble. "Okay, I'll tell you the truth. My real name is Xin'er, and Lanxin is my new name because I want to start over. Coming to Baozhen Tower was an accident. I didn't know you were here beforehand. After learning that you are Su Gege's younger brother, I deliberately approached you to find out about Su Gege's past."
"It was indeed I who informed Princess Jin about the engagement, but I only mentioned it to her casually. As for whether she used this to harm Princess Su, I had no idea. This is the truth, every word is true, not a single lie."
She finally admitted it! She really was the culprit! Upon learning the truth, Su Jiafeng laughed self-deprecatingly, her heart filled with bitterness. "I thought we were friends, but today I realize you were just using me!"
He seemed very angry, but Xin'er wasn't afraid anymore, because she knew very well that his anger proved he cared about her. So she pressed her advantage and continued:
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
