"Really?" Xin He turned her head to look at her, the corner of her lips revealing a smile. "So that means you still like me very much?"
Li Junyan sighed lightly, "Actually, eldest sister probably knows that in the past Li Junyao used to oppress me, and I had no choice but to endure the bullying. But after you entered the mansion, you’ve never caused trouble for me. So, I feel that you’re really kind to me."
"Why should you fear me when we are both legitimate daughters?"
Li Junyan forced a smile, "How can it be the same? Although Jun Yan is also a legitimate daughter, she knows that her identity is far inferior to that of the Eldest Miss."
Xin He walked up to a small bridge over the lake, looking down at the infinitely green lotus leaves on the water, "Don’t belittle yourself; after all, we are blood sisters. If there’s anything I can help you with, I won’t refuse."
Li Junyan stood behind Xin He, her face already changed, "What a pity, it seems there’s no chance now."
With that, she forcefully pushed.
Intending to push her down directly, Xin He suddenly turned around, stepping aside, and seemingly unintentionally pushed her with a hand hidden in her wide sleeve.
Li Junyan lost her balance and fell into the lake with an "Ah!"
The water of the Lotus Lake splashed everywhere, but as Li Junyan sank into the lake, she didn’t even get a chance to struggle before she was completely submerged.
Shulan exclaimed, "Miss, could a water ghost have pulled her down?"
Xin He scoffed, a water ghost? It must be a ghost trying to take her life!
What a clever trick, luring her here unintentionally, only to fall into the water, where someone hidden would drag her down to the bottom until she drowned.
At that time, Jinxiu being one of their own and Shulan- easily killed- no one would be around to testify how she fell into the water. Her death could only be explained away as an accident due to losing her footing.
How venomous the plan was!
It was Li Junyan who fell into the lake now, however, and one could only wonder how she felt being deliberately entangled by somebody underwater.
Jinxiu’s face turned deathly pale at first, then she screamed, "Ah! Eldest Miss fell into the water! Eldest Miss fell into the water!"
The surrounding maids and women only realized then that it was not the Eldest Miss, but the Second Miss who had fallen into the water!
One by one, they anxiously shouted, "Second Miss fell into the water!"
They didn’t call for help, but emphasized that it was the Second Miss, likely afraid that their own Second Miss would drown.
The people in the lake must have realized they got the wrong person by now, but they didn’t dare to surface.
Xin He sneered in her heart, but still yelled anxiously, "Quick, someone! Help, someone’s fallen into the water!"
As soon as the shouting began, several guards rushed over in no time: "What happened to the Eldest Miss?"
Xin He hurriedly said, "Second Miss fell into the water! Quickly, go and save her!"
"Yes!" The guards were about to dive into the water.
The women and maids accompanying Li Junyan immediately said, "No need, let us handle it!"
Xin He insisted, "What use are you lot? Hurrying for half the day just to make useless noise."
She then turned to the guards, "Be sure to fetch the Second Miss! Hurry!"
The guards plunged into the pool one by one, only to see Li Junyan floating up. It seemed that the person underwater realized she was not the intended target and let go. The key was that someone had dived in!
As more and more guards jumped into the pool, the water was stirred up into a mess, and the two underwater reeds they used to breathe were even less visible. Everyone scrambled to pull Li Junyan up.
It seemed that someone under the water exhaled, causing bubbles to surface.
Xin He sneered, they were holding their breath quite well.
Xin He pretended to be scared, "There’s someone in the lake!"
The guards were startled, and when they looked into the lake, they were dumbfounded- there really were people!
Quick, catch them!"
As soon as the words were spoken, the guards plunged into the lake again and directly dived underwater, where they saw two rough women struggling to catch their breath. Several guards immediately pulled them up.
Xin He, feigning fright, asked, "What is going on?"
Shulan exclaimed in shock, "No wonder Second Miss sank into the lake as soon as she fell in- it was these two who were up to mischief!"
Xin He shouted, "How dare they! Guards, arrest these two women and interrogate them severely to find out who they are and why they dared to plot against Second Miss!"
With Xin He’s decisive measures, the maids and women attending to Li Junyan were dumbfounded and didn’t know how to respond for a time.
They had initially planned that Xin He would fall into the lake, be dragged to the bottom by someone hidden there, and drown. At that time, they would unanimously claim that Xin He had drowned due to accidentally falling into the lake.
But now, the situation had suddenly changed, and they could no longer control the progression of events. Instead, they were being played by the Eldest Miss, who in just a few moves, not only revealed the people hidden in the lake but also accused them of conspiring against the Second Miss.
The maids and women were left stupefied, unable to shift the blame onto Xin He for attempting to harm the Second Miss.
"Yes, sir!" The guards saluted.
Xin He then stared coldly at the stupefied maids and women, "What are you doing standing there? Your Miss is about to die; you should hurry and help her!"
Li Junyan had already fainted from suffocation. It was now that the maids and women accompanying Li Junyao hurriedly fumbled about, trying to resuscitate her with abdominal compressions and finger pressure therapy.
As they busied themselves, more and more maids and women appeared on the scene, with Lady Hou and Lady Sun arriving soon after. Seeing her barely alive daughter, Lady Sun’s face turned white as she rushed over, "My Yan’er, my Yan’er, what happened to you?"
Li Junyan finally regained consciousness, but she was barely breathing, struggling to open her eyes, and looked at Xin He with her pale face.
Lady Sun followed her daughter’s gaze to look at Xin He, a hint of anger flashing in her eyes, "What happened here?"
Xin He squatted down, held Li Junyan’s hand, and said gently, "Don’t worry, Second Sister. I’ve already arrested the two women who were causing trouble. Since they dared to harm you, I will not let them go. I will thoroughly investigate this matter!"
As the words came out, Li Junyan’s face grew even paler, unsuccessfully trying to pull her hand away. Xin He had no intention of letting go, but instead, a sneer flashed at the corner of her mouth, "I only just said it earlier, you’re my blood sister, and I’ll protect you. Don’t worry, as for this matter, I will stand up for you."
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