Ling Shuang had been standing outside the house for quite some time.
As the night deepened, the doubts in her heart grew wildly like weeds.
The room was eerily quiet; not a sound could be heard.
Not long after, the window that had been letting in a glimmer of light suddenly went dark—the light was turned off.
Ling Shuang was filled with worry, but she could only suppress it and continue to guard the door.
It wasn't until the next morning, when Ji Zhuo left for court, that Ling Shuang cautiously stepped into the room.
She walked gently to the bedside and saw Lin Xihe inside the bed curtains, curled up in the quilt like a frightened fawn, wrapped up tightly, as if only in this way could she find a sense of security.
Ling Shuang called out softly, but Lin Xihe kept her lips tightly closed, unwilling to say anything. Only her slightly trembling body conveyed endless grievances.
When Lin Xihe woke up at dawn, she appeared listless and lifeless.
She dragged her heavy steps to the flower hall, sat down at the table, and faced with a table full of food, but had no appetite. She mechanically picked up her chopsticks and forced herself to eat a few bites.
However, at that moment, a servant rushed in to report that someone else had come to the door.
"Miss, it's Miss Jiang again. Would you like to see her?" Ling Shuang looked at Lin Xihe's pale face and felt a pang of heartache. She really didn't want her young lady to see a guest.
"Why is she here again..." Lin Xihe's voice was weak, revealing a hint of fatigue and helplessness.
"Then I'll go and get rid of her," Ling Shuang said, turning to leave.
Just as Ling Shuang was about to step out of the room, Lin Xihe suddenly recalled the tragic ending of Jiang Huairou in the book.
Now that Sun Ningxiang and Jiang Huairou are together again, Lin Xihe can't bear to see Jiang Huairou end up with a tragic suicide.
"Never mind, Ling Shuang. I'll go take a look." Lin Xihe slowly put down her chopsticks, stood up, and walked towards the flower hall.
Lin Xihe arrived at the reception room, sat down, and then instructed the servants to invite Jiang Huairou in.
As soon as Jiang Huairou entered, before she had even taken a few steps into the main hall, she was stopped by the maids in the outer courtyard, who were acting on Lin Xihe's orders.
“Miss Jiang, I’m not feeling well and can’t get too close to people. I didn’t mean to humiliate you. Please understand.” Lin Xihe’s tone was exceptionally gentle this time, but her voice still carried a hint of weakness that was hard to hide.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Huairou did not show any anger on her face. Instead, she stood there politely, bowed slightly, and said, "Sister Lin, I heard that you were poisoned. Huairou absolutely did not poison you."
"Hmm, I knew it wouldn't be you. What brings you here today?" Lin Xihe raised her head slightly, her gaze falling on Jiang Huairou, her eyes filled with a hint of inquiry.
"I'm really worried about Sister Lin. If she gets poisoned just because she saw us, even if I didn't do it, I'll feel incredibly guilty." Jiang Huairou said sincerely, her voice full of concern.
Lin Xihe looked at Jiang Huairou and couldn't help but feel a little confused. She really couldn't understand how there could be such a simple, stubborn and selfless person in this world. In reality, she had never met such a person. So, even though she didn't want to see guests, she reluctantly let Jiang Huairou into the house.
"You saw it yourself, I'm fine."
Lin Xihe forced a smile across her pale face and then asked, "Do you know Miss Sun Ningxiang?"
"On that spring hunt, Huairou was alone, and Sister Sun happened to be alone as well, so we went together. Later, we found that we shared the same interests and started to see each other often."
At this point, Jiang Huairou didn't forget to defend Sun Ningxiang: "Sister Lin, I happened to meet Sister Sun the day I bought the jade Guanyin. Sister Sun said that the jade Guanyin was of excellent quality and would be perfect as a gift, so I bought it. Sister Sun is definitely not the one who poisoned it."
"Do you know her well?" Lin Xihe frowned slightly and continued to ask.
"Sister Sun is a very kind person and has taken good care of me. That day, Huairou didn't mention that Sister Sun was pregnant; she only said she wanted to visit her. Sister Sun is already very pitiful, so please don't doubt her, Sister Lin..." Jiang Huairou paused before finishing her sentence.
"What's wrong?" Lin Xihe asked.
"Sister Sun was imprisoned in a courtyard in the west of the city by Lord Ji's men for several days and nights, only given a few sips of water... In the end, they couldn't get any results from the interrogation, so they released us." Jiang Huairou's tone was tinged with reluctance.
"You've been imprisoned by Ji Zhuo?" Lin Xihe's eyes widened in shock upon hearing this.
"Yes... but Lord Ji didn't harm me. He just sent someone to ask me about the situation," Jiang Huairou quickly explained.
Upon hearing this, Lin Xihe felt a buzzing in her head.
Although she knew that Ji Zhuo suspected Sun Ningxiang, she never expected that Ji Zhuo would do such an extreme thing without any evidence.
In her view, this wasn't just a lack of emotion; it was utter disgust.
Lin Xihe took a deep breath, trying to gather her thoughts. She still wanted to take this opportunity to give Jiang Huairou some advice: "Miss Jiang, I am very sorry for this matter, I have implicated you. However, since your relationship with Miss Sun is likely to cause trouble, it is best to keep your distance."
"Sister Lin, Sister Sun is innocent too..." Jiang Huairou said anxiously, still trying to defend Sun Ningxiang.
"I know, but since you are Gu Qinghuai's cousin and call me Sister Lin, this is the only advice I can give you. Don't go out too often unless it's absolutely necessary; there are many dangers outside." Lin Xihe spoke earnestly, hoping that Jiang Huairou would take her advice to heart.
After exchanging a few more words, Lin Xihe felt a strong wave of fatigue wash over her; she simply didn't have the energy to continue.
So, they saw Jiang Huairou off.
After Jiang Huairou left, Lin Xihe finally made up her mind to leave the capital and quietly instructed: "The ships heading south will depart in three days."
Ji Zhuo is so unwilling to let go and treats Sun Ningxiang this way. She knows that Sun Ningxiang has many tricks up her sleeve and she can't guard against them right now. Perhaps leaving is the best option to get out of this predicament.
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