Chapter 47 He Regretted Blaming Jiang Lingyao

Ridiculous. What could his single "I don't know" possibly amount to?

Jiang Lingyao’s eyes flashed with disgust as she frowned. "If you had even once come to the temple to check on me, I would have told you everything. But did you?"

"I don't wish to rake up the past anymore. Please leave. This matter never had anything to do with you in the first place. We are merely passing acquaintances; I won't hold any grudge against you, and you needn't dwell on it either."

She lifted her eyes, giving that handsome face—once the cause of her fluttering heart—a thorough, sweeping glance, only to find it entirely insipid.

Nothing special after all.

"From now on, we shall walk our separate paths. My Lord has your broad avenue of sunlight, while I have my solitary wooden bridge. I am fatigued today, so I won't see you out. You are familiar with the estate, so I presume you don't need me to show you the door."

With that, she pointed toward the door and sneered, "Please."

Pei Xingzhi had no remaining urge to retort. A towering fury had already ignited within his chest, burning him until his face turned deathly pale.

He turned in silence and left, his steps unsteady.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Jiang Lingyao hurriedly wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, forced a smile, and buried her face in her grandmother's lap. "Thank you, Grandmother, for having my back. You are the absolute best!"

The Old Lady sighed and stroked her hair. "Mingzhu, if you want to cry, just cry."

Jiang Lingyao paused, and the tears she had just suppressed suddenly fell anew.

***

The night grew gradually colder, accompanied by a fine, misty drizzle. The rain was swept by the wind into the ancestral hall, stinging Jiang Xiuyuan like needles.

He closed his eyes as a sharp pain lanced through his knees, his entire body shivering from the cold.

Amidst his delirium, he couldn't help wondering: when Jiang Lingyao was being punished at Qingshan Temple, was she suffering just as he was now?

Guilt washed over him like a tide. Remembering everything Jiang Lingyao had once done for him, his heart twisted as if gripped by a knife.

At that time, how despairing she must have been—a young girl, left entirely alone in a mountain temple, with not a single soul coming to visit her for a whole year.

The nocturnal chill deepened, and Jiang Xiuyuan began to cough, coughing so violently it felt as though his lungs would tear apart.

In previous years, Jiang Lingyao would have long since brewed a lung-soothing soup for him. Yet throughout the entire past year, his chronic cough had grown increasingly severe. Two months before Jiang Lingyao was due to return home, his illness had even forced him to take to his bed in rest for over ten days.

If Jiang Lingyao had still been at home...

Yet at that time, she was enduring hardship at Qingshan Temple, kneeling on the freezing stone slabs just as he was today.

The more Jiang Xiuyuan thought, the more wretched he felt. Somehow, his vision suddenly darkened, and right before losing consciousness, he heard only the startled cry of the servant keeping watch outside the door.

"Quick, someone come! The Eldest Young Master has fainted!"

***

It had rained all through the night. When Jiang Lingyao woke up, the first thing she saw upon opening her eyes was Wenqiu standing beside the bed.

"Young Miss!"

Seeing her awake, Wenqiu quickly blinked and said, "The Eldest Young Master knelt in the ancestral hall the entire night, and right before dawn, he just closed his eyes and passed out."

After saying this, she stared intently at Jiang Lingyao, watching to see if she would panic upon hearing that Jiang Xiuyuan had fallen ill, as she used to. Instead, Wenqiu unconsciously let out a sigh of relief.

It was wonderful that her young lady no longer cared. The Eldest Young Master was simply an ingrate, entirely unworthy of her mistress's concern!

Jiang Lingyao laughed indifferently. "Quickly get things ready. We're going to Grandmother's place shortly."

Wasting effort on people like Jiang Xiuyuan was the most unnecessary thing of all.

Once she had freshened up, Jiang Lingyao headed straight for the Old Lady's quarters. Along the way, however, she spotted Song Lian'er walking in a hurried manner.

Judging by her direction, was she heading toward Jiang Xiushu's courtyard?

Jiang Lingyao narrowed her eyes.

"Third Brother, are you feeling a bit better today?"

Song Lian'er said, her eyes brimming with tears, "I've been tied up with matters these past few days and haven't been able to come see you."

Jiang Xiushu lay half-dead upon the bed. Hearing this, he felt somewhat resentful and demanded, "What on earth were you busy with? Busy attending Pei Xingzhi's birthday banquet?"

Ever since the day he was injured, he hadn't seen Song Lian'er visit even once. How could he not be angry?

In the first place, he had offended Jiang Lingyao solely for her sake, only to end up beaten to this state!

A cold gleam flickered in the depths of Song Lian'er's eyes, but outwardly she put on a wronged expression and said, "How could that be? Eldest Brother wouldn't let me come see you, and I didn't dare..."

Jiang Xiushu's expression darkened instantly, and he gritted his teeth. "Why did he try to stop you?"

Seeing him angry, Song Lian'er felt a surge of triumph inwardly and continued, "Besides... besides, if Eldest Brother hadn't been punished by Grandmother to kneel in the ancestral hall yesterday, I'm afraid I still wouldn't have been able to come see you."

Jiang Xiushu felt a malicious sense of satisfaction.

Song Lian'er slowly fanned the flames of his anger, skillfully steering the topic toward Jiang Lingyao. "It was all because of Jiang Lingyao, too. Grandmother thought he was always picking on Jiang Lingyao, so she made him kneel in the ancestral hall as punishment."

The smile froze on Jiang Xiushu's face, and he said coldly, "She actually managed to get Grandmother to punish Jiang Xiuyuan?"

Song Lian'er burst into tears. "Third Brother, I feel so wronged on your behalf. Why must Jiang Lingyao be so vicious, beating you into such a state while even Eldest Brother takes the blame? If I had the ability, I would certainly teach her a lesson and not let you suffer such injustice in vain."

Jiang Xiushu paused, his brow furrowed deeply.

Teach Jiang Lingyao a lesson?