Chapter 65: What's Done is Done

Upon hearing from Qingsong that Su Mingxiu had actually gone on a hunger strike, Jiang You'an was immediately consumed with worry. "Alright, let's hurry."

A moment later, the carriage stopped before the gates of Tianjing Temple.

Jiang You'an hurried down from the carriage and followed Qingsong inward.

Upon entering the temple grounds and reaching the grove in the back, Qingsong pointed to a bamboo cottage ahead. "The Young Master is in there."

Jiang You'an nodded, telling Qiulan and Qingsong to keep watch here. She passed through the moon gate, lifting her skirt as she jogged toward the bamboo house.

Before she could even reach the door, the person inside heard her footsteps and flung the door open as if he could wait no longer.

Su Mingxiu was dressed in a teal robe, his figure tall and lean. Leaning against the doorframe, he stood there looking like a slender green bamboo.

His face was gaunt, his pale lips pressed into a tight line, yet his peach-blossom eyes lit up with brilliance the moment he saw who was coming.

"You'an!"

"Mingxiu!"

Jiang You'an rushed toward him without a moment's hesitation. Su Mingxiu opened his arms to catch her, and the two embraced tightly, remaining locked in each other's arms for a long time.

After entering the room, Jiang You'an stood before Su Mingxiu and looked him over carefully, only to discover how much weight he had lost—his cheeks were somewhat sunken.

Caressing his cheek with heartache, she said, "You've lost so much weight. Qingsong said you've been on a hunger strike lately. How can you be so foolish?"

Su Mingxiu rubbed his cheek against the palm of her hand and smiled faintly. "I'm fine. I thought you wouldn't come to see me today."

"How could that be? I've been wanting to see you all this time."

"Then why, when I sneaked out of the house a few days ago to find you at the Lu residence, did you refuse to see me? You even said you agreed to call off the engagement."

Jiang You'an frowned. Had she not just heard from Qingsong that Su Mingxiu had come looking for her, she would have known nothing of this matter at all. How could she possibly have agreed to break off the engagement?

"I never said any such thing. Who told you that?"

Su Mingxiu was somewhat bewildered as well. "It was Young Master Lu. I met him at the gates of the Lu residence and asked him to pass along a message. His pageboy said you refused to see me and that you wanted us to part ways amicably."

Jiang You'an was dumbfounded.

So it was Lu Xuanheng who had been stirring up trouble behind her back!

She had no choice but to explain, "There must have been some mishap when the message was passed."

Jiang You'an grasped Su Mingxiu's hand, her tone resolute. "Mingxiu, I have never once thought of breaking off our engagement."

"Neither have I."

"But right now, your parents' stance is completely unyielding..."

Su Mingxiu gazed at her with tender eyes. "Don't worry. I've already hidden the betrothal document. Without it, they cannot completely dissolve the engagement. I can wear them down for a while longer; at worst, the wedding date will be postponed, but in the end, for the sake of both families' reputations, they will have no choice but to relent."

Looking at the gentle light in the depths of his eyes, Jiang You'an felt a bitter ache in her heart. "Are you going to wear them down at the expense of your own health? If you keep abusing yourself like this, your body will collapse before they even relent."

Su Mingxiu forced a lighthearted smile. "I know what I'm doing. No matter what, I must hold my ground. Besides, I promised you, and I will definitely fulfill it."

Jiang You'an's eyes grew red, her voice choking slightly. "Mingxiu, you also know that the reason you contracted the pestilence was because Li Zhenfu manipulated things behind the scenes. He is so utterly deranged it's simply appalling. Your parents want to call off the engagement precisely because they are afraid Li Zhenfu will strike again in the future. Aren't you afraid at all?"

Su Mingxiu bent down slightly to meet Jiang You'an's gaze levelly, his eyes never leaving her for an instant. "I don't want to lose the person I love most because of some outsider. Being with you, I have no regrets. Whatever difficulties lie ahead in the future, we will face them hand in hand."

Tears welled up and spilled from Jiang You'an's eyes. She threw herself into Su Mingxiu's arms and held him tight.

Even under such circumstances, Su Mingxiu still unwaveringly chose her. What reason did she have to back down?

Right now, there was only a single thought in her mind: she could not let Su Mingxiu down.

Su Mingxiu gently patted her back and used a handkerchief to wipe away her tears.

Jiang You'an sniffled, looking up at him with red-rimmed eyes. "But your parents are sending you to Jiangnan tomorrow. What are you going to do?"

Su Mingxiu replied, "I can fake illness, I can yield and beg for mercy—anything to stall for some time."

Jiang You'an thought for a moment, then said with distress, "But that will only buy us ten days or half a month. The moment you bring up the marriage again, they'll just want to send you away once more."

Su Mingxiu lowered his gaze in thought for a moment. "I remember when my family hosted a banquet before, a young lady from the Lu family was caught meeting her secret lover. Afterward, to preserve their dignity, the two families quickly arranged for them to get married. What if we do the same?"

Jiang You'an looked at Su Mingxiu in surprise, though seeing his vague, half-comprehending expression, she couldn't help laughing out loud.

"That is true, but do you even know what they actually did?"

Su Mingxiu's expression turned somewhat awkward. "It should be... being seen when they were acting intimately and affectionately."

"That's far from enough. They were..." Jiang You'an leaned close to Su Mingxiu's ear and whispered softly, "They had already crossed the line and made it a fait accompli."

Realization dawned on Su Mingxiu. The tips of his ears turned instantly red, and he belatedly came to understand just how inappropriate his previous proposal had been. He hurriedly stammered, "This method is improper—just pretend I never said it."

Jiang You'an bit her lower lip, staring at the toes of her shoes. "Actually, I think... it's not entirely out of the question."

When she finished speaking, she heard no response from Su Mingxiu for a long time. She lifted her eyes to look at him and saw that his face, previously pale and devoid of color, was now glowing a bright, vibrant red.

Jiang You'an took a step closer to him. "If you take away my purity, you will simply have to take responsibility for me."

"That goes without saying!" Su Mingxiu stammered. "But... but this is... this isn't very good for you."

"But right now, we can't think of any other way."

Su Mingxiu was speechless. He leaned back against the table by the window, resting his hand on the edge, his expression thoroughly unnatural.

Finding his demeanor utterly adorable, Jiang You_an let out a soft laugh and closed the distance between them. "Then..."

Su Mingxiu looked toward her. She curved her lips into a smile, stood on tiptoes, and pressed her lips to his.

Su Mingxiu's eyes widened instantly.

Outside the bamboo cottage, Qiulan and Qingsong stood guarding the moon gate, both wearing deeply worried expressions—one anxious that Lu Xuanheng might track them down, the other fretful that Madam Su might show up.

Yet Lu Xuanheng proved the more perceptive of the two. Noticing Jiang You'an leave, he sensed something was amiss and immediately gave chase.

Qiulan was anxiously stretching her neck and peering out when she saw Lu Xuanheng, clad in dark robes, striding toward them with a menacing aura.

Frightened, she cast a panicked glance toward the bamboo house. With his long strides, Lu Xuanheng reached her side in the blink of an eye, his face chilling as he demanded, "Where is Jiang You'an?"

Qiulan tried to stall, vaguely pointing in another direction. "She's... she's over there admiring the flowers."

Unfortunately, Lu Xuanheng was not so easily fooled and didn't believe her words at all. A sweeping glance of his eyes brought the bamboo cottage not far away into view.

He ordered Xiuzhu to take Qiulan and Qingsong away, and just as he was about to step toward the bamboo house, he caught sight of the figures inside the window first.

The moment he realized what they were doing, the blood in his entire body seemed to freeze solid in an instant.