Chapter 4: The Reassurance Shattered

From the day after the Marquis’s Flower Viewing Banquet, Jiang Nian did not step outside her front gate nor through her side door.

On the third day, Madam Jiang concluded that Jiang Nian had been so frightened by the events at the Marquis’s residence that she had lost her spirit. As the Jiang family prepared to send someone to invite a spiritualist to exorcise the evil, Jiang Nian received an invitation from the Marquis of Yongning’s residence.

Xiao Ru invited her to visit the Marquis’s mansion for a chat.

Clutching the invitation, Jiang Nian’s mind wandered.

She had nothing to talk about with Xiao Ru; most likely, Xiao Ru was busy serving Bo Yijin.

After acting like a quail hiding for three days—first, to avoid running into the main cast’s unfolding drama when going out; second, to give Pei Jiuru some time to consider her proposal—today, she had no choice but to leave her nest.

But before going to the Marquis’s residence, she desperately needed a calming pill for her nerves!

Steeling herself, Jiang Nian headed straight to the countryside estate on the outskirts of the city.

Usually, Jiang Nian came to the estate once a month just to collect the silver, so her sudden arrival flustered the usually composed steward.

“Miss, why have you come in person? Was there a problem with the accounts a few days ago?”

“It’s not about the accounts. How is Master Pei’s injury? How has his mood been these days?”

The steward suddenly understood: “The doctor said a few more days of rest and he’ll be fine… Master Pei is taciturn, so it’s hard to tell what he’s feeling…”

As he spoke, he led Jiang Nian to the guest room door.

Jiang Nian, who had rushed over in a hurry, paused upon reaching the door. Three days had passed—surely by now he had an answer?

Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she finally raised her hand and knocked.

The next moment, a calm and steady voice came from inside the room:

“Miss Jiang, please come in.”

Jiang Nian was taken aback—he knew she would come today?

She gently pushed open the door and saw the man sitting upright at the table. At a glance, Jiang Nian sensed he was different.

His eyes were cold and distant, no longer bearing any trace of the weakness or distress he had shown before. Yet, his appearance remained as captivating as ever.

As Jiang Nian studied Pei Jiuru, he was quietly observing her in return.

When he was gravely injured, he had been dazed, only sensing that Jiang Nian was a beautiful and kind-hearted woman. Now that his mind was clear, he realized that her talk of “partnering through life” was merely a temporary excuse.

She had saved him with the intention of marrying him into her family.

The woman before him seemed delicate and refined, but was in fact deeply calculating and selfish.

With that thought, Pei Jiuru spoke frankly: “Thank you, Miss Jiang, for saving my life, but I must decline your proposal from that day.”

The calming pill shattered!

Unwilling to give up, Jiang Nian asked, “Why? You came here solely to prepare for next spring’s imperial examination. Wouldn’t it be better for you to study in peace with my support?”

“Studying in peace and one’s lifelong affairs are two different matters.”

Jiang Nian understood—Pei Jiuru did not want to rush into a lifelong commitment.

She looked into his eyes sincerely and declared solemnly, “Then I won’t hide it from you—I want to marry to solve an urgent problem, yes, but I also truly admire you. My feelings for you are genuine.”

“We barely know each other. How can you say you admire me?”

Jiang Nian smiled with curved eyes: “Your handsome face is deeply etched in my heart!”

“You…” Pei Jiuru found it unbelievable that she was attracted to his looks!

Jiang Nian nodded boldly: “If I could have such a handsome husband as Master Pei, I would have no regrets in this life.”

Pei Jiuru, always restrained and courteous, had never heard such a blunt and crude statement. Though his ears reddened slightly, he knew this was a ploy!

Her gaze fixed solely on him was just to trick him into her scheme! How shallow and rude!

His aloof expression deepened: “Miss Jiang, you jest.”

Jiang Nian’s smile stiffened: “I was presumptuous.”

It wasn’t that Pei Jiuru couldn’t be charmed—it was that she was too awkward trying!

Her mind was cluttered, and as soon as she opened her mouth, it sounded like, “Hello, I want to sleep with you.” Help!

After a few moments of embarrassment, Jiang Nian quickly composed herself and softly said, “Master Pei, don’t overthink it. Just recover well here at the estate, and I won’t disturb your rest anymore. I’ll take my leave.”

“Thank you.” Pei Jiuru relaxed his clenched fists, having expected her to cling on desperately, but she turned out to be dignified.

Jiang Nian, the dignified one, regretted deeply once she boarded the carriage.

For three days she had pinned all her hopes on Pei Jiuru and hadn’t thought of any other plans.

Now, as she was about to visit the Marquis of Yongning’s residence, what was she to do?

“Miss, we’ve arrived at the Marquis’s residence.”

Snapping out of her thoughts, Jiang Nian exclaimed, “Already?”

“Not really! The carriage leisurely traveled for an entire hour. We arrived exactly at the time on the invitation,” explained the maid Lüzha.

Jiang Nian, who had spent a whole hour without coming up with a plan, couldn’t smile: “Lüzha, sometimes your words really sting.”

At the grand gate of the Marquis of Yongning’s residence, a maid was already waiting for Jiang Nian. Following her through the vast estate, winding through numerous turns, they finally reached Xiao Ru’s courtyard.

Yet, there was no sign of Xiao Ru in the side hall.

Without hesitation, Jiang Nian said, “Miss Xiao must be busy with her duties. I will come another day.”

“Miss Jiang, please wait! My lady was just in the side hall waiting for you. If you leave now, she’ll be upset,” the maid said, hurriedly going to find Xiao Ru.

Jiang Nian waited in the side hall, guessing whether she would meet Xiao Ru or Bo Yijin next. Suddenly, she heard voices raised in argument.

Quietly, she pressed against the small door of the side hall and caught the sound of a slap in the main hall—smack!

“Ru’er, this slap from your mother is to remind you of the responsibilities on your shoulders!”

Jiang Nian understood—slapping people was a family custom of the Marquis’s household!

But she didn’t hear Xiao Ru’s voice. Instead, the Marquis’s wife’s scolding continued: “The Bo family is arranging a match for Yijin, and I heard they fancy the Meng family’s daughter! General Meng died in battle, and now the Mengs are a fallen household! You can’t even compete with the Meng daughter? All these years the Marquis’s family has invested in you, and it’s been for nothing!”

“Mother, I don’t like him,” Xiao Ru’s voice quivered with tears.

“You must compete even if you don’t like him! Have you forgotten who he is…” The Marquis’s wife abruptly fell silent, then resumed, “As a daughter of the Marquis’s household, you must act for the family. Want to live by your own wishes? Only if you shed your skin and bleed dry!”

Jiang Nian thought to herself, fortunately she was not born into such a powerful and oppressive household. Though her own family was humble and her parents often quarreled, she had always lived according to her own will.

Xiao Ru’s voice, tinged with sobs, pleaded, “Mother…”

The Marquis’s wife softened her tone: “Good child, as long as you marry Bo Yijin, you’ll have made it…”

Hearing the mother and daughter’s voices fade, Jiang Nian quickly lifted her skirt and ran back to her seat.

So her intuition was right—Xiao Ru did not like Bo Yijin. By accident, she had uncovered the Marquis’s family’s secrets. The Marquis was forcing Xiao Ru into this because they must know Bo Yijin’s own secret…