"What money?" Qi Tianyu was taken aback.
"Silence money, of course. You asked me to lie—surely you don't expect me to do it for nothing?"
"I'll silence you to death! Didn't Eldest Brother and Third Brother already give you silver?"
"That was for letting go! This is for lying. I'm so broke I have to add three scoops of water to a bowl of rice just to fill my stomach. Money's tight. If you don't pay up, I can't guarantee my mouth will stay shut."
"You're blackmailing me?" Qi Tianyu spun around in fury. "Aren't you afraid I'll report you to the authorities?"
"One thousand taels."
"Why don't you just rob someone?" Qi Tianyu jumped up. "Where am I supposed to get you one thousand taels?"
"Then wait for Qi Yurou's reputation to be ruined and the Prime Minister's mansion to stink to high heaven." Xie Suisui said, heading toward the front courtyard.
"Stop right there! I only have three hundred taels on me—take it all."
Qi Tianyu's heart ached at the loss; this was the gambling money he'd stolen today.
He'd give her the three hundred taels now, and once today's banquet was over, he'd demand it back. If she refused? He'd beat her to death behind closed doors.
As if reading his mind, Xie Suisui said, "You must also give me your seal. What if you later stop Father from adding me to the family registry?"
"What seal do you want?"
"Give me your personal seal and your token as the legitimate heir. Once I'm entered into the family registry, I'll return them to you."
"You worthless wretch—"
Xie Suisui turned and headed for the front courtyard.
Qi Tianyu stamped his foot and shouted, "Stop! I'll give them to you!"
He handed over his personal seal and the Jade Pendant representing his status as the Qi family's legitimate heir, saying, "Keep them safe. If you lose them, I'll skin you alive."
"Idiot!"
"What?"
Xie Suisui raised his seal and the Jade Pendant, sneering coldly, "You think your little mother treats you so well? This junk wouldn't even fetch ten taels at a pawnshop!"
Qi Tianyu's face flushed white and green, teeth grinding in fury.
Xie Suisui tucked the items away, rolled up her sleeves, and lifted her chin. "Qi number two, get over here!"
"What did you call me? I'm telling you, if you don't protect Yurou's reputation, there are ten thousand ways for you to die."
"One way is enough to kill you." Xie Suisui walked toward Qi Tianyu, then suddenly kicked him in the knee.
Qi Tianyu collapsed to the ground, panicking. "Cough, cough—what are you—"
Xie Suisui kicked him repeatedly, leaving him no chance to fight back. She pressed her toe against his neck and shoulder, pinning him down as he coughed like he was choking.
She pulled off one of his shoes and stuffed it into his mouth.
"What am I doing? Beating you!"
Her hands were still badly injured, but she hooked her arm around one of his legs and bent it up over his head, making Qi Tianyu howl in pain, "Mmph, mmph—"
"Calling people 'wretch' left and right—you're the wretch, your whole family's a bunch of wretches!" Xie Suisui said in a low voice.
Her heel slammed into his back with a dull, crunching sound.
"Mmph… I'm your own brother, cough, cough…"
Xie Suisui shoved the shoe deeper into his mouth, looking at his reddened eyes with a vicious smile. "I'm your neighbor's grandpa, here to beat up a useless grandson!"
Qi Tianyu's forehead veins bulged, the shoe sole stuffed in his mouth, unable to curse or move.
When she was done, Xie Suisui endured the pain in her hands, walked to the well, hooked a bucket of water with her arm, and dumped the cold water all over his head.
Qi Tianyu let out a miserable "mmph, mmph" as the cold water hit him.
Third day of the third month—it was freezing. After that dousing, he'd probably have irregular cycles (🐶 pant pant).
"Qi Tianyu, here's a free blessing for you: may you sleep every night with your two eyes taking turns on watch."
She patted the nonexistent dirt off her hands and strode away.
Soon, she reached the front courtyard's flower hall.
A familiar voice reached her ears: "Uncle Qi, Auntie Qi, I've come today only to state the truth. The betrothal my father arranged with you—this junior wishes to set it aside for now."
Qi Hui was somewhat displeased. "You're unwilling?"
"This junior has someone I wish to marry. Once I've achieved success and fame, I'll come to propose properly."
Yu Tang had been reborn. He knew the course of history in advance, and in this life, he wanted to marry the Prime Minister's precious daughter, Qi Yurou.
But Qi Yurou was still betrothed to Gu Yanci, the heir of Xuanping Marquis. He had no choice but to first break off his engagement with Xie Suisui.
Madam Yu looked at Yu Tang with a complicated expression, her heart a mix of emotions.
By all rights, the Shengyang Earl's mansion had long since declined, so marrying the Prime Minister's legitimate daughter was certainly a good thing.
But the betrothed was Xie Suisui—the coffin-born child left behind by Qi Hui's first wife—and that galled her.
What a useless marriage!
So when Yu Tang proposed breaking it off, Madam Yu didn't put up much resistance.
Everyone present was stunned.
"Breaking off the engagement on the spot—Miss Third will have a hard time marrying after this."
"A coffin-born child—who would dare marry her? If the Shengyang Earl's mansion weren't so fallen, they probably wouldn't have agreed in the first place."
As the crowd murmured, they saw a dainty figure emerge from the back courtyard.
The girl wore her hair in a bun, with a round little face like an innocent little mouse, peach-blossom eyes dark and clear, guileless and pure.
But half her face was covered in blood, and her hands were drenched in it!
She was none other than the Prime Minister's daughter lost for twelve years—Xie Suisui.
"So young? She hasn't even had her coming-of-age ceremony yet, has she?"
"I heard she's only twelve."
"How is she covered in blood?"
"Who knows, let's go take a look…"
Everyone whispered among themselves, but Xie Suisui didn't care.
Her biological father was a scumbag, her biological brother was a scumbag, and her fiancé—past life and present—every drop of blood, every pore, was pure scumbag through and through.
She couldn't kill them right now, but she didn't want them to have an easy time either.
Yu Tang was planning to "claim the throne in three months," wasn't he? Then she'd make good use of that.
Before Xie Suisui even entered the room, she made her presence known first.
A righteous and stern voice reached Yu Tang's ears: "Second Young Master Yu, this engagement was personally decided by the Prime Minister himself. What if I'm unwilling to break it off?"
Against the light, Yu Tang couldn't see Xie Suisui's current appearance clearly. Hearing her words, he curled his lips.
He'd nearly killed her just moments ago, and she was unwilling to break the engagement?
That claim was weaker than his kidneys!
In this life, he had higher goals and absolutely would not be tied to Xie Suisui.
"Miss Xie, I'm truly sorry—"
"No need! Coincidentally, I don't fancy you either!"
"…"
Xie Suisui's peach-blossom eyes were large and bright, filled with contempt. Yu Tang's gaze—one that looked at even a dog with deep affection—couldn't help but avert itself.
Yu Tang was sturdy and knew some martial arts, serving as a ninth-rank military officer in the capital's outer camp.
Whether it was the Prime Minister's residence or the General's residence, Yu Tang could only bow his head and play the subordinate.
Originally, she hadn't particularly despised him. It was only after experiencing certain things that she learned—those wearing clothes weren't necessarily human.
Qi Yurou had already added fuel to the fire with her slander of Xie Suisui. Qi Hui, cunning and sly as he was, could see perfectly well what Qi Yurou had done. Now he feared Xie Suisui might say something else that would cause trouble.
He slammed the table, striking first: "Wretch, kneel!"
"Kneel? Why should I kneel? The Prime Minister owes the Shengyang Marquis Estate a favor, but he couldn't bear to marry off Eldest Miss Qi, so he had me found and brought back to be betrothed to Young Master Yu as repayment. Unfortunately, Young Master Yu's heart already belongs to another. So, I want to break the engagement!"
Xie Suisui raised her right hand, three bloody fingers pointing to the sky. "If anyone forces me to be betrothed to Young Master Yu and ruins his grand ambition, then they're born of a whore."
Everyone cooperatively performed "shock."
The Prime Minister's residence had found the Third Miss just to marry her off as repayment?
Yu Tang's grand ambition would be hard to achieve? No wait—Yu Tang's grand ambition would be ruined?
"Grand ambition" was a term only those planning to usurp the throne and rebel would use, wasn't it?
Yu Tang's face turned pale with panic: "What nonsense are you spouting?"
If word of this got out, the Shengyang Marquis Estate would surely "die before the campaign even begins"!
"Just now, at Bamboo Shadow Pavilion, wasn't it you who said it? In three months' time, you would—"
She teased him like teasing a dog, revealing his secrets word by word. Yu Tang jumped up in panic.
"Miss Xie, watch your words!"
"What's in it for me?"
"What do you mean, what's in it for you?" Yu Tang frowned. In her past life, she'd been just as calculating—so petty and small-minded.
Qi Yurou immediately spoke up: "Sister, if you're not forming a marriage alliance, that's that. How can you try to extort Young Master Yu?"
"Oh, Eldest Miss Qi, shall I repeat the conversation you two had at Bamboo Shadow Pavilion for everyone to judge?"
Seeing the fire about to spread to Qi Yurou, Yu Tang immediately said, "One thousand!"
"One hundred thousand!" Xie Suisui didn't back down an inch. The entire Shengyang Marquis clan was in her hands.
"What do you need that much silver for?"
"To throw in water and listen to the splash!"
"You… two thousand at most."
"One hundred thousand!"
"Five thousand!"
"One hundred thousand!"
"Negotiations are supposed to go back and forth—why won't you come down at all?"
"Who's negotiating with you? One hundred thousand, not a single copper coin less!"
"Impossible!"
"Really?—Everyone, listen! Just now at Bamboo Shadow Pavilion, Yu Tang said that in three months, he would—"
"One hundred thousand, I'll pay!" Yu Tang immediately cut her off, his face flushed with desperation. "I'll return to the estate right now and get it for you."
"Deal! You have half an hour to show me your sincerity!"
Show you my sincerity, my ass!
"Tang'er, she's extorting us—let's report this to the authorities!" Madam Yu said furiously.
Qi Yurou also spoke up: "You're demanding such a large sum of silver from someone over breaking an engagement. That can absolutely be reported as blackmail."
Xie Suisui waved her hand: "Go report it! Hurry up!"
Yu Tang shot Xie Suisui a venomous glare, grabbed Madam Yu, and hurriedly left.
Qi Hui watched the marriage alliance fall apart just like that, and Xie Suisui had inexplicably extorted one hundred thousand taels of silver from Yu Tang.
He slammed his teacup hard onto the table and roared: "Xie Suisui, have you lost your mind? Kneel down!"
Xie Suisui snatched the teacup from his hand and splashed it directly onto his face, saying in a frightened tone: "Prime Minister, you need to calm down…"
Qi Hui shot up from his seat, the chair scraping with a harsh screech.
"Xie—Sui—sui…"
Before the curse words could leave his mouth, a thunderous roar shook the room, rattling the window frames.
"Girl, your head, your hands…
Who—
did—
this—?"
A gale rose from flat ground, killing intent surging like crashing waves, one after another. Everyone present felt their eardrums nearly burst, ringing with a deafening buzz.
A woman in her forties, striding swiftly, hurled a cleaver—no, a four-jin cleaver—that flew with a whoosh toward the incense table beside Qi Xiang, its surface paneled with purple sandalwood and framed in a square-edged design.
The cleaver struck the wood three inches deep, its cold gleam reflecting Qi Hui's face, a mix of shock and fury.
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