From the corner of her eye, Wen Xueling saw Wen Jinli’s face, which was flushed with rage, and she sneered inwardly.
She looked up at him, feigning confusion, and asked innocently, “What is Brother talking about? Xueling… doesn’t understand.”
Seeing her refuse to admit it, Wen Jinli recounted the morning’s events at the Prime Minister’s Mansion, his words full of accusation.
Mu Qingyu was deeply displeased by her son’s behavior in questioning her daughter. She stated firmly, “Xueling has done nothing wrong!”
“Mother! You cannot spoil her like this. We cannot shield her. She must be sent to the magistrate’s office and locked up today!”
At the thought of his other mother lying ill in bed and An’an crying in the mansion until she fainted, Wen Jinli was filled with resentment toward Wen Xueling!
This younger sister was truly a troublemaker; she couldn’t compare to An’an at all!
Hearing this, Wen Xueling let out a mocking laugh. “Is Brother angry because of those maids, or because your stepmother was frightened?”
Wen Jinli’s body stiffened at her words.
He took a deep breath and straightened his back. “Neither. It is because of you! You have truly disappointed me!”
Wen Jinli did not think there was anything wrong with his words or actions.
“Xueling, our father and brothers sacrifice themselves for the country and the people, yet you are so cold-blooded and ruthless that you deliberately bullied her. How can you face the Wen family name?”
He raised his voice, standing on his moral high ground, and continued to condemn her. “Do you know what a tragic price Mother’s clan paid for Rongguo? Such heroic martyrs, yet they are bullied by a little girl like you. As your brother, my heart is chilled by this.”
Chilled? Hahaha.
Wen Xueling met her mother’s worried gaze and handed her the medicine bowl, saying softly, “Mother, the medicine won’t be good if it gets cold. Please drink it first.”
Even at a moment like this, her daughter’s only concern was her weakened body. Mu Qingyu’s heart twisted with emotion.
“Alright, Mother will drink it.”
Seeing her finish the medicine, Wen Xueling felt slightly relieved.
Meanwhile, Wen Jinli continued to ramble on beside them.
“Wen Xueling, do you know that Mother was so frightened by you that she fainted and has not woken up since? Now that Father is not in Jingcheng, I am the only one in the mansion who can seek justice for Mother’s grievances. Come with me to the Prime Minister’s Mansion right now to kowtow and admit your mistake. Until Mother wakes up, you shall not be allowed to stand.”
He moved to grab Wen Xueling’s wrist, only to have his face slapped aside by Mu Qingyu.
She forced herself up and questioned him: “Wen Jinli, I have truly misjudged you. You call her ‘Mother’ with every breath, but do you still remember who your birth mother is?”
Wen Xueling worriedly supported her. “Mother, you mustn’t let your anger rise in your current state.”
Wen Jinli looked defiant. “Mother, you always favor her!”
“She is your younger sister, the youngest in the family. Since she was a child, she always gave the best food and drink to you brothers. If we are talking about favoritism, it was Xueling who favored you! Have you forgotten after only two years?”
Mu Qingyu pulled away the scarf around her neck, revealing a circle of deadly red marks. “Look at what this is!”
Although these were drawn by Wen Xueling, it was a fact that those maids and hags had tried to kill them last night.
To her surprise, Wen Jinli instinctively retorted, “Impossible! Mother is not that kind of person! She didn’t even know of your existence, so how could she strike at you? It’s impossible! Mother, you cannot speak such nonsense just to protect this girl!”
Wen Xueling immediately countered sharply, “Since that mother of yours didn’t know of our existence, then what do the deaths of her maids have to do with me?”
Wen Jinli’s thoughts were momentarily thrown into chaos; he suddenly felt she had a point.
But then he remembered that among the five dead were Granny Xu and Mingyue…
“Granny Xu and Mingyue were the ones I arranged for you. Now they are dead outside Mother’s window…”
“That has nothing to do with us. Granny Xu and Mingyue disappeared last night. I had the guards rush to inform you, Brother. Did you not receive the message?”
After dealing with the stepmother’s lackeys last night, Wen Xueling had the Shadow Guards seize the original guards and take their places.
Wen Jinli’s brow furrowed. He had been guarding outside his stepmother’s room the whole time; how could he have cared about matters at Fragrant Blossom Courtyard?
He vaguely remembered his page boy reporting that someone from Fragrant Blossom Courtyard had arrived, but he was so worried about his stepmother at the time that he had no intention of sparing any attention for them.
“Someone, come!” Wen Jinli did not believe Wen Xueling and summoned the guards.
Hearing from them that things were indeed as she said, he frowned and said, “I don’t believe it anyway. It’s impossible. Mother is such a kind person; she would never strike at you!”
“You wicked girl, you are not fit to be my sister. I must discipline you!”
Looking at the affection and trust for his stepmother in his eyes, Wen Xueling found it both laughable and ironic. She was about to retaliate when she suddenly felt something wet fall onto the back of her hand.
She looked down, and her pupils constricted instantly.
Hearing her youngest son defend his stepmother while belittling his sister, Mu Qingyu’s blood boiled with anger, causing stagnant blood to rise.
Beads of blood slid from her nose, dripping onto Wen Xueling’s arm.
“Mother, you have a nosebleed?” This was a sight Wen Xueling had not seen since her rebirth.
Mu Qingyu forced back the blood rising in her chest and gave her a gentle smile. “Mother is fine… cough, cough.”
That cough broke her hold over the blood.
After spitting out the stagnant blood congested in her chest, Mu Qingyu actually felt a strange sense of relief, as if a long-standing ailment had eased.
Wen Jinli panicked as well, but he didn’t move forward to support her at all. “Mother, are you alright?”
Then he took a half-step back. “I-I’ll go find a doctor. Mother, wait for me!”
Wen Jinli left in a daze, saying as he ran that he was going back to the Prime Minister’s Mansion to find the estate doctor to save her and would return tomorrow morning.
Suddenly, a surge of strength came from the hand gripped in Wen Xueling’s palm.
“Xuel… Xueling, don’t be afraid. Mother just didn’t want to see him bully you. Let him go. I said before that I would… would protect you. We won’t be separated.”
Wen Xueling met Mu Qingyu’s gentle eyes and felt her trust. Tears began to fall uncontrollably.
That night.
A fire broke through the darkness of Jingcheng, and Fragrant Blossom Courtyard vanished forever.
When Wen Jinli arrived early the next morning, all he saw was a plot of land burned to ash.
He looked at the scene before him in disbelief, his legs giving way as he collapsed to the ground.
“How could this happen?”
He had only gone back to accompany An’an and perform his filial duties in the room next to his stepmother for one night. How could Fragrant Blossom Courtyard have turned into this?
“Mother—Xueling—”
The only response was the bitter winter wind.
By the time she heard from the Shadow Guards that Wen Jinli had fainted from excessive grief, Wen Xueling was already moving into the private residence Liang Jue had arranged for her, her face beaming with smiles.
This was part of the payment she had received in exchange for the arrow blueprints.
After finishing the move, she stood by the window, pondering what items to exchange with Liang Jue next, when a sound suddenly came from the courtyard wall.
Their eyes met, and a sudden chill crept up her spine.