Before Jiang Yin could respond, another unfamiliar male voice coldly snapped at her, “Mind your own business. Get lost.”
Jiang Yin knew that the woman’s voice belonged to a girl from Zui Xian Ju named Qing Yao.
Hearing that Qing Yao had discovered her, she quickly pressed against the door crack and called out, “Sister Qing Yao, it’s Jiang Yin!”
“…Jiang Yin?”
Qing Yao’s voice carried a hint of suspicion. “I heard someone took you away. Why are you…”
Her words were cut short as her tone suddenly turned fearful. “Huh? You… what are you doing?!”
“…”
This is bad.
Sensing something was wrong, Jiang Yin ignored her own predicament and pushed hard against the door, shouting, “Run! Sister, run! Go report to the authorities! Hurry!”
Almost simultaneously, the sound of a guard drawing his sword echoed outside, followed by Qing Yao’s scream and the sound of chaotic footsteps fading into the distance.
“…”
The view through the door crack was too limited to see what was happening outside. Jiang Yin clutched the stack of banknotes hidden against her chest, feeling her heart shudder violently before racing uncontrollably. A chill seeped from her bones, spreading through her limbs, leaving her hands and feet trembling with cold.
She didn’t know if Qing Yao had escaped, nor whether the guard had drawn his sword to intimidate her or if he truly intended to kill her.
If they dared to kill Qing Yao, then Jiang Yin herself would likely face mortal danger sooner or later…
Only then did Jiang Yin realize that she seemed to have jumped from one pit of fire into an even larger one.
…But how could this be?
Silently glancing at the white jade ring on her finger, Jiang Yin could no longer afford to dwell on Qing Yao’s fate. She hastily changed out of her clothes, loosened her hair, returned the banknotes to the brocade box, burned the farewell letter, and then obediently sat back by the window.
—Just as she expected, not long after she finished these tasks, the young master returned.
Having not seen him in broad daylight for a long time, the unfamiliarity combined with her guilt and nervousness made it difficult for Jiang Yin to suppress her trembling. She mustered all her strength to remain composed as she helped him sit at the table.
Just as she was about to withdraw her hand, the young master placed something in her palm.
Jiang Yin silently opened her hand to find a bloodstained embroidered silk ribbon.
“…”
Her hand trembled, and the ribbon fluttered to the ground, revealing the characters “Qing Yao” on its front.
—Every girl at Zui Xian Ju had such a ribbon, embroidered with their name and tied around their wrist. It would only be removed if they were redeemed or died.
Unless…
The emotions she had barely managed to calm were once again stirred by this wristband.
Jiang Yin’s mind went blank. After a long moment of stunned silence, she finally found her voice. “…Did you kill her?”
Hearing Jiang Yin’s question, the young master remained composed and countered, “What do you think, A Yin?”
“…”
Jiang Yin regained a sliver of rationality, pondered for a moment, and shook her head. “The young master is the kindest person in the world. I know that. I believe the young master would not kill an innocent person.”
“Is that so?”
“…Yes.”
The young master chuckled softly. “Then if I really did kill her, in your heart, would I no longer be a good person?”
“…”
Jiang Yin steeled herself and replied, “No. In A Yin’s heart, the young master will always be a good person.”
“Truly?”
“Truly.”
The young master lowered his long lashes and smiled again. “…Your lies really do come effortlessly.”
“I…”
“Don’t worry. She’s not dead.”
Just as she was about to explain, she heard these words. Jiang Yin hesitated for a moment before weakly confirming, “She… didn’t die?”
“She should be grateful that she never studied and cannot read.”
The young master’s voice was calm, his expression returning to its usual placid state: “I merely gave her a potion to render her mute and found her a quiet place to live out the rest of her days in peace… There’s no need to worry.”
Silently glancing at the blood on the wristband, Jiang Yin couldn’t bring herself to believe it: “But this…”
“It’s mine.”
“…Huh?”
The young master repeated, “That blood is mine.”
As if to prove his words, he extended his hand, revealing a small wound on his palm, and said candidly, “Today’s events were merely meant to serve as a warning to you… Locking the door wasn’t to confine you, but to protect you. From now on, don’t do anything foolish again.”
“…”
Jiang Yin was puzzled: “Protect me?”
“Yes.”
“Why would I need protection…”
“Because of me,” the young master interrupted her, “because my surname is Shen, A Yin… You’ve never asked for my name. My surname is Shen, and my given name is Shouyu.”
“…”
He was actually surnamed Shen.
Jiang Yin knew that the male lead was also surnamed Shen—Shen Fengzhi.
In this world, Shen was the surname of the royal family.
…No wonder.
The royal family was fraught with trouble. Though she couldn’t recall the specific details, Jiang Yin knew that Shen Fengzhi’s brothers all met tragic ends, dying without peace.
…It made sense that getting involved with them would bring disaster.
After a long moment of processing, Jiang Yin finally gathered her thoughts and said hesitantly, “But you should at least have discussed it with me. Making such decisions about my situation on your own makes me afraid.”
Shen Shouyu withdrew his hand, his expression unchanged: “A Yin is afraid not because I acted alone, but because A Yin doesn’t trust me.”
“I…”
He didn’t give Jiang Yin a chance to argue, continuing on his own: “A Yin doubts my character, which is why she fears I harbor ill intentions. If A Yin trusted me completely, today’s farce wouldn’t have happened, and Qing Yao wouldn’t have ended up in such a state.”
“…”
Jiang Yin was momentarily speechless and fell silent.
“Alright.”
Seeing that she hadn’t responded for a long time, Shen Shouyu called out to her: “Come sit here.”
“…Okay.”
Although her relationship with Qing Yao wasn’t particularly close, and she knew she was merely in this world to complete a task, Jiang Yin still felt deeply guilty for so easily altering someone’s fate.
But now, she could hardly protect herself. Even if Shen Shouyu had killed Qing Yao, what could she have done?
After hesitating for a long while, Jiang Yin finally placed her hand in Shen Shouyu’s and obediently settled into his embrace.
Shen Shouyu cradled the back of her neck, holding her close as he gently stroked her long hair, speaking softly: “The physician said your constitution is weak, and the shock caused you to faint… You’ve only just recovered today, so why were you in such a hurry to go out?”
Jiang Yin instinctively clenched her fingers and murmured, “…I was bored… Always alone, I was bored.”
“Is that all?”
“…”
For some reason, Jiang Yin always felt that whenever Shen Shouyu asked her something, he already knew the answer.
So she was a bit more honest: “As the young master said, A Yin doesn’t trust you enough, nor can she discern your intentions. It’s only natural to overthink, which is why I was eager to leave…”
“A Yin,” Shen Shouyu’s hand on the back of her neck tightened slightly as he reminded her again, “There’s no need to call me young master. Now I’m just a commoner. Call me Azhuo.”
“…Alright.”
After agreeing, Jiang Yin belatedly considered his earlier words.
…A commoner?
In this book, was there a prince who had been demoted to commoner status?
She pondered for a while but couldn’t recall anything.
…It was all because she had only focused on reading her own parts back then, skimming through the rest… truly regrettable.
But such a humiliating experience was better left unmentioned, so Jiang Yin didn’t press further.
Shen Shouyu also offered no further explanation, merely comforting her: “A Yin, endure it for a few more days. Once we are married, these rules will no longer bind you… trust me.”
“…”
To this day, Jiang Yin still didn’t understand why Shen Shouyu was so determined to marry her.
But asking such a question, no matter how he answered, would only burden her with more worries.
…Better to just let things be.
After all, she was going to leave anyway.
So Jiang Yin asked nothing, only uttering a soft “mm” and quietly resting in Shen Shouyu’s embrace, allowing him to hold her like a child, idly playing with her hair.
After a long while, Shen Shouyu spoke again, his tone gentle:
“I heard that while at the Li Residence, you repeatedly pursued Shen Fengzhi… why?”