“Brother!” Pei Jinyu glanced at Pei Jingchuan, who stood beside her with a stern expression, and called out instinctively.
Pei Jingchuan’s brows were drawn low, his gaze dark as he looked at the man lying on the ground, then turned his head to fix Pei Jinyu with a cold stare.
“If I hadn’t pulled you back just now, that would have been you pinned to the ground being kissed. Would you still have any face left then?”
“Brother, I…” Pei Jinyu’s heart trembled at his words, and she belatedly looked to the other side.
There was Lin Yanbang, pressing down on top of a man, their faces pressed together, lips against lips. The sight was so awkward that one would wish for a crack in the ground to crawl into.
Suddenly, Pei Jinyu realized that if her brother hadn’t appeared in time today, she would have been the one pinned beneath Lin Yanbang on the ground. At that thought, cold sweat broke out on her forehead, and she couldn’t help but feel a lingering fear and humiliation.
Pei Jingchuan angrily brought Pei Jinyu back to the Duke’s Estate, while Xu Qingyue had already slipped away from elsewhere the moment Pei Jingchuan appeared.
On the way back to the Duke’s Estate, Pei Jinyu still couldn’t believe that Lin Yanbang was someone with ulterior motives. She kept explaining to her brother that this was all just a misunderstanding, a mere coincidence.
Pei Jingchuan paid no heed to Pei Jinyu’s words, keeping a cold face. Toward his younger sister, he truly felt a sense of frustration—like iron that refused to become steel.
Upon returning to the estate, they happened to run into Xu Qingyan in the flower hall, accompanying the Duchess of Guo over tea and refreshments. Having just been scolded by Pei Jingchuan, Pei Jinyu felt a surge of indignation.
At that moment, catching sight of Xu Qingyan, Pei Jinyu somehow wanted to vent all the anger she had just received onto Xu Qingyan.
So Pei Jinyu glared with her big eyes and sneered at Xu Qingyan: “Hmph! You seductive vixen! After deceiving my brother, now you’re trying to deceive my mother too!”
Meanwhile, Xu Qingyan, who was in the middle of eating a pastry, looked at Pei Jinyu with utter bewilderment, feeling completely speechless.
Pei Jingchuan, however, cast a cold glance at Pei Jinyu and said with a cold snort: “Pei Jinyu, you are confined to the estate for the next few days. Stay inside and don’t go anywhere. Reflect on your actions!”
Hearing her brother’s words, Pei Jinyu lowered her head in grievance and muttered softly: “Brother, I didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Can someone tell me what exactly happened?” The Duchess of Guo, seated nearby, asked in confusion.
She found it rather inexplicable that her daughter would harbor such hostility toward Xu Qingyan.
Although she couldn’t say she was particularly fond of Xu Qingyan, she didn’t dislike her either. Especially just now, when she had asked Xu Qingyan to accompany her for tea, she had taken the opportunity to observe her daughter-in-law and found her to be kind-hearted and sensible.
“Mother, Jinyu secretly went to Wenyazhai with Xu Qingyue, where she watched a group of men compose poetry and compete in literary contests. She nearly got pinned to the ground and almost lost her reputation. If I hadn’t arrived in time, the consequences would have been unimaginable.” Before Pei Jinyu could speak, Pei Jingchuan immediately informed his mother of what had just happened.
He knew that his mother had always favored his younger sister. If Pei Jinyu had spoken first, she would surely have twisted the facts, and the consequences would have been dire.
“What!” Sure enough, the Duchess of Guo was instantly shocked.
“Jinyu, you truly have nerve! How dare you do such a thing! It seems I’ve been spoiling you too much. You’re not yet married—who allowed you to go to such a place?” The Duchess of Guo was furious with Pei Jinyu.
Although the customs of the Daxia Dynasty were not particularly conservative, allowing women to go out freely to meet friends, prestigious households like the Duke’s Estate still maintained rather strict requirements for their women.
Under normal circumstances, they did not permit women to frequent places where men gathered in large numbers, primarily out of fear that something untoward might happen in private.
“Mother, please let me explain. This matter really isn’t as serious as you think. Besides, today was purely an accident. And Young Master Lin truly is talented—he’s a good person. I only wanted to see what kind of poetry those gifted scholars write.” Pei Jinyu argued defensively, unwilling to accept the rebuke.
[Oh my, my… it seems today’s scheme didn’t work out! Today, Pei Jinyu was supposed to be tackled by Lin Yanbang, pinned to the ground and kissed, after which she would not only lose her reputation but also develop feelings for him.] Xu Qingyan raised her eyes and glanced at Pei Jinyu.
【So this was when she started having private dealings with Lin Yanbang? Later, when Lin Yanbang’s marriage proposal was rejected, the two of them, urged on by Xu Qingyue, took matters into their own hands and consummated their relationship. Once she became pregnant, they forced the Duke’s Estate to have no choice but to accept it. But why would the Heir Apparent go to Wenyazhai today for no reason? Could it be that this Heir Apparent is a worm in my belly, able to see what I’m thinking, and rushed over to save her?】
Upon hearing this, Pei Jingchuan felt a sense of helplessness. It seemed he was about to be discovered! No, he absolutely could not let her know that he could hear her thoughts. Otherwise, if she stopped thinking aloud in the future, what would he do?
So Pei Jingchuan quickly coughed and looked sternly at Pei Jinyu. “Jinyu, you still have the nerve to explain yourself here? If I hadn’t happened to run into you at Wenyazhai with my colleagues today, your reputation would have been ruined. What talk of marriage would there be in the future?”
【So that’s how it is! Young Lord went to Wenyazhai purely by coincidence! But saving her once won’t save her forever! Today, Lin Yanbang’s scheme failed, so he’ll definitely make his next move.]
Xu Qingyan propped her chin on her hand and continued thinking: 【Let me think… Is his next step to drug her directly, and then have Pei Jinyu save him? That’s right, three days from now. Lin Yanbang will pretend to run into Pei Jinyu by chance, act like he’s been drugged, and then be taken away by Pei Jinyu, ultimately causing Pei Jinyu to become pregnant!】
What? Pei Jinyu would become pregnant! Upon hearing this, it wasn’t just Pei Jingchuan who was shocked and anxious now—even the Duchess of Guo, sitting nearby, nearly fainted from fright.
If Pei Jinyu became pregnant before marriage, her life would be ruined!
At this moment, hearing this news, Pei Jinyu was stunned and thought to herself: “She would become pregnant before marriage? No, Young Master Lin is definitely not a despicable person! But what happened today…”
Pei Jinyu shook her head. She didn’t believe it was true, but then she remembered that Xu Qingyan’s prediction from yesterday had already come true, and she couldn’t help but feel a trace of fear from the bottom of her heart. Although she had some fondness for Lin Yanbang, she wouldn’t go that far for him.
“Someone, take the young miss back to her room! Without my orders, no one is to let her out!” The Duchess of Guo took a deep breath to calm herself, then sternly ordered the servants beside her.
For the next few days, she absolutely would not let Jinyu run around outside, nor would she allow her to meet with that Lin fellow, to avoid anything that would lead to irreparable regret!
Pei Jinyu was escorted back to her room by the servants amid the commotion. The Duchess of Guo exchanged a glance with Pei Jingchuan—the tacit understanding between mother and son instantly made her realize that Pei Jingchuan had been able to avert a disaster today precisely because he had heard Xu Qingyan’s thoughts in advance.
Suddenly, the Duchess of Guo’s fondness for Xu Qingyan increased even more. She turned to look at Xu Qingyan, smiling warmly as she took her hand and comforted her: “Qingyan, you’re a good child. I like you very much. Jinyu is still young and a bit immature. In the future, I hope you, as her sister-in-law, will take good care of her. Now, I am entrusting the household management authority of the Duke’s Estate to you. From now on, you’ll need to gradually learn how to manage the Duke’s Estate.”
The Duchess of Guo was actually entrusting her with the household management authority of the Duke’s Estate’s inner quarters? Xu Qingyan looked at the sincere smile on the Duchess of Guo’s face and found all of this somewhat unbelievable.
Xu Qingyan shook her head frantically and lowered her head, thinking to herself: 【Just moments ago, I was scolded by Pei Jinyu for no reason. I didn’t even explain anything, and the Duchess of Guo thinks I’m sensible because of that? So she wants to give me the household management authority? Wuwu… No! I don’t want this authority! In my last life, I already worked like a beast of burden. In this life, I just want to eat and drink every day and do nothing at all.]
Xu Qingyan couldn’t help but complain inwardly: 【Besides, if I take over household management now, it’ll be a job that works people to death without compensation! If the estate’s funds aren’t enough, wouldn’t I have to dip into my own money? I’m so poor myself that my pockets are jingling empty. I can’t bear to use my dowry to subsidize the Duke’s Estate!】
The Duchess of Guo and Pei Jingchuan heard Xu Qingyan’s inner complaints. The two exchanged speechless glances, both somewhat astonished: Shouldn’t she be happy about gaining the household management authority?