Everyone present fell silent, exchanging glances. Some could hardly conceal the gleam of anticipation in their eyes, eager to witness the unfolding drama.
Changle no longer looked at Wei Shuye, turning instead to Hua Zhiyu, who was wrapped in a cloak and leaning against Qi Feirou. “You’ve achieved your goal.”
Hua Zhiyu leaned weakly against Qi Feirou, her eyes brimming with tears as she shook her head. “Sister, I don’t know what I’ve done to upset you. Tell me, and I’ll change, alright? I only beg you not to act like this. Father and Mother will worry about you.”
“Worry about me?”
“Look at the way they’re staring at me now—is it worry, or do they want to devour me whole?”
“Hua Changle, stop this madness!” Qi Feirou scolded.
“Fine! Since you all think I’m mad, I’ll show you just how mad I can be!”
Before anyone could react, Changle yanked Lin Xinyan, who was half-leaning in Wei Shuye’s embrace, and dragged her forward. She then pulled Hua Zhiyu along as well, leaping lightly and carrying both of them onto the rooftop.
Changle knew martial arts.
Having witnessed Changle’s madness, Lin Xinyan struggled to break free, but a faint glance from Hua Zhiyu made her grit her teeth and endure.
“You wretched creature, what do you think you’re doing?”
The people in the courtyard were stunned. The Marquis of Changan looked up and roared, his face already livid with rage.
He valued his reputation, and Changle’s disruptive behavior at the banquet today was on the verge of completely shaming him.
Changle paid no heed, her eyes filled with malice. “Hua Zhiyu, your scheming has only brought me some trivial gossip, but I can take your life.”
Hearing this, Hua Zhiyu’s expression remained gentle, her gaze even tinged with pity as she looked at Changle. In a voice so low that only the three of them could hear, she said, “Changle, don’t you think you’re truly pitiful like this?”
“Your extreme behavior is nothing more than a desperate cry for attention and sympathy.”
Noticing someone striding into the courtyard, Hua Zhiyu turned her gaze back to Changle with a faint smile, lowering her voice even further. “Changle, how about we make a bet? Let’s both fall from here and see who gets rescued?”
“Fine, as you wish.”
Changle knew this was Hua Zhiyu’s trap, but she indeed had something she needed to sever once and for all. With a lift of her hand, she pushed both Lin Xinyan and Hua Zhiyu off the rooftop.
Hua Zhiyu smiled at Changle, grabbing her sleeve and pulling her down from the eaves as well. “If we’re betting, let’s make it real. Let’s see who will save you.”
The eaves were four or five meters high. Falling from such a height was unlikely to be fatal, but injuries were inevitable.
As the three of them plummeted from the eaves, a chorus of gasps and cries erupted in the courtyard.
Some called out for Zhiyu, others for Xinyan, and Changle thought she might have even heard Linlang calling her name.
The wind rushing past her ears as she fell was painful, a sensation that seemed to pierce deep into her organs, twisting and tearing them apart like a silk blade shredding her insides.
Of course, Changle wouldn’t truly fall for Hua Zhiyu’s trick. Mid-air, she twisted her body to gain momentum and landed steadily on the ground.
Meanwhile, her own brother, Hua Changqing, and Wei Shuye, who had arrived at some point, rushed forward and caught the falling Hua Zhiyu and Lin Xinyan.
“Zhiyu, are you alright?” Hua Changqing asked anxiously.
“Brother,” Hua Zhiyu whispered, her face pale and her expression shaken, as she threw herself into Hua Changqing’s arms.
Wei Shuye held Lin Xinyan in his arms, gazing at her pale, delicate face. Fearful of what might have happened, he pulled her close and embraced her tightly, soothing her softly, "It's alright now, it's alright."
Lin Xinyan hid in Wei Shuye's embrace, weeping like a pear blossom drenched in rain, as if she had just survived a calamity.
Slap!
Another slap landed, this time from Qi Feirou striking Changle.
"You wretch, what on earth were you trying to do?! Were you trying to kill your sister?!" Qi Feirou screamed at Changle, her voice hoarse with rage.
Naturally, Qi Feirou's strength was no match for the Marquis of Changan, but this slap still left red finger marks on Changle's fair cheek.
Trembling with anger, she had completely abandoned the elegance befitting a marquisate's lady. "Hua Changle, why have you become like this? Are you insane? I truly wish I never had a daughter like you!"
"Why wasn't it you who died back then!"
"Madam!" The Marquis of Changan pulled Qi Feirou back, stopping her from uttering more reckless words in her fury.
Only after her outburst did Qi Feirou realize what she had said. Her angry expression stiffened as she turned her face away and hurried over to Hua Zhiyu to comfort her.
Changle's long, lowered eyelashes trembled faintly.
Again, it was "why wasn't it you who died."
Yes, back then, Qi Feirou had been pregnant with twins, but of the two children born, one was a girl and the other a boy.
Giving birth to twins was difficult. The boy was born without crying, without movement, and without breath. Only the girl survived.
That girl was Changle.
From the moment Changle was born, Qi Feirou had disliked her, resenting that it wasn't the baby boy who had survived. She never cared for her, and even the name "Changle" was given by her grandfather.
"Changle." Feng Linlang stepped forward, supporting Changle's arm, looking at her with worry and sorrow.
The Marquis of Changan summoned the steward, turned to give a few instructions, and the steward began seeing the guests out.
After such a major incident, the guests naturally dispersed on their own.
Feng Linlang was deeply concerned about Changle and reluctant to leave, but Changle signaled for her to rest assured. Only then did Feng Linlang depart, glancing back repeatedly as she walked away.
Once the unrelated people had left, Changle looked at the few involved individuals, her gaze unprecedentedly calm and indifferent.
"This is the last time."
Qi Feirou almost instinctively frowned and scolded, "What madness are you planning now?"
The Marquis of Changan and Hua Changqing also thought Changle was about to cause trouble again, but only Wei Shuye furrowed his brow.
In the past, whether arrogant or domineering, Changle had always been vibrant, passionate, and radiant. But at this moment, she was too calm.
He understood Changle—the more she made a scene, the more it proved she cared.
In contrast, this quiet demeanor was the most abnormal.
Wei Shuye almost instinctively stood up, not even taking the time to attend to Lin Xinyan, and quickly walked over to Changle, attempting to grab her hand.
Changle raised her hand and avoided Wei Shuye's grasp, looking directly into his eyes.
No tears, no tantrums, just calm indifference.
Wei Shuye frowned under her gaze, his eyes instinctively darting away, his heart inexplicably tightening, followed by a surge of irritation.
"Stop making trouble," Wei Shuye said, turning his gaze back to Changle. "Let today's matter end here. Don't cause any more trouble."
As he spoke, Wei Shuye took out a red jade bracelet from his pocket and offered it to Changle. "Didn't you always want this jade bracelet from Fenghua Xuan? I bought it for you, as a gift for your Hairpin Ceremony."
He remembered that today was also Changle's fifteenth birthday.
“Wei Shuye, if you had given me this bracelet when you first entered, I might have been moved. I might have continued to deceive myself, thinking that perhaps our relationship wasn’t as bad as I imagined, and maybe there was still room for reconciliation.”
“And it’s a good thing you didn’t give it to me when you arrived, or else I would have had to slap myself twice later and call myself a fool.”
Changle picked up the red jade bracelet and held it before her eyes, then gently loosened her fingers. The bracelet fell to the ground with a sharp clatter, shattering into pieces.
Wei Shuye frowned, while Changle remained indifferent.
“I already said earlier, this is the last time.”
“I, Hua Changle, have always kept my word.”
“Wei Shuye, let’s call off the engagement. I won’t marry you.”