Chapter 29: Born Bad
The spring breeze suddenly rose, scattering flower petals and leaves, a ground covered in mottled remnants of red and green.
Xue Qingzhi looked at her smile, feeling quite awkward and inexplicably strange.
He didn’t know if it was due to the connection of blood ties, but as he gazed into her eyes for a long time, he felt something stirring within his blood, an unfamiliar emotion slowly rising in his chest.
This was his daughter. His own daughter.
Xue Qingzhi softened his voice.
“Why have you come?”
Xue Sui noticed the change in his expression.
This was a scene she had longed for ten years ago, in her heart.
Her father would smile at her, his brows relaxing, his gentle voice like a gentle breeze brushing past under the warm sun, showing the same affection as he did for her Eldest Sister and Fourth Sister, pulling her into his arms, strong and tall.
This way, when she was bullied, she could loudly warn them:
“My father was a General, he fought on the battlefield and killed people. If you dare to touch me, he will skin you alive…”
But she didn’t dare.
Although her father had fought on the battlefield and was skilled with weapons, he would not stand up for her.
Ten years later, she had returned. When the scene she had replayed countless times in her mind truly appeared, her heart felt no stir at all.
No longer.
The past was like a sharp blade, having long since shattered her expectations.
Cutting and reshaping her, as if skinning and dismembering her.
Reshaping her into someone who no longer needed a father’s love.
Xue Sui curtsied slightly, “Third Uncle’s accident has also made me uneasy. I just went to the West Courtyard to check on Third Aunt.”
Xue Qingzhi slowly put his hands behind his back, “How is your Third Aunt?”
Xue Sui said, “Third Aunt was crying pitifully.”
Her tone was cold, and a proper smile graced her face, but her eyes were like a deep pool, showing no ripples.
Xue Qingzhi couldn’t pinpoint what was wrong, but he knew in his heart that the brief moment of warmth had been wasted.
She was not worthy.
He truly shouldn’t have any expectations for such a daughter.
Xue Qingzhi frowned slightly, impatiently saying, “You don’t need to interfere in this matter. Go back and rest early.”
Xue Sui slightly curved her lips, “Father, there is something I wish to find a suitable place to tell you slowly.”
Xue Qingzhi was feeling agitated. He waved his hand, “I still need to go to Jingzhao Prefecture. We can discuss it later.”
Xue Sui said, “Perhaps it is related to Third Uncle’s death?”
Though her voice was soft, it struck Xue Qingzhi’s heart like a heavy hammer.
Xue Qingzhi stopped walking and looked at her.
“Father, please follow me.”
Xue Sui smiled and turned, not looking at him again.
–
After Fu Shi served the Old Madam her medicinal soup, she came out of Shou An Courtyard.
She called out to Xue Yueying, “You come with me.”
Xue Yueying’s heart was in turmoil. She followed behind her, all the way back to Qing Lan Courtyard.
After closing the room door and sending the servants to stand guard, Fu Shi’s expression changed. She sternly questioned:
“You vile thing, speak! Did you do it?”
Xue Yueying knelt down with a thud, “Mother, your daughter is wronged.”
“You still dare to cry injustice?” Fu Shi’s eyes blazed with anger. She grabbed a porcelain vase from the desk and smashed it at her, “You keep saying you want to share my worries, but I haven’t seen you share them. Instead, you’ve come up with such a heart-digging scheme to bring disaster upon me…”
“Mother.” Xue Yueying looked up at her pitifully, “Your daughter never touched Mother’s coin purse, nor does she know how it ended up on the murderer. But your daughter never intended to harm Third Uncle, nor would she dare to harm Mother…”
As she spoke, she crawled forward on her knees and hugged Fu Shi’s thigh, “It must have been Sixth Sister. Mother, it must have been Sixth Sister…”
Fu Shi sneered, “I wish it were her. But when did she return to the mansion? Where did she get the coin purse, and how did she know these old matters? Fourth Miss Xue, I truly never realized you had such cunning…”
Xue Yueying shook her head vigorously, saying urgently, “There is indeed something strange about this matter, but your daughter is truly innocent.”
Fu Shi’s face turned cold with anger, “You still dare to say that your Third Uncle’s matter has nothing to do with you?”
Xue Yueying gritted her teeth secretly.
This Fu Shi!
It was clearly her instruction, yet now she was blaming herself.
Xue Yueying bit her lower lip and kowtowed heavily to her.
“Third Uncle, relying on Grandmother’s favor, was never respectful to Mother. Your daughter merely wanted to vent Mother’s anger and find someone to teach him a lesson. I never intended to take his life…”
Fu Shi rebuked, “So it was you!”
Xue Yueying shed tears, “Your daughter originally intended to frame Sixth Sister for this. That’s why at the family banquet, I made her wet her clothes, which gave me the opportunity to take her coin purse, put silver money in it, and give it to the murderer. However, your daughter had clearly instructed them to just beat Third Uncle and then deliberately drop the money bag and run away… so that Third Uncle would go to Sixth Sister to vent his anger. This way, it would both help Mother vent her anger and destroy Eldest Sister’s hopes…”
“Bah, you little slut, harming your Third Uncle and still trying to frame me?” Fu Shi sneered, “You lost your mother when you were only five years old. I raised you by my side and treated you like my own daughter all these years… I never expected you to be an ungrateful white-eyed wolf…”
As Fu Shi spoke, she went to pull her.
“Come, let’s go tell Master together.”
Upon hearing this, Xue Yueying immediately panicked and grabbed her sleeve, “Your daughter was only trying to help Mother share her worries.”
“Silence! Don’t try to slander me!” Fu Shi also became fierce, grabbing her and not letting go.
“Mother!” Xue Yueying shook her head desperately.
She was pregnant and could not endure such pulling. After several attempts, she was also filled with rage. Suddenly, she made up her mind and forcefully pushed Fu Shi away. She raised her tear-filled eyes and a strange smile appeared.
“Mother raised me by your side, was it truly because my own mother died when I was young and I had no one to care for me?”
Fu Shi looked at her with cold eyes, “What do you want to say?”
Xue Yueying wiped away her tears, a mocking expression on her face, “Isn’t it because you felt guilty, afraid Father would know the truth of my birth mother’s tragic death?”
She paused for a moment, her words becoming heavier and heavier.
“Mother killed my birth mother and still gained a reputation for being a virtuous wife. Shouldn’t you be grateful to me?”
Fu Shi’s expression changed, “You… what nonsense are you talking about?”
“Heh!” Xue Yueying’s eyes held a cold glint. She changed her address, “First Madam, if Father knew that the woman he loved most in his life died by your hand, would he spare you? Would he plead for you at Jingzhao Prefecture? And that Yun Jin coin purse, no matter how First Madam tries to argue, I’m afraid it won’t hold up…”
“You wicked slut! So you stole my coin purse and framed me…”
Fu Shi’s anger flared, “You want revenge for your birth mother? If you have the guts, try it. Go tell Master. Tell Master that you knew that bowl of soup was poisoned, but to please me and be my daughter, you personally served it to your birth mother.”
“I did not.” Xue Yueying raised her chin, “I was young then, how could I tell if the soup was poisoned or not? I only knew that First Madam and my birth mother were close friends, confidantes. The soup First Madam brewed for my mother must have been excellent…”
Fu Shi sneered, staring fiercely at Xue Yueying.
“Fine, the white-eyed wolf I personally raised is indeed formidable.”
She suddenly smiled, her pampered face becoming exceptionally ferocious.
“Go ahead, tell Master that you watched your own mother’s eyes widen, her hands reaching out for help, yet you remained silent and ran to me. Your poor mother, gasping for breath in front of you, died with her eyes wide open!”
Xue Yueying’s face turned pale.
Back then, her birth mother and Fu Shi were close friends. Her birth mother had no ill intentions towards Fu Shi. Before marrying into the Xue Mansion, she had loved someone else. However, her family fell into decline, her father and brother committed crimes, and she was implicated, becoming a low-status individual.
Her father’s family was prominent, and he was determined to have her. She was powerless to resist.
After entering the mansion, her father was deeply devoted to her and doted on her, which aroused Fu Shi’s dissatisfaction. She felt her birth mother had betrayed their sisterhood and constantly schemed against her. Even though she bowed her head and tried to appease her, she could not escape Fu Shi’s deadly hand…
Xue Yueying remembered the look on her birth mother’s face when she died…
Confusion, sadness, but no resentment. She would not resent.
Because she was too young, what fault was hers? She understood nothing, only seeking to survive.
Clinging to a stronger person was the only way to survive. Mother would not blame her.
Xue Yueying’s face turned ashen. She slowly straightened her body, “If First Madam truly intends to send me to Father, then I can only burn both jade and stone and reveal everything. If First Madam shows leniency, your daughter will also keep her word. If there is punishment, I will fulfill my filial duty to Mother and bear it all…”
“You bear it?!” A cold laugh came from the rooftop, “You’ve made such a huge mess, how can you possibly bear it?”
Thump!
The sound was like thunder, striking heavily.
Fu Shi and Xue Yueying both looked up at the tiles rustling above, their expressions changing.
A moment later, silence returned to the surroundings.
Soon, footsteps sounded again, and the room door was forcefully pushed open from the outside.
Xue Qingzhi walked in with a grim expression. Standing beside him, impassive, was Xue Sui.
She said nothing, yet her eyes seemed to stab like sharp blades.
“Xue Liu!” Xue Yueying exclaimed in disbelief, her eyes filled with terror.
That wicked seed, that jinx, that disaster!
She had actually brought her father and hidden on the rooftop to eavesdrop.
“No, Father, listen to me…” Xue Yueying reacted extremely quickly. Before Xue Qingzhi could reprimand her, she had already knelt before him, “Father, it was all First Madam’s orders, it was Nanny Liu, who is by First Madam’s side, who ordered me. First Madam controls the household and withheld your daughter’s dowry to threaten me. Your daughter is humble and her words carry little weight, so I was forced to comply…”
Xue Qingzhi glared at her with heartache and slowly turned to Fu Shi, his gaze growing colder.
“Fu Shi, do you have anything else to say?”
This book is scheduled to be released on the 26th of this month, but lately, Er Jin has been too unlucky, her body frequently malfunctioning, and she has been going back and forth to the hospital, which is very frustrating. It’s possible that after the release, everyone will be disappointed, and the updates won’t be as frequent, but I will try my best to maintain the update rhythm and be responsible to Xue Ping’an…
After all, good health is the most important thing. Sisters, you all need to take care of yourselves. Don’t be angry or upset often. Be joyful and open-minded. Life is short, like morning dew. Although we always talk about many principles, one must experience them in life to truly understand.
