Chapter 012: Choice

The atmosphere in the flower hall became completely tense. No one dared to discuss court matters deeply, and seeing Jiang Xuening’s intimidating demeanor, no one even dared to play the peacemaker.

They wondered: how could a girl who had spent the first fourteen years of her life in the countryside and had only been in the capital for four years be so frightening?

Fortunately, at that moment, a servant came in with a joyful expression, hurriedly reporting, “Miss, His Highness the Prince of Linzi and Young Master Yan are outside.”

The previous dispute between You Yue and Jiang Xuening was immediately forgotten by everyone.

Even You Yue herself no longer cared.

The young ladies in the flower hall began whispering to each other, some with hopeful or shy expressions, and a few bold ones even moved closer to the door and windows to look.

Only Jiang Xuening was slightly stunned: Why was Yan Lin here too?

But then she felt a headache coming on.

No wonder there were so many people at the Qingyuan Marquis’ residence today; it wasn’t because the Marquis’ family had regained favor, but because Yan Lin and Shen Jie were coming!

This was going to be troublesome—

She had casually told Yan Lin that she would rest at home for a couple of days, but now she was attending a banquet at someone else’s house on the Double Ninth Festival. He would surely be upset.

The chrysanthemum viewing at the Qingyuan Marquis’ residence was held in the garden. Although the male and female guests were separated, with the women in the flower hall and the men in the waterside pavilion, they were not far apart and had to pass through a long corridor in the garden.

From the flower hall and the waterside pavilion, they could see each other from a distance.

When the servant reported, Yan Lin and Shen Jie had already entered from outside and were walking along the corridor.

Shen Jie, with his noble lineage, naturally exuded elegance and grace.

Today, Yan Lin was dressed as a noble young man, without his usual sword.

He wore a fitted sky-blue silk robe, with a simple white jade pendant hanging from his leather belt. The young man, tall and handsome, with a face like jade and eyes like stars, walked down the corridor like a dazzling sun, making people dizzy.

The young ladies in the flower hall, who were no longer naive, felt a stir of affection at the sight of such an outstanding young man.

You Yue was particularly entranced, her cheeks flushed.

At eighteen, she considered herself more beautiful than her sister and was of the same age as Yan Lin. She had barely slept the night before, wondering why Yan Lin was coming. Now, seeing him, her heart pounded.

“Oh my!”

A young lady leaning by the door suddenly exclaimed, covering her mouth in surprise.

“Why is Young Master Yan coming this way?”

Everyone was immediately surprised, those who had been pretending to be calm stood up and looked outside. Sure enough, they saw Yan Lin standing in the corridor, saying a few words to Shen Jie, then heading towards the flower hall with his servant.

The people in the hall immediately began to speculate.

“What is Young Master Yan doing?”

“Is he looking for someone?”

“Ah, could it be that he’s here to see Miss You?”

You Yue and Jiang Xuening’s table was right by the window, offering the best view of the entire flower hall, allowing them to clearly see outside.

Correspondingly, the outside could also catch a glimpse of them.

Hearing the others tease, You Yue felt happy inside but showed a mix of shyness and annoyance on her face, pretending to hit the chatterboxes, saying, “Don’t talk nonsense. Our family didn’t send an invitation to Prince Yan. We received his reply yesterday, saying he would come today. Everyone in the house is puzzled. Who knows why the prince is here?”

Her words only fueled more speculation: “Then he must have come specifically, or the Qingyuan Earl’s residence must have great influence.”

Jiang Xuening sat quietly in a corner by the window, looking outside without speaking, showing none of the secret excitement and shyness of the others.

No one paid attention to her.

Only You Shuang glanced at her thoughtfully.

Before long, Yan Lin had already approached, coming right to the window.

Today was the Qingyuan Earl’s banquet. If Prince Yan had only stayed with the male guests, it would have been fine, but now he was walking towards the female guests, inevitably causing people to think: being at the Earl’s residence and coming to the female guests’ side, and giving face by attending the banquet today, it naturally seemed he was here to see Miss You.

All eyes fell on You Yue.

It was unclear whether there was more suspicion, envy, or jealousy.

You Yue, under the gaze of others, felt an unprecedented tension, almost knocking over her teacup, but this tension quickly turned into a sense of pride and vanity.

After all, as the host, she had to entertain guests.

She took a deep breath, suppressing the heart that was almost jumping out of her throat, and with all the composure she could muster, she gracefully stood up and smiled, “Prince Yan—”

Yan Lin, raised in a noble family, had seen countless women fawning over him since childhood. He was so used to such affected manners that he didn’t even bother to glance at her, acting as if he hadn’t heard, and instead, his gaze fell on the girl in the corner inside the window.

Jiang Xuening remained seated.

Her clear eyes looked out naturally and calmly, but her expression seemed to hide a bit of distress, as if she found him troublesome, which made him angry.

Yan Lin was already displeased with her perfunctory attitude and her coming to this troublesome Qingyuan Earl’s residence. He slightly pursed his lips, his face darkening, and said, “Didn’t expect me to come today, did you?”

All eyes around them instantly turned.

You Yue’s face turned pale, her carefully maintained smile almost twisted, and she looked at Jiang Xuening with an incredulous gaze!

Jiang Xuening sighed inwardly, not responding.

Yan Lin said, “Come out.”

There was another gasp from the surroundings.

Knowing his temper and guessing he was angry, Jiang Xuening dared not provoke him in front of everyone, fearing he would lose his temper and embarrass everyone. She obediently got up and left the flower hall.

As soon as she stepped out, the flower hall erupted.

The young ladies who had just been dreaming about Prince Yan couldn’t believe their eyes, and their looks at You Yue became strange.

You Yue, as the host, had just stood up to greet the guest, but the distinguished guest didn’t pay her any attention and instead spoke to Jiang Xuening, whom they thought was insignificant, and their conversation seemed familiar, shocking everyone!

Wasn’t this a slap in the face?

They had thought Prince Yan and Prince Linzi came to the banquet because the Qingyuan Earl’s residence had some unknown influence, but judging by Prince Yan’s behavior, it seemed completely different from what they had imagined.

You Yue stood in place, watching the two figures walking away, her face suddenly turning a myriad of colors, her expression quite “spectacular.”

Yan Lin walked in front.

Jiang Xuening followed half a step behind.

Qing Feng and Tang’er were further back, following from a distance.

When they reached a secluded corner of the garden, Yan Lin stopped, looking at her with a half-smile: “You said you wanted to rest at home for a couple of days, yet here you are at someone’s chrysanthemum banquet. Are you deliberately trying to annoy me?”

Jiang Xuening knew as soon as she heard he was coming that the vinegar jar was about to tip over.

And indeed, it had.

She looked up at him, her eyes like a clear spring, and said with a smile, “I only saw the invitation from the You family after I returned to my room and decided to come at the last minute. Besides, aren’t you here now too?”

Her words implied that she knew Yan Lin would come as well.

Yan Lin couldn’t stay angry and even felt a bit of sweetness for no reason.

The corners of his mouth, which he had been pressing down, couldn’t help but lift into a genuine smile. He said, “You haven’t learned much of anything serious, but you’ve mastered the art of coaxing me!”

Jiang Xuening thought to herself: Isn’t that exactly what you like?

Out loud, she said, “But you’re quite bold, coming over when there are other young ladies from different families in the hall. If people see this, who knows what rumors will spread?”

“Let them spread,” Yan Lin said, his expression turning a bit domineering, not caring about others’ opinions.

“In the past, I had two years before my coming-of-age ceremony, so I didn’t want others to know and cause trouble for you with rumors. But now, with only two months left, I want the whole world to know.”

Jiang Xuening was momentarily speechless.

She recalled the bloody coming-of-age ceremony in her previous life, where the Yan family was exterminated, exiled, and completely destroyed, like the sun falling into a valley, leaving no light.

Seeing the young man’s anticipation for adulthood now, she felt a deep sense of cruelty.

Yan Lin, noticing her strange expression, thought she was angry. Feeling a bit uneasy, he quickly said, “But if you’re unhappy, I won’t do this again.”

Jiang Xuening felt even more desolate inside.

Yan Lin stepped closer and took her hand. “His Highness is still waiting for me. Since you’re out today, don’t rush back. After the banquet, wait for me at Cengxiao Tower. I’ll take you to see the lantern festival later.”

The young man’s hand, accustomed to wielding a sword, had calluses on his fingertips, and the warmth of his grip spread through her palm.

Seeing him smile at her, Jiang Xuening couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

After all, she had already turned him down once and then came to the Qingyuan Marquis’ residence. If she refused again, he might get angry right there. So she agreed, “Alright.”

Yan Lin didn’t stay long, thinking she was unhappy with his high-profile behavior. He said a few more words, reminding her not to drink too much, and then returned to the waterside pavilion with Qing Feng.

Jiang Xuening walked back towards the flower hall.

But as she passed a few flower trees, she suddenly heard cursing from the other side, coming through the overlapping branches.

“You little brat, trying to run away!”

“Who knows whose child you are? The family has raised you for so many years, and you dare to defy us!”

“Shut her mouth and push her down to sober up!”

Amidst the curses, there seemed to be a woman’s desperate sobs, but they were faint.

Jiang Xuening’s steps halted on the quiet path. In a flash, she realized what was happening on the other side of the flower trees. Her rational mind urged her to leave quickly.

But her feet wouldn’t move.

She didn’t know if she was crazy, but she gently lifted a branch and looked through the gap.

On the other side was a small lotus pond.

It was late autumn, and the lotus flowers and leaves from summer had long withered, leaving a pool of decay that had yet to be cleaned.

At this moment, there were three rough-looking women by the pond.

One of the women, with a dark expression, wiped her bleeding wrist with a handkerchief after being bitten. The other two women held You Fangyin’s hands and pressed her head down, forcing her into the water!

Jiang Xuening had only heard that in her previous life, You Fangyin’s personality changed drastically after falling into the water, but she didn’t know it was this kind of “falling”!

Tang’er, standing behind her, was already horrified.

Jiang Xuening felt a chill all over her body. The voice that had been shouting in her mind resurfaced, sharper and more piercing than before—

Don’t go.

Don’t go.

Everyone has their own fate. The original You Fangyin was timid, cowardly, and foolish, only to be bullied. Even if you save her now, can you save her for a lifetime?

And don’t you want to see another You Fangyin?

Don’t go, don’t go.

You’re not the one killing her, you’re just standing by!

The rough women were punished by the two young ladies for You Fangyin’s escape from the woodshed. They hated her for being an ungrateful concubine-born daughter of unknown origin and decided to torment her to teach her a lesson, so she wouldn’t dare to offend again in the future.

Thus, they were extremely harsh.

They pressed her head into the water, letting her struggle and flail without allowing her to come up. You Fangyin had been locked in the woodshed for days, barely eating and beaten, leaving her with little strength. After just a few struggles, she could no longer move.

The water in the pond was icy, filling her nose and mouth, making it hard to breathe. Her earlier fierce resistance gradually weakened, and her slender neck slowly sank into the pond…

How utterly despairing was that posture?

Jiang Xuening was suddenly struck by it.

No one understood the fear of death better than she did, because she had truly experienced it once.

Seeing You Fangyin stop struggling, her mind roared: Could she really watch such an innocent girl be murdered in front of her and still believe she could become close friends with the “You Fangyin” she was waiting for, just like in her previous life?

At that moment, Jiang Xuening’s rationality finally failed her. When she shouted “Stop,” she knew that all her self-warnings over the past few days had been in vain!

She was a selfish person.

But not thoroughly bad.

The three rough women by the pond were startled by the shout. They turned to see an unfamiliar noble lady emerging from the flowering trees and quickly let go. But You Fangyin, already exhausted, slipped from their grasp and fell into the pond.

With a splash, she sank to the bottom.

The two women who had been holding her turned pale at the sight.

Jiang Xuening’s face was expressionless, her voice unusually cold and calm as she said, “Pull her out.”

The two rough women had only intended to punish You Fangyin a bit, not expecting her to be so fragile.

No matter how lowly, she was still a concubine-born daughter of the household. If she really died, they wouldn’t be able to bear the consequences!

At Jiang Xuening’s command, they snapped back to reality, hurriedly pulling her out of the water. When they dragged her to the shore, she was soaking wet, her face pale, and her eyes closed.

The woman who had ordered the action panicked and said, “Quick, pat her back!”

Jiang Xuening stood aside, watching them attempt to save her, looking at the familiar face, but feeling unprecedented confusion. She couldn’t tell if she was more expectant or fearful at that moment.

She thought to herself, she was hypocritical.

She could have stepped in earlier to scold them, but she waited until You Fangyin was on the brink of death to intervene.

Maybe this way, she could comfort herself: she wasn’t standing by and doing nothing, nor was she deliberately bringing You Fangyin into this detestable world; she tried her best but couldn’t prevent it.

“Ah!”

The rough woman patted her back twice without any response, then, in a panic, used more force and pinched her. You Fangyin suddenly coughed, expelling the water she had inhaled.

Her eyes slowly and wearily opened.

At that moment, Jiang Xuening staggered, taking two steps back.

Those eyes were not intelligent or clear. They lacked the detached clarity and indifference she was familiar with. They were filled with panic and clumsy dullness.

It wasn’t her.

In Jiang Xuening’s heart, something crashed down, as if she had been redeemed. But immediately, a profound loneliness surged up, engulfing her.