The appearance of Xiao Ye left the servants in front of the Gu Residence momentarily stunned. When they finally reacted, the first thought that crossed Xiao Hong’s mind was to immediately hide the food box in her hands behind her back. After a moment of hesitation, she felt it was unnecessary. Puffing up her cheeks, she held onto the food box and glared up at Xiao Ye with an unhappy expression. “What does it have to do with you?”
She was only twelve or thirteen years old, yet she had the boldness of a newborn calf unafraid of tigers.
She had heard that Xiao Ye had caused a scene here earlier in the evening. Although she had not witnessed it personally, she knew that he had injured her master.
The lingering red marks around her master’s wrist were proof of his actions. Thinking of what he had done, Xiao Hong was furious. She stared at him coldly, completely disregarding his darkened expression, and huffed, “Move aside. I need to deliver this to the Lord!”
“The Lord…”
Xiao Ye murmured the title softly, his originally calm face gradually turning grim. Even though he had told himself a hundred times that he had come to apologize, not to cause trouble, how could he possibly feel at ease when the servants around Lanyin treated him like a monstrous flood while showing such closeness to Qi Yubai?
The hand gripping his reins tensed, veins protruding. Though his expression revealed little, his voice had turned chillingly cold. “You treat him rather intimately.”
Xiao Ye’s imposing presence was overwhelming, and though Xiao Hong was somewhat afraid, she still retorted stubbornly, her face pale, “The Lord has helped my master so much—what’s wrong with us treating him warmly? Unlike some people, who have one foot in the bowl while eyeing the pot…”
She snorted heavily.
Seeing that Xiao Ye still refused to leave, she grew anxious. However, she didn’t dare to confront him head-on and could only puff up her cheeks in frustration, glaring at him.
Fortunately, the servants of the Gu Residence were quick-witted. The young servant who had been speaking with Xiao Hong earlier had already rushed inside to inform Dan Xi the moment Xiao Ye appeared. Dan Xi, in turn, immediately reported to Ting Yun and Shi Yu.
Coincidentally, Lanyin happened to pass by on her way back to the study and saw the scene unfold.
When she stepped out, she caught sight of Xiao Ye and Xiao Hong locked in a standoff.
The man’s face was half-hidden in the shadows, making his expression hard to discern. The visible half, however, was filled with complicated emotions. Not knowing why he had come this time, Lanyin paid him no attention and simply called out, “Xiao Hong.”
“Master?”
Xiao Hong turned around and, upon seeing Lanyin standing behind her, immediately felt reassured. Her large eyes, slightly misty with tears, blinked as she ran toward Lanyin, pouring out her grievances. “Master, he’s blocking my way and won’t let me deliver food to the Lord.”
“Mm.”
Lanyin had already heard the details from Dan Xi earlier, so she gently reassured her, “It’s fine. Go ahead.”
Xiao Hong wiped her reddened eyes and softly acknowledged, “Okay.” Just as she was about to leave, Xiao Ye blocked her path once more.
From the moment Lanyin appeared, Xiao Ye had snapped back to his senses. He dismounted, intending to speak with her, but before he could say a word, he heard that simple command.
He didn’t even know why he was being so stubborn. He just didn’t want Qi Yubai to eat food personally made by Lanyin.
Why should he?
Why should he!
“You!”
Xiao Hong trembled with rage at being stopped again.
Ting Yun remained silent, but her face darkened. Shi Yu, however, was not one to hold back. Her sharp tongue lashed out without hesitation.
“Young Lord Xiao, what’s the point of throwing your weight around someone else’s home? This is the Gu Residence, not your Chengbo Manor. Please, do us the favor of returning to where you came from! If you continue like this, we’ll have no choice but to report to the authorities!”
Xiao Ye did not respond. He simply looked at Lanyin.
Lanyin, too, was looking at him.
It was just that compared to the slightly complicated gaze Xiao Ye directed at her, her own gaze towards Xiao Ye was only filled with exhaustion. The silk lanterns swayed at the doorway, casting a warm orange light. Lanyin gently rubbed her temples with her fingertips, her face showing clear impatience. “Xiao Ye, what exactly do you want?”
She thought she had made herself very clear during the evening.
Xiao Ye asked Lanyin hoarsely, “Why did you make food for Qi Yubai?”
Hearing Xiao Ye’s question, Shi Yu and Ting Yun’s faces immediately filled with anger, and the other servants also looked at Xiao Ye with cold expressions. Even Lanyin put down her hand from her temple and looked at Xiao Ye with a cold gaze, “I thought I had made myself clear to you. Are you here now to condemn me again?”
Blinded by jealousy and resentment earlier, Xiao Ye hadn’t realized the ambiguity in his previous words. Only when Lanyin spoke did he react, fearing misunderstanding and anger from her, he hurriedly said, “No, it’s not…”
“I don’t distrust you, nor do I suspect you, I…” As he spoke, he moved towards Lanyin.
But the servants of the Gu residence and Song Yue, who had just arrived, blocked his path. Xiao Ye no longer dared to confront them physically, nor did he insist on moving forward. He spoke to Lanyin across the crowd, “…I’m just jealous, jealous that he gets to eat what you made.”
Such words, he would never have said before.
His upbringing was strict; his mother, to make him a proper heir to the earldom, taught him from a young age not to indulge his emotions. To teach him composure and calmness, he wasn’t allowed to be too close to his parents even as a child.
Accustomed to hiding his emotions since childhood, as he grew older, even when he wanted to express them, he couldn’t.
But now, his eyes fixed on Lanyin as if in the vast world, only the two of them remained. The words he couldn’t say before now poured out unreservedly to Lanyin. After a moment, he suddenly said to her with a grievance, “Lanyin, it’s been a long time since I’ve eaten anything you made.”
He knew he had no right to feel aggrieved.
It was he who gave up, he who let go, he who disappointed her. Now, everything he received was his own doing.
But he couldn’t help feeling sad.
If what was made today wasn’t by her hand, perhaps he wouldn’t feel this way.
Just as Qi Yubai stepped out of the Qi residence, he heard these words. His steps paused, and his gaze towards Xiao Ye through the night also carried a chill.
Almost as soon as his gaze fell on him, Xiao Ye sensed it. The man who had been speaking to Lanyin immediately turned his head to look in the direction of the gaze. Seeing the man in green with a wooden hairpin and loose hair at the entrance of the Qi residence, Xiao Ye’s face also turned cold. He didn’t speak, silently returning the gaze in the dark night.
He didn’t know what connection Lanyin and Qi Yubai had, nor why Lanyin was so kind to Qi Yubai. But one thing he was sure of, Qi Yubai definitely had designs on Lanyin.
This man’s aloofness and decisiveness were well known, but his attitude towards Lanyin… Thinking of his defense of Lanyin this evening and the way he looked at her, Xiao Ye’s hands at his sides clenched tighter.
The sound of knuckles cracking clearly reached Lanyin’s ears.
Seeing Xiao Ye looking in a certain direction, Lanyin had a vague guess. Turning her head, she indeed saw Qi Yubai walking towards her.
Zhusheng and Tianqing paved the way ahead of him. Even as Xiao Ye shot him a murderous glare, the young man in blue remained composed in his steps. He didn’t even spare Xiao Ye a glance. When he noticed her gaze, he merely lowered his eyes slightly and spoke to her in his usual tone, “A servant from home came to deliver a message. Grandmother was worried something might have happened to you and sent me to check on you.”
Lanyin’s heart clenched. She frowned and asked, “Grandmother Qi knows about this too?”
Seeing him nod, frustration surged in Lanyin’s heart. She couldn’t understand how things had come to this. She had intended to part with Xiao Ye peacefully, yet somehow, the matter had blown into a city-wide scandal. Even the Emperor was aware of their situation. She had long accepted the resentment and blame from Xiao Ye’s mother and the Xiao family—after all, she would have no further ties with them in the future. If they wanted to hold grudges, so be it.
But why?
Why, after she had prepared everything and was ready to embrace a new life, did Xiao Ye keep showing up, disrupting her world time and time again? Why was he even dragging the people around her into this?
She was truly exhausted.
She turned to face Xiao Ye, her voice and expression colder and more indifferent than ever before. “What exactly do you want?”
Xiao Ye naturally heard it—her coldness, her weariness. His heart clenched in pain, and for the moment, he completely forgot about Qi Yubai. He turned to look at Lanyin, and upon seeing her distant expression, a bitter smile tugged at the corners of his lips. Even so, his voice was hoarse as he spoke his purpose for coming.
“I came to tell you—I have no intention of marrying. I will not take another wife. Apart from you, I will never marry anyone else! Lanyin, my wife can only be you, and only you.”
His final words were spoken with unwavering certainty.
“Heh, you—”
Zhusheng was so enraged by these words that his teeth itched with frustration. He instinctively reached for the sword at his waist, only to be stopped by Tianqing beside him.
“What are you doing?” Zhusheng suppressed his voice, his tone filled with irritation.
Tianqing shot him a glare and similarly lowered his voice. “Master hasn’t spoken yet. Why are you in such a hurry?”
Zhusheng turned back, and sure enough, he saw their master’s calm expression. He was rubbing his prayer beads lightly, his gaze on Xiao Ye impassive, devoid of any unnecessary emotion. In fact, when Xiao Ye looked at him, he even lowered his eyes to glance at him indifferently.
Under those deep, dark eyes, Zhusheng’s heart tightened. He dared not act rashly and begrudgingly retracted his sword, though his expression remained as foul as ever when he turned to glare at Xiao Ye.
Shi Yu, however, had no such restraint.
The moment she heard Xiao Ye’s words, she spat in disdain. “What does whether you marry or not have to do with our master?”
She truly hadn’t expected that Xiao Ye had made this trip in the middle of the night just to say this. Had she known he was this shamelessly persistent, she wouldn’t have bothered provoking him earlier in the evening.
Now, she felt both anger and regret, mixed with an overwhelming sense of resentment.
Her eyes reddened—not knowing whether from extreme fury or from grievance on Lanyin’s behalf. “Back when our master was with you, you didn’t know how to cherish her. Now that you’ve lost her, you come back to pester her? How can there be such a shameless person like you in this world?”
Xiao Ye lowered his eyes in remorse at her rebuke. He had no excuse, nor did he want to offer one. He had done wrong—there was no denying that. He couldn’t turn back time; he could only hope that Lanyin would give him another chance.
He lifted his gaze. “Lanyin—”
But before he could finish, Lanyin impatiently cut him off. “So you came all this way just to tell me this?”
“Yes, I—”
“Good. Then let me make myself clear—whether you marry or not has nothing to do with me. I, Gu Lanyin, never look back once I’ve walked away.”
Looking at Xiao Ye’s face, which had become deathly pale in the dark night, Lanyin felt nothing but exhaustion and impatience. She lowered her voice and said, “Xiao Mingchuan, take this as me begging you—don’t come looking for me again. If you truly feel guilty towards me, then stay far away. From now on, we will go our separate ways, and our paths will never cross again.”
Xiao Ye staggered back, his face ashen with defeat. He looked at Lanyin and murmured soundlessly, “Go our separate ways… never cross paths again…”
His eyes stared blankly ahead.
He could feel her frustration, could sense the sincerity in her words.
She truly wanted nothing more to do with him.
He knew that if he truly wished her well, he should listen to her and leave. But…
But he had only just realized his mistakes. He had only just begun to think about making amends.
Why?
Why couldn’t he be given just one more chance?
His eyes turned red, his fists clenched tightly, his voice hoarse with agony.
“Why?”
He looked at Lanyin and asked.
Lanyin knew what he was asking. After a moment of silence, she said, “You and I are impossible.”
She believed he truly realized his mistake this time and that he would change in the future. But in this world, not everything can be undone by regret, nor can past wounds disappear just because one changes.
Most importantly, she no longer loved him.
If she still loved him, perhaps she would choose to turn back despite the scars. But not loving him meant just that—his changes, his efforts, his affection… she no longer cared for or needed any of it.
“Xiao Ye, you still have a future. You will meet someone you like again… There’s really no need to waste your time on me. It’s not worth it, and it’s unnecessary.”
“No…” Xiao Ye’s eyes reddened as he loudly refuted, “No, it won’t happen. I will never like anyone else again, never…” His voice faded from loud to soft, eventually becoming a whisper that was almost inaudible.
He could feel the gazes of those around him, filled with disgust, dislike, and indifference.
In his life, he had never experienced such humiliation. From his earliest memories, he had been the revered heir of the earldom. Even now, with rumors flying everywhere, those who saw him still dared only to bow their heads and respectfully call him “Heir.”
Xiao Ye also knew that his desperate clinging was shameful, but he had no other way. Suddenly… his eyes met a pair of familiar, cold phoenix eyes. Those eyes were as indifferent as ever, as if nothing in the world concerned him. But several times, when Xiao Ye glanced over, he could detect a gentle gaze directed at Lanyin, like the spring breeze that brushes one’s face in April.
“It’s you!”
Xiao Ye looked at Qi Yubai and suddenly roared. He seemed to have gone mad, his eyes bloodshot as he glared at Qi Yubai, shouting, “It’s all because of you!”
Hearing this accusation, everyone frowned slightly.
At that moment, a finely decorated carriage arrived in the quiet alley. Xiao Ye’s mother had finally arrived. Worried that something might happen to her son, she lifted the carriage curtain before the vehicle had even come to a complete stop. To her surprise, she was met with this scene.
Her face changed, and she exclaimed, “Ye’er!”
Her voice drew the attention of most people, momentarily distracting them from Xiao Ye’s actions. By the time they reacted, Xiao Ye had already broken through the crowd and even snatched a sword from one of the attendants.
Xiao Ye’s martial prowess was undoubtedly top-notch in Bianjing City, which was why he had been appreciated by the emperor and appointed to serve at the imperial court at such a young age. Even though more than ten days of decadent had left him looking somewhat disheveled, no one could stop him when he was determined to strike. Moreover, his speed this time was too fast; almost before anyone could react, he had already broken through the crowd and was charging towards Qi Yubai with a sword in hand.
“Master, be careful!”
Tianqing and Zhusheng were the first to react. Their faces changed, and they immediately drew their swords to intercept, but they were no match for the enraged Xiao Ye.
Under the night sky.
Qi Yubai looked at the sword reflecting a cold silver light as it thrust towards him and slightly frowned.
He was no match for Xiao Ye in terms of martial prowess, but avoiding the attack wouldn’t have been difficult. However, Qi Yubai caught sight of a familiar figure in the distance, who had snapped out of her daze and was now running towards him, shouting, “Be careful, my lord!”
His thin lips pressed together, and the hand behind his back lightly twirled a string of prayer beads. Suddenly, he stopped his motion and, as the sword thrust towards him, he turned slightly to the side—not completely avoiding it.
The long sword pierced his left shoulder, and blood gushed out.
Gu Lanyin, who had been rushing over, froze mid-step. In the next instant, her almond-shaped eyes reddened abruptly. Trembling, she reached out to support the swaying figure. Meanwhile, Xiao Ye, who had been consumed by jealousy and resentment, finally regained his senses upon seeing this scene.