This sudden turn of events stunned everyone present. No one had expected Lanyin to do such a thing.
Xiao Ye was the most shocked of all. He stood frozen in place, staring blankly at Lanyin, the light in his eyes shattering as if he couldn’t believe she would draw a sword against him.
Madam Xiao let out a sharp scream. “Gu Lanyin, how dare you! How dare you!”
She reached out, wanting to swat away the hand Lanyin held the sword with, but fearing she might accidentally hurt Ye’er, she could only stand there anxiously.
Gu Lanyin paid no attention to Xiao Ye or Madam Xiao. Just as before, she spoke indifferently to the servants, “Let go.”
The servants hesitated and looked toward Madam Xiao.
Madam Xiao didn’t look at them. Her face was cold as she stared at Lanyin. Seeing her expression remain calm and resolute, Madam Xiao couldn’t tell whether she felt more hatred or resentment. After gritting her teeth for a moment, she ultimately gave in and ordered with a sullen face, “Come back!”
The four servants immediately obeyed and ran back.
Lanyin was about to tell Tianqing to untie Zhusheng, but unexpectedly, the black-clad young man with a ponytail simply broke the rope himself.
Lanyin was momentarily taken aback. She didn’t understand—since he had the ability to do this, why had he allowed himself to be restrained earlier? But this wasn’t the time for such questions, so she suppressed her doubts and merely asked, “Are you alright?”
“I’m fine.”
Zhusheng rubbed his wrists, his face no longer clouded as before. He grinned and stood behind Gu Lanyin, flanking her with Tianqing, one on each side. When he saw the sour expression on Madam Xiao’s face, he could hardly hold back his laughter.
They needed to drive this mother and son pair to the brink!
As he thought this, he couldn’t help but shift his gaze to the woman in yellow standing before him. He had always known—the mistress was truly worthy of the master’s years of devotion!
Lanyin had no idea what he was thinking. Seeing him approach, she said nothing and continued looking ahead.
“The people have been released. Now put down your sword!” Madam Xiao’s expression was as ugly as could be. Seeing that Lanyin still hadn’t withdrawn her sword, she gritted her teeth in fury. But with the blade pressed against her son’s neck, she didn’t dare make a move, fearing that Lanyin might accidentally harm Ye’er.
Xiao Ye, however, paid no mind to the sword at his throat. He stared unwaveringly at Lanyin, his voice hoarse as he asked, “Why?”
Lanyin answered flatly, “You shouldn’t have hurt him.”
Just five simple words, yet they made Xiao Ye’s face turn even paler.
He shouldn’t have hurt him…
So now, she was standing opposite him, pointing a sword at him, to seek justice for Qi Yubai?
Whether from excessive blood loss or an indescribable sorrow, Xiao Ye swayed slightly. If not for Madam Xiao standing beside him and grabbing his arm just in time, he might have collapsed right then and there.
Xiao Ye didn’t care about his own physical state, nor did he care about Madam Xiao. His eyes were red as he stubbornly kept looking at Lanyin, his lips slightly parted, his expression full of grief.
He wanted to say that he hadn’t done it on purpose.
But the truth was laid bare before him. No matter the reason, the fact remained—he had hurt someone.
His body ached terribly, and the excessive blood loss left him dizzy and weak, his face ashen. But he still forced himself to stand firm and stare at her.
“You…”
He opened his mouth.
He wanted to ask her—had she fallen for Qi Yubai?
But for some reason, he suddenly found himself afraid of the answer. He could only remain silent and continue looking at Lanyin.
The night was as cold as water, and the blade’s edge seemed to carry the chill of the night itself. He wanted to test something, so he suddenly took a step toward Lanyin.
As he moved forward, Xiao Ye still carried a sliver of hope—if only Lanyin would back down, if only…
Lanyin did not back down.
She continued to hold the sword against his shoulder, not yielding in the slightest.
The sharp edge of the blade immediately left a thin wound on his neck, shattering the last of Xiao Ye’s illusions.
The woman in yellow who held the sword stood still. She looked at him, her almond-shaped eyes cold and desolate. That once gentle and serene face now bore not a single trace of emotion.
Blood seeped from Xiao Ye’s neck. The wound was actually shallow, far less serious than the others on his body, yet it was the one that hurt him the most. He stared at Lanyin without blinking. From beginning to end, her expression never changed. She was neither nervous nor flustered, let alone worried.
Seeing her like this, Xiao Ye finally saw reality for what it was. No matter what he did, she would never be with him. She didn’t care whom he married, didn’t care about how he changed, and didn’t care whether he loved her or not. She was truly sick of him. She wanted their paths to diverge completely, to go their separate ways for good.
The stars and moon above were suddenly obscured by clouds, plunging everything into darkness. The night deepened, and the last glimmer of light in Xiao Ye’s eyes completely faded. His heart ached as if being sawed apart by a jagged blade, yet his gaze remained stubbornly fixed on Lanyin, unwilling to turn away.
In the distance, the lanterns flickered, occasionally casting light onto Xiao Ye’s face. His expression made it seem as though he were crying.
“Gu Lanyin!”
Madam Xiao finally exploded with rage when she saw the wound on Xiao Ye’s neck. Her hands trembled in fury as she shifted her gaze from the cut on his throat to Gu Lanyin. Seeing her remain completely indifferent, she gritted her teeth and suddenly raised her hand, stepping forward.
Zhu Sheng and Tianqing both frowned at the sight, but before they could intervene, Xiao Ye caught hold of Madam Xiao’s hand.
“…Let’s go.”
His voice was hoarse, and while he looked weak, his grip on her hand was firm. He looked at Gu Lanyin. Under her cold and indifferent gaze, he hastily lowered his head and pulled Madam Xiao with him as he turned to leave, his retreating figure looking almost like an escape.
“Ye’er!”
Madam Xiao was unwilling to leave, but Xiao Ye’s grip on her wrist was too strong for her to break free. Seeing his face so pale it was almost bloodless, she didn’t dare struggle too much and had to grit her teeth and endure for now. Just as she was about to call for the servants, a voice came from behind.
“Xiao Ye, I hope this is the last time.”
Xiao Ye’s steps froze. He didn’t turn back, but his fingers instinctively clenched.
Madam Xiao understood what Lanyin meant. The anger she had just suppressed flared up again. It was true that she didn’t want Ye’er to seek her out anymore, but seeing Lanyin treat him as though he were some kind of plague, completely disregarding their past, made her feel deeply aggrieved.
She turned back to look at Lanyin. Her gaze swept over the black-clad guards behind her, and suddenly, she let out a cold laugh.
“That wretched slave dared to harm Ye’er—this matter won’t be left alone.”
A faint clicking sound of disapproval came from behind—Zhu Sheng. Lanyin lifted a hand to stop him from stepping forward. When she looked at Madam Xiao again, she was as calm as ever.
“In that case, what I once promised you no longer counts.”
As she spoke, she withdrew her sword and even took the time to leisurely wipe the blood from its blade with a cloth.
The moon reappeared from behind the clouds.
As the fifteenth day of the lunar month approached, the moon in the sky was full and bright. Yet, under its glow, Lanyin’s usually gentle face seemed even colder than the moon itself.
Madam Xiao had never imagined that she would one day be threatened by Lanyin. This was a woman she had once ignored, admired, and even feared. Now, she stood before her, speaking in an indifferent tone, issuing a threat.
She had never been threatened like this before. The always proud Madam Xiao couldn’t help but lower her face in anger. She gritted her teeth and said in a low voice, “Gu Lanyin, don’t go too far! And—”
She paused, her cold expression suddenly twisting into a sneering smile.
“Do you really think I’ve been idle all this time? These past days, I’ve worked tirelessly to uproot every bit of your influence, to eliminate all the hidden dangers you left behind in the open and in the shadows.”
She looked at Lanyin, her heart filled with both mockery and satisfaction. In the end, Gu Lanyin was still too young. Did she really think that just a few years of managing the household meant she had full control over the marquis’s estate?
How naive.
Just as Madam Xiao was about to let out a cold laugh, another calm, chilly voice rang out before her.
“Then, I wonder—two years ago, did you really think you could keep your nephew’s matter hidden forever?”
The sneer on Madam Xiao’s face suddenly froze. Her expression changed abruptly. “You… how do you know that?” Her voice carried a trace of fear. As if realizing something, her eyes widened in shock. “That woman—have you been hiding her? Is she in your hands?!”
Her voice grew increasingly sharp, and her heart sank deeper.
No wonder all the people she had sent out back then had failed to find that woman’s whereabouts. She had thought that since the woman had not appeared for years, she must have long been dead. But now…
“What exactly do you intend to do by hiding that woman?” Madam Xiao questioned Lanyin, her gaze wary and alarmed. The first thought in her mind was that Lanyin had long harbored ill intentions toward the Xiao family.
Lanyin saw through Madam Xiao’s thoughts but couldn’t be bothered to defend herself. She merely spoke in a calm tone, “You have two choices. Either you let Zhusheng go, keep your son under control, and ensure he never disturbs my life again. Or…” She paused slightly before continuing, “You carry on as you please, and I will expose what Sun Jin did back then.”
Madam Xiao’s face darkened, but Lanyin’s expression remained unchanged. “If I remember correctly, your brother is due for a transfer to Bianjing soon. I wonder—if word of this matter gets out, will he still be able to take up his new post as planned?”
“And the Earl Manor—”
“The Sun family is your maiden family. If the Sun family falls, do you think you and the Earl Manor will remain unscathed?”
Madam Xiao had never in her life wanted to kill someone as much as she did now. She stared at Gu Lanyin, her teeth gritted, her eyes bloodshot with fury. She was shaking from head to toe, yet she couldn’t utter a single word.
Instead, Xiao Ye, who had had his back turned, suddenly turned around. His gaze fell on Lanyin’s face—on that familiar yet now unfamiliar face. But instead of feeling resentment for her words, when she looked at him, he instinctively averted his eyes, avoiding her gaze.
With his head lowered, his voice was hoarse as he spoke.
“…Fine. I promise you.”
“I won’t trouble him, and I won’t let anyone else touch him either. I…” The first half of his sentence was spoken with absolute certainty, without a trace of hesitation. But when he tried to continue, his voice suddenly faltered.
It was as if he could not bring himself to say more.
After a moment of silence, he finally lifted his gaze again, looking at the woman he had shared a bed with for three years. He thought of all the kindness she had once shown him, the meticulous tenderness she had given him.
But now, as he once again met her cold, detached almond-shaped eyes, regret surged within him like an unstoppable tide.
He let out a bitter laugh.
Only after a long, long while did he lower his eyes again and continue, his voice even hoarser than before.
“I will never disturb you again.”
He had no idea how much effort it took him to force out that sentence.
“Ye’er!”
Madam Xiao was enraged by how easily he had conceded.
They still didn’t even know how Lanyin had found out about Sun Jin’s matter, nor did they know where that woman was. If she used this as leverage against them in the future, what would they do then?!
As this thought crossed her mind, her expression turned ice-cold. She was about to speak again, but Xiao Ye had no intention of staying any longer.
Though he didn’t know exactly what Sun Jin had done, he could tell from their exchange that it must have been something utterly damning. And since there had been no rumors of it, it was clear his mother had gone to great lengths to cover it up.