Chapter 10: Tightly Entangled by an Indescribable Entity…

Si Jin’s heart sank abruptly, the faint momentum she had mustered vanishing instantly.

Damn that despicable Xiao Rong!

Though unable to fully control her expression, Si Jin could only follow Xiao Rong’s lead as they approached Si Ming.

Si Ming asked, “What’s wrong, Xiao Jin? Why do you look like that when you see your elder brother?”

Si Jin blinked rapidly and shook her head, “It’s not that. I’m genuinely happy to see you, brother. How have you been lately?”

Si Ming smiled, “Thanks to your concern, everything’s been well. I was actually planning to apologize to you today. When you returned home last month, I was too busy with work to see you.”

Hearing her brother’s gentle voice made Si Jin’s nose tingle with emotion, but with another person present, she couldn’t say more. She lowered her eyes and whispered, “Your official duties come first, brother. Just being able to see you today is enough for me.”

Si Ming laughed heartily and exchanged a few pleasantries with Xiao Rong.

Standing nearby, Si Jin couldn’t help feeling anxious, fearing their conversation might touch upon Si Ming’s transfer matter, which would make her already poorly controlled expression even more peculiar.

Fortunately, neither mentioned it, as if such a thing had never occurred.

Come to think of it, that made sense.

Si Ming likely didn’t know his transfer document had been influenced by Xiao Rong’s recommendation letter, and Xiao Rong naturally wouldn’t casually discuss the handle he held.

Si Jin knew she was being overly tense, but she had never shouldered such heavy worries alone before, making it difficult to remain calm.

After greeting Si Ming, they entered the residence separately.

Not wanting to stay near Xiao Rong, Si Jin quickly walked ahead when no one else was around. Soon reaching the seating division area, she turned without hesitation toward the women’s section.

Xiao Rong stood quietly at the path junction for a while, only turning to walk in the opposite direction after Si Jin’s retreating figure completely disappeared from view.

Entering the women’s seating area, Si Jin soon spotted Cheng Yi.

She approached, “Mother.”

Hearing her voice, Cheng Yi turned and smiled, “Xiao Jin, you’re here! I was just talking about you with your fourth aunt.”

Distracted, Si Jin’s thoughts lingered on the earlier conversation between Xiao Rong and Si Ming, responding only with a soft acknowledgment.

Cheng Yi didn’t notice her unusual state, cheerfully guiding her to sit beside her.

Si Jin had never been conspicuous at such banquets before. As an unremarkable junior in the family, few initiated conversation with her.

Though her status had changed somewhat, her inherent discomfort with family small talk remained. After exchanging polite greetings, others typically found her uninteresting and wouldn’t engage further.

“Your dress today is truly beautiful! Which shop provided the fabric?”

“The one in the southern city. I have some leftover in my room. If you like it, come take a look later?”

Si Jin heard a familiar, unpleasant voice nearby.

Glancing sideways, she indeed saw Si Yingdong.

Chin slightly raised, Si Yingdong was showing off her new outfit to their cousin from the second branch.

Si Jin couldn’t help but think critically.

Si Yingdong had previously dared accuse her of dressing flamboyantly, yet failed to see who currently resembled a preening peacock more.

Their voices gradually lowered as they huddled together, whispering something inaudible.

The cousin suddenly gasped, her voice rising: “Sister Yingdong, please don’t say such things. I harbor no such intentions.”

Si Yingdong dismissed her concern with a wave: “Why be shy about it? He’s an elegant gentleman with the bearing of a celestial being. When he passes by later, no one will notice if you steal a glance.”

Hearing this clearly, Si Jin frowned and immediately turned away, presenting her back to them.

She understood perfectly – they were discussing Xiao Rong, and Si Yingdong’s words were deliberately meant to provoke her.

Did they think she would become jealous over Xiao Rong and immediately lose her composure to quarrel with them?

As if she enjoyed arguing with them so much.

While lost in thought, the cousin’s voice carried over again.

“It’s Lord Xiao! He’s really coming.”

Having turned away earlier, Si Jin now faced their direction. As the voices reached her ears, her gaze unconsciously lifted.

Sunlight broke through the clouds just as the man emerged from the crowd, seemingly gathering all illumination around him.

The brilliant light fell upon his handsome features, accentuating his sharp, superior contours – truly resembling the celestial being others praised him to be.

Suddenly, Xiao Rong’s gaze shifted sideways, cutting through the crowd to directly meet Si Jin’s position across the distance.

In that instant, Si Jin found herself locked with his dark eyes.

Xiao Rong’s gaze was utterly unconcealed. Indeed, upon confirming she had seen him, the corner of his lips curved upward in a blatant attempt to exchange affectionate glances with her.

How shameless could he be!

Si Jin angrily lowered her head, determined not to give him another opportunity to perform this charade in public.

“Have you been quarreling with Chongyun?” Cheng Yi’s soft voice reached her ear.

Si Jin started: “What? No…”

“There’s nothing you can’t tell your mother. I already know everything.”

Know what? Could it be…

“When Cuizhi reports to me the moment she sees me, I know it must be somewhat serious.”

Si Jin’s momentarily taut heartstrings slackened heavily, her emotions too complex to discern whether she felt relief that her mother didn’t know the truth or disappointment that there remained no breakthrough.

Cuizhi was the maid Si Jin had brought from the Si family when she married. It now appeared she also served as Cheng Yi’s means of staying informed about her daughter’s situation.

Si Jin knew that ever since she had uncovered the truth about this marriage, the servants in the residence had all noticed something amiss. Her refusal to continue cooperating with Xiao Rong in playing the loving couple, as she had before, appeared to outsiders as marital discord.

Si Jin lowered her gaze, though she could only say: “It’s nothing. Cuizhi is exaggerating.”

Cheng Yi lightly snorted: “Your mother isn’t so blind as to miss such things. Last month when you returned home, you mentioned it briefly. Has there been trouble since then?”

Si Jin felt vexed. She had only been laying groundwork at that time, completely unaware of the truth herself.

Remembering how fearfully she had tentatively spoken those words to her parents made her feel utterly foolish.

For now, Si Jin could only vaguely evade: “It’s just a minor disagreement, nothing worth mentioning.”

Cheng Yi didn’t press further, simply saying: “Disagreements between couples are natural. If you don’t know how to resolve them, your mother can teach you a thing or two.”

Hearing this, Si Jin couldn’t help but glance at Cheng Yi, but soon pursed her lips and lowered her head again, mumbling a refusal: “There’s no need, Mother. I know what to do.”

Never mind that this matter had nothing to do with marital disputes at all.

Even if it were truly a marital dispute, what could her mother possibly teach her?

Normally, just one glance at her father’s handsome face would make her anger instantly dissipate.

If this was what they wanted to teach her, she’d rather not learn it at all.

The banquet was dull, and Si Jin had been absent-minded from the start. The longer she stayed, the more unbearable it became.

Cheng Yi had somehow struck up an animated conversation with the elder beside her again, while Si Yingdong’s voice behind her rose and fell intermittently, grating on her nerves even more.

Bored out of her mind, Si Jin reached out and poked at the sweet cake on her plate.

This was a pastry she had quite enjoyed in the past, but now she had no appetite for it whatsoever.

Si Jin let out an almost imperceptible sigh, her gaze drifting aimlessly until it suddenly met a pair of eyes watching her from the opposite seat not far away.

Si Jin: “!!”

Frowning in panic, she immediately lowered her eyes.

Why was Xiao Rong staring over here again!

Si Jin secretly lifted her eyelids to steal a glance, but after just one brief moment of eye contact, she looked down again.

With so many people coming and going around them, how could he have the nerve to stare so blatantly?

Si Jin pursed her lips, then seemed to remember something and quickly wiped the corner of her mouth with her hand.

Fortunately, there was nothing there, and she realized she hadn’t even taken a bite of that sweet cake.

If she hadn’t been aware of his gaze, Si Jin wouldn’t have given it a second thought.

But now, even though she deliberately avoided looking toward the opposite seat, she still felt as if Xiao Rong was watching her.

Another quick glance upward confirmed her suspicion.

As she lowered her eyes, she couldn’t help but recall what Shen Xuzhi had said earlier. Had he always been this brazenly oblivious to others?

Si Jin couldn’t take it anymore—it felt as if she were being tightly entangled by some indescribable force, both in public and private.

She turned to Cheng Yi, made up a random excuse to leave the banquet, then stood up and walked away without looking back.

Only after leaving the banquet hall did Si Jin feel she could finally breathe a little easier.

She didn’t wander aimlessly but headed straight in the direction of her family’s courtyard.

The familiar path gradually calmed her restless heart.

She slowed her pace and continued forward leisurely.

As she rounded the shrubbery beside the narrow path—

Suddenly, a furious shout erupted: “You insolent fool! Who gave you permission to act on your own?!”

Si Jin’s heart leaped in shock, and she froze instantly.

She recognized her father’s voice.

Si Chengyuan was clearly beside himself with rage. After his outburst, even his ragged, rapid breathing could faintly be heard.

Si Jin had never seen her father this furious before and didn’t dare move a muscle.

The next moment, another voice spoke—it was Si Ming.

“My mind is made up, Father. I beg you to grant me your approval.”

“Do you have any idea how much effort I’ve spent resolving this matter? Now that it’s finally settled and we’re just waiting for the official documents to be approved so you won’t be transferred away from the capital, you go behind my back and request a transfer yourself! Are you trying to drive me to an early grave?”

Si Jin’s pupils contracted sharply, and she held her breath.

In contrast to her shock and Si Chengyuan’s fury, Si Ming remained exceptionally calm.

“Since childhood, I have followed your and Mother’s teachings, striving to be the gentle, obedient son you wanted. I know you both had many expectations of me, but you never once asked what I truly wanted.”

“What is it that you want?!” Si Chengyuan roared, unable to contain his anger. “Do you think I’m some tyrannical, controlling father who’s angry for no reason? You were doing perfectly fine in the capital! Once we weather this turmoil, your future would be bright! I ended up in this sorry state because of my own mediocre abilities—I can hardly hold my head up high in the Si family. If you go to Xiqiu for years, by the time you return, there’ll be no place left for you in the capital!”

“The world is vast, where could one not find a place to stand? What I have always wanted was never to be confined under the family’s roof, competing for fame, profit, and power with relatives who share the same bloodline but are not particularly close. Xiqiu is not a bad place at all. After the war, Xiqiu is precisely the place where I can fully display my abilities. If I were not someone capable of handling this matter, my voluntary request would not have been approved. Now that the transfer has been finalized, it is already a tremendous affirmation for me.”

So, her elder brother had voluntarily requested a transfer to Xiqiu.

Si Jin’s heart raced wildly. Her father and brother’s words struck her deeply, leaving her thoughts in a tangled mess.

She swayed unsteadily for a moment, and her sleeve accidentally brushed against a nearby bush, producing a faint rustling sound.

Si Chengyuan immediately became alert: “Who’s there? Who is it?”

Si Jin’s scalp tingled with fear. She gradually emerged from behind the bush and timidly said, “Father, elder brother, it’s me.”