Chapter 8

“You lunatic!”

Si Jin flung open the study door and fled back to Qiu Shui Courtyard as if escaping for her life.

She didn’t dare look back along the way, terrified that Xiao Rong might pursue her. Nor did she dare stop, wanting only to put as much distance between them as possible.

With a sharp bang—

She’d even lost control of the force when closing her door, startling the servants in Qiu Shui Courtyard who hurried over to inquire.

Too preoccupied to respond, Si Jin could only lean breathlessly against the door, trying to calm herself.

Yet the unexpected truth gradually sent chills down her spine.

It had been Xiao Rong’s deliberate scheme from the very beginning. Not only had he secretly facilitated this marriage that should never have happened, but he’d also fabricated lies to keep her completely in the dark.

If she hadn’t stumbled upon the truth today, how much longer did Xiao Rong intend to continue deceiving her?

Her pupils trembling with helplessness, Si Jin had never imagined what consequences uncovering this truth might bring.

Even Shen Xuzhi probably regarded it merely as rumors of Xiao Rong’s affection for her.

But the reality was deception, coercion, and control.

It seemed every path led to a dead end, leaving her unable to find any way out of this predicament.

If she insisted on divorcing, would Xiao Rong truly follow through with transferring Si Ming away from the capital?

Her father had worried over this matter for so long. Though Si Jin didn’t know the specifics, she could guess how much effort it must have taken for someone of her father’s capabilities to finally accomplish it.

Would all that effort now be wasted because of her?

Si Jin couldn’t foresee the outcome, knowing only that Xiao Rong’s cunning far exceeded her imagination.

That he would use such matters to threaten her was utterly despicable.

Yet all these schemes stemmed solely from his desire to make her his wife.

How absurd.

What could he possibly see in her? They were practically strangers.

Si Jin remembered there had been only one brief period when she’d gotten along harmoniously with Xiao Rong.

This so-called harmony occurred after she’d seen his deceptively innocent pretty face offering apologies, leading her to forgive him and resume speaking with him.

But Xiao Rong spoke little, his reticence unusual for a child his age, leaving Si Jin to fill most conversations with her naive childhood prattle.

Once, when Si Jin had finally received her parents’ permission to have her own bedchamber, she’d shared her joy with him and asked, “What kind of room would you like to live in?”

Without much thought, Xiao Rong quickly replied, “Bright and warm, where I can see blue skies with white clouds when I look up, and lush grass by the windowsill when I look down.”

How pure. How sunny.

How had he become this shadowy figure filled with sinister schemes?

After spending a long time alone in her room with these chaotic thoughts, Si Jin finally opened her door in defeat, casually dismissing the confused servants who’d been waiting outside as if nothing had happened.

She felt utterly stifled, completely powerless to change her current situation.

That night in bed, Si Jin found herself unsurprisingly sleepless.

Tossing and turning on the bed, her eyes sore and weary, she’d see Xiao Rong’s shadowed, gloomy face the moment she closed them.

Startled suddenly, Si Jin bolted upright in bed.

It was already past midnight, the surrounding silence making her unsteady breathing particularly conspicuous in the night.

Having completely lost any desire for sleep, Si Jin sat dazed for a moment before slipping on her embroidered shoes and leaving the bed.

The room was unlit, with only the faint glow of moonlight from outside the window providing illumination.

Shifting her gaze, she noticed the pot of narcissus, its withered leaves already trimmed, resting quietly on the windowsill.

For some reason, the crisp snip of scissors closing echoed abruptly in Si Jin’s ears.

She shuddered involuntarily and quickly averted her eyes.

Stepping away from the window, she moved past the screen that separated the bedchamber from the main hall.

Si Jin stared at the tightly shut door of the room, her thoughts drifting for a moment before she decided to go out into the courtyard for some fresh air. Perhaps if she calmed her mind, she could finally fall asleep peacefully.

With a soft creak, she gently pulled the door open.

Just as she stepped over the threshold—

“Where are you going?”

“Ah!”

An uncontrollable scream left her throat tingling, while her ears rang with a buzzing noise.

Terrified, Si Jin turned her head and saw Xiao Rong’s figure emerging from the shadows beneath the eaves.

Just like the image that had flashed through her mind moments ago when she lay with her eyes closed on the bed.

Veiled by the night, his form concealed, the heavy shadows nearly obscured his face.

Was it an illusion?!

Him, him, him!

Xiao Rong’s gaze fixed intently on Si Jin as he slowly approached her.

His untimely appearance had clearly startled the unprepared young woman, leaving her pale with fear, yet his expression remained utterly unchanged.

As if asking her whether she had eaten, Xiao Rong repeated calmly, “Where are you going?”

Si Jin’s voice caught in her throat. Her heart, frozen for a moment in fright, now raced chaotically, making it impossible for her to speak.

Her earlier scream had awakened the servants on night duty in the courtyard.

Two figures hurried over from the side, but before they could draw near, Xiao Rong raised a hand to stop them. “It’s nothing. All of you, withdraw.”

Si Jin’s pupils contracted, and her arm instinctively moved as if to hold them back.

No, don’t go. Don’t leave her alone here.

But the two servants who had rushed over, seeing that it was the two masters of the estate standing at the door, dismissed any further concerns and respectfully bowed before retreating.

Si Jin stood frozen, her peripheral vision catching the nearby figure, sending a chill down her spine.

Belatedly, a greater panic surged within her.

Why would Xiao Rong appear at Qiu Shui Courtyard at this hour, right outside her door?

“Are you spying on me?”

As soon as the trembling words left her lips, Si Jin inwardly denied them.

Who would spy in such a manner—staying up late at night, standing personally outside her door?

Besides, she already had nowhere to escape. What purpose would spying serve?

Xiao Rong replied matter-of-factly, “No.”

But then he added, “I only came to see you.”

Si Jin widened her eyes, staring at him in disbelief.

Did he even know what he was saying?

Xiao Rong, however, looked completely unperturbed, as if he had said nothing out of the ordinary.

He changed the subject and asked her, “Can’t sleep?”

Was that even a question?

How could she possibly sleep peacefully?

Si Jin radiated defensiveness, her lips pressed into a tight line as if resolved not to utter another word to him.

But suddenly, a guess flashed through her mind.

If Xiao Rong appeared here so late at night, and if she had been sound asleep, would he have boldly opened the door and entered? No servant in the courtyard would have dared to stop him.

Even in the past, when they had shared this room on separate beds for the sake of appearances, only a screen door had separated them—hardly a barrier for someone with ill intentions.

Looking back on all those nights she had slept peacefully, they now felt like soft thorns piercing her heart—impossible to trace, yet she was acutely aware of their invasive presence.

Si Jin instantly crossed her arms protectively and stumbled several steps backward.

“Xiao Jin.” Xiao Rong closed the distance immediately, rendering her retreat useless.

“Don’t speak to me!” Si Jin snapped hoarsely, her back hitting the cold wall as he cornered her once more.

Yet Xiao Rong still spoke: “There’s nothing sordid as you imagine. I just wanted to see you.”

How dare he say that!

Was this any more honorable?!

Shock and fear made her eyes sting uncontrollably, tears threatening to fall before she clenched her jaw to suppress them.

This panic surpassed even those childhood moments when she’d witnessed Xiao Rong’s strange behavior.

No, there was no comparison at all.

If she admitted that those past terrifying incidents were merely misunderstandings born of her preconceptions, then these current dark deeds—far beyond what any normal person would do—could never be called misunderstandings.

Xiao Rong gazed down at her quietly, slowly advancing half a step closer.

An uncontainable, peculiar excitement flickered in his eyes, as if he delighted in trapping her within this unavoidable proximity.

How could he not?

They would always remain close, always dependent on each other.

There would be no path of retreat behind her.

The veins on Xiao Rong’s hand bulged from restraint, like the twisted darkness within him, revealing its ferocity unabashedly in the night.

Restraint failing, he allowed himself a deep breath, finally catching the fragrance of Si Jin’s hair.

A single tear silently escaped Si Jin’s eye in the darkness, then fell incessantly like a broken string.

“Are you really… transferring my brother away from the capital?”

The glistening tears made Xiao Rong’s Adam’s apple bob.

After a moment, he replied softly: “I wrote a recommendation letter to keep him in the capital, not transfer him away.”

His gentle words seemed to overturn all her wild speculations.

But he quickly added: “As long as you stay by my side.”

Si Jin’s tears immediately fell harder, her lips barely whispering: “How can you… I never intended to…”

But Xiao Rong heard.

He told her: “It’s fine. Start thinking about it now. I can wait until you’ve made up your mind.”

Si Jin stared in shock at the face looming above her, instinctively raising her hands to push him away.

“You madman!”

Unexpectedly—yet again—the tall man allowed himself to be shoved backward, stumbling several steps away.

Her field of vision suddenly cleared, even her suppressed breathing regaining freedom.

Creating the illusion that this seemingly inescapable prison could be broken with minimal effort.

Without overthinking, Si Jin turned and ran into the room.

With a heavy slam, she urgently closed the door, leaning against it with legs gone weak.

Panting with lingering fear, she remained rigid, not daring to relax for a moment.

But there seemed to be no pursuit from outside.

Xiao Rong once again lowered his gaze to his chest, where the sensation of being forcefully pushed remained, making his heartbeat race.

An abnormal restlessness spread and extended, as if savoring the moment, he lightly licked his lips with his tongue.

A slow, heavy footstep sounded.

Si Jin’s breath hitched, and then she heard the footsteps stop right outside her door.

A shadow fell from above, stretching illusorily and shapelessly all the way to her feet.

Xiao Rong’s voice came from outside the door: “Little Jin, don’t be afraid of me.Si Jin: “…”

How shameless could he be, to utter such words with such brazen audacity!

He lowered his voice as if coaxing her: “I won’t disturb you tonight. Go back and rest.”

Long after the footsteps faded away, Si Jin’s body went limp, and she slid down against the door, crouching low.

But after only a brief moment of relaxation, she abruptly stood up, turned around to fasten the door lock, and hurried toward the cabinet in the room.

After some frantic searching, Si Jin found a copper lock and hastily added another lock to the door.

Even this didn’t seem to fully reassure her, but the repeated frights and prolonged tension left her too exhausted to struggle more.

On the spacious canopy bed, the slender young woman lay curled on her side. The thin quilt of late summer should have been just right, yet she had tightly wrapped it around herself, breaking out in a cold sweat.

As dawn broke, a faint light, like a gentle comfort, softly fell upon the dried tear tracks at the corners of her eyes.

From outside the room came Chun Xing’s hushed voice: “Madam, the master is here.”

Si Jin’s tightly shut eyes flew open, her pupils contracted, her face turned deathly pale—clearly, she had been jolted awake from a nightmare.