Chapter 137

Chapter 137: Severed Hand The door was pushed open, candlelight glaring. When Qin Pei opened his eyes again, the cloth strip in his mouth had already been removed. He gasped for air. "I..." Before Qin Pei could speak, Cui Zeyu threw a punch at him. Cui Zeyu saw the scar on Qin Pei's hand and confirmed that Qin Pei was the one he had bitten all those years ago. He dragged Qin Pei into the light. "Do you remember me?" "You... who are you?" "So you don't recognize me." Cui Zeyu threw another punch, sending blood spilling from Qin Pei's mouth. "It's you, you little bastard!" Qin Pei realized who Cui Zeyu was. After a burst of laughter, he suddenly began to panic. Lu Zhong finding his son meant his aunt was going to lose. The words "little bastard" ignited Lu Zhong's fury. He kicked Qin Pei. "Just kill me. I won't say anything. If you have the guts, kill me!" Blood beaded at the corner of Qin Pei's mouth as he looked at the father and son before him. "Heaven has no eyes, letting the two of you reunite. Lu Zhong, I've told you, I won't say a word. If you have the guts, kill me." Qin Pei understood clearly: if he betrayed his aunt, not only would he die, but his wife and children would face certain death as well. But as long as he held the secret tight, Lu Zhong couldn't get anything on his aunt, and she would protect his family. Having served his aunt for so many years, he had long anticipated this day. "Wait." Lu Zhong grabbed his son. "Keep hitting him, and he might really die." "It's useless. He won't tell you anything. Unless you bring his wife and children here." Cui Zeyu had known from the moment he saw Qin Pei that Qin Pei would never betray Madam Qin. "No matter what torture you use, he won't say a word. Let him suffer here in agony, tortured slowly to death!" Cui Zeyu didn't kill Qin Pei. Instead, he severed the hand that Qin Pei had once bitten. He wanted Qin Pei to be unable to die even if he wished—that was the greatest suffering. As he walked out of the house, he could still hear Qin Pei's screams behind him. Cui Zeyu looked at the bloodstains on his clothes, but felt no satisfaction. He placed Qin Pei's hand in a box. "Take this to Madam Qin and tell her Qin Pei is dead. As for what happens next, I'll follow your arrangements." Some things could only be accomplished with the power of the Duke of Dingguo's household. The Duke of Dingguo was overjoyed that his son was willing to acknowledge his lineage and immediately took the wooden box back. When he opened the box before Madam Qin and saw her nearly faint, the Duke said ruthlessly, "Since you wanted to find Qin Pei, I've brought him to you." "Lu Zhong, you... have you lost your mind?" Madam Qin pointed at Lu Zhong, barely able to breathe. "You're the one who's lost your mind. I should have divorced you back then, rather than letting you stay in the Duke's mansion as a scourge!" The Duke snorted. "Let me tell you, I've already found Peng'er. Whether you agree or not doesn't matter. Now that your brother has been demoted and the Qin family can barely protect itself, no one can shield you anymore." "I won't agree. If you have the guts, kill me too! Otherwise, that bastard of yours will have no legitimate standing!" Madam Qin couldn't swallow this indignation. But the Duke said, "Have you forgotten your Qin family's current situation? When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter. If I so much as lift a finger, you know what will happen to the Qin family. I advise you to stop making trouble. You can't do anything to me, and I can't divorce you, so we might as well muddle through this life together!" Qin Shaoyuan valued Madam Qin greatly. If Madam Qin died, Qin Shaoyuan would certainly investigate. As for divorcing her, the Duke had considered it countless times, but had never managed to do it. He and Madam Qin were bound by a karmic entanglement from a past life, one that continued into this one. After the Duke left, Madam Qin went mad, smashing things. "Bastard! Animal! Lu Zhong, you'll die a horrible death! How dare you threaten me!" Madam Qin smashed everything in the room she could get her hands on. Nanny Liu wept as she tried to persuade her, "Madam, please calm down. Stop, please! Smashing more things won't help anything!" "How can I not be angry? Seeing Lu Zhong bring that bastard back—what am I supposed to do?" Just thinking about it drove Madam Qin to madness. "No, I can't let him come back. This is my son's Duke mansion. I won't let him inherit it!" "You must think of the Qin family." Nanny Liu held her mistress, stopping her from smashing more. "Since things have come to this, perhaps let the little bastard come back first. With him right under your nose, there will be plenty of ways to deal with him." Previously, Madam Qin couldn't touch Cui Zeyu because he was hidden in Xie Yunting's residence, and Madam Qin couldn't force her way into the Xie mansion. If Cui Zeyu were right under her nose, Madam Qin, who had managed the household for decades, would have opportunities to succeed—whether through poison or other means. Madam Qin gradually calmed down. "Yes, you're right. Before, the little bastard was outside, and I couldn't even find him, let alone kill him. Since he insists on coming to court death, then let him come. I'll see how long he can survive right under my nose!" Madam Qin harbored a belly full of resentment, waiting for the day she would see the bastard. Meanwhile, Cui Zeyu returned to his own residence. When the servants saw him come back, they were all excited. After Cui Zeyu finished tidying up, he mounted his horse and rode to the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion. As he dismounted, the gatekeeper stared in astonishment. "You... you are Young Master Yu?" Everyone in the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion knew that Cui Zeyu had been robbed while traveling on business and was missing, with no word of whether he was alive or dead. Now seeing Cui Zeyu return alive, the gatekeeper was especially excited. "Quick, go inform the Eldest Madam that Young Master Yu has returned safely!" In the past, whenever Young Master Yu came to visit, he was always courteous to the servants and would occasionally bring small gifts and treats. Seeing him alive filled them with joy. Facing the servants of the Jiangyuan Marquis Mansion, Cui Zeyu once again appeared gentle and refined, greeting each of them warmly as he followed the attendant toward Qiushuang Zhai. However, not everyone was pleased. County Princess Rongjia had just cursed Cui Zeyu to die, and now, to her surprise, he had returned. Upon hearing the news, the County Princess's brows twitched violently. "Why is he still alive?" she said through gritted teeth.