Chapter 53 – Heart in Turmoil

Xi Jing was in an uproar.

First, Dou Qingyue’s declaration of love on Guiming Bridge; then, Song Zizhen’s selfless leap to save her. Rumors swirled about them being found disheveled and in close contact after the rescue. In just half a day, the streets were abuzz with outlandish tales.

There were tragic stories of the Dou Family’s Miss pining for her unattainable older male cousin, accounts of Song Zizhen’s silent devotion waiting for his beloved to turn back, and even scandalous plots of a love triangle filled with entangled emotions and heartbreak.

Setting aside the gossip, when Dou Qingyue awoke and learned that her savior was not Pei Xuan but Song Zizhen, the young man favored by her parents, her careful plans crumbled. She coughed up blood in despair, as if her soul was about to depart.

“Yue’er! Yue’er! Don’t lose hope!”

Even the resilient Madam Dou couldn’t hold back her tears. Seeing her daughter on the brink of giving up, she desperately wished she could fulfill her daughter’s wishes by dragging Pei Xuan to the bridal chamber.

Her concern clouded her judgment, and General Dou’s eyes reddened with emotion as well.

“Yue’er, there are plenty of fish in the sea. Why must you…”

Dou Qingyue lay on the bed with her eyes closed, a tear slipping from the corner of her eye.

Known as a frail girl in Xi Jing, she had risked her life and reputation to force Pei Xuan into marriage, only for Song Zizhen to intervene and ruin her plans.

With her schemes thwarted, she felt that without becoming Pei Xuan’s wife, life held no meaning.

The Dou Family couple, helpless, left the room with deep sighs.

A heartache needs a heart remedy. Her frailty was from birth, and the cold waters of Guiming Lake had only worsened her condition. This brush with death had yet to be determined.

Her will to live or die rested on one person’s actions.

According to Dazhao’s customs, after such an incident, Song Zizhen had no choice but to marry Qingyue. Everyone had seen them embracing intimately, and her reputation was ruined. Not marrying would be difficult to resolve.

But…

General Dou didn’t want to drive his daughter to despair. Despite the Song Family already sending betrothal gifts, he had yet to mention it to her.

“Fujun, what… what should we do?”

The General raised his head. “Doctor, please speak plainly. My Yue’er, she…”

The old doctor understood the unfinished question and sighed. “Whether she lives or not depends on whether her wishes can be fulfilled.”

If the person who had jumped into the lake to save her had been Pei Xuan, Dou Qingyue would have had no regrets, even if it meant dying after being Pei Xuan’s wife for just one day.

But it was another man who saved her—a man irrelevant to her. Dou Qingyue had lost her health and her reputation, and now she was bound to an unrelated gentleman.

She would rather die.

This thought aligned with General Dou’s expectations. After sending off the old doctor, he stood under the eaves in deep thought. After a long while, he commanded, “Go to Sushe Villa and bring Xuan’er here.”

The servant obeyed.

Madam Dou hesitated, “Fujun, are you planning to…”

“She’s our only daughter. How could I not fulfill her wishes?”

While the outside world was in an uproar, at Sushe Villa, Pei Xuan had just finished her third cup of tea and was recovering from the fright of being manipulated.

Cui Ti had heard from the servants about Dou Qingyue’s life-risking leap and was fuming, “You see now the trouble your kindness and compassion have brought!”

“Yes, yes, I understand now.” Pei Xuan wiped the sweat from her brow. “It’s truly hard to believe, if not seen with my own eyes.”

Disguised as a frail scholar, Pei Xuan studied governance and held a prestigious position in the Hanlin Academy. She had no opportunity to witness her younger female cousin’s ruthless schemes firsthand. Fortunately, Song Zizhen’s timely and selfless rescue averted disaster. Had he been a moment late, both women might have been forced to serve one “husband.”

Cui Ti wanted to teach her a lesson, “Do you see clearly now?”

Pei Xuan, sitting there in despair, suddenly stood up, “No, I need to hide.”

Watching her look around frantically for a hiding place, Cui Ti was both amused and exasperated, “Why are you hiding? I’m not going to hit you.”

“Niangzi, spare me. My maternal uncle won’t. He dotes on my younger female cousin the most. I don’t wish any harm upon her, but her words today have left me with no retreat. I—”

“Gentleman!”

The steward of the villa stood at the door to report, “General Dou requests your presence at the mansion!”

“…”

So she was right?

Cui Ti twisted her handkerchief, staring wide-eyed at Pei Xuan.

“Gentleman, you’d better go quickly. A lot of people have arrived outside!”

General Dou requested his nephew to visit the mansion, deploying twenty to thirty battle-hardened warriors—an invitation that could not be declined.

“How can Maternal Granduncle act this way? We’re all family; this could hurt our relationships. Gentleman, should we inform Madam?”

The “Madam” he referred to was Dou Zixing’s elder legitimate sister, Chancellor Pei’s first wife, and Pei Xuan’s mother.

How could family invite someone in such a manner?

This urgency showed that Cousin Miss’s condition was likely deteriorating.

Indeed, someone usually so delicate and sickly even dared to jump into a lake—it was like an old person hanging themselves, tired of living.

With the Dou Family blocking the entrance, Pei Xuan regained her composure. Since there was no escape, she could only face it head-on. She straightened her clothes, “No need to disturb Mom. I’ll go and come back quickly. Maternal Uncle has always treated me well; he must be genuinely worried this time.”

“Xingguang!?”

Pei Xuan held her first wife’s hand, “If I haven’t returned in an hour, send someone to the Chancellor’s Residence to find Mom to get me out.”

“I’m going with you!”

Cui Ti clung to her sleeve, refusing to let go. Pei Xuan sighed, “I’m just going to take a look. No matter how domineering Maternal Uncle is, he won’t detain me. Besides, I’m Mom’s only child. Even if something happens to cousin miss, he wouldn’t dare do anything that would grieve Mom. I can come back safely on my own; I’d worry if you came along.”

In the haunting shadows of past memories, she distinctly saw that it was her younger female cousin who harmed Titi. She was already trying to avoid trouble, so why would she walk into it?

She was willing to go to maintain familial ties with her maternal uncle and aunt, but bringing Cui Ti along might lead to unforeseen complications.

“Be good, wait for me at home.”

Cui Ti’s eyes brimmed with tears as she stared at her.

Pei Xuan dared not look longer, “Bai Tang! Take good care of the Young Madam!”

“Yes, sir!”

Bai Tang patted her small chest, ready to take on the responsibility.

The people sent by the Dou Family stood in the courtyard, bowing respectfully upon seeing Pei Xuan, showing not a hint of disrespect.

The leader spoke humbly, “General Dou had no choice but to act this way. Please, Gentleman, don’t take it to heart.”

“No harm done. What reason does a nephew have to be angry with his maternal uncle?”

She dusted her sleeves and took the lead, stepping forward.

As Pei Xuan walked the short distance from the courtyard to the villa gates, Cui Ti’s heart clenched with worry.

Dou Qingyue’s actions were always unpredictable, even to the point of disregarding her own life. Cui Ti feared that Pei Xuan might encounter danger on this trip.

She was on edge.

Unexpectedly, before Pei Xuan could step through the gate, a chill wind blew, momentarily blinding her.

When she opened her eyes again, she saw Pei Xuan stumble and fall heavily forward, hitting her head and bleeding profusely.

The scene unfolded so quickly that everyone stood frozen, as if their souls had left their bodies.

“Xingguang!”

Cui Ti’s scream was heart-wrenching.

Blood flowed from Pei Xuan’s forehead, tasting metallic. Her consciousness began to fade. She wanted to comfort her niangzi, but suddenly she felt an invisible imprint break open from her brow—

Memories from past lives surged forward.

A snow-white rabbit darted through her mind.

The white rabbit, initially curled up on the ground, blinked and transformed into a human. With moist, slightly red eyes, her naked, stunningly beautiful body and delicate white ankles brushed against low branches. She looked over innocently.

“Strange, who’s watching me?”

She shook her head, unaware of her nakedness’s shame, strolling around the grassy area leisurely.

The gentle breeze lifted her soft, long hair. Her earlobes looked tender, and her smile was as pure as the celestial river’s water.

This was a rabbit spirit, barely having achieved a human form.

Over time, the girl grew up, gaining experiences and learning shame. She loved wearing snow-white clothes, with hems that barely reached her ankles. The contrast of black, white, and red on her was particularly enchanting.

One day, mountain spirits fought over a disagreement, and a wolf demon ambushed her…

“Xingguang? Xingguang!!”

The villa’s entrance turned chaotic. Servants and the Dou Family’s guards anxiously called out “Gentleman,” while Song Zizhen arrived on horseback to this scene of disorder.

He had come to ask Pei Xuan to save the dying Miss Dou, but what he witnessed—

He dismounted anxiously, “Quick, get a doctor!”

In the distant Ninth Heaven, the immortals were once again engaged in a casual game under the marriage tree.

“Fairy Qingyao’s mortal body is about to perish, and her return is imminent. Oh, how interesting,” the Matchmaker God commented, ever the spectator of drama.

The Red Luan Star placed a piece on the board. “The timing of the imprint breaking was perfect. Otherwise, if Pei Xuan had gone, that rabbit spirit would have been heartbroken.”

“Not that things are much better now.”

“But speaking of Fairy Qingyao, she recklessly entered countless lifetimes, disrupting the Literature Star’s tribulations. When she returns, she won’t escape a hundred years of punishment.”

“She’ll have good company with the Pleasure Immortal and Celestial Being Qin Zhen.”

Previously, Ning Hehuan and Qin Jing had dueled, one violating the heavenly rules to open the rabbit spirit’s spiritual eye, the other using forbidden celestial arts to harm. After their battle in the icy lands of the Mortal Realm, they were confined to the Underwater Cave in the Upper Realm to reflect on their actions.

The Literature Star’s painstaking journey through the Mortal Tribulation had many interferences. Including Fairy Qingyao, that made three.

“Good things come to those who wait, but this is taking too long…”

At the Dou Family residence.

A breathless guard leaped off his horse and rushed forward, “General Dou, General Dou, something terrible has happened!”

Dou Zixing had been waiting in the courtyard for his nephew to arrive. Instead of seeing Pei Xuan, he was met with, “Something terrible has happened.”

His mood, already foul, darkened further. The guard hurriedly explained, “We went to invite the gentleman to the mansion, but before she could step out, she stumbled and hit her head. She’s unconscious!”

“What?!”

General Dou was filled with remorse, pacing anxiously. Finally, he made a decision, “Don’t tell Miss Dou. Keep it from her for now. You come with me to check on Xuan’er.”

“Yes, sir!”

Despite their efforts to keep it a secret, Dou Qingyue found out.

Upon hearing that Pei Xuan had hit her head, she coughed up blood again.

Coughing blood at such a young age was never a good sign.

Madam Dou, torn between worry for her nephew and concern for her daughter, tried to reason, “Yue’er, Yue’er, we shouldn’t go and cause more trouble.”

“No, no…” Dou Qingyue said weakly, “Mom, I have to see her. Otherwise, I won’t be able to rest in peace…”

“Yue’er!”

“Mom, please, I beg you.”

How could a mother resist such a plea?

The Dou family quickly boarded a carriage and headed to the Sushe villa.

Madam Pei was deeply worried. Seeing the group from the Dou Family, she was furious, directing her anger at her younger brother. “Why are you here again? Was once not enough to upset me, and now you come to anger me a second time? No matter what, Xuan’er is your niece by blood. How can you, as her maternal uncle, be so heartless? She’s injured now, and you bring your whole family to flaunt it before my eyes. Get out, get out!”

She was genuinely enraged, and Dou Zixing’s face burned with shame.

“Sister…”

Without another word, he lifted his robe and knelt, kowtowing three times with loud thuds. “It’s my fault that Xuan’er suffered this calamity. I know my wrongs. We came not just because my wife and I are worried, but also because Yue’er insisted on seeing her older male cousin…”

At the mention of Dou Qingyue, Madam Pei’s expression turned from green to white. She felt for her niece, who looked so frail and near death. But Pei Xuan’s severe head injury was undoubtedly caused by this niece of hers!

If it weren’t for her niece’s unrelenting obsession, how would her daughter have encountered such a disaster?

“Sister…”

“Aunt…”

Dou Qingyue knelt before her.

A sickly figure, looking so pitiful, Madam Dou held back her anger and finally waved her hand. “Do not disturb Xuan’er. As for the rest, do as you please!”

She had no time to argue. If she wanted to settle the score, it would have to wait until Pei Xuan woke up.

Dou Qingyue was moved to tears, watching Madam Pei’s retreating figure from afar. “Thank you, Aunt.”

In the main courtyard, Pei Xuan was settled in the largest room.

The Dou couple, too ashamed to enter, had their daughter supported by maidservants into the room.

The inner chamber was filled with a pleasant and elegant fragrance. As soon as Dou Qingyue entered, she saw her ‘older male cousin’ lying on the large bed, pale and lifeless. Her heart ached, and she approached, intending to touch Pei Xuan’s face.

“Get away! Don’t touch her!”

She was pushed away and nearly twisted her waist.

Turning her head, she saw Cui Ti leaning on a bamboo cane, glaring fiercely at the wooden stool a few steps away. Her expression was as if she would pounce and bite if Dou Qingyue made another move.

There was a ferocity in her gaze, ready to tear apart anyone who dared covet Pei Xuan.