Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Xie Rujue came back very late.

The moment he returned, Madame Zhou punished him by making him kneel in the ancestral hall.

But I knew Xie Rujue would never honestly kneel there. In the three years I had been with the Xie Family, I had never once seen him finish a punishment in the ancestral hall properly.

That night, as expected, he came knocking on my door.

I had Nanny open it, but she stopped him outside.

“Miss Li is now the future princess consort. It is improper for a young master to knock on her door in the middle of the night. For the sake of the good relationship between the young ladies of the Xie Family and my mistress, if you have anything to say, say it here.”

He stood outside the door. I stood inside.

It was hardly the place for a conversation.

But for someone unimportant, this would do.

Xie Rujue was silent for a moment before he finally said, “Li Caicai, we spent three years together. Do you truly feel nothing for me?”

I found that strange.

“Xie Rujue, what makes you think I should feel anything for you? Because you snatched my kite? Or because you tore up my safety talisman? Or because you deliberately abandoned me in the middle of nowhere and made me walk back to the city alone? What good deed have you ever done that was worthy of my affection? Or is it simply because you were the man I saw most often, so I was supposed to fall for you?”

One spring, during an outing, I was flying kites with the Xie sisters.

Xie Rujue had a close friend named Sun Cheng.

Sun Cheng liked a certain young lady. That young lady’s kite had fallen into the water. She thought it was a pity and was about to leave.

But Sun Cheng could not bear to see the girl he liked disappointed. He looked around, then fixed his gaze on me and told me to give him my kite. He said he would give me another one later.

If he had asked politely, that would have been one thing.

But I clearly saw the contempt and mockery in his eyes.

There were so many young ladies present, and many of them were his acquaintances, but he still chose to ask me. Because I was only a female dependent lodging with the Xie Family. Offending me would bring no consequences. And besides, Xie Rujue, the future head of the Xie Family, hated me.

When he saw that I said nothing, he reached out to snatch it.

I stepped back to avoid him, only to be scolded by Xie Rujue.

“A bumpkin from the countryside really is petty.”

He reached out, seized the kite, and gave it to Sun Cheng.

Sun Cheng gave a derisive laugh. “Brother Xie, you are such a fine person, yet you were saddled with a match like this. I truly feel it is unfair to you.”

Xie Rujue’s face darkened. “Brother Sun, watch your words. She and I have nothing to do with each other. I only let her stay at my home because I pitied her.”

Sun Cheng said, “True. A little country girl like her could at most be a bedwarmer. How could she possibly shoulder the duties of the mistress of the Marquis Manor?”

Xie Rujue did not refute him.

Sun Cheng hurried off excitedly to find the young lady who had already walked away.

The Xie sisters gave me their own kites to fly and told me not to listen to Sun Cheng and Xie Rujue’s nonsense.

They only dared to comfort me in low voices. They did not dare stand up for me.

I understood them.

They were born of concubines, not Madame Zhou’s biological daughters. Their future lay in the hands of Madame Zhou and Xie Rujue.

Madame Zhou treated them well enough, but that was only because they had not touched Xie Rujue’s interests. If they ever came into conflict with Xie Rujue, anyone could tell with their eyes closed that Madame Zhou would not help them.

Nor did I need them to stand up for me.

When the young lady Sun Cheng liked went to change her clothes, I deliberately stood outside and cried pitifully.

When the young lady came out, she looked at me curiously. She had been planning to leave, but turned back and asked, “Which family are you from? Why are you crying here?”

I said, full of grievance, “My kite was stolen.”

The young lady smiled. “Is that so? I happen to not feel like flying mine anymore. I’ll give you my kite.”

She had her maid bring the kite over.

I took it, my expression very complicated.

“Miss, this kite is the one that was stolen from me. Did Sun Cheng give it to you?”