Chapter 71 Elder Sister

"Of course, I only cherish Sister Shen."

Qi Yunyue stood frozen as if struck by lightning. Her eyes, which always held a smile—and even now, though bloodshot, still carried a tender expectation for the man of her heart—suddenly widened in disbelief.

"But you are Yunyue's beloved, won't this be a bit improper?"

"From beginning to end, I have not held the slightest bit of affection for her; it is merely the bond of friendship! If Sister Shen dislikes it, I shall go and make it clear to her tomorrow!"

The voice she loved most was now eagerly disparaging her, using her to curry favor with another woman.

Qi Yunyue felt all the strength drain from her body. Her figure swayed, and Cheng Yuan hurriedly stepped forward to support her.

She remained silent, only pointing toward the half-opened window.

With no more voices speaking inside, even a fool would know what they were doing!

She dared not look, yet a stubborn impulse urged her to force her legs to move and gaze toward the room.

The interior was peaceful, with wisps of incense curling in the air.

The set of scholar's robes she knew better than anyone else was discarded on the floor. A young man, dressed only in plain undergarments, knelt on bended knees, cradling a woman's jade-white foot and lowering his head toward it.

Shen Youli leaned against the window ledge, half-reclining, when suddenly she kicked the man squarely in the chest. Lu Bai stumbled and fell backward to the floor.

Yet he quickly knelt back up, his expression submissive and meek.

"Sister Shen..." His voice held not a shred of humiliation, but was instead filled with coquettish grievance.

Qi Yunyue could bear no more. She turned her head to look at Cheng Yuan, her hands trembling uncontrollably. Tears fell before she could even speak, her face wet, the starlight in her eyes completely shattered.

"Sister Yuan, I want to go home..."

Cheng Yuan lowered her gaze, murmured a word of assent, and signaled Xie Changzhi to carry the girl back over the wall.

Turning back, just as Qi Yunyue averted her gaze, Cheng Yuan flicked a small pebble onto the stone table, producing a crisp, echoing collision.

Inside the room.

Lu Bai was just about to press his lips to the pristine, jade-white foot when he received another kick.

This kick was entirely different from the previous flirtatious play; it carried full force. Lu Bai's back slammed into a table and chairs, and he let out a sharp cry of pain.

"Shen Youli, you have gone too far!" he cried out, clutching his aching waist in accusation.

"Get lost." Shen Youli leisurely withdrew her foot, righted her posture, and looked down at him with an air of cold condescension.

Lu Bai was stunned, and then his face flushed crimson.

"What do you take me for? Someone you can summon at whim and dismiss at will? You were the one who tricked me into coming here, and I did as you asked! Now you're telling me to get lost?"

Shen Youli looked at him indifferently. "I simply found it boring all of a sudden. I find you filthy."

As she spoke, she reached for a brocade handkerchief to wipe her foot.

Lu Bai's eyes burned with a fury so intense it seemed they might spit fire. Humiliated and enraged, he snapped, "Fine! You want me to get lost? Hand over the money."

He held out his hand.

Shen Youli let out a cold, mocking laugh. "What money?"

Lu Bai was so angry he wanted to jump; why was this woman even more difficult to deal with than Cheng Yuan?

Clearly, she had been the one to abduct him, demanding that he serve her for a single night in exchange for paying off his debts at the gambling house.

Seeing that she was attractive, possessed a fine figure, and was generous with her wealth, Lu Bai had felt somewhat humiliated by her demands, but a true gentleman yields to circumstances, and this was the time to cash in.

Yet now, after barely beginning, she was telling him to get out? And refusing to pay?

"You promised! You said you would pay off my gambling debts!" Lu Bai gritted his teeth.

Shen Youli uttered an "oh," causing a spark of hope to instantly light up in Lu Bai's eyes.

"But I said upon completion. Since nothing happened between us in the end, the agreement is naturally void." Shen Youli smiled, though the smile failed to reach her eyes.

Lu Bai's eyes nearly split with rage. "Then what was all that?"

"Consider it a lesson in being played. Congratulations." Shen Youli rose gracefully. "Someone, escort Young Master Lu out."

Shen Youli disliked having servants hover about, so the courtyard was secluded, but there were plenty of hidden shadow guards in the shadows.

Almost instantly, two shadow guards materialized, each seizing one of his arms and dragging him toward the exit.

"Miss Shen! Aren't you afraid of my revenge for this?" Lu Bai struggled and roared, completely devoid of any gentlemanly demeanor.

"Then by all means, feel free to try." Shen Youli leaned casually against the wall, her eyes filled with utter revulsion.

If she had not touched him earlier, it was only because he was the man Yunyue adored. Even if he were utter scum, she still had her principles—though he indeed possessed a handsome facade.

But now, she felt nothing but absolute disgust.

If not for the fact that he had read a few extra books and possessed a deceitful, human-like appearance bestowed by his parents, he wouldn't even be worthy of comparison to the groomsman who fed the horses in her courtyard!

Fawning over the powerful and wealthy, cold-blooded and selfish.

She let out another huff of annoyance. Just as she thought, all men were alike!

Only a fool like Qi Yunyue would be deceived by such a creature!

***

"Sister Yuan, I'll go back by myself."

The three of them returned to the outside of the courtyard wall. Just as Cheng Yuan was about to let Xie Changzhi carry Qi Yunyue back over the wall, the girl suddenly turned around, her eyes bloodshot and brimming with tears.

"I am going to pay a visit to my father's study." Her voice was hoarse and laced with bitterness.

Cheng Yuan glanced at her, realizing she must have truly lost all hope. She nodded softly. "Very well. If anything comes up, just come to the shop and find me."

Watching Qi Yunyue step through the mansion gates, Cheng Yuan finally turned back and let out a long breath. "Changzhi, let's head back."

"..."

A heavy weight suddenly collapsed against her, pressing down onto her body, while her oiled paper umbrella slipped from her hand and fell to the side.

Cheng Yuan's eyes widened in alarm. "Changzhi? Changzhi?"

Struggling to steady him by the shoulders, she patted his face twice and found his skin burning with a frightening heat.

She suddenly recalled that his expression had seemed odd ever since they left the mansion earlier. A pang of guilt pierced Cheng Yuan's heart—she had been too anxious to handle her own affairs and had neglected him.

"Hold on a little longer, we're almost back."

With one hand holding the umbrella and the other supporting his dead weight, Cheng Yuan dragged him forward.

Fortunately, the shop was not far from the Qi residence. Uncle Wang was just pushing open the shop doors to bring in the "Closed" sign.

Catching sight of Cheng Yuan struggling to drag someone along in the distance, his eyes widened in shock as he hurried over. "What on earth happened, Yuan'er? What's wrong with Changzhi?"

Soaked in sweat from the exertion, Cheng Yuan spoke concisely, "He has caught a chill. Uncle Wang, could you trouble yourself to go fill a couple of prescriptions for medicine?"

"Yes, yes, yes! Take Changzhi to the back courtyard to lie down right away, I'll be right back!"

Gritting her teeth, Cheng Yuan managed to deposit Xie Changzhi onto the bed, vowing that once things settled down, she would seriously start exercising to build up her strength.

Xie Changzhi's eyes remained tightly shut, his lips continuously muttering about the cold.

Cheng Yuan pulled two thick cotton quilts over him, fetched a copper basin, and ignited some charcoal. As the heat filled the room, making her want to shed her outer garments, Xie Changzhi was still shivering and complaining of the cold.

At her wits' end, she grabbed several self-heating warm packs and tucked them into his bedding.

When beads of sweat finally appeared on Xie Changzhi's forehead, he grew quiet at last.

"Yuan'er, I've got the medicine! I'm going to brew it now!" Uncle Wang poked his head into the room and added, "Those young lasses are working out front, don't you worry about them!"

Cheng Yuan acknowledged him with a hum, only to hear Xie Changzhi murmur something in a low voice. She bent down and leaned in close to listen.

"...Sister..."

Sister? Did Xie Changzhi have an older sister? Cheng Yuan was utterly baffled, though a wave of embarrassment suddenly washed over her—he couldn't possibly mean her, could he?

Before she could puzzle it out, Xie Changzhi fell silent again. Left with no choice, Cheng Yuan pulled up a chair and sat down, tilting her head to watch him.

A sudden wave of doubt arose in her mind. Xie Changzhi appeared to be someone trained in martial arts who exercised regularly; how could he possibly fall ill from a mere chill so easily? Wasn't it only a short while ago that he had fallen sick last time?