Chapter 19: Crying While Writing a Letter to Fu Zhengnan

Shortly after the hour of Mao (5–7 AM), Jiang Qingqing slowly woke up.

In truth, she hadn’t slept well the entire night.

Hearing faint sounds coming from the kitchen, Jiang Qingqing sat up, put on her shoes and socks, and walked over.

Just as she reached the doorway, Jiang Yu came out carrying a plate.

The sudden encounter startled Jiang Qingqing. “What are you doing in there?”

She sniffed the air—it smelled surprisingly good.

Jiang Yu lifted the plate slightly to show her. “Roasting corn.”

Jiang Qingqing looked at the charred black objects on the plate, swallowed, and asked, “This is corn? Is it poisonous?”

Jiang Yu looked a little embarrassed but still nodded.

“It’s corn… It shouldn’t be poisonous.”

Jiang Qingqing: “…”

She didn’t even bother responding.

Stepping past Jiang Yu, she entered the kitchen—only to be met with a sight that nearly made her heart stop.

The ashes scattered across the floor were bad enough, but why was half of the wall scorched pitch black?

Jiang Qingqing felt like crying blood.

“Jiang Yu! Look at what you’ve done!”

Seeing the disaster in the kitchen, Jiang Qingqing instinctively wanted to call for Fu Zhengnan’s help.

But as soon as she came to her senses, she realized—she didn’t really have a reason to ask for divine intervention.

Besides, she would be leaving this little house in just a couple of days.

Jiang Qingqing’s expression suddenly turned gloomy.

“I’m really sorry,” Jiang Yu said apologetically. “I’m not very good at starting fires with those tools.”

He was referring to the stove.

Jiang Qingqing waved a hand dismissively. “Forget it. It is what it is.”

She turned and walked toward the study. Before leaving, she felt she should write a thank-you letter to the divine being.

After all, it had taken good care of her these past few days.

Jiang Yu watched her back and asked, “Your Highness, do you want to eat some?”

Though the food looked unappetizing, at least it could fill the stomach.

Without even turning around, Jiang Qingqing flatly refused, “No. It’s terrible.”

She had been eating well these past few days.

There was no way she’d settle for that.

Jiang Yu: “…”

Alright then.

The room fell into a deep silence.

Jiang Qingqing, feeling sentimental, wrote her letter while silently shedding tears.

Her teardrops blurred the ink on the paper.

“Huu… I don’t want to leave…”

“I still want to eat Dongpo pork!”

“In my next life, I want to be a salted fish… The kind kept as a pet in the divine being’s house.”

At that moment, Fu Zhengnan had just stepped out of the bathroom.

His damp bangs clung slightly to his forehead, and his black sleepwear was loosely unbuttoned, revealing his toned chest.

As he passed by the bedside, he picked up his phone.

On the screen, Jiang Qingqing’s tearful, pitiful face appeared.

Fu Zhengnan’s dark eyes narrowed slightly.

Just like in his dreams…

Always crying.

—

In the living room, Jiang Yu could hear Jiang Qingqing softly sobbing in the study.

He felt unbearably awkward.

Yet he didn’t dare to ask what had happened.

So, he simply turned his back and finished eating the burnt corn.

—

Outside the courtyard, the sound of an intense argument drew the attention of those inside.

“What’s going on out there?”

Jiang Qingqing lifted her tear-streaked face from her desk, her swollen peach blossom eyes blinking in confusion.

Why did she hear Liu Mei’s voice?

Jiang Yu glanced at her, then stood up cautiously. “I’ll go check.”

“Hey, wait! What if you get discovered?”

Jiang Qingqing quickly stopped him.

Right now, Jiang Yu was her only ally.

If he got caught, she’d be left to fight alone.

“I’ll go,” she said. “Liu Xubai won’t do anything to me.”

They had known each other since childhood.

He wasn’t a good person, but at the very least, he wouldn’t harm her.

—

Outside the Courtyard

Liu Mei hadn’t slept all night.

She had been waiting for this morning—to bring her people and humiliate Jiang Qingqing before killing her, making her suffer the same shame she once endured.

But just as her murderous intent toward Jiang Qingqing reached its peak…

She saw something completely unexpected.

Her own older brother—Liu Xubai—who had sworn just a few days ago that he would avenge her…

Was now standing guard outside Jiang Qingqing’s courtyard.

Judging by the dying embers near the carriage, he had likely been waiting there all night.

Liu Mei couldn’t believe it.

“Brother, why are you here?”

Liu Xubai glanced at the group of guards standing behind Liu Mei, his brows faintly furrowing.

“What are you doing?”

His voice was as gentle as ever, calm and composed.

There was no hint of guilt or awkwardness, as if he hadn’t just been caught in a lie.

Liu Mei scrutinized him suspiciously.

Then, she suddenly remembered the conversation she overheard outside the Prime Minister’s wife’s chamber the previous night.

For the first time, she began to doubt Liu Xubai.

“Brother… The day you carried me back to the manor, did you do it on purpose?”

Liu Mei was impulsive and easily angered, but she wasn’t stupid.

Liu Xubai didn’t deny it.

Liu Xu Bai gave a simple order to the guards behind Liu Mei, “Take the Third Miss back.”

The guards obeyed.

As they stepped forward to restrain Liu Mei, she forcefully shoved them away. “Don’t touch me!”

She stared at Liu Xu Bai’s face with burning intensity. At first, she laughed in disbelief, but gradually, her laughter turned hysterical. Then, she lunged at him.

“Liu Xu Bai! I’m your own blood sister! Is this how you treat me?”

Her attack was effortlessly halted as Liu Xu Bai’s fingers wrapped around her throat.

Lowering his gaze, he looked at her with cold, ruthless eyes. The fleeting but deadly aura in his expression made Liu Mei’s cries stop instantly.

“Go back.”

His voice was no longer gentle but filled with irritation.

“The day you drugged my food, you ceased to be my family.”

Liu Mei froze for a moment, shocked that Liu Xu Bai had known about it all along.

But so what?

“You and Sister-in-law have been married for a long time. It’s your duty to bear heirs.”

Besides, this was their mother’s command.

Liu Mei didn’t think she had done anything wrong.

Struggling to break free, she staggered backward. Then, she turned to the guards and commanded, “Kill Jiang Qingqing for me! If you don’t, all of your families will die!”

The guards looked at each other hesitantly.

They were caught between two masters.

Naturally, Liu Xu Bai’s orders took precedence, but Liu Mei was now using their families as leverage, leaving them with no choice.

As the standoff continued, Liu Mei’s gaze landed on Jiang Qingqing, who was peeking through the crack of the door.

A manic smile spread across her lips.

Seizing a nearby guard’s broadsword, Liu Mei strode toward the courtyard.

Since no one dared to act, she would do it herself!

Today, Jiang Qingqing must die!

At this moment, Liu Xu Bai was standing with his back to the courtyard and hadn’t noticed Jiang Qingqing behind the door.

Seeing Liu Mei’s sudden movement, his brows furrowed.

Just as he was about to speak, Liu Mei suddenly bolted toward the courtyard like a madwoman.

“Jiang Qingqing, I’ll kill you!”

Without hesitation, she raised the gleaming, razor-sharp sword. Under the sunlight, the blade reflected a blinding flash.

Jiang Qingqing’s legs trembled.

Wait.

She had only come out to watch the drama unfold!

The moment Liu Mei started walking toward her, Jiang Qingqing had already sensed that something was wrong.

She had slowly begun retreating into the house.

But now, it was too late.

Seeing Liu Mei charging at her with a wild scream, Jiang Qingqing instinctively grabbed a wooden stick from the ground and hurled it at Liu Mei.

It hit her squarely on the forehead.

This only made Liu Mei, already burning with fury, move even faster.

“You’re asking for death!”

As Liu Mei closed in, Liu Xu Bai turned around.

The moment his gaze fell on Jiang Qingqing, Liu Mei had already stepped into the courtyard, only a few paces away from her.

“Qingqing!”

Liu Xu Bai swiftly drew the soft sword at his waist and rushed toward the courtyard.

But someone got to Jiang Qingqing first.

Jiang Yu stepped out from the house, pulled Jiang Qingqing behind him, and snatched the wooden stick from her hands.

With a clean, decisive strike—

He fractured Liu Mei’s right hand.

“Ahh!”

The broadsword fell to the ground as Liu Mei clutched her injured hand, crouching down in pain.

When she looked up and saw Jiang Yu, her frenzied expression shifted into one of triumphant realization.

“Jiang Qingqing, so you finally let your man step in?” She clicked her tongue. “He’s quite handsome, I’ll admit. But he doesn’t look like someone from the capital. Do you think he can really protect you? Does he even know what kind of trouble he’s gotten himself into?”

After taunting Jiang Qingqing, Liu Mei turned her gaze to Jiang Yu.

“You might as well follow me instead…”