Peaceful Jianghu - Chapter 52
Xiao Dao was somewhat bewildered, "Wife... what does this mean?"
Ms. Zhai answered lightly, "It shows that all the suffering I've endured over the years hasn't been in vain."
"All these years of your wholehearted devotion, is this all you deserve—just one word, 'wife'?" Xiao Dao asked, astonished.
"Then what do you think it should be worth?" Miss Zhai reached out to straighten Xiao Dao's sleeves. "I can endure it, as long as I am still Fourth Brother's only wife. That's why he chose me from among so many women back then."
...
Xue Beifan got up early, intending to go and tease Xiaodao to wake him up, but when he got to the door, he only saw Xiaoyue folding clothes.
"What about that crazy girl?"
Xiaoyue said sternly, "You're not allowed to talk about Xiaodao like that."
"Okay, okay, where's your good sister, the beauty Yan Xiaodao?"
Xiaoyue's lips curled up slightly. "She went to see Wen Si about his condition early this morning."
Xue Beifan smiled, "As expected." He turned and went out. As soon as he entered the courtyard, he saw Xiao Dao sitting quietly by the lotus pond, staring blankly at the withered lotus leaves and dried lotus pods, his expression unusually lonely.
Xue Beifan shook his head, walked over and sat down next to her. "What's wrong?"
Xiao Dao continued staring blankly ahead, then said aimlessly, "Miss Zhai said that she would endure, and only through endurance would Wen Si truly belong to her."
Xue Beifan rested his chin on his hand and said, "Oh, this woman is quite clever."
"Pah!" Xiao Dao said somewhat resentfully. "It's so frustrating."
Xue Beifan reached out and grabbed her hair. "Silly girl, everyone has their own way of living. Why bother with others?"
"Could Seventh Concubine also be considered to be enduring?" Xiao Dao continued to mutter to himself, "She clearly likes Wen Si. Compared to Wen Si's dashing and charming demeanor, Cai Bian is lewd and despicable. The two are worlds apart. Why would she go to such lengths to please Cai Bian? Why would she fight for his favor and affection?"
"Let's fight it out." Xue Beifan picked up a pebble, stood up, turned to the side, and skipped it across the water. "That's how love, fame, and fortune are. Either fight for them or endure them. It's better than sitting and waiting."
Xiao Dao puffed out her cheeks slightly, stood up, patted the grass dust off her skirt, and decided to leave.
"Where to?" Xue Beifan asked, pulling her arm. "Shall we go out for breakfast?"
Xiao Dao broke free of his hand, glared at him, and said, "I'm not talking to you. We're on different paths."
"That serious?" Xue Beifan was startled. "What did I say?!"
Xiao Dao ignored him and decided to go find Xiao Yue for breakfast.
"How about I bet you?" Xue Beifan suddenly said.
Xiao Dao turned around, puzzled. "What are you betting on?"
Xue Beifan bent down slightly and leaned close to Xiao Dao's eyes, "Before noon, Wen Si will make you look at him in a new light."
“He has made me look at him in a new light.” Xiao Dao curled his lip. “I originally thought he was just a womanizer, but now I know he’s a heartless man.”
"Tsk tsk." Xue Beifan extended a finger and gently waved it. "A womanizer and a heartless man aren't that bad. You haven't seen enough bad men."
Before Xiao Dao could retort, a commotion suddenly broke out outside. The two ran out and saw several constables escorting Liao Xiaoqing, about to take her away.
"What are you doing?" Xiao Dao asked, puzzled.
“That’s a vixen.” The head constable looked at the steward.
The butler was holding a package. "These were found in Miss Liao's room. There was a straw doll, nails, and a wooden mallet."
The constables also produced a yellow paper packet, saying, "We also found poison in her room; she probably planned to poison me after staying there for a few days!"
Xiao Dao thought to himself, "What does this have to do with anything?"
"Senior brother?" Liao Xiaoqing called out to Wen Si, hoping he would plead for her.
At this moment, Wen Si remained calm and unhurried, saying, "Haven't you made me suffer enough?"
Liao Xiaoqing looked at him in surprise, tears welling up in her eyes, "You actually..."
Wen Si sighed and waved his hand at the constables, "There must be someone behind her who knows demonic magic plotting this. Please arrest them all and give me peace in the future."
"Wen Si!" Liao Xiaoqing was no longer the gentle and docile woman she had been moments before. Her eyes were bloodshot and her face contorted with rage. Her makeup also looked rather strange. She struggled and shouted, "I want you dead, you heartless man!"
Xiao Dao and Xue Beifan exchanged a glance—sure enough, he's still crazy!
The foreman glared at Liao Xiaoqing and said, "Are you crazy woman bewitched by that mountain witch? If you keep causing trouble, the prefect might order you to be burned alive!"
Liao Xiaoqing just stared straight at Wen Si, but Wen Si remained expressionless, leaning against the bed without a trace of pity.
"Haha..." Liao Xiaoqing struggled wildly, and the two constables could not hold her down. Her hair was disheveled and she was in a terrible state. She laughed, "It's true that actors are heartless. All your previous feelings were fake!"
Wen Si smiled faintly, "If I don't keep you calm, how can I catch you red-handed?"
Xiao Dao was secretly alarmed. This Wen Si was suffering from four major illnesses, yet he still managed to scheme against Liao Xiaoqing! Just how cunning was this man?
Xiao Dao felt that what he had seen from last night to this morning was truly fascinating—first he thought Wen Si was too promiscuous and had wronged his former lover, then he thought Wen Si was heartless and had let down his wife, but now, looking at Miss Zhai and Liao Xiaoqing, Xiao Dao couldn't help but sigh... His heart was as hard as iron, and women were just playthings in his hands.
“That’s called hatred.” Xue Beifan appeared beside Xiao Dao at some point and said in a low voice, “Miss Zhai’s love is forbearance, Seventh Madam’s love is struggle, while Liao Xiaoqing’s love is hatred… Which one do you think is more genuine and more pitiful?”
Xiao Dao looked up at him and saw that Xue Beifan's smile had faded. "All that is beautiful is just what it seems. Love, in the end, is nothing more than endurance, struggle, and hatred, in an endless cycle. So, when the flowers bloom and fade, and the shadow of the locust tree is broken and crushed by the wind, anyone who believes in the immortality of true love is a fool."
Xiao Dao suddenly looked up at Xue Beifan.
Xue Beifan raised an eyebrow. "You're even more foolish. Don't fall for me. I'm even worse than Wen Si."