Kiyomi Tsuki and His Fox

Chapter 16

It's not that Qing Jianyue's speech was intermittent and incoherent; it was simply because her oxygen supply had been cut off. The Cai brothers and Zhou Jie and his son used all their strength, dragging and pulling, to finally rescue Qing Jianyue from Lei Yongxiang's grasp.

The nanny hurriedly helped Qing Jianyue up, calling out, "Young Master Jianyue, are you alright?"

"Half of my life was strangled away." Kiyomi Tsuki rubbed her neck with both hands.

Cai Bo'an angrily said, "Zhonghe, take Jianyue and leave quickly."

Cai Zhonghe grabbed Qing Jianyue and dragged her outside, yelling, "Aren't you leaving? Do you want to die?"

“It’s no use. No matter where I run, he will hunt me down.” Qing Jianyue broke free from Cai Zhonghe’s hand.

"Qing Jianyue, if you're a man, don't run away. Fight me properly!" Lei Yongxiang's voice boomed like thunder. "Otherwise, I won't let you go."

"Does being a man mean you have to duel?" Kiyomi asked whimsically. "Then can I not be a man?"

Cai Zhonghe stumbled and nearly fell over, cursing, "You still have the leisure to joke with him? He really might kill you."

With three thuds, Cai Bo'an, Steward Zhou, and Zhou Jie fell to the ground in three different directions. Lei Yongxiang approached Qing Jianyue menacingly. Cai Zhonghe closed his eyes, thinking: It's over. The nanny's mouth was open, and her hands were flailing wildly in the air, as if she wanted to stop Lei Yongxiang by herself.

Kiyoshi didn't run away. With her hands on her hips, she shouted, "Lei Yongxiang, it's fine if you kill me. If you kill me, Sherry will die with me immediately."

The wet nurse nodded frantically, but still couldn't utter a single word.

Whether it was because Qing Jianyue's threat of Yang Xueli worked on Lei Yongxiang, or because Lei Yongxiang's mind suddenly calmed down, he stared at Qing Jianyue with a gloomy expression, "What did you do to Xueli?"

Kiyomi Tsuki felt her hair stand on end under his gaze, and she was so nervous that she could barely speak. "Huh? I didn't do anything to Sherry. Sherry likes me, and she wants to marry me. She hates you, do you understand?"

Lei Yongxiang nearly bit his teeth to pieces.

"Aren't you going to marry Miss Zhou yourself? Why can't Xue Li marry?" Qing Jianyue's deep-seated fear gradually subsided. "What are you planning if you forbid Xue Li from remarrying?"

The Zhou family, including Steward Zhou, watched this scene with utter disbelief.

Cai Zhonghe's mind raced. He thought to himself, "Why would Jian Yue say such a thing? Something's not right. Jian Yue isn't the kind of person who's lustful. There must be some deeper meaning behind his actions." He immediately looked at the wet nurse, who was watching Lei Yongxiang and Qing Jian Yue with a mixture of nervousness and worry. She wanted to speak several times, but hesitated and swallowed her words. Seeing this, Cai Zhonghe became even more certain. Yes, there's definitely something fishy going on here.

Cai Bo'an's anger turned to joy. He was thinking of something else entirely: if Yang Xueli married Qing Jianyue, Lei Yongxiang might pull himself out of his predicament, marry Zhou Yanhua, and then follow him back to Lujiabao to serve. The more he thought about it, the more brilliant the idea seemed.

"Yongxiang, calm down. We can talk this over. If you keep acting like this, Miss Yang will be heartbroken."

“That’s right, sit down and let’s talk.” Cai Zhonghe made up his mind; whatever Qing Jianyue wanted to do, he would support her. He wanted to see how Qing Jianyue would deal with this cripple.

Under the persuasion of Steward Zhou and his son, Lei Yongxiang sat down in a fit of rage. Qing Jianyue gave the wet nurse a wink, and the wet nurse nodded hastily. Their actions did not escape Cai Zhonghe's keen eyes.

The wet nurse stammered, "This old servant knows that saying this is truly ungrateful. But who could believe that since the young lady met Young Master Jian Yue, she has become a completely different person, radiant and glowing, regaining her former beauty as the most beautiful woman? It's been three years since I've seen the young lady smile so happily. This old servant has finally seen hope; only Young Master Jian Yue can bring happiness to our young lady. Second Master, I beg you, please grant our young lady's wish."

"Sherry has gone mad, and you've gone mad too!" Lei Yongxiang roared excitedly. "Sherry only sees Qing Jianyue as a substitute for her older brother. They will never be happy."

The nanny gave a cold laugh, "Does Second Master think he can bring happiness to our young lady?"

Lei Yongxiang turned completely pale and cold.

The wet nurse felt a pang of pity, but knowing that a short, sharp pain was better than a long, drawn-out one, she gritted her teeth and said, "Please, Second Master, grant our young lady's wish to be with Young Master Jianyue."

“Yongxiang, things have come to this, so just grant Jianyue and Xueli their wish. Miss Yang has been able to observe three years of mourning for Yongqing, which is enough to show her respect for him.” Cai Bo’an didn’t even look at Lei Yongxiang’s grief-stricken eyes. “Whether you like it or not, this is the only way. I will make the decision on this matter. I am your senior brother, and I still have this right.”

Lei Yongxiang slowly got up, looking so lost and dejected that it sent chills down everyone's spine.

What's most infuriating is that Qing Jianyue actually provoked him again, "Lei Yongxiang, you're not going to jump into the lake and commit suicide, are you?" Lei Yongxiang's gaze slowly moved to Qing Jianyue's face, and Qing Jianyue trembled and said, "Pretend I didn't say anything. Jump into the lake or hang yourself, whatever, whatever."

"Kiyomizuki, I'll kill you."

"Father! Help!"

To celebrate Qing Jianyue's upcoming marriage to a stunningly beautiful woman, Grandma Cai prepared a feast for the guests that evening. Qing Jianyue was all smiles, delighted to once again enjoy Grandma Cai's signature dishes. While he was happy, the others were preoccupied with their own thoughts. After dinner, everyone moved to the flower hall for tea.

Grandma Cai said gently and charmingly, "Jianyue, I hope the food tonight will suit your taste. Because it was all done in such a rush, there may be some shortcomings."

Qing Jianyue put another small pastry into her mouth and mumbled, "Sister's cooking is first-rate. I'm so envious of Enforcer Cai. He gets to eat so much delicious food every day. Hmm." She ate too fast and choked, pounding her chest in frustration.

Cai Zhonghe handed him a cup of tea, saying, "Be careful you don't choke."

Kiyomizuki snatched the tea and took a sip to calm down, then sighed contentedly, "Thank goodness I didn't choke to death. Keep eating, haha, eat until you're a little fat pig, huffing and puffing and unable to walk."

Cai Zhonghe sprayed a mouthful of tea onto Qing Jianyue, completely ruining his elegant and dashing image, and then burst into loud laughter in a very impolite manner.

Kiyomi Tsuki held the pastries in both hands, ready to put them in her mouth, her face showing an expression of uncontrollable anger. She yelled, "Don't ruin my appetite! How dare you spit on me! You have no manners. Hmph, mmm, the pastries are delicious."

Lei Yongxiang looked like he couldn't stand it and wanted to kill someone, while Steward Zhou and his son wanted to laugh but dared not.

Finally having eaten and drunk their fill, Qing Jianyue grabbed Cai Zhonghe's snow-white sleeve and wiped it on her mouth. By the time Cai Zhonghe snatched the sleeve back, it was too late; a large oil stain had fallen onto it. He raised his hand to hit her, but unexpectedly, Qing Jianyue shouted loudly.

"Although supporting a wife is expensive, for Brother Lei, for Miss Shirley, and for the Great Law Enforcement, I, Qing Jianyue, will sacrifice myself and marry Miss Yang."

Lei Yongxiang glared fiercely, his eyes wide, as if he wanted to devour him.

Cai Bo'an blushed slightly, revealing a hint of embarrassment. Even so, he still managed a smile, "Jianyue, in my opinion, let's finalize the marriage first, and then, after we return and report to the fortress lord, we can hold the wedding for you and Miss Yang, how about that?"

Kiyoshi shivered several times; he couldn't help it, a chill seeped into his heart. Needless to say, that chill came from Lei Yongxiang's cold eyes, like a black cheetah lurking in the grass, ready to pounce on him with lightning speed, capable of biting off his slender neck in one bite.

"You, Chief Enforcer, do you really want me to marry Miss Yang?"

Cai Bo'an frowned and said, "Why do you say that, Jian Yue? You've even seen Miss Yang's body. Do you intend to shirk responsibility?"

"I really want to take responsibility, but what if I get killed because of it?" Kiyomi Tsuki shouted, "And what if I marry someone I don't even know?"

"What do you mean by 'unclear and ambiguous'?" Cai Bo'an asked, displeased.

“Since the Chief Enforcer insists that I marry Miss Yang, he should tell me the truth about Lei Yongqing’s murder back then.”