Yan Zhen's eyes flashed, and she walked outside.
"Mother!" Zhou Xiruo cried out in alarm. Yan Zhen turned around abruptly, only to find that Ye Qingcheng had already fainted.
Ye Qi hurriedly stepped forward to check Yan Zhen's pulse, then sighed and patted Yan Zhen's shoulder, saying, "My lord, you should stay and take care of Madam."
After saying this, he picked up a prescription and went out.
He didn't walk fast. Although Madam Ye's health was not good, it wasn't so bad that she was about to faint at any moment. In the end, it was best for him not to get involved in Yan Zhen's family affairs. After walking around the corridor, he stopped. In the pavilion not far away, An Xin sat on the railing, swinging her legs slowly, tilting her head and seemingly thinking about something.
Ye Qi thought that if an ordinary woman encountered such a situation, she would have been extremely aggrieved, either crying, getting angry, or turning against Yan Zhen. But she was too calm, and she was never the kind of woman who would wallow in melancholy. Her heart seemed to be fortified with copper and iron walls, and no grievances could penetrate that wall and make her change color.
Ye Qi walked over to her, until he was behind her, and then reached out and suddenly pushed her hard. An Xin, who was caught off guard and lost in thought, fell into the pool with a "plop".
The cool pool water suddenly made An Xin shiver, and she immediately looked up to see Ye Qi sitting casually in the spot where she had just been sitting, grinning in an annoying way: "Ah, sorry, I messed up."
An Xin suddenly sank into the water.
Ye Qi's expression changed. She can't swim!? No, if she can't swim, why did she give him that cold look just now? Before he could react, a pebble suddenly burst out of the water and hurtled towards him!
Ye Qi let out a sigh of relief, but didn't forget to dodge. Then, pebbles came flying at him one after another. Ye Qi laughed loudly: "An Xin, why don't you use this vengeful nature of yours on Yan Zhen! If it weren't for him, you wouldn't have been able to stand this insult!"
The pebble that flew again suddenly broke into two pieces when it reached Ye Qi's face. Ye Qi was unaware of this and instinctively tried to dodge, but he was still hit by the pebble and immediately cried out in pain.
An Xin surfaced, her clothes and hair soaked through, her black hair clinging to her face, but a relaxed smile played on her lips as she said, "Aren't you and Yan Zhen your brothers? Brothers should go to great lengths for each other, so of course I'll get my revenge for the grievances I suffered!"
Ye Qi dodged while shouting, "What kind of twisted logic is this!"
An Xin smiled lazily and said, "Even fallacies are still valid. Didn't you spout a whole bunch of fallacies yourself?"
"What are you two doing?!" Yan Zhen's face was extremely ugly. He had tried his best to escape, so he was naturally worried that she couldn't bear her mother's harsh words. Even if she didn't show it, she must have been upset inside. He never expected that she would run here to take a cold bath and have a water fight!
Seeing how brightly she and Ye Qi were smiling, a sour feeling welled up inside her.
The next moment, An Xin was pulled out. Yan Zhen wrapped her in his outer robe and stared at Ye Qi with a stern face. Ye Qi hurriedly said, "I'm going to buy medicine. You two chat!" After saying that, he ran away faster than a rabbit.
An Xin felt a bit cold from the wind and shivered involuntarily, while Yan Zhen's expression turned even more unpleasant.
"Is your mother alright?" An Xin asked lazily, leaning her head against his chest.
Yan Zhen was suddenly taken aback, never expecting An Xin to ask such a question.
"Don't take what she said to heart..." Yan Zhen paused before speaking.
An Xin looked up at him with her wet eyelashes after a moment of silence, but then laughed and said, "If I cared, would I have come here to have a water fight?"
Yan Zhen's gaze deepened, but her voice carried an unreadable emotion as she sighed softly, "Xin'er..."
---Aside---
Even earlier, haha
Chapter Ninety: Who Threw the Smears?
"Miss An!" An urgent voice suddenly came. An Xin looked up and saw Zhou Xiruo walking over with a worried expression. When her gaze fell on Yan Zhen and her, she paused and then stepped forward. "Miss An, why are you soaked?"
Yan Zhen asked, "Is Mother feeling any better?"
Zhou Xiruo's eyelashes trembled, then she shook her head solemnly and said softly, "Mother's injuries go far beyond her body... By the way, Miss An, Mother spoke in anger, please don't blame her. If, if you can't bear it, I'm willing to take the blame for Mother." (Shu Xianchunqu)
An Xin said indifferently, "Oh." Since Zhou Xiruo was certain that she harbored resentment, what was there for her to explain? Any explanation would only be a cover-up, so she gave a vague reply.
Yan Zhen lowered her eyelashes and said, "You've been soaking in the water for so long, let me take you to change into some dry clothes."
An Xin nodded.
Zhou Xiruo felt uneasy after An Xin's "oh," but she still spoke softly, "Miss An, you can leave it to me. I happen to have some newly made clothes..."
"Xiruo, you go and take care of Mother. I have Xin'er's clothes in my room."
Zhou Xiruo's pupils suddenly trembled, and her voice trembled slightly: "How come there are Miss An's clothes in your room?"
Yan Zhen smiled and said, "This is a long story, so let's not go into it. Xiruo, you're too thin, eat more."
Zhou Xiruo trembled slightly, then lowered her head, her eyes slightly red, and said in a suppressed voice, "Xiruo knows..."
Yan Zhen said calmly, "Minghe, notify the kitchen to boil that thousand-year-old snow lotus and send it to Xiruo's room."
A thousand-year-old snow lotus? The rarity of such a snow lotus is evident simply from its age. However, Zhou Xiruo is indeed too frail; her delicate, fragile appearance, as if she couldn't withstand the cold wind, would evoke pity in even Zhou Xiruo.
"Yan Zhen, would you like to come to my room and keep me company tonight?" Zhou Xiruo asked tremblingly, her head bowed, and Yan Zhen's gaze fell on her.
An Xin's gaze also fell on her, and upon hearing these words, she admitted that she felt a pang of jealousy.
"I... I have something to give you." Seemingly realizing the inappropriateness of her words, Zhou Xiruo lowered her head and explained.
Yan Zhen said gently, "Alright, Xiruo, Mother should be waking up soon, you should go over there quickly."
Zhou Xiruo immediately nodded happily and looked at An Xin, saying, "Miss An, if you have any difficulties, please feel free to come to me. I will do my best to help you, as will my mother and Yan Zhen."
An Xin thought that Zhou Xiruo had rightfully made herself a member of the Right Prime Minister's mansion. Although she was a delicate and weak woman, she still had some cunning, but An Xin was too lazy to bother with it.
"Oh" was still a lukewarm response, which was considered an answer. Zhou Xiruo felt as if she had punched cotton and had nowhere to land. In fact, she did not know that An Xin was actually a stubborn rock, a rock that would inevitably hurt her if she tried to force her way into someone else's arms.
****
An Xin had just changed her clothes when An Wan started causing trouble again. An Xin rushed over and found Zhou Xiruo lying on the ground, covered in medicine. An Wan was angrily scolding her, "Where did this servant come from! Can't you feed medicine? It's so hot, are you trying to scald me to death?!"
An Xin frowned and glanced at An Wan's lips, which were indeed somewhat red and swollen.