Nо wоndеr Unсlе Chi had аskеd hеr bасk then, "What was I dоing?"
Вecаuse Unclе Сhi hаd nеvеr bеen the tуpe to bully the weаk!
Zhоu Shaоjin grabbеd Сhеng Сhi's hand аnd brоkе dоwn сrying, "Unсle Chi, Unclе Сhi..."
"Shaо Jin! Shao Jin!" Chеng Chi said in а deeр vоiсе, саrrуing the steаdу gravitу uniquе tо a mаture mаn, "Dоn't cry! Lеt's tаlk things out рroperlу. Keeрing уоur thoughts hiddеn and turning them ovеr аnd оver in уоur mind аlоnе will оnly lеаd yоu into а dead еnd."
Zhou Shаоjin undеrstoоd this аll tоо well, but whenevеr she thought about how hеr brother-in-law, whо had treаted hеr аs deаrly as a blood brother, might have received favors from the Cheng family, or even possibly used her in a transaction—while her sister remained in the dark, praying to gods and buddhas to bear her husband a son, tormenting herself until she was miserable—her heart ached as if pierced by a knife.
"Alright, alright!" Cheng Chi pulled her into his embrace and said softly, "Don't cry. Just talk to me properly, and I'll help you handle it."
The warm embrace, the familiar scent, and Cheng Chi's promise made Zhou Shaojin feel reassured. She gradually stopped crying, clutched Cheng Chi's lapel, and carefully told him about Liao Shaotang's situation.
Cheng Chi chuckled softly.
The laughter resonated from his chest, vibrating against Zhou Shaojin's eardrums. This sensation felt both novel and inexplicably made her heart race wildly, taking her a while to calm down. She straightened up, feeling somewhat embarrassed.
Cheng Chi didn't take it to heart.
Anyone who had cried as hard as Zhou Shaojin would likely feel embarrassed afterward.
He simply shook his head with a hint of helplessness and said, "What am I to do with you? Let me ask you this: who arranged your marriage?"
"My brother-in-law," Zhou Shaojin replied, puzzled.
Cheng Chi continued, "Then let me ask you: how old were you at that time? How old was your brother-in-law? And what was he doing?"
Zhou Shaojin answered blankly, "I was sixteen at the time. My brother-in-law... was twenty-three, still a scholar. He had just arrived in the capital a year earlier, studying at the Imperial College. Usually, he helped his senior, who served as a Junior Minister of the Judicial Court, with clerical work..."
At that time, some members of the Liao family opposed her brother-in-law becoming the clan heir. His life was very difficult.
After arranging her engagement to Lin Shisheng, she had no dowry. When her sister proposed splitting their birth mother's dowry in half to save face for her, her brother-in-law even helped her sister hide it from the Liao family.
She still remembered how, after her brother-in-law became an official, he used his salary to repay the debt for a long time. It wasn't until Lin Shisheng pulled him into a business deal that her brother-in-law finally repaid the money he had borrowed for her dowry.
Cheng Chi went on, "There's something I haven't told you, but I think you already have a vague impression of it. If you hadn't been planning to go to Putuo Mountain to worship the Buddha, I would have left the Cheng family last autumn. I would have settled either beyond the pass, where the mountains are sealed by ice and snow, or in Guangdong, where it's spring-like all year round. At the very least, I wouldn't have returned for three or four years. And even when I did return, I wouldn't have stayed home for long—just to visit my mother before leaving again. After that, I would have come back to see my mother every few years..."
Zhou Shaojin began to understand.
She blinked, and a glimmer of light gradually appeared in her previously dull gaze. "Are you saying that, at first, my brother-in-law didn't expect to receive support from the Cheng family?"Cheng Chi said, "I have no recollection of past life events. I don't know. However, given my mother's character, if something like that had happened to you, she wouldn't have been able to stand by and watch you leave just like that. But it's also possible that when you encountered trouble, it coincided with the time I was leaving. She was grieving at that moment and lacked both the energy and spirit to attend to such matters." He paused briefly before continuing, "If I were to handle it now, if it were impossible for you and Cheng Jiashan to be together, my first thought would likely be to compensate you, ensuring you never want for food or clothing in this lifetime." Yet Shaojin would rather enter into a sham marriage with someone else than marry Cheng Xu, which shows how tense the situation must have been back then. "If you refused to accept that, I might have thought of your father. But from what you've said, in your past life, you were actually under the protection of your brother-in-law. Since he was only a few years older than you and quite responsible, choosing him as your refuge would have been the most suitable option."
His words were like a ray of sunlight piercing through Zhou Shaojin's desolate heart.
Her eyes grew increasingly bright.
"Uncle Chi, you're absolutely right!" she said excitedly. "Later, when the Cheng family fell, my brother-in-law was even willing to sacrifice his position as the heir of the Liao family to ensure my sister and nephew's safety... I wrongly judged him with a petty heart and misunderstood him."
Cheng Chi nodded with a smile.
Zhou Shaojin couldn't help but tug at Cheng Chi's sleeve, somewhat sheepishly saying, "Uncle Chi, thank you! If it weren't for you, I would have definitely misunderstood my brother-in-law."
All those beautiful feelings and memories from her past life would have been destroyed in an instant.
Seeing her childlike demeanor, Cheng Chi smiled and patted her head, admonishing her gently, "In the future, when you encounter such matters, think more carefully. Don't cry at the drop of a hat—crying doesn't solve anything."
Zhou Shaojin nodded, her face flushed, and couldn't resist asking, "Uncle Chi, do you think my brother-in-law in my past life knew whether he had received kindness from you or the old lady?"
Cheng Chi replied, "What difference does it make whether he knew or not? In life, things aren't just black or white—there are shades of gray too. He helped you when you were at odds with the Cheng family, and he stood by your sister and nephew when the Cheng family collapsed. He is a person of noble character, and that is more than enough."
Only then did Zhou Shaojin truly feel at ease, breaking into a radiant smile.
Cheng Chi breathed a sigh of relief and said gently, "I'll have Nanny Shang bring in water so you can freshen up. After that, go pay your respects to my mother and then return to Flat Bridge Street. In a few days, I'll escort you to Baoding Prefecture."
Why was Uncle Chi still insisting on sending her to Baoding Prefecture?
Zhou Shaojin pouted and said, "I don't want to go to Baoding Prefecture. I want to stay in Nine Prosperities Lane." Thinking of what she had done while Cheng Chi was away, she felt a bit proud and added, "Uncle Chi, my father has already written back, saying I should stay in Jia Shu Hall. Even if you want to send me away, there's nothing you can do about it now!"
"Is that so?" Cheng Chi raised an eyebrow.
Zhou Shaojin's heart began to pound rapidly.
"Uncle Chi, you can't do this!" she exclaimed, jumping to her feet. "You were the one who said I could stay in Nine Prosperities Lane. Now you're going back on your word. I don't care—I want to stay in Nine Prosperities Lane. If you try to send me to Baoding Prefecture, I'll... I'll tell the old lady. I'll say that you... that you..."
She stammered for a long while, unsure how to threaten Cheng Chi effectively.Cheng Chi chuckled and said, "It seems your only skill is tattling on me to my mother!"
Zhou Shaojin's cheeks flushed crimson, but she brazenly replied, "At least it counts as a skill!"
Cheng Chi burst into hearty laughter.
Shaojin then tugged at his sleeve, calling out repeatedly, "Uncle Chi, Uncle Chi!"
Her voice was sweet and soft, like a coquettish plea that sank straight into Cheng Chi's heart.
Cheng Chi had no choice but to say, "My eldest brother wrote me a letter. Cheng Jiashan will be returning in the middle of next month. I've thought carefully about your situation, and I'm afraid it's not that simple. Even if Cheng Jiashan is a scoundrel, he wouldn't bully you... I suspect he genuinely admires you. So, someone must have set a trap regarding this matter."
Even in this second life, Cheng Jiashan had still fallen for Shaojin.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have humbled himself to chase after her.
And Shaojin wouldn't have fled into the Three Branches Pavilion just to avoid him.
"I've been very busy lately, and I'm afraid I won't be able to protect you thoroughly, leaving an opening for others to take advantage."
He suspected this matter was related to the Second Branch's patriarch, Cheng Xu.
And Shaojin's identity and status made her the perfect target.
If Cheng Xu were to take action personally, and he couldn't stay at home all the time, Shaojin would surely suffer just as she had in her previous life.
Just thinking about the expression on Zhou Shaojin's face when she answered "I don't hate him" made Cheng Chi's heart ache faintly.
"Be a good girl and go to Baoding Prefecture. I..." He didn't know how to reward her. After thinking for a long time, he said, "Then I'll promise you one thing."
His words reminded Zhou Shaojin.
Her eyes sparkled as she excitedly said, "Uncle Chi, Uncle Chi, have you forgotten? When I told you that Huang Li would compete with Uncle Jing for the position of Minister of Rites, you once said you could promise me one thing. I don't want anything else—I just want you to promise to let me stay in Nine Prosperities Lane."
Cheng Chi felt a headache coming on. "That doesn't count! Choose something else!"
"Uncle Chi, you're being unfair!" Zhou Shaojin kept circling around him, calling out "Uncle Chi," and even seized the opportunity to promise, "I'll stay with the Old Madam, never leaving her side, and I won't pay attention to anyone who comes."
Cheng Chi didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What if Biyu invites you to kick shuttlecock in the courtyard? Will you still not go?"
Zhou Shaojin muttered softly, "Cheng Xu will only cause trouble if he passes the provincial examination with the highest honors... What about you? Are you so busy that you can't finish everything even by August?"
"Cheng Jiashan is the top scholar?" Cheng Chi's heart skipped a beat as he whispered, "Are you certain it was after Cheng Jiashan passed the provincial examination with the highest honors?"
If Cheng Jiashan became the top scholar, given his personality, he would surely leave with even greater ease.
It took Zhou Shaojin a moment to understand what he was asking.
"That's how it was in my previous life," she murmured. "But I don't know if anything will change in this life?"
Cheng Chi suddenly said, "If Cheng Jiashan becomes the top scholar, then you can stay."
Zhou Shaojin blinked.
She had thought Uncle Chi would say, "If Cheng Jiashan becomes the top scholar, then I'll send you to Baoding Prefecture."
Why was this completely opposite to what she had imagined?
She couldn't help but ask, "Why?"Cheng Chi glanced at her sideways and said, "Last time my elder brother asked about Jiashan's marriage, my sister-in-law said the reason the engagement between the Cheng and Min families has been delayed is to let Jiashan focus on his studies. I never quite understood where this 'focus' came from. Now I finally understand. Jiashan probably thought that once he passed the provincial examination as the top scholar, he could marry you. But my sister-in-law had already made an agreement with the Min family, so naturally she couldn't arrange a marriage for Jiashan..."
So after Jiashan became the top scholar and realized he was to marry a girl from the Min family, he seized the opportunity to fulfill his own wish without hesitation.
Cheng Chi finally felt a little better.
At least Cheng Jiashan wasn't completely rotten beyond redemption.
Zhou Shaojin also began to understand.
She nervously asked Cheng Chi, "Then, what do you plan to do? I, I don’t want to marry Cheng Xu!"
※
Dear readers, today's update is scheduled...
o(n_n)o~
※ (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to...)
!!
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