False evidence

Chapter 265 Diary (1)

That evening, after dinner, Meng Chao went to Monkey's house.

After exchanging a glance with Xie Xiaohuan, Fang Ling took an old notebook from the room.

My eyelids twitched.

Fang Ling said, "This is the diary that Xiao Huan mentioned."

I glanced at Jie Xiaohuan.

Fang Ling sat down next to her and said, "The diary was given to Xiao Huan by her mother before she passed away. Because of the funeral arrangements, she only started reading it on this train journey. So, she also finds many things strange."

I nodded, finally understanding why Jie Xiaohuan had been stammering during the day.

Fang Ling was really concerned; otherwise, she wouldn't have had Xie Xiaohuan bring out the diary in less than half an afternoon.

"Can I look at it?" I found it hard to suppress my curiosity about such an unusual diary.

Xie Xiaohuan looked at Fang Ling, as if seeking her consent.

Fang Ling handed me the diary directly and instructed me, "Be careful when you flip through it, don't damage it."

I was a little surprised, wondering what kind of conversation she had with Xie Xiaohuan.

Judging from the way Jie Xiaohuan looked at him, he was practically relying on her.

After just one glance at the cover of the notebook, I was almost certain of who the diary's owner was.

The hard cover had no writing on it, but was covered with a layer of red, yellow and blue silk embroidery.

I don't know much about silk embroidery, but I can still tell how exquisite the embroidery is.

Fang Ling said, "The cover is embroidered by the Cao family. The diary was written by Xiao Huan's maternal grandmother and her mother. And the second half... I can't explain it clearly right now. You can take a look first."

I carefully opened the cover, and on the yellowed title page, a line of strong, vigorous characters came into view.

—A gift to the love of my life.

The signature at the end was only one character.
--letter!

The notebook was actually given by Lü Xin to Xie Xiaohuan's maternal grandmother.

The embroidered cover was probably added later by Xie Xiaohuan's maternal grandmother to protect the diary.

My one true love...

Seeing these four words, I felt nothing but utter irony.

Fang Ling must have already read the contents of the diary. I wonder what she felt when she saw Lü Xin's handwritten message.

Turning to the second page, the font had already changed.

The handwriting is delicate and neat, clearly the work of a woman.

I skimmed through two paragraphs and couldn't help but sigh to myself:

This eldest mistress of the Cao family was definitely one of the few talented women of her time.

Moreover, compared to women of the same period, they were bolder and more avant-garde in matters of the heart.

She even wrote directly in the second paragraph: "Leaving the Cao family and wandering the world with you is the happiest decision of my life."

After passing this chapter and turning a few more pages, I gradually found myself unable to put it down.

Aside from the opening remarks, there are no fancy words afterward; it's just a simple account of what happened each day.

However, every single thing recorded, even every detail, is full of interest... and twists and turns.

For example, one of the passages reads:
Today, as I gazed out the window with melancholy, a light rain continued to fall. Then he returned.

I was overjoyed to see him return in the rain carrying a bouquet of flowers.

However, upon receiving the bouquet, I realized it was actually a patchwork of various fruits, vegetables, and leafy greens.

He laughed and said, "We're not broke, but we should still be thrifty. After admiring the 'delicate flowers,' let's cook them. I'm hungry."

After the meal, he took out the cantaloupe he had secretly hidden and, like a big shot, made me wash and cut it.

But before cutting the melon, he looked at me strangely and said, "Cut it slowly, don't ruin it."

I was furious—not worried about cutting my hand, but worried about this rotten melon. The deliberate slashing… I'm so regretful, so incredibly regretful!
This wicked person actually hid a necklace inside the melon.

With that one stab... sigh...

I have no idea how he came up with this ridiculous idea. Ha...

It's still raining outside.

By the window, under the same lamp.

He sat across from me, squinting, carefully mending the necklace I had cut.

As I listened to the rain and watched him, I recorded the seventh day of our family's formation.

……

Pidan rested his head on my arm, rolled his eyes and looked up at me: "You're not as romantic as him."

"I can be even more wild than him when I want to be!"

While saying this, he was actually thinking: This set of tricks to please women may not seem special now, but back then, no matter how clever the idea or how well the lines were, even the most aloof woman would be moved.

In particular, the necklace was cut off.

That was most likely something Lü Xin did on purpose.

It's likely that the chain wasn't actually worth much; Lu Xin's ultimate goal was probably to show his focus on women under the lamplight on a rainy night.

Pidan pinched my waist. "You should learn from this. Since we met, you haven't even given me a single broccoli."

"Didn't I ask you to make a cold broccoli salad at noon?"

As I was saying this, I was about to continue scrolling down when I looked up and saw Fang Ling and Xie Xiaohuan both looking at me with different expressions.

I realized what was going on and felt a little embarrassed: "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry into people's privacy..."

For the first time, Xie Xiaohuan smiled: "It's okay. When I saw these things on the train, I couldn't help but laugh too. And... there was another feeling I can't quite describe."

I laughed and said, "Me too. If this were typed on a computer now, this part wouldn't be very interesting. But vertical small regular script, traditional Chinese characters with a brush... who wouldn't find it strange? Right, it feels like... the man has traveled back to that era."

Xie Xiaohuan smiled and nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, that's exactly the feeling!"

I apologized verbally, but my hands and eyes didn't stop; I just sped up the flipping through the pages.

Fang Ling couldn't help but remind me again: "Be careful, don't break it."

"I know……"

Before the words were finished, there was a 'sizzle' sound.

I tore the page I had just turned to in half from the root.

I really didn't use much force; I can only say that this notebook is really old, and the paper has become brittle.

"You really are..." Fang Ling was getting a little angry. She turned to Xie Xiaohuan, her eyes full of apology.

Pidan defended me, saying, "He didn't do it on purpose. This notebook is too old. I'm sorry, Xiaohuan, I'm really sorry, I apologize to you."

Jie Xiaohuan shook her head: "It's nothing, I know he didn't do it on purpose. Before on the train, I also accidentally..."

I didn't hear anything she said after that.

Because when the paper was torn, I seemed to smell a faint stench.

As the smell penetrated my nasal cavity, my eyelids began to feel heavy, and my mind became foggy in a short time.

After what seemed like a few seconds of drowsiness, I came to my senses.

Pidan was still beside me, but the people opposite me were no longer Fang Ling and Xie Xiaohuan, but two people I never expected to appear at this moment.

The change of scenery and the replacement of characters left me stunned.

However, what I saw the next second truly made me gasp in astonishment:

"Stop! Let her go!"

(End of this chapter)