Binding Spring Love

After Jiang Xingjian left, Song Wan washed up, changed her clothes, and continued looking at the account books. However, the cat kept meowing after waking up.

"Do you miss your mother?"

Song Wan gently soothed the cat by placing it in her palm. Whether the cat was tired from crying or felt safe, it fell asleep in her palm again.

Song Wan placed it on a soft cushion, then picked up a needle and thread and quickly sewed a cloth bell to tie around its neck.

The bell contained some calming herb, and the cat became much quieter after wearing it.

Song Wan summoned Hengzhi and gently stroked the fluffy little creature, saying, "Return it to Qingzhai of the second branch tomorrow, and tell them that I am currently too busy to take care of it."

Although she was said to be unable to care for the child, her actions were very gentle. Hengzhi felt sorry for her and said, "If Miss likes to stay, what's wrong with that? This servant will take good care of her this time and will never let the accident like last time happen again."

"It's not a matter of taking good care of them."

Looking at the cat sleeping soundly, Song Wan felt a pang of sadness in her heart.

These past few days, she seems to still see the golden tiger's figure. When she's half asleep at night, she feels like the golden tiger is right beside her. She truly misses the golden tiger, but she doesn't want to find another cat to replace it.

Six years of friendship, how can it be replaced so easily?

"You know how stingy the golden tiger is. It'll be angry if it finds out I've got a new cat."

Song Wan fiddled with the cloth bell on the kitten, suppressing her soreness.

The golden tiger died unexpectedly, and the culprit, after shouting for two days that it wasn't intentional, never mentioned it again. Jiang Xingjian didn't care at all; in such a large Marquis's mansion, besides her and Hengzhi, who would care about the life or death of a cat?

If even they hurriedly find a new cat, it would be too unfair to the golden tiger.

"Take good care of it and don't let it catch a cold."

After giving his instructions, Song Wan continued to gather the curtains.

The next day, Hengzhi took the kitten to the second room, but before she could see Qingzhai, she ran into Jiang Yan, who was returning from paying his respects at Fuhe Hall.

Jiang Yan frowned slightly when he saw her holding the bamboo basket.

"Greetings, Second Master Yan."

"Why are you holding it here?"

Hengzhi said, "My mistress said she is currently too busy to care for the baby, and asked me to thank Second Master for his kindness."

Logically, the cat shouldn't have been returned to him by Song Wan's personal maid, but when Jiang Yan saw Heng Zhi, he knew that the woman didn't trust Jiang Xingjian and was afraid that he would harm innocent lives again.

The thought that Song Wanxin was even better than her husband sent a chill down Jiang Yan's spine, and he felt his hands trembling uncontrollably.

His voice was slightly hoarse: "Does your sister-in-law not like it?"

Hengzhi shook her head, her tone tinged with sadness: "My grandmother misses the golden tiger. She feels sorry for it whenever she sees it, which is why she asked me to return it to the Second Master. I suppose my grandmother knows that the cat can only live peacefully in the Second House."

Jiang Yan's cheeks flushed slightly with excitement, but his voice remained steady: "Go back and tell your sister-in-law to rest assured that nothing will go wrong here with me."

"Hengzhi thanks Second Master on behalf of my grandmother."

Hengzhi handed the bamboo basket to the maid behind Jiang Yan, bowed, and left Yulingzhai. Jiang Yan then carried the bamboo basket back to his bedroom.

Jiang Yan scooped the cat out of the water, looked at its amber eyes and smiled, "You've got some luck."

Jiang Yan removed the small, simple cloth bell and stared blankly at the neat and fine stitches on it.

The cloth bells emitted a faint grassy scent and were made rather casually, clearly not by a maid.

Jiang Yan carefully held the cat in his palm and said to it in a good mood, "It's mine now."

After carefully examining the items for a while, he reluctantly took out a white jade box and placed the contents inside. Looking at the old book and plain handkerchief inside, Jiang Yan's eyes softened.

When Qingzhai entered the room, he saw him leaning back in a pearwood armchair, his eyes revealing a rare look of pleasure.

"Second Master, Consort Liu requests an audience."

"not see."

Upon hearing the name Aunt Liu, Jiang Yan's expression turned cold. However, before he could say anything more, a shrill female voice came from outside.

A beautiful and graceful middle-aged woman walked in. In just a few steps, her waist seemed to break. She wore seven or eight hairpins and ornaments, and the jingling sound made Jiang Yan squint.

"You heartless, despicable bastard, how dare you block your own mother from entering the courtyard? Even if you've grown up and become powerful, you still came from my womb, didn't you? These past few years you've increasingly disregarded me, and now these few worthless maids in this courtyard dare to shit on my head?"

As soon as Aunt Liu entered the room, she launched into a tirade, her foul language causing Jiang Yan and the maids in the room to frown.

She had assumed Jiang Yan's succession to the title was a foregone conclusion, but who knew that someone who should have been long dead would suddenly rise from the dead. Her hard-won wealth and status vanished like a chicken dropping into a shell, leaving Aunt Liu so angry she couldn't sleep or eat properly.

What's even more infuriating is that when she tried to discuss a solution with her son, she was stopped by someone for three days.

If she hadn't scratched the gatekeeper's face today, she wouldn't have been able to get in.

"You spineless coward, you have plenty of ways to deal with me. If you're so ambitious, why don't you go and try it yourself..."

Qingzhai coughed lightly: "Auntie, please watch your words."

Aunt Liu glared at her fiercely and sneered, "You little harlot, who do you think you are to criticize me?"

"What are you doing, barging into my yard and acting so arrogantly?"

Jiang Yan gestured for Qingzhai and the maid in the room to leave, then pressed his temples, his good mood from before completely gone.

"What are they supposed to do outside? Is there anything they can't hear? What are you busy with all day? Do you want that dead man Jiang Xingjian to inherit the title of Marquis without a second thought?"

Jiang Yan scoffed, "He is the eldest son of the Marquis's family, and it is rightful for him to inherit the title. Let alone the fact that I have no interest in the Marquis's position, even if I were to inherit the title and become the Marquis of Chengyang in the future, what would that have to do with you?"

"You heartless, rotten little bastard! You crawled out of my guts, and I, as your mother, can't even benefit from your child's good fortune?"

As Aunt Liu spoke, she stretched out her bright red fingernails to scratch Jiang Yan's face.

Since the Marquis's passing, she had become accustomed to throwing tantrums in the courtyard. Although she knew that Jiang Yan disliked her, she still took advantage of her status as his birth mother and made many excessive demands. In the past, she only acted so wildly because she thought that Jiang Yan would inherit the title in the future.

She thought she could still control her son as she did when he was a child, but to her surprise, as soon as she reached out, Jiang Yan firmly gripped her wrist.

"Who do you call yourself a mother? Since ancient times, which concubine has ever dared to call herself the mother of a child?"

Jiang Yan's hand gripped Aunt Liu tightly like an iron clamp. Aunt Liu was frightened by the fierce look in his eyes and stammered, not daring to speak.

"Don't show your face in front of me unless it's absolutely necessary. Just stay in the manor and be a good concubine. If you provoke me again, don't blame me for taking action against Liu Chengxiang."

"You dare! What else do you want to do to your uncle? Huh..."

Jiang Yan grabbed Aunt Liu's long, bright red fingernails and snapped them off cleanly. Aunt Liu screamed in pain, but Jiang Yan silenced her with a white porcelain teacup he casually stuffed into her mouth.

"Uncle? I don't even know if he'll live to acknowledge me as his nephew if I dare to call him that."

Jiang Yan snorted coldly and pushed Aunt Liu out the door.

A short while later, Su Mian came in: "Second Master, there's a commotion at the eldest son's house."