Binding Spring Love

"It was you! You're the one who ruined my Jing'er! Today, I'll make you pay with your life to be buried with Jing'er!"

Upon seeing Lin Jiayue, Aunt Zhou went even crazier. She pushed aside the old women in the courtyard, rushed to Lin Jiayue, and slapped her hard across the face.

Lin Jiayue hadn't eaten or slept for several days, and when this slap landed, her vision went black and she collapsed to the ground.

Although her cheeks were sore, she felt much more relaxed.

Even now, she still can't understand why Jiang Jing committed suicide by jumping into the well. Was it really because of that damned reputation for being unchaste, or because the Chen family broke off the engagement? But whatever the reason, Lin Jiayue knows that she is inextricably linked to it.

Aunt Zhou pounded on Lin Jiayue's chest, and she remained blank and numb as she let the other woman vent her anger.

It wasn't until Aunt Zhou gripped her neck tightly and she felt suffocated that Lin Jiayue struggled to break free.

She was afraid.

She was terrified after she was near death.

But now Aunt Zhou's hand is like an iron clamp, firmly holding on, and no matter how much she struggles, she can't shake it off.

When Madam Jiang fainted, her mother, Jiang, stood by in a panic. Seeing that the old lady's face had turned blue and she hadn't been able to breathe, she quickly took off the gold hairpin from her hair and inserted it into the philtrum. Only then did Madam Jiang manage to catch her breath.

Aunt Zheng stepped forward to pull Aunt Zhou away. If someone were to die in front of the old lady, Aunt Zhou would surely die. Just thinking about this made her feel a sense of sorrow, like a rabbit mourning the death of a fox.

The entire Fuhe Hall was in complete chaos. Song Wan stood quietly behind Jiang's mother, keeping watch over Old Madam Jiang without leaving.

When Madam Jiang regained consciousness, Song Wan quickly stepped forward to help her up.

The old lady pointed at Lin Jiayue lying on the ground and said, "Get rid of this root of chaos in the family..."

"Madam, you must do justice for Jing'er!"

That's enough.

Jiang Xingjian rushed over. He had just started his shift today and hadn't even entered the Bureau of Animal Husbandry when a servant from the manor came looking for him on horseback. Seeing the current situation, Jiang Xingjian felt a splitting headache.

"Go and pull Aunt Zhou away."

Lin Jiayue was rescued by several servants from the outer courtyard. The Marquis's mansion was in such chaos that it could not even maintain the separation of men and women, so the servants from the outer courtyard had to be sent into the inner courtyard to deal with her.

Aunt Zhou was restrained, her eyes bloodshot, her face contorted with rage as she glared at Jiang Xingjian: "My lord, can you give me a straight answer today? Will you eliminate this root of trouble that killed my Jing'er or not?"

Lin Jiayue clutched her neck, her eyes bloodshot, and gasped for breath.

Experiencing the feeling of near death again made the hairs on her body stand on end, and fear gradually gnawed at her heart, leaving her mind blank with terror.

Aunt Zhou calmed down and glared at the servants who were grabbing her, then forcefully shook them off.

Since they were women from the inner courtyard, the men did not dare to act rashly. Moreover, seeing that Jiang Xingjian had not expressed his opinion, they released their grip one by one.

"My lord, I only ask you, will you eliminate the root cause of this family's chaos?"

Jiang Xingjian suddenly seemed a little dazed, as if he had been stunned by the question.

Only Song Wan glanced at him with some surprise, then lowered her eyes.

At that moment, he actually had murderous intent.

The momentary silence caused Lin Jiayue, who was particularly sensitive to life and death, to look up with red eyes. Jiang Xingjian seemed to only then realize what was happening and said in a low voice, "Send Aunt Zhou back to Yu'an Courtyard."

"Hahaha, chaos! This Marquis's mansion is in complete disarray!"

Seeing that Jiang Xingjian had no intention of dealing with Lin Jiayue, Aunt Zhou was utterly disappointed. She smoothed her hair, smiled faintly with tears in her eyes, and her dimples appeared on her cheeks, as gentle as ever.

"With a descendant in the Marquis's mansion, the old Marquis will probably find it hard to rest in peace even in the afterlife."

"Lord Jing'er, I've come to keep you company..."

After saying this, Aunt Zhou suddenly slammed her head against a pillar in the courtyard of Fuhe Hall. With a muffled thud, bright red blood splattered everywhere, and she fell straight down, lifeless.

The people in the courtyard were stunned. Hengwu noticed something was wrong and quickly shielded Song Wan behind her, while Hengzhi pulled out a handkerchief to cover her eyes.

Jiang Xingjian's face was ashen, while Lin Jiayue felt her scalp tingle and her whole body tremble with cold.

Upon seeing this, Madam Jiang was so shocked and frightened that she fainted completely.

Only Aunt Zheng, weeping, took off her outer garment and gently covered Aunt Zhou's face, sobbing softly, "I told you not to make a scene. What good will it do? Who can our worthless lives hold?"

"Take the eldest grandma back to her room."

Jiang Xingjian shouted sternly, and Hengzhi and Hengwu hurriedly protected Song Wan and returned to Lan Courtyard.

Jiang's mother sent someone to find the family physician, while the maids of Fuhe Hall were busy carrying the old lady back to her bedroom. Jiang Xingjian directed the old women in the mansion to deal with Concubine Zhou's body, and Concubine Zheng was being dragged away by the maids while crying...

Only Lin Jiayue stared blankly at the pale arm that was faintly visible under the pale yellow jacket.

Two people died violently in their homes within seven days, causing panic in the Marquis's mansion. No one cared about Lin Jiayue anymore.

People moved around her, but no one stepped forward to ask her a question.

It wasn't until Qianbi and Qinghong arrived that the two of them quickly dragged the distraught Lin Jiayue away.

There were no cries of anguish in the mansion, not even a single piece of white cloth or yellow paper. The bloodstains on the pillars and white jade floor tiles had been wiped dry by the servants. No one mentioned Zhou Yiniang's death again, as if such a tragic event had never happened in the Marquis's mansion.

The next day, the main kitchen prepared eighteen meat dishes, including crispy braised pork knuckle, steamed goose, and lamb tripe with salted black bean curd skin, and sent them to each room.

Aunt Zheng gnawed on a pork knuckle, crying and laughing at the same time. Old Madam Jiang was fast asleep and did not wake up. Jiang's mother's hair turned white overnight.

Jiang Xingjian sat in the courtyard, drinking alone, and did not sleep all night.

Under the care of Granny Zhao and Hengzhi Hengwu, Song Wan slept lightly for a few hours, but tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep soundly.

The one who reacted the most was Lin Jiayue. She hadn't eaten or slept for several days, and her body was sickly weak. Now, she had also developed an unusual ailment.

She could no longer bear to look at the girl's fair arms, nor could she bear to hear the crisp sound of the drum.

The Hou residence was completely silent. When Song Lan'an and his wife arrived, Jiang Xingjian was even a little dazed, not knowing for a moment why his father-in-law had come to visit in person.

"I had matters to attend to at home and was unable to greet my father properly; this was a breach of etiquette."

Song Lan'an said, "I heard that the Marquis's mansion has been having a lot of troubles lately, so I came to take a look. Also, my wife misses Wan'er, so I thought I'd let her and her daughter meet today."

Jiang Xingjian hurriedly had a servant woman take Madam Song to Lan Courtyard, while he stayed behind to entertain the guests and exchange pleasantries with Song Lan'an.

After exchanging a few indifferent and trivial words, Song Lan'an suddenly asked, "I've heard rumors in the capital that the Marquis of Chengyang is quite dissatisfied with his principal wife?"

"In the end, it is because I failed to properly educate my daughter and thus failed to raise her to be a model lady of the household."

Jiang Xingjian's jaw tightened, and he hurriedly said, "Father, you're being too kind. Wan'er is not bad at all. It's all because I've been bewitched and neglected her."

Jiang Xingjian clenched his fists tightly and tensed up: "Xingjian was in the wrong first, and I will never let Wan'er down again in the future."

Song Lan'an sneered coldly: "Your Excellency flatters me. Who in the capital doesn't know that the young lady of my Pingzhang Zhengshi Mansion is utterly lacking in virtue and talent, and incapable of managing a household?"

Taking out two plain letters from his bosom, Song Lan'an pushed them in front of Jiang Xingjian: "The Marquis's birth certificate and Wan'er's marriage certificate are a marriage between the Marquis of Chengyang and my Song family. We are not worthy of such a marriage. We hope that the Marquis will consult the elders of both families and choose a date."