If you were cold and aloof in your past life, why are you crying in this one?

Xu Zhaolan looked at Xi Rui, who was so embarrassed and at a loss, and pursed her red lips, showing no intention of giving up.

Wang Jue saw it clearly and, without waiting for Xi Lingxian to react, pulled her aside.

Xi Lingxian said unwillingly, "What are you doing in public?"

"Your brother has finally found happiness; you're going to have a sister-in-law. How can you bear to disturb them like this?"

Xi Lingxian was taken aback by what she was told.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Wang Jue stretched out his long arm, grabbed her waist, and took her away without saying a word.

Xi Rui's pleading look was ignored. Seeing how disloyal these two were, he was at a loss.

"Miss Xu... I have no plans to get married or start a family at the moment, so please don't waste your time on me."

Xu Zhaolan shrugged and smiled, "Young Master Xi, can I interpret this as you neither taking initiative nor refusing, and therefore not taking responsibility?"

"..."

What kind of feng shui is Guangling? How come the girls they raise are all so audacious!

Reaching a secluded grove near the dock, Xi Lingxian suddenly pushed Wang Jue away, creating distance between them.

"You're discarding me after I've served my purpose?"

"You were rude first. I have legs and I can walk by myself."

"Don't choose Bae Soo."

"What?" He changed the subject so quickly that she couldn't keep up.

"I said don't choose Bae Soo."

Now I understand, but why should he just say no and that's it?

Why should I listen to you?

"The Pei family is not good enough for you."

Xi Lingxian felt a pang of weariness. "Wang Jue, here you go again; is it that your only standard for judging people, regardless of who they are, is money and profit? Is a person's good or bad qualities really that unimportant?"

"When you spend money recklessly, do you ever think about how important money is?"

"You, you're being unreasonable. Even if I get married, I'll have plenty of dowry. I won't spend my husband's family's money."

"But do you know that there are people in this world who will disapprove even if you spend your own money? If you bring a huge dowry and marry into a place where your family's wealth and power are inferior to your own, it's like throwing a piece of fat meat into a pack of wolves. Do you think you can protect it?"

Xi Lingxian shrank back half a step, "Stop exaggerating."

"Am I exaggerating? Do you even know what Shen Qingdai's fate was in her past life?"

A buzzing sound filled Xi Lingxian's mind.

Sister Qingdai?

"What...what do you mean?"

"What's wrong, Sister Qingdai?"

In her past life, she only knew that her sister Qingdai had married a poor scholar into her family, but she didn't know what happened afterward. She had already passed away by then and had no way of knowing.

But if Wang Jue said that, something bad must have happened in his past life.

"Tell me, what happened to Sister Qingdai?"

She grabbed his arm, gripped it tightly, and asked anxiously.

"I've already said that, so what good do you think it could be? Do you all think that taking in a son-in-law is as simple as just saying it?"

"The Shen family is incredibly wealthy. Such a lucrative opportunity would tempt even the most loyal servants to line their own pockets, let alone a son-in-law who is seen as humiliated by outsiders. Shen Qingdai is not exactly known for her caution; how could she possibly outmaneuver a poor scholar who has climbed the ranks from a young age through the power and influence of his aristocratic family to the position of Grand Master of Ceremonies?"

Amidst the clamor of voices around them, Wang Jue's tone gradually deepened, "You were raised in a secluded mansion since childhood, protected by your family. How could you possibly understand the true hardships of the world, let alone know just how dark human nature can be in the imperial court and officialdom?"

He turned his head to look at the clean-cut and pure-looking girl beside him, and every word he spoke struck a chord with her.

"Ordinary friendships are easily broken in the face of self-interest, and even the closest blood relatives can be betrayed at will. How many people, in order to climb the social ladder, do not hesitate to turn their backs on their siblings who grew up with them and betray their relatives who have been with them day and night, without any regard for past affection. There are also many more people struggling at the bottom of society who are forced by power and entangled in the struggle for survival. When they have no other way out, they do not hesitate to sell their children and abandon their own flesh and blood, just to exchange for a chance to survive."

"The officialdom is rife with intrigue and treachery. Some people smile while hiding a knife, appearing kind and friendly to your face, but secretly framing and harming you behind your back; some people will stop at nothing to frame their colleagues, fabricate evidence, ruin their careers, and destroy their families; and some people, for their own selfish desires, collude with evil people, disregard morality and conscience, use all kinds of insidious tricks, scheme step by step, and drive them to their deaths. They act ruthlessly and decisively, without the slightest bit of compassion."

In both her past and present lives, Xi Lingxian was a flower carefully nurtured by her father and brothers, growing up in a greenhouse.

Even though her life wasn't as smooth as when she married into the Wang family in her previous life as a girl in her own family, she still lived a life of luxury and tranquility. Wang Jue never told her about these cold and cruel things.

Upon suddenly learning that her most cherished sister had a past filled with treacherous schemes, she clutched her chest, her face turning slightly pale.

"And finally? Is she still alive and well?"

Wang Jue saw that her lips were trembling and finally couldn't bear it.

He raised his hand and stroked the delicate silk flower in her hair. "I happened to be investigating a case in Yixing at the time. When I heard about this, I knew that Shen Qingdai was your close friend. I couldn't be so heartless as to ignore her."

Upon hearing this, Xi Lingxian closed her eyes, and a single tear rolled down her cheek.

Fortunately.

With him taking action, Sister Qingdai will definitely be safe and sound.

"...Thank you so much."

Xi Lingxian suppressed her earlier resistance and awkwardness, looked up at Wang Jue beside her, and softly thanked him.

A simple thank you completely severed all the warmth of the past.

Wang Jue's fingers, hanging by his side, tightened subtly, his eyes filled with an indescribable loneliness and melancholy.

He softened his tone and spoke.

"Let's stop arguing, okay?"

"Even if you want to torment me or take revenge on me, there's plenty of time in the future, and you'll have plenty of opportunities. But I'll just say one thing: you can't choose anyone else, you can't marry anyone else, and even if you were to be adopted by someone else's family, that's absolutely impossible."

"Marry me." He took a half step forward. "At least I won't hurt you. Everything you want—power, stability, protecting the people you care about—I can give you. No one else can promise you that."

Xi Lingxian clenched her hands tightly at her sides, and her nose felt slightly sore.

She raised her hand and gently wiped away the tears that had welled up in her eyes. She looked up at him, a bitter, cold smile playing on her lips, her tone indifferent and weary.

"Do you really have to do this? Do you really have to repeat the same mistakes? A marriage based solely on weighing the pros and cons is just too pathetic."

These words were like a blunt knife, cutting deeply into Wang Jue's heart. He suddenly stepped forward, tightened his arms, and held the person tightly in his embrace.

"What 'weighing the benefits'? Do you really think I'm made of iron and have no heart?"

Xi Lingxian turned her face away, not wanting to look at him, but he grabbed her and pulled her back, forcing her to look at him.

"I don't believe you couldn't feel it. During those three years, I was also sincere..."

"I couldn't distinguish between good and bad, truth and falsehood at times, so I simply stopped trying to distinguish them; at that time, I thought, since we're husband and wife anyway, how could we possibly separate?"

"But I never expected it to actually work!"