Chapter 5 — Asking the Old Madam to Decide
Xue Ning’s delicate brows knit together as she struggled twice, but she couldn’t break free from the man’s iron grip.
The young masters and ladies stood surrounded by their attendants and maids. The scene had already become ugly, yet not a single person stepped forward to help her out.
In the past, she would have looked toward Su Zhan with tearful eyes, silently hoping he would save her.
But after living through it all once already, Xue Ning had grown up.
She neither cried nor panicked. Instead, she forced herself to meet Su Yu’s gaze head-on.
“I came to pay my respects to the Old Madam. Second Brother, please let go of me.”
“Second Brother?” Su Yu laughed as though he’d heard a joke. His fingers tightened slightly, idly rubbing the soft pale skin of her hand as he teased, “My surname is Su. Yours is Xue. Since when did you become my little sister?”
Before Xue Ning could answer, a clear female voice drifted over from nearby.
“So everyone’s already here? Looks like we’re the late ones.”
Several brightly dressed figures approached quickly.
The young ladies of the marquis household were wrapped in exquisite fox-fur cloaks, draped in brilliant reds and greens. One after another, they gathered beside Xue Ning, openly watching her humiliation with amused disdain.
Second Miss Su Yin took one look at the scene and burst into laughter.
“Second Brother, what are you doing? Pulling at Sister Xue outside Grandmother’s courtyard of all places?”
But Su Yu only smiled more deeply, the mockery hidden beneath his pleasant expression. He still refused to let go.
Xue Ning was only a girl. She simply couldn’t match a man’s strength.
Biting her lip, cheeks flushed red with anger, she shot Su Yu a fierce glare.
Su Yu only found the skin in his grasp unbelievably soft.
At first, he’d only meant to mess with her for fun. But now, for some reason, he found himself reluctant to release her.
Smiling lazily, he said, “Since you called me Second Brother, then Second Brother will escort you to see Grandmother.”
Xue Ning pressed her lips together. “No need. I have legs. I can walk myself.”
Su Yu arched a brow. “Yesterday, after you fell into the water, wasn’t it Eldest Brother who carried you back? So now suddenly you can walk on your own?”
Every word dripped with ridicule and disrespect.
Xue Ning’s face turned deathly pale.
Almost involuntarily, she glanced toward Su Zhan.
The tall man stood quietly to the side in a dark brocade robe, his entire presence cold and imposing.
Through the endless haze of snow, she couldn’t make out his expression.
She only felt humiliation burning across her face.
As expected, getting involved with Su Zhan never brought her anything good.
Even if Madam Jiang said nothing, once yesterday’s incident spread through the mouths of servants and maids, everyone would think the same thing—that she, an orphan girl living under someone else’s roof, harbored ulterior motives and schemes, trying to seduce the heir of the marquis household.
So she never expected Su Zhan to help her.
Lowering her head abruptly, she opened her mouth and bit down hard on the back of Su Yu’s hand.
Su Yu hissed in pain and finally let her go.
Xue Ning was exquisitely beautiful to begin with. Her eyes were dark and luminous, deep as midnight pools.
A faint smile curved her lips as her gaze swept calmly across the noble young masters and ladies before her.
“I already said I have legs. Unless I truly have no other choice, I will never rely on anyone.”
As she spoke, her eyes landed openly on Su Zhan’s face.
His cold, austere features remained as indifferent as ever, as though nothing in this world could stir even the slightest ripple of emotion in him.
Xue Ning didn’t know what he was thinking at that moment.
But she knew one thing clearly—
In this lifetime, no matter what it took, she would sever every possible tie between herself and him.
After saying that, she ignored everyone’s reactions. Gathering her skirts, she turned and walked into Wanshou Hall first.
“Big Brother, did you see how smug she looked—”
“What does she mean by ‘unless I have no other choice’?”
“Could it be Big Brother was wrong to save her?”
Su Zhan’s sharp brows furrowed almost imperceptibly. His gaze drifted instead to the bite mark on the back of Su Yu’s hand.
Then, unbidden, he remembered the slender snow-white wrist Su Yu had held just moments ago.
For reasons he himself couldn’t explain, a faint irritation rose in his chest.
“Enough.”
Su Yu twitched his lips. Seeing the chill in his elder brother’s expression, he wisely shut his mouth.
Old Madam Xie was advanced in age and slept lightly.
As the eldest daughter-in-law of the household, Madam Jiang was already inside attending to her.
Princess Shuning, who had stayed overnight at the marquis estate, was also sitting beside the Old Madam.
Only after washing and dressing did Old Madam Xie finally take her seat upon the rosewood luohan couch carved with intricate longevity patterns.
“So everyone’s here?” she said, looking over the grandchildren who had come to greet her. At first glance, her eyes landed on Xue Ning in her plain-colored jacket and skirt. “Well now. What wind blew Miss Xue over here today?”
Xue Ning had entered last. After everyone else finished paying their respects, she stepped forward properly and bowed to the Old Madam with careful etiquette.
“Ah Ning was ignorant in the past. From now on, I wish to come every day to fulfill my filial duties before Old Madam.”
Old Madam Xie seemed genuinely surprised by those words. A half-smile tugged at her lips as she motioned for someone to help Xue Ning up.
“It’s good that you have such filial intentions. If you have free time, you can come copy Buddhist scriptures with this old woman.”
Xue Ning rarely came before Old Madam Xie. Wanting to ease Madam Jiang’s burdens, she quickly replied, “Old Madam, Ah Ning is free today.”
The room fell silent for a moment.
Several of the young ladies immediately turned to look at her.
Su Zhan’s brows shifted slightly. His gaze settled on the girl’s luminous face, his eyes turning colder by the second, as though he had already guessed what she intended to say and do.
Old Madam Xie had only spoken casually. Hearing Xue Ning agree so eagerly, displeasure flashed briefly across her face, though she still said, “Then stay behind later.”
A smile appeared on Madam Jiang’s lips.
Though Xue Ning’s sudden change surprised her, she was pleased all the same.
Back then, when she had brought this child home, the marquis household had originally opposed it.
Old Madam Xie came from a prestigious scholarly family and had always looked down on military households. On top of that, Xue Ning’s parents and brothers had all died, and the Old Madam feared the girl carried an ill-fated destiny that would bring misfortune to others. Years ago, she had already urged Madam Jiang to send her away.
But Madam Jiang had persisted stubbornly. She had even knelt in the ancestral hall for three days and nights before finally managing to keep the child.
When Xue Ning first arrived, she had still been little. With her parents gone, she cried easily and feared strangers, clinging only to Madam Jiang and Su Zhan.
To help her live comfortably in this household, Madam Jiang had devoted an enormous amount of effort.
And now, at last, the child had learned to think for her sake as well.
Madam Jiang smiled warmly. “I think after falling into the water, this girl’s temperament has softened considerably. She’s older now too. Mother, your upbringing and experience are unmatched—you should guide her more in the future.”
Old Madam Xie replied, “There’s hardly anything for me to teach. A child personally raised by you all these years can’t possibly turn out poorly.”
The smile on Madam Jiang’s face deepened. The more she sensed Old Madam Xie accepting Xue Ning, the happier she became.
After greeting the elders, Xue Ning quietly took a seat toward the back.
Su Zhan, as the eldest grandson of the marquis household and the Old Madam’s favorite, sat at the very front—separated from her by a distance vast as the Milky Way.
In the past, all she had ever wanted was to cross that impossible distance and draw closer to him.
But now, after living through another lifetime, looking once more at the man’s back, she finally understood—
Some people are born like the bright moon hanging high in the heavens.
Beautiful beyond reach.
Princess Shuning was the legitimate daughter of the Xie family.
Noble in status, graceful in beauty.
She and Su Zhan suited each other perfectly.
The young woman sat shyly beside him, her face tinged pink with embarrassment.
Old Madam Xie looked at them with unmistakable affection, while Madam Jiang was equally satisfied with Princess Shuning’s gentle and virtuous nature.
Laughter and lively conversation filled the hall.
The warmth belonged to everyone else.
She had nothing.
A bitter ache welled slowly in Xue Ning’s chest, sour and indescribable.
And yet she maintained perfect composure, a faint, appropriate smile still lingering at the corners of her lips.
Only after the laughter died down did she finally lift her lowered head again.
Then she walked to the Old Madam, knelt respectfully before her, and bowed.
“Old Madam… Ah Ning has one more matter.”
“I ask Old Madam to make the decision for me.”
