SYLFS 19

Chapter 19:

 Something Has Happened to Song Yuli

When Jiang Yucheng heard Guan Xuxu’s words, his usually calm, mountain-like expression showed a brief flicker of bewilderment—
as if he couldn’t quite comprehend what she’d just said.

Weren’t they just talking about changing rooms?
How had it suddenly turned into a conversation about leaving the house altogether?

The others nearby—Jiang Su and the rest—looked equally incredulous, as though Guan Xuxu were simply making a scene.

“Isn’t that a bit dramatic?”
“All that over something so trivial?”

Jiang Han snorted.
“You’re not a kid anymore. Running away from home doesn’t work in the Jiang family.”

To him, Guan Xuxu was merely bluffing.
After all, the Jiang family was nothing like the Guan family—it was one of the most powerful merchant families in Haishi.
There was no way she would actually leave.

Yao Lin offered a deliberately gentle voice of comfort.
“Xuxu, you just did something wrong, and your brother gave you a small scolding. Why talk about running away? You’re far too quick-tempered.”

Only then did Jiang Yucheng realize something was off.
He’d seen Jiang Su act coldly toward Xuxu the day before, but he’d assumed it was simply because they weren’t used to being siblings yet.
Now, seeing Jiang Han, Jiang Cheng, and even Yao Lin behaving this way, he noticed—not one of them seemed to treat Xuxu kindly.

If they were like this in front of him, what were they like when he wasn’t around?

“Xuxu, you…”
He frowned, about to question her, but Guan Xuxu looked like she had no interest in listening.

She turned around, called softly toward her room, and a round, snow-white little fox leapt into her arms.
Holding it, she grabbed the bag she had brought from the dormitory and headed down the stairs the same way she had come.

Only then did Jiang Yucheng realize he’d made a mistake. He hurriedly reached out to stop her.
“Xuxu, if something’s bothering you, you can talk about it. Don’t—”
He was about to tell her not to act rashly, but Guan Xuxu met his gaze calmly.

“I’m not upset,” she said quietly.
“I’ve just given up.”

She had always known that her blood ties were weak.
If she hadn’t been able to gain affection in the Guan family for eighteen years, why should she expect to find it in the Jiang family?

Perhaps Jiang Huai truly accepted her.
But the Jiang family didn’t belong to him alone.

If things couldn’t work out, then they didn’t have to.
Now that she had finally escaped the chains of the Guan family, she would live freely, as she wished.

With the little fox in her arms, she brushed past Jiang Yucheng and walked away without looking back.

“Wha—she messes up and just runs away? That’s so irresponsible,”
Jiang Su muttered under his breath when he realized she was actually leaving.
But immediately, Jiang Yutong, standing beside him, smacked him lightly on the head.

“It’s none of your business. Shut up.”

Silenced by his father’s glare, Jiang Su fell quiet.

Jiang Huai hadn’t spoken a word since the start.
But now, he finally took a step forward and followed after her.
For a moment, Guan Xuxu thought he had come to stop her, but instead, he merely turned to the steward and ordered a car to be prepared.

Then, meeting her eyes, he smiled with his usual gentle warmth.
“You’re not wrong.”

“…?” Guan Xuxu blinked.

“You just came back, and if all you do is endure, they’ll start looking down on you and push even harder.
It’s better to make your stance clear from the beginning. At least that way, they’ll think twice.”

There was even a faint note of pride in his tone.

Guan Xuxu: “…”
So, he thought her leaving the house was just her way of “showing attitude”?

But she really was leaving.

She opened her mouth to explain, but he gently interrupted:
“I have an apartment in Qingjiang Bay. Stay there for a couple of days.
I’ll send the housekeeper daily to clean and cook for you—so don’t worry about a thing.”

Then, narrowing his eyes slightly, he added,
“As for what happened today, I’ll make sure it’s properly dealt with.”

The sincerity in his gaze left Guan Xuxu momentarily speechless.
If there were ever a template for an ‘ideal brother,’ Jiang Huai would be it.
—She really did like this brother.

When she lowered her head, his large hand came down softly to pat her hair, a quiet warmth seeping through his touch.
“You’re my sister,” he said calmly. “Anyone who forgets that—I’ll make them remember. I’ll clear out the murky water in this family if I have to. They’ll learn soon enough.”

Though his smile remained gentle, there was a dangerous coldness in his peach-blossom eyes.

In her mind, Guan Xuxu suddenly imagined him smiling like that while twisting her cousins’ heads off like he was plucking cabbages.

She swallowed hard. “…Okay,” she murmured.
—Maybe she kind of wanted to see that.

She placed the little fox into the car and took two small talisman pouches from her bag, handing them to him.
“These are charms I carved myself. I meant to give them to you and one other person.”

The “other person,” of course, was Jiang Yucheng.
But after what had happened, she no longer felt like giving it to him directly and entrusted both to Jiang Huai instead.

At the mention of “hand-carved,” Jiang Huai’s eyes flickered briefly, then softened with a smile.
“I’ll wear it and treasure it.”

Guan Xuxu nodded lightly, said nothing more, and got into the car.
Jiang Huai stood there, watching as it drove away, and when it disappeared from sight, his gentle smile faded completely—replaced by a frost-cold expression.

Back in the villa’s living room, the rest of the family was waiting.
Seeing Jiang Huai return alone, they realized he hadn’t stopped her either.

Jiang Yucheng frowned.
“She’s really not staying?”

Without answering, Jiang Huai stepped forward and said flatly,
“Father, I’d like to explain today’s incident in full detail.”

The calmness of his tone made Jiang Su and the others feel a sudden chill down their spines.

——

In the car, Guan Xuxu no longer thought about the Jiang family.
She took out a yellow talisman from her bag.

She hadn’t expected the fact that she was connected to the Jiang family to spread so quickly.
But if it had merely been an idle rumor, the Song family wouldn’t have gone so far as to seek out Jiang Yucheng personally.

Such a strong reaction could only mean one thing—

Something had happened to Song Yuli.