Volume 3, Chapter 197 – Really Quite Funny

The girl was very light. All along the way, Chi Xiyan hardly felt any weight.

She was also very soft. Holding her in her arms was like embracing a ball of fluffy cotton.

Lin Xiu was right. This girl didn’t seem like a farm girl at all.

Chi Xiyan found an empty room and placed Lu Zhuxin on the soft couch.

“Sister.” Lu Zhuxin raised her head, a trace of crystalline moisture glistening at the corners of her eyes. “It itches a bit…”

She raised her hand wanting to touch her own neck, but Chi Xiyan slapped it away.

“Don’t move.” Chi Xiyan’s face was somewhat stern as she said, “The wound on your neck has only received some simple treatment. You can’t touch it casually.”

Looking at the girl on the soft couch covered in blood, Chi Xiyan lowered her eyes slightly, her breathing becoming somewhat rapid.

She unnaturally wiped the cold sweat seeping from her palms on her sleeves.

“You… you wait here for a while. Let the maids help you wash clean, then I’ll come treat the wound properly.”

After Chi Xiyan finished speaking, she turned around and quickly walked out of the room.

“Can’t handle it anymore?” Lu Zhuxin looked at Chi Xiyan’s somewhat flustered retreating figure, finding it a bit amusing.

Cleanliness obsession, allergies, or other strange quirks.

In the novels Lu Zhuxin had read, there were often similar settings.

Male and female leads with cleanliness obsessions or other peculiar conditions always rejected others’ approach or contact, otherwise they would feel uncomfortable all over.

But when they met their destined person, they would discover that their bodies didn’t feel averse to that person’s touch or approach.

Using this as an opportunity, they would develop curiosity or favorable feelings toward that person.

Then after spending some time together, it would turn into dependence.

Similar settings were common in all kinds of domineering CEO novels.

To give the simplest example, nine out of ten domineering CEOs had stomach problems, and the picky CEO could only eat food made by the female lead.

This was one variation of that usage.

Of course, Lu Zhuxin didn’t think she was lucky enough to miraculously cure Chi Xiyan’s cleanliness obsession.

She was the Heaven-Mandated Female Lead, and Lu Zhuxin was not her destined person.

“It’s fine. Repeatedly exposing yourself to things you dislike, slowly adapting and becoming accustomed to them, can improve tolerance. This is desensitization therapy.” Lu Zhuxin looked at Chi Xiyan’s departing figure, murmuring softly to herself.

After Chi Xiyan left the room, wiping her palms vigorously with a handkerchief, she instructed the servants and maids outside.

“Two more people, go to the medicine room for me and fetch medicinal materials.”

“The prescription is on my desk. It’s the external injury medicine I most commonly use during my outdoor clinics…”

Just as she finished speaking, Chi Xiyan suddenly thought of something. She furrowed her brows slightly and called out to the servant who was about to leave.

“Wait… don’t go yet!”

Although Yu Lizhi’s wound had already been sealed with silver needles, such a large wound would definitely leave a scar if not properly treated.

“Besides the medicinal materials on the prescription, also fetch some additional materials for me…”

Chi Xiyan took paper and brush from inside the room, thinking while writing and drawing on the paper.

After the time it took to drink a cup of tea, she had written a new prescription and handed it to the servant.

That servant seemed already accustomed to this. After carefully receiving the prescription Chi Xiyan had written, he acknowledged and left.

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After instructing everything, Chi Xiyan took a deep breath.

Earlier, she had only been thinking about quickly bringing that girl back to the Chi residence, so she hadn’t had time to pay attention to other miscellaneous matters.

Now that everything had settled, Chi Xiyan felt uncomfortable all over.

She gently pinched her own wrist.

Her body was covered with blood stains from Yu Lizhi. If she didn’t change into clean clothes soon, she felt she would die of discomfort.

Just as Chi Xiyan was preparing to return to her own room, Qin Qingfen came looking for her.

Seeing Qin Qingfen, Chi Xiyan’s brows, which had just relaxed, furrowed again.

“Xiyan? I heard you actually brought that girl back?” The moment Qin Qingfen saw Chi Xiyan, she couldn’t help but say, “Xiyan, how could you really do this? Aren’t you just making trouble for yourself?”

Hearing this, Chi Xiyan couldn’t help but take a deep breath. “Auntie, have you forgotten what you promised me earlier?”

“What did I promise you?” Qin Qingfen said angrily. “I did promise to leave this matter for you to handle. But Xiyan, this is all for your own good!”

“For my own good?” A trace of anger also surged across Chi Xiyan’s face. “Auntie, your so-called ‘for my own good’ is deliberately sabotaging my plan?”

“Auntie, have you thought about what consequences would result if Yu Lizhi really died now?”

“That wild girl? If she died, you would be the Chi family’s only direct bloodline, and also the Chi family’s only heir.” Qin Qingfen said with disappointment. “These past ten-plus years, Chi Jingwen has been like a monk, never remarrying. As long as the Chi family has no other direct bloodline, then the Chi family will sooner or later be yours!”

“That’s why I want to eliminate her and remove this future trouble forever!”

Chi Xiyan looked at Qin Qingfen’s face full of vicious intent, and a sense of helplessness welled up in her heart.

She shook her head. “Auntie, things aren’t as simple as you imagine.”

“Do you know why I just came back alone with Yu Lizhi?”

“Why?” Qin Qingfen’s face showed incomprehension.

Chi Xiyan had returned holding a girl covered in blood. Almost everyone in the entire residence knew this.

Qin Qingfen also knew that the injured person was Yu Lizhi, who had been wounded by a Sin Moon Tower assassin.

Thinking of this, Qin Qingfen couldn’t help but curse inwardly again. These Sin Moon Tower assassins were truly unreliable in their work.

Qin Qingfen had endured the previous failure.

But this time they had charged her so much more money, yet still made such a mess of things.

Such a good opportunity, yet in the end it was only an injury?

To kill an ordinary person, was it really that difficult for Sin Moon Tower?

Chi Xiyan looked at Qin Qingfen’s expression. She understood that her aunt hadn’t realized the seriousness of the situation at all.

“The reason Zhizhi was wounded by Sin Moon Tower people is because we were obstructed when entering the city.”

“Zhizhi and I had no choice but to get off the carriage, moving away from Lin Xiu and Steward Liu’s protection. That’s what gave the Sin Moon Tower people an opportunity.”

“But do you know who the person obstructing me was?”

Hearing this, Qin Qingfen subconsciously asked, “Who?”

“The leader was Chi Zhong,” Chi Xiyan said.

Although the real reason Chi Xiyan was stopped was the Empress’s order, Chi Zhong had indeed deliberately used the Empress’s banner to make things difficult for Chi Xiyan.

Qin Qingfen was slightly stunned. “Chi Zhong, he’s just a Chi family branch disciple, isn’t he? How dare he make things difficult for you?”

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“Auntie.” Chi Xiyan said, “My current situation isn’t as optimistic as you imagine.”

“Those branch disciples you look down upon are also eyeing opportunities like tigers watching their prey.”

“If I show a weakness and give them leverage, those branch family members will definitely take this opportunity to kick me while I’m down.”

“There are quite a few people who know I’m not Old Master Chi’s biological daughter.”

“There are also quite a few people dissatisfied with me, an outsider, becoming the Chi family heir.”

Qin Qingfen’s expression changed slightly. She had always thought that Chi Jingwen was the greatest obstacle to Chi Xiyan seizing the Chi family. So she had overlooked those Chi family branch members.

“But what does this have to do with Yu Lizhi?”

Chi Xiyan rubbed her forehead, saying irritably, “Because we discovered Yu Lizhi’s whereabouts first.”

“I am the Chi family’s eldest young lady, and also the person who would most easily have a conflict of interest with Yu Lizhi, the true legitimate daughter.”

“By personally protecting Yu Lizhi, I’m proving to Old Master Chi that no matter what, I won’t harm Chi family bloodline.”

“But if something happened to Yu Lizhi at this time.”

“Who would most easily be suspected?”

“Me!”

“I’m the person with the strongest motive to harm Yu Lizhi.”

Speaking to this point, Chi Xiyan sighed softly.

She said, “Auntie, you could think that Yu Lizhi would pose a threat to me. Do you think those branch family members couldn’t think of it?”

“Do you think Old Master Chi couldn’t think of it?”

Hearing this, cold sweat gradually appeared on Qin Qingfen’s forehead.

If Yu Lizhi died, the first person to be suspected would definitely be Chi Xiyan.

And the person who hired the assassin was Qin Qingfen.

If this matter were investigated, it would almost certainly confirm Chi Xiyan’s guilt.

“So…” Qin Qingfen’s voice trembled somewhat. “That Yu Lizhi…”

“I said it before, Yu Lizhi is very important to me. No matter what, nothing can happen to her.” Chi Xiyan said. “On the contrary, since Old Master Chi entrusted Yu Lizhi to me, I must protect her well!”

Qin Qingfen bit her teeth. She knew she had thought too simplistically.

“I understand. I’ll go to Sin Moon Tower right now and cancel the bounty…”

Before Qin Qingfen could finish speaking, she was interrupted by a sudden scream.

“You all… don’t touch me!!”

“Stay away from me!”

This was Yu Lizhi’s voice.

“Something happened to Yu Lizhi?!”

Chi Xiyan had no time to say anything more to Qin Qingfen. She turned and rushed toward Yu Lizhi’s room.

Qin Qingfen looked at Chi Xiyan’s retreating figure and raised her eyebrows.

“This is the Chi residence. What could possibly happen?”

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In Qin Qingfen’s view, even if Chi Xiyan planned to protect that girl, this seemed somewhat overly concerned.

Chi Xiyan rushed to Yu Lizhi’s room and directly pushed the door open.

Inside the room, two maids ran out from behind the screen, their faces full of tension when they saw Chi Xiyan.

“Eldest Young Lady, we were preparing to help Miss Yu undress and bathe according to your instructions, but she suddenly went crazy for some reason!”

One maid hugged her own arm with lingering fear, saying, “She almost bit me just now!”

“Eldest Young Lady, could that Miss Yu have some kind of madness?”

Chi Xiyan frowned. Her gaze swept over the two maids. “Some things shouldn’t be said carelessly. Be careful that such things never come from your mouths again.”

The two maids’ faces showed alarm, and they immediately covered their mouths. “Eldest Young Lady, we spoke wrongly! We deserve to be slapped!”

“I’ll let it go this time. If it happens again, you definitely won’t be forgiven lightly. Now leave first.” Chi Xiyan said coldly.

“Thank you for Eldest Young Lady’s mercy!” The two maids felt as if granted amnesty. They didn’t dare look back as they ran out.

Chi Xiyan dismissed the two maids and turned her gaze toward the inner room.

There was a screen blocking the view inside the room, so she couldn’t see the scene within, only the rising steam from the bathing pool.

Chi Xiyan came to the back of the screen. The first thing she saw was Yu Lizhi curled up in the corner.

She was like an injured small beast, tightly curled into a ball.

She had already removed her outer garments, wearing only an inner garment dyed dark red with blood.

Her hands tightly hugged her knees, her head buried, trembling slightly.

This was an instinctive defensive posture.

Looking at this girl’s appearance, it seemed more like a stress response from having suffered some kind of harm in the past.

What had she experienced before?

Chi Xiyan lightly stepped forward, walking to Yu Lizhi’s side, slowly crouching down beside her.

Chi Xiyan softly asked, “Zhizhi, what’s wrong?”

Hearing Chi Xiyan’s voice, the trembling girl slowly raised her head.

Her eyes were slightly red, a pair of dark bright eyes filled with mist.

“Sister…”

She looked at Chi Xiyan, her voice trembling lightly.

“Sister, I’m scared…”

She held her hands in front of her body, trembling even more severely.

“It’s okay, it’s already okay. I’ve already brought you back to the Chi residence. That assassin has been driven away.” Chi Xiyan slowly comforted her. “No one will hurt you anymore.”

“But I… I’m really scared…” The little girl said pitifully. “Sister… I’m scared, scared it will be like that night.”

That night?

What was she referring to?

Wasn’t she afraid because she was attacked by an assassin?

Chi Xiyan was puzzled in her heart, but her face didn’t show it. Instead, she revealed a smile to the girl full of fear.

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“Don’t be afraid. The past is already past.”

“Now, sister is right here. Sister will always stay with you.”

“Really? Sister…” The girl blinked her eyes, staring blankly at Chi Xiyan. In those eyes, it was as if a glimmer of light suddenly appeared.

“Of course.” Chi Xiyan said, “I’m your sister. Of course a sister has to protect her younger sister.”

“Sister!” The little girl’s voice trembled as she called out softly, then suddenly threw herself into Chi Xiyan’s arms.

She buried her head against Chi Xiyan’s soft chest, sobbing gently, repeatedly calling out, “Sister… Sister, Sister…”

Chi Xiyan’s face showed a trace of astonishment.

If not for her decent cultivation level, she might have already been knocked down by this little girl’s sudden tackle.

“Zhizhi, what are you doing…”

She instinctively wanted to push away this dirty little crying cat from her embrace.

She was already extremely uncomfortable from being covered in blood. This little crying cat was now smearing tears and snot all over her.

Was this little crying cat trying to kill Chi Xiyan?!

Chi Xiyan placed her hands on the little crying cat’s shoulders.

Then, Chi Xiyan’s brows suddenly furrowed tightly.

From that lightly trembling delicate body, she could feel the emotions of the girl in her arms.

Panic, fear.

She was like a frightened little rabbit, instinctively seeking support.

She curled up in Chi Xiyan’s embrace, frantically drawing warmth from Chi Xiyan’s body. Her originally terrified emotions seemed to be soothed by this.

Her lightly trembling body was also gradually calming down.

“Zhizhi…” Chi Xiyan’s face showed conflict. She subconsciously bit her lower lip.

In this situation, could Chi Xiyan still push away this little crying cat?

“Hah…” Chi Xiyan controlled her breathing, taking several deep breaths.

It’s fine, Chi Xiyan.

The clothes on her body were already dirty anyway.

They all needed to be changed. Getting a bit dirtier made no difference.

She could wash them clean later.

For now, just indulge her a bit.

She’s your younger sister. Just endure it.

Just endure it and it will pass!!

Lu Zhuxin lay against Chi Xiyan’s chest. Even through the clothes, she could feel Chi Xiyan’s tensed muscles.

And that breathing that kept becoming more rapid.

Really quite funny.