Xie Chichun - Chapter 3

Xie Xuan clung to Han Jie’s arm, biting his wrist tightly, tears streaming uncontrollably down her face. The more tears flowed, the harder her teeth clenched, as if she was trying to vent all her grievances and resentment.

Han Jie stood still, looking down at her fierce and biting expression, feeling both surprised and painful. He clenched his other fist tighter, remaining silent as she bit him. When he felt warm tears trickling down onto his wrist, he felt as if his heart had turned to emptiness.

Xie Xuan didn’t know how long she had been biting until the salty taste of blood reached her tongue. Only then did she realize that she had bitten too hard and broken his wrist. The taste of blood mixed with her tears spread across her lips, leaving an unbearable bitterness.

Xie Xuan didn’t dare to speak, fearing that if she opened her mouth, she wouldn’t be able to help but cry to him.

At this moment, she didn’t even dare to look at Han Jie again, fearing that her emotions would surge and reveal everything. She forcefully threw down Han Jie’s arm, quickly ran into the side room, slammed the door shut, dashed into the inner chamber, and threw herself onto the bed, and cried silently.

Under the pear tree outside the courtyard, Han Jie watched the little girl who had run away with her head down. When he raised his arm, two clear rows of bite marks mixed with blood beads were distinctly visible. She had bitten him so hard just now, as if she hated him to the core. If it weren’t for her limited strength, she might have bitten off a piece of his flesh.

But why did Xie Xuan suddenly bit him out of the blue?

Isn’t she usually well-behaved and gentle, not even daring to argue with others?

And why was she crying so sadly?

Han Jie was somewhat dazed, slowly wiping away the bloodstains with his sleeve, staring at the row of bite marks as if entranced, lost in thought. With a dazed mind, he walked to the outer courtyard, and upon seeing his attendant Rong An, Han Jie discreetly concealed his injury and instructed in a low voice, “Go find a jar of rot-repelling ointment.”

The anti-decay ointment, as the name suggests, is used to rot away decayed flesh. However, for someone like Han Jie, who only has a bite wound without any decay, applying it would inevitably corrode the healthy flesh, leaving a deeper scar. Now that he is already seventeen years old, this deep scar will probably never heal back to its original state.

After returning to the Jingning Marquis’s residence, Han Jie silently went back to his courtyard. The attendant Rong An stared in shock as he silently applied the ointment to the bite mark on his wrist. For a moment, he forgot to stop him, and when he finally reacted and tried to step forward to intervene, Han Jie extended his arm to block him.

“Second Master, what are you doing?” Rong An stared at the bloody, mangled wound and the dark, gooey ointment, dumbfounded.

“Learning from your mistakes.” Han Jie said lightly, still with that nonchalant attitude, but the heavy tone made Rong An feel strange.

Rong An looked anxiously at the person in front of him. He was still the flourishing Second Master of the Jingning Marquisate, a pampered nobleman and the young master he was familiar with. But why did that nonchalant tone make his heart ache?

Rong An thought for a long time but couldn’t understand, so he could only stand silently by the side.

Han Jie sat in silence for a long time, watching the ointment corrode the flesh. The numbness, itching, tingling and pain seemed as if it were happening to someone else. He slowly put the ointment away in the drawer and then instructed, “Have someone prepare a generous gift, find some rare medicinal herbs, and send them to the Sixth Miss of the Duke of Heng’s residence.”

“This… should we ask the lady first?”

“No need.” Han Jie said decisively. He personally delivered the gift to let the Duke of Hengguo’s residence know that Xie Xuan would be his future wife, the person he, Han Jie, cherished the most and was determined to protect. In his past life, he was foolish and didn’t see through the tricks those people played, causing her to suffer so much. This time, no matter what outsiders say, he just needs to protect her well!

The scar on his wrist seemed to hurt again, but Han Jie just glanced at it without even furrowing his brows.

Having experienced the most heart-wrenching events, this pain can only be considered lighter than the wind.

After Xie Xuan recovered from her illness, she went to the Old Lady’s Rongxi Pavilion to pay her respects, and as expected, she was lectured.

The Xie family inherited the title of Duke of Heng, and the current duke is from the second generation, with three sons and two daughters. Among the two daughters, the eldest became a marchioness, while the youngest, who was naturally beautiful and charming, gained great favor after entering the palace. Later, she gave birth to the Fifth Princess and was conferred the title of Noble Consort, which brought glory to the family.

Among the three sons, Xie Xuan’s father, Xie Zhen, is the eldest. He currently serves as the Deputy Minister of Justice. Although his political achievements are mediocre, due to his refined demeanor, he gets along well with his colleagues.

Xie Zhen had previously married the daughter of the Tao Taifu. In the beginning, their marriage was full of affection, and they had a child named Xie Jun. However, over time, the couple began to have disagreements. Xie Zhen was seduced by a woman named Luo, who became pregnant with his child. As Luo’s pregnancy became more noticeable and the situation couldn’t be hidden any longer, Xie Zhen proposed to take her into the household as a concubine. At that time, Tao, his wife, was also pregnant. Upon hearing this, she did not agree. With a cold face, she gave birth to twins and the very next day, she proposed a divorce.

Tao’s personality was extremely stubborn, and despite the persuasion from others, nothing could change her mind. She didn’t linger around, leaving her two daughters and one son in the household while she went to a Taoist temple to practice. Xie Zhen, though regretful, was young and proud and unwilling to back down. In a fit of anger, he married Luo as his second wife, putting the elder Xie Yue, who was born two months earlier, ahead of Xie Xuan. Later, he also had a son, Xie Ze.

This matter spread widely at the time. For three consecutive years, Xie Zhen couldn’t get a favorable look from the Duke and almost lost his position as heir to the Duke’s estate.

The second branch of the family, Xie Yu, had a more stable life. He married Yue Shi and had two concubines, with two sons and two daughters. His eldest daughter was born to one of the concubines but recorded under the wife’s name, and the family seemed fairly stable. The third branch, Xie Ti, was born out of wedlock. He married Sui Shi and only had one daughter.

Now, in the Rongxi Pavilion, the old matriarch held the highest seat, followed by Luo Shi, Yue Shi, and Sui Shi. The concubines stood behind them, and sitting lower were six young women—

The eldest daughter, Xie Jun, the fifth daughter, Xie Yue, and the sixth daughter, Xie Xuan, were all from Xie Zhen’s side. The second daughter, Xie Shan, and the third daughter, Xie Jiu, were from the second branch, and the fourth daughter, Xie Pei, was from the third branch.

The old matriarch of the Xie family came from a noble background, and with her husband still alive, she held a great deal of influence in the household. Luo Shi and Yue Shi both acted according to her will, and over time, they elevated her to such a high status that she increasingly took the liberty of giving commands.

At this moment, the old matriarch was lounging on a short couch, looking at Xie Yue and Xie Xuan sitting side by side, and began to nag, “Not long ago, the sixth girl was sick, but now her complexion seems better. I heard that the day you fell into the water by the Xie Pond, you were with Yue’er, and later you even had people inquire around, insisting that Yue’er pushed you into the water?”

Xie Xuan stood up, her expression cold, “It wasn’t that I insisted, it was indeed the truth. This matter has already been investigated by Father.”

“Oh, such a big temper at such a young age! Don’t you realize what kind of impression this creates? People outside are saying that we don’t govern the household properly, that the sisters are at odds, and they’re all watching us make a fool of ourselves!” The old matriarch scolded sharply, as if Xie Xuan had committed an unforgivable offense.

Xie Xuan naturally understood that the old matriarch was speaking this way more out of her preconceived notions rather than dealing with the matter at hand.

Back when Tao insisted on the divorce, the old matriarch still believed that Tao was making a big deal out of a small matter, and that it embarrassed the Xie family. As a result, from childhood to adulthood, whenever Xie Xuan made even the smallest mistake, the old matriarch would scold her for a long time. Because of this, Xie Xuan had often endured grievances in the past, trying to please the old matriarch, going to extremes to ‘make a big matter small and a small matter trivial.’ In the end, all she got was a heart full of resentment.

Now, she had come to terms with it. Even if she grovelled and begged the old matriarch for mercy, it was unlikely that the old lady would give her a kind expression.

So why should she degrade herself to earn a reputation for being ‘obedient’?

Good people are often bullied, and gentle horses are often ridden. She had never understood this before, but now she truly felt it. Rather than carrying a useless good reputation and being bullied, it would be better to be a useless horse, one that no one dared to approach, and live freely!

She raised her head in confusion and said, “I don’t understand what the old matriarch means. When Fifth Sister pushed me, many people saw it. If anyone should be mocked, wouldn’t it be the one who pushed me? All I did was ask Father to verify the truth, so why is the blame being placed solely on me?”

“You still dare to argue?” The old matriarch, Xie, was furious. “You had a fever and now your brain is muddled! Forget this matter for now, but later you fought with Fifth Sister again, and if it spreads everywhere. What kind of behaviour is that? Go out and ask around, which family’s young lady acts like you—so unruly!”

Luo Shi, on the side, looked quite pleased with herself, glancing at Xie Xuan while fiddling with her handkerchief.

It was Yue Shi who spoke up. “Old matriarch, please calm down. Xie Xuan is still young and doesn’t understand proper conduct. Old matriarch, you should teach her slowly, so as not to make yourself ill with anger. Xie Xuan, quickly apologize to the old matriarch.”

Xie Xuan refused to apologize. She stood her ground, determined to seek an explanation from the old matriarch.

The old matriarch grew even angrier. “What, you’re still looking at me? Did I say something wrong? I punish you to copy the “Women’s Moral Code” ten times. If you don’t finish, you won’t be allowed to eat!”

“Old matriarch!” Xie Jun could no longer sit still. She suddenly stood up. “Although Xie Xuan certainly made some mistakes, if we trace it back to the root, Fifth Sister was the one who started all of this. Old matriarch, since you are treating everyone equally and want to teach the sisters to behave well, why are you ignoring Fifth Sister? If you want to teach, teach everyone together. If you’re going to punish, punish them all together.”

“Although Xie Jun was also a daughter, she was the eldest in the family and the only one who could meet with the Duke at any time. Xie Jun was deeply admired for her noble lady demeanor and was greatly appreciated by the old Duke. Sometimes, a single report from her was more effective than anything Luo Shi, the current wife, could do.

Even though the old matriarch didn’t like Xie Jun, she couldn’t ignore what the Duke would think. Moreover, Xie Jun was right in what she said. If she had suggested that ‘Xie Yue is the root cause and should be punished more severely,’ the old matriarch could have found some fault, but now, how could she refute Xie Jun?

The old matriarch grumbled for a while, then reluctantly said, “Fine, then they will be punished together.”

Luo Shi, catching the look from the old matriarch, stood up and said, “Yue’er’s mistake this time was also due to my inadequate teaching. I am willing to share half of the responsibility.”

Her favoritism was too obvious, and Xie Jun immediately responded, “Since the madam says so, Xie Xuan is also under the madam’s teaching, and everything should be fair, right? As the eldest sister, I am responsible for not watching over them properly. Since everyone has made mistakes, no one should share the punishment. Please, old matriarch, punish me again.”

Xie Jun rarely confronted her elders so directly, but this time, since she had made up her mind, she went all the way. She walked to the centre of the room, didn’t bother with a cushion, and instead knelt directly on the floor, bending her knees. She straightened her back and looked at the old matriarch.

After this kneeling, the old matriarch couldn’t sit still anymore.