Chapter 1157 – Attack on Xu Pei, The First Kill Among Monarchs (Twenty-Seven) [Dual Edition]
“How did you end up here?”
Yang Si wasn’t feeling any joy at spotting an old acquaintance in a foreign place; instead, his eyes glinted with a chilling, murderous intent that could make anyone shudder.
The woman was kneeling upright on the mat, her gaunt back turned to Yang Si as she bowed deeply, gripping the mat with her hands and remaining silent.
“Speak!” Yang Si’s expression grew colder, his voice turning harsh, “What did they bring you here for? To deal with me?”
The last three words dripped with thick sarcasm and disdain.
“Not going to say anything?”
Seeing her play dead, Yang Si, in a fit of rage, flicked his sleeve and turned to leave.
Realizing he was genuinely leaving, the woman quickly crawled over and clung to his legs, her voice muffled with sobs.
“Don’t go—if you leave, I and the Four will die!”
Yang Si attempted to pull his legs away, but she held on tight, refusing to budge.
“Jiang Cavalry Officer, help—”
After quite a struggle, Yang Si found himself unable to escape and could only shout in frustration towards the door.
The woman holding onto his legs froze when she saw a plain maid walk in. The maid didn’t even glance at Yang Si, reaching out to grab the woman’s collar, lifting her up, “You need to shout for help for such a woman? Yang Military Advisor, you really don’t need to check on a Young Doctor?”
Getting trapped by a meat bun and not able to break free—
Jiang Nongqin felt completely out of sync with the world. Was this man actually so weak?
Her gaze dropped, and Yang Si instinctively stepped back. By the time he realized the implications of her gaze, his already unattractive face darkened even more.
“Do you two know each other?”
Seeing Yang Si say nothing, Jiang Nongqin took a glance at the weeping woman sprawled by the side.
Yang Si replied, “You could say that.”
Jiang Nongqin replied with an “Oh,” considering Yang Si’s usual style and pressed on, “A fleeting romance?”
Was it a love debt?
Yang Si: “…”
Women, really not to be trifled with!
His past behavior certainly wasn’t great, but in Jiang Nongqin’s eyes, was it really that terrible?
The woman, still in pain from the fall, dared not approach Yang Si but instead cast a scrutinizing look at Jiang Nongqin.
Having spent over ten years in the qinglou, her perception was sharp, and she immediately noticed Jiang Nongqin wasn’t as pristine as she seemed.
Jealousy, hatred, disdain, disgust…
Was it really necessary to bear such a grudge just for being pushed down once?
“So, is this the main dish at the Hongmen Banquet?”
Jiang Nongqin raised an eyebrow at Yang Si. Xu Pei had gone through considerable trouble to invite Yang Si, thinking it was a beauty trap with a scheme to drive a wedge between him and the Lord, only to send a woman in her late twenties? She might as well be getting ready to be a mother-in-law!
Yang Si replied irritably, “Guess so.”
This woman bore witness to Yang Si’s most humiliating past, and now, with Jiang Nongqin colliding into the scene, he felt entirely off.
The woman asked, “And who are you?”
Jiang Nongqin sneered, not wanting to answer. What qualifications did this unknown woman have to question her?
She casually found a spot to sit, to avoid Yang Si coming back and pleading for help again.
Yang Si, seeing she refused to leave, felt even more awkward and just wanted a quick resolution to this whole mess.
“Now, tell me, how did you end up here?”
The woman felt chilled by his cold demeanor, flinching slightly, biting her lip fiercely.
She didn’t know Yang Si well, but she understood his nature could be harsh, “I heard you’ve caught the favor of a noble, now soaring straight to the clouds. I ask for nothing more than your mercy to save me and the Four. If you just plead for us, we will be saved.”
Yang Si sneered, “Why should I?”
“Just because—” The woman paused, contemplating, then gritted her teeth, “Because of my sister’s last words.”
Yang Si’s eyes glinted with murderous intent, yet he smiled on the surface as he asked, “You have the audacity to mention her? I did all I could when I redeemed you from that brothel before going to Jiang Ding Jun. Now you show up here; your intentions can’t be good. How can you dare to open your mouth?”
Jiang Nongqin stood by as a spectator, enjoying this drama filled with enmity and love.
The woman, tearful, said, “I’m just a weak woman; if I don’t do this, I’ll be flayed and have my bones pulled out, dead beyond recognition.”
Yang Si had no desire to listen to her endless lies.
The woman continued, “I tricked those people, telling them that the Four was your flesh and blood, so they captured my child. If you refuse to help, we really won’t survive. Yang Jingrong, please, think of Hongniang and the other sisters’ sake and lend a hand.”
Yang Si nearly exploded from anger.
Although he, like Feng Langzi, had a reputation for being a playboy, he never imagined he would suddenly become a father.
The woman kept repeating those two sentences.
Years ago, when Yang Si redeemed her from the flower house, she’d turned her life around and married an honest man.
But that honest man met an untimely death not long after, leaving her with a child three months in her belly.
Her mother-in-law had always been suspicious of her past, doubting the legitimacy of her unborn child’s lineage, heartlessly chasing her out of the house.
Later, she remarried another man, who also died shortly after.
Her third husband lasted slightly longer; she thought life had finally stabilized, only to have him conscripted and die.
A woman with a child found life unbearable, and amidst the chaotic world, she could only marry again.
The fourth husband was a good-for-nothing gambler who beat her and her child when he ran out of money, cursing her for not giving birth during the years they were married. When the family fell into poverty, he wanted her to return to her old profession and even intended to drag her son into serving men as a prostitute. In a fit of rage, she grabbed a chopping knife from home and killed him!
The neighbors turned her in, and to stay alive, she had no choice but to leave Yang Si.
She didn’t know what else to do, but she knew with Yang Si’s rise to noble status, her chances of survival might just lie in him.
“Does the Military Advisor have hidden children?” Jiang Nongqin couldn’t help but speak up.
Rationally, she thought it was highly plausible, given Yang Si and Feng Zhen were two peas in a pod.
Yang Si replied, “That’s nonsense, don’t sully my name.”
“But I noticed you two seemed quite familiar,” she challenged.
Yang Si brushed it off, “We knew each other when we were young.”
“Earlier she said she fooled others into thinking the Four is your child; could it be—those people are trying to use a phony child to blackmail you? However, Xu Pei and the others aren’t fools; if you really had no relations with this woman, they wouldn’t easily believe her claims.”
Yang Si found it difficult to rebut.
“Just that, doesn’t seem enough for blackmail,” Jiang Nongqin questioned.
Yang Si explained, “She was a courtesan.”
Jiang Nongqin instantly understood.
Everyone knew about Yang Si’s background; if he had a child with a courtesan and abandoned both mother and son, it would be a laughing stock for life.
Parents weren’t a choice; yet, he mirrored his father’s actions, what did that imply?
It meant it was hereditary—children of courtesans would never rise above their station.
Yang Si continued, “Her child is being held captive; if a war breaks out, he might be used as a sacrificial offering—”
Jiang Nongqin’s expression darkened.
If that were true, Yang Si’s life would be over.
The enemy could use that as leverage to secretly undermine Yang Si.
Of course, this all hinged on the established facts being true.
“You really have no relation to this woman?”
“I know her, but there’s nothing intimate. That child has nothing to do with me.” Yang Si sighed and explained, “She has two older sisters. The oldest is older than me, while the second sister is my age. Their family lives next to my humble abode. The eldest sister is named Zhao Niang, while the second sister is the one you mentioned earlier, Di Niang. Even though Di Niang is a girl, she is quite intelligent, eager to learn, almost like a prodigy…”
Zhao Niang, as the eldest, cared for her younger sister. She realized Di Niang was intrigued by the sounds of reading from next door and wanted to learn characters, so she boldly came over to ask.
At first, Yang Si refused.
How could a girl so naive want to learn characters?
In the end, he relented because Di Niang’s talent exceeded his expectations, igniting his interest.
After more than a year, Yang Si had also become close with their family.
As he and Di Niang were the same age, it carried a hint of childhood affection.
However—
“…their father was a worthless scoundrel; in his youth, he racked up a massive debt from gambling and was forced to flee. To keep her three daughters from being taken away by debt collectors, Di Niang’s mother was willing to sell herself in the trade as payment, laboring for years until she fell seriously ill, ending up buried in a simple shroud. Their father returned, believing the debts were settled. That scoundrel, having learned nothing, continued his gambling ways and upon returning home, intended to sell Di Niang and her sisters back into the flesh trade…”
As previously mentioned, Yang Si was adopted by Mr. Yuanjing. Although he wasn’t raised in the same house, he paid the farming family a sum of silver for their care. Before he learned his letters, he would visit them every six months, but once he started learning, he came by every three months.
When the Di Niang sisters were sold to the brothel by their birth father, Yang Si was busy studying with Mr. Yuanjing.
When he returned, he discovered what had transpired.
Yang Si went to that flower house, and at fifteen years old, Zhao Niang had already become a courtesan. Due to her good features and demeanor, she had gained some popularity. Her two younger sisters escaped calamity by virtue of their youth, remaining in the flower house as maidservants.
To get someone out of a brothel, one typically had to either buy their freedom or run away.
Without money, Yang Si had to choose the latter.
Though still young, Yang Si had a mind sharper than most boys.
“…Zhao Niang didn’t want to be a courtesan her whole life and certainly didn’t want her sisters to follow in her footsteps. So, she agreed to my plan. The flower house had many goons, but drawing them away was not difficult. As Zhao Niang wasn’t a top courtesan, not many people were watching over her, and the escape went fairly smoothly. Unexpectedly…” Yang Si shot a cold glance at the trembling woman who remained silent, “she was foolish, seeing only the food and clothes at the flower house, unwilling to leave; just before escape, she hid away and ended up selling her two sisters.”
The flower house was a ruthless place; what good fate awaited those caught trying to run?
Zhao Niang knew their location would be leaked, and once caught, there might still be a slim chance of survival for them, but Yang Si would definitely be done for!
Yang Si was hidden in the cellar by Zhao Niang, while the other twenty flower house thugs captured the sisters.
The outcome was tragic—
Yang Si, hiding in the dark cellar, could only listen to the turmoil above.
The darkness and confinement of the cellar almost drove him mad.
He had countless moments of wanting to climb out of the cellar, but in the end, he managed to hold back; he had never hated his own weakness so much.
Whether it was fifteen-year-old Zhao Niang or the just ten-year-old Di Niang, how could they dream of surviving against dozens of feral men?
From initial struggles for their lives to the final gasps—
When Yang Si emerged from the cellar, he was met with a scene of devastation.
Zhao Niang held no resentment against him; instead, she begged him that if he ever gained any abilities, he should look after the youngest sister.
Di Niang was bruised all over, murmuring in pain before passing.
This event drastically altered Yang Si, causing him to mature overnight.
Yang Si buried the sisters, hid for a time, and later learned who had sold out their location.
“…It was my youthful naivety that led to the death of those sisters. Had it not been for me, perhaps they would have suffered in that flower house but at least would still be alive… I owe them that much…but this woman is also an accomplice,” Yang Si pointed at the woman slumped on the ground.
“I hoped to save her before she turned fifteen, but she was foolish enough to believe some rich young master’s sweet words and willingly became his concubine. Before long, due to her flamboyant nature, she was beaten by the main wife and sold back to the brothel. When I went to redeem her, she told me I could do so if I promised to marry her as the main wife. I refused that ridiculous demand.”
Yang Si was troubled by the woman’s betrayal; she seemed intent on playing deaf, watching her flounder in the brothel.
In these chaotic times, Yang Si intended to go out for adventure and before leaving let the book boy use some silver to redeem the woman from the brothel.
After that, he had no idea what happened. The next time they met, she even proclaimed he was a father now.
After listening to this, Jiang Nongqin went silent for a long time.
“No matter what Xu Pei intends, it’s merely to use this woman and her child to threaten me—” Yang Si said coldly, “Though I may be quite the rake, I don’t just take anyone. At the very least, I don’t want to lay a finger on her.”
The woman timidly said, “I was still young back then; I didn’t understand—”
Yang Si snorted, “Young, yet you were clearheaded enough to sell your sister, so don’t act innocent here.”
The woman retorted, “Though I made mistakes, you also said my sister never blamed me—”
Yang Si sneered, “And that’s why you were able to escape the brothel instead of dying under some man.”
Despair filled the woman’s expression, “Yang Jingrong, how could you be so heartless, to look on as we are left with nothing but our only living child dying here?”
“Of course, I can calmly watch. In the future, I’ll find her two decent adoptive sons to carry on their names…”
Young Yang Si was significantly affected by that incident, spiraling into depression, nearing a mental breakdown.
The current him, however, could view it all with indifference or perhaps had witnessed far worse, having forged a heart of stone long ago.
Jiang Nongqin frowned, “Even if you have no ties to her, but what if Xu Pei uses her and her child to pin you down—”
Yang Si was in a dire situation.
Yet, he coldly replied, “She’s just a courtesan. Who can tell which patron the child’s bloodline comes from?”
