Chapter 689 It’s not her fault either

Chapter 689: It's Not Her Fault Either

Lou Ruhui gave a cold laugh and raised an eyebrow. "Whether you meant it or not doesn’t matter anymore... By the way, I just remembered something. Mr. Dou, did you know that someone once spread malicious rumors about our past interactions? Some of the details mixed into those rumors were things only the two of us would know. I’ve never told anyone else—what do you make of that?"

Dou Chengsong paled and instinctively took a step back.

He had, of course, heard those rumors before and had desperately tried to explain them away. But his words meant nothing, and no one listened.

Now, hearing Lou Ruhui say she had never told anyone, that left only one possibility...

Dou Chengsong’s face drained of all color, his lips trembling slightly as he stammered, "I... I only mentioned a few things to... to Miss Yu..."

Lou Ruhui arched an eyebrow, unsurprised by the answer, and replied casually, "I thought so. My mother later found out that those rumors originated from her courtyard."

Dou Chengsong swayed slightly, reeling from the blow.

Lou Ruhui didn’t care whether Dou Chengsong was disillusioned or not. She gave him one last look. "Mr. Dou, I did admire you once, but upon reflection, I’ve never wronged you in any way. Yet, because of you, I’ve suffered quite a bit of unhappiness. So, from now on, let’s go our separate ways."

With that, Lou Ruhui decisively severed all ties between them, took Xingxing’s hand and left without a backward glance.

This time, Dou Chengsong stood rooted to the spot, trembling slightly, unable to bring himself to follow.

Xingxing admired Lou Ruhui’s straightforward, direct manner.

Once they had left the alley, Xingxing looked at Lou Ruhui with admiration. "Sister Lou, you’ve become even more admirable in my eyes!"

Lou Ruhui, however, was somewhat abashed by the praise. "Not at all. You’ve seen me crying my eyes out before... I just think, life lasts but a few decades. How pitiful to ruin yourself over a man!"

Xingxing nodded vigorously in agreement.

People should always love themselves first!

Lou Ruhui suddenly leaned in close to Xingxing and whispered in a very low voice, "Mainly, I also saw how ugly the entanglement between Second Miss Wei and Second Young Master Yu was... I don’t want to end up like that."

Xingxing was at a loss for words.

It wasn’t surprising that Lou Ruhui used them as an example—Second Miss Wei and Second Young Master Yu’s affair had indeed become a byword for scandal throughout the capital.

But speak of the devil and he shall appear...

No sooner had Lou Ruhui mentioned Wei Shuangyan than they saw her bearing down on them, looking furious, as if she were on a mission to catch someone in the act.

Lou Ruhui: "..."

Today was truly cursed.

Why did whoever they mentioned suddenly appear?

It was still early in the year, and her heavy winter robes hid Wei Shuangyan’s pregnancy, though the weight gain was noticeable. Her complexion looked poor too.

She looked absolutely furious.

As she approached, Wei Shuangyan clearly noticed Lou Ruhui and Xingxing.

She paused slightly and demanded sharply, "Have you seen Yu Chongen?"

Wei Shuangyan had always looked down on Xingxing, and after Lou Ruhui was bestowed the title of Fushan Township Lady for her charitable deeds, she began to extend the same contempt to Lou Ruhui.

Lou Ruhui and Xingxing both shook their heads.

Wei Shuangyan's face was dark with anger as she scanned the area, her gaze suddenly fixing on a teahouse not far behind Lou Ruhui and Xingxing.

The sound of a lazy pipa tune drifted from the teahouse, and Xingxing recognized it as *Phoenix Seeks Phoenix*.

Wei Shuangyan stomped straight to the teahouse.

Lou Ruhui, bursting with excitement, grabbed Xingxing’s hand to follow and see the show.

Despite being pregnant, Wei Shuangyan moved swiftly, quickly rushing upstairs and, guided by the pipa’s source, kicked in the door of a private room.

By the time Lou Ruhui and Xingxing reached the second floor, they saw Wei Shuangyan kicking open the door, shrieking, and charging inside.

Lou Ruhui gasped, her gossip radar going wild!

Even in her excitement, she didn’t forget her little sister, dragging Xingxing with her.

"Yu Chongen, you have no heart!" Wei Shuangyan screamed!

Lou Ruhui and Xingxing dashed to the doorway just in time to see Wei Shuangyan lunging at Yu Chongen inside the room, clawing at him.

Yu Chongen dodged clumsily, his face already bearing several scratches from Wei Shuangyan, blood welling up immediately.

Furious yet mindful of Wei Shuangyan’s condition, he dodged and shouted, "Enough already!"

Wei Shuangyan’s eyes were red with rage, past reasoning with, her blows coming harder each time.

"Second Master, Second Master!" The pipa player quickly put down her instrument and rushed to Yu Chongen’s aid.

But Wei Shuangyan, seeing red, shoved her aside without a glance. The pipa girl cried out as her forehead hit the corner of a table.

"Fang Ai!"

Yu Chongen panicked at the sight. With a bit more force, he grabbed Wei Shuangyan by the wrists, restraining her before pushing her back to break free.

Wei Shuangyan stumbled back, nearly falling, but Lou Ruhui and Xingxing swiftly stepped forward, each supporting an arm to steady her.

Wei Shuangyan, pregnant with twins, couldn’t afford a fall.

Yu Chongen immediately regretted pushing her and sighed in relief when Xingxing and Lou Ruhui caught her.

His gaze flickered over Lou Ruhui and Xingxing’s faces, a flicker of shame crossing his expression.

One was his cousin, the other a girl he felt complicated about.

To have them witness such an embarrassing scene…

"Second Master…"

A faint moan brought Yu Chongen back to reality. He hurried to help the pipa girl, Fang Ai, to her feet. "Fang Ai, are you alright?"

Leaning into Yu Chongen’s embrace, Fang Ai gently traced the bloody scratches on his face left by Wei Shuangyan. "I’m fine. Second Master, I just… my heart breaks for you…"

Wei Shuangyan, still shaken and reeling from Yu Chongen’s aggression, was snapped out of her daze by the intimate display before her.

"Yu Chongen!" she shrieked in disbelief. "You swore you loved only me! What is this—pawing at this whore?!"

Yu Chongen’s face flushed with shame. "Fang Ai is not a whore! She’s a respectable performer! Look at yourself—you’re being such a harpy—"

Wei Shuangyan was on the verge of collapse: "You—you call me a shrew? That’s not what you said when you had me—"

Yu Chongen's expression darkened.

Lou Ruhui and Xingxing fidgeted uncomfortably, unsure whether to leave—

Fang Ai coaxed gently: "...Second Miss Wei, please don’t blame Second Master. He’s truly under great pressure, which is why he brought me out to listen to my pipa for relaxation. You’re smothering him—"

Wei Shuangyan screamed, half-mad: "Shut up! You bitch! Who gave you the right to speak here?!"

Yu Chongen’s face turned completely cold, likely finding Wei Shuangyan’s tantrum downright humiliating. He said icily, "Shuangyan, I’ve already made myself clear to you. There’s no future between us. I’ve got family duties and must marry and have children. You know your circumstances too. What’s the point of making such a scene now, other than turning us both into laughingstocks?"

"Laughingstocks?" Wei Shuangyan barked a crazed laugh. "Yu Chongen, what are you talking about? Haven’t I already become the laughingstock of the entire capital? The daughter of a prince, knocked up before wedlock because of you—who doesn’t call me shameless? And you—instead of standing by me, you’re getting all worked up just because I called a whore from the brothel a wretch. Hahahaha, men, hahahaha."

Her voice was a mix of weeping and laughter, completely deranged.

Her emotional instability was painfully clear.

Yu Chongen’s eyes flickered with guilt at her words. He sighed. "Shuangyan, blame cruel fate."

Just as he was about to say something more, Fang Ai clung to his arm, feigning fear. "Second Master, I’m so scared of the way Second Miss Wei is acting..."

This instantly sent Wei Shuangyan over the edge.

Staring fixedly at the two, Wei Shuangyan suddenly smiled. Slowly caressing her belly, she walked toward them, murmuring the affectionate name she had for Yu Chongen during their most intimate moments: "...Second Brother Yu, our child has been very well-behaved lately. I had someone check—they say it’s a boy. Do you like that?"

Yu Chongen was briefly transported.

He sighed.

He had heard that pregnancy was difficult for women, that it could make them act crazy. Perhaps Wei Shuangyan’s current state wasn’t entirely her fault...

"Shuangyan..."

Yu Chongen’s expression softened, his voice gentler as he called her name.

"Let’s..."

But his words were abruptly cut off.

Yu Chongen instinctively looked down at his chest.

A dagger was embedded there—

Thrust by Wei Shuangyan, who had approached him with tender affection, caressing her belly, only to suddenly draw it from her bosom and strike.

Paralyzed with shock, Yu Chongen froze.

Wei Shuangyan gave neither him nor Fang Ai time to respond. She wrenched the dagger from his chest and stabbed it back in the same spot with savage fury!

Blood splattered across Wei Shuangyan’s face.

And onto Fang Ai’s as well.

Only when the warm blood sprayed over her face did the frozen Fang Ai come to her senses, letting out a blood-curdling scream.

But Wei Shuangyan had already pulled the dagger out again. Raising it high, she gave Fang Ai a chilling smile.

Fang Ai screamed and collapsed to the ground, scrabbling backward on her hands and feet.

Yu Chongen had taken two dagger wounds and was now staggering backward, reaching out toward Fang Ai, as if trying to shout something.

But Fang Ai was too terrified. Without even glancing at Yu Chongen, she was backed against the window by Wei Shuangyan, her face smeared with blood like some demon. In her panic, Fang Ai pushed open the window and jumped out.

Wei Shuangyan stood by the window, looking down. When she saw Fang Ai land on the street only to be struck by a speeding carriage, her lips curled into a vicious grin.

Yet before that smile could fully form, someone behind her pressed a handkerchief laced with knockout powder over her mouth. Wei Shuangyan quickly lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground.

—It was Xingxing.

Lou Ruhui had gone ghostly pale. She wanted to press on Yu Chongen’s wounds but didn’t know how, her panic overwhelming her.

Everything had happened too suddenly—they hadn’t had time to react.

Moreover, Wei Shuangyan was still holding the dagger, her mind clearly gone. Xingxing and Lou Ruhui had no choice but to take advantage of Wei Shuangyan’s distraction to subdue her with the knockout drugs.

"Xingxing, what do we do? My cousin’s bleeding out!" Lou Ruhui was utterly frantic.

Xingxing, however, remained calm. "Sister Lou, I’ve only got some basic clotting herbs on me. I’ll give Yu Chongen emergency treatment first. You go downstairs and get help—tell the shop assistants to fetch a doctor immediately."

Her calm tone steadied Lou Ruhui, who wiped her face, nodded, and rushed downstairs to call for aid.

Xingxing rummaged through her pouch, found a hemostatic pill, and shoved it into Yu Chongen’s mouth. Then she tore strips from his clothes to bind his wounds—as much as she loathed Yu Chongen, if he died, Wei Shuangyan would surely face execution. And no matter what, the unborn child in Wei Shuangyan’s belly was innocent!

The scandal rocked the entire capital.

—The Second Miss of Jiping Commandery, once betrothed to him, had stabbed the second son of the Duke of Xinguo’s household! She had even driven his mistress to jump out a window, only for the woman to be run over by a speeding carriage and killed on the spot!

The Jiping Commandery Prince and the Princess Consort of Jiping Commandery looked like they’d aged twenty years in an instant.

Jiao Shi collapsed in a faint the second she heard the news.

Xingxing and Lou Ruhui were considered Yu Chongen’s saviors. Moreover, Xingxing was a renowned physician with close ties to the Duke of Xinguo’s household, so she naturally accompanied Lou Ruhui back to the estate.

Xingxing toiled nonstop for the better part of an hour before finally stabilizing Yu Chongen’s condition.

When the news spread, the waiting Duke of Xinguo’s household let out a collective sigh of relief.

The Dowager Duchess of Xin clutched at her pounding head, suppressing her discomfort as she asked Xingxing, "What in the world happened...?"

After Xingxing recounted the events, the Dowager Duchess sighed deeply. "A curse... A curse..."

When Jiao Shi regained consciousness, she struggled to see Yu Chongen.

Yu Mingzhu, her face wet with tears, held her back. "Mother, the doctor said Second Brother is out of danger. You must take care of yourself first."

Jiao Shi’s attention snapped to Xingxing. Staggering, she grabbed Xingxing’s arm. "What happened? How—how could my son end up like this?!"

Xingxing gave a brief explanation, and Jiao Shi burned with rage. "That damned woman! I’ll kill her!... She ruined my son’s life, and now she tried to murder him too!"

The Dowager Duchess’s headache worsened. She shouted, "Enough! If you hadn’t raised Chong En to be so irresponsible, none of this would have happened with that Wei girl!"

Tears streaming down her face, Jiao Shi opened her mouth to retort—but the Dowager Duchess’s expression suddenly changed, and she crumpled to the ground!