Chapter 016 Fu Jiaze’s Heart Flutter

Chapter 016 Fu Jiaze's Heart Flutter

Although Wen Hui's voice was soft, many people around her heard it. Those who were farther away and didn't hear it couldn't help but stir, urgently asking, "What did that beautiful concubine say?"

"Lin Yi deceived me, tricked me into becoming his mistress, and forced me to be his concubine!"

"Who is this Lin Yi? How shameless, forcing someone to be his concubine!"

"Is the Jinyiwei finally taking action? It's rare; they're actually doing something human!"

Another round of urgent inquiries: "What did the woman kneeling before the Fourth Prince say?"

The same response repeated: "Lin Yi deceived me, tricked me into becoming his mistress, and forced me to be his concubine!"

The most repeated questions and answers were those few sentences, and Wen Hui's words spread out.

All the voices gathered together, buzzing like cicadas in summer, making one feel irritable.

The central figure, Lin Yi, had a heavy gaze as he looked at Wen Hui kneeling on the ground.

He thought Wen Hui would still cherish the sweet days they had shared.

They had so many memories, and a daughter together. For over a decade, Lin Yi felt he had never wronged Wen Hui. To make amends, he indulged her in everything. Yet, she still believed he had deceived and forced her.

How could she not care about their past at all? With the Fourth Prince and the Jinyiwei present, he didn't believe Wen Hui didn't understand the consequences of speaking like this now.

"Huiniang," Lin Yi spoke.

As Lin Yi spoke, all the surrounding noise quieted down, and everyone's attention focused on Wen Hui and Lin Yi.

Qin Yuanting frowned deeply, wanting to say something to the Fourth Prince, but the Fourth Prince, Zhao Xuan, waved him off urgently, not allowing him to interrupt.

Everyone thought Wen Hui wouldn't look up, but she did, meeting Lin Yi's gaze.

Time had passed, and with the blessings of heaven, she was even more beautiful than before. Her eyes were blazing, as if burning with an inner fire.

Lin Yi felt like he was back in the past, when he was still inexperienced. He liked Wen Hui and felt guilty when he designed her to be his mistress, so he let her stab him with scissors, thinking it was better for her to release her anger and hatred.

He wouldn't let her leave, and he would love and pamper her, believing all the hatred would fade. But he never imagined that the pain and hatred had never truly disappeared, only hidden like receding tides, now surging back as a massive wave.

Lin Yi almost drowned in this overwhelming hatred, swaying slightly before regaining his composure.

Wen Hui's hatred couldn't kill him back then, and it couldn't harm him now.

Looking at Wen Hui, Lin Yi spoke word by word, "Huiniang, my legal wife is Wang, and we have a son and a daughter. My concubine is you, and we have a daughter named Yingxue. Apart from one wife and one concubine, there are no other women in my life. I've never entered brothels or accepted maids or courtesans sent by others. You like chanting sutras, so I built a small prayer room for you. When you were unwell, I sent you to the hot spring villa in the suburbs. The melons you love eating are hard to come by, but I always managed to send them to your courtyard."

People tend to be lenient towards men, and when Lin Yi recounted his kindness to Wen Hui, many felt softened, pitying Lin Yi and thinking Wen Hui was ungrateful for receiving such affection yet still accusing her husband.

Subtle accusations fell upon Wen Hui.

The Fourth Prince watched with interest, while Wen Hui remained upright, unmoved by these words.

Seeing Wen Hui's demeanor, Lin Yi intensified his plea, "Putting aside all the good I've done for you, think about our daughter Yingxue. Among our two daughters and one son, I favor her the most. She called 'Father' for the first time because of me, took her first steps with my help, and learned to read and write from me."

When Wang heard Lin Yi's fondness for Wen Hui, her face turned livid, feeling humiliated.

Now hearing Lin Yi's continued affection for Lin Yingxue, she couldn't hold back any longer. Lin Baozhen was the eldest legitimate daughter, born with blessings! Why wasn't Lin Yi paying more attention to Baozhen? If he had disciplined her more, she wouldn't have chased after Xie Jingzhi!

Wang turned sharply and left, saying, "Excuse me!"

After all, it was Lin Yi who deceived Wen Hui into being a concubine, which had nothing to do with her!

The crowd chuckled softly, causing Wang to nearly stumble on the stone steps, but her maid caught her, and they entered through the dark-colored gate.

Qin Yuanting wanted to stop Wang, but the Fourth Prince prevented him once again.

Lin Yi's gaze shifted to Lin Yingxue, "Come and persuade your aunt not to do such foolish things."

Lin Yingxue also knelt, but not towards Lin Yi, instead bowing deeply to the Fourth Prince, "Please, Your Highness, intervene."

Seeing Lin Yingxue's actions, Lin Yi's pupils constricted, "Yingxue, do you know what you're doing?"

Lin Yingxue knew the implications. According to Fu Jiaze's plan, her mother might successfully obtain a release document, but her own fate was in Lin Yi's hands.

She had already agreed with Fu Jiaze that he would propose earlier, with Princess Mingrui's help, allowing her to easily leave the Lin residence and escape Lin Baozhen's schemes. However, her act of kneeling erased all that.

Lin Yi might use her marriage to vent his anger over releasing the concubine.

But how could Lin Yingxue not kneel?

Since learning about her mother's situation, she couldn't help but think about her mother's decision to invite her father into her chambers.

When Wen Hui discovered the truth, she must have been devastated. Her years of vegetarianism and chanting were silent protests against Lin Yi. Because of her own peril in the mountains, Wen Hui sought her father's help, just to give her a sense of security.

After hearing Wang's promise, Wen Hui chose to hang herself, believing Wang clearly hated her but had little enmity towards Lin Yingxue. Her death fulfilled Wang's wish, and she was tired of living as Lin Yi's concubine.

She should have been a free bird, but stayed in the Lin residence for her daughter, caged like a canary.

Lin Yingxue looked up, spotting Fu Jiaze in the crowd, giving him a faint smile before addressing her father, "Father, I didn't know about Mother's situation before, but now that I do, we must clarify everything."

Standing in the crowd, Fu Jiaze was moved by Wen Hui and Lin Yingxue, especially Lin Yingxue.

That day at Princess Mingrui's, Lin Yingxue saved him and expressed her willingness to marry him. He was surprised, finding her unexpected.

Since she was his savior, marrying her was acceptable. Without Lin Yingxue, he would have married anyone else, perhaps Wang Yingxue or Li Yingxue. The only trouble was that he almost became engaged to her elder sister, requiring some persuasion from his uncle. But given her status as his savior, this minor inconvenience was insignificant.

Today, Lin Yingxue's actions made her image vivid in his mind, setting her apart from all other women.

Fu Jiaze placed his hand on his chest, feeling his heart race, not because a woman was in his arms, but due to a strange sensation, as if a fluffy paw gently scratched his heart.

Wanting to marry this woman has become more troublesome, but Fu Jiaze feels that if he can marry her, then so be it if it's more troublesome.