Chapter 28 Chapter 28

Chapter 28

1

The donor matching wasn't going well.

There was no shortage of "volunteers," but not just anyone could be a match.

Doctor Jiang comforted her, telling her not to worry.

As long as someone was willing to donate, they'd find a match sooner or later.

Doctor Jiang also sent Lin Chenxin recent updates on her younger sister.

After receiving the pastries she had made, Chenyi's spirits had lifted considerably.

Even though she couldn't eat them, just seeing them gave little Chenyi a lot of strength.

Looking at the photo of her sister smiling at the camera while holding the pastries, Lin Chenxin's eyes reddened as she smiled.

Since entering the Chen family, she hadn't called her brother and sister even once, hadn't spoken a word to them, and hadn't told them anything about her current situation.

She was afraid she wouldn't be able to hold on, and also afraid they would worry.

Nothing had changed now.

She didn't dare to hear their voices, afraid she might lose control.

But as long as she remembered that her younger siblings were still waiting for her outside, the goal in her heart became much clearer.

Lin Chenxin lifted her head, took a deep breath, and reignited her fighting spirit.

However, the moment she turned and saw Chen Gujun, her expression faltered, and her heart suddenly skipped a beat.

"Chen Gujun..." she murmured.

Chen Gujun looked at her quietly, then turned his head away and said, "It's time to change the dressing."

His expression didn't change, just as it always was.

But Lin Chenxin watched Chen Gujun's retreating back, a different emotion surfacing in her eyes.

Originally, Lin Chenxin's wound had already begun to scab over, but now it had split open again, seeping fresh red blood.

During this time, Chen Gujun had been more attentive to her injury than she was herself; failing to protect the wound was her responsibility.

Coupled with that unspeakable guilt, she unconsciously whispered, "I'm sorry."

Chen Gujun's movements paused, his sharp fingernail tearing through the gauze.

She was taken aback for a moment, looking up at Chen Gujun's face.

But Chen Gujun's face showed no expression, his lowered eyelashes concealing the emotions in his eyes.

"Why apologize?" he asked.

Lin Chenxin felt a slight unease in her heart and said, "I just feel I've let down your care."

Chen Gujun calmly helped her bandage the wound, retracting his sharp fingernails into his palm.

"Don't say sorry next time."

He straightened up, picked up the medical kit, and left.

Lin Chenxin watched Chen Gujun's back, and in the blink of an eye, he had disappeared.

She wasn't sure why she stayed.

She didn't follow him out, nor did she speak.

The setting sun was blocked outside the threshold, and Lin Chenxin sat silently in the room for a long time.

——

Standing under the withered tree in the front courtyard, Lin Chenxin looked up at the bare branches above, wondering if she should hang something on the tree.

Suddenly, a very soft sound came from outside. She turned around and saw the young master standing halfway outside the moon gate, revealing half of his pale face as he looked at her.

"Sister-in-law," the young master smiled.

She was startled, looking at the young master's face, which had noticeably thinned in such a short time, as if he had suffered a serious illness. His whole being seemed drained of vitality, his cheeks sunken.

The young master didn't come in, just stood outside watching her.

"You..." she walked over.

The young master took out a peony, roots and soil still attached, from behind his back, his eyes dark and bright as he looked at her, his face showing a bit of unease and a bit of embarrassment.

"I thought Sister-in-law might like it, so I came to give you a flower."

The young master's smile looked particularly frail on his thin face.

"Thank you," she said, taking the flower.

The young master looked curiously around the courtyard for a moment. Seeing the row of exquisite wind chimes, his eyes widened slightly in admiration.

"Would you like to come in?" she asked.

The young master hesitated, nervously wringing his hands together.

Since childhood, he had been repeatedly forbidden from entering this place. Being able to come this far already took immense psychological pressure.

But he truly felt suffocated in his own courtyard. Under such extreme repression, he had come to the Junzi Courtyard driven by an impulse.

After a moment of hesitation, he cautiously took a step and crossed the threshold.

Lin Chenxin brought a teapot and cups, placing them on the stone table in the front courtyard.

Seeing the young master's nervous and uneasy demeanor, she went to the kitchen and brought out a plate of pastries.

The young master sat on the stool, looking at her and asking, "Did Sister-in-law make all these?"

She sat down opposite him, nodding and saying, "Try some."

The young master picked up a piece of red bean cake and took a bite, his eyes immediately brightening.

"It's delicious."

An ordinary red bean cake could actually be made so differently from those outside—sweet but not cloying, with a lingering, fragrant aftertaste.

Goes great with tea.

The young master gradually relaxed.

Lin Chenxin smiled.

After eating three pieces in a row, the young master somewhat sheepishly put his hand down.

He fidgeted nervously, pinching his fingers, and looked around. "Isn't Big Brother here?"

Lin Chenxin pushed a cup of tea toward him and said softly, "He's here."

The young master immediately tensed up.

"Wh-where?"

Lin Chenxin looked at the young master, her gaze fixed on him. "Do you want to see him?"

The young master's Adam's apple bobbed. He moved his lips, his expression stiff, unable to speak.

Lin Chenxin withdrew her gaze as if nothing had happened.

"There are other pastries. Would you like to try some?"

The young master immediately breathed a sigh of relief, lowering his head. "No, thank you."

A moment later, he looked up with a smile.

"The pastries Big Sister-in-law makes are delicious. If you opened a shop outside, it would probably be very popular."

Lin Chenxin's eyelashes fluttered slightly. She said softly, "It definitely would."

The young master didn't hear clearly and looked at her somewhat puzzled.

Suddenly, a breeze rang the wind chimes under the eaves. The young master jolted, his face instantly paling several shades. Seeing it was just the wind chimes, he raised a hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead.

Lin Chenxin watched him silently.

The young master's face was as pale as paper, his mind unsettled. The slightest noise would startle and frighten him.

What on earth had happened to make him so ill?

"You look much thinner," she said.

The young master pressed his lips together, trying to force a smile as if to hide something, but before the smile could form, his eyes instantly reddened, as if he had thought of something.

"I..."

His lips trembled. He wanted to say something, but it seemed stuck in his throat, unable to come out.

Lin Chenxin stared at him unblinkingly. Her gaze didn't hold any particularly intense emotion, yet it was clear and resolute, enough to make a person's defenses crumble instantly.

"I don't know, I don't know why Father is in such a hurry for me to marry and have children," he choked out, tears immediately rolling down.

After all, he was just an eighteen-year-old boy.

This vast mansion felt like a cage, suffocating him. He had nowhere to turn for help, feeling so oppressed he thought he might die.

"Big Sister-in-law, I really don't know what to do. I want to go back to school, I want to study!"

He grabbed Lin Chenxin's hand tightly, as if clutching a lifeline.

Lin Chenxin's wound hurt from the grip, but she didn't pull away. Instead, she looked directly into the young master's eyes and asked, "Did he say why?"

The young master shook his head in anguish, large tears falling.

"Father only said there's no time, that the Chen family cannot end with him. I don't know anything else, I really don't know."

Lin Chenxin's fingers trembled, thinking of what Ms. Liang had said.

Ms. Liang had also said that Chen Gujun couldn't hold on much longer.

A terrible conjecture surfaced in her mind.

She opened her mouth, her voice strained as she asked a crucial question.

"Marriage and having children... did he say which one is more important?"

The young master looked up, his eyes somewhat blank. Then he shuddered and stammered, "H-having... children."

Lin Chenxin's pupils contracted upon hearing the answer.

The young master's face was pale, seemingly also confused, not understanding why Mr. Chen would say such things to him. It clearly contradicted the education he had received since childhood.

Yet the fact was, under extreme pressure, he had tried to express his resistance to marriage. Mr. Chen had looked at him with sharp eyes, his voice as piercing as ice.

"You don't have to marry, but you must have a child of your own."

Then, Mr. Chen's expression softened. He patted the young master's head and said, "You're still too young now. It's normal not to understand. Once you have a child and take over the Chen family, you'll understand. By then, you'll have a second child, a third child."

That look had sent chills down the young master's spine.

To Mr. Chen, children were far more important than a wife.

The young master felt his scalp prickle and couldn't help but grip Lin Chenxin's hand even tighter.

Lin Chenxin frowned, unable to suppress a soft groan.

At that moment, all the wind chimes under the eaves began to ring, *ding-ding-dang-dang*.

The young master's already pale face lost all remaining color. He looked at the wind chimes moving without any wind, his eyes filled with panic and bewilderment. The *ding-ding-dang-dang* sounds seemed to hammer against his heart, making his whole body shiver with cold.

Lin Chenxin took the opportunity to withdraw her hand, breathing a sigh of relief.

Seeing the bright red blood staining the bandage, she let out another sigh.

This wound kept reopening and wouldn't heal properly. Even if it did heal, it would probably leave a scar.

"B-Big Sister-in-law," the young master stammered, his mouth trembling, clearly frightened.

"It's nothing, just a draft through the hall," she said calmly.

Sure enough, after she spoke, all the wind chimes eerily fell silent.

The young master couldn't stop trembling lightly, his lips pale. "R-really?"

He looked at the wind chimes, but somehow his gaze was drawn to the four red lanterns. Then, as if lured, he looked toward the study in the shadows.

There, a figure stood by the latticed, carved window—tall, his face indistinct, only a few strands of white hair visible.

He started violently, then his legs gave way and he crumpled to the floor.

Lin Chenxin jumped. Seeing the young master collapse in terror, she immediately stood up to help him.

"Are you alright?" she asked, her brow furrowed tightly.

The young master looked spaced-out, clearly shaken up and unable to withstand any further stimulation.

She blocked his view of the study, and only then did the young master slowly snap out of it.

"N-no... I'm fine," he stammered, his hands and legs weak as Lin Chenxin helped him up.

But he was so wobbly he could hardly stand. Seeing this, Lin Chenxin's frown deepened.

"J-just now... I saw... someone in the study..." the young master swallowed hard, the words coming in halting bursts.

She replied calmly, "That was your eldest brother. It's fine—that's just how he is, always playing tricks."

The young master froze for a moment. Under Lin Chenxin's casual tone, his racing heart suddenly calmed down.