Chapter 596: Being Rebuked Again

Chapter 596: Getting Roasted Again

You have to hand it to them—they were pretty generous. A hundred-tael note could buy several carriages.

Back in the day, he wouldn't have given a hundred-tael note a second look.

But now, things were different—he had to think twice about spending even a single tael.

In the end, common sense won out over pride, and he bent down and picked the banknote up off the ground.

Even so, Ji Nanchuan, who cared so much about saving face, still had to get the last word in.

"You wrecked my carriage when you crashed into us—do you think a lousy hundred taels is enough to brush us off?"

"I've got urgent business to take care of right now, and there's no time to buy a new carriage. If you waste my precious time and my son dies because of it, can you handle that?"

The round-faced maid had a short fuse too, glaring at Ji Nanchuan, clearly annoyed.

"Then what do you want? You want our mistress to hand over her carriage to you?"

Ji Nanchuan sized up the other party's luxurious carriage—even the curtain was made of golden silk and studded with pearls, truly priceless.

He was definitely tempted—the carriage was ridiculously luxurious, and even the maid's clothes were anything but ordinary. Just how rich was the lady inside?

His heart was tempted, and he couldn't help but feel curious about the woman inside.

With that in mind, Ji Nanchuan deliberately softened his tone and said, "No offense, but I urgently need to travel a long way to fetch a doctor for my son. Every second I waste puts him in more danger."

"Now that our carriage is out of commission, if I were to buy a new one, I'd have to go three streets and two alleys over just to reach the nearest carriage shop. That would take way too long, and even if I did come back with a new carriage, it'd already be too late."

"My son got stabbed today and is badly hurt—he can't wait much longer."

He'd barely finished speaking when a soft, gentle voice came from inside.

"My servant's clumsiness caused us to crash into your carriage, sir. I'm truly sorry."

"If you don't mind, sir, why not ride with us? I'll have my servant take you there—how does that sound?"

The woman's voice was airy and sweet, like the drizzling rain of Jiangnan—soft, yet with a refreshing, spring-like warmth. Ji Nanchuan was hooked right away.

Honestly, the whole reason he'd said all that was just to get the lady in the carriage to notice him.

Now, it looked like his plan had worked.

Ji Nanchuan was thrilled inside but kept up a polite front.

"Then I thank the lady for the lift."

The round-faced maid immediately butted in, "Mistress, no! This guy obviously looks like he's trying to scam us—how can you just let him on our carriage?"

She'd already handed over a hundred taels to Ji Nanchuan, and he'd taken it.

Now he wanted to get on their carriage—she didn't buy for a second that he had no other agenda.

The round-faced maid spread her arms out, blocking the carriage so Ji Nanchuan couldn't get on.

"Crashing into you was our fault, but you're not innocent either! This is a busy market street with people all over—why were you driving so fast?"

"At that speed, even if you hadn't hit us, you'd have plowed into someone else."

"Besides, your carriage is cheap—it flipped over with one bump. Who's fault is that?"

Ji Nanchuan: "..."

Ji Nanchuan: "!!!"

He never thought he'd get roasted by Ji Yuntang and then get chewed out by some little maid.

He was the honorable Marquis of Yongning, respected everywhere he went—when had he ever been treated like this?

Ji Nanchuan's face went cold as he said, "You rude little maid! You crashed into my carriage, and I haven't even made a fuss—I just want to borrow your mistress's carriage to give me and my son a ride."

"Given how urgent this is, I wouldn't bother you if I weren't desperate to get a doctor."

The round-faced maid was about to snap back when the woman inside cut her off.

She lifted the curtain a bit, pretending to be annoyed, and said, "Luzhu, don't be rude to this gentleman."

Through the gap in the curtain, Ji Nanchuan caught a glimpse of half her face.

She had dark hair, red lips, fair skin, and bright eyes, with a neck as white as fresh snow on a branch—there was something otherworldly about her, clean and elegant.

Ji Nanchuan stood there frozen.

The face from his memories lined up with the one in front of him, and he stood there like he'd been struck by lightning.

Ji Nanchuan stood there in a daze. He wasn't sure if the woman in the carriage was the one he'd been looking for, but seeing her sent his mind back twenty-five years.

Before he met Lady Meng, he'd once had a sweetheart he truly loved.

They'd run into each other by chance while out shopping, and it was love at first sight for both of them.

They'd been together for seven years, and her family, her looks, and her upbringing all suited him perfectly.

She wasn't from a noble family, but her family had been in business for generations—well-off, happy, and loaded.

Even Old Madam Ji, who was super picky, had been quite happy with her.

They'd already gotten to the point of talking marriage, with him swearing he'd marry no one but her, and her promising the same.

But then, out of nowhere, she vanished.

Ji Nanchuan searched the whole capital but couldn't find any trace of her.

He followed the trail to her house, only to find it empty.

He was heartbroken and fell into a deep slump for a long time.

Ji Nanchuan still remembered those three years after his sweetheart left as the most painful of his life.

Day and night, he'd longed to find her.

In the end, Old Madam Ji couldn't stand to watch anymore and started lining up new brides for him.

That was how he ended up matched with Lady Meng, whose family was decent enough.

Lady Meng was the eldest legitimate daughter of her family, and her father, a court official, had been close with the old Marquis of Yongning back then.

Through those connections, the two families had agreed to the engagement.

Ji Nanchuan married Meng and had three sons and one daughter with her, but he never let go of the one who got away.

He and Meng often had fierce arguments over this matter, which always ended inconclusively.

Ji Nanchuan had thought he would never see that person again in his lifetime, yet unexpectedly, he spotted someone here who looked strikingly like her.

The woman in the carriage, however, didn't seem to notice him.

Ji Nanchuan hesitated for a moment before deciding to test the waters.

What if she really was the one he'd been looking for?

He asked, "May I ask your surname, ma'am? Do you happen to know Xia Chuhe?"

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