Ex-Wife is a Big Villainess
Chapter 225 - 138: The Young Widow

Chapter 225: Chapter 138: The Young Widow

Jiang Yi’s words were naturally in jest. Seeing Ran Qingchen’s slightly furrowed brows and displeased expression, her lips, red as if painted, curved slightly upwards. She deliberately teased her niece, "What’s the matter, Miss Ran? Aren’t you the one who said that even sharing a bed wouldn’t bother you?"

Ran Qingchen’s expression turned sour, and she coldly said, "I naturally do not mind, but after all, I am Jiang Mo’s wife in name. It’s rather unbecoming for my aunt to humiliate me like this in my presence. Besides, matters between men and women should be consensual. My aunt using a servant as a pawn at will—Jiang Mo would never agree. He is a true gentleman after all."

Jiang Yi smiled faintly at this, "What does it matter to me whether Jiang Mo agrees? Once his clothes are off, some things will no longer be up to him. You know very well what your aunt’s temper is like."

Then, changing her tone and her clear phoenix eyes twinkling with amusement, she said, "However, you are right about one thing, Jiang Mo is indeed a gentleman. If my maid truly loses her honor, he would surely marry her."

Ran Qingchen felt a surge of anger fill her chest, almost wishing she could draw her sword and slice through this last connection of kinship.

But just then, Jiang Yi sighed softly, "Alright, I won’t tease you anymore. You really are carefree, even buying a courtyard specially. If Jiang Mo truly marries someday, this courtyard of yours would make the best gift. They would surely enshrine you then."

Ran Qingchen listened awkwardly, suddenly feeling that she may have made a mistake.

"When will you go to Qingzhou?"

Jiang Yi asked.

Ran Qingchen came back to herself, unwilling to answer at first, but eventually, she responded curtly: "I leave tomorrow."

"With Jiang Mo?"

As Jiang Yi packed up her fishing rod and line, Ran Qingchen noticed a dead grass carp on the hook, probably bought by Jinxiu for cooking, used by Jiang Yi for amusement.

Ran Qingchen hesitated, then spoke softly, "Something happened, and I can’t take Jiang Mo with me. If possible, could I trouble my aunt to have Xia He and Miss Qiuye protect Jiang Mo? It would be best to escort him to Qingzhou, and I will meet them there."

"I heard that a murder recently took place in Qingzhou again, someone committed a massacre in a brothel, killing many. The murderer was Jin Ao, one of the four protectors of the Sky Demon Sect."

Jiang Yi threw the fishing equipment aside and stood up, stretching lazily. Her snake-like waist revealed its unique plumpness, and the slight curve in her back accentuated her exquisite figure.

Ran Qingchen nodded lightly, "The specifics still need to be investigated to see if it was indeed Qu Hongling, the sect master of the Sky Demon Sect, who ordered it. This woman previously killed the former Magistrate of Qingzhou, creating instability."

"Jiang Mo’s superior, Li Nanshuang, went to Qingzhou because her uncle was seriously injured in that very brothel. It was fortunate her uncle was there to stop her, or that girl would have definitely taken up a sword against the Sky Demon Sect."

Jiang Yi chuckled, "That girl has always been fearless, and she’s been very close to her uncle since childhood. This time, she really touched her raw nerve."

Seeing Chun Yu still dumbly standing at the entrance of the hut, Jiang Yi reprimanded with a smirk, "You silly girl, were you really planning to offer a pillow sacrifice?"

Chun Yu blushed deeply, hesitated for a moment, and in the end, didn’t dare to speak about Xia He’s situation.

...

When Jiang Shouzhong heard that Ran Qingchen was leaving tomorrow and couldn’t take him along, he was quite surprised.

However, he didn’t ask the reason, as with his current cultivation, even if he ventured out alone, he wouldn’t face too grave a danger.

"As personnel of the Liushan Division, you are not permitted to leave the Capital at will. Wait a few days, you can leave only after you receive the token."

Inside the hut, Ran Qingchen, her beautiful eyes filled with apology, said to Jiang Shouzhong, "According to what Mr. Yuan said, although the Luo Family is currently in turmoil and may not immediately concern themselves with you, there is still a risk. I have already spoken to my aunt, and she has arranged for Qiu Ye and Xia He to protect you all the way."

Jiang Shouzhong smiled, "No worries, I can manage on my own."

"Don’t act tough!"

Ran Qingchen’s expression was grave, "While there may not be as many martial arts experts outside the Capital as inside, there are always hidden dragons and crouching tigers. Moreover, if the Luo Family really moves against you, they will likely hire some assassins from the Jianghu."

Jiang Shouzhong’s smiling face became serious, and he nodded earnestly, "I will be careful."

Ran Qingchen lightly brushed her hair back behind her ear, moved her lips as if unsure what to say next.

"You also be careful on the road," Jiang Shouzhong said.

Ran Qingchen hummed in response, her expression becoming much more relaxed, and her bright and innocent cheeks beamed a charming smile as she joked, "Jiang Mo, the women in your courtyard are not really up to par. Don’t be too caught up in romances; I will definitely find you someone satisfactory."

"Okay, I’ll be waiting," Jiang Shouzhong said with a shrug and a laugh.

——

Qingzhou, a small bamboo cottage.

A young woman with her swords at her back stood beside the tightly shut door, arms crossed over her chest, staring absently at the wisps of smoke rising from a nearby house.

As the cottage door opened, a doctor with a medicine chest emerged.

Li Nanshuang quickly approached, "Doctor Lu, how is it?"

The old man known as Doctor Lu sighed, "His sea of energy is destroyed; there is no hope for his cultivation in this lifetime, surviving this far is already a miracle. If Miss Li hopes that Mr. Wen continues his cultivation, you should seek someone more capable; I am powerless to help."

After Doctor Lu left, Li Nanshuang’s face darkened, and her fists clenched audibly.

She stepped into the bamboo cottage.

On the bed inside the cottage lay a middle-aged man with a pale face and thin body, whose scholarly appearance would definitely attract the ladies in a brothel.

There was also a young woman in the cottage, pretty and delicate, with a hint of frailty in her features.

She was feeding the man on the bed.

On seeing Li Nanshuang enter, the young woman quickly stood up, her expression nervous and restrained.

The sick man on the bed, seeing Li Nanshuang’s arrival, squeezed out a weak smile, "Did the doctor praise my tough life for not dying yet? Let me tell you, Nan Shuang, once a fortune teller from the Zhuge Family told me I’m destined to live a long life of a hundred years..."

"Shut your mouth, you can’t cultivate anymore, you’re not going to live a long life at all," Li Nanshuang said irritably.

The man laughed, "Then let’s compare when the time comes and see who lives longer. Oh, and I’m looking forward to holding my grandnephew."

"Shut up!"

A blush swept across Li Nanshuang’s adorable cheeks as she turned to the young woman, "I’ll ask you one more time, besides the Great Protector Jin Ao from Sky Demon Sect who wreaks havoc everywhere, did you really see Qu Hongling as well?"

The young woman respectfully replied, "Mr. Li, Yan’er indeed personally witnessed the scene where Qu Hongling killed the former Magistrate, so I recognize her. I couldn’t have mistaken her. But as to whether it was Qu Hongling who ordered her subordinates to kill out of vengeance, Yan’er dares not jump to conclusions."

As she spoke, the woman’s tears began to fall. She choked up, "If it weren’t for saving Yan’er, Wen Er wouldn’t have been injured. It’s all Yan’er’s fault, I harmed Mr. Wen."

"Alright, alright, life is naturally full of trials and tribulations,"

Wen Er said with a smile to comfort, "Besides, given my personality, I could never stand to see a beauty in demise."

Li Nanshuang rolled her eyes and signaled Yan’er to leave. Once the girl had closed the door and walked away, she frowned and said, "What’s the story with this girl? You better not have fallen for her."

"This is called love."

"Love my ass!"

"Hehe, little Nan Shuang, you’ll understand someday; right now you wouldn’t get it," Wen Er, naturally carefree, joked with his niece despite having lost all his cultivation.

After the jest, the young master of the Wen Family seriously said, "Yan’er was formerly the little concubine of that Magistrate. However, she hadn’t married into his family before the Magistrate was imprisoned, which implicated Yan’er too. After the Magistrate died, Yan’er, with nowhere else to go, entered a brothel to make a living... In short, trading my lowly second realm of martial arts cultivation for a beauty was worth it."

...

After leaving the bamboo courtyard, Yan’er went to the kitchen to set down the medicine bowl.

At that moment, a bird resembling a magpie abruptly landed on the kitchen door, then flew off.

Yan’er washed the medicine bowl clean as usual, wiped her hands, and then walked out of the courtyard.

She followed the peculiar bird to an ancient mansion.

Yan’er first knocked once on the door, then knocked four more times.

After a while, the courtyard door slowly opened, and Yan’er entered the mansion, where she saw a young man in simple clothing tending to a plum tree in the courtyard.

"This servant greets young master Qi."

Yan’er knelt on the ground, her expression respectful.

The young man was the very Qi who had talked with Hu at Xichu Pavilion.

"Luo Mingtang is dead."

Qi approached, smelled the plum blossom, and spoke lightly.

Yan’er shook all over.

She incredulously said, "Did sister succeed?"

Qi laughed, "He died a bit too early, but don’t blame your sister, the Sting Heart Needle in her body is out of her control. Especially now that she’s carrying Luo Mingtang’s child, it’s understandable that she lost control. With Luo Mingtang dead, I will make some moves with the hidden pieces in the Luo Family to slowly take control, supporting your sister."

Yan’er’s expression was both excited and mournful as she murmured, "Father, Mother, sister has avenged you."

"As for you..."

Qi plucked a plum blossom, walked over to her, and gently tucked it behind her ear with a smile, "Getting close to Wen Er is also your fortune. You must seize this opportunity, understand?"

"Yes, this servant will accomplish the tasks given by young master Qi," the girl said, competing with the plum blossoms in beauty as she knelt on the ground.

——

At the other end of the alley, in a plain mansion,

A woman wearing a white veil was slowly tuning her pipa.

Beneath her feet lay three bodies.

A couple and a child around five years old, apparently the homeowners, a common farming family.

"Clang!"

Qin Shier’s delicate fingers lightly plucked the strings, and the body of the little boy on the ground shattered into pieces.

"Jiang Mo!"

Qin Shier’s gaze was icy as she coldly said, "I’m waiting for you right here, to ensure you have no grave to lie in!"

——

[The recent updates are quite late because I’m working on the outline for the second volume.]