The wind rushed at her face, her heart pounded wildly, making it somewhat hard to breathe.
Zhou Shaojin, living her second life, was running like this for the first time.
Jiang Shi’s pozi called out anxiously from behind.
Cheng Jia let out bell-like laughter.
Zhou Shaojin felt an exhilarating sense of reckless freedom.
Then she saw Pan Qing and Cheng Xu.
Under the large locust tree beside the corridor, Pan Qing was gazing at Cheng Xu with a face full of bashful admiration.
Cheng Xu, dressed in a bamboo-green straight robe, was handsome and upright, like a jade tree facing the wind.
The two were chatting and laughing, deeply engaged in pleasant conversation.
Hearing the commotion, they looked over and both showed expressions of shock.
Zhou Shaojin almost couldn’t help laughing out loud.
Heaven itself was helping her!
Pan Qing had indeed come to find Cheng Xu, and she had succeeded—they were meeting alone, just about thirty steps away from the waterside pavilion, with neither servants nor maids accompanying them.
She only needed to say in surprise, “Cousin Qing, what are you doing here? Didn’t I just tell you that Cousin Xu and the others are at the waterside pavilion?”—those who had been gathered around Lady Mian’s wife would testify for her, while Shi Xiang who remained in the flower hall could use the incident of Jiang Shi’s pozi chasing after her and Cheng Jia to draw the attention of people in the flower hall to this scene… Everyone would “know” that Pan Qing, having learned that Cheng Xu was at the waterside pavilion, had secretly slipped out of the flower hall to find him… Her objective would be achieved!
Zhou Shaojin’s footsteps gradually slowed to a stop.
She looked expressionlessly at Pan Qing and Cheng Xu, holding back Cheng Jia.
Cheng Jia stood beside Zhou Shaojin, gasping for breath, her bright, clear eyes staring unblinkingly at Pan Qing.
Pan Qing had a guilty conscience, and being stared at like this by Cheng Jia, whom she had always suppressed, naturally felt somewhat embarrassed.
Cheng Xu was quite awkward.
He clearly hadn’t expected Zhou Shaojin to catch him meeting alone with Pan Qing. His lips quivered as he wanted to explain, but didn’t know how to explain properly.
From the flower hall came Shi Xiang’s somewhat shrill voice: “Second Young Miss, Miss Jia, don’t run! Be careful not to fall.”
A slight smile curved Zhou Shaojin’s lips, a trace of mockery flashing in her eyes.
Pan Qing froze, about to speak, but unexpectedly Cheng Jia jumped out first.
“Pan Qing, you clearly knew that Cousin Shi and the others were at the waterside pavilion, yet you still ran over here? What exactly are you trying to do?” Perhaps suppressed by Pan Qing for too long, or perhaps these words had been in her heart for a long time, she appeared somewhat agitated, with veins bulging at her temples. “This isn’t like that day’s musical competition with only family brothers. Today is the Fourth Branch’s old lady’s birthday celebration—besides the Cheng family’s children, there are also outside men. How can you run out here without bringing anyone? Don’t forget, you’re a guest at the Cheng household! Though our Cheng family indulges our daughters, we’re not without rules…”
Zhou Shaojin’s mouth dropped open in surprise.
How could she have forgotten Cheng Jia’s temper… If she’d known, she shouldn’t have involved Cheng Jia! But without using Cheng Jia, how would Jiang Shi’s people have chased after them, and how could she have drawn the attention of people in the flower hall…
Zhou Shaojin felt guilty.
Jiang Shi rushed over.
“Silence!” Her fair face now resembled the sky before a storm, dark and ominous. “Where is your place to speak! Your Cousin Qing merely happened to encounter your Cousin Xu by chance—what are you making such a fuss about? She’s your cousin, yet you don’t have the slightest appearance of being an older sister!”
Zhou Shaojin turned around.
She saw Cheng Xian behind Jiang Shi.
She bit her lip, her face somewhat pale, her gaze obscure.
Yuan Shi followed behind Cheng Xian.
She wore a smile, but her gaze was like a poisoned knife, glinting with dark, cold light as she looked at Pan Qing.
Shi Xiang, Guo’er, and others followed behind Yuan Shi with panicked expressions.
Over at the flower hall, a crowd of people was squeezed under the corridor.
Zhou Shaojin let out a long breath, her palms covered in sweat.
Finally completed smoothly… without any mishaps…
Shi Xiang ran over, calling out softly “Second Young Miss.”
Her trembling voice betrayed her current nervousness and fear.
Zhou Shaojin took a deep breath and smiled, nodding at her.
Shi Xiang’s expression relaxed slightly.
Cheng Jia, who had been lectured by her mother repeatedly in front of everyone, was heartbroken.
Even at this point, Mother was still protecting Pan Qing… She was her biological daughter, wasn’t she!
Tears suddenly fell as Cheng Jia sobbed: “Mother, why do you always protect Cousin Qing? If she did better than me, I’d have nothing to say if you scolded me. But this matter is clearly her fault—why are you still defending her? Is she the Cheng family’s young lady while I was just picked up from the street? It was the same during the musical competition. That ‘Fengming’ qin was made by Cousin Xu’s own hands. Though it was meant as a prize, even Cousin Shi knew that if one of us cousin sisters won first place, the jade pendant that the Second Branch’s old ancestor gave him wouldn’t be suitable as a prize, which is why he had Cousin Xu bring out a qin… You always say Cousin Qing is sensible, but if she were truly sensible, she should have exchanged prizes with Cousin Chujin on the spot, rather than accepting the qin without hesitation and then playing it in her room every day…”
Zhou Shaojin’s forehead broke out in sweat.
Cheng Jia—when she didn’t speak she was silent, but when she did speak, she could wound people to the bone.
They had all thought of everything except that the one to ruin things would be Cheng Jia!
Jiang Shi was so angry she could spit blood, wanting nothing more than to step forward and slap her foolish daughter awake.
Yet Cheng Jia, completely oblivious, continued: “Mother, do you know why I started paying attention to Cousin Qing? That day when Cousin Qing went for a walk, she actually walked all the way to Clear Creek Lake and just happened to encounter Cousin Xu passing by there…”