Hearing this, Cheng Chi frowned and said: “When did this happen?”
Zhou Shaojin lowered her head: “It was on March 24th the year before last. I tripped and fell by the lake. When I woke up and opened my eyes, I had returned to when I was twelve years old…”
Cheng Chi nodded.
This matched what Huai Shan had said.
He glanced at Zhou Shaojin and said: “Then why did you start meddling in the Lin and Mu families’ affairs? Is the Lin family connected to you, or is the Mu family connected to you?”
All these matters originated from this, and Zhou Shaojin knew this was a topic she couldn’t avoid.
She couldn’t help saying softly: “Lin Shisheng was my husband in my previous life!”
Cheng Chi raised an eyebrow: “Former husband?”
More or less…
Zhou Shaojin’s face flushed bright red.
But Cheng Chi said: “Did you steal Miss Mu’s marriage, and then because of the Mu family’s troubles, Miss Mu fell to become an official courtesan, so you felt guilty and wanted to help them?”
“How could that be!” Zhou Shaojin jumped up anxiously upon hearing this: “Am I that kind of person? How could I steal someone else’s marriage? Miss Mu and Lin Shisheng had been betrothed since childhood. If not for that disaster, they would have married smoothly long ago. But Lin Shisheng always remembered Miss Mu fondly, and later found an opportunity to take Miss Mu as a concubine… I just wanted to help them!”
Was this helping?
In her previous life, her own husband took his childhood sweetheart as a concubine, and as the legitimate wife, not only was she not jealous or heartbroken, but she even tried to facilitate her husband marrying the concubine… Moreover, the Zhou family came from a proper scholarly background—how could they have formed a marriage alliance with Lin Shisheng, who came from a military family? And she even married far away to the capital!
Cheng Chi glanced at Zhou Shaojin with a half-smile: “You two were a fake couple, weren’t you?”
“No!” Zhou Shaojin instinctively retorted: “We weren’t a fake couple!”
Cheng Chi didn’t believe a single word: “How did you end up marrying to the capital?”
Zhou Shaojin hesitated for a moment and said quietly: “My brother-in-law made the match.”
Not Old Madam Guan or Zhou Zhen who arranged the match, but Liao Shaotang.
This in itself was very thought-provoking.
Cheng Chi recalled Zhou Shaojin’s reaction when he grabbed her earlier, and her resistance when he mentioned Cheng Xu… He couldn’t help but become serious and said solemnly: “Shaojin, in the previous life you mentioned, did Cheng Xu do something to wrong you?”
Only this could explain why she would leave the Cheng family, why she would marry far away!
Zhou Shaojin’s expression grew tense.
Uncle Chi had discovered it after all!
But such humiliating matters—how could she speak of them before Uncle Chi?
Her hands clenched tightly into fists, and her body began trembling uncontrollably.
Cheng Chi felt great sympathy watching this.
The past was already past—why did he need to repeatedly bring it up and make her suffer?
He couldn’t help stepping forward to gently pat Zhou Shaojin’s head, saying warmly: “If you feel uncomfortable, don’t think about it. Didn’t you say it was from your previous life? In this life you’re fine, so don’t think about those unpleasant things from before. All right?”
Zhou Shaojin looked at Cheng Chi almost gratefully.
She truly didn’t want to mention the past anymore.
Those who committed wrongs and needed punishment didn’t know, yet she, the victim, kept being hurt repeatedly!
She obediently nodded.
Watching her, Cheng Chi quietly sighed inwardly.
Even if it was from a previous life, the pain once experienced wouldn’t disappear with the passage of time. It was merely hidden in a corner.
This little girl was so docile it hurt one’s heart!
He just didn’t know what exactly Cheng Xu had done in that previous life.
Had he already fallen beyond redemption?
Since there was no one behind her, he needed to clarify some things.
Cheng Chi pointed to the nearby daybed: “Shaojin, you still haven’t told me why the Cheng family was confiscated. Shall we sit down and talk?”
Zhou Shaojin quickly nodded.
The two sat down on either side of the daybed.
Zhou Shaojin carefully described the circumstances at that time to Cheng Chi.
Cheng Chi noted that in the previous life Zhou Shaojin described, she had lived alone at the Lin family’s estate in Daxing.
He said: “Then this matter would be best asked of your brother-in-law Liao Shaotang. But Liao Shaotang doesn’t have the ability to foresee and has no idea what will happen in the future…”
Zhou Shaojin felt embarrassed.
What she said was as good as saying nothing.
Cheng Chi asked in detail when Zhou Chujin arrived at the estate, when she left, how long she stayed at the estate, what they talked about, when Lin Shisheng found out, when he brought her the news… every detail, asking very thoroughly.
Zhou Shaojin knew Cheng Chi was trying to find some clues from this and answered very carefully.
After listening, Cheng Chi fell into deep thought.