Chapter 93: You’ve Already Died Once, Why Still Fear Him?

Chapter 93: Chapter 93: You’ve Already Died Once, Why Still Fear Him?

Chen Minrou looked at the completely unfamiliar young woman before her, her eyes filled with heartache.

"If his concubine hadn’t plotted to kill you, you’d still be the esteemed daughter of a Marquis Mansion. You wouldn’t have had to suffer through such an ordeal, only to end up in a new body as a helpless orphan... You can’t even openly acknowledge your former parents and brothers."

Her Yaoyao had truly suffered.

Chen Minrou said resentfully, "Have you heard? That Li Wanrong didn’t even die. She was just poisoned, and for the past three years, Xie Jinbai has been exhausting every means to keep her alive."

"..." Cui Lingyao was speechless for a long moment before finally forcing out, "He... he probably has his reasons."

"Is that what Xie Jinbai told you?"

Chen Minrou flew into a rage at her words and slammed her hand on the table again. "He says he has his reasons, and you just believe him? You’ve been given a second chance, and you’re still going to bang your head against that same wall?"

They were in a pavilion where the table and stools were made of stone. The force of the blow made Cui Lingyao wince just watching. She quickly grabbed her friend’s hand, saying repeatedly, "I’m not going to bang my head against a wall, don’t get so worked up."

How could Chen Minrou believe her? In her eyes, her friend had been completely bewitched by Xie Jinbai. It was a classic case of hoping for the best but being met with disappointment. "What is it about him that makes you unable to forget him, even after he drove you to your death? His aura is terrifying enough to scare a person to death. In recent years, he’s become a mass murderer, and he has such a gloomy, sinister air about him. Don’t you find him creepy?"

"Who’s unable to forget him!" Fearing her friend would get upset again, Cui Lingyao quickly added, "Don’t worry, I’m not going to just forgive him like that."

Chen Minrou’s gaze was suspicious. She watched her for a moment, but seeing the serious expression on her face, she slowly let out a breath of relief.

"That’s more like it. There are so many good men in the world. You’re in the flower of your youth, and Xie Jinbai is already in his late twenties. How is he worthy of you? I think that Mr. Shen is a great choice. He’s handsome, seems gentle and considerate, and knows how to be attentive. How is he not better than Xie Jinbai in every way?"

"!!!"

Cui Lingyao’s eyes widened, her heart pounding in alarm. She instinctively glanced around, only relaxing slightly after confirming there was nowhere for anyone to hide nearby.

Chen Minrou herself was living on borrowed time, so she had nothing to fear. Seeing Cui Lingyao’s timid reaction, she said irritably, "What are you so scared of!"

"...Haha," Cui Lingyao laughed dryly, forcing herself to say, "You’re mistaken. I’m not scared."

Chen Minrou snorted. "I hear you’re now engaged to Mr. Shen?"

Before visiting today, she had already thoroughly inquired about Pei Shuyao’s background and her absurd behavior over the past few years.

That included the recent engagement to Shen Tingyu, which he himself had admitted to at the Zhao Family’s residence that day.

None of it was a secret.

Cui Lingyao nodded. "Yes, that’s right."

She explained the origins of the engagement, saying with some resignation, "It was originally a stopgap measure, born out of impulse. But on the day my mother passed away, a strange twist of fate led my maternal grandfather to agree to the marriage."

"You’re so dense. How is this a stopgap measure? Mr. Shen is obviously serious about this,"

Chen Minrou’s eyes lit up as she listened, and she gave her friend a light pinch. "You don’t really think the eldest legitimate grandson of the Duke Mansion would offer up his position as principal wife just to help you out of a jam, as some sort of good deed to repay a favor, do you?"

Cui Lingyao pressed her lips together, looking a bit uncomfortable, and said nothing.

Chen Minrou knew her all too well. Seeing her reaction, she immediately perked up and leaned in closer.

"I’ve heard a thing or two about Shen Tingyu’s character. He’s from the Duke Mansion, reached the third-rank in office at a young age, and has a very promising future. He doesn’t have a flock of women buzzing around him, either. He’s the dream son-in-law for countless madams. To give you an example, even my mother-in-law has had her eye on him..."

Cui Lingyao: "..."

She recalled that Zhao Shijie did indeed have a younger sister. Calculating her age... she should be about seventeen this year. ’I’m surprised she’s not betrothed yet.’

As childhood friends, Chen Minrou knew that if Cui Lingyao had no favorable impression of him at all, she would never have so easily agreed to the marriage, not even as a stopgap measure.

Seeing her silence, she asked in a low voice, "Even if it was a twist of fate, since he’s interested in you and the elders have approved your engagement, why not just go along with it?"

Cui Lingyao slowly shook her head. "I can’t."

"Why not?" After asking, Chen Minrou immediately realized. "Are you worried about Xie Jinbai?"

Her brow furrowed tightly. "You’ve already given your life for him once. Now that you’re unwilling to get back with him, is he really going to force you? Surely he can’t be that unreasonable?"

Reasonable...

Cui Lingyao was simply stunned. She truly never imagined that in others’ eyes, that man was actually considered reasonable.

She pressed a hand to her forehead, her expression complex. "You’re wrong about him. He has never been a reasonable person."

’To be more precise, in Xie Jinbai’s eyes, he *is* reason.’

’There is only what he wants and what he doesn’t want.’

’Those who obey him might not necessarily prosper, but those who defy him will definitely not have a good end.’

’In the past, there might have been a way out.’

’But now, with his personality so drastically changed, anyone who dares to go against his will probably has only one path: death.’

’A man like that doesn’t give a damn about reason.’

"I’ve already promised him that after I return from Pingzhou, I’ll break off this engagement."

Chen Minrou’s expression changed. Just as she was about to speak, Cui Lingyao said first, "Xie Jinbai has already seen through my identity. If I were to marry Shen Tingyu now, I would only be bringing harm to him."

The implications of her words were many.

Chen Minrou was incredulous. "So it’s not that you have lingering feelings for Xie Jinbai, but that you fear his power and have no choice but to compromise?"

Having been born into nobility, married smoothly into a family that was a Super-Grade Duke Mansion, Chen Minrou had never been forced by anyone’s power.

It was hard to imagine her own best friend being coerced by power.

Her expression turned grim. "This is a matter of your entire life. How can you let Xie Jinbai threaten you and just do as he pleases? Put everything else aside for now and just ask yourself if you have any feelings for Shen Tingyu."

Cui Lingyao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "I’ve only known Shen Tingyu for a few days. We’re hardly at the stage of being inseparable. Don’t look at me like I’m some star-crossed lover being tragically torn apart."

"It doesn’t matter if you’re inseparable or not! A little flutter in your heart is still a flutter! Anything is better than going back to Xie Jinbai. He took another concubine and drove you to your death! You were lucky enough to be reborn, so what right does he have to force you now!"

The more Chen Minrou thought about it, the angrier she became. She gripped Cui Lingyao’s hand and said, "You’ve already died once, what is there to be afraid of? Shouldn’t it be him, who’s gotten you back after losing you, who should be afraid of you getting hurt again? At worst..."

"It’s not entirely like that," Cui Lingyao said, shaking her head gently. "I haven’t decided whether I will marry him again."

She constantly remembered that her mission for returning to Great Yue was to make sure Xie Jinbai had a child.

’And since I have to return to the modern world, I can’t be the one to bear this child. I can only find a way to make him have one with another woman.’

’Under these circumstances, I’m actually unwilling to marry Xie Jinbai again.’

’But given how stubborn that man is now, it seems I have no choice in the matter...’

Cui Lingyao let out a long sigh. "Let’s not think about this for now. We can talk about everything after I get back from Pingzhou."