Chapter 124 – An Old Piece Played Once Again
Chapter 124 An Old Piece Played Once Again
The only place in the Earl Ling’an’s Mansion that nobody was allowed to visit today was the Crown Princess’s old yard. The Second Madam had warned every servant that they couldn’t take anyone around that place since the Crown Prince would be there. If anyone disturbed the Crown Prince, the whole Ji Family would be blamed for it.
Moreover, the Crown Prince’s presence in the Earl Ling’an’s Mansion could not be known by any outsiders. Because he shouldn’t show up here. Knowing the severity of the situation, the old maid started to sweat as her lips kept trembling. She was so scared by Fourth Lady Qu’s intention and didn’t even know how to stop her at the moment.
She finally realized that weak as Fourth Lady Qu looked, she was not as obedient to the rules of etiquette as other noble ladies.
An ordinary servant like her was not able to stop this determined lady, let alone under the glare of another maid who looked fierce. The old maid even had a feeling that if she said something wrong, Fourth Lady Qu’s maid would rush over and beat her up directly. She couldn’t believe an official’s family hired a maid like this who acted aggressively, more like people working for Earl Ling’an.
“Fourth Lady Qu, you really can’t go to the Crown Princess’s old yard. This is the Second Madam’s order… Actually, this is also His Royal Highness and Her Royal Highness’s order. They don’t want anyone to disturb the Crown Princess’s peace. If…if…then it will become a serious problem,” the old maid said while shivering with fear.
“The Crown Princess is my cousin. What’s wrong with me visiting my cousin’s old yard? Do you mean His Royal Highness doesn’t allow me to take a look at the things left here by my cousin?” Qu Moying raised her eyes as she pulled a cold face. “So many things have happened in the Earl Ling’an’s Mansion, and each of them is about my uncle’s family. Why do they still not allow it at this moment? Is there any secret in her yard?” asked Qu Moying.
Some things wouldn’t be suspected before someone pointed them out.
Ji Hanyue’s father “died” today; Ji Hanyue “died” a few days ago; her younger sister “died” a few months ago. Their deaths all seemed to be accidents and unrelated. Moreover, Ji Hanyue’s death looked so natural and flawless due to the Crown Prince’s build-up, so did Earl Ling’an’s death. The only surprising thing was Ji Hanyue’s younger sister’s death.
But among the three dead people, Ji Hanyue’s younger sister was the most insignificant one. Even though she died, no one would pay much attention to it, while Ji Hanyue and her father’s death both seemed natural for other people.
But the fact was the three of them died on the same night.
Qu Moying would reveal the truth little by little. Now, her plan was to mention the coincidence of Earl Ling’an’s family’s death to catch some people’s attention.
After all, it was impossible that the Crown Prince didn’t have any enemies in the capital!
Qu Moying’s tone was stern, making the old maid scared. The old maid was anxiously sweating but still didn’t dare to let Qu Moying go.
Qu Moying didn’t want to spend time negotiating with her anymore. She looked at Yu Dong to signal him.
Yu Dong walked up and pulled the old maid aside by grabbing her sleeve. His ruthless gaze fell on the old maid’s face like a venomous snake crawling across. The cold and creepy feeling sent down a chill through the old maid’s spine, stopping her from moving an inch.
After a few seconds, the old maid came back to her senses and realized Qu Moying had already headed to the Crown Princess’s old yard with her maid. She turned around and ran toward the Second Madam’s place as quickly as possible. This matter was too serious for her to cover up.
Qu Moying walked on the path that she couldn’t be more familiar with, from the First Madam’s yard to Ji Hanyue’s yard. She had been to this path many times as Ji Hanyue, especially during the three years after her mother passed away. Whenever she had free time, she loved to wander in her mother’s yard or sit in the study for a little while.
Her mother was a reader, so she had a study next to her embroidery room. It was one of Ji Hanyue’s favorite places in the mansion.
Even since her mother passed away, she still maintained the habit of visiting her mother’s study until she married into the Eastern Palace.
She stood outside her old yard and looked inside. It seemed under much better care than her mother’s yard, still clean and neat as if she never left. Apparently, someone had still taken care of it.
The yard door was slightly open. It was quiet inside, with no one around.
She opened the door and walked into the quiet yard. Everything had stayed the same as they were before her wedding. The only things missing were those red ribbons hung all over the place. The whole yard was deadly silent.
It was more like a yard where the person living here just died!
Qu Moying bit her lip hard to suppress the pain in her heart, but her eyes still turned red as tears wetted them.
She had spent so many happy years here in her past life. Yet, she ended up dying below the Linyuan Pavilion in the Eastern Palace. Her death was announced months later. What an absurd ending!
Pei Luo’an truly spent so much effort to make her death look like the most surprising accident.
“Stay outside. I want to spend some time alone,” Qu Moying said to Yu Dong.
Yu Dong wanted to stay with her, but he still nodded at her after a second thought and walked behind a tree outside the yard. He could tell that the Fourth Lady was sorrowful. Yu Dong didn’t feel strange since the Crown Princess was the only few people who treated the Fourth Lady kindly. It was natural for the lady to feel sad when seeing the Crown Princess’s old yard.
Qu Moying pushed open the heavy door of her old main room. Everything was the same as before.
She picked up a book that was casually put on the coach. It was the one she had read before. In this room, time had been frozen on the day she left.
She then saw a guqin on a table aside and walked over. She knelt down, put her hands on it, and started to pluck it gently. The strings vibrated, still sounding clean and crispy like a flowing stream.
Qu Moying calmed herself down and slid her fingers once again on the strings as her favorite piece rang in the room.
Beautiful music bloomed under her fingers’ movement as she ticked, rubbed, and plucked the strings. For a moment, the past unfolded…
“Who…Who are you?” A trembling voice suddenly came from behind. She pressed hard on the guqin to stop playing while feeling the numbness and pain caused by the strings’ vibration. She would never forget this voice that belonged to Pei Luo’an!
Pei Luo’an walked out of the inner room and looked at the girl in front of him in shock. She was wearing light-colored clothes, kneeling beside the guqin. Although there was no butterfly pattern on her outfit, he still found this slender back and the piece she played familiar. Something was screaming in his heart.
Unconsciously, his voice started to tremble.
Qu Moying didn’t expect to meet Pei Luo’an here. Cold, bloodthirsty rage gushed out of her heart, but she soon suppressed it. She asked coldly without turning around, “This is my cousin’s main room. Who are you?”
Cousin?
Pei Luo’an returned to his senses as he finally noticed the long veil lying on Qu Moying’s body. It turned out to be his illusion that this person looked like Ji Hanyue. Then he smiled bitterly at himself. What was he thinking? A dead person would never come back to life again.
“Fourth Lady Qu?”
“Yes, I am. I don’t know who you are and why you are here. I’m told by a servant of the Ji Family that this is not a place where visitors can come casually,” Qu Moying said, still showing her back to him.
“Fourth Lady Qu, why do you know how to play this piece called Love of Butterfly?” Pei Luo’an’s eyes fell on her back as he ignored her question and continued to ask.
“Is it supposed to be a difficult piece?” Qu Moying plucked the strings again carefreely. It was still the melody from the same piece.
“It is, and it was composed by Hanyue herself. She was the only one who knew how to play this piece in the mansion.” Pei Luo’an’s face turned cold.
“Cousin was the only one who knew how to play this piece here, but it doesn’t mean that no one knows how to play it outside this mansion. I’ve read my cousin’s score before and didn’t find it too hard to play,” Qu Moying said in a flat tone. Since Pei Luo’an didn’t clarify his identity, she would pretend she didn’t know him.
It was not the first time she saw Pei Luo’an after her rebirth. She no longer thought of herself as Ji Hanyue.
She learned how to handle her emotions and calm down quickly in this life. Her thoughts could only be read through the coldness in her eyes, which were luckily covered by the veil. Gradually, she would learn how to hide the mood shown in her eyes.
Pei Luo’an fell into silence for a few seconds as he found her reasoning a bit weird, but he couldn’t tell why.
“You don’t want to see who I am?”
“I don’t care who you are since I don’t know you anyway. I only know a few people in the capital, but I don’t think you are one of them. This is my cousin’s old yard, so you must be her relative like me. But you are a man, after all, Young Master. Please respect the etiquette and leave first,” Qu Moying’s tone was straightforward.
Pei Luo’an’s presence here only made her feel nauseous.
He was no longer the man who promised her that he would wait to marry her after she finished the three-year mourning for her mother and that she was the only girl he wanted.
The touching love was just a dream he weaved, a scheme he designed. Once his plan failed, he killed Ji Hanyue and her family immediately. If there was a pill of regret in the world, she would rather take it and die before meeting him to save her father and younger sister’s lives.
“I…”
“Young Master, please. You leave first, and I will leave afterward. If someone sees you, it doesn’t really matter to you, but my cousin’s name will be ruined, which I will never allow,” Qu Moying interrupted him.
Since she pretended not to know him, she didn’t need to show much respect for him. For her, he should just be an ordinary young master who broke into this place by accident.
Pei Luo’an let out a deep sigh and didn’t say anything else. When he passed by Qu Moying, she started to pluck the strings again with her head lowered. After a little adjustment, Love of Butterfly rang again, with an added trace of fierce aggression.
Pei Luo’an suddenly chucked to himself in the yard and turned around to leave while loneliness and disappointment crossed his eyes. He found it absurd that he felt that girl had a similar aura to Ji Hanyue’s. When Ji Hanyue played this piece, the music always carried distance and freedom, a feeling of flying high above the sky. It was just like her personality, a bit too peaceful and naive.
But the only thing everyone born in the royal family cared about was their own benefit.
Ji Hanyue was not the only naive one, but also Ji Yongming, who caused the current situation in the first place. If Ji Yongming could choose his side wisely, none of these would’ve happened. A hint of maliciousness flashed across his slightly red eyes but was soon replaced by desperate sorrow, making his face look more haggard.
He lifted his eyes and noticed a small group of people walking over. He cast a cold glance at the leading person and turned to another direction!
