"I suddenly remembered something about the night I got drunk and slept with you. I was lying on the floor, and through the haze, I saw a man moving me. Do you know who that man was?" Ning Chengxiao asked, watching Bai Xinrou without betraying his feelings.
A flicker of panic flashed through Bai Xinrou's eyes. Though it vanished in an instant, Ning Chengxiao still caught it. He immediately realized that Ning Sang-sang had been telling the truth. This woman really was deceiving him, trying to make him a sucker who would raise another man's child.
"Second Young Master, you're remembering it wrong. There were only the two of us in the room that night. There wasn't any other man," Bai Xinrou explained softly. Outwardly, she looked perfectly composed, but inside, she was panicking like mad. Why had Ning Chengxiao suddenly asked that question? Had he remembered what happened that drunken night?
Having heard Ning Sang-sang's thoughts, Ning Chengxiao no longer trusted Bai Xinrou's words quite so readily. His voice turned cold. "You're lying to me. I clearly saw a man that night, and through the haze, he looked like Lin Shijie."
At those words, panic surged through Bai Xinrou's heart, but she forced herself to remain composed. "Chengxiao, you really did see it wrong. That night..."
"You're still lying. I remember everything that happened that drunken night now. I was lying on the floor, and you had Lin Shijie put me on the bed. Then you staged things to make it look as though you'd slept with me."
Did someone switch on Second Brother's brain today? He actually saw through Bai Xinrou's schemes.
Ning Chengxiao: ...
Bai Xinrou's face went pale at his words, and she hurriedly said, "Second Young Master, let me explain. It isn't what you think."
You big idiot, let me spin you a story. I can't lose a sucker like you to take over the mess.
Hearing Ning Sang-sang imitate Bai Xinrou's tone in such a cheerful voice, Ning Chengxiao's lips twitched. This little sister of his loved watching a spectacle and never minded adding fuel to the fire.
Ning Xiaotian and Madam Jiang watched the drama with relish. Madam Jiang even offered a sarcastic remark from the sidelines. "Xiao'er, you ought to hear Miss Bai out properly. After all, she's the girl you're so hopelessly in love with. You must have faith that you weren't blind when you chose her."
Ning Chengxiao: "..."
He felt that his little sister had inherited her love of stirring up a spectacle from their mother. He had only meant to bluff Bai Xinrou into confirming whether Ning Sang-sang's words were true. Seeing her panic, he knew they were. This woman really had been deceiving him, treating him like a sucker. In that instant, he was utterly disappointed in her.
"Leave. Don't come looking for me again. I won't see you anymore."
The big fish she had already landed had slipped away. Unwilling to accept it, Bai Xinrou tried to salvage things. "Second Young Master..."
"Guards, throw this woman out." Ning Sang-sang cut her off, giving her no further chance to talk her way out of it.
As soon as she spoke, the guards stationed outside the hall came in.
Seeing them, Bai Xinrou covered her face and wept. "Second Young Master, whatever else happened, my feelings for you are sincere."
With that, she ran out, leaving everyone with the image of her heartbroken figure.
Blech, blech, blech, blech! Sincere, my ass. Your feelings for Second Brother's money are sincere.
That was absolutely disgusting. If Second Brother goes blind again and finds another woman like that to be my sister-in-law, I'll have every last one thrown out. One comes, one goes. Two come, two go.
I have to switch on Second Brother's brain and stop him from being an idiot.
Ning Chengxiao: "..."
Ning Xiaotian and Madam Jiang could not help laughing at her thoughts. The corners of their mouths kept lifting, and they could not suppress their smiles. Their daughter was an absolute treasure.
"Where's my sister? I heard my sister's back! Where is she?" A boy came rushing in from outside. He looked about eleven or twelve, with features so lovely he resembled a little girl. The moment he spotted Ning Sang-sang, he hurried over to her, his pretty face brimming with excitement. "Are you my sister?"
Ning Sang-sang nodded, but before she could speak, the boy threw his arms around her and wailed, "Sister, you're finally back! You have no idea how miserable my life's been during the thirteen years you were lost out there. Mother raised me like a girl! Boohoo, Sister, I'm so pitiful..."
Ning Sang-sang obediently let him hug her and wail while she savored the gossip about him in her head.
My little brother is such a pretty boy. No wonder even men have their eyes on him.
Ning Hui's eyes widened in shock at those words, and ten thousand mythical beasts thundered through his mind. Men had their eyes on him? Which bastard had swallowed a bear's heart and a leopard's gall to dare covet him?
He opened his mouth to ask which man had his eyes on him, only for a mysterious force to choke off his words. Nothing would come out. Astonishment filled his face. He opened his mouth again, but just as he was about to say something, his second brother strode over and clapped a hand over his mouth. "Ning Hui, if you don't know how to speak properly, keep quiet."
As he spoke, he also shot Ning Hui a meaningful look. Recognizing the command to shut up in his eyes, Ning Hui immediately swallowed the words on his tongue. He simply watched Ning Sang-sang quietly, hoping to hear her reveal the identity of the man who coveted him.
Ning Xiaotian, his wife, and Ning Chengxiao were also curious about which man had his eyes on the youngest son, so they all listened quietly for Ning Sang-sang's gossip.
Instead of gossip about Ning Hui, all they heard was her inward wail:
I'm so hungry. Why isn't the food ready yet? They really need to pick up the pace.
Ning Hui: ???
Was he hearing things? His sister had not moved her lips, yet he could hear her voice.
Hearing Ning Sang-sang's thoughts, Ning Xiaotian hurriedly instructed the maid who had been standing quietly nearby, "Go hurry the kitchen along. Tell them to bring the food out as soon as possible."
Father and I really are of one mind. I was just about to ask him to send someone to hurry them along, and he said it first.
Ning Hui: "!!!"
Once again, he heard Ning Sang-sang's voice without her moving her lips. His face filled with astonishment. He looked at his parents and second brother, only to find all three looking back at him, their eyes telling him to keep his mouth shut. Clearly, they had heard his sister's voice too.
Ning Hui immediately suppressed the astonishment on his face and watched Ning Sang-sang's mouth without giving himself away.
Why does this little brother keep staring at my mouth? Is there something on it? As she thought this, Ning Sang-sang reached up and lightly touched her lips.
Her thoughts! He was hearing his sister's thoughts!
Staring at Ning Sang-sang's mouth, Ning Hui arrived at a bold conclusion.
Rather than feeling afraid after reaching that conclusion, Ning Hui was delighted beyond measure.
Hahaha! I can actually hear my sister's thoughts!
No, wait. My whole family can hear her thoughts.
No, Eldest Brother is still away and hasn't come back yet. Maybe he can't hear her thoughts.
Still, he felt that since all of them could hear their sister's thoughts, their eldest brother surely could too.
Just then, a young maid in a blue-green skirt came in from outside and said respectfully, "Duke, the meal has been laid out in the dining hall."
Ning Xiaotian promptly turned to Ning Sang-sang and said affectionately, "Sang-sang, come. Father will take you to the dining hall to eat."
Madam Jiang said gently, "Sang-sang, after you've eaten, Mother will take you to the courtyard I prepared for you."
"All right."
Ning Sang-sang nodded obediently.
"Second Brother, now that Sister's back, our standing in this family is in danger." Watching their parents dote on Ning Sang-sang, Ning Hui could not help voicing his feelings.
Ning Chengxiao cast him a sidelong glance. "Are you jealous?"
"How could I be? All these years, I've waited for her like someone longing for the stars and the moon. Now that Sister's back, I'm too happy to feel anything else. How could I be jealous of her?"
Ning Chengxiao said nothing in response and headed out of the hall. His romantic troubles were weighing on him right now.
"Second Brother, don't go! I still have something to tell you." Ning Hui hurried after him and said, "Second Brother, don't marry Bai Xinrou. I heard a rumor today that she..."
Before he could finish, Ning Chengxiao said, "We're over."
"Huh? Over? How did you two end up breaking things off?" Ning Hui stared at him in surprise.
His second brother had been hopelessly in love with Bai Xinrou. How had they suddenly broken up? What thrilling scene had he missed? He regretted it so much. He should never have gone out today.
Ning Chengxiao said flatly, "Love is a ray of light, so cuckold-green it makes you glow."
Without waiting for Ning Hui to speak, he strode away.
"Love is a ray of light, so cuckold-green it makes you glow." Ning Hui rubbed his chin, carefully savoring the words, and muttered, "What did Second Brother mean by that?"
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration crossed his mind, and understanding dawned on Ning Hui's face. "I know! Second Brother must have found out Bai Xinrou put a green hat on him."
Before you continue