Jiang Zhan was completely dumbfounded, stammering as he spoke, “Yu… Seventh Brother Yu… did you say a man took advantage of me?”
Yu Jin, knowing well the power of silence at this moment, gazed at Jiang Zhan with profound eyes, not uttering a word.
Jiang Zhan, still in disbelief, slowly looked down at himself, realizing he was no longer wearing his original clothes. He had forgotten that changing clothes after falling into the water was a perfectly normal thing to do.
At that moment, his mind was a storm of thunder and lightning, filled with scenes of how a man might have taken full advantage of him.
“Ugh—” Unable to bear the mental images, Jiang Zhan leaned against a corridor pillar and began to vomit.
The stench of a drunkard’s overnight vomit needs no description; the sour, foul odor immediately permeated the air.
Yu Jin was utterly disgusted inside, but his face remained impassive.
He thought to himself, joking aside, he had promised A Si to “take care” of this boy properly. A Si rarely asked him for favors, so he naturally had to do a good job and make sure this lad had a memorable experience.
Hmm, fortunately, he had the foresight not to bring Jiang Zhan to his resting chambers, otherwise he’d have to move out.
Long Dan, standing outside the door, thought to himself, “…” This is my room. I will murder my master sooner or later!
Enduring the nauseating smell, Yu Jin patted Jiang Zhan’s back sympathetically, “Second Brother Jiang, if you’re feeling unwell, go ahead and vomit it all out. You’ll feel better once it’s all out.”
Long Dan: ??
Jiang Zhan’s heart sank completely.
He knew Seventh Brother Yu quite well, usually such a clean person, yet now so tolerant towards him. It must mean—
Jiang Zhan couldn’t even bring up acid anymore. He took the handkerchief Yu Jin handed him, wiped the corners of his mouth, tossed the handkerchief to the ground, and turned to leave.
Yu Jin quickly followed, “Second Brother Jiang, where are you going?”
He couldn’t bear to stay in the room any longer.
As they passed by Long Dan, Yu Jin gave him a look, signaling him to go in and clean up the room properly.
Long Dan entered the room with a look of utter despair.
In the small courtyard, the tall silk tree was still in full, fiery bloom. Countless pink fan-like petals fluttered down in the wind, landing on Jiang Zhan’s hair and shoulders.
The cloying fragrance made Jiang Zhan want to vomit again.
He bent over, dry heaving, but nothing came out.
Lying by the wall not far away, Second Ox glanced over, then turned back to focus on his bone.
It was only interested in three things: the male master, the female master, and meat bones.
Of course, braised beef was also very good.
Cold Shadow brought over some sobering soup.
Yu Jin took it and offered it to Jiang Zhan, “Second Brother Jiang, have a bowl of sobering soup first. Your body can’t take this.”
The phrase “your body can’t take this” undoubtedly provoked Jiang Zhan. His face turned pale as he jumped up, “Damn it, I’m going to kill that bastard!”
Yu Jin put the sobering soup back on Cold Shadow’s tray and reached out to grab Jiang Zhan, “Second Brother Jiang, who are you going to kill?”
“Kill Yang Shengcai!” Jiang Zhan, restrained by Yu Jin and unable to break free, said hatefully, “Seventh Brother Yu, let me go. If I don’t kill that disgusting creature today, I’ll vomit myself to death!”
Yu Jin sighed, “Second Brother Jiang, you can’t be so impulsive. First, tell me who Yang Shengcai is.”
Jiang Zhan calmed down a bit and caught his breath, “He’s the grandson of the Minister of Rites. His elder sister is the current Crown Princess. Seventh Brother Yu, don’t be afraid. I’ll take full responsibility for my actions. I won’t implicate you.”
After finishing, Jiang Zhan tried hard to break free from Yu Jin’s restraint, but couldn’t. Frustrated, his expression twisted, “Seventh Brother Yu, let me go!”
“Second Brother Jiang, you say you’ll take full responsibility and won’t implicate me. But have you thought about whether killing the grandson of the Minister of Rites might implicate the Earl’s mansion?”
Jiang Zhan suddenly stopped struggling, his expression blank.
Yes, if he killed Yang Shengcai, he might vent his anger and, at worst lose his own life in return. But what about his father and sister?
Would the Minister of Rites’ family and the Crown Prince’s faction make things difficult for them?
The answer was almost certainly yes.
It was the first time Jiang Zhan realized what it felt like to be powerless. He stood still, dazed, as the autumn wind blew silk tree flowers onto his pale face.
Seeing that Jiang Zhan was sufficiently shocked, Yu Jin coughed lightly, “I have some good news for Second Brother Jiang.”
Jiang Zhan, his whole being seeming drained of spirit, laughed bitterly upon hearing this, “What good news could there possibly be?”
Ah, ah, ah, he had been taken advantage of by a man. It was an utter humiliation.
“The Yang Shengcai you mentioned is dead.”
“What?” Jiang Zhan could hardly believe what he heard. He grabbed Yu Jin’s wrist, “Seventh Brother Yu, speak clearly. Who died?”
“The grandson of the Minister of Rites, if his name is indeed Yang Shengcai.”
Yu Jin recounted the events of last night and this morning to Jiang Zhan, of course omitting anything that shouldn’t be said.
Jiang Zhan had never felt his mood swing so dramatically before. He murmured, “So you’re saying, after I fell into the water last night, Seventh Brother Yu saved me, and then the pleasure boat caught fire, and Yang Shengcai and the others all fell into the water.”
“That’s right. Last night, I suddenly felt like going to admire the Golden Water River. As I was leaning on the railing looking out, I didn’t expect to see a person fall from a window into the water. Second Brother Jiang knows I’m a kind-hearted person, so I quickly ordered Cold Shadow to rescue the person. Who would have thought it was you?”
Jiang Zhan nodded involuntarily.
He was fortunate to have encountered the kind-hearted Seventh Brother Yu, otherwise his corpse might have ended up in a fish’s belly by now.
“Seventh Brother Yu, this is the second time you’ve saved me—”
Yu Jin revealed a gentle smile, “Second Brother Jiang, you’re too polite. We’re family, there’s no need for such formalities.”
At this moment, Jiang Zhan’s mind was in such chaos that he didn’t notice anything amiss and simply nodded along.
“This morning, half of the capital rushed to the Golden Water River to see the commotion. I just received news that Yang Shengcai’s body has already been recovered.”
“Serves him right!” Jiang Zhan pumped his fist, but suddenly thought of something and crouched down, sobbing and holding his head.
Second Ox glanced over again, picked up a meat bone, and left.
Too noisy, it was affecting his appetite.
Yu Jin silently watched Jiang Zhan cry, raising his hand to stroke his chin.
This “care” should be enough to make Jiang Zhan remember it for a lifetime, but he could still push a bit further.
When Jiang Zhan stopped making noise, Yu Jin half-crouched down and asked with concern, “Is Second Brother Jiang feeling unwell somewhere?”
Jiang Zhan’s face darkened.
He couldn’t bear to hear such words now!
“Should I have Cold Shadow bring some medicinal ointment—”
“No need!” Jiang Zhan nearly jumped up, his face flushed as he said, “I just thought about how Yang Shengcai died like this, not even giving me a chance to desecrate his corpse. I feel so frustrated!”
Yu Jin nodded in deep agreement, “Second Brother Jiang is right. I completely understand how you feel.”
Jiang Zhan’s expression twisted, feeling an urge to bang his head against the wall.
Yu Jin suddenly thought of something and patted Jiang Zhan’s shoulder, “Second Brother Jiang, you should hurry back to your mansion. Your father is still searching for you at the Golden Water River.”
Jiang Zhan’s vision darkened, feeling that life was not worth living.