Cold Encounter with a Madman - Chapter 2

“You gave birth to a daughter?” Chen Qingrong nearly dropped the teacup in her hand, her eyes clouded with shock as she stared intently at her icy, jade-like daughter. “How old is your daughter?”

Yan Zhi’an had returned to the chancellor’s residence, temporarily placing Xun Qi in her own courtyard before immediately coming to explain the situation to her mother.

Faced with her mother’s astonishment, Yan Zhi’an felt a deep bitterness in her heart. Before she could gather her thoughts to respond, the impatient Chen Qingrong tapped the table and repeated, “How old is your daughter?”

“Thirteen.” Yan Zhi’an covered her eyes, trying to avoid her mother’s probing gaze. She had her sorrows but couldn’t share them in detail with her mother.

Xun Qi was now her daughter. Only if her mother believed it would the rest of the world believe it. If even her own mother couldn’t be convinced, how could she convince the world?

Outside, the heavy snow had yet to cease. In the warm chamber, Chen Qingrong counted on her fingers. “You’re twenty-seven, she’s thirteen. Counting from birth as one year old, that means you had her when you were just of age.”

Chen Qingrong had married the fourth son of the Yan family and had only one daughter, whom she had taken away from Jinling at a young age. After her husband passed away and her daughter became the head of the family, she moved to the capital. As a result, she was not very familiar with her daughter.

Based on this calculation, someone must have taken advantage of her when she was just of age.

Chen Qingrong felt a surge of anger in her chest. Yan Zhi’an calmly grasped her mother’s hand, her eyes shining with determination. “Mother, she is my daughter.”

Something wasn’t right. Chen Qingrong sensed something amiss. Her daughter was aloof, exceptionally talented, skilled in exploring mountains and mines she wouldn’t recklessly ruin herself.

She gripped her daughter’s hand tightly, a mother’s resilience welling up inside her. “Whose family is she from? Why should you bear this burden and face criticism?”

But Yan Zhi’an pressed her mother’s hand firmly. “Mother, she will be the young mistress of the Yan family of Jinling.”

“Aren’t you going to marry?” Chen Qingrong couldn’t control her temper, her voice rising slightly. “You’re twenty-seven. It’s time to marry. Other people’s daughters are already studying. Whose family is she from? Send her back to them.”

Yan Zhi’an insisted, “She is a daughter of the Yan family.”

“Bah! Yan Zhi’an, don’t make me curse.” Chen Qingrong stood up. “You left my side at a young age to study in the capital…”

“Mother, I’ve already acknowledged her. Don’t frighten her.” Yan Zhi’an soothed her mother calmly, holding her hand, her expression gentle and her voice steady. “Mother, if you don’t treat her kindly, who in the Yan family will? She’s only thirteen, all alone in the world.”

“How old is she? How old am I? You’re willing to be a mother, but I’m not willing to be a grandmother.” Chen Qingrong was furious. “I’ve been boasting outside about finding you a good match, and here you are no husband in sight, but you bring back a daughter.”

She was both angry and heartbroken. She hadn’t felt this devastated even when her husband died.

Chen Qingrong was so upset she was on the verge of tears. Yan Zhi’an then said, “She’s very adorable.”

“How adorable?” Chen Qingrong instinctively reined in her sorrow. She loved looking at pretty girls, it was Old Yan the Fourth’s good looks that had made her marry into the Yan family in the first place. The daughter she raised was a renowned beauty in Jinling, and she took great pride in that.

Yan Zhi’an stood up and, after offering some comfort, fell silent. “Mother will go see her tomorrow; I suspect she should be awake by then. For now, she’s recuperating in my courtyard. Once she’s better, we’ll move her out, and you can decide which courtyard would be most suitable.”

“But what about your marriage?” Chen Qingrong fretted, on the verge of tears again. How could they arrange a marriage properly after bringing a daughter in from outside like this?

Yan Zhi’an frowned. Tall and graceful, her skin luminous as snow, her features bright yet not overly delicate, her cloud-like hair cascaded over her shoulders. She wore no excessive adornments, yet her entire presence radiated brilliance.

She sighed. “Given my current high position, Mother, who do you think I should marry?”

“Well, that’s true,” Chen Qingrong conceded, falling silent. This was precisely why she didn’t pressure her daughter there was no one suitable. If Yan Zhi’an were to marry, it would have to be for an alliance.

She murmured, “But you could find someone you like.”

“I have no one I like. It’s getting late; I should head back now.” Yan Zhi’an gently dismissed her mother’s suggestion.

Outside, the heavy snow had not yet stopped, though it had lightened considerably. What had been a blizzard of pear blossoms in the morning now fell like scattered salt.

Chen Qingrong stamped her feet in frustration, but after a couple of stomps, her daughter had already walked away. Not long after, someone delivered fresh ingredients, likely from the palace. She stopped stomping at least they could enjoy a good meal that evening.

Xun Qi woke up.

Opening her eyes, the dim prison cell had transformed into a luxurious brocade-curtained room. She reached out and touched the fabric warm to the touch, a high-quality material. The madman had once said that silk was not something ordinary people could afford.

This was a wealthy household.

From the corner of the room, a warm stove emitted a pleasant fragrance of incense, while the charcoal in the brazier chased away the winter’s chill and dampness, filling the room with a cozy warmth.

Xun Qi lay still after waking, waiting quietly. If the enemy made no move, neither would she.

After a moment, footsteps approached, and a person entered.

Xun Qi steeled herself, but upon seeing it was a woman, her hair as dark as ink yet tied up, a custom in this dynasty for married women she realized the other was wedded.

The woman gazed at her, her eyebrows like distant mountains, neither thick nor faint.

Xun Qi sat up and took another look. The woman’s figure was well-proportioned and graceful, her waist unadorned, yet her skirt did not sway as she moved.

The two locked eyes, and the room fell into a brief silence. Yan Zhi’an regarded the girl coolly, and as their gaze held, the corners of her lips curled slightly. Quite bold.

Yan Zhi’an said, “I am your mother.”

Xun Qi narrowed her eyes, and in the next moment, her hand darted to her waist. Her clothes had been changed soft undergarments now clung to her skin, but her waist was empty. The small knife was gone.

“Looking for something?” Yan Zhi’an stood tall and poised, slightly lowering her gaze as she sensed the killing intent in the girl’s eyes.

She reached up, pulled the jade hairpin from her bun, and tossed it over. Her hair cascaded down as she chuckled lightly. “Want to kill me? I’ll give you the chance. But you should know killing me might satisfy your anger, but it won’t benefit you.”

“I am the head of the Yan family in Jinling and the Left Chancellor of the court.”

Xun Qi trembled at her words, clutching the jade hairpin. “You!”

“You want to ask why someone of such status would abandon you, right?” Yan Zhi’an’s expression remained unreadable.

Truthfully, she didn’t know how to conceal this lie, so she simply didn’t bother. “These matters are in the past. If you put down the jade hairpin, you will become the young mistress of the Yan family in Jinling. Power and wealth will be yours. From now on, you will be my only daughter. Everything I have will belong to you. Think it over.”

“Xun Qi, I won’t ask about your past, and you don’t ask about mine. You just need to know that in the future, even if you poke a hole in the sky, I have the ability to clean up the mess for you. Because you will be the only daughter of the Yan family’s head.”

The room suddenly fell silent.

Xun Qi’s grip on the jade hairpin gradually loosened. Yan Zhi’an noticed her relaxation and curled her lips into a helpless smile. “In a few days, I’ll take you back to Jinling to pay respects to our ancestors.”

Then, she reached out to Xun Qi. “Give it back.”

After a moment of daze, Xun Qi’s gaze fixed on her palm and five fingers.

The fingers were slender and well-proportioned, like jade.

As if bewitched, Xun Qi returned the jade hairpin to her. She reached out and pattedXunqi’s head. Xun Qi, as if seeing a ghost, quickly turned to glare at her.

A glint flashed in Yan Zhi’an’s eyes, and she couldn’t help but pat her a couple more times. The young girl reached out to push her away, but she said, “From now on, your honor and disgrace are tied to me.”

Xun Qi’s outstretched hand froze. With a stern face, she said, “In the Ministry of Justice, they beat me.”

“I know.”

“The pharmacy owner sold fake medicine and killed the madman.”

Yan Zhi’an seemed to understand why she had beaten the doctor to death. Her cold eyes grew solemn. “He’s dead. What do you want to do now?”

“Close the pharmacy. Don’t allow his sons or grandsons to practice medicine.” Xun Qi looked up. The woman before her moved with an ethereal grace, as if a touch of worldly air would make her ascend to immortality.

Yan Zhi’an nodded. “That’s only natural. Not just his descendants, but for ten generations, none of them will be allowed to practice medicine.”

“The people in the Ministry of Justice.” XXun Qi raised her voice, her eyes filled with defiance. “They used torture without authorization.”

“You seem to know quite a bit.” Yan Zhi’an couldn’t help but reassess the young girl before her naive, fearless, and with a hint of hidden intelligence.

And who was this “madman” she mentioned?

Her casual glance made XXun Qi unhappy. “You’re not looking at me like a daughter, but like a criminal.”

Yan Zhi’an couldn’t help but laugh, retracting her probing gaze. “Rest well and recover. Once you’re healed, we’ll return to Jinling.”

She had to make the Yan family in Jinling acknowledge Xun Qi’s identity.

Yan Zhi’an left like a gust of wind. Xun Qi tilted her head, her glass-like eyes fixed on the direction she had gone, her palm tightening slightly.

How bizarre. After thirteen years of life, her birth mother had suddenly appeared, and in such a prestigious manner.

When something unusual happens, there must be a demon behind it.

Xun Qi paid it no mind. Instead, she lay back, enveloped by the soft quilt. No matter what, she would enjoy a few good days first.

The quilt was truly soft, and the room was as warm as spring. No more suffering from the cold.

Xun Qi closed her eyes comfortably, savoring the absurdly luxurious life.

The heavy snow stopped at dusk. Since Yan Zhi’an’s main room was occupied, she had to move to a side room temporarily.

Braving the cold wind, Huo Si arrived at the chancellor’s residence with rewards.

Huo Si brushed the snow off her clothes and entered the room cheerfully. Yan Zhi’an handed her a hand warmer, which she accepted. “I haven’t congratulated you yet on gaining a daughter.”

The next moment, Yan Zhi’an snatched the hand warmer back. “Never mind.”

“Chancellor, Chancellor!” Huo Si didn’t know what she had done wrong. “His Majesty ordered me to bring some rewards for your young mistress.”

“The chancellor’s residence doesn’t need them. Tell His Majesty that this is my daughter. She doesn’t need a single thread from him.”

Huo Si was quite puzzled upon hearing this. Why did the Left Minister’s words sound as though she and the Emperor had a daughter together, and the Left Minister had taken the child away in anger, refusing to accept even a single needle or thread from the Emperor ever since?

“Left Minister, why won’t you accept these? They are all good things for nourishing the body.”

“Unnecessary!” Yan Zhi’an hugged her hand warmer and sat down behind the desk. “Tell His Majesty to stop inquiring about the affairs of the Yan family’s young master from now on.”

Huo Si was driven out of the ministerial residence.

Returning to the palace to report, the Empress, upon hearing the message, rested her chin on her hand and asked Huo Si, “Is she very angry?”

Huo Si nodded.

The Empress understood Yan Zhi’an’s temperament outwardly gentle but inwardly cold to the extreme. Back then, she had single-handedly driven her own grandfather back to Jinling, showing no regard for familial ties.

Worried, she asked, “Would the Left Minister hit the child?”