The Powerful Minister I Forcefully Married Won't Warm Up; After Rebirth, I Give Up the Chase - Chapter 18

Pei Jian watched the two of them being reluctant to part at the gate of the Wen residence.

An anonymous fire was burning constantly in his chest. He desperately tried to suppress the anger, reminding himself that he wasn’t truly nineteen, and was only temporarily controlled by an emotion called unwillingness.

Pei Jian kept telling himself this.

Until Nian Xi led Gu Ci through the side gate.

At that moment, his expression drastically changed.

Pei Jian stared intensely at the side gate of the Wen residence, feeling as though a sharp sword had plunged directly into his heart.

She actually brought Gu Ci through the side gate?

She actually brought Gu Ci through the side gate!

In Pei Jian’s life, the pursuit of power and ambition occupied most of the narrative. In his meager memories, the small garden behind this side gate was a rare paradise.

At that time, he had just entered officialdom, and the Ministry of Revenue was busy. He often couldn’t spare time to see her, and their planned meetings were frequently canceled. Nian Xi, for the first time, was angry with him, saying she would never speak to him again.

After he finally managed to coax her back, Nian Xi led him through this side gate. “It doesn’t matter if you get off work late in the future. Mother Wang’s daughter works by my side, so you can come no matter how late it is.”

Her cheeks flushed, and she told him, “I want to see you.”

He remembered clearly: it was the season when sweet osmanthus was fragrant. He couldn’t help but pull the girl into his arms, and the falling osmanthus blossoms left their fragrance all over them.

The thrum of emotion from that moment, no matter how many years passed, felt as vivid as yesterday whenever he thought of it.

It was unimaginable what that garden behind the side gate meant to him, how important it was. It was like a harbor; no matter the struggles and dangers in the imperial court, that place was his sanctuary.

In his past life, he had known Nian Xi for half a year before she finally brought him through the side gate!

Gu Ci had only known her for two months. By what right?

By what right did he deserve this?!

Pei Jian stared at the gate, frozen in place like a clay statue.

The encounter that should have belonged to him and Nian Xi became Gu Ci’s first meeting with her; the talisman that would have ensured his success was given by Nian Xi to Gu Ci; and now, the exclusive memory of the side gate contained another man.

Everything was misplaced.

What are they doing now?

There was never a moment more difficult to bear than this one.

When everything no longer belonged to him, Nian Xi would be with another man, just as they had been back then…

The thought stung Pei Jian’s eyes with pain. The rage in his chest was like a rampaging beast, roaring to tear apart the thief who had stolen everything from him.

Before all his emotions completely spiraled out of control, he turned around and strode out of Yiqiao Street.

A raging fire flared in his heart, yet his hands and feet were icy, freezing his limbs and bones, freezing his blood and breath. He was tormented repeatedly in this crucible of ice and fire until, finally, the string of reason snapped.

Gu Ci, by what right is he in there?

Pei Jian turned back.

Gu Ci had already left.

When he spoke the name Yingguo, Mother Wang, who guarded the gate, looked at him as if he were a ghost. Pei Jian let out a satisfied, knowing laugh. He was not lying; Nian Xi had indeed told him this information.

“Why are you here?”

Nian Xi had thought Gu Ci had returned. She never imagined that the person waiting there would be Pei Jian.

In those last few years, she communicated with Pei Jian even less. Occasionally, she would catch him reprimanding his subordinates, and his presence was intimidating. He didn’t raise his voice; on the contrary, he just sat there silently, saying nothing, yet exuding a chilling authority. A simple lift of his eyebrow could make his subordinates’ legs turn to jelly.

The current Pei Jian gave her the same familiar feeling.

He carried an air of storm and disruption, along with a deep, complex emotion she couldn’t decipher. He hadn’t moved a step, yet he was advancing on her step-by-step.

Nian Xi took a step back, asking warily, “How did you get in?”

The sky was getting dark; a few distant stars hung in the sky, and four or five lanterns cast a dim, uncertain light over the garden.

There were only the two of them.

“I saw Gu Ci leave from here.”

His voice was cold and deep, like frigid jade in a cold pool, devoid of any warmth.

Gu Ci was completely different.

He was passionate, scorching, always smiling when he spoke to her, and would slightly bend down to accommodate her height. The sharp lines of his face were refined and smooth as he leaned in to listen.

It had been a very, very long time since Nian Xi had been looked down upon by Pei Jian like this.

She realized she had never truly understood Pei Jian.

Otherwise, how could he be so brazen, so matter-of-fact in saying he saw Gu Ci leave from here?

How did he see?

By peeking? By stalking?

She never thought Pei Jian’s name would be associated with those two words.

“I will tell my father.”

The night wind blew away the daytime heat, bringing a hint of coolness.

Everything was silent.

Nian Xi didn’t want to stay with him and turned to leave.

Pei Jian stepped forward, quickly closing the distance, forcing her to retreat step by step until her back hit the osmanthus tree. Only when she had nowhere left to go did he stop.

Nian Xi struggled to suppress her frantic heartbeat. She looked up at his tightly pursed lips and said, “I really should let my brother see your face right now.”

Lest he criticize Gu Ci all day long.

Pei Jian caught the protective meaning in her words, remained silent for a moment, then lowered his gaze to look at her. “I am only here out of respect for your brother to give you a piece of advice. Listen closely—”

The distance between them was very close—so close that Pei Jian felt he could still smell the rich, sweet scent of osmanthus from years ago.

Nian Xi refused to look at him, turning her head to the side.

From Pei Jian’s angle, he could see her thick, raven-black lashes trembling slightly, casting beautiful arcs beneath her eyelids.

Pei Jian made no effort to hide his forceful demeanor; his voice was cold and deep. “I don’t know what your relationship with Gu Ci is, but I advise you to think things through carefully. The Duke of Zhenguo’s residence has guarded the northern frontier for generations. This is the responsibility and mission of the Gu family’s sons, and Gu Ci will be no exception.”

“If one day the northern frontier is lost, and Gu Ci is the only man left in the Duke of Zhenguo’s family, he will have to go north to suppress the rebellion, revive the Gu family’s honor, and never be allowed to return to the capital. What will you do then?”