The Transmigrated Princess - Chapter 58

As soon as Lin Chenzhi saw Gu Qing, his eyes flared with rage, and any shred of his feigned tenderness vanished instantly. His bulging eyes glared at her like a vengeful ghost seeking a life, appearing quite terrifying. “It is all your fault that I have become like this! It is all because of you! All because of you!”

Gu Qing looked at him with a cold, emotionless gaze. “Yes, it was me. So what?”

She tilted her head, a faint smile playing on her lips like an innocent child. She handed the tanghulu to Xie Zhizhen, then took two steps forward to stand in front of Lin Chenzhi. She took out a roll of silver notes and used them to lift his chin.

“A gigolo from Huanyi House does indeed have some looks, it is just… his upbringing is rather poor.” Gu Qing slapped the silver notes against Lin Chenzhi’s face, then looked up at the burly men holding him. “Is this how your Huanyi House trains its men?”

The men were clever. They recognized that this woman in extraordinary clothing was the very noble who had sent Lin Chenzhi to Huanyi House. Knowing they could not afford to offend a person of her status, they bowed and scraped immediately. “It was our poor training! Please forgive us, My Lady! We will certainly discipline him much more strictly from now on!”

As he spoke, one of the men did not forget to land two kicks on Lin Chenzhi.

Gu Qing smiled with satisfaction and gave a haughty nod. “The silver notes on the ground are a reward for you.”

She then turned and walked away, completely indifferent to Lin Chenzhi’s fate or the sight of the men stooping to pick up the money.

“Gu Qing! Gu Qing, you will die a miserable death!”

Counting the silver notes in his hand, one man chuckled. His eyes grew brighter as he looked at Lin Chenzhi, but his actions were cruel as he grabbed Lin Chenzhi’s hair. It was a joke to keep cursing like that. She was a noble; if they let this man continue his insults, it would not matter what happened to him, but they could not let their brothers be implicated.

Lin Chenzhi was beaten until his face was bruised and swollen, his mouth filled with blood, yet he did not stop glaring at Gu Qing. In his mind, if it were not for Gu Qing, how could he have ended up like this? If not for her, he would have already possessed Xie Zhizhen. If not for her, how could his father’s usurpation have failed? If not for her, he would be the Crown Prince now, and Xie Zhizhen would be his Princess!

Gu Qing was unaware of Lin Chenzhi’s thoughts. She held Xie Zhizhen’s slender waist, her low, gentle tone a sharp contrast to her behavior moments ago. “Try it. How is the tanghulu from this stall? Is the taste just right?”

Xie Zhizhen looked at Gu Qing while Lin Chenzhi’s screams echoed behind them. She had no heart for candied haws. She had too many questions, but with so many people watching them, she found it difficult to speak.

After the two left, in a corner behind Lin Chenzhi, Lin Daidai covered her mother’s mouth and held her tightly with her other arm to stop her from going out to help. Only after watching Lin Chenzhi be dragged away by the men did Lin Daidai release her mother.

In the next instant, Lin Daidai received a slap. Her mother glared at her, eyes full of disbelief. “That is your brother! How could you just watch your brother be… be humiliated like that!”

Thinking of what she had just witnessed, Lin’s mother could not accept it. Her proud son had been sent to a place like Huanyi House.

Lin Daidai was, after all, the daughter of the State Preceptor. Her upbringing was no less than that of any noble lady. Her mother’s slap left a red mark on her face and a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth. She wiped the blood away and looked at her disappointed mother, asking flatly, “Do you think you are still the wife of the State Preceptor?”

Her mother froze, momentarily unable to answer.

Lin Daidai pressed on, “Does Mother not remember? Three months ago, Father failed in his usurpation. The State Preceptor’s Manor is gone. You are no longer the high-and-mighty wife, and I am no longer the daughter. Tell me, what would I use to save my brother?”

Only then did the mother recall that the luxury of the past few months had vanished, replaced by coarse tea and simple food. “But… but he is your brother…”

Lin Daidai felt pain seeing her brother dragged away, but she believed that if one does not look out for oneself, heaven and earth will destroy them. She did not want to be a dependent anymore. To escape and live the life she wanted, she had no choice. “Mother, I can only protect you.”

Her mother’s eyes were full of heartbreak. She cried, “Then why not save your brother? My old life won’t last much longer anyway. Why?”

Lin Daidai looked at her naive mother. In the past, her father had protected her too well, so well that she knew nothing of the filth within the Manor. But the current situation allowed for no such innocence. “Does Mother know why Brother fell to such a state?”

Lin Daidai then told her about the matter involving Xie Zhizhen. She watched her mother’s eyes turn from surprise to despair. She spoke cruelly, “So, it is not that I am unwilling to save him, but that I am powerless.”

The mother fell silent. She never imagined her considerate husband and her son, who was like refined jade, could have such a side. She knew that if what Lin Daidai said was true, there truly was no saving him. In reality, even if it were false, their current circumstances made it impossible to rescue Lin Chenzhi anyway.

“Chenzhi… how could he do something so foolish…”

Lin Daidai wanted to say that given Lin Chenzhi’s obsession with Xie Zhizhen, such behavior was not hard to understand. But she knew her mother would eventually figure it out, so why say more?

Once Xie Zhizhen and Gu Qing finally left the center of attention, Xie Zhizhen stopped and grabbed Gu Qing, asking, “Lin Chenzhi, how did he end up like that?”

Ever since confirming the man was Lin Chenzhi, her pity had vanished, replaced by shock.

Gu Qing thought of the suffering Xie Zhizhen had endured, and her gaze turned cold. “This is letting him off easy. He must pay for the suffering you endured and for those innocent women.”

Xie Zhizhen finally understood why Gu Qing had sent him to Huanyi House. It was a matter of giving him a taste of his own medicine. Seeing Xie Zhizhen’s somber expression, Gu Qing knew Lin Chenzhi’s appearance had brought back painful memories. She shed her coldness and returned to her gentle self, stroking Xie Zhizhen’s hair. “If you keep thinking about Lin Chenzhi, I will get jealous.”

Xie Zhizhen was amused by her playful tone. “You clearly know better.”

Gu Qing nodded. “Try this tanghulu. They say it is very good.”

Xie Zhizhen took a bite. The crispy, sweet sugar coating encased a tart hawthorn. The pits had been removed, making it smooth to eat. The sour flavor spread across her palate, making her features scrunch up, but as the juice met the sweet coating, her expression relaxed. Her eyes sparkled. “Delicious!”

Seeing Xie Zhizhen have such a range of expressions over a simple snack, Gu Qing smiled. “Can I have a taste?”

Xie Zhizhen held the tanghulu out to her, but Gu Qing shook her head. Under Xie Zhizhen’s confused gaze, Gu Qing kissed her lips. While she was still dazed, Gu Qing’s tongue swept through her mouth.

Gu Qing mimicked Xie Zhizhen’s enjoying expression and nodded with satisfaction. “It is indeed good.”

Xie Zhizhen was a bit annoyed and instinctively looked around. Relieved that no one was watching, she punched Gu Qing’s shoulder, sounding a bit angry. “We are outside!”

At home, she didn’t care what Gu Qing did, but it would be terrible if someone saw them on the street.

Gu Qing laughed frankly and held her. “We are married. Everything we do is legal.”

Xie Zhizhen was still dissatisfied. “It is not a matter of legality. It is… it is embarrassing!”

Gu Qing did not think much of it. She said instinctively, “In our world, kissing on the street is no big deal.”

“Your… world?” This was the first time Xie Zhizhen had heard Gu Qing mention “that world.”

Gu Qing nodded instinctively, then realized something was wrong. Her eyes widened as she looked at Xie Zhizhen. “You can hear me?!”

Xie Zhizhen did not understand her reaction. She nodded and asked back, “My ears are fine. Why wouldn’t I hear you?”

Over the past ten years, Gu Qing had tried to talk about the modern world, but every time, the sounds were automatically silenced in Xie Zhizhen’s ears. This was why Gu Qing always had to make up excuses whenever she introduced something new. The truth was always muted.

Although she did not know why it was not silenced this time, Gu Qing was excited to finally share her hometown. “In my previous world, couples walking hand in hand or even kissing on the street is very common. It doesn’t draw strange looks.” A hint of nostalgia entered her eyes. “There are no emperors or princesses in that world. Everyone is equal.”

Gu Qing told her about the modern world, and Xie Zhizhen occasionally asked what certain words meant.

“What does ‘couple’ mean?”

“It means people who are in a relationship.”

“What is being in a relationship?”

“It is a process where two people develop love and feel their hearts race through mutual communication.”

Xie Zhizhen listened in amazement. “Does such a world really exist?”

Gu Qing nodded firmly. These were her real experiences from living in the modern world for over twenty years. “Of course, it is possible!”

However… “You don’t think I am lying to you?” Gu Qing was surprised by her acceptance. Not everyone could accept the theory of another world so quickly. “Or that I am a monster or something?”

Most people would think she was crazy or possessed. Only Xie Zhizhen believed her without a single question, listening with great interest.

Xie Zhizhen tilted her head. “I told you long ago, I felt you weren’t like the people of this world. Now your explanation matches your usual strange behavior. Why would I doubt you?”

In truth, there had always been clues: Gu Qing’s ideas that surpassed the era, the milk tea she made from time to time, and the fact that she knew far too much even as a child.

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