There stood Shen Yu at the door, his eyes glaring angrily. In his hand was a broom as tall as a person, which he didn't know where he got.
His face was dark and gloomy, and his teeth were grinding with rage.
"Xie Jingchu, now that A Jiu's life or death is unknown, you're about to marry another woman and even bring her to the Brocade Pavilion! Don't you forget whose place this is!"
The angrier Shen Yu got as he spoke. His face turned ashen as he stared at Xie Jingchu, and there seemed to be two flames burning in his eyes.
Hearing this, Ruan Jiu and Xie Jingchu glanced at each other, looking at a loss.
But in Shen Yu's eyes, it seemed as if they were making eyes at each other and flirting right in front of him.
Furious, Shen Yu was about to wave the broom and drive them out on the spot.
"Get out! Get out! You're not welcome here!"
Fortunately, Xie Jingchu was quick - witted. He immediately stepped in front of Ruan Jiu and grabbed the broom that Shen Yu was waving at them.
It was the first time Ruan Jiu had seen Shen Yu like this. Hiding behind Xie Jingchu, she couldn't help but peek out with her little head.
Originally, Shen Yu standing at the door with a broom was already very eye - catching, and this action of his even attracted a lot of onlookers.
Helplessly, Xie Jingchu had no choice but to say, "Brother Shen, let's move to the inner room first. I'll explain it to you there."
After all, this wasn't a suitable place to talk.
Shen Yu scanned the onlookers and snorted.
Then he strode towards the inner room.
He was eager to see what kind of explanation Xie Jingchu could come up with.
It wasn't until the three of them entered the inner room and the door was tightly closed that Shen Yu still didn't put down the broom in his hand.
It was as if as long as Xie Jingchu said a single wrong word, he would immediately wave the broom and drive the man out.
Shen Yu raised his head and glared at Xie Jingchu. "I'd like to hear your explanation!"
Previously, Shen Yu had heard that Xie Jingchu had been imprisoned in the imperial prison for rejecting the emperor's bestowed marriage. He couldn't help but sigh at Xie Jingchu's deep affection for Ruan Jiu, and the Shen family had been anxiously trying to help Xie Jingchu.
But today, he heard from others that Xie Jingchu had gone to the Chonghua Tower with Song Qingyu, and that the two of them would get married soon.
Ruan Jiu had been missing for so long. Although the Shen family didn't want to admit it, they all knew in their hearts that Ruan Jiu was probably in great danger.
It wasn't that he opposed Xie Jingchu marrying another woman. He just couldn't accept that Xie Jingchu had fallen in love with someone else so soon!
Because it would make Ruan Jiu's feelings seem worthless!
Ruan Jiu glanced at Shen Yu, who was full of anger. She bit her lips and then whispered to Xie Jingchu, "Didn't you tell him?"
Xie Jingchu pursed his lips, spread his hands, shrugged his shoulders, looking innocent.
Ruan Jiu took a deep breath. No wonder Shen Yu was so angry.
Then, she slowly took two steps towards Shen Yu.
Meeting Shen Yu's guarded and suspicious eyes, she softly called out, "Brother..."
There was a slight sob in her tone.
Hearing this, Shen Yu was first stunned, and then shocked.
This voice?
It was exactly the same as Ruan Jiu's!
The broom in his hand slipped to the ground involuntarily. He stared at Ruan Jiu with wide - open eyes in disbelief. "What did you call me?"
Ruan Jiu softly called out again, "Brother."
As soon as the words left her mouth, her eyes were already filled with tears.
A familiar voice came into Shen Yu's ears again.
"Y - you... are you... A Jiu?" Shen Yu's voice trembled, and his eyes were full of astonishment.
Ruan Jiu nodded with tears in her eyes.
Seeing this, Shen Yu immediately stepped forward.
Just as he was about to reach out and hug Ruan Jiu, his hand froze in mid - air.
How could this strange face be A Jiu?
If he misrecognized someone, A Jiu would surely be angry with him when she came back.
Thinking of this, Shen Yu lowered his hands and subconsciously took a few steps back.
Ruan Jiu took a few more steps towards Shen Yu. "Brother, I'm really A Jiu!"
As soon as these words were spoken, it was as if a thunderbolt had exploded in Shen Yu's mind. His lips trembled slightly. "You're really A Jiu?"
Ruan Jiu shook her head vigorously.
A complex emotion welled up in Shen Yu's eyes. There was doubt, disbelief, but more of all, there was the joy of having found what was lost.
Then he immediately stretched out his arms and hugged Ruan Jiu tightly.
His A Jiu was back!
His younger sister was back!
This past year, both he and the entire Shen family had been in a living hell.
Shen Wenshan and Qin Shuang had aged several years overnight.
Fortunately, God had shown mercy. Their A Jiu wasn't dead!
The siblings just hugged each other quietly. All the words were contained in this gentle hug, wordlessly expressing their endless yearning.
After a moment, Xie Jingchu walked around to Shen Yu's side and coughed softly.
"Enough is enough."
There was a strong hint of jealousy in his tone.
After all, since they reunited, he hadn't even hugged Ruan Jiu for this long.
Hearing this, Shen Yu reluctantly let go of his arms.
Then he turned his head and secretly wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes.
"A Jiu, what exactly happened this past year? Why didn't you come back? And why do you look like the second young lady of the Song family?" Shen Yu asked all the countless questions in his heart.
After hearing this, Ruan Jiu pursed her lips, and a touch of melancholy lingered between her eyebrows.
Some things shouldn't be told to Shen Yu. After all, it was safest for him not to know.
"Brother, I didn't mean to make you worry. It's because of some unavoidable difficulties, so..."
"It's okay." Seeing the guilt and self - blame in Ruan Jiu's eyes, Shen Yu immediately interrupted.
He secretly blamed himself in his heart. Why was he so talkative!
As long as A Jiu was still alive, why should he care about so many things?
But he hesitated a little and frowned tightly. "What about Father and Mother? Should we tell them?"
Ruan Jiu thought for a while. "Let's forget it."
What good would it do to tell them?
It would only add to their grief.
Seeing the disappointment in Shen Yu's eyes, she pursed her lips again. "Brother, you can tell them that you've found me, but I still need time to recuperate. I'll come back in a few days."
Hearing this, Shen Yu immediately replied, "Okay! I'll go back right away and tell them this good news!"
Ruan Jiu watched Shen Yu's back as he walked away, then lowered her eyelids.
Was this really good news?
Just then, Xie Jingchu suddenly put his arm around Ruan Jiu's shoulder.
He said softly, "What are you thinking about?"
Ruan Jiu opened her mouth slightly, then tightened her lips. She forced a smile at Xie Jingchu and shook her head.
Xie Jingchu also saw that Ruan Jiu was blaming herself for not being able to recognize her family for now.
So he comforted her gently, "A Jiu, you don't need to blame yourself. None of this is your fault. When they know the truth in the future, they surely won't blame you."
Just like him. After knowing that Ruan Jiu wasn't dead, he only felt the joy of having found what was lost.
After knowing that Ruan Jiu had been coerced by Xiao Wang and became Song Qingyu, he felt endless heartache.
After hearing Xie Jingchu's words, Ruan Jiu's already dull eyes darkened even more, without a glimmer of light.
She frowned tightly and bit her lips hard.
After a long time, she said in a deep voice.
"Let's postpone our wedding for now..."