Chapter 386 - 140: The Shameless Family (Part 3)
The two spoke in low voices, but Jie Jingchen, whose eyes and ears missed nothing, still heard them. He continued to read his book quietly, his expression unchanged.
In this test of patience, Jie Jianjun was the first to break. He turned and walked back, but this time he didn’t sit in the wicker chair beside Jie Jingchen. Instead, he took the stone stool Granny had just vacated. "Jing Si."
"Second Uncle, is there something else?" Jie Jingchen’s gaze didn’t move from his book.
Jie Jianjun was seething. He was the elder, after all. An attitude like Jie Jingchen’s could only mean one of two things: either the boy had no upbringing, or he held him in complete contempt.
"Enough with the reading." Jie Jianjun’s patience finally snapped. He snatched the book from Jie Jingchen’s hands and sneered, "Reading, always reading. What’s the matter, you think you’re going to college?"
Though his book had been snatched, Jie Jingchen, surprisingly, did not get angry. He simply pressed his lips together in a firm line, his dark, intense gaze fixed on Jie Jianjun.
Jie Jianjun felt a chill creep down his spine under that stare. Jie Jingchen’s calm gaze was somehow more frightening than a fit of rage would have been. ’I’m the elder here, and he’s the junior. I’m his superior! So why is his presence so much more intimidating than mine?’
SLAP! To avoid losing face, Jie Jianjun slammed the book down on the stone table. He glared at Jie Jingchen and demanded sharply, "Jing Si, where is that brother-in-law of yours?"
’So he’s lost his patience? Time to get to the point, is it?’ Jie Jingchen’s sharp brows arched slightly, his amber eyes filled with undisguised mockery. "He left."
"Left?" Jie Jianjun raised an eyebrow. "Where’d he go?"
Jie Jingchen raised a hand and pinched the bridge of his nose. His thin lips parted, and he uttered three words. "He went home."
Qin Mei stopped chewing for a moment and shot a sideways glance at Qin Xiang, who was standing beside her. ’Jingchen can lie through his teeth without even batting an eye. The man is truly one of a kind.’
"Home?" Jie Jianjun couldn’t process it. ’What’s going on?’
"Mhm, went home." Jie Jingchen nodded, then thought for a moment before adding, "He’s probably already on the train by now. Second Uncle, were you looking for him? You should hurry to the station. If you can’t catch him, you can always buy a ticket to Yangcheng City for tomorrow. As for his village address... I’ve forgotten it. Sorry, can’t help you there. You could just go to Yangcheng City and ask around. Maybe you’ll find out which village it is."
Jie Jianjun was stunned. ’Without a village name, what am I supposed to ask about? And wait, why would I chase him all the way to Yangcheng City?’
"Bullshit!" Granny couldn’t hold back any longer. She shoved Jie Anlin, who was supporting her, aside and rushed up to Jie Jingchen as if she’d been shot full of adrenaline. "Jing Si, who do you think you’re fooling? Xiao Xiangzi obviously just went to make a phone call, but you’re telling your uncle he went home. What are you up to?"
"He did go make a phone call. My father and mother-in-law heard he’d compromised and agreed to marry that child bride they raised for him. They were worried he’d back out, so they decided to strike while the iron is hot and told him to go back, hold the wedding banquet with her, consummate the marriage, and hopefully give them a grandson by next year." Jie Jingchen lied without so much as a blush or a waver in his breath.
"Child bride?" Jie Jianjun latched onto the key point and looked at his mother. ’When we were planning this, Mom never said anything about a child bride.’
"Get lost! Out of my way," Granny snapped at him. She was in no mood to argue with her second son about some child bride. "Jing Si, you have too many tricks up your sleeve. You might fool others, but you can’t fool me. No matter how urgent it was, it couldn’t possibly be *this* urgent."
"Granny, are you telling me you have no idea why my brother-in-law was in such a hurry to leave?" Jie Jingchen challenged.
Granny’s old face twisted into a grotesque mask. She stiffened her neck and said, "It’s precisely because I know what’s going on that you can’t fool me."
"You were about to dump a bucket of filth on my brother-in-law’s head. If he didn’t run for it, was he supposed to stick around and be disgusted to death?" Jie Jingchen’s face turned icy, and a cold laugh escaped his lips.
Granny’s neck remained stiff, her eyes wide and glaring.
Jie Anlin, who had walked back over, had a sudden flash of insight. "So he fled because he’s guilty! An Qi really wasn’t lying about him. I thought it was strange! Granny arranges a blind date, and An Qi, who has such high standards, takes a liking to Qin Xiang right away. She even said it was love at first sight, and I actually believed her! It turns out there was a hidden story all along. That wasn’t their first time meeting at all! They’ve been having a secret affair and already pledged themselves to each other!"
Jie Jingchen shot a sharp glare at Jie Anlin. ’Even this, he managed to twist to his advantage.’
Granny immediately jumped on Jie Anlin’s words. "Yes, yes, yes! They knew each other all along! Xiao Xiangzi seduced my An Qi and now he doesn’t want to take responsibility! What a heartless bastard! It’s a good thing An Qi is pregnant. If she weren’t pregnant, Xiao Xiangzi would just deny everything to his dying day, and our An Qi would have to suffer in silence! Heaven has eyes!"
"Mom, and you were doubting my words, suspecting An Qi of framing Qin Xiang, even saying it was his first time in Shijiu City. The facts prove you were wrong! Look at how elusive Qin Xiang is. How could this be his first time in Shijiu City? He’s clearly been here many times in secret to carry on with my An Qi! Mom, you even said he was here to see his sister. The facts prove he was here for a secret tryst with my An Qi, and just visited the Fourth Wife of Jing on the side," Jie Jianjun chimed in, seizing the opportunity.
"Oh, my dear second son! Mom was wrong. I shouldn’t have suspected An Qi. I’m getting old, my mind isn’t as sharp as it used to be. Only after you reminded me did I finally see the light. That Xiao Xiangzi is a real piece of work! You can know a man’s face, but you can never know his heart! And to think I wanted to set him up with An Qi, when he was with her all along. An Qi is so naive. How could she have been tricked into his bed with just a few sweet words? And now look, she’s ended up with a heartless man. Oh, my poor An Qi!" Granny’s voice was filled with tears.
Granny wiped her eyes with her sleeve, sniffled, and continued, "Now that I think about it, that child bride story Xiao Xiangzi told was probably just a lie too. And ’going out to make a phone call’? Clearly, his scheme was exposed, so he used that as an excuse to make his escape!"
Jie Jingchen’s icy gaze fell on the trio as they performed their duet. His thin lips were pressed into a tight line, and he said nothing, letting them continue their little show.
Their sharp words struck every nerve in Qin Xiang’s head. A vein bulged at the corner of his eye. He suddenly clenched his fists so tight that his knuckles cracked.
’What should I do? I’m about to lose it. I want to rush out there and beat the hell out of those three. Being framed and slandered like this... it’s infuriating!’
The corners of Qin Mei’s mouth twitched uncontrollably. She looked at Qin Xiang, who was trying so hard to control himself, forced a smile, and offered him the half-eaten duck neck. "How about you chew on this duck neck to blow off some steam?"
"I don’t want it. You eat it. I’ll have a duck foot." As if to vent his fury, Qin Xiang stuffed a duck foot into his mouth, bit down hard, and began chewing it, bones and all.
Seeing this, Qin Mei quietly retracted her hand. ’Chewing it bones and all... his teeth are really something. He’s not chewing a duck foot; he’s chewing on the bones of those three.’
Inside the house, Grandpa had been about to step out and tell them that Qin Xiang was right there in Jing Si’s room. But after hearing what the three were saying, he stopped, turned around, and went back to sit in his chair.
’Forget it. Let them cause a scene. Whatever the outcome, I don’t want to get involved. My words have no weight anyway. I can’t persuade my old woman or my second son, and I can’t out-argue Jing Si.’
Jing Qi was in his own room, chewing on a duck leg, completely oblivious to the drama unfolding outside.
"Escape? Hmph!" Jie Anlin snorted. "Even if he runs to the ends of the earth, I’ll dig him out of the ground if I have to! Granny, don’t stop me. I’m going to the train station to buy a ticket right now."
"An Lin, you can’t go! You’re supposed to be getting treatment. You can’t go anywhere," Granny said, grabbing Jie Anlin’s hand as if he would really bolt for the train station the moment she let go.
"Granny, I can’t let this go! He dared to play with my sister’s feelings. I’ll kill him," Jie Anlin said viciously.
Jie Jingchen shot him a cold glance and said sarcastically, "You kill him? You should be grateful he doesn’t kill you first."
Jie Jingchen knew Qin Xiang’s skills better than anyone. Someone like Jie Anlin would be on the ground in three moves.
Jie Anlin had just been talking big, and he was indignant that Jie Jingchen had called him out on the spot. "Even if I die, I’ll get justice for An Qi!"