Chapter 132: Replacing Rumors With Another
Xie Rong’s raised hand stopped only a few inches away from Shen Yurou. His fingers slowly tightened before gradually relaxing once more.
Only then did he realize, he had almost forgotten himself.
For the briefest moment, he had wanted to make Shen Yurou understand what fear truly felt like.
A faint sigh escaped his lips.
"My apologies." The words were directed only at Wang Gege.
She looked up at him for a brief moment before giving an almost imperceptible nod.
Without another word, he allowed Wang Gege to guide him as she had intended. To everyone inside the silk shop, the movement appeared entirely natural. A blind husband relying upon his wife was a sight no one found unusual.
Only the two of them understood the true meaning behind that brief exchange.
Xie Rong quietly untied the fastening of his outer robe.
The dark robe slipped from his shoulders before he gently draped it over Wang Gege, carefully covering the loosened folds of her own robe that had been left disordered during the struggle.
His movements were slow and meticulous. Almost as though he feared the slightest carelessness might make her uncomfortable.
The surrounding customers exchanged quiet glances.
None of them had expected the usually indifferent Young Master Xie to display such consideration toward his wife in public.
As Xie Rong adjusted the collar of the robe for her, the tips of his fingers lightly brushed against the side of Wang Gege’s neck.
He stopped and his fingers remained suspended for only the briefest moment.
There... Just beneath her jaw.
A faint scratch, not that deep, but against her fair skin, the thin red mark stood out with startling clarity.
The air around him seemed to freeze.
His hand slowly lowered. Beneath the wide sleeve of his robe, his fingers unconsciously curled into a tight fist.
The calmness Wang Gege had just managed to restore, threatened to shatter once more.
He had thought the disheveled robes were merely the result of a brief struggle. But now... Someone had left a mark on his wife.
A mark that should never have existed.
His lips slowly parted. "Mo Yan."
Although the words were spoken softly, the killing intent concealed beneath that calm voice caused everyone nearby to feel an inexplicable chill run down their spines.
Even Mo Yan, who had stepped into the silk shop only moments earlier, immediately understood.
His Master was truly enraged.
Without turning around, Xie Rong spoke calmly, "Inform the Shen family..."
His voice remained level, yet every word carried an invisible weight. "That from this day onward, they would do well to remember the consequences of laying a hand upon my Furen."
Mo Yan lowered his head immediately. "This subordinate understands."
Only then did Xie Rong turn slightly toward the trembling shopkeeper.
"The losses incurred today..." He paused briefly before continuing, "whether damaged silk, disrupted business, or compensation owed to the customers."
His hand gently found Wang Gege’s.
"Calculate every single tael." His fingers slowly intertwined with hers before he continued, "Present the bill to the Shen Residence."
The shopkeeper stood frozen for a moment before hurriedly bowing. "T-This humble one understands."
Xie Rong gave a slight nod.
Without another glance at Shen Yurou, he gently led Wang Gege toward the entrance of the silk shop.
The entire hall instinctively parted to make way for the couple.
No one dared stop them.
Only after they disappeared beyond the doorway did the suppressed whispers gradually begin to spread among the gathered crowd.
"Did you hear the rumors this morning?" One noblewoman lowered her voice.
"The ones about Young Master Xie and the adopted daughter of the Xie family?"
Another lady immediately nodded. "I did."
She looked toward the doorway where Xie Rong had just left before slowly shaking her head.
"Those rumors cannot possibly be true. If they were... Would Young Master Xie have looked at his wife like that?"
The surrounding ladies fell silent.
One of them quietly recalled how Xie Rong had removed his own outer robe to cover Wang Gege without the slightest hesitation.
Another remembered the way he had gently taken her hand before leaving.
Someone else remembered the terrifying calmness in his voice when he ordered the Shen family to bear every consequence.
After a long while... An elderly madam finally let out a soft sigh.
"It seems... someone deliberately spread false rumors."
The others slowly nodded. "Young Master Xie clearly cherishes his wife."
"So why would he ruin his own reputation for an adopted younger sister?"
Another woman lowered her voice even further.
"I’m afraid... the adopted daughter was never the one Young Master Xie favored. It was merely someone else’s wishful thinking."
The words fell softly. Yet before the day ended, they would quietly spread throughout the capital...
Replacing one rumor... With another.
And by the time evening descended upon the capital...
The news had already reached the very person who had started those rumors.
Inside the quiet courtyard, the atmosphere was suffocatingly silent.
The young maid remained kneeling with her head lowered, her hands trembling slightly against the cold stone floor.
She had served Xie An’an long enough to know... Whenever her Young Miss became this quiet, it was always the calm before the storm.
"Young Miss..." She barely managed to utter the words.
Before a porcelain teacup flew across the chamber.
The maid instinctively lowered herself even further, but the rim of the cup still struck her cheek before shattering against the floor.
"Ah..."
A sharp pain spread across her face.
Warm blood slowly trickled down her cheek, staining the collar of her robe crimson.
The maid’s body trembled violently, yet she did not dare raise a hand to wipe away the blood.
Instead, she immediately bowed down her head on the floor. "This servant deserves punishment."
Xie An’an stood motionless before the window, her chest rising and falling with restrained fury.
The hand resting at her side had already clenched into a fist.
"What..." Her voice was frighteningly quiet, "does she have..."
She slowly turned around, her reddened eyes f
illed with unwillingness and resentment.
"That makes her so fortunate?"