Still unclear about your own identity?
The butler was even more annoyed, and he spoke again, "Second Miss, with the way you are, it's really impossible to win Madam's favor. I think you should just..."
But he didn't get to finish his sentence.
Ying Zijin stopped, glanced at him, and suddenly lifted her leg, delivering a direct kick.
Caught off guard, the butler "bang" fell to the ground.
One of his hands was firmly pinned down, and the pain made him unable to help but let out a howl.
"Tsk."
At that moment, in the night, a laugh suddenly fell, carrying a touch of cynical indifference, yet wrapped in a cool edge.
"If I hadn't come back, I wouldn't have known that the Ying Family's servants now dare to order their masters around. Is this how Madam Ying disciplines?"
The man had a tall and upright figure, also dressed in a black shirt with buttons undone, his skin in the snow looking even colder and whiter, like carved jade and soft porcelain.
Standing under the tree, he became a scene of his own, unmatched by the beauty of snow and moonlight, impervious to their elegant charm.
Ying Zijin retracted her foot and looked up, her gaze pausing slightly, "You haven't left?"
"Good thing I didn't." Fu Yunshen tucked one hand casually into his pocket, the corner of his lips curving slightly, "If I had left, our little friend here would have been bullied."
A breeze picked up, blowing open his shirt, revealing a small piece of collarbone, diffusing a faint scent of Jade and Agarwood.
Calm yet gentle, a fatally alluring temptation.
Ying Zijin was silent for a moment, "Can't be bothered to deal with it."
She didn't like talking; saying one more word was less preferred than taking action directly.
"Mhm, I know." Fu Yunshen patted her head, "That's why I'll deal with it, you just watch."
He turned his head, lifting his chin slightly, still smiling, "Who do you want to apologize?"
The butler was already dumbfounded by the fall, and now he was even more terrified to breathe, his face turning a choked red, then pale, his legs trembling, he was nearly kneeling down.
Of course, he recognized the man who appeared here—
The Seventh Young Master of the Fu Family, Fu Yunshen.
The most extravagant and worthless scion of Shanghai City, lacking in ambition.
It was said that Fu Yunshen, due to his excessive indulgence, had offended the heir of a family in the capital and was rushed by the Fu Family to O continent overnight.
How did he suddenly come back?
And he was so protective of the Second Miss?
Had he gone mad?
"I'm sorry, Second Miss." The butler couldn't withstand the pressure and suddenly lifted his hand, slapping himself, trembling as he said, "I shouldn't have disrespected you, it's all my fault."
Fu Yunshen didn't bother with him, "Let's go, little friend, I'll personally send you in this time."
The butler dared not obstruct them any longer, "Seventh Young Master, Second Miss, this way, please."
Feeling aggrieved and yet relieved at the same time, at least Madam wouldn't blame him now.
**
The door opened, and the cold air rolled in, leaving a layer of frost on the luxurious carpet.
In the old house's first floor, the living room was full of warmth.
Sitting on the sofa was a Noble Lady, flipping through a book with an elegant posture, every move displaying the refinement of a wealthy family's breeding.
This was Madam Ying Zhong Manhua, born into the Zhong Family, one of the Four major noble families.
Zhong Manhua heard the footsteps but didn't look up, speaking in a tone neither salty nor bland, "Has the Second Miss conceded?"
The old mansion was well soundproofed, so the noise outside couldn't be heard by those inside.
The butler hardly dared to breathe, only daring to whisper softly, "Madam."
"Hmm?" Zhong Manhua frowned, raising her head, "You haven't... "
The rest of her words stopped abruptly when she saw the man.
Zhong Manhua was startled, and it took her several seconds to come to her senses.
She put down the book in her hands and got up to greet him, as if she hadn't seen the girl, smiling, "It turns out to be the Seventh Young Master. I heard from your father just yesterday that you returned from O region. Visiting the Ying Family so late, is there something important?"
The Fu Family was the leader of the Four Major Noble Families; even though Fu Yunshen had been away from Shanghai City for three years, as long as Old Master Fu was still there, the Ying Family couldn't afford to offend them.
"Dropping a little friend off at home." Fu Yunshen spoke indifferently, "I was worried about her getting bullied."
Zhong Manhua's smile stalled, clearly not expecting such a response. Only then did her gaze fall on the girl, and she asked, "What happened?"
The butler quickly recounted the events that had happened before.
After listening, Zhong Manhua frowned again, took a deep breath, and then smiled, "Seventh Young Master, this is just a misunderstanding, and it was troubling for you to make the trip. Zijin is also my daughter, how could I bear to see her suffer."
"Is that so?" Fu Yunshen laughed softly, standing in a slouched posture, "Then that's good, I feel relieved. For Madam Ying to treat her foster daughter this way, it's a reputation for kindness that could be well received once spread."
Zhong Manhua's face turned somewhat unsightly.
These words were clearly mocking.
"It's this servant—" Fu Yunshen glanced over lightly, chuckling, "A bit audacious."
The butler's legs became even weaker.
Zhong Manhua kept a tight expression and didn't speak.
"But as an outsider, it's not my place to discipline Madam Ying's servants." Fu Yunshen didn't pay any further attention and instead tilted his head towards the girl, raising his cellphone with a smile in his voice, "Little friend, I've saved my number on your phone, contact me anytime."
The door was closed again, and the room was dead silent.
The butler let out a sigh of relief, continuously wiping away sweat.
"Where did you go?" Zhong Manhua held back her anger, after all not changing her face immediately after Fu Yunshen had left, "Luwei said you left the hospital three hours ago, what were you doing?"
Running out alone in a snowstorm, when would she ever give it a rest?
And specifically finding someone to come back and anger her, utterly lacking in manners.
Ying Zijin didn't respond, yawning.
Apart from being hungry, she was now becoming sleepy.
Suddenly back to being a normal person, she wanted to savor the experience fully.
Zhong Manhua said coldly, "I'm speaking to you, is this how you show manners?"
Ying Zijin looked up indifferently, "Why should you care about a 'Living Blood Bank'?"
Zhong Manhua could hardly believe her ears, her mind went blank for a moment, her body fiercely trembling, "What did you say?"
The butler also looked over in shock, disbelief written all over his face.
The fact that the Ying Family had taken in a foster daughter to serve as Ying Luwei's living blood bank wasn't a secret among the Four Major Noble Families; the entire elite circle knew about it.
But no one cared about it, because it wasn't important, it was occasionally used as post-dinner gossip for a bit of fun. The Ying Family didn't think there was anything wrong with it.
Yet when this ugly truth was so bluntly exposed, Zhong Manhua felt as if all the coverings she had dressed herself in had been ripped away, like thorns in her back, her entire blood chilled to the core, her hands and feet ice cold.
Zhong Manhua, after all, came from a wealthy family, and she quickly calmed her emotions, her expression softened a bit, but she still spoke with an authoritative tone, "What is this behavior? The hot water is ready for you, go take a bath first. I have some words for you afterward."
The girl yawned again, without paying any heed, and went upstairs.
Zhong Manhua's face turned ashen, and with a "smack," she put the teacup down on the table heavily.
The butler bowed his head, not daring to speak.
"Look at her attitude, and listen to what she's saying!" Zhong Manhua was so angry it pained her heart and lungs, her grievance even more so, "Does she think that I want her to be bled? Isn't she flesh that has fallen from my body, how could I not be pained?"