Chapter 16: I Speak, You Listen

“Seeking revenge?” Lin Si was puzzled.

Si Kouyan only smiled without replying, the head he had just lifted sinking lazily back onto the soft divan. He narrowed his eyes, picked up the teacup from the small table beside him, and took a slow, leisurely sip.

At fifteen or sixteen, the youth possessed a striking and refined beauty; even in such a casual pose, he exuded an air of elegant nobility.

Lin Si scratched his head, conceding to himself that he could not begin to fathom his master’s thoughts.

Meanwhile, the general's manor was a scene taut with tension, as if swords were drawn and bows bent.

Ji Tianxin lifted her head. Her jaw was a little thin, yet smooth and graceful in its lines. Her voice was cool and clear. “Evidence? Is this face of mine not evidence enough?”

Given her level of cultivation, her features could have shifted to resemble her former self more and more, as her memory of the past deepened. But to “repay her debt,” she had deliberately made herself resemble Li Xiaodie all the more, as well as Ji Huaili. At a glance, it was plain that she looked strikingly like Li Xiaodie.

“There are plenty of people in the world who look alike; should everyone who resembles Li Xiaodie or the general come here to claim kinship?” Madam Chen retorted.

Ji Huaili said nothing, but his gaze weighed heavily on Ji Tianxin.

Ji Tianxin’s brows drew faintly together. She looked at Madam Chen and spoke slowly, “I truly dislike being interrupted when I am speaking—especially by you.”

She had barely finished her sentence when she swept her broad sleeve, sending a surge of energy hurtling straight toward Madam Chen!

Ji Yuanruo was closest to Ji Tianxin. He moved swiftly, trying to block the force, but before he could reach her, an invisible power forced him back.

“Outrageous!” Ji Huaili roared after a brief shock. By the time he moved to intervene, Madam Chen had already been struck hard by the energy.

With a shriek, she toppled from her seat to the floor, vomiting a mouthful of blood.

Frightened and furious, she trembled all over. Looking to Ji Huaili, she wept and wailed, “Master... master... this is a monster!”

Ji Tianxin’s expression was cool and indifferent as she took a step forward.

The concubines seated nearby shrieked in terror, clutching at whomever was beside them.

Ji Yuanruo tried to advance, but Su Qing’s body blocked his way as soon as he took a step.

Su Qing’s lips curved in a faint smile as she crossed her arms, clearly intent on letting nothing pass.

Ji Yuanruo glared at her, vexed—this wretched girl!

“You call yourself my daughter, yet act with such outrageous defiance. Do you even acknowledge me as your father?” Ji Huaili thundered, slamming his palm down so hard the table splintered and crashed to the ground.

Ji Tianxin arched a brow. “Now you admit I’m your daughter?”

“And what if I do?” Ji Huaili retorted, never imagining he would be so completely led by the nose by a mere child.

He felt as if he were conversing not with a daughter, but some fiendish creature.

“Father!” Ji Yuanruo frowned in concern.

Ji Tianxin’s lips curled in a faint, languid smile. “Since that’s settled, shall we move on to the next matter?”

Her gaze swept over Madam Chen and the trembling Old Madam Zhang standing behind her.

“Weren’t you all so curious about how I emerged from Li Xiaodie’s womb?”

A shudder ran through Madam Chen; her entire demeanor changed as dread seized her.

“This is a matter the lady of the house should know well. But even if you don’t, it doesn’t matter. I’ll speak; all you need do is listen.” The gentle, languid cadence of Ji Tianxin’s words made them all the more unsettling.