Reborn: Revenge of the Concubine's Daughter

Chapter 154 Cold-blooded people killed the classmate

“Live version of live sex? Uh… Xiaoyi, are you alright?” Liao Qing’er asked carefully, “Speaking of these things, you must be very upset. I’m sorry. I just asked for curiosity, and you’ve been answering it all the time. You’ve also told me about your father abusing your mother. Forget it, I’m not curious anymore. The thing of changing the identity of the legitimate daughter can be considered later. If this is not possible, I will ask my parents accept you as an adoptive daughter, and you can get married better than now.”

He Danggui smiled and said, “Qing, your family doesn’t have issues like this, so you don’t know much about the struggle of these wives and concubines. And you can’t accept the basic common sense that women are inferior to men. Actually, the status of some concubines is not much higher than maids. To be specific, the masters of the whole family are only the Lord and the Madam. It is also a duty for the concubines to serve them. Many madams like to use this to punish those beautiful concubines who newly marry into the family. They make those concubines feel wronged and then have a quarrel with the husband.”

“You talked as if you are very experienced.” Liao Qing’er turned her arm around He Danggui and grinned. She said, “Have you seen Xie Qiaofeng and Zhu Quan…? Uh, their...”

“Ah!” Suddenly there was a scream somewhere on the bank of the stream. He Danggui and Liao Qing’er looked over together. Not far away from the stream, there was sisters of Qian’s Family. One of them was about to fall into the stream, while the other clutched her tightly. But in the end, the strength seemed to reduce. Then the former yelled and fell into the water.

The Miss Qian on the bank cried to the other bank and said, “Hurry! Save my sister! Please, she can’t swim!”

The childes on the opposite side heard what she said and looked at each other for a while. Although more than half of them could swim, if they embraced the delicate body of the 17-year-old Miss Qian under the eyes of everyone, they would have to marry her. Unless she refused. Thinking this way, no one moved their footsteps. They just looked on, watching Miss Qian struggling in the water and then sank into the water in fear. Finally, there was no sign on the water surface.

On this side, as for the ladies, there were no more than 10 people who could swim. Three or four people were afraid that they would be suffocated by the freezing water after getting into the water and the efforts would be in vain. Another three who were on their period. They were afraid that their bodies would be hurt by cold water, and they would be regarded as a laughing stock by everyone because blood would melt into the water. The remaining who could swim were He Danggui and Liao Qing’er. He Danggui was not only familiar with water, but also had the arts of lightness of “no trace of water, flying in the grass”. Once she stepped on the water lightly, she would be able to catch drowning people–only if she was willing to expose her martial arts in front of everyone.

Liao Qing’er frowned and thought, although Qian’s family was her rival, she couldn’t let Miss Qian die. This was just an exercise of winter swimming. Thinking this way, she took quick steps to the bank, spread her arms and made a posture of plunging into the water. However, she was hugged by He Danggui from behind.

Liao Qing’er looked back at her with incomprehension. He Danggui shook her head slightly and then whispered with Liao Qing’er, which made her calm down. Because everyone’s eyes were on Miss Qian, who fell into the water, no one noticed this scene. He Danggui was relieved, and she carried Liao Qing’er’s arm to observe the development of the situation. It was proper to be kind and good, but it was not necessary to be overly nice. If Qing entered the water at this time, it would definitely be a thankless task.

After a while, none of the male and female students went into the water to save Miss Qian. And Miss Qian never emerged from the water again. He Danggui and Liao Qing’er looked at each other in doubt, and they began to hesitate whether going into the water to save her or not. After waiting for a while, He Danggui couldn’t help it anymore. She raised her hand and removed her gold lock (representing wealth and longevity) to Liao Qing’er and whispered, “I’ll go down to see the situation.” But there was a dark red figure jumped into the water before she made her move. The swimming position was awkward, and the red figure swam very slowly.

When everyone stared at the figure, they found out that was Ms. Zheng from the Women Institute. They couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief, especially those who were quite good at swimming, or who boasted about good at swimming to their classmates. After all, watching a living person drown in front of themselves and die was a psychological torment for everyone. Now it was more appropriate for the female teacher to rescue her because she was an adult. Adults should do everything first!

However, Ms. Zheng in the water couldn’t tell the bitterness. One was that indeed she could swim, but she hadn’t swum for many years. Besides, she was afraid that if the drowning student died, she would be responsible for this accident. Therefore, she just got panic and dived into the water with no preparation. Not only the cotton skirt and shoes were heavy after absorbing water, but also she was very far away from the accident site. She paddled very slowly. It was better to run to the drop point first and then dive to save Qian Mudan. If she went on like this, the student Qian Mudan could die soon! It was a real disaster. This Feast of Qushui Liushang been held for so many years, and there had never been such a drowning incident!

He Danggui also noticed this, so she took a deep breath and jumped into the water as the second after Ms. Zheng. She quickly swam to the place where Miss Qian last appeared, paddling in the waves of clear water and leaving a white trace.

Seeing the famous “Ice Beauty” Miss He also threw herself into the water, some of the childes on the bank were tempted to move. The water was so cold, and Miss He was so delicate. She might have a cramp of her legs and drown after a while. Well... If she could be saved at this opportunity, the little beauty who could only be seen from a distance and was not blasphemous on normal days could only marry the person who saved her as a concubine!

It was not a problem for them to find as many beauties as they want since they had much silver, and Miss He was not the only beauty they had seen in their lives. But Chick He was smart and well-behaved, and she was not moved by gold and silver. It was a pity for many childes from powerful families that she refused all the childes who had pursued her before. They thought that they were able to take back the cool girl who was so indifferent, diplomatic and beautiful to home, and slowly conquering her body and mind... Such a temptation, no men could resist.

Thinking about this, after He Danggui diving, “Plop”, four or five childes were diving one after another. They were swimming so fast, and all of them were swimming straight toward He Danggui. It seemed to have quite a feeling of first-come-first-served.

Seeing this scene, Liao Qing’er on the bank was very worried. Although she didn’t worry that Xiaoyi, who was strong in martial arts, would get hurt, the river was so turbulent. If those wolves approached Xiaoyi, they might insist that they had touched her after returning to ruin her reputation. What if they forced her to be a concubine?

What a group of scoundrels. Xiaoyi was busy saving Miss Qian, while they were taking advantage of it. It was so shameless! Wen Han, Guan Mo, Xun Shenglan, Wu Junhao... Oh, the young and handsome Han Fang, who she admired the most, also dived in the water. She realized that one couldn’t judge a book by its cover. She looked at the bank again. Zong Qiao, Du Ruofei, Du Ruoguang and other people were also eager to dive in. Obviously, they also wanted to take advantage of this, but they couldn’t because they didn’t know how to swim! Oh, Xiaoyi was really a high-profile beauty, like a piece of fat in the eyes of the wolves!

He Danggui was observant and alert, so she naturally heard the sound of water splashes approaching her. If she went directly to bank at this time, she could let these five people in the water go to rescue Miss Qian. However, now that there was no trace of Miss Qian. Maybe she was swept away by the current. No one would be better at swimming than her who had lived in the water dungeon for two months. So, it was better to save Miss Qian by her. She was hesitated to exert art of lightness and go to the downstream to find Miss Qian.

The ladies on the bank also noticed the intentions of the diving childes. Because Han Fang, Guan Mo and Wen Han had a high support rate among the female students, a few girls immediately gave He Danggui a ferocious stare. Humph. Ms. Zheng had dived into the water to save Miss Qian, but He Danggui was showing her swimming skills. And why didn’t she dive into the water before Ms. Zheng?

Just when everyone has own opinion, a white figure leaped here from the distance. He whirled above the stream. Then he held the drowned Miss Qian in one hand, and Ms. Zheng, who was about to drown, in another hand, and fell to the bank slowly. After putting the two persons on the lawn, he turned back to see He Danggui in the water. When he saw that she had returned to bank, he turned away and stopped looking at her.

A waiter of the academy put on a thick blanket right away to protect white-lipped Ms. Zheng, who was trembling. Mr. Bao, the person in charge of the Men Institute, trotted here and said with gratitude, “There were two students’ fathers coming to visit just now, so I just had a conversation with them. I didn’t expect such an accident happened here. Fortunately, Childe Meng came in time. Thank you, Childe!”

The person wore a jade crown and a white gown with dark pattern. He had an awe-inspiring charm, a faint smile, sharp eyes, and a splendid look like the sturdy bamboo behind him. When he was saving people, he was like a sword out of the sheath. Now he had rescued people, and when he talked with his teacher, he was as gentle as a clear jade. Especially the lazy smile in the corner of his mouth attracted people.

This person was Meng Xuan, who had been away from Yangzhou City for nearly three years.

Meng Xuan said with a smile, “I was just in time and lifted a finger.” But Mr. Bao insisted on thanking Meng Xuan again.

After He Danggui returned to bank, she was white-lipped when being blown by the cold wind. Although she immediately circled Zhenqi to drive off the cold, she still couldn’t get rid of the coldness. Then Liao Qing’er quickly went up and put off her cotton smock and tightly wrapped it on He Danggui. He Danggui immediately felt much better. Liao Qing’er whispered, “I was about to be scared to death just now. Those guys dare to play dirty and dive into the water like a pack of wolves. Disgusting! Someday we will make them pay. Let’s go and change clothes. I have spare clothes and cotton skirts.”

He Danggui glanced at Mr. Bao and gently nodded, “I’m tired as well. Let’s go home.”

“Ah!” The Second Miss Qian, Qian Shuixian, who came from not far away looked at her sister Qian Mudan and suddenly cried out loudly, “My sister is dead. She is drowned! Sister!”

Ms. Zheng, who was wrapped in blankets for warmth, quickly looked at the girl lying to the left. That girl’s face was pale, and she seemed to be dead. Ms. Zheng could not help but yell, “The student in my class is drowned!” She looked up at Mr. Bao in panic and begged, “Mr. Bao, you must be my witness and help me! I have tried my best to save her. I cannot afford this responsibility!”

Mr. Bao hadn’t spoken yet, but Meng Xuan said first, “In any case, report to the government office first. If it proves that this lady died in an accident, everyone will discuss the issue of responsibility again. I believe the academy will help Ms. Zheng to bear this responsibility.

Ms. Zheng nodded repeatedly. When she was about to disown it, Qi Mu’er, who was standing next to her, suddenly said quietly, “Ms. Zheng, Mr. Bao, I think both of you don’t need to be responsible for this matter. Because there was another person who killed Qian Mudan.”

At that time, everyone caught their eyes on her. Who killed Qian Mudan? A murder? No, Qian Mudan fell into the stream by herself and everyone saw it. Her sister Qian Shuixian did try to pull her back several times. Was it just an accident of falling into the water?

He Danggui also looked at Qi Mu’er, who was dubbed “Little White Rabbit Princess” by Liao Qing’er. Was there someone else who killed Qian Mudan? Could she have heard the conversation between the two persons?

Mr. Bao looked at Qi Mu’er and said seriously, “Qi Mu’er, Ms. Zheng and I thank you for helping us out, but the investigation of the case must always be handed over to the government.”

Qi Mu’er blinked her watery eyes, as if her tears would come down at the next moment. Then she asked in a soft voice, “Teacher once taught us a sentence, ‘I don’t kill Boren, but Boren died because of me, and that is a sinful thing too.’ I have to speak out. After Qian Mudan fell into the water just now, if someone immediately had dived into the water to save her, she wouldn’t have drowned and died. Teacher, am I right?”

Mr. Bao nodded slowly and said, “You’re right.”

Han Qiqi aside sneered and said, “Miss Qi means that we didn’t rescue her in time, so we are all murderers who killed Qian Mudan. Does this ‘killer murderers’ include you, Miss Qi?”

Qi Mu’er showed a timid expression like a small animal, bit her lip twice, and said with courage, “You misunderstood me, Sister Qiqi. You and I can’t swim. The only thing we could do was to pray for Qian Mudan on the bank. However, someone is so good at swimming, but she didn’t save Miss Qian immediately, and also stopped others from saving her. What is the difference from killing Qian Mudan?” He Danggui’s eyes narrowed. The person she said was...

Meng Xuan asked in a deep voice, “Who is Miss Qi talking about?”

Qi Mu’er was as beautiful as a lilac flower, and she was firm in her weakness. She raised her finger to point at He Danggui, who snuggled beside Liao Qing’er to warm her. A clear voice spread throughout the audience, “I saw it with my own eyes. Liao Qing’er was the first to run towards the stream, but He Danggui stopped her from saving Miss Qian. So, the person who killed Qian Mudan was He Danggui!”

The crowd looked at He Danggui who was dripping water all over the body and white-lipped. Seeing that she did not have a trace of panic, nor the anger after being accused, and was calm as if she were just a bystander of the incident, many people started to raise questions about the authenticity of Qi Mu’er’s words. Wasn’t He Danggui a heroine who saved people? How could she stop others from saving Miss Qi?

Zong Qiao and Du Ruofei rebutted in unison, “It’s impossible. It couldn’t be Miss He!” The two looked at each other, and Zong Qiao continued, “Miss He is a heroine who dived into the water to save Miss Qi in the cold wind. Even if you really saw similar behaviors between Miss He and Miss Liao, it must be that Miss He was worried about her friend’s safety, and felt that she was more safer to dive–Everyone saw that Miss He was good at swimming, and all the five childes were far behind her.”

After hearing this, several childes all sneered. They had the intention to imitate those childes who had dived into the water, but they couldn’t swim. Not only didn’t they touch the beauty, but they were like drowned rats. Wasn’t it funny? They deserved it!

Liao Qing’er also nodded her head hard to vindicate Song Qiao’s words and said loudly, “As he said, I am not good at swimming, and I suffer from severe wind chill. The most important thing is that I just stretched my waist and wanted to go near the bank. After looking at it clearly, I got no plan to go into the water to save her. If I really jumped, it is estimated that, like Ms. Zheng, I would also expect others to rescue me. Sister Danggui mistakenly thought I was going to dive, and she was very worried about my safety, so she stopped me. Qi Mu’er is too exaggerated, and she didn’t stand beside us. How could she just lie to people with two actions? You can look at He Danggui now. She is almost like a ice-lolly because of diving into the water!”

“Everyone saw that He Danggui is the best swimmer here. Since she intended to save Miss Qian, why didn’t she get into the water in the first place? Why didn’t she wait for a long time? Until Ms. Zheng, who was not a good swimmer was forced to dive into the water, she dived into the water after a while. Did she really plan to save Qian Mudan?” The questioning voice came from the “The First Miss” Wu Yuying. Before the accident, she was disturbed by Ms. Zheng when she wanted to pick on He Danggui. So, she planned to find another opportunity to get He Danggui into trouble. What made her be so angry was that among the childes who had just jumped into the water to “save” He Danggui, there was her second older brother Wu Junhao. Now he was shaking under the blanket. It was all because of He Danggui.

“The First Childe” Han Fang, the legitimate son of Han Fei, Senior Governor in Yangzhou City, and another childe who dived to “save” He Danggui, also said for justice at the moment, “Among more than a hundred people, is there only the weak and delicate Miss He can swim? Although she swims very fast, she has little strength. Even if she could find Miss Qian, she still couldn’t drag her to the bank. The reason we didn’t jump into the water was because it was inconvenient between men and women. But do the girls present dare to say that you all don’t know how to swim?” After returning to the bank, he was better than Wu Junhao. He only wore a fur cape that was carried by his following manservant, and his body temperature recovered gradually.

What surprised Liao Qing’er was that Han Fang, a pretty boy, actually practiced internal energy. He stood there for a while to adjust his breath, and then water mist rose from his body. After a while, the gown was half dry. He Danggui glanced at him enviously. This level of circling Zhenqi to warm up was easy for He Danggui, but she couldn’t produce water mist in front of the people. After warming up, Han Fang seemed to be very warm, which made He Danggui a little envy. Han Fang immediately sensed her gaze and showed a friendly smile.

“Ah! My sister is dead! She is only 17 years old. She was originally happy to come to the Feast of Qushui Liushang today. Now she is gone! There must be someone to be responsible for this matter!” Qian Shuixian cried and complained, “She didn’t have to die. All of you can swim. Why didn’t you go to save her?” Although her accusations were unreasonable, it was reasonable for her to air her grievances since she just lost her sister.

“I know Liao Qing’er is lying!” Guan Zhan shouted suddenly, “Liao Qing’er is very good at swimming, and she is not ill at all. I also saw the scene that Qi Mu’er said. He Danggui stopped Liao Qing’er from saving Miss Qian!”

“I saw it too, as Qi Mu’er said.” Another witness came out, and then four or five ladies echoed in unison. They all said that they saw Liao Qing’er got into the water with one leg and was dragged back by He Danggui. And various words such as “cold blood”, “selfishness” and “murderer” were gradually spread.

Mr. Bao asked Meng Xuan, “General Meng, what do you think?”

Meng Xuan was clam and said lightly, “Leave it to the government. They are specialized in investigating the case, especially for the important case.”

Liao Qing’er nervously pulled He Danggui’s sleeves and quietly asked, “What should I do? Should I send someone to Gao Jue for help? He is now working in Yangzhou City as an official, and when he arrives, he can split his sword against the Bamboo Grove. Those bastards would close their filthy mouths.”

He Danggui shook her head slightly. Then she looked at Mr. Bao and Ms. Zheng with a smile, and said in a clear voice, “It is also my wish to ask the government to intervene. Teachers, please send someone to notify the government.”