Chapter 241: The Irreparable Broken Mirror
This novel is translated and hosted on BCatranslation
“Madam, your medicine is ready.”
The young medicine boy handed the neatly wrapped package to Jiang Yun Jin, his hands slightly trembling. As he offered it, he hesitated, his eyes darting towards her, clearly wanting to add something but holding back.
“Is there something else you need to say?” Jiang Yun Jin asked, her voice tinged with impatience. If it weren’t for the pressure from the Pei family, she would have never set foot back into the Lu family’s domain.
The boy fumbled with his words. “Do you want to, um, perhaps take some…”
“Take what? Speak clearly! Are you not a man?” Jiang Yun Jin snapped, her sharp gaze cutting through the air between them and landing on Zhou Shu Yao, who was discreetly observing the scene. Noticing Lu Yan Shu leaving the room, her urge to confront him grew.
Flustered by her stern demeanor, the medicine boy blurted out, “Last time, your husband took some aphrodisiacs. Would you like some this time?” The room fell silent for a moment before every head turned to stare at Jiang Yun Jin.
Her face flushed a deep shade of red, and she snapped, “Nonsense! Who would want such a thing? Leave now!” The weight of everyone’s gazes felt suffocating, as if urging her to find a crevice to disappear into.
Fuming, Jiang Yun Jin shoved the medicine package into her maid’s hands and stormed towards Zhou Shu Yao.
Wearing a mocking smile, Jiang Yun Jin accused, “Zhou Shu Yao, I always thought you were a paragon of virtue and justice, but it seems you have your own schemes!” Her eyes brimmed with scorn. “Are you involved with Lu Yan Shu behind the scenes?”
“Do you truly believe Lu Yan Shu would look your way? You’re deluding yourself; don’t degrade yourself further,” Jiang Yun Jin spat out bitterly, her grip on her handkerchief whitening her knuckles.
Zhou Shu Yao responded coolly, “Are you ill? Since when does merely standing next to someone signify an affair? Not everyone is as presumptuous as you.”
“And what concern is it of yours, anyway? Do you think you have some claim over Lu Yan Shu just because of your past engagement?”
“You walked away from Lu Yan Shu, choosing instead to marry Lu Jing Huai. Isn’t this the life you wanted?” Zhou Shu Yao’s voice held a trace of retribution.
Laughing scornfully, she added, “You traded a noble man for someone who isn’t sure of his own heart.”
Jiang Yun Jin’s face paled, her eyes flickering with venom. “Shut your mouth, you unmarried hag! What gives you the right to mock me? My past decisions are none of your business!” Pain echoed through her heart. Had she not left Lu Yan Shu, she might have been the revered Lady of the Lu family.
She remembered how Lu Yan Shu used to look at her with adoration and utmost respect, always the perfect gentleman. But she had discarded that love for something she thought was better.
Regret gnawed at her soul.
Zhou Shu Yao’s soft laughter broke through her thoughts. “At least I didn’t marry Lu Jing Huai. I didn’t settle for sharing a husband like you did.”
“Enough!” Jiang Yun Jin screamed, her face ghostly pale as her body shook with a mix of rage and sorrow.
She had once been so close to perfection; how could she endure such a downfall?
With a look of pure malice, Jiang Yun Jin ceased her quarrel with Zhou Shu Yao and dashed in the direction Lu Yan Shu had gone, her eyes filled with a desperate hope.
Seated in her carriage, her heart remained tumultuous, unable to escape the judgmental stares and the oppressive presence of Lu Jing Huai. Tears silently traced her cheeks, each one a reminder of what could have been.
Upon the carriage halting, she leaped out and hurried towards the figure of Lu Yan Shu, her appearance disheveled.
“Yan Shu… Brother Yan Shu…” Her voice cracked as she called out, her eyes reddened with emotion.
Lu Yan Shu, in the midst of lifting Chao Chao, paused at her approach.
[Brother Yan Shu, Brother Yan Shu… Why doesn’t she just leave him alone?] Chao Chao thought, her small face scrunched up in disapproval.
Jiang Yun Jin reached out, attempting to grasp his sleeve as she had in their childhood.
Lu Yan Shu stepped back, maintaining his distance. “Please, Madam, show some dignity.”
The words stung painfully in Jiang Yun Jin’s heart as she struggled to find her voice amidst the tears that streamed down her cheeks, giving her a tragic beauty.
“Brother Yan Shu, are you really going to ignore me?” Her tears, like crystal droplets, added a poignant allure to her plea.
“Jin’er was foolish. Jin’er knows her mistakes,” she sobbed, her voice breaking with each word.
“Lu Jing Huai is a liar. He stole Brother Yan Shu’s ideas and tricked Jin’er. He… he has dishonorable liaisons…”
“Jin’er was charmed by his sweet words. Jin’er deserves the worst for leaving Brother Yan Shu.”
“In this world, only Brother Yan Shu has ever treated me with genuine kindness. Jin’er was foolish, mistaking worthless things for treasures…”
“Jin’er regrets everything…” Her voice trembled as she spoke, her once radiant beauty now marred by her sorrow.
“Brother Yan Shu, please, take me away from here?”
She looked at him with pleading eyes, remembering the awkward young boy he once was and now seeing the commanding man he had become, shining brightly even amidst the turmoil around them.
“Brother Yan Shu, can we return to those days? Please, let’s go back,” she implored as she pulled a broken, tarnished jade pendant from her dress—a symbol of their past engagement.
The jade, though pieced back together, still gleamed with a soft light.
“When I ended our engagement, I foolishly broke this jade. I’ve repaired it, hoping… Brother Yan Shu, you won’t leave me, will you? You’ll always support me, right?” Jiang Yun Jin’s tears flowed as she clutched the mended pendant.
“When we were children, no matter how much I upset you, you always forgave me.” She remembered being cherished and adored by him.
But she had squandered his sincerity.
Now, she was filled with regret.
Lu Yan Shu regarded her with a calm that belied the storm inside. “A broken mirror can’t be restored, a cracked jade will always show its faults. Why try to hold onto what is gone?”
“Old dreams can’t be relived, and a shattered past doesn’t need to be pieced back together.”
“I hope you find respect for yourself.”
“Since you chose Lu Jing Huai, make your life with him work. To desire everything is mere greed.”
“People change, and staying stuck in the past is futile.”
“You are not worth the pain!”
Lu Yan Shu didn’t even fully look at her, his disappointment evident.
He had always been cautious, knowing he had a fiancée. He respected her, tried to align with her interests, and never shied away from protecting her.
Yet, what he received in return was betrayal.
Jiang Yun Jin’s lips quivered, her complexion pale as she asked weakly, “Do you regret saving me?”
Lu Yan Shu turned away, lifting Lu Chao Chao into his arms to head back inside.
After a moment, his cold voice carried back to her. “Never.”
[Big brother is noble, truly noble.]
[He’s responsible and knows his limits…]
[Jiang Yun Jin, you’ve really lost out this time…]
This novel is translated and hosted on BCatranslation
Lu Chao Chao, resting on her big brother’s shoulder, winked at Yuhua.
Yuhua slowed down, slipping quietly to a side door.
She signaled to a scruffy little beggar nearby. The eager child hurried over. “Boss Bun, what do you need?”
Yuhua whispered her instructions.
“Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”
“This will definitely reach Lu Jing Huai’s ears…”
That night, rumors of Jiang Yun Jin chasing after Lu Yan Shu’s carriage spread like wildfire.
When Jiang Yun Jin returned, she found every light in the house ablaze. Lu Jing Huai sat in the main hall, his expression stormy and silent.