Chapter 176: The Last Dignity

That night, the sky was as dark as ink, all sounds silent, and Seeing Jun Jun Zijin had just fallen asleep.

Suddenly, a sharp, piercing scream that echoed across the heavens tore through her dream.

"Ah—!"

The sound was terribly shrill, like a night owl with its throat strangled, especially chilling in the silent night.

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin sat up in bed in fright and asked:

"What happened?"

Miaozhu, who was on watch outside, heard the commotion and rushed into the room.

"Young Lady, it seems to be coming from the Jun residence next door."

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin became interested; she put on her outer robe, fastened the buttons as she walked, and stepped out of the room.

A flash appeared before her eyes; Fei Ying emerged from nowhere, smiling mysteriously:

"Master, there's another spectacle at the Jun residence."

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin grabbed Fei Ying's arm and said to him:

"Let's go see the spectacle."

Fei Ying twitched his lips; he had always looked down on Seeing Jun Jun Zijin for not knowing lightness skill. He could fly, but she could only walk slowly, unable even to climb a roof. Why not learn lightness skill?

"Master, when will you ever learn lightness skill?"

Seeing Jun Jun Zijin rolled her eyes heavily:

"If I knew everything, wouldn't you be out of a job?"

Fei Ying's eyes nearly rolled to the sky; she was clearly stupid, clearly unable to learn.

Yet he was left speechless by that girl, so he had to carry Seeing Jun Jun Zijin and fly out onto the roof.

The Jun residence was brightly lit with people moving about; noises of chatter and crying mixed together, creating chaos.

Maids rushed in and out, carrying basins of water and towels, their expressions panicked.

On the bed, Qingyu's face was as pale as paper, devoid of color; cold sweat soaked her hair, sticking to her cheeks. Her eyes were filled with despair and pain, tears streaming uncontrollably.

Beneath her lay a pool of blood so shocking it caught the eye, like a flower of evil blooming, especially glaring under the dim light.

"Master, our son is gone. I beg you, Master, to take charge for me."

Qingyu weakly reached out her hand, trying to grab Xiang Xiang Junzheng, but it fell limply again.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng's heart sank heavily; his face was ashen, his fists clenched tight, knuckles turning white, shaking with rage all over.

He had summoned a Physician to examine Qingyu, who said there was a nine-in-ten chance she was carrying a son.

He had originally thought that with Qingyu's child, the Jun residence would have hope, but now, Qingyu's miscarriage was, for him, nothing short of a bolt from the blue!

However, before he could speak to ask, the steward hurried in and whispered a few words in his ear.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng's face instantly turned iron-green, a flash of incredulous anger passing through his eyes.

"What did you say? It was done by the Young Lady's maid?"

Xiang Xiang Junzheng's voice trembled slightly with anger.

The steward kept his head down, daring not to look him in the eyes, and only replied softly:

"Replying to Master, I cannot be certain. But according to the cook, she was called away by the Young Lady, yet when she returned, she saw the Young Lady's personal maid, Mo'er, sneaking out of the kitchen."

The cook had not thought much of it at the time, but now that she thought about it, it was indeed suspicious.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng, furious, immediately summoned Mo'er for questioning:

"Mo'er, did you cause Zhou Zhou Yiniang's miscarriage?"

Facing the Master's accusation, Mo'er flatly denied it:

"Master, I am innocent! How would I dare do such a thing? Someone must have deliberately framed me."

Xiang Xiang Junzheng snorted coldly, his eyes full of authority and anger:

"Hmph, still daring to be stubborn! Come, bring the torture instruments!"

With torture instruments applied to her body, Mo'er finally could not endure the torment and cried out:

"Master, spare my life! It was... it was the Young Lady who ordered me to do it! I dared not disobey her command!"

Xiang Xiang Junzheng felt a surge of rage rush straight to his head; he turned and rushed toward Jun Jun Zhidie's quarters.

Along the way, the image of Jun Jun Zhidie kept appearing in his mind; that wicked girl was as unlikable as her mother.

He had only intended to marry her off once she reached the age of fifteen, yet now she had done such a cruel thing.

At that moment, Jun Jun Zhidie was sitting in her room, staring blankly at the mirror, appearing calm and composed.

But when the door was shoved open violently and Xiang Xiang Junzheng stood at the doorway in a fury, her hand still trembled involuntarily.

"Jun Zhidie, do you know your crime?"

Xiang Xiang Junzheng's voice was cold and severe, as if coming from the Nine Netherworlds.

Jun Jun Zhidie slowly raised her head, meeting her father's angry gaze; she shrank her neck in fright but spoke stubbornly:

"What crime have I committed?"

Xiang Xiang Junzheng strode up to her and slapped her across the face.

"You still dare to argue! Qingyu's child is gone; you put abortion medicine in her nourishing soup. Why were you so cruel?"

Blood stained the corner of Jun Jun Zhidie's mouth, and tears poured out.

"Cruel? In this house, who has ever been kind to me? My mother lay in bed for many days; did you ever go to see her? Yet you doted on that low woman, and the bastard in her belly you treated as a treasure. I merely did not want her to have a good time."

Xiang Xiang Junzheng shook with rage; he raised his hand and slapped her again:

"You rebellious daughter, how can you speak such treasonous words!"

Jun Jun Zhidie was struck sideways, her hair disheveled, crying and shouting as she went:

"You think you are so noble? You favor a concubine and neglect your wife; everyone in the Jun family knows this!"

Xiang Xiang Junzheng, furious, his chest heaving violently, pointed at Jun Jun Zhidie and cursed:

"No matter what, plotting against one's own offspring is a grave crime. I will not spare you today."

Jun Jun Zhidie suddenly burst into laughter:

"Now you remember me, your daughter? When have you ever cared for me even a little in the past?"

Just as Xiang Xiang Junzheng was about to order people to drag Jun Jun Zhidie away, Jun Jun Zhihao pushed the door open and entered, pleading for her:

"Father, sister... she was just confused for a moment. Please, Father, forgive sister this once."

"Good! The three of you women are now breathing down the same nostril!"

Xiang Xiang Junzheng suddenly exploded; his eyes bulged round, his face turned iron-green, and in extreme rage he rushed into Li Shi's room. This was the first time he had entered this room since Li Shi was burned by fire.

Li Shi was sitting quietly inside the room, her head tightly wrapped in a headscarf.

This was the last shred of dignity she had tried to conceal since her hair was burned off.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng stepped forward and roughly yanked her headscarf off.

He had originally intended to grab Li Shi's hair, but only after extending his hand did he remember her hair had been burned away.

As the headscarf hit the floor and Li Shi's bald head was exposed in the dim light, Xiang Xiang Junzheng regretted it.

There, Li Shi's completely bald head was covered in pus-filled sores, looking especially horrifying under the light.

"Xiang Xiang Junzheng, have you gone mad?"

Li Shi let out a startled cry, frantically using one hand to cover her bald head while the other reached for the headscarf on the floor; pus from her head slowly trickled down her cheeks.

Xiang Xiang Junzheng's stomach churned; he gagged repeatedly, nearly vomiting up everything he had eaten for dinner.

Jun Jun Zhihao, who had followed behind, froze in shock. He had not expected Li Shi to be in such a wretched state. As he backed away, he cursed everyone in the Jun household from top to bottom.