Chapter 66 Do Not Blame Her for Being Ruthless

Qin Tianci felt as though a raging fire was burning within his chest, the heat so intense that it became almost unbearable.

He struggled to his feet and looked around. The area was deserted, but it was clearly a courtyard belonging to a young lady. With a hazy and confused mind, the only thought echoing in his head was the task his aunt had assigned him: to break into Lin Wanqing’s courtyard and ruin her chastity.

Stumbling and swaying, he managed to stand upright and dragged his feet toward the building.

The inner fire only grew fiercer. Qin Tianci thought to himself that the aphrodisiac his aunt had given him was truly potent. In a little while, he would have a wonderful time enjoying himself with the eldest Miss Lin.

Word had it that the eldest Miss Lin was a great beauty, and more precious still, she was still an untainted maiden! The mere thought of it sent a surge of intense excitement through him.

Because the Lin family was hosting a grand banquet today, most of the servants had been reassigned to the front estate, and even the matchmakers and attendants were dining in the front courtyard. As a result, Qin Tianci staggered across the courtyard completely unhindered and soon reached Lin Xianyun’s bedchamber door.

Lin Xianyun had no one attending her at the moment. The coarse-cleaning maids and matrons had all gone to the front courtyard to help out, while her two personal maids had been dispatched elsewhere—one to lurk near Lin Wanqing’s courtyard to listen for news, and the other to fetch her meal—leaving her entirely alone in her boudoir.

Having been up since early dawn to apply her makeup, she was ravenously hungry by now. Hearing footsteps approach from behind, she snapped impatiently, "Why aren't you hurrying inside? I'm nearly starving to death."

Qin Tianci caught sight of a beauty dressed in red sitting with her back to him. The graceful curve of her figure instantly incinerated the last remnants of his meager rationality. Hearing Lin Xianyun’s urging voice, his eyes blazed with a fiery excitement. Lunging forward toward Lin Xianyun, he laughed obscenely, "Don't be impatient, my beauty. Big brother is here to keep you company right now."

Hearing this unfamiliar voice, Lin Xianyun turned her head in sheer terror.

Although Qin Tianci was her cousin, their age gap was wide, and Lin Xianyun always looked down upon the poverty-stricken relatives of her mother's family, meaning she did not recognize Qin Tianci at all.

Seeing him hurl himself at her, she shrieked in absolute fright, "Help! Someone come quickly!"

Yet not a single servant remained in the entire courtyard, and Lin Xianyun was swiftly knocked to the ground by Qin Tianci.

As she fell, the back of her head struck the floor hard, the agonizing jolt causing her to instantly lose consciousness.

Driven completely mad by the drugs, Qin Tianci had no capacity to wonder why a bride would be dressed this way; he blindly grabbed at Lin Xianyun's clothes and began tearing them apart.

Zisu was hiding outside, keeping a close watch on the situation within the room. Seeing Qin Tianci attempt to commit such an outrage, she raised her voice and yelled at the top of her lungs, "Help! A flower-picker has broken into the Second Young Miss's courtyard!"

Lin Xianyun’s maid, Lianxin, was hurrying back with a food box in hand. Hearing that harrowing cry, she felt as though her soul had left her body, and she dropped the food box, charging directly into the courtyard.

Zisu felt utterly speechless. *With a puny little maid like you, instead of running to summon people, you're rushing in blindly just to throw your life away?*

Seizing a heavy stone from the ground, Zisu hurled it through the air at Qin Tianci. The stone struck the back of his head with precision, and with a dull thud, he collapsed squarely onto Lin Xianyun’s body.

Her young mistress had given strict instructions: she had to ensure that Lin Xianyun’s chastity was not actually compromised.

Though Zisu privately believed that letting Qin Tianci ruin Lin Xianyun would serve the latter right, she had no choice but to obey her mistress's commands.

Her previous shout had been exceptionally loud, and the front courtyard quickly caught wind of the commotion. A crowd of manservants rushed over frantically, closely followed by numerous curious guests.

Satisfied that no fatal accident would occur, Zisu quietly slipped away.

By the time the manservants arrived, Lianxin had already dragged Lin Xianyun out from beneath Qin Tianci's body.

Yet her actions were still a step too slow; the manservants clearly witnessed that Lin Xianyun’s garments had been torn to shreds.

Though spring was already halfway through and the weather was not yet sweltering, Lin Xianyun, vain as she was, had insisted on a summer-style bridal gown made of light and gossamer fabric, which tore apart at the slightest tug.

Thus, every manservant present caught a full view of Lin Xianyun’s red bellyband.

Weeping hysterically, Lianxin used her own body to shield Lin Xianyun while screaming at the manservants, "What are you staring at? Turn around at once, or the Master and Mistress will gouge your eyes out!"

The manservants shuddered in unison and hastily turned their backs.

At that moment, the trailing guests arrived upon the scene.

Even though Lianxin had covered Lin Xianyun with her own outer garment, given the circumstances, who could fail to guess what had just transpired?

A gleam of malicious gossip flickered in the eyes of every guest present. Though nothing was spoken aloud, their expressions conveyed everything.

Madame Qin and Master Lin arrived hastily, their faces completely drained of color.

Upon laying eyes on the scene inside the room, the married couple nearly fainted on the spot.

Furious to the extreme, Madame Qin stepped forward and delivered a vicious slap across Lianxin’s face. "Weren't you ordered to attend properly to the Young Miss? Where on earth were you?"

Trembling all over, Lianxin sobbed, "It was the Young Miss who sent this maid to the kitchens to fetch food. When I left, Lianhua was inside serving the Young Miss. As I was walking back into the courtyard, I heard a shout, and when I rushed back, I found the Young Miss lying here, while that ruffian... he was lying over there, as though he had been knocked unconscious. Mistress, please rest assured, the Young Miss is unharmed, she was merely frightened."

She was not entirely foolish; she refrained from mentioning that she had seen Qin Tianci pressing down on top of Lin Xianyun, acutely aware that preserving Lin Xianyun’s chaste reputation was paramount at this moment. Otherwise, her own cheap life would surely be forfeit!

Hearing this, Madame Qin's complexion eased slightly.

Pointing at the unconscious Qin Tianci sprawled on the floor, Master Lin growled in a rage, "Men, bind this villain up and send him straight to the yamen!"

Two manservants stepped forward and rolled Qin Tianci over. One of them recognized him and gasped aloud, "It's the Young Master of the household!"

Lowering his head to look, Master Lin recognized Qin Tianci as well. Blinded by fury and acting purely on impulse, he swung his hand and struck Madame Qin across the face. "Why is your maiden family's nephew doing here? How did he even get in? He actually tried to ruin my daughter!"

Stunned by the blow, Madame Qin stared down at Qin Tianci, her eyes widening in absolute horror.

She quickly snapped back to her senses and shrieked in grievance, "Master, I had no idea! I never even invited anyone from my maternal family to come here! I don't have the foggingest notion why he is in this place..."

"Someone, tie this wretched beast up and drag him to the magistrates!"

Though she still had no clue where things had gone wrong, right now, nothing took precedence over safeguarding her own daughter!

That damned Qin Tianci! She had told him to target Lin Wanqing, yet he had ended up trying to ruin her own daughter instead!

Since things had come to this, she could hardly be blamed for turning ruthless. It was best to deal with this scoundrel before he regained consciousness, lest he stir up any further catastrophes.

The manservants hoisted Qin Tianci up to carry him away, but at that exact moment, he slowly stirred back to consciousness.

The drugs within his system were still taking effect, but the sharp pain at the back of his head helped clear his mind somewhat.

Discovering that he was bound hand and foot, he struggled to lift his head, instantly catching sight of Madame Qin. He cried out frantically, "Aunt, save me! Make them let me go!"

Seized by sheer panic, Madame Qin barked at the servants, "Why aren't you gagging his mouth before dragging him out of here?"

Just then, Lin Wanqing’s calm voice cut through the air: "Hold on."