Following the barrage’s urgent advice, Shi Ning decided to appease Grandpa Qin first. With a slight blush, she began, “Grandpa, Qin Heye and I have consummated our marriage, and we are living together sincerely.” She found it difficult to be more explicit, especially in front of him.
Grandpa Qin was clearly taken aback. “You guys…”
Shi Ning nodded shyly, “Yeah.”
A silence fell, and the hard look in Grandpa Qin’s eyes softened considerably. He began to pace in the study, hands behind his back, a pained expression crossing his face. They were once a couple in name only; now, having solidified their marital bond, he couldn’t force a divorce. A wave of annoyance and genuine hurt washed over him. He turned to Shi Ning, a look of profound regret on his face. “You’ve sacrificed yourself to this extent for Shen Xizhou?”
“Ah?” Shi Ning was momentarily stunned.
Old Master Qin’s anger flared anew. “Qin Heye, that grandson of mine, he didn’t refuse you?” His voice rose, tinged with disbelief and fury. “Is he even a man? I’ve told him countless times not to force or bribe! What if you regret it? Your relationship will only get worse!” He gestured wildly, his voice cracking with exasperation. “What evil has the Qin family truly done? One or two of them are like this. Isn’t it good for us to be willing? You have to force him. Are you a man? Are you a man?” His voice escalated into a roar. “Wait until Qin Heye comes back, I’ll beat him to death. He’s my grandson!”
Shi Ning had not anticipated this reaction. Grandpa Qin was scolding Qin Heye, threatening to beat him! And more alarmingly, Old Master Qin was growing increasingly agitated, gasping for breath as he spoke.
Just then, the barrage exploded with dazzling red alarm signals:
[I’m going to faint! I’m going to faint! If I faint, I’ll go to the ICU!]
[Hurry up and help him breathe! Hurry up and press the Laogong acupoint for him!]
The barrages were brief, urgent flashes. Shi Ning looked up, seeing Old Mr. Qin’s words abruptly cut off. He began to tremble, his lips quivering, his breathing heavy. He gasped, as if suffocating, and leaned back precariously, on the verge of collapsing. Shi Ning rushed forward, supporting him, her hands instinctively going to his chest. In that panicked moment, all shyness vanished. “Grandpa, Qin Heye didn’t force me! I forced him!” she insisted, her voice desperate. “I like Qin Heye very much. He really didn’t force me!”
But Old Mr. Qin’s chest was seized by a suffocating breath. He couldn’t articulate a word.
From the window, servants had already seen the unfolding crisis. “The old man seems to be in trouble! Go call Butler Xu!” they cried.
Shi Ning watched in horror as Mr. Qin’s face grew paler, his lips a shocking purple. His eyes began to roll back; he was about to lose consciousness. The weight of his unconscious body almost buckled Shi Ning.
[Laogong Point! Make a fist and bend your fingers. Press between the index finger and the middle finger. It can clear the heart and release heat, open the mind and wake up the spirit…]
Panic threatened to overwhelm Shi Ning, but the barrage’s clear instructions cut through her fear. Suppressing her rising dread, she calmly found the Laogong acupoint and began to massage it for Mr. Qin. “Grandpa, calm down quickly,” she urged, rubbing the point. “Don’t get into trouble. Qin Heye didn’t force me!”
After a few moments of massaging the Laogong acupoint, Mr. Qin, whose eyes had been rolling, finally found a measure of relief. He was still dizzy and breathless, teetering on the edge of fainting, but the immediate crisis seemed to lessen.
[Press the Danzhong acupoint, just…]
Guided by the barrage, Shi Ning quickly located the Danzhong acupoint and pressed it with focused determination. This point was harder to find than the Laogong, but its effect was supposedly greater. After five firm presses, Mr. Qin’s eyes fluttered open. He exhaled a deep, ragged breath, releasing the oppressive air from his chest. “Hehe,” he rasped, still struggling to breathe, but he could speak.
“Boy… didn’t force… you?”
Seeing Mr. Qin could speak, Shi Ning felt a wave of relief so profound her legs gave out, and she sank limply to the floor. Still shaken, her voice trembled with a mixture of fear and profound injustice. “Really not! Qin Heye is very good, why don’t you believe me?” Her voice cracked, tears finally spilling over. “You all don’t believe me, and you force me to divorce Qin Heye… Woo woo.” The mention of divorce triggered the terrifying memory of forced imprisonment, and she wept with renewed grievance. “I don’t want a divorce! Grandpa doesn’t believe me, Grandpa wants to force me to divorce, Grandpa will let Butler Xu kill me… Woo woo…”
Shi Ning was overcome with a profound sense of unfairness. She had tried to appease Grandpa Qin, and he’d almost collapsed and headed for the ICU! If not for the barrage guiding her with acupoint relief, she would have been utterly helpless. Tears streamed down her face, like pearls scattering, each one fueling a fresh wave of sobbing.
Old Master Qin, having just recovered, had seen Shi Ning at her most arrogant and domineering, but never like this—so utterly distraught, as if she were the wronged party. Yet, he was the one who’d nearly fainted from anger. Why was he comforting her? Helpless and a little bewildered himself, Old Master Qin spoke gently, “Don’t cry. I don’t disbelieve you, nor am I angry with you.” He sighed, “I’m angry with that kid Qin Heye…”
Shi Ning wasn’t listening. Her own sense of injustice consumed her. “I want to complain to Qin Heye! You bullied me! Woo woo!” She pulled out her phone, immediately initiating a video call to Qin Heye. It didn’t connect instantly. After about five seconds of ringing, the call finally went through.
On the screen, an orange bedside lamp cast a soft glow. Qin Heye’s face appeared, still heavy with sleep, roused by the phone. His voice was thick with slumber, “Wife…”
There was a time difference; it was night where he was.
“Wuwuwu! Husband!” As soon as Shi Ning saw Qin Heye, a fresh wave of grievances overwhelmed her. Her tears fell even faster. “Wuwuwu… They… They bullied me!”
Qin Heye’s sleepy eyes immediately focused on Shi Ning’s tear-streaked face, then on the old house study behind her, and finally, on Grandpa Qin. The last vestiges of sleep vanished from his face, replaced by an chilling coldness. But he held himself in check, his voice softening as he coaxed Shi Ning. “Don’t cry. I’m here. I’ll support you.” His gentle tone then shifted, hardening into a question directed at his grandfather: “Grandpa, did you bully Aning?”
In the background, Qin Heye was already typing a message to Pei Qian: [Book the fastest flight back home.] His grandson’s fury was palpable, and even Old Master Qin felt a flicker of fear.
“I didn’t bully her!” Grandpa Qin quickly protested.
Shi Ning, however, lifted her tear-filled eyes and stared at Grandpa Qin. “It was Grandpa who bullied me! Grandpa doesn’t believe me!”
Grandpa Qin, unable to refute, was left speechless. Did she have any self-awareness? After what she’d done these past three years, was she really trustworthy?
Shi Ning continued her tearful complaints. “Butler Xu doesn’t believe me and keeps calling me Miss Shi. I asked him to change to Young Madam, but he refused! Grandpa doesn’t believe me either, and he said he would beat my husband to death! Woohoo… My husband is so good, how can he beat him? He wants me to be a widow.” Since she was already crying and complaining, she might as well express her true feelings.
Shi Ning continued to sob. “My husband is dead, where can I find such a good husband? Without my husband, I won’t live, woohoo…”
The murderous coldness that had settled on Qin Heye’s face dissipated, melting away as he listened to Shi Ning’s heartfelt cries.
Old Man Qin, however, was dumbfounded. “Are you complaining?” he thought. “Why does it sound like a confession and showing off your love? Can you please stop abusing lonely old people like this?”