Chapter 178: And Now, He Simply Knelt Down

Chapter 178: Chapter 178: And Now, He Simply Knelt Down

"I’m sorry..."

Cui Lingyao forced a smile at him. "But back then, I truly never wanted to leave a part of myself—my bloodline—in this world. I didn’t want to be tied down for a lifetime."

’Maybe that was selfish.’

’But I really didn’t want to.’

Xie Jinbai’s pupils trembled. He stared at her, his eyes slowly turning red.

Cui Lingyao couldn’t bear to see him like this. She squeezed his hand and said in a hoarse voice, "I’m not telling you this to make you sad..."

"I just want you to know that it’s not that I don’t want to have a child, but that I *can’t*. If..."

She closed her eyes. "If I could, I... I..."

Xie Jinbai gripped her hand in return. "You regret it?"

Regretting that she had let the system render her body unable to bear children?

Cui Lingyao nodded. "I regret it now..."

’She didn’t regret anything else from three years ago.’

’But now, she regretted this.’

’She was even annoyed with herself. Why hadn’t she thought of this when the system revived this body?’

’To have the system remove the restriction.’

’She was no longer opposed to leaving her bloodline in this world.’

’If she returned to the modern world, she could at least leave him a child, something to tie him to this life.’

’That way, she could effectively prevent this madman from following her to his death.’

’And she wouldn’t be in such a dilemma now.’

Xie Jinbai’s expression was miserable.

’Another layer of the truth had been peeled back.’

’Proving once again how foolish he had been.’

’Toyed with, played by her...’

’He had offered her his whole heart, and she’d tossed it aside like a worn-out shoe.’

He gave a self-deprecating laugh. "Thank you for your honesty. It lets me know I haven’t failed completely."

’At least, she regretted it.’

’Did that mean he wasn’t such a failure after all?’

’He had managed to move her incredibly hard heart, even if just a little...’

Cui Lingyao felt a bitter taste in her mouth. "Don’t be like this..."

Xie Jinbai said no more, only tightening his grip on her hand.

As if he were clinging to the last piece of driftwood.

The silence lasted until the carriage stopped.

He gave her a steady look before disembarking first.

「The Changping Marquis Mansion.」

They had sent a servant ahead with news before they left, so as soon as they stepped out of the carriage, they saw Cui Mingrui at the entrance of the Marquis Mansion. Dressed in blue robes, he had clearly been waiting for a long time, tall and elegant.

Seeing his younger sister get out of the carriage, he hurried forward to greet her. "Yaoyao?"

His usually handsome and gentle face was alight with a joy that couldn’t be contained.

"It’s me..." Cui Lingyao quickly composed herself, but her eyes reddened again. "Brother, I’m home."

Cui Mingrui steadied his sister by the shoulders and looked her up and down. Seeing that she was in one piece and looked well, he let out a long sigh of relief.

"Don’t cry," he said coaxingly. "Father and Mother are anxious to see you. Come, let’s talk inside."

Cui Lingyao nodded, hastily following her brother home.

Left behind, Xie Jinbai watched the siblings walk on ahead and then followed after them.

Three years ago, he had a very unpleasant falling out with his wife’s family.

The day after he took a concubine, his wife was dragged into a lake by that same concubine and drowned tragically.

He had suppressed the news. It wasn’t until after the first month of the year, when it could no longer be hidden, that Mr. Cui and his son came to the Prince Mansion, demanding to see their daughter.

At that time, Xie Jinbai had been on the verge of a complete breakdown. Anyone who dared to cross him would be lucky to escape with their life, let alone their skin.

Faced with the father and son from the Cui Family who had come to demand answers, the last shred of his sanity was the only thing that kept him from killing them.

He certainly didn’t have the patience to come out and explain the details to them.

He had them thrown out directly.

In the three years since, he had never set foot in the Cui Family’s home.

Now, accompanying his wife, he wasn’t fazed by his brother-in-law’s cold shoulder and simply followed along.

Up ahead, Cui Lingyao tugged on her brother’s sleeve and asked with concern, "Father has always been so healthy. How did he fall ill?"

Cui Mingrui glanced over his shoulder, his tone flat. "There are reasons."

Xie Jinbai: "..."

He rubbed his nose in embarrassment.

Cui Lingyao realized something and looked back in disbelief. "You laid a hand on my father?"

"I did not!" Xie Jinbai wouldn’t dare admit to that.

"He certainly didn’t lay a hand on him," Cui Mingrui said grimly. "He merely had Father thrown out the gate in full view of everyone."

He practically spat out the word "merely."

Cui Lingyao quickly understood what had happened after her death back then.

Three years ago, when she didn’t even return to her family home for the New Year, the Cui Family grew worried for her safety and went to the Prince Mansion in person to demand an explanation.

Only to be thrown out by Xie Jinbai.

Her father was a civil servant with a great deal of pride. Humiliated in public by his son-in-law and worried sick about his daughter, he fell ill from the combination of anger and anxiety, and his health had been declining ever since.

The look on Cui Lingyao’s face was terrifyingly grim.

Xie Jinbai wanted to try and explain.

But this was, indeed, something he had done.

There was no room for excuses.

In silence, the group arrived at the main courtyard.

Inside, the other branches of the Cui Family were not present. Only Mr. and Mrs. Cui were there, waiting for their daughter with desperate longing.

The moment Cui Lingyao stepped through the door and saw her parents, who looked so much more haggard and older, her eyes instantly turned red.

Her knees went weak, and she fell to the ground. "Your daughter has been unfilial and made you worry."

"Get up, quickly," Mrs. Cui hurried to help her up, her hand caressing her daughter’s face as tears streamed down her own. "It’s Yaoyao, it’s my Yaoyao..."

Cui Lingyao cried with her, helping her mother to a seat before turning to her father.

Seeing that her father, whom she remembered as poised and dignified, now had graying temples, her heart ached.

She knelt once more, collapsing at her father’s knees and crying, "It’s all my fault..."

"How could this be your fault..." Mr. Cui sighed deeply. "It’s because your father is useless and couldn’t protect you."

’Marrying up is like swallowing needles.’

’Marrying into the Royal Family seemed glamorous and powerful, but in reality...’

He had always believed that his daughter had suffered terribly in the Prince Mansion.

Cui Lingyao’s sobs caught in her throat. She turned to look behind her.

At the doorway, Xie Jinbai and Cui Mingrui stood side by side.

Seeing her tear-streaked face looking at him with a hint of blame, Xie Jinbai froze.

Then, he stepped inside. In a few strides, he was before Mr. and Mrs. Cui. He knelt cleanly and said, "I was wrong to have slighted you three years ago."

He had never knelt in the Cui Family’s home before.

Even on their wedding day, when he came to marry their daughter, he hadn’t knelt at the moment of bidding farewell to her parents.

Not only did he not kneel, but he also forbade Cui Lingyao from kneeling.

’Once you married into the Royal Family, you became one of them. The distinction between ruler and subject had to be observed.’

’There was no reason for them to bow their knees.’

And yet now, he had knelt just like that.

In the hall, the crying stopped.

Mr. Cui was the first to react, scrambling to his feet to help him up. "Please rise, Your Highness! The Cui Family is unworthy of such a gesture. You are putting this old man to shame." ℴ

Xie Jinbai shook his head. "When the incident with Yaoyao happened, I was overcome with grief and could think of nothing else. I was neglectful in that moment. Please forgive me."

Before Mr. Cui could answer,

Xie Jinbai added, "If you refuse to forgive me, I’m afraid Yaoyao will throw a fit at me when we get home."

"..."

The entire hall fell silent.

’He said it as if he were terribly afraid of his wife.’

Everyone in the Capital City knew him to be ruthless and bloodthirsty—a fearsome God of Killing whose very name struck terror in people’s hearts.

’Would such a man really be afraid of his wife throwing a fit?’

After a long silence, Cui Lingyao was the first to break it.

She gave a light cough and chimed in, "Since he knows he was wrong, Father... please don’t dwell on it. Let’s just put this behind us."