Chapter 13: Lingering Shadows
The tall figure stood taut, as if something had seized his heart, but in the next instant, the gentle child’s voice soothed him completely. Yet he knew this was Lu Qingqing’s daughter.
The two of them stood face to face, while Manman, still trying her best, wobbled unsteadily toward Shen Jin, her little legs working tirelessly. Fearing she would fall, Shen Jin quickly strode forward and picked her up, as if he were holding Lu Qingqing in her youth.
“Daddy…”
Shen Jin was silent. He was not Manman’s father, but he couldn’t bear to break the truth to her at this moment—perhaps, he harbored a little selfishness.
The little one nestled obediently against his shoulder, terrifying the attendants nearby into utter silence. No one dared approach this man, who seemed like a living King of Hell.
Manman lay on Shen Jin’s shoulder and began to cry softly, murmuring, “Daddy… Manman hurts.”
“What’s wrong?” Shen Jin’s heart trembled, for she looked so much like Lu Qingqing standing before him, softly saying: “Ah Jin, it hurts.”
“Manman!” Xie Zhiyun snapped out of his daze, thinking Manman had disappeared, but upon entering the courtyard, he found her in Shen Jin’s arms.
This made Xie Zhiyun’s scalp tingle. He wanted to retrieve Manman, but paused upon hearing Shen Jin’s voice, heavy with mockery.
“Is this how the Young Marquis cares for his daughter?” Shen Jin spoke coldly, observing Manman’s pallor as if she’d just recovered from a grave illness.
No wonder Lu Qingqing had been so anxious yesterday—it seemed something truly had happened.
“Please, sir, return Manman to me,” Xie Zhiyun pleaded, his heart still on edge. He too felt anger within, but he did not want Manman to remain in Shen Jin’s hands.
She was not his child; it was already remarkable that he had done so much for her.
“The Young Marquis is still a child himself. How can he bear the responsibility of a father? Don’t you agree? The precious daughter of the Marquis’s household, and yet she’s ended up like this!”
Shen Jin chastised Xie Zhiyun, who could not endure it. He replied coldly, “Indeed, how could a biological father stand by and watch his own child suffer?”
Xie Zhiyun reached out to Manman. “Be good, come to Daddy.”
But Manman seemed especially attached to Shen Jin, even though he looked fierce at the moment; the little bundle refused to let go.
“No more mischief now. Offending the gentleman is no small matter,” Xie Zhiyun said, trembling inwardly.
Manman piped up in her childish voice, “Hurts, blow.”
She put her hand, pricked by a needle, in front of Shen Jin.
In that instant, everyone held their breath—even Xie Zhiyun felt a surge of fear, for Shen Jin’s thoughts were impenetrable.
Yet the man who had just looked so stern suddenly bent down gently and blew softly on Manman’s hand. “There, it doesn’t hurt anymore. Be good, go to your father.”
Despite his reluctance, Shen Jin knew the child was not his. Thinking of Lu Qingqing’s choices, he felt lost.
Just then, Jiang Jiuyue walked in from the doorway with medicine in hand, and spoke as if unintentionally:
“Is this the Young Marquis’s daughter? Why does she look more like Ah Jin?”
Covering her mouth, Jiang Jiuyue watched Xie Zhiyun’s face turn pale with fright. “I’m just joking, Young Marquis, no need to panic.”
“No, no, I wouldn’t dare dream of such an honor,” Xie Zhiyun stammered, clutching Manman tightly as if afraid she might be taken from him.
Jiang Jiuyue stepped to Shen Jin’s side. “The Young Marquis truly is fortunate. Ah Jin… the past is gone, you should try to let it go.”
“Let’s go,” Shen Jin said, refusing to respond further. His mind was full of images of Lu Qingqing and Manman together, scenes of familial bliss he would never have again in this lifetime.
The scent of medicine from Manman lingered in Shen Jin’s arms, reluctant to fade.