novelraw Chapter 238 It's Not Just You
Chapter 238 It's Not Just You
"Did you put in the salt?" Jin Qiqi leaned over to check.
"Not yet, could you get it for me?" Lu Xiran was busy stir-frying, and she gestured with her chin toward the spice rack.
Jin Qiqi reached for the salt shaker, scooped out a small half-spoonful, but instead of sprinkling it in, she held it up to her face: "Is this enough?"
Lu Xiran glanced at it: "Add just a little bit more."
Jin Qiqi shook the salt shaker a few more times, then tilted her head to look at her. Lu Xiran nodded, and she smiled as she sprinkled the salt into the pot, her movements as light and quick as if she were dancing.
The two chatted idly, talking about trivial things—Yinuo had drawn a picture of Lu Xiran at kindergarten yesterday. No one mentioned Gu Yanxu, no one mentioned the courtroom, no one mentioned the shards of glass scattered all over the floor.
It was as if nothing had happened.
It's as if they're still stuck in that carefree time from the past.
The tap gushed, the spatula clanged against the wok, and the range hood hummed. These sounds blended together, noisy yet strangely reassuring.
When Lin Chen and Gu Yanshen arrived, the dishes had just been served.
"You've come at the perfect time, wash your hands and eat."
There were no formalities at the table; the four of them sat casually. The warm light shone down, and the steam from the food blurred the angles of everyone's faces.
The meal was eaten slowly and deliberately; no one was in a hurry to get up.
After the meal, the atmosphere gradually calmed down, like the rocks being exposed after the tide recedes.
"Mr. Gu," Jin Qiqi said softly, holding her teacup, "Is it really true that no evidence can be found for the case from three years ago?"
Gu Yanshen put down his teacup, his fingertips slowly circling the rim. His brows were slightly furrowed, as if he were organizing an answer he didn't want to say.
"It's been too long." He sighed, his voice heavy with unconcealed sorrow. "Besides, Su Lanzhi already confessed back then. To reopen the case now would mean overturning the previous verdict—and that's not just a matter of finding new evidence; nobody is willing to take that risk."
Lin Chen added, "Besides, Su Lanzhi definitely doesn't want to go back in now. She finally got out, do you expect her to go back and identify her accomplices? She won't. They'll definitely stick to one story and refuse to budge."
"Furthermore," Gu Yanshen paused, his gaze darkening, "we still don't know exactly how Lian Bichen got Su Lanzhi to do it. Was it an order? A conspiracy? Or was Su Lanzhi used as a pawn? Without understanding these details, we can't definitively condemn her."
Lu Xiran bit her lip, then suddenly remembered something: "Where's Aunt Yun? Has Aunt Yun still not regained her memory?"
Gu Yanshen slowly shook his head, a gesture tinged with helplessness: "We've tried everything—medication, psychological intervention, hypnotherapy… we've used everything we could, but nothing's worked. The doctor said that sometimes traumatic memory loss isn't a physiological problem; it's her brain protecting her. If she doesn't want to remember, no one can force her."
Jin Qiqi gripped the cup tightly in her hand, her knuckles turning white.
"Lian Bichen's current plan is very clear." Gu Yanshen's tone turned serious, a hint of resentment flashing in his eyes. "If she can plead not guilty, she should. If she really can't, she can take a step back and plead guilty to attempted intentional injury. Think about it, how many years can you get for attempted intentional injury? Gu Yanxu will definitely try to get a suspended sentence."
"So the current situation is—" Jin Qiqi raised her head, her gaze first sweeping over Lu Xiran, then turning to Gu Yanshen, and finally landing on Lin Chen's face, as if to make sure everyone present could hear what she was about to say, "Either Su Lanzhi speaks the truth, or Aunt Yun remembers to testify. Otherwise, the truth about that case three years ago will just rot in Lian Bichen's belly."
There was a moment of silence in the living room. It wasn't a relaxed silence, but a suffocating stillness.
Jin Qiqi lowered her head, looking at her blurry reflection in the cup. The water rippled with her slightly trembling hand, and her face seemed to shatter and heal, heal and shatter, like a mirror that could never be pieced back together.
After a few seconds of silence, she suddenly spoke, her voice much softer than before, as if she were making a great decision.
"Actually... there's one more thing."
She hesitated for a moment, as if making a final tug-of-war with herself. Finally, she spoke, the words squeezed out between her teeth, with a resolute, all-or-nothing resolve:
"She might have... also harmed Grandma."
Gu Yanshen abruptly raised his head, staring at Jin Qiqi in disbelief, his pupils dilating slightly. "What did you say?"
"Yes." Jin Qiqi hesitated, her fingers unconsciously tracing the inside of the cup. "I've never dared to say anything about this. Because she... she is, after all, Gu Yanxu's mother, and I have no proof. If I say something and it's wrong, I'll be falsely accusing an elder; but if I don't say anything..."
She didn't finish her sentence, but everyone understood.
Gu Yanshen's brows furrowed, his thin lips pressed into a line, his voice filled with suppressed anger: "What good will this do her? Grandma treats her so well!"
Jin Qiqi closed her eyes briefly, as if recalling a moment that still sends chills down her spine: "She might... have known about Grandma's will beforehand."
"What?" Gu Yanshen's voice suddenly turned cold.
"Before the will was made public, she accidentally let it slip one day—she said that Grandma left all her jewelry to Ranran." Jin Qiqi's voice was very low, as if she was afraid of being overheard. "At that time, the will hadn't been made public yet, and no one knew its contents. How could she know? Unless…"
She didn't finish her sentence, but the answer was already hanging in everyone's throat.
"So," Gu Yanshen's gaze turned icy, "that's why she started with jewelry."
"What jewelry?" Lu Xiran finally couldn't help but ask, her voice tinged with unease.
Gu Yanshen gripped the teacup tightly, his knuckles turning white: "Lian Bichen soaked the jewelry box with the juice extracted from saffron."
The air in the living room seemed to drop a few degrees. Saffron—it promotes blood circulation and removes blood stasis, but is contraindicated for pregnant women. At that time, Lu Xiran had just become pregnant, and the pregnancy was not yet stable…
"If she had known beforehand that Grandma was going to give you these jewels," Jin Qiqi looked at Lu Xiran, her eyes slightly red, "then she could have planned ahead. From the very beginning, she never intended for you to give birth to the child safely."
Lu Xiran's face paled for a moment. Gu Yanshen grasped her hand; it was ice-cold.
"Yes," Jin Qiqi said softly, as if answering a question that was already self-evident.
Gu Yanshen suddenly frowned, a hint of confusion and a deeper chill flashing in his eyes.
Lu Xiran refused to believe it. She looked at Jin Qiqi, "That's not right. Qiqi, when you were with me, you were pregnant with her grandson—didn't she even worry about you?"
These words, falling into the air, were like a pebble thrown into a deep pool, creating ripples that spread outwards in concentric circles.