Helen Jiang heard what Cecilia Gu said and immediately put on a pitiful expression. She quickly got up from the floor and rushed into Eric Jiang’s arms.
Eric Jiang’s sharp gaze landed on the fruit knife lying on the floor...and the bloodstain behind Cecilia Gu’s ear!
Eric Jiang’s eyes narrowed suddenly, and he instinctively tried to push Helen Jiang away!
Cecilia Gu suddenly shook her head at Eric Jiang desperately, signaling him not to act!
It was as if Eric Jiang instantly understood something...
Eric Jiang stiffly raised his arm and patted Helen Jiang on the head. His voice was icy as he said to Cecilia Gu, "Sister-in-law, what is the meaning of this? Are you planning to discipline my sister here in the Jiang Family for me? If that’s the case, then you’re not welcome here!"
Helen Jiang finally smiled with satisfaction when she heard Eric Jiang’s words.
Cecilia Gu let out a sigh of relief and followed Eric Jiang’s lead. "Hmph, so what if I’m not welcome? Even if you don’t want me here, I don’t want to come! Grant Family’s eldest son, you’re nothing special—just someone who blindly defends his own! Since your family is so unreasonable, I don’t need to acknowledge you as relatives!"
"Hmph, I don’t want to acknowledge you as family either!" Eric Jiang’s gaze was complicated as he looked at the blood behind Cecilia Gu’s ear. "But you can’t just bully Helen like this and expect to get away with it! Do you really think the Jiang Family has no one to stand up for us? Sister-in-law, come with me and explain the situation to Mother!"
Cecilia Gu shot Eric Jiang a grateful look. "Fine, I’ll go! It was you all being unreasonable first, so I had to discipline Helen Jiang for you! Now you want to hold me accountable? Hmph, I’ve finally seen through your family! From now on, even if I’m invited, I won’t come here again!"
Eric Jiang immediately said to Helen Jiang, "Helen, are you alright? Hurry and get the doctor to take care of you—don’t let it leave a scar! I’ll go tell Mom right now. We don’t need this relative anyway!"
Only then did Helen Jiang stand up straight from Eric Jiang’s arms, wiping her tears as she said, "Brother, don’t be too upset or angry. Even though cousin-in-law drugged me and hit me, I still don’t want my issue to ruin the peace between our families! At worst, I’ll just never see cousin-in-law again!"
Eric Jiang’s eyes flickered, as if he was trying to suppress something inside.
"Alright, I’ll go find Mom. You get some rest." Eric Jiang said angrily to Cecilia Gu, "Sister-in-law, this way please!"
Cecilia Gu finally turned and left the room.
After comforting Helen Jiang for a while, Eric Jiang quickly left the room.
Helen Jiang watched the two of them leave, her eyes flickering.
Did my performance just now fool my brother?
Cecilia Gu walked quickly and soon reached the garden.
A thick coat was suddenly draped over Cecilia Gu’s shoulders. "I’m sorry, it’s all my fault."
Cecilia Gu’s body stiffened.
Eric Jiang said apologetically, "What exactly happened just now?"
Cecilia Gu lowered her eyes and said softly, "Just treat what happened as real."
"But your acting was too poor!" Eric Jiang said. "Does the wound behind your ear still hurt?"
Only then did Cecilia Gu realize her face was still injured.
Cecilia Gu was stunned and didn’t answer.
A flash of pain appeared in Eric Jiang’s eyes. He instinctively reached out to touch the wound on Cecilia Gu’s face.
Cecilia Gu instinctively stepped back, dodging Eric Jiang’s touch.
Eric Jiang snapped out of it, quickly pulling his hand back as if shocked. He stammered, "Sorry, I didn’t mean to..."
"I never planned to fool you with my acting. I just don’t want to get involved in your family’s mess anymore!" Cecilia Gu didn’t deny what happened. "Your mom cares a lot about Helen Jiang, doesn’t she?"
Eric Jiang’s body stiffened, then he lowered his head and answered, "Yeah. Mom dotes on her a lot. The year Mom gave birth to my little sister, she died on the very day she was born. Mom couldn’t handle the blow, so she adopted Helen from outside and raised her as her own daughter. That’s why she’s been spoiled since she was a child."
No wonder Helen Jiang was so rude at lunch, and Mrs. Jiang only made her apologize.
"I get it now," Cecilia Gu nodded. "No wonder she’s so arrogant. But do you know that she likes you?"
"What did you say?" Eric Jiang’s expression changed at Cecilia Gu’s words.
"Otherwise, why do you think I’ve suffered so much for no reason?" Cecilia Gu looked Eric Jiang in the eye. "I also know your mom won’t punish Helen easily. That was clear from what happened at lunch. So I can only keep my distance from you! Cousin, let’s not be alone together anymore. It’s better for both of us."
"What are you talking about?" When Eric Jiang heard Cecilia Gu say this, he felt a vague pain in his heart, and couldn’t help but remember when Nora Yun rejected him years ago—she’d said the same thing!
Could it be that Helen Jiang threatened Nora Yun back then too?
"I’m not interested in your past, nor do I want to know," Cecilia Gu said calmly. "Cousin, we’re just relatives. I don’t want to ruin the relationship between the Yin and Jiang families, so I’m willing to let this go. But from now on, I don’t want anything to do with Helen Jiang. Don’t blame me for being blunt—we’re perfectly innocent, so why should anyone suspect us? If there’s nothing between us, it’s better to make a clean break. It’s best for everyone."
Cecilia Gu finally laid all her cards on the table today.
She absolutely refuses to ever let Helen Jiang threaten her with a knife again!
Listening to Cecilia Gu’s cold words, Eric Jiang felt an inexplicable pressure in his chest.
It was even more obvious than when Nora Yun rejected him back then.
Before lunch, they were still laughing and chatting as relatives.
But in just over two hours, everything felt completely different.
"I only ever saw her as a sister." Eric Jiang suddenly explained, not knowing why.
"No matter how you see Helen Jiang, that’s your business, isn’t it? Please don’t drag me into it, okay?" Cecilia Gu stroked her belly and said, "I just want a few peaceful days now. I don’t want to get involved in anything else. I’ll call Charles and leave here soon. In the future, if there are any gatherings or events where you’ll be present, please let me know in advance. I’ll be sure to avoid them!"
After saying this, Cecilia Gu took off the coat and handed it back to Eric Jiang, then turned and left!
Watching Cecilia Gu’s retreating figure, Eric Jiang felt something inside him shatter.
The feeling made him suddenly miserable.
Is she... distancing herself from me?
Of course! After what Helen Jiang did to her, how could she not be angry?
But what did she mean about Helen Jiang liking her?
Cecilia Gu was truly furious, but also relieved she got away unharmed!
From the moment she stepped into the Jiang Family estate, Helen Jiang had been making things difficult for her!
But Mrs. Jiang saw everything and pretended not to notice!
Her attitude was clear—she was always on Helen Jiang’s side!
Ha!
That’s why Helen Jiang was so bold, tricking her into the room and planning to attack her!
If the Jiang Family is so protective, then she’ll just keep her distance from them!
Stay far away from that lunatic!
Just coming here today was enough—if anyone else wants to visit, let them! She’s never coming back!
Those siblings can play however they want—love, hate, whatever! As long as they leave her out of it!
Just don’t drag her into it!
Cecilia Gu pulled out her phone and called Charles. "Charles, I suddenly don’t feel well. I want to go home. Mom seems to be getting along with Aunt really well, so I’ll leave her to it."
Charles narrowed his long eyes slightly.
Something was definitely off in Cecilia Gu’s tone!
Charles didn’t hesitate at all and replied, "Okay, I’ll come pick you up right away."
After hanging up, Cecilia Gu stood there and realized, damn it, she was lost!
She wondered if Wendy was done with her tasks—she had no idea how to get back!
Damn it, there wasn’t a single person in sight!
The Jiang Family built this place so big with so few servants—what’s the point?
Footsteps sounded behind her. Cecilia Gu turned and saw Eric Jiang catching up.
The last people Cecilia Gu wanted to see right now were Helen Jiang and Eric Jiang.
If that lunatic Helen Jiang saw her, who knows what would happen next!
Cecilia Gu turned to leave, but Eric Jiang called out, "You’re going the wrong way! If you keep going, you’ll end up at the back gate."
Only then did Cecilia Gu stop in her tracks.
Eric Jiang caught up to Cecilia Gu and, without asking, draped the coat back over her shoulders. "I sincerely apologize for what happened earlier! I promise it won’t happen again! But I have to make it clear, there’s nothing going on between Helen and me."
Cecilia Gu looked at Eric Jiang coldly and said, "Whatever is going on between you siblings has nothing to do with me. All I know is that today I had a brush with death! Eric Jiang, if something happens to me in the Jiang Family, will you still cover for Helen Jiang?"
"Of course not!" Eric Jiang instinctively retorted.
"Then how will the Jiang Family handle what happened today?" Cecilia Gu looked up at Eric Jiang.
Eric Jiang’s expression froze.
As long as things didn’t get too out of hand, Helen Jiang really wouldn’t face any serious consequences…
Last time, after that mess at the Yin Family, Eric Jiang just locked himself in his room and ignored Helen Jiang, but there was never any actual punishment…
Cecilia Gu instantly understood.
As expected, the Jiang Family was just that selfish!
It’s inherited selfishness, passed down through the generations!