Pei Shuyi had no idea that the conversation between the two sisters had been overheard.
A ripple of emotion flickered in her round, dark eyes.
“Sister, don’t go looking for him. If anything happens to him, I’ll be heartbroken.”
Pei Muyin paused. “What do you like about him?”
“Um…”
Pei Shuyi hesitated, pointing her index finger toward the sky as she swayed slightly, speaking earnestly:
“He’s handsome, with broad shoulders and a narrow waist, very wealthy, and he keeps himself pure.”
“He’s my ideal husband!”
Pei Muyin patted her head. Since her younger sister liked him, she couldn’t very well take action against Xie Linheng.
Xie Linheng repeatedly rubbed the peach blossom between his fingers.
He recalled that day at Zhaoming Temple, the wish she had made to the gods.
Such demanding criteria—only he could meet them.
Xie Chiyu deliberately found an excuse not to accompany his sister. Seeing his elder brother turn and walk away, he quickened his pace to catch up:
“Brother, when do you plan to divorce your wife?”
“I’m following in your footsteps!”
Xie Linheng shot him a cold glance. “I’m not divorcing her.”
Xie Chiyu froze, feeling as though he had been betrayed by his own brother. “Didn’t you say we’d divorce our wives one after the other?”
Xie Linheng’s tone was indifferent. “Your sister-in-law is deeply devoted to me. Although I cannot return her feelings, I won’t allow her to suffer humiliation.”
Xie Chiyu didn’t think that was the case.
He blurted out, “It seems to me that Sister-in-law has no interest in you. She only said those things today to stop our sister from going to find you.”
Xie Linheng’s steps halted abruptly. He sighed softly. His younger brother didn’t know Pei Shuyi’s criteria for choosing a husband.
“You don’t understand.”
“How could I not understand?” Xie Chiyu raised an eyebrow lightly. “Back at the Elegant Gathering, you publicly criticized Sister-in-law.”
“You made her already poor reputation even worse. It would be a miracle if she didn’t hunt you down, let alone…”
He noticed his brother’s expression suddenly darken, the air around him turning icy, as if filled with killing intent.
Xie Chiyu forced himself to say, “A woman’s heart is like water, ever-changing and unpredictable.”
Xie Linheng nodded slightly.
“If she becomes my wife, I’ll treat her as nothing more than a decorative vase in the rear courtyard. I won’t care.”
Zhou Jing pursed his lips. He felt that the young master treated the young mistress differently from others, caring deeply in his heart.
Seeing his brother’s expression soften slightly, Xie Chiyu rubbed his sore waist and declared seriously, “I am definitely getting a divorce!”
Zhou Jing chose an inopportune moment to ask:
“Second Young Master, the Second Young Mistress is as beautiful as a celestial maiden and has a gentle temperament. Why aren’t you willing to live with her?”
Xie Chiyu flicked his sleeve.
“Whether she’s a celestial maiden or a noble lady, I have no desire to spend the rest of my life with her.”
“I will still divorce her.”
Garden.
Pei Muyin sat on a stone stool, leisurely sipping her tea.
“Since I’ve married into this family, I won’t seek a divorce, nor will I allow myself to be cast aside.”
Pei Shuyi admired the vibrant spring flowers and butterflies in the garden under the sunlight, resting her chin on her hand, her eyes curving into crescent moons as she smiled.
“I want to build a good relationship with Xie Linheng and live a proper life.”
She spoke with a beaming smile, joy radiating from her brows.
“Our two sisters will be invincible in the rear courtyard of the Duke’s Mansion!”
Pei Muyin smiled gently.
As night fell, the lanterns along the Duke’s Mansion’s screen wall lit up one by one, casting silvery light across the ground.
Pei Muyin sat upright by the bed, picking up a jade comb adorned with floral and bird patterns, slowly combing her hair.
The maid Sui Xi glanced outside.
“Miss, the Second Young Master hasn’t returned yet. Not staying in your room on the very night after the wedding—this is clearly bullying!”
Pei Muyin lowered her gaze. “Avoid the household servants and go outside to inquire. Find out where Xie Chiyu has gone.”
“Yes!”
Sui Xi hurriedly climbed out the window.
In the thick darkness, her figure was as light as a wild goose. After leaping onto the eaves, she left the estate without a sound.
Not long after, she returned and reported, “Miss, the Second Young Master has gone to Huaxiang Pavilion…”
Pei Muyin said softly, “Come with me to ask Mother-in-law to uphold justice.”
Sui Xi followed closely. “Miss, let’s return to the borderlands. A wastrel like Xie Chiyu is not someone to entrust your life to.”
She was originally a martial maid, and the Second Miss was no ordinary gentlewoman either.
The Second Miss had left the capital for several years. While the capital said she had been delicately raised in the watery towns of Jiangnan, in truth, she had spent those years in the borderlands.
Upon hearing this, Pei Muyin shook her head.
“Since we are here, we should settle in peacefully.”
When she entered the Weirui Courtyard, tears welled up faintly in her eyes. With a pitiful and fragile demeanor, she appealed to the Madam.
“Mother-in-law, you must uphold justice for your daughter-in-law.”
“Second Lang married me yesterday, yet tonight he does not return home. Where does that leave my dignity?”
The Madam stiffened.
“There’s nothing I can do either. Chiyu’s temperament wasn’t formed in a day or two.”
“It’s hard to change, and it’s not that I won’t help you, but truly, I am powerless.”
This second son had been disobedient since childhood.
But fortunately, the family had plenty of gold and silver, so supporting him for a lifetime wasn’t a problem.
Pei Muyin lowered her long lashes, appearing respectful and humble.
“Your daughter-in-law wishes to guide her husband onto the right path.”
The Madam frowned deeply.
They had tried to teach Chiyu before, but each time he cleverly avoided it. Over time, they simply let him be.
Now, the second daughter-in-law actually said she wanted to teach Chiyu?!
Pei Muyin patiently persuaded.
“Doesn’t Mother-in-law and Father-in-law wish for Second Lang to achieve something in his studies and stop indulging in pleasure all day?”
The Master would be overjoyed if someone could discipline his unruly son.
He hurriedly brought out a golden staff from the treasury.
“Muyin, from today onward, we entrust Chiyu to you. If he dares to disobey, use this golden staff to strike him.”
The Madam also said, “Manage him however you see fit.”
Pei Muyin received the golden staff with both hands, her eyes shifting slightly as she said softly, “Your daughter-in-law will certainly live up to your trust.”
Watching Pei Muyin’s departing figure, the Madam actually sensed a chivalrous air about her and couldn’t help but rub her head.
How did the second daughter-in-law know where the second son was?
In her heart, she felt a pang of anxiety for her second son.
Huaxiang Pavilion.
Music and dance flourished, with mist curling in the air.
Women dressed in colorful silk skirts moved about, the scent of rouge and powder permeating everywhere.
“Second Young Master, you’re already married. How do you still have the leisure to come to Huaxiang Pavilion?” A dancing girl poured a cup of wine.
Amidst the interplay of light and shadow, Xie Chiyu lazily reclined on a small couch, shaking a folding fan in his hand, his peach-blossom eyes lifting with an appreciative curve.
“Getting married isn’t the same as becoming a monk.”
Young Master Wang said, “Every time you come to Huaxiang Pavilion, all you do is drink and nothing else. How can you say that with a straight face?”
Xie Chiyu lowered his head and downed several cups of wine in succession.
When he looked up again, a gentle and beautiful face appeared before him, causing the corner of his mouth to twitch slightly.
“I think I see my wife.”
In his drunken haze, Young Master Wang exclaimed in admiration,
“I think I see a fairy maiden.”
Xie Chiyu covered his forehead with one hand. What was Pei Muyin doing looking for him in the middle of the night?!
“It must be an illusion.”
Pei Muyin smiled faintly: “Husband, I have come especially to find you, to accompany you in conversation by the window tonight.”
Xie Chiyu’s brows furrowed tightly, recalling how she had pressed him down and demanded last night, his drunkenness mostly gone as he stood up, wanting to run outside.
The door was closed from the outside.
Xie Chiyu couldn’t open it.
He turned around.
Only to see Pei Muyin with a faint smile at the corner of her lips, lifting the golden staff in her hand to press against his bobbing Adam’s apple.
“Husband, from today onward, you belong to me.”
“If I tell you to go east, you must go east; if I tell you to go west, you cannot go east.”
Xie Chiyu’s Adam’s apple tingled.
She leaned in closer to him, her fingertips pinching his reddened earlobe, and asked with a smile:
“Do you understand?”