Boundless darkness swallowed her body whole.
Shi Wan was trapped in deathly silence.
She recalled telling Lu Xicheng that she was "willing to wait" for Qu Muhua to wake up.
She had also said she was "willing to accept any punishment," as long as Lu Xicheng did not leave her.
Measuring her current situation against her own words—
The dark room was one form of punishment, and she deserved to endure it.
She could endure hardship, and she could be patient.
Once Qu Muhua recovered, she would not have to divorce.
So, she did not make a fuss, nor did she protest, willingly resigning herself to the darkness.
Sitting until exhausted, she lay down to sleep.
Sleeping until her back and limbs ached, she would get up and sit for a while.
She endured in cycles.
The dark room had rats and mosquitoes.
Dark, scurrying rats crawled over her feet, their claws scratching the backs of her feet as their furry bodies squirmed.
She kicked them away, tightened her legs, curled up, and moved to another spot to sit.
In pitch darkness, mosquitoes bit and stung randomly.
In the dark, she felt for acupoints, pierced them with her fingernails, and let blood to draw out toxins.
The first time light seeped into the dark room was when someone outside opened a hole the size of an elementary school textbook in a corner of the wall. A hand reached in through the hole, fingers pushing a stainless steel bowl inside.
As soon as the bowl touched the ground, the small hole closed.
Shi Wan heard the sound of a lock turning.
She groped her way over, felt for the bowl, and lifted it, bringing her nose close to the food—
Gag!
A sour stench shot straight to the top of her skull.
The food was inedible.
In the Lu family mansion, even the dogs had dedicated chefs, with fresh meat dishes prepared for the pet dogs on demand.
Sending her food worse than dog food naturally meant they did not intend for her to eat.
This, too, was part of her punishment, she thought.
She did not make a fuss, nor did she protest, accepting it calmly.
Locked in a narrow space without doors, windows, or a toilet, eating and producing waste would only work against her.
She was not afraid of going hungry, having once fasted for 14 consecutive days.
Subtracting the three days that had already passed, she could still hold out for 11 more days.
There was plenty of time, enough for Qu Muhua to wake up.
Deciding to fast and not eat, she would still note the daily meal delivery times.
The third meal delivery, she interpreted as dinner.
During dinner, when the small hole opened and light entered the room, she would swat a large mosquito, place it in a corner, line them up, and mark them.
The Ancestral Hall was located deep in the backyard garden, in a damp environment that nurtured mosquitoes.
The mosquitoes here were dark and large, with long, patterned legs—stylish, chic, and even sexy.
Day by day, she accumulated them.
On this day, Shi Wan took advantage of the light to count.
Eleven.
She had been trapped in the dark room for 11 days.
Her expected time limit had arrived.
The next day, when the small hole opened and a bowl was pushed in, she asked, "Has Madam Lu woken up?"
A rough male voice replied, "No."
Qu Muhua's condition showed no improvement.
She could not leave.
Not feeling particularly hungry, she could still endure, fast longer, and extend the time.
She remembered her grandfather once fasting for up to 21 days.
Another five days passed.
Her stomach ached, and she retched dryly.
She thought it was because she had gone too long without food, reaching her body's limit.
The spoiled food was inedible.
Her thoughts turned to the offering table, where she had seen a plate of offering fruits on the day she was locked in.
She groped her way over, felt for the fruit plate, and her fingers touched an apple, picking one up.
Carefully feeling it, her fingers detected uneven flesh—it had been eaten by rats.
She kept turning the apple, selecting an area to bite.
She chose the part with skin, smooth and untouched, to eat.
After gnawing on three apples, minus the parts dirtied by mice, very little actually made it into her stomach.
Having not eaten for a long time, she didn't consume much, but she still felt nauseous.
She thought resting would help, waiting for her stomach to adjust to the food.
Unexpectedly, the dry heaving worsened the next day.
She sat in the darkness, deep in thought.
Having studied medicine since childhood, she realized…
The last time she was intimate with Lu Xicheng was the day he returned to the country. Overwhelmed by longing, both of them were intense. She collapsed from exhaustion, but Lu Xicheng kept demanding more.
He left her hair standing on end, her slender legs trembling, unable to get out of bed.
Recalculating her menstrual cycle…
Her period was over half a month late.
She was pregnant!
Pregnant with Lu Xicheng's child!
With the fruit of their love in her belly, she had to do something.
If she kept starving, her bodily functions would decline, nutrients would be lacking, and she wouldn't be able to keep the baby. The last pregnancy had already…
Shi Wan pounded on the wooden wall, "Open the door! I have something to say!"
Perhaps because they hadn't heard any movement from her for over ten days, the bodyguard also wanted to check on her.
The big-eared bodyguard opened the door, his face hidden behind sunglasses.
Shi Wan noticed the corners of his mouth drooping, his muscles sinking inward—a reaction of shock from a strong stimulus.
Clearly, her emaciated appearance had frightened him.
The once well-fitting dress had, over these 20 days since the incident, become severely detached from her body.
She looked like she was draped in a dirty red sack.
Leaning against the wall, unable to open her eyes, her face wrinkled and brows furrowed, eyelids squeezed tight, she stood crookedly before the bodyguard.
"I want to see Lu Xicheng. Go and pass on the message for me."
The big-eared bodyguard's voice was icy, "Have you agreed to sign the divorce papers?"
Shi Wan couldn't use her pregnancy as a reason to demand better treatment.
Because if word reached Lu Zhengrong, not only would the child not survive, but she might also be sent to prison, left to die inside.
The big-eared bodyguard refused to let her see Lu Xicheng.
She then asked to see An Bo instead.
That old, green-gourd-headed fellow had always been kind to her.
This time, the big-eared bodyguard agreed.
An Bo came that evening, but the bodyguard only opened the small food delivery hatch.
Shi Wan spoke to the old fellow through the wall.
"Uncle, the food here is terrible. I can't eat it."
An Bo's voice choked up, "Wanwan, you've suffered so much, ah! Young Master Lu gave the order, there's nothing we can do. We don't dare… disobey him."
"But, wait a moment."
An Bo left for a while.
When he returned, his chubby hand reached into his pocket, pulling out a box of milk and pushing it through. He withdrew his hand, reached in again, pulled out a small bread roll, pushed it through, reached again, pushed again…
Finally, he pushed through a small chicken leg, its skin carrying the smell of cigarette boxes.
"Wanwan, I sneaked these in. Don't let anyone find out."
"Thank you… Uncle."
Shi Wan's nose stung.
Eating beggar's food while carrying a child—it was heartbreaking.
She had promised not to make a fuss, but she could no longer keep that promise.
Her resolve wavered; she didn't want to endure punishment anymore.
"I want to contact Brother Xicheng. Please find a way to help me."
"Ah!"
Shi Wan's heart tightened, "Has something happened?"
It had been 17 days since she was separated from Lu Xicheng. He hadn't come to see her, and she was worried about him.
"Wanwan, you should just sign the divorce papers and leave quickly. Go out and find a better life. Young Master Lu… he…"
"What about him, Uncle? Tell me quickly!"
Shi Wan pounded on the small hatch, frantic with worry.
"Miss Lin was severely injured and, overwhelmed with grief, once considered taking her own life. To make it up to her, Young Master Lu is going to get engaged to her. He's been busy with the engagement banquet these days, ah…"
What
Lu Xicheng… is going to get engaged to Lin Zaixin.
Shi Wan's crossed legs could no longer support her body, and she slumped sideways, leaning against the wooden wall as she gasped for breath.
She felt as if a knife had been plunged into her heart, slicing her flesh into tiny pieces.
It hurt so much!
"I still want to talk to him. Can you help me?"
Whether the outcome meant her infatuation shattering into pieces with no place to bury her remains, or being ground to dust and scattered to the wind, she needed certainty.
Certainty about whether Lu Xicheng had truly made up his mind.
Even if the truth was cruel enough to reduce her to ashes, she wanted to hear him say it with her own ears.
An Bo: "Then I'll try to think of a way. Don't get your hopes up too high."