Ji Hanyi did not look back. She lowered her head and put on the clothes draped over her shoulders, her movements still quiet and composed. Once she had tied her silk belt and looked up, she met Xie Yuheng’s eyes, which were filled with reproach and disappointment.
The emotions in those eyes also held clear dissatisfaction and astonishment.
In truth, while there was no affection between Ji Hanyi and Xie Yuheng, the two had never actually quarreled.
Xie Yuheng was not the type to argue, but his gaze was colder and more cutting than any shouting match.
She took a deep breath. At this moment, she suddenly understood that feeling—when you truly despise someone, you don’t even have the energy to argue.
She didn’t even have the heart to dispute the cold treatment, grievances, and misunderstandings she had endured over the past few years.
Perhaps Xie Yuheng had felt the same way in the past.
Arguing was useless. Xie Yuheng would always look down from his high horse, convinced of his own assumptions, forever biased.
To argue with him again would be nothing more than presenting her scars to him, allowing him to tear them open until they were bloody once more.
What was there to say at a time like this?
Should she say that Li Mingrou was the one who had overturned that cup of tea? Should she say that her mother-in-law often made things difficult for her, yet she had never breathed a word of it to him? Should she say that she had never actually targeted Li Mingrou? Would he even believe her?
He wouldn’t.
Therefore, there was no longer any need to speak.
In the past, he had nothing to say to her; now, she had nothing to say to him.
Things had reached a point where they had nothing left to discuss. Waiting for the final end was the most dignified way to close this chapter.
Ji Hanyi took a step back and took the cloak from Rong Chun, who had just arrived. She looked up to meet Xie Yuheng’s gaze, her emotions so calm they were devoid of any ripples. She said softly, “I am not making a scene. I only seek a divorce.”
“Tomorrow, I will send another drafted Divorce Agreement to your study. I beg the Eldest Young Master to grant it.”
Xie Yuheng suddenly sneered. “I understand now. I understand why you’re suddenly acting out like this.”
“You’re using this method to force me to help your cousin?”
As he spoke, the disappointment in Xie Yuheng’s eyes deepened, carrying the weight of having seen through her. “Hanyi, I am in the Grand Court of Revision. We emphasize justice. Your cousin knowingly broke the law; I have no reason to plead for him.”
“You had best put those thoughts to rest. I will not help him, and even this tantrum of yours is useless.”
Ji Hanyi lowered her gaze. She had never placed any hope in him to begin with.
Her cousin had not committed a major crime. Xie Yuheng was unwilling to say even a single word in his defense, yet back then, for the sake of Li Mingrou’s relatives who had come to cause trouble over family property, he had used all his connections.
In his heart, he had always known clearly which side held more weight.
It was just as well; she hadn’t intended to beg him from the start.
Ji Hanyi did not want to argue further. She simply looked into his eyes and said, “I know you won’t help me, which is why I never mentioned my cousin’s matter to you.”
“I have nothing else to say, except to ask for a clean break to everyone’s satisfaction.”
“Think of me however you wish.”
After saying this, Ji Hanyi brushed past Xie Yuheng. She pulled up her hood and stepped into the night, head bowed against the light snow fluttering in the cold air.
Xie Yuheng stood dazed, watching that receding figure in the courtyard. She carried a lantern alone, its dim light flickering and swaying, much like her shadow that seemed both near and far.
*A clean break to everyone’s satisfaction.*
Xie Yuheng could not believe those words had come from the mouth of the always gentle and soft-spoken Ji Hanyi.
She had always been mild-mannered, even somewhat weak, appearing to have no temper at all—except when it came to Mingrou.
He reached out his hand into the empty air, suddenly struck by the illusion that he could no longer grasp her.
When this feeling surfaced, Xie Yuheng thought, *How could that be?*
Ji Hanyi could not leave him.
Who would be willing to marry a divorced woman?
He took a deep breath and narrowed his eyes at Ji Hanyi’s departing back. If she wanted to throw a tantrum, let her.
If she wanted to go out in the middle of the night and suffer, let her go. He would not indulge her any longer.
When she realized he would not yield, she would learn that such willful behavior was not tolerated in a great clan.
***
Rong Chun had heard what Ji Hanyi said, and she remained in a daze until she had supported Ji Hanyi all the way to the back corridor.
The charcoal fire in the study had long since gone out. The moment they entered, a wave of cold air hit them. Rong Chun hurriedly went to light the charcoal.
As she brought the brazier to the feet of Ji Hanyi, who was leaning against the recamier, she couldn’t help but ask, “Is the Young Madam truly going to divorce the Eldest Young Master?”
Ji Hanyi looked down at Rong Chun and asked seriously, “Rong Chun, do you also think I’m just throwing a tantrum?”
Rong Chun blinked, then shook her head. “The Young Madam has never thrown a tantrum.”
Yes, Rong Chun understood her.
She knew she never threw tantrums.
Because she knew that only those closest to her would indulge her spoiled behavior.
She understood very well that Xie Yuheng would not tolerate her being willful.
Thus, Xie Yuheng had truly never understood her.
If she were to throw a tantrum, she would have done so long ago, every time Xie Yuheng sided with Li Mingrou due to her provocations. She would not have waited until now to ask for a divorce.
She pulled Rong Chun to sit beside her and looked around the simple furnishings of the room. Since she had come here so late, there was no proper place to sleep.
There was a bamboo couch, but it had no bedding. It would be freezing to sleep on it in such weather.
It wasn’t that Ji Hanyi insisted on suffering here, but she realized that the only place in this entire estate that could be considered hers was this small study.
Every piece of furniture here had been personally arranged by her. They weren’t property of the Xie family; her mother-in-law would never have allowed funds to be disbursed for such things. These were all bought with her own money.
Furthermore, she could no longer bear to share a bed with Xie Yuheng.
Once, she had desperately hoped to have a child with him, hoping that a child’s arrival would make Xie Yuheng show her some favoritism.
She was not a cold person; she also wished to be protected and cherished.
But now, she only felt relief.
Fortunately, that child had never come. A child was innocent and should not be brought into a world where they had a father who did not love them.
Ji Hanyi scanned the room, took a key from a box on the desk, and gave it to Rong Chun, telling her to go to the storehouse where her dowry was kept to fetch two sets of bedding.
Ji Hanyi hadn’t brought much as a dowry. Aside from two sets of jewelry her maternal grandmother had prepared and a shop, there wasn’t much else.
Her two maternal aunts had given her two trunks of bedding as part of her dowry. The Xie family had no use for her dowry items, but they were coming in handy now.
Rong Chun soon returned with the items. The two of them spread them over the bamboo couch and the recamier, which served perfectly.
As Ji Hanyi lay on the prepared recamier, her features relaxed. Half the heavy weight in her heart lifted, and she let out a long sigh.
Rong Chun squatted beside Ji Hanyi, looking at her mistress who was bundled up like a cocoon. While tucking a hand warmer into Ji Hanyi’s quilt, she said softly, “I think the Young Madam looks happier now than before.”
Ji Hanyi paused, turned to look at Rong Chun, and said with a smile, “Probably because my heart feels lighter.”
“I truly feel lighter.”
Rong Chun’s eyes reddened with tears. “If the Young Madam can be happier after a divorce, then I also hope the Young Madam can divorce.”
Ji Hanyi squeezed Rong Chun’s hand, though a trace of anxiety remained in her heart.
She hadn’t initially considered that Xie Yuheng might refuse the divorce. She knew how much Xie Yuheng loved Li Mingrou. Now that Xie Yuheng hadn’t agreed immediately, a seed of uncertainty had been planted in Ji Hanyi’s mind.
She only wanted to leave as quickly as possible.
She looked at Rong Chun again and nodded gently.
***
In the Shen residence on the other side of the city, Shen Si sat behind a red sandalwood desk. He silently studied the letter in his hand for a long while before placing it on the table, his long fingers tapping against the surface.
When he closed his eyes, he saw Ji Hanyi’s face, slightly flushed from the wind and snow, her features delicate, seductive, and petite.
When he had passed her, he had heard her let out a faint, thin cough.
In the silence, Shen Si’s expression slowly darkened. He resisted that fleeting moment, resisted the way his thoughts were still being pulled by that woman.
Taking a deep breath, Shen Si leaned his head back against the chair. Before his eyes, the image of that creamy, jade-like skin he had once seen surfaced again, along with the snowy curves and floral scent.
Shen Si took another deep breath and opened his eyes. Veins bulged on the back of his hand resting on the armchair.
At that moment, a voice from outside requested an audience. His grip on the armchair tightened. The desire in Shen Si’s expression gradually faded into cold indifference. He rose and stood by the window with his hands behind his back, signaling for the person outside to enter.
The attendant waiting outside quickly entered. Keeping his head down, he stopped three paces behind the tall figure and spoke in a low voice, “This servant went to investigate. The Northern Imperial Prison did indeed arrest Gu Xun a few days ago.”
“That day, after Gu Xun left the Imperial Academy, he went to the Huguo Temple in the suburbs. There, he discussed Qimen Dunjia with a beggar priest. He happened to be spotted by an Acting Lieutenant on duty, and when the book was found on his person, he was taken away.”
“However, Gu Xun is a frail scholar, yet he managed to endure the tortures of the Northern Imperial Prison without confessing. He only said the book was found by chance and that he didn’t know its contents. He likely knows that if he confesses and the case is sent to the Ministry of Justice for sentencing, there will be no room left for maneuver.”
He paused, then added in a low tone, “But the information gathered also suggests that the Second Madam of the Gu family spent a good deal of silver to bribe the two Small Banner Officers handling the torture. That might also be why Gu Xun has been able to hold out for so long.”
“Furthermore, there are many private collections of Qimen Dunjia books among the common people. While it technically violates the law, it is usually a minor matter that most people turn a blind eye to. Those Acting Lieutenants only made the arrest to claim credit for a promotion. They are biting down on a trivial matter and refusing to let go, and there is no shortage of indiscriminate arrests among them.”
The attendant’s report was very detailed. He assumed his master intended to crack down on those Small Banner Officers for abusing their minor authority to solicit bribes, so he recounted the details of how the Second Madam of the Gu family had offered the bribes with painstaking precision.
When Shen Si finished listening, he remained motionless, waving his hand for the attendant to leave.
He stared out the window, his finger turning the archer’s ring on his thumb.
Why did Ji Hanyi come to find him?
Xie Yuheng’s brother-in-law was a Commander (Zhenfushi). As long as Gu Xun was still in the Northern Imperial Prison, getting him out for such a minor matter would not be difficult.
He had originally thought the Ministry of Justice had intervened or that the case had other complications, which would indeed be troublesome.
Why didn’t she go directly to Xie Yuheng, but came to him instead?
For such a small matter, did she really need to come and beg him?