When Village Chief Li said that, Old Madam Ye hesitated as well. She stammered, unable to say anything clearly, afraid that when she died and met Old Master Ye and Ye Xuan in the afterlife, they would settle accounts with her.
Seeing the old woman wavering, Feng Yan and Yang Yun panicked, afraid the matter would fall apart.
“Village Chief, our family has already decided!” Feng Yan hurriedly said. “This dead girl brought misfortune to both her parents—she’s a jinx, a disaster star! Please hurry and write the severance document for us. Our family can’t keep this curse any longer!”
Old Madam Ye quickly reacted as well.
“That’s right! Village Chief, hurry and write the severance papers. Our family can’t keep this disaster around. We don’t want our whole family ruined!”
Ye Mengyi let out a cold laugh.
“Grandpa Li, please write it. Ever since my father died, they’ve never treated me like family. As for how I injured my head today… I think Third Aunt knows very well what happened.”
“You—you stop talking nonsense!” Yang Yun’s voice trembled. “What would I know? You’re the jinx! We only asked you to go gather wild vegetables on the mountain. You fell by yourself—who can you blame? Village Chief, our family really can’t keep this curse anymore. Please hurry and write it!”
Everyone looked suspiciously at Yang Yun.
Ye Mengyi smiled faintly.
“Believe whatever you want. Once the severance papers are signed, we’ll have nothing to do with each other anymore. Nothing else matters.”
Afraid Ye Mengyi might say more, Yang Yun quickly urged again:
“Village Chief, please hurry and write the severance papers! This girl brings misfortune and always talks crazily. Our family truly cannot keep this disaster any longer. Please help us!”
Old Madam Ye and Feng Yan exchanged glances before chiming in:
“Yes, Village Chief, hurry and write it. Our family really can’t keep this curse anymore.”
The surrounding villagers immediately began whispering among themselves.
“Could it be true that the Ye girl brings bad luck? The Ye family is in such a hurry to throw her out. Will the Lu family still take her?”
“Look, even the Ye family says she curses people. Maybe it’s true.”
“Exactly. Didn’t her mother’s health decline after giving birth to her? She died within a few years. And Scholar Ye caught a fatal illness on the way to the imperial exams. Then Old Man Ye died shortly afterward too. One thing after another in just a few years…”
“That’s terrifying when you think about it. Better stay away from them in the future.”
“Isn’t that the truth?”
“The Lu family already has two unlucky people. If they bring another one home, how can their family prosper?”
“Exactly. Stay away from them. Three jinxes in one family—there’s no way they’ll have a good life.”
Village Chief Li sighed heavily.
He walked over to the writing desk, picked up a brush and paper, and began drafting the severance agreement.
The document was written clearly:
Ye Mengyi voluntarily severed all ties with the Ye family. In life they would not raise her; in death they would not bury her. From this day forward, the two families would have nothing to do with one another and would never interfere in each other’s affairs again.
After finishing, the village chief read it aloud once to confirm there were no mistakes.
Then he handed it to Ye Mengyi and Old Madam Ye to review.
Ye Mengyi glanced over it, found no issues, and signed her name before pressing her fingerprint onto the document.
Old Madam Ye also signed angrily and stamped her fingerprint.
The severance agreement was made in four copies: one for the government office records, one kept by the village chief, and one copy each for the two families.
“Alright.” Village Chief Li stood up and looked at everyone solemnly. “The document has been established. From today onward, Ye Mengyi is Lu Qingshan’s fiancée and has absolutely no relation to the Ye family anymore. All of you remember this well. No one is allowed to regret it later or continue causing trouble.”
Old Madam Ye and the others remained silent, tacitly agreeing.
Lu Qingshan turned toward Ye Mengyi, his gaze softening slightly.
“You’ve suffered.”
Ye Mengyi looked at him. The stubbornness in her eyes gradually melted into exhaustion.
“It’s not suffering,” she said weakly. “Cutting ties with them only makes me feel relieved.”
Ye Mengyi quickly packed her belongings.
Most of them were books.
She also took two patched and faded sets of clothes, along with a pillow.
Feng Yan and Yang Yun watched her closely as she packed. Seeing that she only took two outfits, a pillow, and her books, they finally relaxed, afraid she might take more.
After the severance papers were signed, Village Chief Li dismissed the gathered villagers.
Not long later, Lu Qingshan returned pushing a wheelbarrow.
Entering the room and seeing her nearly finished packing, he asked:
“Is this everything? I’ll load it onto the cart. Check if you forgot anything.”
“That’s all. Load it up. Let’s go.”
Lu Qingshan carefully stored the documents away, then gently lifted Ye Mengyi into his arms.
He cupped his hands respectfully toward Village Chief Li.
“Thank you, Grandpa Li.”
Village Chief Li waved his hand and looked at Ye Mengyi with a sigh.
“Child, recover properly. Live your days well from now on.”
Ye Mengyi nodded, her eyes reddening slightly.
Leaning in Lu Qingshan’s arms, smelling the faint scent of grass and trees on him, the tightly wound tension in her heart finally loosened a little.
She knew that from this moment onward, all ties between her and the Ye family had been completely severed.
And she also knew that her new life was about to begin.
Though the road ahead was long and filled with uncertainty, she believed that as long as she worked hard and Lu Qingshan was willing to help her, she would surely carve out a real life for herself in this unfamiliar era.
Lu Qingshan pushed the wheelbarrow and walked out of the Ye family courtyard.
The moment they crossed the gate, Ye Mengyi couldn’t help turning back for one last look.
Under the fading sunset, the old mud-brick house looked especially bleak and desolate.
A faint smile curled on her lips.
Goodbye, Ye family.
Goodbye, past Ye Mengyi.
From today onward, she would live for herself.
Doctor Sun also walked out from the Ye family residence with them.
He looked at Lu Qingshan, then at Ye Mengyi, before taking out a small bottle of wound medicine and handing it to her.
“Apply this once a day. It should heal in three days.”
Lu Qingshan stopped walking.
Ye Mengyi accepted the medicine gratefully.
“Thank you, Grandpa Sun. Don’t worry—I’ll repay the medicine cost after some time.”
“No need. It’s not worth much.” Doctor Sun waved it off. “Now that you’ve left the Ye family, live your life well with Lu boy. Don’t listen to what others say. If anything happens, come find me.”
“Thank you, Grandpa Sun. I will.”
“Alright then, you two head home. I’ll be going too.”
Doctor Sun waved his hand and strode away briskly.
Lu Qingshan pushed the wheelbarrow toward the eastern side of the village—that was where the Lu family lived.
The sun gradually disappeared, and night began to fall.
Cooking smoke rose from the village homes, accompanied by barking dogs and the laughter of children at play.
Leaning against the wheelbarrow, Ye Mengyi watched the darkening sky, yet her heart was filled with hope.
She knew her new life had only just begun.
Night descended like an enormous black curtain, slowly covering the entire village.
The wooden wheel of the cart creaked noisily over the uneven dirt road, sounding like the weary sighs of an old man burdened by age.
Sitting in the swaying cart, Ye Mengyi rocked gently with every bump.
But her consciousness had already sunk into a turbulent ocean of memories.
Strange scenes and emotions flooded into her mind like a collapsing dam, surging forward one after another.