Chen Anzhi’s eyes instantly darkened. The princess had asked Gu Momo to inform him about this last night. Chen Anzhi was very displeased, thinking it was inappropriate for the princess to make decisions without consulting him while he was away. He originally wanted to ask his mother if there was any room for negotiation but thought better of it since his mother had just given birth and needed rest. Moreover, upon learning that Princess Que was missing, he put the matter aside until today when he arrived at the You family.
“My mother did mention it, but…” Chen Anzhi was at a loss for how to persuade her.
“Yuji.” He called her name seriously, his eyes sincere and words earnest. “During these eight months with the army, I’ve thought a lot. In the past, it was indeed my fault for being blinded by villains and not treating you well, saying many harsh things. These were all my mistakes. It was my fault, all my fault. I truly know I was wrong.”
You Yuji sat quietly, watching Chen Anzhi as he spoke. She remained composed, her demeanor entirely proper, showing no sign of rudeness. However, she also did not react at all to Chen Anzhi’s humble apology, despite him lowering himself from his status as the heir apparent.
Chen Anzhi felt his cheeks flush with embarrassment the longer this went on. At this moment, he already felt deeply ashamed.
But having come this far, he couldn’t give up halfway!
Would he let the beautiful dream of a harmonious trio that he had envisioned for eight months be killed just like that? Absolutely not.
Gritting his teeth, Chen Anzhi took another desperate step forward. “Yuji, what must I say for you to understand my heart? In truth, it was my youthful ignorance that prevented me from seeing my true feelings. From the bottom of my heart, I’ve always considered you my wife. Yes, I initially misunderstood you greatly. But can’t the clouds part to reveal the bright moon?”
His cheeks reddened uncontrollably as he grew agitated and stood up. He took a step towards You Yuji but calmed himself and stopped when he saw her frown slightly.
Enduring the heat on his cheeks, he looked into her eyes, trying hard to make his expression more sincere. He said, “Yuji, you are a wonderful woman. It was my prejudice that blinded me. And…and because you are my wife and I care about you, I didn’t want you to be exposed to the world. Isn’t that proof of how much I care for you? Moreover, during these eight months away from the capital, away from the hustle and bustle, I had time to calm down and think about many things. What I thought of most was you.”
“During these eight months apart, I learned what it means to be sleepless and restless. Once the misunderstandings were cleared, I realized you had always been in my heart. My feelings for you have deepened, and I can’t extricate myself from my longing and love for you!”
Suddenly, You Yuji felt a wave of nausea.
She turned her head and quickly took a piece of candied fruit from the small white porcelain dish, putting it into her mouth to ease the discomfort.
Lady Jing and Baohe glanced at each other and then looked away. Lady Jing wore a stern expression, while even the good-natured Baohe felt the urge to kick Chen Anzhi out.
“You don’t believe me? Do you want me to carve out my heart for you to see?” Chen Anzhi asked urgently.
The sweet taste of the candied fruit spread in her mouth, alleviating the nausea. You Yuji spoke, “I believe you.”
Baohe’s eyes widened in astonishment.
Chen Anzhi was stunned for a moment, then a smile appeared on his face. He knew You Yuji wasn’t as resolute as she appeared. After all, his humble approach had paid off. He thought he would make her repay his humility in the future, taking his time.
“But,” You Yuji continued, changing the tone, “the princess and I personally went to the empress dowager to report the divorce, and it was she who instructed us to deliver the divorce papers to the clan. Disobeying her orders might not be wise.”
Chen Anzhi frowned. “Then let’s go see…”
You Yuji interrupted him, “With the new emperor’s ascension, it’s a tumultuous time. The late emperor was raised by the empress dowager, and his passing must be deeply distressing for her. How can we bother her with such trivial matters now?”
Chen Anzhi acknowledged the validity of You Yuji’s words.
However, he was extremely reluctant to make public the fact that he and You Yuji had already divorced, especially after his humble efforts today. Giving up now would make it impossible for him to reclaim his dignity.
The flower hall fell silent.
“Let’s do this,” You Yuji broke the silence.
Chen Anzhi immediately looked up, eyes filled with hope.
You Yuji paused for a moment and then slowly said, “Let’s follow the empress dowager’s orders first.”
The word “first” was emphasized subtly. Though You Yuji spoke slowly, her deliberate pacing gave Chen Anzhi time to think.
“I understand!” Chen Anzhi caught onto You Yuji’s hint right away. “You’re right. Since we’re starting anew, we should truly start from scratch! Our marriage is full of holes and should be completely discarded. Let’s begin again, without an imperial edict, without the messy political factors—just the two of us, committing to a lifelong union. What do you think?”
You Yuji couldn’t directly respond to this.
She could deceive, but she couldn’t truly commit to those words. She picked up the teacup in front of her and took a small sip. It wasn’t tea inside, but a sour plum soup she had grown quite fond of recently.
Chen Anzhi stared fixedly at You Yuji as she drank the sour plum soup. Seeing her silence, he assumed it was a woman’s shyness. On second thought, he realized he had wronged her too many times before, and her silence could be due to pride. Fortunately, she still had a heart as sincere as his. Once the mourning period for the country was over, they could hold a grand wedding to make up for the past absurdities. Knowing her true feelings was most important.
After taking two sips of the sour plum soup, You Yuji put down the teacup and said gently, “An elder brother is like a father. The weather has been hot recently, so I won’t accompany you, and will let my second brother go on my behalf.”
“It is indeed hot. It’s good that you won’t go; I would worry if you got overheated.”
You Yuji turned her face away and picked up a piece of candied fruit to eat. She instructed Lady Jing to invite You Heng.
Chen Anzhi took two steps forward and then suddenly stopped, frowning and looking troubled. You Yuji’s fingers tightened slightly around the edge of her shawl, but she still looked at him calmly.
After hesitating for a while, Chen Anzhi couldn’t help but ask, “Do you know where Princess Que is?”
You Yuji pressed her lips together and remained silent.
Chen Anzhi felt a bit confused. He should have comforted You Yuji first, but he was really worried about Princess Que. He said, “Husband and wife should be honest with each other. I don’t want to hide anything from you in the future, and I hope you feel the same. When I arrived, Si Han said the princess was here with you…”
Chen Anzhi looked at You Yuji nervously. He wasn’t sure if he was more worried about You Yuji being angry because he cared about another woman or about Princess Que’s whereabouts.
You Yuji softly responded, “Oh,” and said, “Last I heard, he found the mansion boring and went out for a walk. I’ll send someone to check the places he usually goes to relax.”
Chen Anzhi finally felt relieved. First, You Yuji wasn’t angry, and second, there was news about Princess Que. He even blamed himself internally for believing Si Han’s nonsense. He had previously suffered from believing biased opinions and couldn’t afford to listen to the foolish words of lowly concubines anymore!
You Heng then took the carefully preserved divorce document and left with Chen Anzhi. You Yuji remained in the flower hall, quietly waiting.
In the evening, You Heng returned. She immediately looked up and asked, “How did it go?”
“Everything went smoothly. Once we arrived, Chen Anzhi eagerly went through the procedures,” You Heng said with a smile.
Baohe smiled with her lips curled up, “Congratulations, madam!”
Zhenxu and Lady Jing also smiled. Lady Jing remarked sarcastically, “Finally, we can openly talk about the divorce without letting others misunderstand our madam’s association with that thing.”
Lady Jing was the most respectful of decorum, always addressing Chen Anzhi as ‘Heir’ despite her anger. Now that it was over, she referred to him as ‘that thing.’
Though the result was as expected, You Yuji still breathed a sigh of relief. Her straight back slowly relaxed, leaning against the chair, her gaze falling on the teacup Chen Anzhi had used. She pointed to it and instructed, “Throw it away.”
“And,” You Yuji looked at Lady Jing, “have Zhuo Wen spread the news in the capital, making sure the date of signing the divorce document is clearly stated.”
You Yuji loosened the shawl draped over her shoulders and gently caressed her abdomen with her palm.
She also instructed that from today onwards, if Chen Anzhi comes to visit, he should be turned away without announcement.
The next day, Chen Anzhi sent Wangshan to invite You Yuji to the Lianshui boat for a tour, but she declined. He scolded Wangshan for being useless and went himself. Despite the servant knocking loudly on the You residence gate, no one answered.
“Could they not be home?” Chen Anzhi muttered, frowning.
Over the following days, he visited repeatedly but never saw You Yuji. Sometimes the gate would be opened, but the You family’s servants would give him a perfunctory excuse and shut the door, not even bothering with polite formalities.
Chen Anzhi finally realized what was happening.
He was shocked to find that You Yuji had deceived him, but upon recalling the events of that day, he realized she had never given him any promises.
Chen Anzhi’s face turned pale with anger, and the frustration made him sick. Just as things had reached this point, Princess Huarong came to find him. She not only scolded and ridiculed him but also beat him with a stick. The Prince of Jinnan glared at him, so he had to endure the princess’s outburst, suppressing his grievances.
It took a while for him to recover, and Princess Huarong stopped coming. Suddenly, the war situation became tense overnight, with repeated news of defeats, making the capital and court increasingly anxious.
According to the original plan, he was supposed to leave for his fief, but because it was occupied by the enemy, he couldn’t go back.
Chen Anzhi was depressed and stayed behind closed doors all day. The thought of facing people’s ridicule whenever he went out filled him with dread. The idea of escaping to his fief to avoid others’ derision was no longer possible for now.
“Sigh!” Chen Anzhi sighed heavily.
He curled up on his bed, pressing a pillow over his head, angrily cursing You Yuji in his mind.
Yes, it was all her fault.
Ever since he married her, misfortune after misfortune had befallen him!
He must be cursed to have such a bad fate!