The concubine's favorite? Break off the engagement and marry another prince, please respect you

Chapter 94

Lu Xiyao only came to the ancestral temple once, to play chess and chat with Xie Wan Ning.

Although she repeatedly apologized for her previous coldness, she did not explain why her attitude suddenly changed.

The two of them were no longer as close as before, and they could talk about anything.

Not only the two parties involved felt this, but even Lu Ziyan who was standing beside them felt it clearly.

He kept his eyes fixed on his sister, trying to determine whether her intention was really that simple.

After two rounds of chess, the atmosphere was finally less tense. Lu Xiyao took out a brocade box from her sleeve and opened it.

Inside was an intricately carved jade bracelet with gemstones.

She smiled and said, "Everything that happened before was my fault. This bracelet is my apology to my sister-in-law."

The jade bracelet looked valuable. Xie Wan Ning was hesitant about whether to accept it. Then she said, "If sister-in-law really forgives me, you must not refuse it."

As she spoke, Lu Xiyao saw that her wrist was empty, so she held her hand and put it on her herself.

The delicate and fair wrist, paired with a bracelet made of rich gemstones, is gorgeous and beautiful.

"It's a pity that sister-in-law doesn't wear bracelets on her hands." Lu Xiyao said with a smile: "Just wear them like this, and don't take them off. Next time we meet, I want to see you still wearing them on your hands."

Before she married into the Lu family, the two were close friends who could talk about anything, and it was common for them to give each other gifts in private. Xie Wan Ning no longer refused. She stood up and went to the inner room to take out a pearl hairpin as a return gift.

Lu Xiyao did not refuse and took it with a smile.

Before leaving, she said, "Brother didn't allow us to come to the ancestral temple to see you. This time I came here secretly while Mingjian was away. When he comes back, sister-in-law is not allowed to tell him."

Upon hearing that Lu Ziyan forbade anyone to come to the ancestral temple, Xie Wan Ning lowered her eyes, not wanting to see sympathy for herself in the eyes of others.

She pursed her lips and hummed softly, "I won't tell you."

How ridiculous, who could she tell?

When Mingjian comes to collect the Buddhist scriptures, tell him, "Did the eldest lady from the mansion come to see me today?"

Or should I wait for Lu Ziyan to come back, run over and tell him, you don’t allow others to see me, but your sister came secretly?
Pitiful……

She is so pitiful.

In the following days, Lu Xiyao no longer came.

Xie Wan Ning couldn't say that she liked the bracelet she gave her, but she also couldn't say that she disliked it.

But this was the first gift Lu Xiyao gave her after she married into the Lu family.

After all, the meaning was different, so she didn't take it off.

This is the fourth month since Lu Ziyan left Beijing, and she is beginning to look forward to his return.

She was really scared of staying in the ancestral temple.

Every day when he saw Ming Jian, he would ask whether Lu Ziyan had sent any message back and when he would return to Beijing.

But the answer is always disappointing.

She always remembered his words and waited for him to take her out.

But in the end, the gate of the ancestral temple opened, and it was Ming Jian who came to take her out.

Maybe it shouldn’t be called “catch”, it should be “release”.

It was Ming Jian who let her out.

Lu Ziyan came back, but he didn't come to pick her up.

She returned to Shaoguang Courtyard, which had been deserted for several months. It seemed that even the maids who were responsible for cleaning the courtyard were passive and passive. No one trimmed or cared for the flowers and plants in the courtyard, making the place even more desolate.

The autumn wind was cold and the scenery was bleak, but a raging fire was burning in her heart. Xie Wan Ning waited in Shaoguang Courtyard for three days, but still did not wait for Lu Ziyan to come.

It was not until the afternoon of the third day that the quiet girl, who was writing lyrics for a painting as usual, suddenly threw down the pen in her hand and could not bear it any longer.

The anger in my heart has been suppressed to the extreme, burning my heart and lungs, and I feel like I will suffocate to death if I don't vent it out.

This is the first time in almost two years since I got married that I am not obedient and waiting patiently.

Ignoring the rule that women of the Lu family were not allowed to set foot in the front yard, he went straight to Lu Ziyan's study.

Before she got married, she could still enter this place, but after she got married, she was restricted by the rule that women in the back house were not allowed to enter the front yard, and she never set foot in this place again.

A surge of evil fire pushed her to stop waiting obediently and take the initiative to ask him for an explanation.

There must be an explanation!

Why, why do you waste her heart and toy with her feelings and expectations?

Lu Ziyan's study was very large, divided into a front hall and a back hall. She was blocked in the front hall.

"Step aside!"

Ming Jian looked embarrassed: "Madam, please go back, Lord Marquis..."

"Since I'm here, I must see him today." Xie Wan Ning's expression was cold, "Where is he?"

"...Madam, please wait a moment."

Ming Jian turned and went into the inner hall. When he came out after waiting for a long time, his expression was even uglier.

He said, "The Marquis said he would not see anyone."

...I don't want to see anyone.

Xie Wan Ning's heart tightened, and she forced a smile, "What if I really want to see him?"

Ming Jian stood in front of her and said, "Madam, please don't embarrass us."

Standing behind him was a team of Lu Ziyan's personal soldiers. There were no maids in the front yard, only Lu Ziyan's personal soldiers and deputy generals.

His study was heavily guarded, and it was impossible to break in without his permission.

It was no use for her to be angry. As long as Lu Ziyan didn't agree, she couldn't see him.

She was only fit to stay in the yard, waiting for his visit day after day.

When he was in a good mood, he would think of her and come to Shaoguangyuan to see her.

If you are in a bad mood, just leave her aside.

Her joys, sorrows, anger and happiness are not important.

So what if she was the wife carried into the house in a sedan chair carried by eight men? She was not as good as the favored concubine.

At least if Liu Manrou came with the child, he would definitely not avoid her.

After being blocked at the door of the study and unable to get in no matter what, Xie Wan Ning's angry eyes gradually cooled down.

Something that had been burning stubbornly was extinguished.

The heart is ashamed.

She finally understood that in his heart, she might just be a decoration placed in the backyard.

She was of noble birth and good looks, barely a match for him.

There is nothing else.

There is no such thing as the affection of childhood sweethearts, or the grace of a husband and wife for a hundred days.

It was all self-deception on her part.

On the way back to Shaoguangyuan, I met many servants along the way.

When they saw her, they bowed respectfully.

But Xie Wan Ning seemed to be able to hear their thoughts.

Look, she is the eldest daughter raised in the Xuanhe Marquis's mansion, but how come she has become such a resentful woman?

How did she become such a resentful woman?

Xie Wan Ning bit her lips tightly, a huge sense of shame surged into her heart, and she almost fainted.

Fortunately, fortunately, this experience of breaking into the front yard, apart from being ridiculed for overestimating her own abilities, she finally realized who she was.

It was not until she returned to her own courtyard that the tears she had been holding back all the way finally fell.

Xie Wan Ning had never cried like this before. She curled up her legs, tears streaming down her face, but she didn't make a sound.

Er Qing cried out of pain, "If the master and his wife knew the injustice that the young lady had suffered..."

Hearing the words "dad and mom", Xie Wan Ning's eyelashes trembled and a string of tears rolled down her cheeks.

"How could I be so stupid..."

How could I trust him again and again and be deceived by him again and again.

He didn't even do anything, just gave her a smile when he was in a good mood, and she was stupid enough to offer her her true heart, and let him manipulate her and abuse her.

And Lu Ziyan, who had always been by her side, also had tears in his eyes.

He didn't know what state he was in at the moment. If it was a spiritual state, then it was his soul that was in pain.

He bent over in pain and reached out to hug the crying girl on the couch, but to no avail.

The desire to destroy rushed to the top of his head. If possible, Lu Ziyan would like to destroy everything in front of him.

Everyone die.

But he could do nothing, he could only watch.

He watched as the girl, whom he had wished he could hold in his hands, gradually gave up on him and quickly withered away in this large mansion.

The fact that she had trespassed into the study in the front yard was known to several ladies of the Lu family.

On the second day, Madam Lu sent someone to ask her to pay her respects.

The Lu family is a family of military generals, and they don’t have many rules.

Xie Wan Ning had never experienced the morning and evening visits in aristocratic families, or the various rules set by the mother-in-law for the bride.

On the contrary, because Lu Ziyan brought his concubine into the house not long after his marriage, and then the concubine became pregnant and was promoted to the main wife, the wives of the Lu family felt deeply guilty and were even more lenient towards Xie Wan Ning.

This was the first time Xie Wan Ning was reprimanded since she married into the Lu family.

The next day after she went to the study to look for Lu Ziyan but to no avail.

In the inner hall, the three ladies of the Lu family were all present, including Liu Manrou, the young lady of the second room, and Lu Xiyao, the eldest daughter of the Lu family.

In addition, several wives from the Lu family's side branches also sat beside them.

In full view of everyone, Xie Wan Ning kowtowed to the old lady and greeted her, but was not called up for a long time.

It was a lady from the side branch who reminded her that Mrs. Lu suddenly realized what was going on. She asked her to stand up, but she did not ask her to sit down.

The old man narrowed his eyes, looked at his granddaughter standing gracefully, and said calmly: "You know the rules of the Lu family. You have been married into the mansion for almost two years. Why are you still acting so recklessly?"

The hall suddenly became quiet.

Seeing that Madam Lu was dissatisfied with her granddaughter and wanted to give her a warning, everyone had a subtle look on their faces.

Some of them raised their eyebrows slightly, watching the show with interest.

Some of them covered their lips with their hands and pretended to laugh secretly.

Others held their chins and looked unabashedly at Xie Wan Ning who was being criticized in public by their elders.

The person stood with her back straight and steady. Only Lu Ziyan, who was standing beside her, could see that the hands on her sleeves were shaking slightly.

Madam Lu was still talking.

"The Xie family is a century-old mansion, with poetry and literature passed down from generation to generation. A daughter raised here should not be ignorant of rules. You ignored the rules of the Lu family and trespassed into the front yard where the gentleman was working. Do you know that you are wrong?"

Xie Wanning's face lost all color, his lips trembled, and he didn't say anything.

Being questioned like this in public was humiliating enough.

No one spoke a word to defend her, and Mrs. Lu, who had always claimed that she treated her like her own daughter, did not say a word.

Lu Xiyao, who had reconciled her past grudges with her, looked at her with great interest, her eyes filled with undisguised malice.

Liu Manrou covered her lips with a handkerchief and gave a fake smile, "Don't be upset, grandma. Maybe it's because I haven't seen my husband for a long time. I can't hold back for a while. It's understandable."

"You are still speaking for her," Old Madam Lu said calmly, "She came to the palace before you, and now Pei'er is almost one year old, but she has yet to get pregnant."

Xie Wan Ning had been married into the Lu family for nearly two years, but still had no children. Several wives of the Lu family had long been dissatisfied.

This time, I caught her doing something wrong and wanted to suppress her.

So what if she was born a noble lady? Being childless is a great sin for a woman.

But the Xie family's reputation is there, and Xie Wan Ning's father and brother are quite famous in the court. Not everyone dares to laugh at the joke of the Xie family's daughter.

Old Madam Lu wanted to scold her daughter-in-law in class, but the other wives from the side branches did not dare to watch any longer.

They all said goodbye.

Xie Wan Ning stood in the courtyard for two hours in the cold wind of late autumn. After serving Old Madam Lu lunch, she returned to Shaoguang Courtyard.

She developed a fever that night and remained in a daze for three days without any improvement.

Lu Ziyan stayed by her bed. In his soul state, he didn't even need to sleep. He just stared at the girl on the couch without blinking.

The court doctor came to see him, and he took medicine after medicine, and finally woke up in the early morning of the fourth day.

The first thing he did when he woke up was to take off the jade bracelet on his wrist.

She forced herself to get up, wrote a letter by hand, and asked Erqing to deliver it to Xie Yanyu.

Er Qing was grinding ink nearby. When she saw the contents of the letter, tears welled up in her eyes.

Xie Wan Ning dried her brush and ink, and seeing her appearance, she smiled faintly: "Don't cry, it's me who is unfilial. After I get married, I still make my family worry about me."

"It's okay if we don't have children," she coughed a few times before continuing, "Just think about it, if I had a daughter, and she was as unpromising as I am for a man, it would really make me worry."

Lu Ziyan, who was standing by, had bloodshot eyes as he stared at the word "divorce" on the letter in her hand, as if he was about to cry blood.

But when he heard her words, his red eyes trembled slightly.

Yes, if they had a daughter, she would also suffer such torture after getting married...

Lu Ziyan hated his own powerlessness and hated everything in this world.

She had had the same dream, right?

Or, is all of this her personal experience?

So, she didn't want him anymore.

She wanted to divorce him in this world, and even if she started all over again, she would never make the same mistake again.

Er Qing brought the letter back intact.

Xie Yanyu was sent by the emperor to South City to investigate a case a few days ago. He left in a hurry and did not send anyone to Wuyuanhou Mansion to inform his sister. He might not be back until the New Year.

Xie Wan Ning took the letter, burned it under the candlelight, and did not write another one to her parents.

Rather than asking her older parents, she would rather ask her brother first.

Her brother is calmer and more sensible than her. He loves and protects her and will find ways for her.

It is already late autumn and there is not much time left until the Chinese New Year.

I've made it through two years, so these few days won't be enough.

She thought that everything would be fine when her brother returned to Beijing.

But she was sick.

It was just an ordinary cold, but it didn't get better. I couldn't muster any energy, stayed in bed all day, and coughed all the time.

The court doctor visited him several times and prescribed some nourishing medicine for him. He felt better for a few days, but his condition relapsed after he stopped taking the medicine.

He even coughed up blood several times while avoiding Er Qing, which scared Lu Ziyan almost to death.

But he was powerless to stop anything.

The scene flashed to the day when Liu Manrou's eldest son turned one year old.

Er Qing was worried that her master's health was not getting better, so she took advantage of the crowd in the front yard and quietly went outside to invite a doctor to come in to take her master's pulse.

When the words "depression enters the internal organs, the spirit is hurt and life is short" came out, Er Qing was not the only one who felt despair.