Chapter 45 Chapter 45 She has nothing left.
Not far away, beneath the mist and the carriage, a glimpse of grayish-white clothing appeared. Nie Xiangyi, pale-faced, walked out, holding an umbrella, staring at him intently in the rain.
The rain was drizzling, and a chill wind blew against her face. The hem of her skirt was still stained with the mud she had hurriedly brought. Her hair, blown by the wind and wet with rain, made her figure look even thinner and more desolate.
She was always lively and cheerful, full of life like a wild cat. Xie Zhi had never seen her so depressed and miserable.
"I heard it..." Her voice was as light as the mist in front of the eyes, making people feel panic for no reason as if they were about to lose control.
She heard clearly the words "I've been tired of her for a long time".
She was clearly holding an umbrella, but she seemed to be soaked by the winter rain, which made her shiver for no reason and even her teeth tremble.
She suddenly remembered that Xie Zhi seemed to have never said the word "like" to him.
From the moment she met Xie Zhi, she had been obsessed with him. She had originally believed they still had a connection, having exchanged gifts during the Lantern Festival. But now, even that sliver of fate was merely wishful thinking, a product of her misjudgment of the wrong person.
It is perfectly normal for Xie Zhi to hate her.
She was indeed such a person, acting without rules and being unruly and willful.
No wonder he was so cold to her, no wonder he didn't want to consummate his marriage with her when they first got married. Her passion was nothing compared to Xie Zhi's disgust.
I originally thought he was indifferent by nature, but I didn't expect that he actually hated me.
Her throat suddenly felt like it was choked, and she couldn't say anything. She only felt a dull pain in her chest.
The pain was not real, it was just like a broken saw, pulling back and forth on the heart, grinding it bit by bit.
"Asi..." Xie Zhi's voice was almost hoarse.
For the first time, he truly felt that something seemed to be dispersing like mist, disappearing rapidly in front of him and could no longer be grasped.
Nie Xiangyi's withering and loss were like a withered branch in winter, but Xie Zhi didn't know how to express it.
His voice brought Nie Xiangyi back to her senses. She felt a chill on her cheek and realized that she had shed tears.
When the truth was laid out before her, she suddenly felt so bored. She felt exhausted and guilty. Her grandfather had just passed away, and yet she was indulging in a romantic relationship.
She didn't want to say anything, wiped away her tears with her fingertips, turned around and wanted to leave.
"Miss Nie, wait a minute." Xie Chengxin looked as if he was watching a good show. He suddenly called out to Nie Xiangyi.
How could he not see that Nie Xiangyi had already developed a grudge against Xie Zhixin?
How can we not add more fuel to such a drama?
His smile was filled with almost malicious joy. After Nie Xiangyi turned around to look at him, he slowly spoke, "Although the word 'marriage' is like drinking water, only the person who drinks it knows whether it is hot or cold. But my third brother is cold and aloof, and he is really not a good match for you, young lady."
Xie Zhi's expression was as cold as ice, and he looked at him coldly, "The emperor personally arranged the marriage, and it's not up to the emperor to decide whether we are a good match or not."
"Thank you for your advice, Your Highness." Nie Xiangyi's eyes were empty and blank. He bowed and didn't want to say much to him.
"Since we've met before..." Xie Chengxin smiled, "Miss Nie, how about I tell you a secret?"
His meaningful smile made Xie Zhi's heart tighten for no reason. Nie Xiangyi just looked at him with empty eyes, waiting for his next words.
Xie Chengxin's eyes dismissed everyone, "Miss Nie, do you know the real cause of Madam Wen An's death?"
Xie Zhi's expression suddenly became sharp.
What does Xie Chengxin know?
He couldn't help but look at the weak Nie Xiangyi beside him. She had already experienced the pain of losing a loved one. If he told her the truth at this time, it would definitely make the situation worse.
What's more, at this moment, she already had many misunderstandings and resentments towards him.
"His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has lost too much blood and is in critical condition." Xie Zhi interrupted Xie Chengxin coldly, "Shen Ce Guards! Escort His Royal Highness the Crown Prince back to the East Palace."
Xie Zhi's reaction made Xie Chengxin laugh out loud, "Xie Zhi, you really do know!"
Mo Jiu just stood aside and drove away the Shen Ce Guards.
"What was the cause of my mother's death?" Nie Xiangyi's eyes lit up again when she heard this, shocked and anxious. She took a few steps forward and said, "Didn't she die of an acute illness caused by worry?"
She was only six or seven at the time, and she watched her mother wither away day by day, not knowing why. Until the funeral bell rang, the servants dressed her in plain white mourning clothes and told her to cry out loud.
"I don't want to cry, I want my mother."
When she was young, she didn't know what death meant. She only knew that she had never seen her again since then.
After waiting day after day, she finally understood that this was called death.
"If it was due to worry and sadness that led to an acute illness, why would she be vomiting blood every day?" Xie Chengxin's smile was filled with a sinister and ghostly aura. "Madam Wen'an was poisoned to death by Jiang, who was instructed by the Imperial Concubine."
Nie Xiangyi's head was buzzing.
"Jiang Yun'e..." She murmured, swallowing the name like chewing a bone, and then stared in disbelief, "How could it be the imperial concubine! How could it be her!"
My mother had no grudge against the imperial concubine! Why did she suffer such a cruel blow?
My grandfather had speculated about whether my mother had been murdered by the Jiang family. However, they were far away in Shanzhou, and by the time they returned to attend the funeral, my mother had already been buried. With no evidence, and with my mother's pulse diagnosis to support the claim, the matter was ultimately left unresolved.
But she never thought that the imperial concubine was the mastermind.
In other words, the mother of the man she longed to marry was actually the murderer of her mother!
"Why! Why!" She felt as if a huge rock was pressing down on her chest, making it hard for her to breathe. Her eyes widened, her breathing rapid and panicked, "Why did the imperial concubine attack my mother?"
"I don't know either."
The meaningful smile suddenly stopped at this moment. Mo Jiu lowered the curtain of the carriage, leaving Xie Zhi and her looking at each other in silence.
She stumbled and could not quite remember how she got back to the carriage.
The successive shocks left her mind confused, and she didn't even know how to face them. The mixture of resentment and hatred almost tore her into pieces.
Xie Zhi was the one who returned with her in the carriage.
"Your Highness..." She spoke with difficulty, her voice as hoarse as a dry riverbed, "You already knew this, didn't you?"
Xie Zhi didn't know how to answer. He pursed his lips tightly, "Yes. But..."
"Then why didn't you tell me?" She interrupted Xie Zhi, her voice trembling with an uncontrollable tremor. "Why! Why didn't you tell me the real cause of my mother's death!"
Xie Zhi was speechless.
He couldn't tell her because of his selfishness. The revenge for his mother's murder suddenly stood between them. Once the truth was exposed, they would be doomed.
The funny thing is that he thought he had everything under control, but he couldn't prevent the truth from being revealed in front of her.
From the very beginning, their relationship was built on lies.
"I know." Nie Xiangyi twitched the corners of his lips in self-mockery. "You're afraid that if my grandfather knew the cause of mother's death, he would take his anger out on you because of the imperial concubine."
After all, the only thing he cared about was the military power of the Zhong family.
In the final analysis, she is just a chess piece.
Her joy, her eagerness, her happiness and worries when she was about to marry Xie Zhi, now seem like a joke.
"That's not the case." Xie Zhi hesitated, "I didn't marry you..."
"It doesn't matter anymore. Whether it's to quell the rumors or for the Zhong family's military power, it doesn't matter anymore."
Nie Xiangyi closed her eyes tiredly, and her voice dissipated like mist, "Xie Zhi, let's get divorced."
For the sake of her grandfather, her mother, and herself, it seemed there was no need to go on.
The rain outside suddenly stopped.
Xie Zhi's hands were tightly clenched, his knuckles almost white from being pinched. It had finally come to this.
"Impossible." His voice was obscure but firm. "Nie Xiangyi, forget it."
He had let go of many things before, but this time, he would never let go.
Nie Xiangyi just closed his eyes tightly, leaning against the edge of the car wall, as if he didn't hear anything.
In the narrow space of the carriage, the two of them seemed to be separated by a galaxy.
It was already late at night when we arrived at the mansion.
The emperor was shocked to hear that the prince was seriously injured by the rebels. Despite the late night and heavy dew, he summoned Xie Zhi to the palace for an audience.
He glanced at Nie Xiangyi's expression, which seemed to be about to say something but hesitated. In the end, he did not have time to say anything and turned back to the palace.
Nie Xiangyi turned around and went back to her own yard across the street.
Ever since she married Xie Zhi, the yard here has been neglected.
Not long ago, my grandfather would rise early in the morning to practice his spear in the courtyard, and drink tea under the eaves to watch the cranes. The pair of white cranes were a sign of longevity, but my grandfather was gone just like that.
Nie Xiangyi sniffed, her eyes sore. It was already very cold in early winter, so cold that she didn't know what to do.
She huddled under the covers, curled up in a ball, but she didn't feel warm. She was so cold that tears started to flow, and the tears flowed down her nose onto the pillow, leaving a trail of tear marks.
She didn't know why she was crying, she just felt that she missed her mother and her grandmother.
She has nothing left.
Nie Xiangyi didn't know how she fell asleep. It seemed like she was sleeping soundly, yet it also seemed like she wasn't asleep at all. When she woke up, her mind was blank, and she stared at the figure outside the window in a daze.
"Madam, it's His Highness."
Hanxu reminded him softly, "Your Highness returned late last night. He heard that Madam had returned to this courtyard, so he came over. But he was afraid of disturbing Madam's rest, so His Highness has been waiting outside the door until now."
"Hmm..." Her voice was nasal, like a symptom of a cold. She smiled self-deprecatingly, "Why would he do that?"
Xie Zhi heard faint noises coming from inside the house. He stood outside the door for half the night. The quilt rustled against her, and she kept tossing and turning, sleeping very restlessly.
He failed to protect her.
Nie Xiangyi got up and opened the door, only to find Xie Zhi outside. He always looked as graceful as a bamboo or jade, his back straight even after a sleepless night, with only a dark bruise under his eye.
In comparison, she looked more like the person who hadn't slept all night.
"Asi." Xie Zhi said, his voice hoarse, "Let's go home."
Nie Xiangyi didn't seem to have the energy to say anything more to him. She didn't look at him and just silently went back to the house opposite with him.
"What you heard yesterday..." Xie Zhi pursed his lips and said, "That's not what I really meant."
"What does Your Highness want to say?" Nie Xiangyi finally looked up, staring straight at him. "Your Highness, do you want to say that those words were just playful remarks, or were they a deliberate frame-up by the Crown Prince?"
She was so direct and clear that Xie Zhi didn't know what to say.
"I once sincerely wanted to help Your Highness, even if it meant borrowing my grandfather's influence. But if I were truly being used, I would be doing my grandfather a disservice."
Nie Xiangyi shook his head lightly. "Your Highness, I am a foolish person. The situation is complicated. I can't tell what is true and what is false. I don't want to tell the difference anymore."
Having said this, there is no need to say more.
Xie Zhi's expression gradually turned cold.
The Shen Ce Division still had official business to attend to. He did not say anything else. When he left, he just said word by word,
"I will protect you."
Nie Xiangyi looked up and unexpectedly saw an almost paranoid emotion in his usually cold and indifferent eyes.
It was not until he left that Nie Xiangyi understood what he meant by protection - Ling Zhu was guarding the door again.
"Hanxu, get some paper and pen." She instructed Hanxu.
"Lord Ling Zhu, please be sure to hand this to His Highness!" She handed the envelope to Ling Zhu with a serious tone, and sent him away in front of Ling Zhu's helpless gaze.
Then she turned around and got on the carriage leaving Beijing without looking back.
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