Chapter 19 Pei Yan was also reborn.
"Never to return to Beijing?"
Nian Xi was stunned by this series of information. She stared at Pei Jian with wide eyes, confusion and ignorance in her eyes.
Pei Jian felt that she now looked very much like the Persian cat kept in the mansion.
She was just a little girl of fifteen.
He softened his tone and said, "This is just the worst-case scenario. But the North is the responsibility of the Gu family. We were lucky to escape this time, but what about the next time? Can you take this risk?"
Nianxi's mind was in a mess at the moment. Among the myriad of thoughts, there was only one thing she needed to confirm -
“How do you know this?” she asked.
"Whether you believe it or not, my words are true. If you are willing to follow him to the north, abandon your parents and relatives, and endure the wind and sand in the desert, you can make friends with him."
Pei Jian looked at her deeply and took a few steps back.
Telling her this was indeed impulsive. If he hadn't been provoked by that scene, Pei Jian would have found a gentler way to let her know.
Even though they were no longer lovers, they had been together for thirteen years, and he had the responsibility to remind her.
Nian Xi didn't understand state affairs, especially since the Duke of Zhen had just won a battle a while ago. Pei Jian knew that his words sounded like nonsense.
But can we just watch her sink into the mud?
He knew Nianxi's character best. She looked gentle, but was actually tough inside. He couldn't let her continue making mistakes.
Anyone can do it, but not resigning.
In the past, he raised her with great wealth and luxury... Pei Jian convinced himself that he just didn't want to see her suffer in the future.
Unless she really has feelings for him, she would rather follow Gu Ci to the bitter and cold northern border.
Pei Jian knew that the person in front of him was not his wife who had been with him day and night.
Fifteen-year-old Nian Xi knew nothing about the past. He shouldn't be demanding, shouldn't be eager, and shouldn't even be here.
He should clearly distinguish between the past and the present.
Pei Jian closed his eyes.
At this moment, in his small garden, under the osmanthus tree that had not yet bloomed, he suddenly wanted to go back and take a look at Nianxi, his wife.
But Nian Xi, his Nian Xi... he didn't even see her for the last time.
His heart felt like it was being squeezed, and pain spread to every part of his body. All the emotions he had rejected, which he considered a waste of time, suddenly surged towards him, enveloping his body and soul, and falling into the abyss.
He missed her.
But I will never see her again.
Pei Jian stopped looking at Nian Xi and turned around and strode out of the Wen Mansion.
After Pei Zhen left, Nian Xi leaned against the tree trunk in a daze, and she didn't come back to her senses until Xingyue came to find her.
He raised his head to look at the sky, with a half-smile on his lips.
Pei Jian was also reborn.
…
When Pei Jian returned home, Gu Ci had been waiting for him for a long time.
Seeing him coming in, she raised her eyebrows and said, "What time is it, Pei Shizhang? I know you are extremely talented and outstanding, but you can't take the imperial examination lightly. Tomorrow is the palace examination, and this is the last step to getting your name on the list. Can you take it seriously?"
"Hey——" Gu Ci pointed at a place and asked in surprise, "What is this?"
Gu Ci had sharp eyes. As soon as Pei Jian approached, he saw the box in his hand. It looked familiar. He snatched it and opened it. Inside was a pair of white jade earrings.
"The sun is rising from the west?" Gu Ci held up the wooden box in one hand and pretended to look out the window. "I said, why does this box look so familiar? Did you go to the Treasure Pavilion?"
"Tell the truth! Did you send it off for cousin Xu? I heard a few days ago that you and cousin Xu were in and out of the West Market together?"
Pei Jian turned a deaf ear, snatched back the earring and put it in the cabinet.
When he came out of the Wen Mansion, he was in a state of uneasy mood and wandered aimlessly, and somehow he entered the Treasure Pavilion.
The shopkeeper Yi still remembered him, "What would you like to buy today, sir?"
Pei Jian blurted out, as if possessed by a ghost, "Earrings!"
The shopkeeper Yi brought him all kinds of earrings, including pearls and gemstones. It was the first time Pei Jian knew that there were so many styles and combinations of earrings.
He fell in love with this pair of white jade earrings at first sight, as they were very similar to the ones Nianxi wore that day.
"Tell me quickly, are you and cousin Xu about to get married? Tsk~ cousin Xu is finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel."
When Pei Jian was very young, his mother arranged a marriage for him and Xu Wanxin. Later, when Pei Jian's parents passed away, the title of Duke of Zheng was inherited by the second branch of the family, and Minister Xu used an excuse to break off the engagement with Pei Jian.
However, despite the power of Minister Xu, his daughter Xu Wanxin is a rare womanizer who never hides her feelings for Pei Yan. She has been dragging her feet and refusing to get married for many years. Now she is 18 years old and is still waiting for Pei Yan.
In Gu Ci's opinion, once Pei Jian passed the imperial examination and won the top three places in the imperial examination, Minister Xu would have no reason to oppose this marriage.
"It's the wedding night, the time when you get your name on the imperial examination. Who knows, you might get married before me." Gu Ci patted Pei Jian's shoulder vigorously.
He is in a particularly good mood today.
First, he and Nian Xi were in love with each other, and his good brother Pei Jian was no longer alone, so he talked more than usual and ignored Pei Jian's cold expression.
"I don't know if father has received the letter. The capital is thousands of miles away from the northern border. It will take at least a month to receive a reply after all the delays. By the time the Wen family proposes marriage, it will be almost June. Then my marriage with Nian'er--"
“No!”
Pei Jian suddenly growled.
This scared Gu Ci, who was calculating the date carefully, and he forgot what he was doing.
"You must have taken the wrong medicine! You looked weird the moment I walked in."
Pei Jian lowered his eyes to hide his emotions.
Of course he knew it wasn't Gu Ci's fault, but he couldn't help it——
While he was running around day and night to avoid the tragedy in the Gu Mansion, Gu Ci took the opportunity to steal everything that belonged to him.
Pei Jian was fed up with the twists and turns of events and his own out-of-control emotions.
He suppressed the irritation that kept welling up in his heart, took a deep breath, and said in a cold voice, "The earrings are not for Xu Wanxin."
"It's someone else!"
Gu Ci bumped Pei Jian's shoulder and teased, "You are a very secretive kid. Tell me the truth. You have been so rare these days. Are you trying to be nice to that girl?"
Gu Ci said this, which meant that he was attentive to Nian Xi every day.
Thinking of the corner gate that belonged to him, Pei Jian's tone became colder and he said impatiently, "No."
No matter how slow Gu Ci was, he realized that something was wrong with Pei Jian. Moreover, he was an emotionally sensitive person, so he thought more deeply.
Good brothers probably just have relationship problems.
In the past, if someone told Gu Ci that Pei Jian would be trapped in love, he would be the first to not believe it. You must be kidding, that's Pei Jian!
But after experiencing Nian Xi, Gu Ci has completely understood the magic of love. No matter if you are a saint or a pawn, once you are infected, no one will be spared.
It's only too reasonable for Pei Jian to be trapped by love. Just kidding, that's the kind of love that can make people die!
"Whose family is this girl with earrings from?"
Pei Jian looked at him deeply and said nothing.
Gu Ci understood again.
When he first met Nianxi, he was also worried and distracted.
Seeing Pei Jian's mood swings, Gu Ci boldly speculated that Pei Jian's problems might not just be as bad as his love life. Maybe the girl with earrings already has a lover, or even a married woman!
Otherwise, why would he refuse to even tell the girl with the earrings her name!
Looking at Pei Jian's expression, he spoke carefully, "As for love, it's first come first served, it's fate but not destiny, so what..."
Pei Jian said quietly, "I wonder if this earring will ever be given away?"
Remarks: ...
Oops, it’s true!