"Lay the young mistress flat for me," Madam Xu instructed.
Shen Yunjiao struggled with all her might, but she was too frail to fight against the two nannies who looked to weigh over 200 pounds and were stronger than men.
One of the nannies held down Shen Yunjiao's arms, while another sat on Shen Yunjiao's lap, pressing her upper body down on her calves and roughly stripping off her shoes and socks.
The burning sensation slowly approached, and Shen Yunjiao turned pale with fright, tightly closing her eyes.
But the pain of burning tender flesh did not arrive as expected.
All she heard was a scream from the servant holding the oil bottle and the sound of him falling to the ground.
Shen Yunjiao opened her eyes, which were wet with tears of fear. Before she could react, the old woman who was holding her hand was kicked away forcefully, and another woman scrambled to the side in terror.
Shen Yunjiao immediately sat up and looked up from the pair of black boots.
It turned out to be Pei Zhixuan, who was supposed to be in front of the emperor to thank him for the bestowed marriage.
Seeing Shen Yunjiao, her clothes torn and disheveled, looking like a withered flower, Pei Zhixuan felt as if a sharp arrow had pierced his heart, and his chest suddenly ached.
But Xu's approach brought him back to his senses.
Pei Zhixuan squatted down and used his well-defined knuckles to help Shen Yunjiao up.
Shen Yunjiao's feet hurt so much that she could barely stand.
Pei Zhixuan wanted to lift her up in his arms, but Shen Yunjiao trembled and dodged him, preferring to support herself on the altar with her hands.
Pei Zhixuan's hand was outstretched in mid-air, and after a moment he could only silently withdraw it.
Mrs. Xu had no idea that her son would return so quickly.
She quickly went to Pei Zhixuan's side and said, "Xuan'er, you're back."
Pei Zhixuan's expression was cold and his eyes held a rare hint of malice. He looked coldly at the crowd standing in the ancestral hall, then turned to Xu Shi and said, "Mother, what wrong has she done that you treat her like this?"
This was the first time Ms. Xu had heard her son speak to her in such a cold and harsh tone, and she immediately became angry.
Madam Xu snorted coldly and did not answer Pei Zhixuan's question. Instead, Madam Pei the Second answered sarcastically, "Zhixuan, do you know that Shen Yunjiao has been hiding that she cannot get pregnant and is secretly treating her illness and taking medicine outside?"
Pei Zhixuan was stunned for a moment, "What did you say?"
"Xuan'er, Shen Yunjiao can't have children!" Madam Xu shouted.
Shen Yunjiao then turned her gaze to them. She saw a moment of confusion on Pei Zhixuan's beautiful and otherworldly face before he slowly raised his eyes to look at her.
His mouth opened and closed.
Shen Yunjiao's eyes widened instantly upon hearing his words.
Pei Zhixuan said:
"What's wrong with that?"
How could this spoiled brat be so indifferent? Isn't he the one who idolizes all those rules and regulations about ensuring the continuation of offspring?
“Xuan’er, how can this be indifferent? As the head of the household, if you can’t even give birth to a son or daughter, what right do you have to be the head of the family?” Madam Xu replied hastily.
“She makes a good point,” Shen Yunjiao suddenly said.
Everyone in the ancestral hall stared at the pale-faced, disheveled young mistress.
Her once smooth forehead was now covered in dust, and her neatly tied hair bun came undone as she struggled to break free.
But her eyes remained as bright as ever.
At that moment, Pei Zhixuan's heart skipped a beat.
But soon he heard Shen Yunjiao say in a distant tone:
“Pei Zhixuan, I really can’t have children. You have a good excuse to go to His Majesty and divorce me.”
Pei Zhixuan turned around and stared at her intently, his fingers slowly clenching, his brow furrowing as if covered in frost. "I will not use this as an excuse to divorce you."
?
Shen Yunjiao solemnly said, "Not bearing children is a great act of filial impiety and should be divorced. Pei Zhixuan, you must also think about the continuation of the Pei family line. I would rather be divorced than suffer such treatment from my mother-in-law because of this."
Xu said sarcastically, "I was just helping you, I didn't mean to mistreat you, but since you've said it..."
She looked at Pei Zhixuan and said, "Xuan'er, she loves to cause trouble and make a mess of things at home. Why don't we just sever our marital relationship today to prevent her from causing any more trouble?"
Pei Zhixuan pressed his lips together, his brooding gaze sweeping over everyone present.
He approached Shen Yunjiao, grabbed her wrist without saying a word, and swept her up in his arms.
Xu watched helplessly as her son walked to the door and hurriedly called out, "Xuan'er, are you going to forgive her?"
The sunlight streaming into the ancestral hall fell gently on the tall figure behind him. Pei Zhixuan said without turning his head, "Mother, I will not divorce my wife. There is no need to mention this matter again."
Madam Xu and Madam Pei were startled. Just as they were about to speak again, they heard Pei Zhixuan say in a deep voice, "Everyone present must keep their mouths shut about what happened today. Anyone who disobeys will be punished with fifty strokes of the cane!"
All the servants bowed their heads and replied, "Yes."
From Shen Yunjiao's angle, she could only see Pei Zhixuan's cold and hard jawline.
"I'll walk by myself..."
Pei Zhixuan ignored him, and carried him out of the house amidst the various gazes of the crowd, heading straight for Chunhe Courtyard.
—
Shen Yunjiao didn't want to shrink into the other person's arms, but the soles of her feet really hurt; the flames might have burned her tender flesh just now.
What an idiotic way to torture people!
The key question is, what's the deal with Pei Zhixuan, who suddenly appeared out of nowhere?
Shen Yunjiao was both angry and resentful; even after being burned, she still couldn't get divorced.
The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. In addition, she had caught a chill last night, and Shen Yunjiao's nose was slightly itchy, and even her eyes were red.
In Chunhe Courtyard, Fuxia was washing bamboo mats for summer when she saw the Crown Prince carrying a girl in his arms step through the door.
Fu Xia was overjoyed. She ran over, bowed, and hurriedly opened the door to the room.
Pei Zhixuan placed the person in his arms onto the sandalwood stool, but before he could make any other move, Shen Yunjiao suddenly asked, "Why did you help me?"
Freshly picked roses swayed in the breeze in the vase on the window table, bringing a faint fragrance.
As soon as Shen Yunjiao finished speaking, the room became so quiet that only her suppressed breathing could be heard. Fu Xia was about to step into the room when she heard this and immediately retreated.
Shen Yunjiao looked up at Pei Zhixuan. She hadn't been able to figure it out on the way here: "Before, we didn't mention divorce because we were thinking of our own families. But this time you have a perfectly legitimate reason, and you don't need to be afraid that His Majesty will punish you."
The Dayong Dynasty placed great importance on the continuation of the imperial lineage, and even the emperor himself was constantly dedicated to having children.
Shen Yunjiao thought that Pei Zhixuan would definitely divorce her, since he already disliked her.
Pei Zhixuan frowned slightly, his gaze falling on Shen Yunjiao's watery eyes and slightly red nose.
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