Ruan was worried and wanted to go with the Cao family to check on them, but her carriage was stopped by a servant from the Ji family as soon as it entered the city. So Ji Meiniang and Ruan parted ways at the city gate and returned to their respective residences.
Cao Xinqian knew that he was going to the mountain to offer incense today. He was off duty today and went out early in the morning to meet with his colleagues. Xiao Liu returned during lunchtime and told Ji Meiniang that when his master didn't come back for lunch, Ji Meiniang and Xiang Wan were almost full. Xiao Liu forced a smile as he left, and Xiang Wan could imagine the extent of his inner turmoil.
"Mother, is what we're doing not a good thing?"
Xiang Wan said this on purpose, just to see Ji Meiniang's reaction.
To everyone's surprise, Ji Meiniang seemed not to hear her, and continued eating her meal with elegant posture, while simultaneously instructing Xiang Wan on "not to speak while eating or sleeping."
Xiang Wan knew that Ji Meiniang was angry, angry that her daughter had laid bare her wounds. Xiang Wan felt guilty about it, but she had no choice but to do it.
Rather than clinging to a marriage fraught with calculation from the very beginning, it's better to cut ties decisively. If the wound beneath the surface isn't removed early, it will only fester and grow larger, eventually eroding the bone marrow and damaging the very foundation.
Only by severing Ji Meiniang's last shred of hope can she be transformed and freed from the burdens of the Cao family.
After eating, Xiang Wan asked Zijuan to brew a pot of tea, and she poured a cup for herself and Ji Meiniang.
"Mother, the new tea after the rain is so vibrant and fresh, and the tea leaves picked right away retain the most mellow flavor. Bamboo shoots sprout after the rain, breaking through and standing tall again, which shows that nothing in this world is immortal. But I like tea, not bamboo shoots. Do you want to know why?"
Ji Meiniang sipped her tea, her eyes lowered, and remained silent.
Xiang Wan continued, "If new bamboo shoots grow by absorbing nutrients from their mother, I would rather destroy them all."
Caught off guard, Ji Meiniang's teacup trembled and spilled sideways between her legs.
Looking up again, Xiang Wan saw the complexity in Ji Meiniang's eyes, which finally returned to calm.
This time, Xiang Wan clearly saw that the confusion in her eyes had disappeared.
That's good. Without that last lingering attachment, she believed that Ji Meiniang would make a decision soon.
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