Chapter 68: Divorce
Still a little worried, Yu Jianning asked one more question.
"Don't worry, I have my own way." Shu Wan said without much further explanation, "You go out of the city and wait for me first, I will meet you tomorrow! I hope no one will notice you when you come out!" Although Shu Wan stayed in the mansion, even she had heard the news that Yu Jianning was infected with the disease. Within an afternoon, the news spread throughout the streets and alleys, which showed how much people feared the plague.
Not only the Yu family, but even those who had contact with him in the City Lord's Mansion during the day are now in danger.
"No one will find out." Yu Jianning answered her.
"That's good!" Shu Wan pulled the corner of his mouth and smiled.
After Shu Wan got the evidence, he immediately sent a letter to the Emperor of Beishuo in the name of Zhao overnight and presented the evidence.
Zhao woke up after nightfall today. After waking up, she was still crying bitterly, but she did not fall down again. So Shu Wan felt relieved and her plan could go on smoothly.
Shu Wan was in charge of all affairs in the mansion all day long. Although he was given the task at a critical moment, he still managed things in an orderly manner. The housekeeper praised him but also sighed with regret.
Since Zhao was already awake, Shu Wan handed these matters over to her and didn't bother with them anymore.
"Miss, everything has been packed." Half an hour later, Chunhua pushed the door open and replied in a somewhat listless voice.
"Okay, you've worked hard. Go and have a rest. We'll leave tomorrow!" Shu Wan said to her.
"Yes, miss!" Chunhua responded with her head down.
Now that the son-in-law is dead, the master and his mistress will naturally not watch the young lady remain a widow in the Rong family for the son-in-law. But isn't it a bit bad for the young lady to leave now?
At least, we have to wait until the funeral of my brother-in-law before packing up and going home!
The next day was a rare good day with bright sunshine and clear sky.
Zhao forced herself to cheer up and take care of all matters.
Just after assigning tasks to the managers, Shu Wan came over.
"Wanwan, why are you here?" There was obvious fatigue and haggardness in Zhao's voice.
"Mother-in-law." Shu Wan called politely, "I have something I want to discuss with you." Shu Wan looked at the housekeepers in the mansion, then raised her voice slightly and spoke.
"If you have anything to say, just tell me Wanwan!" Looking at her daughter-in-law, Zhao felt mixed emotions.
"Logically speaking, my husband has just passed away, and I shouldn't talk about this at this time. But it is because he is gone that I have to say it!" Shu Wan spoke more tactfully, wanting to give Zhao some time to prepare herself mentally.
"What's the matter?" Zhao moved her lips, she had a vague guess in her mind.
"Then I won't beat around the bush." Shu Wan continued, "Rong Chen and I have been married for less than a month, and we have always been just husband and wife in name. Now that he has passed away unexpectedly, it is impossible for us to slowly cultivate our feelings. I am still young, and it is impossible for me to remain faithful to him for the rest of my life. So, please, mother-in-law, give me a letter of divorce on behalf of Rong Chen and set me free!" Shu Wan spoke word by word in a very slow tone. The more she spoke, the paler Zhao's face became.
Zhao moved her lips but said nothing in the end. She wanted to scold Shu Wan, but what Shu Wan said made sense. It was impossible for Shu Wan to remain a widow for the rest of her life. She had to go back to her parents' home. However, how could Shu Wan say that at this time?
He felt that Shu Wan was too cruel and heartless!
"I know it's too inhumane to say this now." Shu Wan knew what Zhao was thinking. "But, to be honest, there is no love between Rong Chen and I. We only got married at the behest of our parents. I am very sad about his death, but I definitely won't be a widow for him. No matter sooner or later, I have to write the divorce letter. Why not give it to me today? I will leave with my maid." Shu Wan's words were almost heartless.
"Okay..." After a long while, Zhao suppressed her impulse and said this word.
The stewards in the mansion who were still there stood there watching with their eyes and noses, but they all felt in their hearts that Shu Wan was too cold-blooded.
No matter what, you shouldn't leave before Rong Chen's body is cold. That would be too disheartening.
Alas, however, the two were originally in a marriage of arrangement, and it was only natural for Shu Wan to make the choice that was best for himself.
I can only say that fate plays tricks on us.
Zhao suppressed her grief and disappointment with Shu Wan, wrote a divorce letter in public, and then took her to the gate of the City Lord's Mansion.
"Miss Shu, my son passed away less than a month after you got married. My Rong family is not unkind. We cannot ruin your life. So, I have specially written a divorce letter on his behalf today to let you go back to your parents' home. From now on, you are no longer my Rong family's daughter-in-law. From now on, you are free to marry anyone you want." Zhao looked at Shu Wan and spoke word by word with a heavy tone and a very slow pace.
She didn't have the energy to scold Shu Wan, so she let her be.
Rong Yiyi stood beside Zhao with red eyes, looking at Shu Wan viciously.
"Shu Wan, you are such a heartless person!" She really wanted to rush up and beat Shu Wan up. "My brother just left, and you can't wait to leave. Has your conscience been eaten by a dog?"
"Thank you, Madam, for letting Shu Wan go!" Shu Wan ignored Rong Yiyi, and the accusations and whispers from the onlookers. "Madam, I will always remember your kindness. If there is anything I can do for you in the future, just let me know. I will do my best to help you." Shu Wan took the divorce letter and thanked them.
"I don't dare to trouble Miss Shu to work so hard." Zhao said coldly, "But if Miss Shu finds a good match in the future, don't forget to send me an invitation. I will go to your wedding." The sarcasm in Zhao's words was too obvious.
"Okay." Shu Wan pretended not to hear the hidden meaning in Zhao's words. "When the time comes, Shu Wan will come to the old lady's house in person to give her the wedding invitation." She smiled and did not feel any psychological burden at all because of Zhao's words.
Zhao was so angry that she almost couldn't hold it in, not to mention Rong Yiyi, she was so angry that her lungs were about to explode.
"Shu Wan, how can you be so shameless?" She pointed at Shu Wan and cursed, "My brother's body is still warm and you are saying such things here. Do you have any heart? I've told you before that you are not a good person?" Her tears rolled down and she felt really bad.
It's not worth it for Rong Chen! "Then what good are you?" Shu Wan sneered and asked back, "If your brother was still alive, I would have to live with him for the rest of my life, but he is dead now. Do you want me to continue living here? I am marrying him, not your City Lord's Mansion, or anyone in your Rong family. What? Do you mean that I should stay and be a widow or be buried with him? Whether I stay a few more days or a few less days, the result will be the same." Rong Yiyi's face was still as annoying as ever.
"You..." Rong Yiyi was so angry that he wanted to say something harsh, but he was a little speechless. It can be seen that his nose was smoking with anger.
At this time, the Shu family's carriage arrived, which was a full five taels in weight.
They came to pick up Shu Wan and move his dowry.
The carriages were parked in a row in front of the city lord's mansion, and then a dozen servants jumped out from them.
"Greetings, young lady!" The servants greeted Shu Wan in unison.
"Well, thank you for your hard work. Please go in and move my things out, and then we can go home!" Shu Wan smiled at them.
"Yes, Miss!" They said in unison again.
"Qiuyue, take them in." Shu Wan instructed Qiuyue again.
"As you command!" Qiuyue bowed and accepted the order, then went in with ten servants.
More and more people gathered in front of the mansion. Everyone wanted to see how the wedding that had shocked the whole city more than half a month ago had turned into a joke.
Zhao gritted her teeth and watched the servants of the Shu Mansion carry out boxes of things. It was not that she coveted these things, but Shu Wan's behavior was really hard to understand.
The Rong family wouldn't eat her, so why should she run so fast? Shu Wan just pretended not to see it and let the people in the city comment on her.
Anyway, the original owner's reputation was not very good, and this action just fits the character. "Hey, be careful, those are my favorite pair of carved screens." Shu Wan couldn't help but remind them, and his voice was very loud.
"Put it gently, put it gently. That is the work of a famous painter from the previous dynasty. It is a one-of-a-kind piece. You can't afford the compensation if you damage it!" After a while, she chattered again.
Everyone was really speechless. Why would this person look so nonchalant when her husband died?
That's right, if she was even a little sad, she wouldn't have packed her bags and gone back to her parents' home in such a high-profile manner.
What a heartless thing! Zhao looked at Shu Wan coldly, wondering why she would marry such a woman to her son.
Moreover, after Rong Chen went out this time, he came to find her specially and asked her to keep an eye on Rong Yiyi and not let her really make Shu Wan angry.
Between the lines, she was unconsciously defending Shu Wan. As a bystander, she could see her son's attitude towards Shu Wan.
It was a wrong payment after all!
The servants of the Shu family worked for half an hour to load all of Shu Wan's dowry onto the carriage. The carriage, which had been empty when it came, was now filled to the brim and could not accommodate any more items.
"Goodbye, old lady." Shu Wan then looked at Zhao and said goodbye, "Old lady, you must take good care of yourself. Hope may come true!" After thinking for a while, she finally said this ambiguously.
This is all she could remind Zhao! Zhao said nothing.
Shu Wan did not stay any longer, and left in a mighty manner with a dozen servants and several large carriages.
When her carriage completely disappeared around the corner, the discussion among the crowd suddenly became louder.
"Miss Shu's behavior is totally inappropriate. After something like this happened to the city lord, she left impatiently. This is totally unacceptable!" Someone expressed dissatisfaction loudly.
"Yeah, this is a bit too hasty. You should at least wait for the city lord to be buried in peace!" someone else said.
"But what the person just said is right. The person is gone, so it makes no difference whether you stay or not. It's better to leave early to avoid sadness." This was said by a woman.
"She can't be so happy. Looking at her like that, someone who doesn't know would think there's some happy event. There's clearly no sadness on her face!" The others immediately retorted.
"Hey, isn't this reasonable? Have you forgotten that Miss Shu was trying to commit suicide before and refused to marry here? Now she can divorce openly and return to her parents' home. How could she be unhappy?"
"Yes, now that you mention it, doesn't Miss Shu have a childhood sweetheart? Look at how happy she is. Tsk tsk, I think it won't be long before the two of them have good news."
"These are none of our business! Just watch the fun!"
"That's right..."
“Yes, yes, yes…”
Zhao listened to what these people said, said nothing, and turned around to go in.
"Mom, look, Shu Wan obviously did it on purpose. She hopes something happens to my brother so she can leave!" Rong Yiyi couldn't keep her cool, unlike Zhao, who showed nothing on her face.
"What do you mean by intentional? Could she have known that something would happen to your brother?" Zhao scolded Rong Yiyi, "If you say something like this again, I won't forgive you!"
In order not to make her angry, the latter forced himself not to speak! The news that Shu Wan left the City Lord's Mansion as soon as Rong Chen got into trouble spread like wildfire.
There were all kinds of things said, but the one people talked about the most was her and Li Zihao.
The two had a deep entanglement before, and people were looking forward to seeing whether Shu Wan and Li Zihao would get engaged and married.
Most people believed it! Including Li Zihao himself, he felt that Shu Wan must have come for him, and in order to let him see her attitude, she packed up and came back without stopping! He was thinking about the huge family business of the Shu family again. No, to be precise, he had always coveted it, but he became more and more anxious in the past two days.
He changed into a set of clothes that he thought would charm everyone he saw, and then prepared to go to Shu's house to find Shu Wan.
But he was stopped by Shu Er Niang.
"My son, you can't go!" Shu Erniang scolded with a bit of disappointment.
"Why, mother, this is a golden opportunity. Shu Wan must still be thinking about me. If I go to find her now, she will definitely be so moved that she will forget everything else. Isn't it just that she will take as much silver as I ask for?" Li Zihao didn't understand why his mother stopped him.
"You are stupid. Shu Wan is naturally eager for you to go find her right now." Shu Er Niang said with a smug look on her face, "But if you go up to her now, isn't it telling her that you like her very much? Won't she take the opportunity to control you? In my opinion, you should leave her alone for a few days, and then show up when she is extremely anxious. The effect will definitely be ten thousand times better than if you rush over now!"
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
