Chapter 27 First Meeting After the Turmoil...
Yan Yize recovered from her illness in just two days, thanks to her martial arts training since childhood, which made her much healthier than the average person.
The snow is heavy again today, and I don’t know if it will be like this tomorrow. She stood with her hands behind her back, quietly by the window. Although her eyes were on the snow, she kept getting distracted. Clearly, her mind was not on the snowstorm in front of her.
Listening to the sound of wind and snow outside the window, Yan Yize's thoughts were racing. Five days had passed since that night, and in these days, she had been trying to forget things related to him, but only she knew whether she had truly forgotten.
Yan Yize's eyelids twitched slightly, but she remained staring blankly outside. Half a month ago, she had agreed to participate in this year's sacrificial ceremony, and the ceremony was in two days. She estimated that the imperial edict would arrive today.
If she were to go, Shang Xu, as her husband, should naturally go with her. At this time, she should inform him, but she had just wronged him and told him about the divorce. She hadn't figured out how to face him yet.
"We'll get a divorce after the New Year." Yan Yize thought of this sentence, and his eyes darkened for a moment. It wouldn't be long after the sacrifice, and the end of the year would come. Would they really get a divorce then?
Yan Yize hesitated, suddenly feeling uncertain. In terms of facts, Shang Xu had not done anything wrong, and it was inappropriate for her to divorce him, but she had already said it.
As the old saying goes, a word once spoken cannot be taken back.
After some deep thought, Yan Yize raised his hand to rub his forehead, then turned around. This couldn't go on forever; he would eventually have to see him.
Stepping outside, she held up her umbrella and walked slowly toward the villa where Shang Xu lived. Snow was falling heavily, and the umbrella was soon covered with a layer of snow. After hesitating for a moment, she asked, "How has he been these past few days?"
Hui Xue followed at a distance, neither too close nor too far. When she heard the question, she quickened her pace and moved closer to her, making sure that her voice wouldn't be drowned out by the howling wind and snow. She replied, "Young Master Shang is not acting strangely except for his reluctance to go out."
After Hui Xue finished speaking, she paused for a moment. Seeing that she had no further instructions, she continued, "Young Master Shang did not accept any of the items or people that His Highness sent. He returned them all untouched."
Upon hearing this, Yan Yize frowned quickly. Confiscated? Why not? Did he dislike the gift she gave him, or did he still harbor resentment towards her? She was more inclined to believe the latter, but it was understandable that he might have resentment, since she was in the wrong first.
Yan Yize looked up and gazed ahead. At the end of the road, a villa was faintly visible in the wind and snow. The hand holding the umbrella subtly shifted back a little, and without the umbrella's cover, the complete villa appeared before her eyes.
She gazed at the villa, lost in thought. It had only been a few days since they last met, but seeing it again felt like a lifetime had passed, as if she hadn't been there for a long time. Yan Yize lowered her eyes, concealing the complex emotions within them.
These past few days, when she ate dinner alone, she would often think of him. She would subconsciously look up, only to find the room empty, which made her very uncomfortable. Yan Yize didn't want to admit it, but she had to admit that in just a few days, she had gotten used to his presence.
Habits are a terrible thing; they can make you fall into them without you even realizing it.
As they walked, the villa drew near. Looking at this place he had visited several times before, Yan Yize unconsciously clenched his hand holding the umbrella, and his breathing became erratic without him realizing it.
She stepped into the courtyard and walked straight to a tightly closed door. Yan Yize raised her hand but did not knock immediately. Her eyes were dark and her fingers, suspended in mid-air, were clenched into fists, as if she was struggling with something. After a moment, she moved. Her clenched fingers relaxed, and her knuckles fell on the door. She knocked lightly, making a rhythmic "tap-tap" sound.
Inside the room, Shang Xu was staring blankly at Chun Jianlan, doing nothing and thinking nothing, his face expressionless, but with an inescapable melancholy between his brows and eyes.
The sudden knock on the door interrupted his reverie. Shang Xu looked up, glanced at her without any emotion, then looked down at Chun Jianlan. After pausing for about five or six seconds, he finally spoke, "Come in."
Yan Yize stood quietly at the door with his eyes lowered. The silence made her heart leap into her throat until his familiar voice suddenly rang out. Only then did her heart, which had been hanging in mid-air, return to reality, and she breathed a sigh of relief silently.
As she was about to enter, various reasons made her hesitate, but after some hesitation, she finally pushed open the door and went inside.
Avoiding problems won't solve anything; you'll always have to face them.
Shang Xu didn't look up, assuming the person who came was a servant from his household. Since he had stopped going out, people would come in every now and then, and he had gotten used to it, so he didn't care.
The person had been standing there for a long time without leaving. Shang Xu belatedly sensed that something was wrong. In the past few days, he would come in and leave after just a quick look. Why was he standing there for so long today? He belatedly turned around.
The figure that had troubled him for days was now right in front of him. Shang Xu was startled, his pupils contracted sharply, and he stood up in a panic. The figure in front of him overlapped with the figure that had coldly left in his mind.
His memory returned to that night: suffocation, pain, and helplessness. She didn't believe him and wanted a divorce. Her fingertips dug into his flesh despite the pain, and his heart throbbed with pain.
Has she come to punish him? Shang Xu's face paled, and sadness welled up in his eyes. He couldn't resist being punished, but he would never admit to something he hadn't done. After a moment of silence, he pursed his dry lips and said dejectedly, "Your Highness, I never did it."
Yan Yize silently observed him, noticing that his already slender figure had become even thinner. In an instant, she felt an indescribable heaviness in her heart. Hearing his words, she nodded, "I know."
After thinking for a moment, she added, "I've had someone check, and it's definitely not related to you."
Shang Xu suddenly raised his head, his eyes filled with surprise, disbelief, and shock, but nothing else. He should be happy that his injustice had been cleared, but now he only felt pain. Her distrust hurt him, and her cold back and the words of divorce that slipped out of her mouth were like a thousand arrows piercing his heart.
Neither of them spoke again, and the room fell silent. Yan Yize knew that she should say something about her actions, but she moved her lips and couldn't utter a word.
Over the years, Yan Zhaoxi had treated her well, finding her the two most powerful masters in the world. The masters taught her martial arts, the art of governing a country, and how to manipulate power, but they never taught her what to do when she made a mistake.
"Why did you confiscate those things?" Yan Yize asked abruptly after a long silence. "Did you not like them?"
Shang Xu hesitated and shook his head; he still knew the principle of not accepting rewards without merit.
"Since it's not, then accept it."
This time, after some consideration, Shang Xu accepted, "Okay."
She didn't mention divorce, so it seemed like it was a done deal. Since that was the case, he should start planning for himself. With money in hand, he could find other places to go even if he didn't return to the Shang family.
The room fell silent once more. Yan Yize looked at him, hesitant to speak, and then explained the reason for their visit: "You will come with me to the sacrificial ceremony in a few days."
"I see."
Shang Xu had no objection; it was simply his duty.
"Then I'm leaving." Yan Yize looked at him, feeling a strange sense of unease. Everything was the same as before, but she just felt that something had changed.
"good."
In the past, Shang Xu would have definitely gotten up to see him off, but this time, he didn't make any move.
He was delusional before; now he should wake up.
A note from the author:
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