On the night of Mingyi’s grand wedding, Zhou Zihong rushed back to Chaoyang New City.
He deliberately chose a route that would pass by the Xu family’s gate, with the carriage moving slowly. Just by opening the window, he could see the candlelight seeping through the walls of the Xu family compound.
However, after circling twice, he still couldn’t bring himself to get out of the carriage.
Everyone has their flaws, and he was no exception. Previously, Lady Xu had been the one eagerly pursuing him, and he had grown accustomed to this dynamic over seven years. Suddenly having to lower his head felt awkward, his neck stiff with pride.
Thus, he intentionally parked the carriage outside the side gate, expecting that she would have heard the news and come out happily to meet him.
Yet, after an incense stick had burned out, and even after an hour had passed, not only had Lady Xu not appeared, but none of her maids had come out either.
Zhou Zihong felt bewildered.
In just half a year, without any earth-shattering events, how had seven years of affection between them been completely erased?
He sent someone to inquire, wanting to know if Lady Xu had found a new love interest during these six months.
“No,” Siqi reported back.
His heart suddenly lightened. He pinched his collar, only then realizing that he did care about her after all.
Lady Xu was a pampered young lady who had also worked at the Casting Tower. She disliked the idea of arranged marriages, wanting only to marry her true love, even if it meant she had to take the initiative. After all, in Chaoyang City, it was now acceptable for women to propose marriage to men.
She was confident and vibrant, without the heavy burdens that Mingyi carried. Yet, she had her compassion for the world, often helping other women at the Casting Tower and using her spare money to open porridge stalls for refugees.
When Zhou Zihong looked at her, he occasionally caught glimpses of Mingyi’s shadow in the sunlight.
He thought he had treated her as a substitute for Mingyi, projecting some of his feelings onto her. But upon careful reflection, it wasn’t quite so. Even if she wasn’t like Mingyi, he wouldn’t have objected to her staying by his side.
Lady Xu was very considerate, so much so that knowing he didn’t love her, she voluntarily drank contraceptive potions after their encounters. So considerate that knowing his heart was tied to the palace, she repeatedly wrote greeting memorials to the palace in her capacity as a noble lady.
Such a person, once said to be unloved, was truly unloved.
The night dew was heavy, and he couldn’t help but cough twice in the carriage.
Suddenly, the side gate opened, and Lady Xu’s maid came out, curtsying to him: “My Lord, you are an important official of the court. If your carriage stays here too long, it might invite gossip. Our young miss doesn’t wish to see you. Please, may I suggest you leave?”
Zhou Zihong frowned: “Can’t we even exchange a few words?”
The maid shook her head, giving him a deep look: “The young miss says that after seven years, everything that needed to be said has been said. There’s no need to leave anything for now.”
“The young miss also says that your presence here now is not because you have her in your heart, but because she was once good to you. What you cherish is the kindness, not her.”
Zhou Zihong was stunned.
He had once, on his wedding day, gotten off his carriage and said that what Mingyi liked was gentleness and consideration, not Zhou Zihong himself.
That day, he had been heartbroken and deeply saddened.
He never expected to hear the same words now from Lady Xu.
“I…” he finally lowered his head, “It was my fault, but I don’t just cherish your young miss’s kindness.”
Lady Xu was a vivid person; how could she only have good qualities? She had a basketful of flaws too. For instance, her body was truly delicate, turning red for half a day with just a light pinch. Her temperament was unrestrained, often lost composure in front of others. And she talked too much, able to argue with him all day long.
But still, he wanted her to come back. At worst, he would take better care of her in the future. At worst, he would never again mention how her parents spoiled her.
However, the maid in front of him just gave a light laugh and said, “The master and mistress have arranged a marriage for the young miss, and she has agreed. I hope my Lord will be magnanimous and let our young miss go.”
His heart constricted, and Zhou Zihong’s face darkened: “Whose family is she betrothed to?”
“That’s not for my Lord to concern himself with. Please, my Lord, take your leave.”
This wouldn’t do. When Lady Xu had merely left him, he had only felt lonely. But the thought of her marrying another, spending her days and nights with someone else, felt like a thousand arrows piercing his heart.
Zhou Zihong followed the maid out of the carriage, for the first time wanting to forcefully enter someone’s residence, disregarding all etiquette.
However, he didn’t possess Yuan Power and was quickly stopped by the household guards.
“My Lord must have had too much to drink and lost his way,” said an experienced old matron, immediately ordering several guards with Yuan Power to hold him and forcefully put him back in his carriage, sending it back to the gate of his mansion.
Lady Xu, hearing the commotion from the inner courtyard, cried until she could barely breathe.
Her parents were in the main hall, looking at her with concern. Having a daughter in their old age, how could Lady Xu’s mother bear to see her daughter so heartbroken? She immediately went forward, patting her shoulder and back: “If you really can’t let go, I’ll cancel the engagement with the Song family. You can still go back to him.”
“No,” Lady Xu cried loudly, refusing without hesitation, “After all these years, I’m crying because I’m angry at myself for being weak, nothing else.”
She wiped her tears and looked at her mother with red eyes: “The Song boy has waited for me for so many years. I don’t want to hurt him anymore. I said I’d marry him, so I will.”
With that, she continued to cry loudly.
The Xu couple were caught between laughter and tears by her behavior.
Their family and the Song family were neighbors, so nothing could be kept secret. But when Zhou Zihong was here, the Song boy didn’t come to interfere. Only after Zhou was sent away did he come knocking.
Lady Xu, her eyes red from crying, turned her head and said, “I don’t want to see him.”
“What look of yours haven’t I seen before?” the Song boy entered, holding ten strings of glistening candied haws in his hand.
Lady Xu was stunned. She took them and bit into one, her tears flowing even more fiercely: “How did you know I wanted to eat these?”
“We’ve grown up together since we were little. What don’t I know about what you want?” The Song boy rolled his eyes, “Eat quickly, my lady. If you cry anymore, you’ll scare the birds out of the sky, and I’ll have to go apologize to the mother birds.”
What mother birds…
Lady Xu broke into laughter through her tears, munching on the candied haws. The Xu couple watched from the side, finally breathing a sigh of relief.
The couple chose the nearest date to get married, without inviting too many outsiders, naturally not informing Zhou Zihong either.
However, Lady Xu saw what it was like for a proper man to take a wife. The Song boy, a rascal since childhood, climbed over her family’s wall that day, hurriedly picking her up and carrying her away.
Lady Xu scolded him for not knowing the rules while laughing, but firmly held onto his neck.
Zhou Zihong was still trying to find a way when he saw Lady Xu on the road, her hair done up in a new bride’s style.
He stopped his carriage in shock, and she also paused, smiling and curtsying to him: “Greetings, my Lord.”
Lord Zhou was now the most influential person in Chaoyang City. With Mingyi far away in the palace, he was even more like a city lord.
However, today, Zhou Zihong sat in his carriage watching her walk past, unable to do anything.
It’s alright, he consoled himself. Perhaps she wasn’t wrong; he truly just wanted someone to be good to him. With his status, what kind of woman couldn’t he find?
But as the carriage continued forward, Zhou Zihong still felt the pain of his heart constricting.
Lady Xu’s cheeks were filled with smiles as she approached her husband, who had come to meet her in the sunlight not far away.
He sat in his tall carriage, quietly driving towards the solemn inner courtyard of the main city.