The words “Chen Meimei” had been etched in Li Rui’s mind for a long time. Since she hadn’t encountered any “Chen Meimei” for so long, she had managed to suppress her suspicions. Little did she know that today she would finally understand it wasn’t “Chen Meimei” at all, but “Cheng Meimei.”
Li Rui immediately exploded, “What Cheng Meimei? That’s your Second Sister-in-law. You two are truly shameless!” Li Rui shouted furiously, her spittle flying onto Shen Jing’s face. “I was wondering why you’ve been so cold towards me. So it turns out you’ve been pining for your Second Sister-in-law. You adulterous couple, have you no shame? Come on, let’s go to the Old Matriarch and sort this out!”
Li Rui cried and cursed simultaneously, forcefully pulling Shen Jing towards the door.
Shen Jing thought Li Rui was acting like a madwoman. “This is absurd!” He forcefully shook off her grip, causing Li Rui to fall to the ground. Although Shen Jing felt somewhat guilty due to his admiration for Ji Cheng, he knew he had done nothing wrong and had no improper relationship with her. Moreover, if he showed any weakness now, Li Rui would surely believe he was truly guilty.
Therefore, Shen Jing righteously rebuked Li Rui, “What nonsense are you spouting? My second Sister-in-law is gravely ill, and I went to check on her. How does that become me pining for my sister-in-law in your mind? Is your heart so filthy that you assume everyone else is the same?”
Li Rui felt utterly wrong, yet she was still being scolded by Shen Jing. She remained sitting on the ground, crying and making a scene. “My heart is filthy? Shen Jing, do you have any conscience left? How dare you scold me after what you’ve done?”
Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, Nanny Lan quickly stepped forward to help Li Rui up. “The Master is right, Young Madam. Please don’t overthink this. Second Young Madam is so ill she’s barely recognizable. The Master merely went to check on her.”
But Li Rui was far from rational. Ever since marrying Shen Jing, she had been captivated by his handsome appearance and gentle nature, dedicating her heart entirely to him. She couldn’t bear the thought of him having feelings for anyone else. “Nonsense! Her illness is probably just lovesickness from her affair with her brother-in-law.”
“Your mouth is truly filthy. Your mother should take you back and teach you some manners,” Shen Jing trembled with anger.
“My mouth is filthy? At least it’s not as dirty as your heart,” Li Rui shouted, pushing Nanny Lan away and lunging at Shen Jing.
Shen Jing slapped Li Rui across the face. “You’ve completely lost your mind.”
Li Rui was stunned by the slap, holding her face in disbelief. “You hit me?!”
“Not only did I hit you, but I’m also going to divorce you. A woman with such a loose tongue should have been divorced long ago. Insulting me is one thing, but now you’re slandering my Second Sister-in-law, making up stories, and sowing discord. You’ve truly gone mad,” Shen Jing declared.
Nanny Lan quickly stepped between Shen Jing and Li Rui. “Master! Even if the Young Madam is in the wrong, you shouldn’t have raised your hand!”
Nanny Lan turned to examine Li Rui’s face, which had already swollen to the size of a bun, indicating the force of the slap.
Li Rui’s tears flowed like rain. “Divorce? Fine! I’ve wanted to separate from you for a long time. But before that, we need to get everything out in the open. Is it my fault, or is it you and Second Sister-in-law committing adultery?”
Hearing the word “adultery,” Shen Jing moved to slap Li Rui again, but Nanny Lan quickly blocked his hand. “Master!”
Realizing it was pointless to argue with a woman, Shen Jing turned to leave, saying, “Do as you please. But make no mistake, I will divorce you.”
Upon hearing this, Li Rui broke down completely. No one could stop her as she ran crying towards the Old Matriarch’s Ruiying Hall.
Shen Qian had just gotten married yesterday, and many guests were still present. As Li Rui ran through Qing Garden crying, everyone looked at her in astonishment.
Li Rui paid no attention to them. She only knew that she had suffered a great injustice and needed to find a place to seek redress.
As soon as Li Rui entered Ruiying Hall, she cried out, “Old Matriarch, Old Matriarch, you must uphold justice for me!”
The Old Matriarch quickly asked, “My goodness, what’s the matter, Arui?”
Although Li Rui had lost all reason, she noticed the guests in the hall and refrained from making a scene, instead crying continuously.
Seeing this, the female guests quickly took their leave.
The Old Matriarch then gently comforted Li Rui, “What’s wrong? Has Ajing wronged you? Tell me if you have any grievances. If he’s bullied you, I’ll be the first to punish him.”
Li Rui finally spoke through her tears, “The Master, he and his Second Sister-in-law are having an improper relationship. Last night, when Aqian got married and no one was paying attention to him, he snuck off to Nine Li Courtyard to see his Second Sister-in-law.”
Li Rui’s words were truly malicious, turning a normal situation into a secret tryst between lovers. But why was she so certain about Ji Cheng and Shen Jing’s relationship?
This was because everyone knew that Shen Che had been neglecting Ji Cheng. Li Rui had assumed that Ji Cheng, lonely in her chambers, couldn’t resist seducing her younger brother-in-law. Perhaps Shen Che was cold towards such a beautiful woman as Ji Cheng because he knew something about this affair.
Upon hearing Li Rui’s words, the Old Matriarch narrowed her eyes and gave Cloud Jin a look. Cloud Jin immediately left to dismiss the idle onlookers in the courtyard.
Li Rui continued sobbing, “I merely said a few words to him, and he hit me.” She turned her swollen cheek towards the Old Matriarch.
The Old Matriarch’s voice was no longer gentle, but calm and cold, “Arui, do you realize how serious the consequences of what you’re saying are?”
Li Rui was taken aback. She hadn’t considered the consequences; she only knew that Shen Jing wanted to divorce her, and she couldn’t care about anything else.
“Do you have any evidence of their improper relationship?” the Old Matriarch asked. “I visited Cheng Girl just yesterday morning. She can’t even eat or drink now and is only kept alive by life-prolonging pills. How could she have been meeting with Ajing last night, as you claim?”
Li Rui was stunned again. She knew Ji Cheng was very ill but had no idea it was this serious. She had assumed Ji Cheng was just pretending to be sick to avoid work. Thinking it unlucky to visit a sick person, she had only sent Nanny Lan to check on Ji Cheng at Nine Li Courtyard, never going herself.
The Old Matriarch could tell from Li Rui’s expression that she had no proof. In this world, the truth always comes out eventually. Among the hundreds of people in the Shen family, there had never been any rumors about Ji Cheng and Shen Jing. Not even the slightest hint of impropriety had ever been associated with Ji Cheng.
Ji Cheng, aware that her beauty made her an easy target for criticism, had always been extremely careful to maintain proper distance from her brothers-in-law. No unsavory rumors had ever circulated about her.
Moreover, the Old Matriarch trusted Ji Cheng’s character. It wasn’t favoritism; she simply couldn’t imagine Ji Cheng abandoning Shen Che for Shen Jing. That would be utterly foolish.
“Old Matriarch, you don’t believe me?” Li Rui cried, unable to believe that the Old Matriarch wouldn’t take her side.
The Old Matriarch was truly annoyed with Li Rui, and it reminded her of Ji Lan. Her third daughter-in-law had never done anything good and now look at the wife she had chosen for Shen Jing – someone who would make such serious accusations without any evidence, seemingly eager to spread slander everywhere.
“Arui, I’ve already said this is a very serious matter. How can I believe you without any evidence? Even to catch a thief, you need proof,” the Old Matriarch said.
Li Rui cried, “I’m not making this up, Old Matriarch. The Master was drunk and called out ‘Cheng Meimei’ in the middle of the night. I didn’t know he was referring to Second Sister-in-law at first, but he admitted it today.”
The Old Matriarch was shocked to hear that Shen Jing still harbored feelings for Ji Cheng. A few years ago, when Ji Cheng was living in the Shen residence, Shen Jing had indeed shown some special attention to his cousin. However, there had never been any impropriety between them, as Shen Jing spent most of his time studying at Dongshan Academy. The Old Matriarch was clear about this. She just hadn’t expected that after so many years, Shen Jing still had Ji Cheng in his heart.
“These are all your one-sided words. If you’re going to accuse them both, you should have them here to confront each other. Acheng is probably too ill to come, so you can say what you want about her. I’ll summon Ajing to question him,” the Old Matriarch said.
Shen Jing arrived quickly. The Old Matriarch repeated Li Rui’s accusations, and Shen Jing felt like he could kill Li Rui. “I had been drinking last night and passed by Nine Li Courtyard. Thinking about how gravely ill my Second Sister-in-law was, with even Imperial Physician Lin at a loss, I worried I might not see her again. We are cousins after all, so I went up to see her. Li Rui is making a fuss over nothing. She doesn’t even care to inquire about her Second Sister-in-law’s illness, showing no familial affection. Yet when I go to see her, she accuses me of adultery. Old Matriarch, I also ask you to do me justice. What family would want such a daughter-in-law?”
The Old Matriarch sighed, “I visited Cheng girl yesterday morning too. Poor child.” The Old Matriarch’s eyes welled up at the mention of Ji Cheng. After all these years together, and with Ji Cheng being so well-behaved, the bond between grandmother and granddaughter-in-law had grown quite deep.
Li Rui quickly realized that the Old Matriarch didn’t believe her at all and was protecting her grandson. “Why don’t you mention that you were drunk and called out ‘Cheng Meimei’ in the middle of the night?”
Shen Jing responded seriously, “I don’t even know what I said in the middle of the night. You’re just making things up. I’ve never met a woman like you before. Are you only happy when you can accuse me of having an affair with my Second Sister-in-law?”
“That’s not true,” Li Rui began to cry again, no longer sure what she wanted. Even if she won, what good would it do? Ji Cheng was already on her deathbed, and her relationship with Shen Jing would be irreparably damaged. If she lost, she would look even worse.
The Old Matriarch said, “Arui, I’ll say it again: to catch a thief, you need proof. You’re in the wrong today. Your Second Sister-in-law is already so ill. What are you trying to achieve by causing such a scene? Think carefully about what I’ve said. In the hundred years of our Shen family’s history, we’ve never had such a scandal. Don’t go spreading baseless rumors just because you feel like it.” The Old Matriarch then turned to Shen Jing, “And you, even if your wife is in the wrong, you can just tell her off. Why did you have to hit her? The men in our family are not allowed to beat their wives.”
Shen Jing replied, “Old Matriarch, you don’t know how offensive her words were. She’s always suspicious and paranoid.”
“Alright, alright. Ajing, I’m not just saying this, but don’t focus solely on your work at the Hanlin Academy. You should spend more time with Arui,” the Old Matriarch began to mediate between them.
Shen Jing remained silent. He truly didn’t want to continue his life with Li Rui, but he was afraid that any rumors might reach Ji Cheng’s ears and worsen her condition.
Li Rui, having failed to gain support from the Old Matriarch, couldn’t quell her anger. In her mind, Shen Jing was clearly in the wrong, but in the Old Matriarch’s eyes, she was the one making a fuss over nothing. She regretted that Ji Cheng was ill; otherwise, she would have gone to confront her directly.
As soon as Li Rui left Ruiying Hall, she encountered Nanny Lan, who had been waiting for her.
“What did the Old Matriarch say?” Nanny Lan asked.
“What could she say? Of course, she’s protecting her grandson,” Li Rui replied.
Nanny Lan had anticipated this outcome. “Young Madam, please try to be more at ease. How could the Master possibly have an affair with Second Young Madam? I watch the Master every day, and he’s not that kind of person. Second Young Madam is also a very proper lady. You must have misheard something.”
Li Rui said, “I did not mishear. He has someone else in his heart. I won’t argue with them now, but when Second Brother returns, I’ll tell him everything and have him discipline his wife properly.”
“That won’t do, that won’t do,” Nanny Lan said urgently. “This matter cannot be blown out of proportion. If it gets too big, you and the Master’s relationship will be beyond repair.”
Li Rui knew this herself. She was just waiting for Shen Jing to come and apologize to her. These words were meant for Shen Jing, who had just left Ruiying Hall and was passing by them.
Hearing this, Shen Jing only gave Li Rui a cold look before walking away.
Over in Iron Hat Alley, Ji Lan had already received news of their quarrel and was cursing these two troublemakers in her heart, wondering why they could never be at peace.
As soon as Shen Jing returned, Ji Lan called out to him, “What’s going on with you two now? You’re parents now, how can you still be fighting like children every few days?”