Thinking this way, Mu Wuyin stood up and said to the two people before him, “I’ll leave for a moment.”
“Alright.” Guessing he was going to find Li Shi, Taohua nodded. As she watched him leave the courtyard, she hugged Shen Zaiye’s waist and continued to act coquettishly, “You’re the best, my lord!”
Shen Zaiye chuckled, pinched her cheek, and led her into the room with his arm around her.
Mu Wuyin walked to his room, looked around to ensure no one was there, then headed toward Li shi’s room. He initially felt a strange sense of joy, but upon seeing the scene in the room, Mu Wuyin was stunned.
Li Shi was packing her belongings. Her long hair hung loose, looking dull and gray. She turned to grab some clothes nearby when she saw someone standing at the door, giving her a start.
“…What are you doing here?” she asked.
Mu Wuyin didn’t answer. He walked in, looked at the items in her hands, and asked in a deep voice, “Where do you plan to go?”
Pursing her lips, Li Shi smiled bitterly and held a strand of her hair in front of him. “My lord, look. I have white hair now.”
Slightly shaken, Mu Wuyin lowered his head. The grayish strands mixed among the black hair were indeed white!
“How did this happen?” He frowned, looking at her. “I’ve noticed you’ve been a bit off lately. So it’s because you’re aging.”
But how old was she? How could she be getting gray hair so early? There hadn’t been anything worrying her, had there? Could it be that she wasn’t eating or sleeping well?
Hearing his words, Li Shi’s eyes grew dimmer. She lowered her head and said, “Indeed, I’ve aged. My appearance has become quite ugly. My lord has always liked beautiful and charming women. If I continue to stay by your side, it would only be an annoyance. I thought it better to leave.”
“Leave?” Mu Wuyin was stunned. “Where could you go?”
Li Shi’s family had been implicated and exiled long ago. Besides here, she had no other home to go to.
“My lord need not worry,” Li Shi said. “I still have distant relatives. I can spend the rest of my life with them.”
Feeling somewhat irritated, Mu Wuyin said unhappily, “You’d rather depend on others than stay with me?”
How could she stay? With this appearance? Li Shi’s eyes reddened. He would eventually tire of her. Even if he kept her here out of momentary pity, he would soon welcome more young and beautiful women. She would continue to be his housekeeper, just like before, lonely, guarding an empty courtyard, waiting for someone who would never come.
It was better to leave now while he still thought fondly of her.
“My lord has many people to keep him company,” Li Shi said, lowering her eyes. “After all, the one you love most can never return to your side. As for the rest, it doesn’t matter who stays with you.”
“Are you still concerned about Jiang Taohua?” Mu Wuyin pressed his lips together. “She has her own life now, and she’s doing well. You said yourself she can never return to my side, so why do you still mind her?”
“It’s not that I mind,” Li Shi shook her head. “I’m just tired.”
She had struggled for so many years but couldn’t enter his heart. After working so hard to finally gain some of his affection, it still couldn’t compare to someone else passing by with a pregnant belly. He still had Jiang Taohua in his heart. As long as she was there, Li Shi could never enter. If she still had her former beauty, it might have been different, but now…
Unattractive women are always insecure. Li Shi forced a smile, took her belongings from his hands, and continued packing.
Mu Wuyin had known her for so long, always looking down on her from above while she remained humble in the dust. He had never tried to speak softly to her. Watching her pack leave, Mu Wuyin followed behind, not knowing what to say.
Should he ask her to stay? But his words earlier were already meant to make her stay, and she didn’t listen. Should he let her go? If she went to her relatives like this, wouldn’t she be bullied?
As they reached the door, Li Shi turned back to look at him, quietly waiting for a moment.
Mu Wuyin frowned, hesitating for a long time before asking, “Do you have enough money with you?”
“I do.” Li Shi let out a light chuckle, bowed deeply to him, then turned and left without looking back.
When Taohua and Shen Zaiye were having dinner, they didn’t see the other two. They sent Qing Tai to look for them, only to find Mu Wuyin crouching at the door.
“What’s wrong with Young Master Mu?” Jiang Taohua asked curiously, somewhat surprised. Mu Wuyin was crouching at the door, looking like a homeless child, yet also somewhat angry, as if sulking with someone.
What was going on?
Shen Zaiye was also puzzled. “What’s the matter with you?”
“She left,” Mu Wuyin said in a muffled voice. “Said she’s going to stay with relatives.”
“Li shi?” Taohua raised an eyebrow, looking at him. “If you can’t bear to part with her, why didn’t you go after her?”
“I…” Mu Wuyin was somewhat helpless. “What could I say if I caught up with her? She was determined to leave.”
Shaking her head repeatedly, Taohua said, “This shows you don’t understand women. When she said she wanted to leave, even if she hesitated for just a moment in front of you, you should have unhesitatingly held her back, firmly not letting her go!”
Stunned, Mu Wuyin turned to look at her. “How did you know she hesitated?”
“Is it hard to guess?” Taohua said. “How could a woman who likes you leave so nonchalantly? She must have been hoping you would stop her. But you… it seems you didn’t try to keep her.”
Throwing away the stone in his hand with frustration, Mu Wuyin pressed his lips together and said, “I did want to keep her. Couldn’t she see that?”
“Some things need to be said directly to be effective. Always making people guess can lead to overthinking,” Taohua said seriously. “As a man, you should speak your mind. If you like a girl, tell her clearly, then keep her by your side. What’s the use of regretting it now when you didn’t sincerely try to keep her?”
Suddenly enlightened, Mu Wuyin rushed into the house. Soon after, he came out with a bundle and said to them, “She left a while ago. It might be late when I catch up and bring her back. I might have to spend the night outside. You two make yourselves at home in this residence.”
With that, he disappeared in a whirlwind.
Shen Zaiye gazed deeply at his receding figure for a long time before turning his head to stare at the person beside him.
Feeling his intense gaze, Taohua looked at him puzzledly. “What is it?”
“I think I fell for you from the first moment I saw you at Hefengwu,” Shen Zaiye said very seriously. “So from now on, stay by my side and don’t leave, alright?”
Jiang Taohua: “…”
Her heart fluttered, feeling both sweet and sour. She turned away and mumbled, “Why did you suddenly bring this up, my lord?”
“Didn’t you just say it yourself?” Shen Zaiye said. “As a man, one should speak one’s mind.”
(End of Chapter)