The man that came in was young, but his stature was taller than his peers. Coupled with a good face, a grim expression and mocking sight, Shen Yunqing, who was kneeling on the ground, bowed his head in shame.
Before his parents could say anything, he first said, âBrother Heng, I know I have wronged your sister. But itâs a new society now, and we sons should focus more on how to serve our country, rather than being stuck in the old feudal customsâŠâ
âIn that case, Young Master Shenâs so-called service to the country is to abandon his wife who had just given birth to a child?â Lin Shiheng didnât wait for him to finish. He rushed to say, âLet me ask you, our Miss Fang has been married to you for 5 years. Has she ever done anything wrong to provoke Young Master Shen and force you to abandon her when she had just given birth?â
Shen Yunqing was a little annoyed. Lin Shiheng, who used to be gentle, was so unreasonable now, but he still answered, âLicheng is all right, but she still has the feudal way of thinking, and is illiterate. If I stay with her, I have nothing to talk about.â
âHeh, nothing to talk about?â
Lin Shiheng looked at Shen Yunqing, who was still kneeling on the ground, from a high position, âI heard you say at the door that you didnât want to accept this marriage in the first place, right?â
Shen Yunqing leaned back and kneeled upright, âYes. Brother Heng, I know that I have wronged her, but marriage is to be a pair for a lifetime. If Iâm forced to be together with her, none of us would be happy.â
âGood! Together for a lifetime!â
Lin Shiheng laughed angrily and kicked the stool in front of him.
âSince you didnât want to marry my Sister when you got married, why didnât you object? Why didnât you tell Uncle? Why did you let the family set the marriage contract without doing anything? Before the two families set the marriage contract, it was your Shen family who first came to ask for our Miss Fangâs hand in marriage, and it was also your Shen familyâs Madam who promised my Aunt that she would treat her well. If I remember correctly, before the engagement, you were once taken by your father to quietly look at our Miss Fang, right?
Donât you dare talk to me about parentsâ orders or matchmakerâs words! Who doesnât know that you, Young Master Shen, had a say in the Shen family? If you sincerely didnât want to tie the knot with my Fang family, who could force you?â
He said this gently, but as if with great pressure and thick mockery. Once the words were out, it was actually meant to belittle Shen Yunqing deeply.
With so many people today, if these words got out, Shen Yunqing would lose all his reputation.
Seeing his sonâs body trembling and his face red, thinking that if today there really was a feud with the Fang family, the Shen familyâs reputation would be gone, Father Shen, who originally thought of following his sonâs wishes, couldnât help but speak, âBrother Heng, itâs Yunqingâs fault today. He drank too much wine and didnât think straight. You donât have to deal with him. You can feel at ease, as long as there is me, these old bones, in the Shen family, Licheng will be our Shen familyâs daughter-in-law!â
âThank you, Uncle Shen.â Lin Shiheng gave him a junior salute, but his mouth didnât stay virtuous at all, âThis junior knows Uncleâs intention, I just donât know if Young Master Shen is on the same page as you? The Shen family is naturally headed by you. Your moral character is naturally trusted by this junior. Otherwise, my Uncle would not have been comfortable giving his daughter to him, his best friendâs son.â
He emphasized the words âbest friendâ heavily, and watched Father Shenâs face change again. As if he didnât see it, he went on to say, âBut to put it in a bad way, you just said, as long as youâre here, our Miss will be here. But what if youâre gone? At that time, our Miss would be old and fading, and then your Shen family would sweep her out!â
Father Shenâs face turned green and white, âI can guarantee that my sonâŠâ
âFather, please!â
Shen Yunqing, kneeled on the ground, and shouted loudly, âMiss Fang and I are really people from two different worlds. Today, even if Brother Heng and Aunt Fang blame me, I will divorce Fang Licheng!â
His voice was loud. In the middle of the house, the blood smell in the inner room hadnât dissipated yet as the white-faced Fang Licheng had opened her eyes and was drinking ginseng soup under the service of a little maid.
When she heard this, her movements of drinking the soup stopped. The little maid who was waiting at her side was already full of tears. Seeing that her face was pale as if she was going to fall down at the next moment, she quickly sobbed and whispered, âYoung Madam, please donât be afraid, Brother Heng came to support you. With Brother Heng in the residence, the Young Master will definitely not kick you out.â
Fang Lichengâs hair was wet. At the moment, after listening to the girlâs words, her face showed a bitter smile, and her eyes were full of numbness.
âHe is determined. Not to mention Brother Heng, even if his father was here, Iâm afraid he canât be stopped.â Saying that, her eyes actually fell into a trance.
When she was wearing a bright red wedding dress, sitting on a sedan chair, and marrying Shen Yunqing amidst a crowd of drums and congratulations, she was still a little happy, even if she was anxious. From then on, she would have a husband and children, she thought. She would definitely take good care of her husband and teach her children well. Fang Licheng, like most girls in this age, had no thoughts like love in her heart, only that a husband and wife should support each other and never abandon.
When Shen Yunqing lifted her veil, the momentary amazement in his eyes settled her heart. That night, she thought she had taken the first step.
But on the second day, when he found out that she wasnât allowed to read and write since she was a child, and only embroidered clothes, Shen Yunqing changed his demeanor. Without consulting her, he went abroad and only came back a couple of times in 5 years.
She wanted to learn too. She didnât know how, but she was willing to learn.
Yet, Shen Yunqing never asked her if she was willing or not, and never cared whether it was her fault that she wasnât allowed to read. Her parents-in-law had a traditional temperament, and they didnât approve of Fang Licheng reading and writing. Fang Licheng could only learn quietly, ask a literate maid, and hide in the room to learn to read and write every day.
When Shen Yunqing came back again, she looked forward to showing him the words she had written, hoping to salvage any residual feelings he might have had. But after reading them, the dislike in his eyes became even heavier.
He said the characters were devoid of grace, crooked, and made people feel uncomfortable.
Didnât she try her best to write well?
He left her for such a long time, leaving her, a newly married person to serve her in-laws, who didnât like women reading or writing and didnât want to find a female teacher for her. Although she was the young madam of the Shen family, she couldnât make the decision. She even finally learned to read but was treated like this. Since then, Fang Lichengâs heart had been soaked in ice water, and it stayed cold.
She had seen a lot of what would happen to wives who were abandoned by their husbands. Fortunately, concubinage isnât allowed now, and even if the man changed his heart, he could only keep it outside.
She only needed to do her duty as a wife and future madam of the Shen family. When she learned that she was pregnant, Fang Licheng was delighted, and her maternal instinct made her look forward to the child. Even if the father had no intentions of coming back to visit the child, Fang Licheng told herself to not think about it.
It didnât matter, as long as the child was well.
Unexpectedly, just after she had risked her life giving birth to the child, the man who married her and always looked at her with rejection on his face, came back and said that he was going to divorce her.
Fang Licheng only felt it was ridiculous.
Feudal arranged marriage?
Never liked her?
Since he didnât like her in the first place, he shouldnât have given her the position of the young madam of the Shen family in the first place. He neglected her for 5 years, and now he wanted to divorce her when she had just given birth and hadnât even rested yet?
Jin City wasnât without stories of noble ladies getting remarried, but those were backed by fathers and elders at home. The Fang family wasnât what it used to be. If Fang Licheng divorced before she had a child, and the Fang family was still fine, she was young and beautiful, and she might be able to find a new husband. Now, she had given birth to a child, and her body was swollen because of pregnancy, and she was already 20 years old. Coupled with the Fang familyâs present situation, no one would be willing to marry her.
Fang Licheng didnât want to remarry, but she knew how hard life would be without marrying. At this age, a woman without a husband couldnât even leave the door. If anything happened, women who didnât have the backing of a man at home would be the first ones to be approached by those villains. Although there was Brother Heng at home, was he willing to support his sister for a while. Would he be willing to support her for a lifetime?
Even if he was willing, would his future wife be willing?
Fang Licheng had been thinking a lot since she woke up from her coma. She didnât know why Shen Yunqing didnât ask for a divorce sooner if he didnât like her since the beginning, and why he chose divorce after 5 years of dragging it out.
(TNote: And why he was willing to make a baby with you? *cough SCUM cough*)
But she knew that she couldnât stay in the Shen family anymore. Her mother-in-law loved her, but she loves her son even more.
Father-in-lawâŠ
Thinking that her father-in-lawâs attitude towards her has been getting colder and colder since her father died, Fang Licheng showed bitterness and didnât want to think about it anymore. She was certain about leaving the Shen family, it was just a pity that her child lost his mother when he was just born.
She propped herself up and reluctantly sat up. With a pale face, she said, âGo pack my things.â
When the maid understood it, her face immediately showed despair and looked at her imploringly. âYoung Madam, you canât be like this. With Brother Heng around, the Master will definitely stop the Young Master.â
âEven if he does stop it, the man is bent on divorcing me. Sooner or later he will find the opportunity to do so.â Fang Licheng shook her head with a wry smile and whispered, âGood girl, go now. Instead of being rushed away in a panic later, itâs better for me to be sensible and go by myself. Itâs better than throwing my Fang family face on the ground and being trampled on.â
The little girl, with teary eyes, sobbed in response and got up to pack Fang Lichengâs things.
Fang Licheng barely held up her body, she was already very tired. Seeing that she was obedient, she laid back down slowly with a pale face and looked at the two girls in the room who opened the cabinets and began to clean up.
Looking closely, there were only a dozen garments in the closet.
Her mother-in-law loves to give her beautiful materials, but she couldnât make clothes. Her father-in-law was old-fashioned, and doesnât like women dressing up in fancy clothes. So, when she got the materials, she just kept them at the bottom of the box and put them away.
The furniture in the room was the dowry when she married over, but it wasnât easy to clean up. Looking carefully, she stayed in the Shen residence for 5 years, and when she left, she only brought a few clothes.
Fang Licheng was holding on with every breath. A woman who had just given birth was already weak, especially since she had also been stimulated by Shen Yunqing, and now her body was aching, but she could still feel the blood flowing from her lower body.
Before the mess, a little girl noticed it and reported it. Through the whole Shen family, she didnât see anyone saying they should call a doctor, whether it was the old-fashioned father-in-law, the loving mother-in-law, or the husband with no feelings.
Fang Licheng pulled the corner of her lips and closed her eyes.