He was afraid that he would end up like his father, and that she would meet the same fate as his mother.
Having heard this far and knowing his intention behind these words, Chu Yueying should have just turned around and left.
Leaving now would at least preserve a bit of dignity for both of them.
Their promise to marry each other was just a private matter. Since the marriage had never been officially announced and hadn't received the approval of their elders, it didn't really count.
But Chu Yueying's legs felt as if they were filled with lead. They were so heavy that she couldn't take a single step.
Shi Minglang also couldn't bring himself to turn his head away coldly.
The two of them fell into an awkward and strange silence again.
"I understand. Since you're such a coward, why should I keep pestering you?"
Chu Yueying said in a harsh tone. She snatched the sachet from Shi Minglang's waist. "I'll take this. I'll send the poetry collection back to you."
Anyway, she had already copied a version of it.
After saying that, she waited for Shi Minglang to say something.
Shi Minglang seemed to have silently agreed with her words. His eyes were filled with heavy worries, and he remained silent.
The two of them were silently competing with each other.
Chu Yueying turned around and wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes. "Take good care of your injuries, Lord Shi. I'm leaving."
Suddenly, her wrist was grabbed.
Shi Minglang's voice was low and hoarse. He gasped painfully, his heart aching like it was being pricked by needles. "Yinger, can you leave the sachet for me? Just as a keepsake, okay?"
Chu Yueying was furious. She raised the sachet and threw it at his face. "No!"
She was like a little squirrel that had been provoked to the limit, vowing to jump up and hit an elephant in the face.
The sachet hit Shi Minglang's high - bridged nose and bounced off.
Shi Minglang's nose felt sore, and his heart ached even more.
"You're going back on your words. Aren't you just worried that I'll become your weakness? Now that I'm leaving, why are you acting so reluctant to part? You're just a coward who can't let go and can't make up your mind!"
Chu Yueying had never scolded anyone so loudly or so harshly in her life.
"Do you think that by not marrying me, you're protecting me? I've already become your weakness! Those people will only be more certain that you care about me when they know you're willing not to marry me just to protect me!
Your behavior is just like hiding money under the ground and leaving a sign saying there's no money here. I can't believe you used to be the crown prince's study companion. Have you wasted all your years of study?
How can you claim to be upright and honorable? You're just an unrighteous, lying man who's not willing to take responsibility!"
She was such a petite girl, but the words she said were so powerful.
Shi Minglang was stunned. Those words were like nails, piercing his face one by one, making it burn with pain.
Chu Yueying shook off his hand, glared at him fiercely, and then lifted her skirt and ran out.
Shi Minglang felt as if his heart had been hollowed out. He couldn't even feel his heartbeat.
A feeling of shame was growing and spreading wildly inside him.
He must look so pathetic now.
Daoist Qiu, who had been eavesdropping, jumped out impatiently.
"I told you to explain and console her. Who told you to pour oil on the fire?"
If it weren't for the fact that Shi Minglang was seriously injured, Daoist Qiu really wanted to slap him a few times to wake him up!
Shi Minglang gasped for breath and tried hard to hold back the sourness in his throat. "I deserve to be alone for the rest of my life!"
True to her word, that afternoon, the hand - copied "Mingxi Poetry Collection" appeared beside Shi Minglang's pillow.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, people were supposed to happily pay New Year greetings to their elders and receive lucky money.
Chu Yueying locked herself in her room and cried all day.
Song Wanchu spent the whole day with Old Madam Chu and Ning Shi, helping to receive guests.
It was not until evening that she was able to go to Chu Yueying's courtyard.
The little girl was lying on the couch, hugging a soft pillow. She looked listless.
The food and snacks that the kitchen had sent for her in various styles remained untouched.
"Sister Wanchu."
All the grievances that Chu Yueying had been holding back burst out completely when she saw Song Wanchu.
She hugged Song Wanchu and cried heart - rendingly. The maids and wet nurses wanted to come in and console her when they heard the cries.
Song Wanchu shook her head gently at them and waved her hand to signal them to leave.
She held the little girl in her arms and let her cry and vent.
Chu Yueying was an outgoing girl who couldn't hide her feelings or words. While crying, she scolded Shi Minglang furiously. She threw the soft pillow again and again. People who didn't know would think that the innocent pillow was Shi Minglang.
Song Wanchu didn't say much. She just responded occasionally to comfort her.
After the little girl had cried and vented enough, Song Wanchu calmly took out a silk handkerchief and wiped her tears.
"If Shi Minglang sincerely admits his mistake and comes to the Chu family to propose marriage with full sincerity, will you forgive him?"
Chu Yueying was stunned for a moment. She gritted her teeth angrily. "Who cares about his proposal? Let him be a bachelor for the rest of his life!"
"Are you really determined not to forgive him?"
"Not forgive!" The little girl said firmly.
But Song Wanchu just smiled. "You look just like I used to be."
Chu Yueying's anger subsided a lot all of a sudden.
She suddenly lost her confidence.
Sister Wanchu and Daoist Qingzhou had once been like mortal enemies.
But they still made up.
No, their relationship was even better than before.
There weren't so many entanglements and separations between her and Shi Minglang.
Moreover, she knew very well that the reason she was feeling wronged and throwing a tantrum was because she cared about Shi Minglang.
She was also sure that Shi Minglang still cared about her.
"Sister Wanchu, I..."
Song Wanchu tidied up the stray hairs beside her ears and on her forehead. She smiled gently. "Love can make people weak, but it can also make people stronger. Give him a few days. When he figures things out, he'll come naturally. If you don't want to forgive him easily, just ignore him for a few days and let him learn his lesson."
After experiencing so much with Liang Yuzhou, she had emerged from her confusion. Now, she saw the people and things around her more clearly than before.
Chu Yueying blinked and smiled shyly.
"I've been accompanying the elders and socializing all day. I'm so thirsty and hungry. I've been craving the food in your courtyard for a long time. Will you accompany me to eat something?"
Obviously, she wanted to persuade the little girl to eat, but Sister Wanchu said it was because she herself wanted to eat.
The considerate Sister Wanchu even found an excuse for her in such a small matter.
Whichever family was lucky enough to have Sister Wanchu as the mistress of the house would surely be blessed.
Wasn't the Jingguo Duke's Mansion in the capital once so lucky?
It was a pity that Daoist Qingzhou had made Sister Wanchu leave.
He deserved to chase his wife for a whole year.
Do men all need to be disciplined?
As Chu Yueying was thinking about this, she unconsciously had a whole bunch of sarcastic remarks about Shi Minglang in her mind.
Song Wanchu returned to Meiyingxuan after dinner.
Most of her things in Meiyingxuan had already been packed.
They would set off for the capital on the third day of the first lunar month.
She still had time tomorrow to say goodbye properly to Old Madam Chu, her aunt and the others.
...
Shi Minglang was dejected. He didn't even have the strength to breathe.
His heart was getting emptier and colder, as if his soul had been taken away.
The crown prince said, "I'll temporarily hand over the government affairs to two fifth - rank officials. Liu Zhonglin (the current governor of Yunzhou, the one who asked Shi Luohan to send the coffin) has sent troops to strengthen the defense of the government office. I'll leave eight secret guards for you to dispatch. As for the rest, you can handle it as you see fit."
Shi Minglang always felt that the crown prince was looking at him with a bit of sympathy.
He wanted to say, You lost to Liang Yuzhou yourself and are still single. Where do you get your sense of superiority?
Suddenly, there was a hasty report from outside the door -
"My lord, there's great news! The old madam has come to Yunzhou to see you. The carriage is already at the main gate!"
Shi Minglang trembled. "Who did you say is here?"
It would take at least twenty days to rush from the capital to Yunzhou. Did his mother set off before the New Year without saying a word?