Chapter 140

When Pei Jian returned to the capital, it was only a few days before the New Year, and the city was already filled with festive cheer. Every household had red lanterns hanging at their doors and peach wood charms pasted up. People hurried along the streets with large and small bundles in their hands, busy preparing for the holiday.

Children were the most excited, crowding around the old man selling candied hawthorns, eagerly handing over their copper coins to buy a treat.

For ordinary folks, another year had passed, and life remained this simple yet fulfilling joy.

At the Pei residence, Qin Lang was updating Pei Jian on the happenings in the capital over the past month.

Though Pei Jian’s complexion wasn’t great due to the exhaustion of travel, his spirits seemed high.

The memorial against King Jing, sent as an urgent dispatch over eight hundred miles, had thrown his faction into complete disarray. Pei Jian still had follow-up plans in hand. Xiao Xun had provoked someone he shouldn’t have and harbored ambitions he shouldn’t have; the price would be an early exit from the stage.

“How is Nianxi?”

On his trip to Lianghuai, he also stopped in Jinling.

She had once mentioned a house in Jinling with an old pomegranate tree growing in its courtyard. Every year, it would bear a tree full of fruit—heavy, large, and sweet.

When Nianxi spoke of it, she was full of nostalgia. “I wonder if I’ll ever get to see that tree again.”

At the time, he was busy with official work. Without even looking up, he replied with a smile, “Are you craving pomegranates? It’s just the right season—I’ll have someone buy some for you.”

Perhaps Nianxi had smiled then, or maybe she hadn’t. She simply said, “I won’t bother you anymore,” and never brought it up again.

Pei Jian went to see that tree—the pomegranate tree his wife had once longed for. Unfortunately, it was winter, and the tree was bare, devoid of the fiery red flowers and heavy, ripe fruit that Nianxi had spoken of.

In truth, he remembered everything between them. But for some reason, he had lost his way in the past. He failed to cherish the good days, focusing solely on climbing higher under the guise of striving, though it was merely to fulfill his own ambitions.

Time and again, he neglected his wife until her heart withered away.

“She… she’s doing well,” Qin Lang said. He glanced around the Pei residence, which felt cold and lifeless, unlike a home. Pei Jian lived alone in solitude, and Qin Lang felt a pang of discomfort but didn’t quite know how to put it into words.

So, he suggested, “You’ve just returned. Are you tired? Why not let us gather with Jinghe tonight and hold a welcome dinner for you?”

Pei Jian looked at him and asked, “What happened to Nianxi?”

“She fell ill recently, but she’s doing better now.” Qin Lang hesitated, conflicted.

Pei Jian had just returned, exhausted from travel. Moreover, it was nearing the New Year—a time of family reunions. To tell him now… would that be too cruel?

Pei Jian would inevitably find out this, but did it have to be said now?

The previously relaxed expression on Pei Jian’s face disappeared. He slowly turned his head and stared at Qin Lang, asking: “What happened?”

Qin Lang had no choice but to recount the events of the Empress’s birthday banquet.

Feigning a lighthearted tone, he said, “Everything you arranged before you left worked out well. The Censorate’s memorial was timely, and Marquis Anjing knew exactly how to strike where it hurt. Now, everyone’s talking about King Jing having a hidden ailment. In short, he’s not doing well at all.”

“Shizhang, you’re truly talented and capable of great achievements! I don’t even need to count on Gu Ci as a fallback anymore—you alone can command an army of thousands.”

Qin Lang kept trying to shift Pei Jian’s focus, even bringing up Gu Ci to distract him.

“For someone like you with exceptional talents and vision, focusing on power and influence suits you best. Romance and feelings are just a waste of time.”

Pei Jian furrowed his brows. “What exactly happened?”

In this lifetime, he had returned to make amends with Nianxi and rekindle their past love. Power and status were the only prerequisites for this goal.

Qin Lang stammered, still hesitating over his words. Before he could continue, Pei Jian abruptly stood up and strode out in large steps.

For some reason, his heart was suddenly filled with unease, as though floating weightlessly, unable to find a place to land. He recalled the time when the late emperor passed. He had worked through the night at the palace, and upon his return, the servants at the residence were equally cautious as they informed him of his wife’s passing.

Pei Jian’s sole intention had been to carefully protect and care for Nianxi, ensuring she wouldn’t live in constant fear. Whenever he thought of how Nianxi had been abruptly harmed in her previous life, his heart was overwhelmed with guilt and sorrow.

Perhaps, compared to Nianxi, it was Pei Jian himself who overthought and lived in perpetual fear.

“Shizhang, Shizhang, where are you going?” Qin Lang called after him.

Pei Jian abruptly turned around. “Was Nianxi harmed? Is she dead?”

Qin Lang thought this man must be out of his mind—completely hopeless, beyond saving. Who goes around cursing someone to death so readily?

But when he saw the fierce, raging intensity in Pei Jian’s black eyes, with a blood-red glint of fury in their depths, he did not doubt that if he answered “yes,” Pei Jian would lose all sanity and drag everyone down with him.

“No.” Qin Lang stared at Pei Jian and sighed. “It’s just that she’s gotten very close to Duke Fu recently. Everyone in the capital is saying that their marriage is imminent.”

“Duke Fu?” Pei Jian froze in his tracks, his brows tightly furrowed. In a rigid voice, he asked, “Lu Wensheng? Nianxi and Lu Wensheng?”

How could that be? How could Nianxi end up with Lu Wensheng? Lu Wensheng is Xiao Xun’s maternal uncle.

“Apparently so,” Qin Lang replied. He stepped forward and patted Pei Jian on the shoulder to offer some comfort.

Qin Lang hadn’t attended the Empress’s birthday banquet, but according to what he’d heard, Duke Fu had publicly clashed with King Jing to defend Nianxi, creating an extremely unpleasant scene.

Previously, it had been rumored throughout the capital that Lu Wensheng would marry the daughter of the Grand Coordinator of Shaanxi Province after the New Year, aligning with the Fang family. However, what happened at the Empress’s banquet changed everything.

This was no different from a public declaration of affection.

The young lady of the Fang family had already left the capital a few days ago.

Although neither Duke Fu’s residence nor the Wen family acknowledged any formal engagement plans, the people of the capital, especially the women who attended the banquet that day, were already convinced that a union between Nianxi and Lu Wensheng was inevitable.

Regardless, Duke Fu’s carriage frequently stopped at the alley’s entrance on Yiqiao Street.

“My mother was also invited to the banquet that day. She mentioned that Duke Fu was very protective of Nianxi,” Qin Lang continued.

Qin Lang’s mother had remarked at the time, “When Duke Fu gets married, we’ll have to prepare an extravagant gift. What a perfect pair they make! Compared to that pig King Jing, there’s no comparison.”

For women, it was often the romantic gestures that touched the heart the most.

Pei Jian pressed his thin lips together and remained stubbornly insistent. “Impossible.”

Nianxi couldn’t possibly marry Lu Wensheng. Why would she want to marry an older man who had a wife and a son before?

When it came to protecting Nianxi, Pei Jian would go further than anyone else. Whether it was Lu Wensheng or Gu Ci, he would surpass all of them in what he was willing to sacrifice!

“How is it impossible? Haven’t you seen Lu Wensheng? He’s naturally gifted with looks that captivate women. If my sister has fallen for him, it makes perfect sense.”

In this situation, unless Gu Ci returned from the northern lands to turn the tide. Relying on Pei Jian… It wasn’t that Qin Lang wanted to belittle his own ally, but Pei Jian had never won when it came to Nianxi. He lost completely.

Pei Jian instinctively wanted to retort. He wanted to say that he understood Nianxi, that Lu Wensheng carried too much baggage, and that they weren’t a good match. But when the words reached his lips, he swallowed them back down.

Nianxi wouldn’t be unaware, would she?

When she had loved Gu Ci in the past, hadn’t she known what his future might hold? Yet she had still given her heart wholeheartedly. That had never changed, even now.

And did he really understand her? If he had truly understood her, how had they ended up taking the path of separation?

Pei Jian was left in silence.

“Forget it. Just focus on your career,” Qin Lang sighed wistfully. “That suits you better.”

Feelings are far too complicated.

Pei Jian glanced at him, then went into the inner room without a word. When he came out again, he wore vibrant, elegant clothing from head to toe. He was already strikingly handsome and refined by nature, but now, with this attire, he exuded even greater charm and an aura of noble grace.

Qin Lang assumed he had lost his mind from heartbreak. “What are you doing?”

Pei Jian cast him a sidelong glance, his almond-shaped eyes cold and serene. “I’m going to see her.”

“Wait for me!”

Seeing Pei Jian dressed like this, Qin Lang could only assume he was going to confront his romantic rival.

“Lu Wensheng is a scholar, not as young and robust as Gu Ci. You can go all out in a fight with Gu Ci, but be careful not to break Lu Wensheng!”