Chapter 1

Three days ago, Pei Jian brought his newly widowed cousin to the mansion. When the servants reported the news, Wen Nianxi was listening to an opera.

The lively singing on the stage made the viewing platform seem even more desolate and lonely. After the opera ended, the lovers finally became a couple.

Wen Nianxi also applauded.

Nowadays, everyone in the main house is on edge, guessing when she will make way for the newcomer. Only Nianxi remains the same, staying in the East Garden every day to listen to the opera. The entire mansion thinks she has gone mad.

When Pei Jian arrived, he was holding a five or six-year-old boy. It was Xu Wanxin’s son.

At dusk, with rain-like threads.

“This child will be under your name,” Pei Jian said bluntly, “From now on, he will be our legitimate son.”

Nianxi did not respond, raising her head to observe the person sitting opposite her carefully. The last time she saw him was three months ago. She met Pei Jian at fifteen and married him at seventeen.

Pei Jian, the eldest son of the Pei family, was exceptionally talented and had the ability to govern the country. In just ten years, he had risen to the position of right prime minister. With the left prime minister aging, Pei Jian was poised to take another step forward, becoming second only to the emperor.

Everyone in the capital envied her good fortune. Her husband was not only outstanding but also “faithful.”

In ten years of marriage, although she had not given birth to a child, Pei Jian never considered taking a concubine. Even when beauties were presented to him, he remained unmoved.

A man with great power and rare loyalty could be considered an exceptional husband.

“Even commoners with two taels of silver in their pockets want to buy a maid to serve them,” her cousin once advised her, “Are you aiming too high?”

Wen Nianxi did not want to aim high. She only wanted to return to a place with life, not sink into a stagnant pool, because Pei Jian’s heart was never with her.

In ten years of marriage, she had forgotten how to interact with Pei Jian. She remembered when they were newlyweds, she had learned to cook from the chef for six months to prepare a grand feast for Pei Jian’s birthday. She even invited her parents and brothers to celebrate with him.

But until midnight, the longevity noodles had turned into lumps, and she only received an apologetic message from the steward, “Master is busy with official duties and cannot leave.”

She saw her parents off alone. Her father’s face was dark, and her mother hesitated to speak, but she still made excuses for Pei Jian.

The next day, Xu Wanxin personally came to apologize on Pei Jian’s behalf, “It’s all my fault. If not for my headache, my cousin wouldn’t have left you to accompany me all night. Please don’t blame him.”

At that moment, Nianxi felt as if she had been stripped naked and thrown under the scorching sun.

Shame and humiliation.

Her heart was cold.

That night, she lost the only child she would ever have—a surprise she had planned for her husband’s birthday.

Now, Pei Jian wanted to give her Xu Wanxin’s son.

To atone?

Her cousin scolded her for being foolish, “Love is just a game for young girls. You’re twenty-eight! Instead of wallowing in sorrow, you should find a good man to marry and have children with.”

Nianxi frowned as she listened. No matter how many mistakes she made, it was her fault for getting involved with him and causing the lovers to miss each other.

After marrying him, she learned that Pei Jian and Xu Wanxin had been childhood sweethearts and had an engagement. On the day they got married, Xu Wanxin attempted suicide by jumping into a river.

Nianxi let out a slow breath, “Pei Jian, let’s separate.”

Pei Jian’s face showed a moment of surprise, but he quickly regained his composure.

“Don’t be ridiculous.” He frowned slightly, showing a hint of impatience, and scolded her for being unreasonable, “This is for your own good.”

For a moment, Nianxi wanted to jump up and hysterically accuse him or curse him, like the women she had seen in the East Market. But she had been silent for too long, so much so that she no longer had the desire to argue with him.

Only at this moment did she truly understand that the person in front of her could no longer affect her emotions.

Pei Jian was no longer in her heart. She had loved the wrong person and married the wrong person.

She heard that Pei Jian and Xu Wanxin had been inseparable these past few days, like a loving couple. She should take the initiative to make way for them.

“I’ve thought about it for a long time,” Nianxi lowered her eyes, no longer looking at him, “Pei Jian, I want to separate from you.”

Honestly, Pei Jian had done nothing wrong. He had given her honor, status, and even Xu Wanxin’s son as their “legitimate son.”

He was a good man. But his heart was not with her.

“I don’t love you anymore.”

Pei Jian’s gaze darkened. In the ups and downs of the officialdom, he had long learned to hide his emotions. But upon hearing these words, his expression faltered.

At that moment, a servant hurried in and whispered something in his ear.

Nianxi understood, “If you have urgent matters, go attend to them.”

She had been wondering if Pei Jian would ask for the reasons, would she have to recount every incident over the years? It would seem like a complaint wanting to be reconciled.

This was better.

Pei Jian remained silent for a long time. Before leaving, he told her, “The palace has summoned me urgently. We’ll discuss the rest when I return.”

But she never saw Pei Jian again.

That night, Nianxi suffered excruciating abdominal pain and vomited several times, expelling black blood. The imperial physicians were helpless, and the servants sent to the palace for help returned empty-handed, wave after wave. Pei Jian never returned.

The bloodstains that couldn’t be wiped away soaked through her chest. In her final moments, Nianxi felt a pang of sadness. She feared loneliness the most. But in the end, she was alone.

If she had known her life would be so short, she would never have wasted time and lived freely.

She would have loved herself well.