Chapter 11

Lu Mingxi lowered her eyes and then suddenly looked up, staring at Wei Yuntai in a daze.

Wei Yuntai was also momentarily stunned. He glanced at the quietly standing Lu Minghua and then frowned.

“No, it’s too humiliating for Mingxi to be a concubine.”

Hearing this, Lu Mingxi’s pale face seemed to brighten, and she couldn’t help but look at Wei Yuntai with joy.

Lu Minghua wasn’t surprised. She looked at Wei Yuntai and smiled, “Then, Heir, what do you suggest?”

Of course, the best option would be for her to step aside, but she wasn’t going to say that. She wanted to see what absurd things her mother and husband would do and say for Lu Mingxi.

Wei Yuntai looked at Lu Minghua, then his gaze settled on Lu Mingxi, and he remained silent for a long time.

“This, this…” Madam Qin hadn’t expected to persuade Lu Minghua but now faced a problem with Wei Yuntai, leaving her at a loss.

“Minghua,” she instinctively looked at Lu Minghua in her confusion.

Lu Minghua lowered her eyes, pretending not to see.

“Mother,” Lu Mingxi stopped her, looking at Lu Minghua with gratitude, “Thank you, Sister.”

Lu Minghua shook her head, looking at her with a hint of pity, “It’s nothing.”

Lu Mingxi felt a sting in her heart and turned to Wei Yuntai, forcing a smile, “Yun… cough, Brother-in-law, cough, don’t listen to my mother. You and Sister, cough, should be happy together, love each other, and grow old together.”

“Mingxi,” Wei Yuntai’s voice trembled.

Lu Mingxi’s pale face, which had briefly brightened, quickly darkened again. She opened her mouth as if to say something, but after a moment of rapid breathing, she suddenly lost strength and fainted.

“Doctor, doctor!” Madam Qin panicked and ordered someone to fetch the doctor.

The doctor arrived quickly, examined her, and frowned. He said that Lu Mingxi had been too agitated, harming her spirit. He didn’t prescribe any medicine, only gently indicating that her time was short and that they should prepare for the worst.

Madam Qin, in disbelief, began to cry.

Wei Yuntai stood to the side, his fists clenched tightly, staring at the unconscious Lu Mingxi on the bed, unmoving for a long time.

It wasn’t until a servant came to inform them that it was getting dark and they should return to the Marquis’s residence that he hesitated for a moment before finally moving. On the carriage ride back, he was deep in thought. As they neared the residence, he suddenly glanced at Lu Minghua, his eyes dark with emotion.

Lu Minghua calmly looked out the window, pretending not to notice.

Outside, the cold wind howled, and with a gust of wind, tiny white snowflakes began to fall.

The winter snow had arrived.

“Heir, Madam,” the carriage drove straight into the residence. As they got off, the maids hurriedly held up umbrellas to shield them from the snow. The steward came to greet them, looking as if he had been waiting for a while.

“Did Mother send you?” Lu Minghua asked apologetically. “It’s my fault for taking so long this time.”

Wei Yuntai frowned, still worried. Hearing her words, he glanced at her, feeling conflicted.

Yes, she had always been thorough and considerate, a suitable wife for the Heir. Despite his neglect over the years, her position had never wavered. And Mingxi…

Recalling the events at the Lu residence and Mingxi’s words, Wei Yuntai looked up at the imposing and luxurious Marquis of Ningguo’s residence, slowly clenching his hand.

“Madam was worried about the Heir and madam, so she sent someone to ask a few times,” the steward said with a smile. “But now that it’s snowing, she just gave instructions not to rush to see her. It’s better to go back and freshen up first.”

“That’s not necessary. We were just in the carriage. Let’s go see Mother first, shall we, Heir?” Lu Minghua said, glancing at Wei Yuntai. Seeing him so indifferent all the way, she slightly lowered her eyes, unable to hide the trace of mockery at the corner of her lips.

How laughable. When she was ill before, Wei Yuntai didn’t seem so distraught.

The difference between heaven and earth, indeed.

“Lu Minghua,”

Naturally, they had to inform Madam Sun first. Lu Minghua and Wei Yuntai walked in silence, and just as they reached Yining Courtyard, Wei Yuntai suddenly called out.

Surprisingly, Lu Minghua looked up at him and saw hesitation in his eyes.

Although it was fleeting, it disappeared quickly. What could it be?

But whatever it was, Lu Minghua had no intention of getting involved. All of this made her incredibly tired.

She was weary.

“What is it, Heir?” Lu Minghua asked, pretending not to know.

“Nothing.” As they spoke, they entered Yining Courtyard, and Madam Sun’s nanny came out to greet them. Seeing her, Wei Yuntai’s dark eyes flickered, and he swallowed his words.

After greeting Madam Sun, they returned to Chunshan Courtyard.

Sharing the same bed but dreaming different dreams, Lu Minghua didn’t sleep well. Her emotions were in turmoil, a mix of anxiety about the unknown and inexplicable joy. She simply closed her eyes to rest. In the quiet bedroom, she could hear Wei Yuntai’s breathing, sometimes light, sometimes heavy. Usually a tidy sleeper, tonight she felt him turn over several times.

In the morning, Wei Yuntai absentmindedly went to the Ministry of Revenue. Lu Minghua sat by the window, calmly watching his figure disappear.

She thought he would take leave for Lu Mingxi— Had she overestimated or underestimated the Heir of the Marquis of Ningguo?

Feeling increasingly sarcastic, Lu Minghua returned to the Earl of Wen’an’s residence.

Lu Mingxi was still unconscious, and Madam Qin remained sorrowful.

Watching from the side, Lu Minghua grew impatient—When would this ridiculous drama end?

In the afternoon, Wei Yuntai left the office and went directly to the Lu residence instead of returning to the Marquis’s residence. A servant happily reported his arrival, and on the bed, Lu Mingxi’s eyelashes fluttered as she opened her eyes in a daze.

Wei Yuntai, with snow on his shoulders, strode into the inner room, his eyes meeting Lu Mingxi’s instinctive gaze as Madam Qin anxiously said, “Mingxi hasn’t woken up since yesterday.”

Lu Minghua stood quietly, observing the scene, thinking that if this were a play, it would be the so-called “eternal gaze.”

Just as she wondered what Lu Mingxi would say this time, she saw Lu Mingxi look at Wei Yuntai joyfully, slowly closing her eyes and faint again.

Madam Qin called out in panic. In the past few days, Lu Mingxi’s illness had aged this well-maintained woman by several years. Usually concerned about her appearance, she now ignored it completely, not daring to take her eyes off her dying daughter, repeatedly calling for the doctor.

Wei Yuntai stood by the bed, lost and lonely.

Lu Minghua watched calmly, feeling a faint pain but mostly numbness. She had long been accustomed to it but couldn’t accept it peacefully.

The doctor arrived quickly, about to take her pulse when he noticed something in Lu Mingxi’s hand.

Madam Qin hurriedly took it out, revealing a small wooden plaque, two fingers wide and one finger long. She didn’t understand its significance and set it aside.

Wei Yuntai froze when he saw the plaque. After Madam Qin set it down, he came to his senses, his fingers trembling as he picked it up and stared at it.

It bore a poem.

Lu Minghua took it all in. The poem was the beginning of their fateful connection. This plaque was likely the one Lu Mingxi had hung up, which had coincidentally fallen in front of Wei Yuntai.

After carefully taking her pulse, the doctor sighed heavily and said, “Forgive my lack of skill. The young lady’s illness is entirely emotional, beyond the help of medicine. If her heart’s desire is fulfilled, she might recover.”

Madam Qin instinctively looked at Wei Yuntai.

Lu Minghua also looked over leisurely. What would Wei Yuntai do? She watched his clenched hand and lowered her eyes.

The sky darkened. Snow had fallen the previous night and stopped, but now it began again, covering the world in a silver blanket.

“Lu Minghua, let’s divorce,” Wei Yuntai said, staring intently at Lu Minghua on their way back to the Marquis’s residence.

Lu Minghua looked up.

“Divorce?” she asked, as if questioning or talking to herself.

Though she had anticipated this, hearing Wei Yuntai’s decision still left her with mixed emotions.

“Yes, divorce.”

“Aren’t you going to explain the reason for the divorce?” Even though she understood his thoughts, Lu Minghua couldn’t help but ask.

“You know very well, so why ask?” Wei Yuntai said coldly.

“If you know I understand, then you should know this is not beneficial to me.”

“She’s your sister!”

“You want me to step aside and let my sister marry my husband?” Lu Minghua said sarcastically.

“If it weren’t for your scheming back then, this wouldn’t be happening!!” Wei Yuntai, who usually wouldn’t say such things directly, forgot his manners in his anger.

“I’ve told you, it wasn’t me.” Lu Minghua repeated what she had said countless times, and as always, Wei Yuntai didn’t believe her.

“Tell me, what will it take for you to agree?” Wei Yuntai leaned forward, staring at her.

“Beg me.” Looking at Wei Yuntai, Lu Minghua paused for a moment, then lightly smiled and said the words she had imagined countless times.

Wei Yuntai froze, staring at her in disbelief.

Beg her?

“Lu Minghua, don’t go too far!” he growled after quickly regaining his composure.

“Who exactly is being unreasonable?” Lu Minghua retorted.

Wei Yuntai’s expression turned cold as he looked at Lu Minghua and said, “You should know that a divorce doesn’t necessarily require your consent.”

“Fine, I don’t mind talking about the past few years between you and Lu Mingxi,” Lu Minghua said fearlessly, even smiling slightly.

“A fight to the death, it’s all about who can go further. I can, but can you?” she said.

Wei Yuntai was momentarily stunned, looking at Lu Minghua with some astonishment. He was used to seeing the composed and thorough Lu Minghua, but he had never imagined she could be so sharp and unyielding. Looking into her eyes, he realized she was serious.

“Absolutely not,” Wei Yuntai said, considering his options. “Choose another condition.”

“Impossible? It seems your feelings for Mingxi aren’t as deep as you claim,” Lu Minghua said with a smile. “What do you think, if I tell my mother and Lu Mingxi about this request, will they agree or not?”

“After all, if they agree, they can get what they want, right?” Seeing Wei Yuntai’s increasingly cold expression, Lu Minghua felt a surge of satisfaction.

This way, she truly seemed like the villain in a play, breaking up a pair of lovers.

“Lu Minghua!” Wei Yuntai shouted angrily. Mingxi was ill and couldn’t handle such a shock; she was clearly doing this on purpose.

At that moment, Lu Minghua almost thought Wei Yuntai would strike her, but he raised his hand and then lowered it.

“I said, if you want a divorce, you have to beg me,” she said.

What would Wei Yuntai do? Lu Minghua felt a hint of anticipation.

Author’s Note: I initially thought of having my dear girl ask for property and money, but in the end, I felt that venting her anger was the most important thing.