Chapter 7: How Shameless!

She had never been this hysterical; even Biezhi was startled by her.

Nanyan took a deep breath, though her eyes were already bloodshot.

"I must go and clarify this..." She forced herself to speak, her voice choked with sobs, "My husband would never treat me like this..."

She rose to leave, and Jiang Li opened his mouth as if to speak, but swallowed his words instead.

"Mistress! Mistress—" Biezhi grabbed a cloak and hurried after her.

The night air was cold as water. A sudden chill seeped into Nanyan’s marrow, clearing her head and forcing her to stop in her tracks.

Biezhi draped the cloak over her shoulders, pleading, "Mistress! It is already late; whatever it is, let us discuss it tomorrow. You need your rest!"

Discuss it tomorrow? Would that even matter anymore?

Jiang Li’s voice drifted from behind her: "Is there anything left to ask?"

Thinking back to the events of the day, he clearly knew everything. Was this sarcasm, or merely cold comfort?

Nanyan said nothing. She gritted her teeth and resumed her stride.

At this hour, Meng Boji was likely in his study. As Nanyan passed beneath the window, her footsteps came to an abrupt halt. Biezhi, following close behind, nearly collided with her. Before she could ask why, she heard the sounds coming from within the study.

"Ah... Meng-lang, you are truly... wonderful—ah..."

Biezhi gasped, her eyes widening. Nanyan stood frozen, her entire body rigid.

The study, the window... the dream from last night had become reality once more.

The commotion inside was distinct, and the courtyard outside was deserted; they had clearly dismissed all the servants. How thorough... this was surely not their first time.

Nanyan stared blankly ahead, tears crystallizing on her eyelashes before falling like pearls. The sounds of Xia Qingfei’s coquettish laughter and teasing were piercing, stabbing at her heart like a blade.

"She... ah—is naturally not as good as me. She spends all day putting on those airs of a noble lady..."

"Unlike me, who can serve you... serve you so comfortably..."

"With someone like her, in bed, I fear she would only lie there like a dead fish..."

"Ah—you’re hateful! Have I said anything wrong?"

Everything she had seen and heard in her dream was perfectly accurate! Even the heavy, labored breathing was identical. Nanyan closed her eyes in despair as she heard Meng Boji’s voice.

"...I have never touched her, how would I know such things!"

Jiang Li was right. What was left to ask? The truth lay right before her; it was simply that she had been unwilling to face it, unwilling to believe it.

Even though they had been married for three years, he could still utter such a lie—that he had never touched her. Nanyan let out a hollow laugh.

That Xia Qingfei could actually believe such a falsehood.

But what right did she have to look down on Xia Qingfei? Had she not been deceived by Meng Boji’s sweet words for two whole years herself?

Nanyan finally understood that a man’s promises and vows could change with terrifying speed.

Her display of weeping and laughing frightened Biezhi. As the pearl-like tears continued to fall, Biezhi felt a pang of heartache but dared not speak. Just as she grew anxious, Nanyan wiped her own tears away, lifted her chin high, and without a word, turned and walked away.

Inside the study, the activity grew more intense. Biezhi gnashed her teeth, spat toward the room, and cursed silently: *How shameless!*

Nanyan did not return to her quarters; she turned a corner toward the guest wing, where Jiang Li stood under a pear tree.

The tree was in full, snowy bloom. A breeze passed through, dusting him in white petals, making him appear all the more clean and ethereal, as if untainted by the mundane world.

Nanyan paused. In truth, she had never really observed Jiang Li closely. From the beginning, his gaze had made her uncomfortable, and she had avoided him at all costs. Now, with her heart in a different state, she could finally look at him properly.

He was truly incredibly handsome. With such a face, had he not been sickly, countless ladies would have been begging to throw themselves at him.

Thinking back, the way he looked at her at first did not seem to carry the motives she had suspected. His arrival was too coincidental, but Nanyan could not make sense of it, so she would have to ask him directly.

Seeing Nanyan approach, he bowed with great courtesy. Nanyan returned the bow and dismissed Biezhi.

Jiang Li was sharp; he saw through her change of heart at once.

"Have you found the answer you were looking for?"

Nanyan’s eyes were still red, and her heart stung with a dull pain, but she gritted her teeth and endured it.

"Is that sarcasm, or are you just offering cold comfort?"

Jiang Li remained silent, merely nodding with a knowing look, already certain of the outcome.

Nanyan looked up to keep her tears from falling, struggling to keep her voice steady. "You seem to know everything. Since that is the case, Master Jiang, there is no need for circumlocution. Just say what you know."

For once, Jiang Li was silent.

Nanyan gave a cold laugh, her eyes bloodshot. "When we first met, you spoke those brazen words to me. I truly took you for a libertine."

"Now that I think about it, were you trying to warn me?"

Jiang Li did not commit to an answer. "I told you that you would come back to me."

"..." Nanyan’s heart stirred, but she found no words to reply. She gathered her thoughts and went straight to the point.

"How did you know that Meng Boji was not sincere with me?"

She had been deceived for three years without ever noticing. Why did Jiang Li see through it the moment he arrived?

"You were simply caught in the middle of a game. When too many people conspire against you, you lose the ability to see the truth."

*Too many people?*

"Is the current Meng household still worth your attachment?"

"..." Nanyan was struck at her most vulnerable point, her heart aching deeply.

"I am the young mistress of the Meng family, the wife wed to Meng Boji through proper ceremony. This has become my home..."

"Home?" Jiang Li narrowed his eyes. "Are you certain... this is the home you want?"

Nanyan laughed, though more tears fell. "If not here, where else can I go?"

"Come with me."

Those words again.

Nanyan looked at him in astonishment. A gentleman as fine as jade—handsome, yes, but truly too fragile.

"You... why bother?"

Nanyan searched for the right words. "I am a married woman. Though Master Jiang’s health is not the best, there should be no shortage of fine young ladies for you..."

The refusal was clear; unless Jiang Li was a fool, he could not fail to understand.

But his gaze remained unshaken. He countered, "After Meng Boji has betrayed you so deeply, do you still intend to stay in the Meng household?"

"!"

Nanyan did not know how to explain it to him.

Having married into the Meng family, she was one of them. Her name was tied to this house; if she did not stay here, was she to return to her maiden home? If she did, not only she, but the entire Duke’s residence would be disgraced.

What Jiang Li said was not unreasonable, but to leave the Meng family? How could it be so simple!

She had never considered leaving. Did that mean... she truly had to agree to let Xia Qingfei enter as a concubine?

What Mother Meng said was reality—it was common for men to have many wives and concubines—but she was truly unwilling! And for her to be the one to arrange everything for Xia Qingfei’s entry? She could not do it!

Thinking of the Baohua Temple and the study, a wave of nausea rose again.

Nanyan covered her mouth, fighting to hold it back, but Jiang Li caught the movement. He stared at her, asking, "You cannot eat or sleep well in the Meng household, can you?"

"Come with me. Once you leave the Meng family, you will live well. Anything you want, I can give you."