After Escaping Marriage - Chapter 110
Chapter 110
“I want to break off the engagement.”
The sparrows perched on the branches fluttered their wings and flew away, streaking across the blue-gray tiled roof, against the backdrop of an azure sky.
The peach blossoms in the vase had withered. Wei Tingyu had told the servant not to replace them with fresh ones, spending his days and nights facing these withered, dark brown branches.
Hearing Yu Qingtang say this, he was not surprised at all, and even a long-absent smile appeared on his face.
“Why?”
“There’s no why.” Yu Qingtang didn’t want to say another word to him. “I want to break off the engagement.”
The man, handsome as if carved from jade, raised the corners of his lips slightly and said, “Alright.”
Yu Qingtang was stunned by his words.
Just like that?
He agreed so easily?
Yu Qingtang had already prepared for the worst. If Wei Tingyu didn’t agree to break off the engagement, she would confess everything to Cheng Zhanxi and then elope with her. In modern society, could he really have her tied up and brought back?
Yu Qingtang’s thin lips pursed slightly, a baseless sense of loss in her heart.
Wei Tingyu picked up a peach branch from the vase, his fair, snow-like skin on the back of his hand accentuated as he leaned against the window, resembling a masterpiece of art.
The servant watched him, a smile lingering on his lips after he hung up the phone, seemingly in a very good mood.
The servant boldly stepped forward and asked, “Was that Seventh Miss’s call?”
Wei Tingyu hummed in acknowledgment, unlike his previously stern expression when she was mentioned.
Wei Tingyu said, “She wants to break off the engagement.”
The servant smiled cautiously, “Perhaps she has found someone she fancies.”
Wei Tingyu hummed again lazily, looking down and toying with the peach branch.
Speaking of this, a hint of nostalgia welled up in the servant’s eyes. “Third Young Master used to be like this too, whenever he met…” The servant paused, omitting the rest, and said, “Seventh Miss truly resembles you.”
Her appearance resembled her mother, her personality her father. If Yu Ci hadn’t passed away, they would have been the happiest family of three in the world.
But there were no ifs in this world.
The servant had watched Wei Tingyu grow up, practically half a relative to him. He watched him born into the scheming Wei family, never having met his biological mother, from world-weariness and self-isolation, to gradually transforming under Yu Ci’s influence, leading a fulfilling life. In his twenties, he was full of vigor, proposing marriage under the moon and flowers. The Third Young Master and his wife of the Wei family were renowned throughout the Capital City, truly like a celestial couple. But a turn of events doesn’t always lead to a brighter future; it could also be a bottomless abyss.
Yu Ci was his life. He had lost his life, so how could he have the heart to look at the world, or at anyone else, again?
He cared about nothing, including himself.
Wei Tingyu paused, then slowly asked, “Upon meeting whom?”
The servant lowered his head and said, “Young Mistress.”
Wei Tingyu placed the flower branch on the table and said gently, “Tell me about her. My memory has been getting worse lately, I’ve forgotten many things.”
The servant said, “Alright.”
The servant began to recount their first meeting.
Back then, Yu Ci was a university student studying at the art academy. Wei Tingyu wrote with a fine hand and was a talented scholar himself, acquainted with the professors at the academy. Once, when he went to see a professor, the professor happened to be teaching a class, so he walked into the classroom and sat in a corner. He had fair skin and red lips, delicate features more exquisite than a woman’s, but he exuded an icy aura that kept people at a distance, making them afraid to approach.
He was very young and had achieved fame early, so sitting there, he was mistaken for a student.
“Excuse me, classmate, is this seat taken?” A voice, as clear as a stream flowing over stones, sounded beside his ear. She had eyes as translucent as black jade, and her long black hair, due to her slight bow, cascaded in front of her, the ends accidentally brushing his nose.
It tickled a little.
The girl in the white long dress chuckled and said, “My apologies.”
She tucked her long hair behind her ear, revealing a face so breathtaking it almost made one forget to breathe.
“No,” Wei Tingyu said coolly, turning his head back, unmoved.
The chair beside him was pulled out, and the girl sat down next to him.
The girl pushed a piece of paper towards him: My name is Yu Ci, what’s your name?
Wei Tingyu glanced at it but ignored her.
The girl wasn’t annoyed. After a while, she drew a picture and pushed it to him.
It wasn’t a drawing of Wei Tingyu, but of herself, rendered vividly with just a few strokes.
A hint of a smile played on Wei Tingyu’s lips; he turned his head to hide it.
The girl signed her name, Yu Ci.
Compared to her drawing, her handwriting was much more ordinary.
As if possessed, Wei Tingyu took the fountain pen from her hand and, with sharp, decisive strokes, wrote two characters on the paper. He was a young calligrapher, his characters worth a thousand gold pieces, beautiful even to a layman’s eye.
The twenty-year-old Yu Ci glanced at him, quite surprised.
Later, Wei Tingyu found out that Yu Ci had been thinking: I thought you only had a pretty face, I didn’t expect you to have some talent too.
At that moment, Wei Tingyu somewhat regretted engaging with her, and his expression turned even colder as he looked at the lecturing professor at the front.
She smelled very fragrant. Wei Tingyu not only avoided women but also avoided everyone. In order to distinguish the scent on her, he was distracted for the entire class.
His nose tickled, as if her soft, smooth hair was brushing against it, back and forth.
The servant hadn’t gone out with Wei Tingyu; these were things Wei Tingyu later recounted to him. The usually cold-hearted Third Young Master would be practicing calligraphy in the study, a faint smile on his face as he spoke of a strange person he had met, a woman. The servant, grinding ink for him nearby, saw that the “Draft of a Requiem to My Nephew” on his Xuan paper slowly transformed into the same name over and over.
Yu Ci. Yu Ci. Yu Ci.
The servant tilted his head and said, “Is her name Yu Ci?”
Wei Tingyu blurted out, “How did you know?”
The servant gestured with his chin towards the Xuan paper in front of him.
The servant was driven out of the study by the embarrassed and angry Third Young Master. Grinning as he closed the door, he saw Wei Tingyu raise a hand to cover his face, his exposed ears flushed red.
Yu Ci pursued Wei Tingyu, initially attracted by his looks. Every time the Third Young Master met her, he was teased. He pretended to be aloof while enjoying it, and would later complain to the only servant he could talk to, which was actually a form of showing off: what Yu Ci did to him today, how could she be like that? How could there be such a woman? When he spoke of her, his cheeks would flush, like a young girl in love.
Later, they got together and married not long after.
Their families were not of equal social standing, but it didn’t affect their marital affection.
Wei Tingyu relied heavily on Yu Ci, to the point of being inseparable; he would look for her if she was out of sight for a moment. They shared similar interests and could talk endlessly for a whole day even if they did nothing. When Yu Ci painted, the inscriptions were all written by Wei Tingyu. For Wei Tingyu’s calligraphy, Yu Ci designed a special seal for him. Their works all bore the mark of the other, becoming a beautiful story.
After four or five years of marriage? Yu Ci wanted a child.
Wei Tingyu initially didn’t agree because Yu Ci’s health was poor, a congenital condition. The doctor advised against pregnancy, saying it would harm the mother.
Later, unable to resist Yu Ci’s persistent coaxing, he agreed to have a child.
He supervised Yu Ci’s diet every day and personally cooked to nourish her body. A year later, Yu Ci became pregnant.
Everything went smoothly.
Who could have predicted an accident? The maternal mortality rate at that time was about seven in ten thousand. Yu Ci was one of those seven.
It shouldn’t have been like this.
The servant looked at Wei Tingyu sleeping in the lounge chair, his voice gradually fading. He gently picked up the thin blanket beside him, unfolded it, covered him, and wiped away the glistening tears from the corners of his eyes.
The late spring wind blew through the window, causing the few withered peach branches in the vase to sway, and the Xuan paper on the desk rustled.
The servant stepped forward and closed the window, and the room fell completely silent.
The servant retreated, closing the door, leaving the man with slightly frosted temples in the lounge chair, lost in the only dream in which he had truly lived, day after day, year after year.
The Cheng Residence.
With successive rainfalls, the weather gradually grew hotter. Wei Tingyu took off his long trench coat in the entryway, his figure appearing even thinner. Led by Cheng Yi, he entered the study on the first floor used for receiving guests.
Wei Tingyu turned around and bowed deeply to Cheng Yi.
Cheng Yi promptly supported him, saying, “What’s wrong, my dear in-law?”
Beside them, Song Qingrou, unnoticed by Cheng Yi, quickly retracted her outstretched hand behind her back.
Wei Tingyu remained bowed, completing the gesture.
The three sat down. Wei Tingyu, opposite them, placed his hands on his knees, looked at the couple before him, and said sincerely, “I’ve come this time to apologize.”
“Apologize for what?” Mr. and Mrs. Cheng were puzzled.
“Break off the engagement?” Cheng Yuanxi, who had just stepped into the house, heard this news from Song Qingrou, who was sitting on the sofa. The young man’s face immediately darkened. He tugged at the tie around his collar. “He says we’ll marry when he wants, and break off the engagement when he wants. What does he take our Cheng family for?”
Song Qingrou said, “Your father said the same thing.”
Even a clay figure has a bit of temper. The Cheng family was kind-hearted, but that didn’t mean they were to be trifled with. Agreeing to the marriage was originally out of a sense of obligation; their family had no need to get involved in the Wei family’s messy affairs.
Cheng Yuanxi asked, “The reason?”
Song Qingrou said, “His daughter changed her mind.”
Cheng Yuanxi draped his tie and suit jacket over the back of the sofa, wearing only a white shirt underneath, its sleeves rolled up to his sturdy forearms, as he listened to his mother continue.
Song Qingrou said, “Your Uncle Wei said she suddenly changed her mind, and he didn’t know about it beforehand. He doesn’t expect us to forgive him, but the marriage probably can’t happen. He will cover all the wedding preparation expenses incurred so far, and compensate us tenfold.”
Cheng Yuanxi said, “Is our family short of this little bit of money?”
Song Qingrou said, “But there’s really no way. We can’t just force someone to marry, can we?”
“Miss Wei.” Cheng Yuanxi muttered to himself, then said, “Wei Qingtang, right? How old is she this year?”
Song Qingrou said, “She’s the same age as your younger sister.”
Cheng Yuanxi said, “Then she’s also twenty-seven or twenty-eight. It was one thing for her not to show up before, but now she doesn’t show up and wants to back out, letting Uncle Wei break off the engagement on her behalf…”
Cheng Yuanxi sneered.
He didn’t finish, but Song Qingrou understood his meaning. As an adult, to be so irresponsible was truly disappointing. It was right for the Cheng family not to proceed with this marriage. Even if they were to marry a goddaughter through a sham marriage, Song Qingrou wouldn’t want someone like that.
Cheng Yuanxi took an orange from the fruit platter and asked while peeling it, “What did Dad say?”
The entire Capital City knew that the Cheng family was going to form a marriage alliance with the Seventh Miss Wei. Although the invitations hadn’t been sent out yet, they had made a big show of it for everyone to see, creating a lot of buzz. Who would have thought it would now become the laughingstock of the Capital City—if the engagement was broken off, where would the Cheng family’s reputation be?
Brother and sister, sister and brother, both children of this generation of the Cheng family were involved in this marriage. Most people outside couldn’t tell them apart. The two siblings being jilted by the Seventh Miss Wei, what kind of reputation was that? How would her two children hold their heads high in the future?
Song Qingrou took the peeled orange from her son and said, “Your father agreed, but with one condition.”
Cheng Yuanxi looked at her.
Song Qingrou: “Let Wei Qingtang make a public appearance and take responsibility for breaking off the engagement. The Cheng family must remain untarnished, and our reputation cannot be damaged.”
Song Qingrou directly used the other party’s name, showing she was very annoyed.
Cheng Yuanxi asked, “What did Uncle Wei say?”
Song Qingrou said, “He said he needs to go back and discuss it with his daughter.”
Cheng Yuanxi scoffed, “What’s there to discuss? Don’t let it be Uncle Wei speaking for her again next time.”
Song Qingrou had a strange expression.
Cheng Yuanxi: “Mom, what’s wrong with you?”
Song Qingrou was again imagining a forbidden father-daughter drama, wondering how far this play had progressed. Had Wei Qingtang finally decided not to obey her father’s will and wanted to spend his last years with him? Even if she would be alone afterwards? Wei Tingyu couldn’t dissuade his daughter, so he granted her wish, even if it meant offending the Cheng family?
Song Qingrou put the last segment of orange into her mouth and said, “It’s nothing. Your father and I were thinking, should we meet her privately first? What if Miss Wei has some unspoken difficulties? After all, her mother and I were friends. We don’t want things to end up so strained.”
Cheng Yuanxi said, “I’ll go see her. Nominally, she’s still my fiancée. If she refuses to come, then I’ll go see her personally. Where is she?”
He wanted to see for himself what kind of person this Seventh Miss Wei was.
Fang Wenjiao watched Yu Qingtang hang up the phone and turn expressionlessly to go upstairs.
Fang Wenjiao called out to her, “Momo.”
Yu Qingtang turned back.
Fang Wenjiao pointed to the landline phone, her voice tinged with caution, and asked, “What did your dad say?”
Yu Qingtang had only said two sentences.
—I want to break off the engagement.
—There’s no why, I want to break off the engagement.
Her attitude was very firm, and cold.
After a few seconds, the person on the other end seemed to say something, then hung up.
Fang Wenjiao was worried about both sides.
Yu Qingtang said, “He agreed.”
“Agreed to what?”
“Agreed to break off the engagement.”
“Just like that?”
“Just like that.” Yu Qingtang asked, “Is there anything else? If not, I’m going upstairs. I still have work to finish.”
Fang Wenjiao was stunned for a moment, then said, “You can go up then.”
Yu Qingtang’s figure quickly disappeared behind the second-floor staircase.
Fang Wenjiao looked at the disconnected phone, then at Grandfather sitting on the sofa, and repeated, “Just like that?”
Grandfather was also bewildered, but he put on a calm front for his wife: “Otherwise, what else?”
“Isn’t this too much like child’s play?”
“Do you think her engagement wasn’t child’s play?”
“…”
Grandfather said, “I want to go out for a walk.”
Fang Wenjiao helped him into his wheelchair, pushed him out of the courtyard gate, and headed towards a nearby park.
Second-floor bedroom.
The window was open, and the spring breeze brought in the sight of blooming flowers and green willows, the chirping of birds, and a vibrant spring atmosphere.
Yu Qingtang sat motionless at the desk by the window. The laptop screen in front of her had long since gone dark, switching to the standby interface.
She thought she had heard that man laugh on the phone just now.
The laughter was soft, but very pleasant, with a hint of gentleness.
Was it because she said she wanted to break off the engagement? Last year, when she agreed to the engagement, he hadn’t smiled either, just nodded faintly and had the servant see her out.
What did he want her to be like?
Yu Qingtang rested her chin on her hand, gazing absently at the vast and tranquil blue sky.
Buzz—
Buzz—
Just as the call was about to automatically disconnect, Yu Qingtang’s attention returned from the distance, and she answered Cheng Zhanxi’s call.
Yu Qingtang took a light breath, adjusted her mood, and said, “Hello.”
Cheng Zhanxi asked her, “What are you doing?”
Yu Qingtang clicked the mouse, illuminating the computer screen. The reading progress was still where she had left it before going downstairs. She lied, “Looking at emails, I didn’t notice the phone ringing.”
“Tangtang, you’re so well-behaved, still working hard on a Sunday.”
Yu Qingtang smiled.
“Aren’t you the same?”
“I’m not. I’m eating fruit.” Cheng Zhanxi let her hear the crisp “crunch” of biting into an apple. “Did you hear that?”
“Heard it.”
“Have you eaten fruit today?”
“Not yet.”
“Go eat, let me hear you eat.”
Yu Qingtang smiled again.
“Got it.”
Yu Qingtang went downstairs, washed a pear, put her phone on speaker on the coffee table, and sat on the sofa peeling the pear.
Cheng Zhanxi suddenly asked, “Are you unhappy?”
Yu Qingtang touched her lips, making sure she hadn’t made any sound. She said, “How did you know?”
“We’re in sync.”
“…”
Cheng Zhanxi chuckled.
“So why are you unhappy?”
Yu Qingtang fell silent.
Cheng Zhanxi thoughtfully didn’t press further. “I’m almost done with my work. Shall I pick you up earlier today? Can you skip dinner at home?”
Yu Qingtang thought for a moment and said, “Yes.”
Cheng Zhanxi said, “Then I’ll pick you up this afternoon. Would two o’clock be too early?”
Yu Qingtang burst out laughing.
Her expression gradually turned serious. “Xixi.”
Cheng Zhanxi said gently, “Hmm?”
Yu Qingtang changed her mind and said softly, “It’s nothing.”
She wanted to say thank you to Cheng Zhanxi, but those words seemed superfluous to Cheng Zhanxi. She could only keep it in her heart, and be a little better to her, and then a little better still.
“What do you want to eat tonight?” Yu Qingtang asked.
“Eat you.”
Yu Qingtang blushed slightly, picked up the phone from speaker mode, switched to normal volume, and held it to her ear. “Be serious.”
“Is Little Chef Yu going to cook?”
Yu Qingtang smiled. “Yes.”
Cheng Zhanxi recalled an old incident and chuckled, “When I was sick before, the porridge you brought me, did you make it yourself and lie that it was takeout, hmm?”
Yu Qingtang’s lips curled up. “It was takeout. I was the chef, and I was the delivery person, delivering only to you.”
Cheng Zhanxi pressed her hand to her sweet-feeling heart, leaned back on the sofa, and closed her eyes.
“Your mouth is so sweet, what did you eat?”
“A pear.”
“What’s sweeter than a pear?”
There was a moment of silence on the other end, then Yu Qingtang said, “You.”
Cheng Zhanxi was completely done for. What an absolutely peerless little sweet bean Yu Qingtang was.
“It’s getting late, I’m going to cook.” Little Sweet Bean Yu teased and ran, leaving Cheng Zhanxi alone on the sofa to deal with her longing.
After Yu Qingtang had been in the kitchen for a while, the heat in her cheeks finally subsided. She let out a long breath and bit her lip, smiling.
After eating and cleaning up, it was half past one. Both elders had gone to their rooms for an afternoon nap. Just as Yu Qingtang sat down in the living room, a WeChat message from Cheng Zhanxi arrived.
【I’ve arrived】
Yu Qingtang shot up and ran out.
The bamboo grove swayed, and a refreshing breeze blew in from the courtyard gate. Yu Qingtang walked to the entrance, paused to straighten her clothes, and then stepped out. Cheng Zhanxi was standing at the back of a white Audi, most of her body obscured by the open trunk.
Yu Qingtang: “?”
Cheng Zhanxi stopped what she was doing and leaned out to wave at her.
Yu Qingtang walked over.
Cheng Zhanxi looked at her and said, “I want to meet your Grandfather and Grandma. Do you think that’s okay?” Yu Qingtang thought, Haven’t you met them already? Seeing the trunk filled with gifts, she somewhat understood.
Meeting… the parents?
Cheng Zhanxi looked at her hesitant expression, her heart pounding.
After a long moment, Yu Qingtang said, “Yes.”
Cheng Zhanxi leaned over and quickly kissed her on the lips. “Thank you, baby.”
Yu Qingtang’s lips felt slightly warm, her gaze a mix of feigned annoyance and affection.
The neighbors on both sides were taking their afternoon naps. A cool breeze rustled through the alley at midday, stirring their long hair. Yu Qingtang’s waist tightened as Cheng Zhanxi wrapped an arm around her, pressing her against the wall. Shielded by the car and trees, this spot was difficult to see clearly.
Cheng Zhanxi cupped her face and kissed her.
This kiss was gentle, slowly invading her lips and teeth.
Yu Qingtang wrapped both hands around her head, irresistibly running her fingers through her hair, weaving through the silky smooth strands, tugging at the sensitive roots.
Cheng Zhanxi let out a soft “Mmhmm,” her brow relaxing even more.
Her arm around Yu Qingtang’s slender waist involuntarily loosened a bit.
Yu Qingtang proactively pressed closer to her.
Yu Qingtang’s kissing skills were now almost on par with hers.
During a brief moment to catch her breath, Yu Qingtang opened her eyes and saw a swallow on the opposite wall, its pair of black, bean-like eyes curiously watching them.
Cheng Zhanxi lowered her head, but Yu Qingtang’s hand didn’t follow. Her hair was tugged slightly, pulling her out of her absorption. She asked, “What’s wrong?”
Yu Qingtang’s eyes sparkled. “Swallows.”
Cheng Zhanxi followed her gaze and repeated, “Swallows.”
Hmm, so what?
Yu Qingtang’s face flushed slightly, and she whispered, “There’s a children’s song.”
Cheng Zhanxi sang, “Little swallow, wearing colorful clothes, comes here every spring, this one?”
Yu Qingtang nodded.
Cheng Zhanxi said “Ah,” and then, “And then?”
Yu Qingtang buried her head even lower. “There’s no and then. I just saw the swallows and suddenly thought of this children’s song.” So she wanted to share it with Cheng Zhanxi. Would Cheng Zhanxi think she was crazy? Was such a trivial matter worth bringing up specially?
Just as she was about to walk away, Cheng Zhanxi intercepted her, and the next second, she was back in the woman’s embrace.
“Why are you looking down?”
Yu Qingtang glanced up at her, then quickly lowered her eyes again, annoyed. “Just forget what just happened.”
“Why forget? Little swallows in colorful clothes, how cute.”
Yu Qingtang buried her face in her neck.
“Did you just want to tell me there was a swallow, no why, and no and then?” Yu Qingtang hummed softly in agreement.
“I was wrong.” The woman’s voice came from above her head.
Yu Qingtang looked up.
Cheng Zhanxi looked at her and said seriously, “I was overthinking. I won’t next time. You can tell me even if you see an ant. I like to listen.”
Yu Qingtang shook her head, unable to help but smile. “It seems so silly.” And childish, not like a three-year-old.
Do other people fall in love like this?
Cheng Zhanxi thought for a moment and said, “Life is one foolish thing chasing another, and love is two foolish things chasing each other.”
Yu Qingtang chuckled. “What?”
Cheng Zhanxi said seriously, “I didn’t say it, Oscar Wilde did.”
Since Oscar Wilde said so, Yu Qingtang naturally had no objections.
“Little swallow, wearing colorful clothes, comes here every spring. I ask the swallow why it comes? The swallow says, the spring here is the most beautiful.” Accompanied by Cheng Zhanxi’s cheerful singing, the gifts from the trunk were all taken out. Both her hands were full. Yu Qingtang asked if it was too much. Cheng Zhanxi said the more the merrier, and took the lead in carrying them into the courtyard.
Under the dark gray eaves, several swallows were building nests, fluttering their wings back and forth, carrying moist mud from the riverside.
Yu Qingtang closed the courtyard gate and helped Cheng Zhanxi stack the gifts next to the entryway.
Fang Wenjiao and Grandfather were still taking their afternoon nap. The living room was quiet. In the self-changing fish tank, the aquatic plants parted, and a goldfish’s head poked out. As a figure passed by, the green aquatic plants closed again, swaying gently at the bottom of the water.
Cheng Zhanxi seemed to be here for the first time. Her steps were steady as she carefully looked around before sitting down on the living room sofa.
As the footsteps receded, the little goldfish poked out from the aquatic plants again, observing the unfamiliar guest.
Yu Qingtang gestured with her chin towards the stairs, puzzled. “Aren’t you coming upstairs with me?”
Cheng Zhanxi sat with her back straight, her hands properly placed on her knees. “No, I’ll meet Grandfather and Grandma first.”
Meeting the parents, she was serious. Etiquette must be impeccable, and her attitude couldn’t be casual.
Yu Qingtang sensed something from her unusual seriousness. Her slender fingers curled slightly, and she inexplicably became nervous too.
She poured Cheng Zhanxi a glass of water and sat down on another sofa.
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