Chapter 17: The Choice

Chapter 17: A Choice

Yan Sanhe's dark eyes seemed to be transfixed, leaving him speechless.

Xie Erli's heart was thunderstruck by what he heard. "Father, what happened then?"

"Then?"

A sense of satisfaction welled up in Xie Daozhi, and he sneered coldly. "Without my intervention, the Yan family was as good as cursed, utterly ruined."

"How did it happen?"

"After we left, within two months, Yan Xing was demoted, his property seized, and he was exiled to Yunnan."

"Did he go alone?"

"The youngest son accompanied him."

"And the rest of the Yan family?"

"Desolate ones are desolate, the early dead are long gone," Xie Daozhi sneered repeatedly.

Forty years had passed in the blink of an eye.

Now, he held a high position, and the people and affairs of the Yan family no longer occupied his thoughts.

If not for Yan Sanhe seeking him out, if not for her relentless questioning, those two years would have been nothing but a fleeting dream to him.

The moment the incense was lit, he came to his senses.

It wasn't a dream.

Those were painful fragments etched into his heart, memories of agony that lingered in his blood, hatred that could not be hindered by the long shadows of sunset or the moon's descent amidst falling blossoms.

And at the end of this hatred lay Yan Xing.

"Xie Daozhi!"

Yan Sanhe, who had been silent for a long while, gazed at the man before her with an eerily calm expression.

"I traveled from Yunnan Prefecture to the capital in forty days. Today marks my second day in your Xie family, which means I have seven days left."

Her tone was as tranquil as still water.

"One cannot advise others on virtue without understanding their hardships. My stance remains the same: the choice is yours. Of course, there's also the possibility that the elder matriarch already has that divorce letter."

Xie Daozhi was momentarily stunned, as if he couldn't believe those words had come from Yan Sanhe's mouth.

"You have two hours to inquire about the past with the elder matriarch and make your decision."

Yan Sanhe coughed softly. "In two hours, I'll be leaving the Xie residence. Time is of the essence, so make haste."

An indescribable feeling spread through Xie Daozhi's heart.

Their wedding night had been hastily arranged. If not for Yan Sanhe producing their marriage certificate, he would never have known that his mother had been a second wife.

After being expelled from the Yan estate, his mother had only cried and said nothing else to him, let alone anything about a divorce letter.

He scoffed and strode into his study.

Supervisor Xie hastily followed, but Xie Erli remained rooted to the spot, his gaze fixed on Yan Sanhe.

This person didn't mention a single fault of Yan Xing, merely laying out the pros and cons, using a strategy of withdrawal to force their father into making a choice.

How composed he was!

Was he really composed?

In Yan Sanhe's heart, it was a completely different story. It was seething with turmoil.

She prayed inwardly, Grandfather, please come back to life. Show me that all this isn't true, that it's just a fabrication by Xie Daozhi.

How could you treat their mother and son like that?

Where is your integrity?

Your nobility?

Your pride in not succumbing to the corruption of the world?

Is everything just an illusion?

Yan Sanhe closed her eyes, feeling the cold of the capital's wintry night for the first time, so chilling that her teeth were chattering.

...

In Xie Daozhi's study, there had never been such persistent silence as there was these past two days.

Xie Daozhi also hadn't felt so trapped in a long time, as if he couldn't advance or retreat without facing difficulties.

"Father!"

Xie Erli's Adam's apple bobbed. "If it really comes to it, I'll make the trip myself and ask Grandmother at the temple."

"No need!"

Xie Daozhi knew his mother's heart all too well. Yan Xing was a barrier she couldn't overcome for most of her life – a topic that couldn't even be mentioned.

"Grandmother is old and shouldn't be startled. If anything were to happen to her..."

Having observed three years of mourning, it would be difficult for him to regain his position. He dare not take that risk!

"Suppose..." Xie Erli hesitated, unable to voice his concern.

Suppose there was no divorce certificate...

Suppose those calamities did befall the Xie family...

"In old servant's opinion,"

Quivering with frustration, Chief Eunuch Xie declared, "That person is merely spreading scaremongering tales. Talk of coffins splitting open and spells dissolving are all nothing but lies. Don't believe a word of it!"

"But what if it's true?" Xie Erli's eyes suddenly flashed with a chilling light.

"This..."

Chief Eunuch Xie lowered his head, not daring to meet the master's gaze.