Chapter 593: Love Shattered

Chapter 593: A Broken Bond

He'd spent his whole life scheming, but the one thing he'd never accounted for was that one day, his own daughter would stomp all over him and humiliate him.

And he couldn't even muster a single word to fight back.

Defeat welled up in Ji Nanchuan's chest, as if every scheme he'd so carefully crafted had just turned into a joke.

He stared blankly at the crimson gate of Prince Ye's mansion, suddenly realizing just what he'd lost.

He'd traded a pearl for a fish eye, and that fish eye had destroyed his family.

Ji Yuntang really didn't want anything to do with him anymore!

Ji Huaiche had already ducked out of the way when Chen Hu splashed the black dog blood.

Once he saw Ji Yuntang leave, he slowly stepped forward.

"Father, are you alright?"

Ji Huaiche wanted to reach out and steady Ji Nanchuan, but seeing the dog blood all over him, he hesitated and pulled his hand back.

He was relieved the dog blood hadn't gotten on him, but he sure as hell didn't want to touch that filthy mess.

Even if it was his own father, he didn't want to touch him.

Ji Nanchuan didn't respond. He looked up at the carved crimson lacquered gate, feeling the red was almost blindingly harsh.

Ji Huaiche thought for a moment, deciding he couldn't let his father keep standing there like that.

If they didn't get out of Prince Ye's mansion soon, who knew what other crap Ji Yuntang might throw at them when she came back out?

They'd already done everything they could, but they just couldn't get Ji Yuntang to go to the courthouse to operate on Ji Qingfeng.

Ji Huaiche figured he'd done right by his younger brother.

If Ji Qingfeng wanted to blame anyone, he should blame Ji Yuntang—she's the one who refused to save him.

Ji Huaiche wanted to leave. He'd already been humiliated enough today.

And now that they'd been turned away at Prince Ye's door, who knew what the folks in the capital would be saying about them!

He pursed his lips, then said to Ji Nanchuan, "Father, maybe we should just head back."

"Second brother still needs someone to watch over him, and you should go home, wash up, and change."

Ji Nanchuan was a stickler for cleanliness. In the past, if even a drop of dirty water touched him, he'd strip off his clothes and head home to wash.

But now, covered in dog blood, he refused to leave.

All he felt was a bitter ache in his chest. His eyes were slightly red, caught between defiance and despair, but he didn't have the guts to knock on Prince Ye's gate again.

After a long pause, he said hoarsely, "If we go back, what happens to your second brother? Am I really supposed to just watch him die?"

Back when he'd swapped his daughter away, he hadn't felt a thing—just relief at getting rid of a burden.

But now that the son he'd raised was about to die, the pain cut straight through him.

Maybe Ji Yuntang had felt the same heartbreak when she was forced to marry in Ji Qingqing's place?

That was why she'd had no choice but to cut ties with them.

In the end, Ji Nanchuan took Ji Huaiche's advice and left Prince Ye's mansion.

He took a carriage back to the Marquis Yongning estate first. When the servants at the marquis's estate saw him, they were all stunned.

Was this really their dignified, refined marquis?

He was covered in blood, leaving bloody footprints everywhere he walked. He looked absolutely pathetic.

If not for the young heir Ji walking beside him, they'd have thought their eyes were playing tricks on them.

Ji Nanchuan ignored the servants' strange looks. He went inside, took a hot bath, and changed into fresh clothes.

He'd planned to head to the courthouse to see Ji Qingfeng, but then something occurred to him, and he turned back.

He went to the back courtyard and ordered the servants to unlock the room.

Hearing the noise, Madam Meng sat up in bed and whipped her head toward the door.

When she saw Ji Nanchuan, she got incredibly worked up.

"Marquis, Marquis, you finally came."

She'd been locked in the back courtyard for a month, seeing no one but the servant who brought her meals.

Madam Meng had repeatedly asked the servants to tell Ji Nanchuan she wanted to see him.

But over half a month had gone by, and Ji Nanchuan still hadn't shown up.

Just when she'd given up hope, thinking their twenty-plus years of marriage were over, Ji Nanchuan unexpectedly came to see her on his own.

How could Madam Meng not be excited?

Without even bothering to put her shoes on properly, she scrambled out of bed and hurried over to Ji Nanchuan.

"Marquis, I know I was wrong. I'll never make decisions on my own again. I'll consult you on everything. Please, just let me out!"

"Mother is bedridden and needs someone to care for her. I'm willing to go out and personally tend to her, to take some weight off your shoulders, Marquis."

Ji Nanchuan's gaze landed on Madam Meng, and he realized he felt absolutely nothing for her anymore.

At this moment, she no longer wore the dazzling jewelry of Lin Lang, nor had she put on her gorgeous and exquisite clothes. Her plain, unpowdered face looked aged and haggard, no different from an ordinary village woman.

Ji Nanchuan's eyes met Madam Meng's.

He remembered that back then, what he had loved most was her eyes—sparkling and lively, as if they could speak, full of spirit and vitality.

But now, her eyes had lost their former radiance, becoming murky and dazed.

Ji Nanchuan suddenly lost interest in her.

This aging, faded Madam Meng couldn't help him with anything. How was she worthy of his affection?

And what qualifications did she have to sit properly in the position of the marquis household's matriarch?

For a moment, Ji Nanchuan wanted to divorce Madam Meng, but thinking of the pressure the marquis household was currently facing, he dismissed that thought.

Divorcing her now would only bring greater harm to him and the household.

He was already notorious; divorcing his lawful wife would only make others see him as even more heartless and cruel.

With this in mind, Ji Nanchuan decided to postpone the divorce and first deal with what was in front of him.

He said to Madam Meng, "I, the Marquis, have come to see you today because there is something you need to know."

Hearing this, Madam Meng felt a sudden knot in her stomach, sensing something ominous.

She looked up at Ji Nanchuan and asked timidly, "Marquis, what is it that you wish to tell me?"

She was terrified that Ji Nanchuan might turn against her and divorce her.

At her age, being divorced would leave her with virtually no way to survive.

Madam Meng was scared to death, but she tried to look calm; however, her slightly trembling hands betrayed her true feelings.

Ji Nanchuan looked at her, his brows slightly furrowed, and said, "Qing Feng is in trouble. He was stabbed by your precious daughter and is now hanging by a thread, still lying in bed."

Madam Meng's eyes widened, and she felt as if she had been struck by lightning; she staggered, nearly falling to the ground.

When she heard Ji Nanchuan mention "precious daughter," her first reaction was that Ji Yuntang had stabbed Ji Qingfeng.

She looked at Ji Nanchuan, her heart in her throat, and asked anxiously, "Marquis, what exactly happened? Why would that bitch Ji Yuntang hurt Feng'er?"

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