Xie Jiayan watched Yu Mingyue enter this time. He was somewhat lost in thought as he watched her disappearing back. Only when the gate of the Yu mansion closed did he turn to leave. In this life, he had failed his parents and the world, but he had only failed Sixth Lady.
Snowflakes began to fall again. This winter was truly long and sorrowful.
"Young Master, everything is ready," Liaokong said.
Xie Jiayan nodded. "Let's go!"
After mounting his horse, he glanced back. Though reluctant, he still left resolutely.
Her path ahead was still long. There was no need for her to live a life of hardship with him. Love meant making each other better, not letting her suffer unnecessary hardship.
Her smooth and prosperous life should not be disrupted by him. In the future, she would find a good man who would cherish, understand, and dote on her.
As for him, he was merely a fleeting passerby in her life.
The snow grew heavier, but Xie Jiayan did not stop. The heavy snow soon covered the horse's tracks, leaving only the whistling wind.
...
The maids in Mingyue Garden wept and were reluctant to see Yu Mingyue leave. At the moment of parting, Yu Mingyue was also exceptionally sad.
However, her return date was uncertain, and the road ahead was vast. Although it could not be called fleeing, it would undoubtedly be fraught with difficulties. She herself was struggling to survive, and she did not want to bring them along.
These maids had grown up with her. She selfishly hoped they would diligently serve her mother and fulfill her filial duties in her stead.
The second and third branches of the family did not know that Yu Mingyue was leaving. The older she grew, the more she disliked partings.
When Yu Mingyue bid farewell to Cui Shi again, Cui Shi's eyes reddened. She liked someone with such joy and hoped to grow old with him. If only she knew...
Cui Shi dabbed her eyes with a handkerchief, her voice choked with emotion. "Yue'er!"
"Mother, Yue'er is unfilial. You must take care of yourself in the future. Yue'er is leaving!" Yu Mingyue feared that if she lingered any longer, she would lose the courage to walk out of the Yu family's gate.
After Yu Mingyue left, Cui Shi instructed, "Have the hidden guards watch at the city gate. If she insists on leaving, protect her secretly."
"Miss, you truly intend to..." the wet nurse exclaimed in shock.
Cui Shi took a breath. "Life has three sufferings: the pain of parting, the sorrow of not getting what one wants, and the resentment of meeting those one dislikes. I am her mother, how can I bear to see her unhappy? Ever since she returned from Qinghe, she has been melancholic. Did you see the look in her eyes when she looked at Xie Jiayan? I haven't seen her so happy in a long time. This child, when she was young and ignorant, was heartbreaking. Now that she is sensible, she is even more so."
"But..."
"Do I not wish for mother and daughter to be separated? But love, when it comes, cannot be stopped by any hardship." If it weren't for this, she would have divorced her husband and returned to Qinghe long ago.
City Gate
Yu Mingyue waited from the hour of the snake (9-11 AM) until the hour of the horse (11 AM-1 PM) and then until the hour of the monkey (1-3 PM), but Xie Jiayan's figure never appeared. Her face was deathly pale, her lips frozen a purplish-blue, yet she refused to leave.
Brother Jiayan promised to meet her here. He must have been held up by something. Soon, very soon, he would come.
Thinking this, Yu Mingyue paced back and forth, rubbing her hands and blowing warm air into her palms.
Li Fu, who had driven Yu Mingyue to the city gate, did not leave immediately. Seeing his young lady shivering from the cold, he couldn't help but speak again, "Miss, please wait in the carriage to warm up."
Yu Mingyue shook her head and refused. "No, if I sit in the carriage, what if Brother Jiayan can't see me?"
Li Fu wanted to say that it was already so late, and Scholar Xie would definitely not come. But the words stopped at his lips.
"I recognize Scholar Xie. Miss, please wait in the carriage. When Scholar Xie arrives, I will call you out."
Yu Mingyue still shook her head and refused, her gaze fixed in that direction.
Winter days grew dark early. After the hour of the monkey (1-3 PM) had passed, the sky began to dim. The weather was cold, and the pedestrians on the street grew fewer.
Yu Mingyue had not eaten all day and felt numb from the cold. In fact, she vaguely guessed something, but she was unwilling to believe it.
She and Brother Jiayan had bowed to her mother, exchanged tokens of love, and paid respects to the matchmaker. They were already husband and wife. Brother Jiayan was a man of his word and never broke his promises. He had promised to take her away from the capital.
The grayish-blue sky enveloped the earth. In about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the sky would be completely dark. There were only a few pedestrians on the street. Just then, a carriage rumbled towards them and stopped beside her.
Yu Mingyue's somewhat bewildered yet expectant eyes suddenly lit up. It was him, it must be Brother Jiayan.
The carriage came to a complete stop, and the door opened. A woman's voice came from inside, "Sixth Lady!"