chapter 5

My mind is in turmoil.

I know it’s my brother who is at fault; he broke his promise and forgot the vow he made all those years ago.

But I don’t want Sister-in-law to leave either.

Mother was right about one thing: Sister-in-law has no home left.

When she decided to get married back then, it was not only because she was moved by my brother, but also because she wanted to put her ailing father at ease. She lost her mother early and had only her father to rely on.

When her father passed away, my brother put aside everything and stayed in Sister-in-law’s maiden room for three whole months before she was married.

Sister-in-law couldn’t eat, and at every meal, he patiently coaxed her to open her mouth, feeding her bit by bit. She was like a walking corpse, limp and lifeless; he took care of all her washing and dressing himself, not even letting Mother help. Fearing she would waste away without sunlight, he apprenticed himself to a master to learn how to make a Plain Palanquin, his hands covered in cuts and marks, just so he could push her outside for a walk.

In the end, he tried everything, but Sister-in-law still wouldn’t speak. It was only when he pleaded softly at her ear: “Zhiyue, dear Zhiyue, I beg you, please look at me. Your father is gone, but I am still here. In this life, you are my only Wife-can you bear to leave me alone for the rest of my days?”

Moved by his pleas, the soul that Uncle Qin had taken away finally returned to her body. She finally cried, curling up in my brother’s arms, weeping as if the whole world had abandoned her: “Feng Jixuan, my father is gone, I have no home anymore, I will never have a home again.”

My brother held her, vowing with even more sorrow than she: “Heaven and earth bear witness, wherever I am, that is Qin Zhiyue’s home. If I ever betray her, may I be forsaken by all and die a miserable death.”

That vow was so moving. They truly loved each other-could it all really disappear just because of Yaoniang?