Chapter 114
Chapter 114
Ji Hanyi had never seen Shen Si like this before. No matter how aloof he had been in the past, he had never looked at her this way – as if she had done something terribly wrong to him.
But she could not understand why.
Then she heard his low, cool voice. “Are you leaving because of me?”
Shen Si knew Ji Hanyi was gentle by nature and somewhat timid. Perhaps she wanted to flee because she had rejected him and was afraid he might do something to her.
Ji Hanyi was even more bewildered. She hurriedly shook her head. “I decided long ago that I would go to Second Uncle.”
Shen Si lowered his eyes. His heart was strung taut, and he struggled to keep himself in check, yet he still asked, “Do you truly refuse to stay?”
Ji Hanyi was slightly taken aback. Was Shen Si asking her to stay?
But his level voice betrayed none of his intentions. Thinking she was merely flattering herself and that he had only asked in passing, she shook her head at him with complete sincerity.
“Mother and I have already discussed it. I won’t stay.
“I want to remain in the place where Father once lived. I won’t marry again, either. It wasn’t easy for me to leave the Xie Family. I want to live freely from now on.”
Shen Si pursed his lips. No emotion could be discerned in his calm eyes, yet it also seemed as though turbulent waves were roiling beneath their surface.
After a long while, he nodded. “All right.”
He cast another subdued glance at Ji Hanyi. “Go back.”
Ji Hanyi looked at his aloof features. His gaze rested lightly on her, as if she were a stranger and he had no patience to say another word to her.
But he was the one who had asked her to come.
She respected him and was grateful to him. Wanting to bid him a proper farewell, she summoned her courage and said softly, “Lord Shen, please take care of yourself from now on.”
Shen Si did not answer. His silent gaze did not even turn toward her.
Ji Hanyi grew even more nervous. She had prepared so many other words of farewell, but now she could no longer bring herself to say them.
Remembering the earrings, she took the small box from inside her robe and opened it. Drawing a deep breath, she looked at Shen Si. “These earrings…”
Before she could finish, Shen Si’s cold voice cut her off. “Just throw them away.”
Ji Hanyi stared at him in shock, her fingertips trembling for an instant. Shen Si merely gave her a bland glance. “You never need to mention the earrings again. Pretend you never saw them.”
He pursed his lips, his voice cool. “They were nothing important.”
Ji Hanyi froze at his cold words. So she had misunderstood.
The earrings had appeared in the painting, but she had probably only seen them through some strange coincidence.
Even so, she still wanted to return them to Shen Si. “Lord Shen, they don’t belong to me. I can’t accept them.”
Shen Si lowered his eyes slightly to look at her and let out a faint, self-mocking laugh. “Do whatever you want with them. I will never touch them again.”
After speaking, Shen Si glanced once more at Ji Hanyi’s expression. A trace of sadness lingered in the almond-shaped eyes so close to him, and his own heart ached fiercely in response.
His fingers twitched, but he turned and left before her.
Ji Hanyi stared blankly at his retreating figure. She felt that he was angry, but she had never been able to understand Shen Si, nor could she understand why.
She stood there for a while, feeling rather dejected, before walking out.
After returning to where she had been waiting, she had barely sat down when she was summoned again by Her Majesty the Empress.
When she entered Her Majesty the Empress’s presence once more, Her Majesty the Empress’s expression was noticeably colder than before.
Ji Hanyi could also sense Her Majesty the Empress’s gaze drifting toward her, seemingly unintentionally, time and again.
She had accompanied her mother to many banquets in the past, so she did not feel overly nervous. Lowering her head slightly, she adopted a respectful and perfectly proper demeanor.
The Empress glanced at Ji Hanyi once more before asking, “Are you certain you’re leaving tomorrow?”
Ji Hanyi nodded. “It’s already been decided.”
Ji Hanyi’s insistence on leaving stirred an inexplicable feeling in the Empress.
She recalled the way Shen Si had stood before her earlier, asking to see Ji Hanyi. For a moment, she found Ji Hanyi rather difficult to understand.
Of course, she had no idea what had passed between the two of them.
Yet Ji Hanyi still intended to leave, leaving the Empress with a faint sense of disquiet.
She was relieved that her brother would presumably be able to give up on Ji Hanyi, but at the same time, she could not help feeling a trace of melancholy.
It wasn’t that Ji Hanyi was lacking in any way. She had simply once been another man’s wife. For a family like theirs, even if they set aside questions of birth, their bride would still have to possess an unblemished past.
Ji Hanyi was wholly unsuitable.
It was for the best that she was leaving.
Now that she understood who truly held her brother’s heart, the Empress had no desire to speak when she looked again at Gu Wanrong, who sat primly to one side with a touch of shyness.
Gu Wanyun was nothing more than an ordinary young lady from an aristocratic family. She possessed no memorable talents, no stunning beauty or brilliance, and no particularly likable disposition.
There were many young women in the capital who surpassed her. She was thoroughly unremarkable, and the only reason she had ever been considered was her slight resemblance to Ji Hanyi.
But now that the two of them were sitting together, even that slight resemblance seemed to have vanished.
Her brother was clearly not a man willing to settle. It was equally clear that Ji Hanyi alone held his heart.
But with Ji Hanyi leaving now, would Ah Si settle for someone else?
After a moment’s thought, the Empress said nothing more to Gu Wanyun. She did not even spare Madam Zhang another glance before having someone escort them back.
Madam Zhang’s surprise was obvious. She had thought Her Majesty the Empress would speak at length with her daughter today. After all, Old Madam Shen had been so fond of her daughter the last time they met. She had never expected them to be sent back so soon after arriving.
Moreover, Her Majesty the Empress had barely said a few words to her daughter, while she had spoken several times to Ji Hanyi.
Madam Zhang glanced at Ji Hanyi across from her and thought that if Ji Hanyi had not come, Her Majesty the Empress would probably have spoken more with Wanyun.
Though displeased, she ultimately said nothing and left with Gu Wanyun.
Just as they reached the doors of the hall, they saw a smiling young woman approaching. She was poised and lovely, with a slender waist, narrow shoulders, and a face as beautiful as a hibiscus blossom.
She was dressed in magnificent robes, and every movement was elegant. Her hair was arranged in an elaborate cloudlike coiffure adorned with carefully chosen, costly jewels. Four or five palace attendants followed behind her, each carrying a covered dish beneath a bronze lid.
One glance was enough to tell that this young woman’s status was far from ordinary.
The palace was filled with nobles, so Madam Zhang naturally did not dare show the slightest disrespect. Though she did not recognize the woman, she dared not remain in the way or risk offending her. She hurriedly pulled Gu Wanyun to one side, lowered her head, and bowed.
Ji Hanyi did not recognize the woman either and stepped aside as well.
They assumed they merely needed to wait for her to pass, but then a delicate fragrance drifted over, followed by an exceptionally pleasant voice.
“Might you be First Madam Gu and Third Young Lady Gu?”
Madam Zhang was startled yet again. She hurriedly looked up and asked, “How does my lady know me?”
Gu Wanyun also froze. This was her first time entering the palace, and she had not known anyone here would recognize her.
Besides, the woman before her possessed an innate air of nobility. Her imperial blood and exquisite beauty were apparent at a glance, leaving Gu Wanyun feeling painfully inferior and self-conscious.