Chapter 15
Chapter 15
The hand was warm and broad, yet Ji Hanyi could not stop herself from stiffening slightly. A wave of revulsion rose within her.
The only time Xie Yuheng was ever less aloof with her was in bed.
They had not shared a bed all that often. Many times, she was already asleep by the time he came to bed.
Yet even on those few occasions, his movements could hardly be called gentle, and it was often more than once a night.
In the past, she had done her utmost to respond to Xie Yuheng in hopes of conceiving a child sooner. But now, the moment his hand settled on her waist, she could not help wanting to pull away from him.
A faint warmth brushed the nape of her neck, and Xie Yuheng’s hoarse voice came from behind her. “Hanyi, I admit I’ve neglected you in the past, but things between us are nowhere near bad enough to warrant a divorce.”
“For one, you have never wanted for anything in this household. And among men from families like mine, which of them doesn’t have several wives and concubines? Besides, you have not borne a child in three years. Have I ever blamed you for that?”
“You are my wife, after all. Divorce is a serious matter. Stop acting willfully and making a fuss.”
“Once Lunar New Year’s Eve has passed, I’ll accompany you to visit your mother on the third day of the New Year.”
“And my grandmother has always been especially fond of you. With her birthday approaching, you truly shouldn’t be causing a scene at a time like this. Even if you insist on making a fuss, wait until after her birthday.”
With that, Xie Yuheng placed a hand on her shoulder in a soothing gesture, as though reminding her to listen to him and behave.
In truth, when Xie Yuheng had been in the study earlier, every time he recalled the earnest look in Ji Hanyi’s eyes as she asked him for a divorce, restless irritation stirred in his usually calm and controlled heart.
He could not understand why Ji Hanyi would suddenly ask him for a divorce when everything had been perfectly fine.
Even more incomprehensible was the fact that she was clearly living a life of luxury at the Xie Residence. All she had behind her was her mother’s family, so where had she found the confidence and nerve to ask him for a divorce?
She had nothing. As far as he knew, she owned only one shop. Even if it turned some profit, it was nowhere near enough to afford the life she enjoyed at the Xie Residence.
And even if she had suffered a few grievances over the past three years, things had hardly reached the point where divorce was necessary.
Xie Yuheng felt that although his official duties kept him busy and he had never paid Ji Hanyi much attention, he had been quite satisfied with her as his wife these past three years. She had caused him very little worry.
She had never required him to concern himself with anything. Although she did not manage the household, she kept everything in their courtyard in excellent order, and none of the servants had ever spoken ill of her. Whether it concerned their courtyard or matters elsewhere in the residence, she had never caused him any trouble.
Moreover, Ji Hanyi had always been gentle and obedient with him, doing whatever he asked. Though there were times when he disliked how she took care of every last detail for him, he had to admit that he had grown used to it.
Although she was forever getting jealous over Mingrou and targeting her at every turn, Mingrou would be betrothed next year. Surely Ji Hanyi would finally settle down after that.
Xie Yuheng knew Ji Hanyi could not do without him. He had thought it over for a long time in the study before finally deciding that she was merely throwing a tantrum because he had abandoned her in the snow last time, then wrongfully accused her afterward, only for this matter involving her mother’s family to arise now.
He had never been one to humble himself before a woman, but he truly had been in the wrong this time. There was no harm in coaxing her for now.
In the still darkness, Ji Hanyi opened her eyes after hearing him out.
She stared silently at a fixed point. As she listened to Xie Yuheng’s charitable-sounding offer, she looked back on the past three years and saw nothing but a long, dark, oppressive corridor. She had walked it alone, carrying a lamp and cautiously making her way toward a predestined ending filled with wind and snow.
She had always walked alone.
Xie Yuheng never concerned himself with the affairs of the residence. He had never concerned himself with her.
If she remained here, her life would never get any better. She would be cold forever.
Her resolve should never have been treated as a joke.
Nor was she doing this to win back a man who did not love her.
Xie Yuheng had assumed that after he said all that, Ji Hanyi ought to be satisfied.
After all, where could she go once they divorced? Where else did she have to go?
What he had not expected was for the soft, warm woman who should have remained docile in his arms to pull away from him for the first time.
Xie Yuheng looked up in shock as Ji Hanyi sat up on the bed, lifted the bed curtains, and rose to take an outer robe from the rack. She draped it over her shoulders before turning back to look at him.
She wore a long pink silk robe beneath a blue-green hibiscus robe. Her dark hair spilled loose to her waist, and beneath the lamplight, her unadorned features held a sickly allure.
She coughed twice, then spoke in the same gentle, yielding voice she had always used with him. “I am not throwing a tantrum.”
“I never was.”
Ji Hanyi lowered her eyes and continued softly, “I was wrong to come to you with the marriage contract back then. But three years is not too late. You need not feel guilty. There will be no resentment between us.”
“Eldest Master, the sooner you sign the Divorce Agreement, the sooner I can leave. Then everyone in the residence can be happier.”
With that, Ji Hanyi pulled her collar tighter and headed toward the outer room.
Xie Yuheng sat up on the bed and watched her slender, delicate figure disappear from sight. The docility that had once filled her eyes was gone. Her resolve was so unmistakable that an unexpected flicker of panic rose within him.
He did not understand what she was still making a fuss about.
He did not understand how long she intended to keep this up.
He found her increasingly impossible to understand. They had been husband and wife for three years, and they had always lived like this. Why had she suddenly begun making a scene now?
The soft clatter of the swaying crystal curtain rang clearly through the quiet room. Only then did Xie Yuheng come to his senses. He threw on a robe and followed her out.
Rongchun was in the outer room. When she saw Ji Hanyi emerge, she hurried over in alarm. Noticing Ji Hanyi’s frail figure and the single outer robe draped over her shoulders, she reached out to draw it more tightly around her and asked anxiously, “Young Madam, you haven’t fully recovered from your cold. If you need something, why didn’t you call for a servant?”
Ji Hanyi looked at Rongchun’s worried expression and said quietly, “Rongchun, bring me a cloak and hood. I am going to the study.”
Rongchun was startled. At this hour? Ji Hanyi had only just returned from the study. Why was she going there again?
But when she met Ji Hanyi’s gaze, she froze for a moment before turning to obey.
Xie Yuheng emerged behind them. Upon hearing Ji Hanyi’s words, all the gentleness from earlier vanished from his voice, leaving only his usual cold reproach.
“Hanyi, how much longer are you going to keep this up?!”
“What more do you have to do before you’re satisfied?!”
“Don’t tell me you’re making a scene because I refused to help your cousin!”