Chapter 8

Qin Xiyi walked out of the Empress Dowager’s bedchamber, then bypassed the Imperial Garden.

She suddenly realized that once she made a decision, she felt a sense of lightness.

She walked to the pond again, and Cheng Mozhi’s image instantly flashed into her mind. Oh, yes, she could arrange everything for everyone else, but only Cheng Mozhi.

She truly felt a little reluctant to let him go.

But fortunately, he had agreed to her imperial father’s marriage decree, and the wedding date was even set for one month later.

It was said that his appointment had been issued today; he should now be a third-rank official, Minister Cheng.

Thinking about how to bid farewell to Cheng Mozhi and end this absurd relationship, Qin Xiyi’s steps involuntarily halted.

In the lakeside pavilion, Cheng Mozhi was actually composing poetry and painting with Second Princess Qin Luoke.

He held his brush, a smile playing on his lips, and painted with sweeping strokes.

And Qin Luoke, dressed in splendid attire with a jade belt and jadeite hairpins, was watching Cheng Mozhi paint with an expression of utter admiration.

Watching the painting was a pretense; her watery eyes never left Minister Cheng for a moment.

Qin Xiyi began to tremble, her heart leaping up and down, threatening to burst from her chest, almost beyond her control.

Even when the Emperor, the Empress Dowager, and the entire imperial family pressured and coerced her, she had never been so flustered. But seeing the scene before her, she couldn’t control herself.

For the first time, Qin Xiyi fled back to her residence as if escaping.

She sat behind closed doors, but she didn’t drink. This time she was exceptionally clear-headed; she didn’t want to get drunk.

She hadn’t expected Qin Luoke’s beloved to be Cheng Mozhi. From childhood, this sister had always competed with her for everything, and if she couldn’t win openly, she’d resort to covert means.

Qin Xiyi knew that this sister of hers was the treasure in the Emperor’s eyes; Qin Luoke only needed a single word to get what she wanted.

She also hadn’t expected Cheng Mozhi to like Qin Luoke. Only now did Qin Xiyi understand what he meant that day when he said he would listen to Nián’er.

Listen to her words, marry soon.

Listen to her words, marry her sister soon.

Qin Xiyi just wanted to laugh. After all this circling, Qin Luoke had gotten what Qin Xiyi wanted most.

She sat there blankly for one night, then another day, then another night.

For three days, Qin Xiyi locked herself in her room, neither eating nor drinking.

No matter how much her maid, Xiao Si, pleaded, she remained unmoved.

Until the morning of the third day, Qin Xiyi’s door opened.

Before she stepped out, she picked up Cheng Mozhi’s portrait, placed it in the candlelight, and watched it burn to ashes.