A bonus chapter release—this month is done, and since this plotline has concluded, we can finally relax a bit. Thank you all so much for your support; I am deeply grateful.

When Qi Yue and Cui Zhi returned, Cai Qing, who had been waiting in the courtyard, was beside herself with anxiety.

“Mistress Qi, you frightened me half to death,” she rushed forward to say.

“Why are you here?” Qi Yue smiled, handing the items she carried to Cui Zhi, who then stepped back.

Once settled inside the room, Cai Qing examined her closely.

In the candlelight, the woman’s expression was serene, a faint smile playing at the corner of her lips—no hint of forced cheerfulness whatsoever.

“Stop looking; nothing is wrong, truly,” Qi Yue laughed. “Why does no one ever believe me when I tell the truth? It was just one man, what’s the big deal? We are all adults…”

At this, she couldn't help but laugh herself.

“A’Ru, I remember a line…” she began unconsciously, speaking to someone beside her.

Cui Zhi, serving tea, looked at her with a measure of confusion.

Qi Yue merely smiled.

“It’s a relief that Mistress is well,” Cai Qing sighed, finally relaxing. “I came today because the Second Madam sent word: we are going to the capital.”

The capital?

Qi Yue stroked her teacup, frowning. She recalled that Madam Chen had mentioned something about seeking medical treatment before.

“It would also be a good time to lie low for a while,” Cai Qing continued.

Hearing this, Qi Yue set down her teacup.

“I can’t leave right now; the Qianjin Hall is under renovation. Besides,” she said, “why should I hide? I haven't done anything shameful. Oh, right, are there any further procedures for this divorce? Is it officially settled?”

Cai Qing stared blankly for a moment before snapping back to attention.

“No, well, yes, the immediate families of both parties need to sit down and discuss it, then write up the separation agreement, take it to the Yongqing Prefecture to be registered and stamped, and then it’s done,” she replied seriously.

Qi Yue nodded.

“I have no immediate family here. Can I proceed on my own?” she asked.

“That… might be possible,” Cai Qing admitted, uncertain. “I’ll go back and ask the Second Madam.”

Qi Yue nodded.

Over at the Second Madam’s residence, upon hearing Cai Qing’s words, the Second Madam sat up in bed.

“If she has no immediate family, then I am her immediate family,” she declared, raising a hand to command, “Fetch writing brushes, ink, paper, and an inkstone. I will draft the separation agreement.”

“Madam, take care of your eyes; let this servant write it,” Cai Qing offered.

The Second Madam shook her head, a slight smile gracing her lips.

“No, I must write it myself,” she insisted. “To be able to act as Yue Niang’s immediate family—I... I am so happy. I must write this myself.”

Cai Qing said no more, lighting the lamp and grinding the ink.

The night air shimmered. The Second Madam leaned over the desk, her brush moving across the paper, releasing elegant, flowing script.

She kept her head bowed, the smile lingering, her eyes, usually dull from long illness, now shining brightly.

She never expected a day like this in her life, where she could pen the separation agreement for his flesh and blood. In a way, she was acting as family now. This life, she felt, had not been lived in vain after knowing him and loving him for a lifetime.

The next morning, the Second Madam came over early.

Hearing that the Second Madam sought an audience, Marquis Dingxi, already vexed by his daughters kneeling and wailing outside his gate, became even more irritable.

The news that Su Mama had brought back—the words of Xie Shi—had been relayed to the Marquis without a single omission by Xie Shi herself.

Had it not been for her lonely circumstances, the Marquis would have already sent men over to verbally assault her.

“You foolish children, stand up. Why are you crying? This is good news,” the Second Madam said with a smile to Chang Chunlan and the others kneeling on the ground.

Chang Chunlan’s words only made her cry harder.

“Aunt, please beg Father to bring Yue Niang back,” she pleaded.

The Second Madam offered her a faint smile but remained silent, stepping into the Marquis’s study.

The Marquis had never realized this woman could be so utterly presumptuous.

Seeing the Second Madam step in, Marquis Dingxi wore a face full of gloom.

“You are ill; you should rest properly. Do not meddle in affairs that do not concern you,” he said coldly.

“Yes, I naturally will not concern myself with what doesn't involve me,” the Second Madam replied sweetly, placing the separation agreement on the desk. “This, Marquis, please sign it.”

Marquis Dingxi picked it up suspiciously, then froze.

“This is blackmail! This is coercion! That woman is just trying to scare us!” Xie Shi sneered upon seeing the document, then looked at the Second Madam. “Did she give this to you?”

The Second Madam smiled but did not answer her question.

“Then, Marquis, send it to the Yongqing Prefecture and test whether she is bluffing,” she stated flatly. “Do you dare, Marquis?”

Dare or not dare? Did I dare? The Marquis’s face twitched uncontrollably.

“Men, take this away!” he roared.

Xie Shi, standing nearby, gave the Second Madam a cool, insipid smile.

“Tell that woman, as she wished, if she tries to turn back now, there will be no path…” she sneered before she could finish speaking, but the Second Madam was already rising and walking out.

Xie Shi’s unfinished warning hung in the air, fueling her annoyance. How had this Chen Shi become so utterly unrecognizable?

The Marquis was restless all morning.

“Men, men!” he called out.

A young servant rushed back in.

“What further instruction does the Marquis have?” he asked.

“Is someone crying outside the door?” the Marquis inquired.

The servant looked bewildered.

“No, there isn’t,” he replied.

There isn't? Why could I hear crying outside?

The Marquis waved his hand dismissively, and the servant withdrew.

Not long after, another call came from inside. The pages standing guard outside exchanged exasperated glances.

“You go,” one gestured to the other.

“You go; I’ve been twice already,” the other glared back.

As the Marquis’s voice rose from within, one finally scurried in.

“If the young mistress returns, kneeling and crying, be sharp. Don’t let her in immediately. Make her kneel outside the main gate for a good while…”

The servant looked at the Marquis and sighed inwardly.

What a joke. Would the young mistress ever kneel? That sort of person would only kneel if beaten senseless; she’d rather have both legs broken than bend her knee.

As evening approached, there was still no movement at the main gate. Marquis Dingxi could no longer sit still.

“Men, I will go to the Yongqing Prefecture myself!” he announced aggressively.

I’ll go myself! That ought to scare her! I’m not joking!

The Marquis specifically ordered his carriage to circle the streets once, hoping the entire city would know he was out, before finally entering the prefectural yamen.

Seeing him arrive, Prefect Huang rushed out to greet him with a smile.

“Why has the Marquis come in person?” he asked amiably.

“The matter I mentioned…” the Marquis coughed and lowered his voice.

Before he could finish speaking, Prefect Huang seized his hand.

“Marquis, I would naturally handle the matters you instruct immediately,” he said, placing a document into the Marquis’s hand. “It was finished long ago; I was just preparing to deliver it to you personally…”

The Marquis looked down at the paper pressed into his palm and was stunned into silence.

He opened it with a trembling hand: the crimson official seal was firmly affixed to the separation agreement.

How could this be…

“…I have already sent the portion for that woman off…” Prefect Huang continued babbling.

The Marquis threw a punch, connecting squarely with the Prefect’s chest.

Prefect Huang stumbled back, his official hat knocked askew.

“Marquis! You!” he shouted in astonishment, his eyes wide.

The Marquis’s face flushed crimson, his body shaking; his eyes red, he stared at Prefect Huang.

“You! Do you have a grudge against me? What are you doing?” he bellowed.

Prefect Huang was utterly confused. Has Marquis Dingxi gone mad?

“I didn't do anything,” he replied, perplexed.

“Why did you stamp the separation agreement!” the Marquis shouted, shaking the document so it rustled violently.

He really has gone mad…

“Didn't you bring it here?” Prefect Huang asked, completely disoriented.

“I brought it! If I brought it, you stamp it!” the Marquis yelled, lunging forward like a hungry tiger and grabbing the Prefect. “Huang Wenzheng, aren't you nicknamed the ‘Stall Lord’? Aren't you the best at delaying things? What’s gotten into you today! Who told you to stamp it! Why are you being so damned eager!”

Prefect Huang was now completely lost.

“Marquis, I processed it so quickly only because it concerned you! What is wrong with you!” he cried, shoving the Marquis away. “Who told me to stamp it? Didn’t you tell me to stamp it!”

Marquis Dingxi stared at him with bloodshot eyes, his body convulsing, and turned to leave.

As he stepped out the door, an object slammed heavily into him.

The Marquis, lost in his turmoil, barely dodged, but still got a face full of mud.

“Ziqiao, what nonsense are you causing!” Prefect Huang, following behind, jumped in alarm.

Although he felt his son had helped vent some anger, he still remembered the Marquis’s status, and besides, this Marquis seemed distinctly abnormal.

The Marquis raised a hand to wipe the mud from his face and saw a young man standing before him, his face tight with anger, staring at him, still clutching a handful of mud.

“How dare you treat an benefactor this way! Kneel immediately!” Prefect Huang commanded.

Huang Ziqiao spat.

“My benefactor is Mistress Qi! This man is nothing! He is now my benefactor’s enemy! He is my enemy!” Huang Ziqiao shouted, raising his other clump of mud to throw. “Tell Chang Yuncheng to stay indoors, or this young master will smash his face in!”

Chang Yuncheng—that name struck a chord with Marquis Dingxi. Right, his daughter-in-law’s affairs were his son’s business; why was he, the father, worrying so much!

Furious and exasperated, Marquis Dingxi returned home, repeatedly calling for Chang Yuncheng.

“The Heir Apparent is in his courtyard, the door is shut, and he sees no one; he hasn't come out for a full day and night,” the servant reported.

Unable to do otherwise, the Marquis went there himself. As expected, Chang Yuncheng’s courtyard gate was barred, and the maids stood outside. After shouting a few times with no response, Marquis Dingxi ordered the door to be forced open.

The room inside was utterly silent. The Marquis entered, immediately hit by a stench of liquor.

“Chang Yuncheng!” He nearly stumbled, covering his nose in annoyance as he shouted, while scanning the room. He spotted Chang Yuncheng leaning back against the luohan couch on the right.

“Father has arrived,” Chang Yuncheng said, tossing down the wine gourd, which rolled to join the others scattered on the floor.

Seeing his unshaven, liquor-soaked state, Marquis Dingxi became even more enraged.

“What are you doing?” he roared. “Look at the time! You’re still drinking here! What madness has seized you!”

“And what should I be doing?” Chang Yuncheng rested his head on his hand, looking at the Marquis, without rising, and chuckled.

“Your wife is causing such an uproar! And you can sit here calmly!” the Marquis sputtered.

Chang Yuncheng laughed, seeming slightly unsteady from the alcohol, his head drooping for a moment before he lifted it again.

“What wife do I have?” he laughed heartily. “Father, you’ve gone confused! What wife do I have!”