Mrs. Shi’s words and decisions were always beyond question. Once she uttered them, there was no room for turning back.
Chuxia’s eyes were fixed steadfastly on the divorce agreement, yet her hand simply could not lift itself.
She had tried so hard, endured so much agony, struggling for three years, forcing herself to suppress her emotions, becoming a completely different person, sometimes even a stranger to herself, all to avoid a divorce and to hold on to the position of Young Madam.
But now, before she could wait for elder sister to return, Mrs. Shi was already demanding a divorce?
She didn’t want to... She couldn’t divorce, she just couldn’t.
Chuxia’s eyes widened in disbelief, shaking her head involuntarily, unsure whether it was for elder sister’s sake that she didn’t want to divorce or whether she resisted the idea of divorce from the bottom of her heart.
Mrs. Shi watched Chuxia shake her head, her delicate face instantly clouded over, her eyes brimming with cold anger, "Chuxia, what are you dawdling for!"
"Madam, I..." Chuxia turned toward Mrs. Shi, her lips quivering, wanting to say something, but Mrs. Shi’s gaze turned sharp, her eyes darkening, "What? You do not heed my words?"
In the past, she wouldn’t have dared to disobey Mrs. Shi’s commands, but she truly could not just accept the divorce. Chuxia took a deep breath, her hands clenched tightly, and she forcefully found her voice, "Madam, there’s still half a month until the three-month deadline, you cannot make me sign the divorce papers now."
She knew that the moment she spoke these words, she was utterly sentenced to death in Mrs. Shi’s heart, but she had to fight for it, otherwise, she would never be content.
Mrs. Shi hadn’t expected that after three years, the docile Chuxia would suddenly defy her commands. Mrs. Shi shook with rage, and what followed was towering fury.
Had Chuxia been playing possum all these three years? Mrs. Shi was already very dissatisfied with her, and Chuxia’s words extinguished the last vestige of sentiment Mrs. Shi had.
With a laugh of extreme anger, Mrs. Shi sneered coldly at Chuxia, "You don’t have the luxury to disagree!"
As her words fell, she signaled to the servants standing by, who understood and stepped forward, grasping each of Chuxia’s shoulders. Then, the servant holding the divorce agreement opened the ink pad and grasped Chuxia’s hand to press it onto the red ink. Her fingers immediately became coated with red ink as they moved to press onto the signature line of the divorce papers.
Chuxia never imagined Mrs. Shi would be so forceful, but she had always lorded over everyone; who else could oppose her orders? All Chuxia could do was struggle fiercely, trying desperately to keep her hand from pressing down. However, the servant was strong, and although she bit her lip in resistance, she was still pulled, inching closer.
As she was about to be forced to sign the divorce agreement, Chuxia almost closed her eyes in despair. Suddenly, a low and resonant voice arose, speaking slowly and slightly magnetically, "Whether or not a divorce happens, you’d first have to ask for my opinion."
Despite the voice being mellow and amiable, the moment it was spoken, it carried an overwhelming force, pressing down heavily on them.
Everyone’s eyes involuntarily shifted en masse towards the source of the voice.
The man stood at the entrance of the garden, casually leaning, the sun setting in the west, orange light slashing across, hitting half of his face, casting him almost as if he were an Immortal.