The small, timid voice made Yun Chunnuan freeze for a moment.
She even felt an impulse to not stop him anymore.
He no longer had a mother.
The mountain in his heart, even if once filled with hate, unyielding and towering, was gone forever.
He had no one to rely on, no mother to light a lantern for him always, silently giving her all.
She couldn’t replace her, more so couldn’t even attempt to...
In the cold night, the two stood in the corridor for a long time, so long that Yun Chunnuan sneezed, her small body trembling continuously.
Yelyu Lie suddenly snapped back to reality, pulling the small, delicate hand of Nuannuan, "Nuannuan, I’m sorry, I just..."
"No, it’s just me thinking only about freeing mother, forgetting about how you feel. Husband, when the situation in Bianliao stabilizes more, how about we find time to visit mother?"
She had no blame for him, only heartache.
Her tone was as gentle as coaxing a child.
It suddenly dawned on Yun Chunnuan what the departure of her mother-in-law meant for her husband.
If it were modern times, would it be considered a divorce?
She still remembered back in senior year of high school, when her roommate’s parents secretly divorced without her knowing.
And yet, it was divorcing without separation. Her roommate became introverted, her grades plummeting; she, who could have gotten into a top university, didn’t even meet the basic admission line.
Furthermore, after grandmother’s death, her mother lay crying like a child in her father’s arms.
Saying words much like those of the Barbarian General, "I have no mother again... No one to nag me at my ear, no one to pamper me, no one to lean on..."
No, it’s not a divorce.
In this era of only carriages and ox carts, a person’s departure almost equates to...
She was thinking with a modern mindset, not fully realizing what it meant for him.
She lifted her eyes, staring into those increasingly reddened amber eyes, her heart aching tremendously, "Otherwise, let’s have Banlai ask when mother plans to leave, and bid her farewell, shall we?"
Whether it’s the Royal Palace or that extravagant and luxurious palace, to a woman, it is merely a grand cage.
If there is someone within that cage for whom you are willing to give your all, it might just be worth it.
But, for her mother-in-law, there wasn’t.
The man for whom she once abandoned freedom, willingly letting herself be imprisoned, was no longer with her in that cage.
He merely crafted her a luxurious, elaborate cage.
After locking her up, he flew away to live freely.
She waited too long, was disappointed for too long.
As a woman, put yourself in her shoes; seeing the man you love indulge in pleasures daily, even for the sake of the child, Yun Chunnuan couldn’t reach the degree of her mother-in-law.
Therefore, for her husband, her mother-in-law had sacrificed too much.
One cannot selfishly keep her because of his sadness and sorrow.
She should have left, should have left long ago.
"Nuannuan!"
Suddenly, her petite body was firmly wrapped by strong arms, tightly embraced within a broad chest.
"I won’t... will never let you down, don’t leave me! I only have you, only you..."
"If you don’t leave, I will never forsake you."
Her voice was sweet and soft, yet firm and powerful.
These eight words, like an imperial edict, were etched deeply into Yelyu Lie’s heart...
*
After the fifteenth of the first month, it means the year has completely ended.
One day beforehand, Yun Chunnuan received a message from the palace, saying the banquet on the fifteenth was canceled.
As for why it was canceled, the King did not give everyone an answer.
Upon receiving the news, Yelyu Lie, who was setting up the new home with Yun Chunnuan, suddenly dropped the cyan curtains he held in his hand.
"Husband, what’s wrong?"
Yun Chunnuan was sewing bows with matching silk and, a moment before, they were chatting and laughing, discussing what name to give the increasingly plump little white cat at home.
After Qiao’er relayed the message from the palace, he was left in such a daze.
Yun Chunnuan worriedly put down her needle and silk, walking over.
She saw her Barbarian General, always filled with tears yet steadfastly holding them back, suddenly having large, uncontrollable teardrops fall from his amber eyes.
"Mother... is leaving..."
No one in the palace knew how father and mother met.
But Yelyu Lie had heard Aunt Ashe tell it once.
The two of them met smashing into each other at the lantern festival on the fifteenth of the first month.