She merely frowned slightly, but did not voice much objection.
His eyes lit up, “Wife, do you agree?”
“No,” she said, her face flushing a bit.
He was clear-hearted, how could he not understand that his wife was already willing? Saying no was just out of shyness. He held her tightly as if to knead her into his body and murmured affectionately, “Wife, I love you, love you so much!” Whatever he did, all he wanted was to be with her.
Her body stiffened, a warm current swept through her heart. A man who would even consider her in death, she feared, could only be Third Brother in this world.
Only he had never let go of her hand; only he had always treated her as he did at the beginning.
“Wife, don’t talk about choosing Fourth Brother anymore, alright?” his voice was muffled.
This time, she nodded slightly, “Mhm.”
After a pause, she said, “You’re not going to ask me why I chose Qinghe before?”
“When you chose Fourth Brother, my heart nearly died from pain,” he sighed. “I understand that from your position, Fourth Brother treated you too well. His disability in both legs, you chose him out of sympathy, also wanting to leave Second Brother and me free to marry someone else without concerns. But you fool, I had already married you, how could I possibly marry another?”
“So, you have always understood why I chose Fourth Brother.”
“I also know that you don’t love Fourth Brother. So, even though you said you chose him, during this time, I was able to keep myself from going mad.”
He smiled, “Because the way you look at him is different from how I look at you. You don’t look at him with the eyes of a lover.”
Then he felt somewhat disappointed, “As for Second Brother, I know you have no romantic feelings for him. Yet, even when you look at me, your gaze is as cool and detached as water. Sometimes, even if I catch a glimmer of difference for me in your eyes, it’s like a mirage, seemingly just a trick of the light.”
Looking at his handsome yet pale features, only now did she realize that Third Brother had always clearly understood her thoughts, his mind as lucid as water.
The level of intelligence of this man was even not inferior to her own.
His voice was heavy and earnest, “During this time, my heart has been especially torn. I cannot bear for Second Brother and Fourth Brother to be husband and wife with you in name, not even in name. I’ve wanted to divide the family for a long time. I wanted to live separately with you but could never bring myself to say it.”
She nodded, “Because you have a deep brotherly bond with Second Brother and Fourth Brother.”
“You are wrong,” he said. “It is only natural for brothers to establish their own families and businesses when they grow up. I am not reluctant because of that; even if we divide the family, we are still brothers. I didn’t voice it out because I was afraid you wouldn’t agree to follow me.”
She wanted to leave for his sake, not wishing to break up the complete family he had with Second Brother and Fourth Brother. She wasn’t a saint; she had chosen Qinghe previously because she thought she didn’t have special feelings for any of the men in this family, that she could casually pick any one of them.
And although she had once agreed to give Third Brother a chance, it was when she did not know she was a wife bought collectively by the Xiao Family, a reluctant acknowledgement after learning the truth, her perceived kindness to Third Brother isn’t what he wanted.
She planned for Second Brother and Third Brother to marry separately, for them to dissolve this family.
Yet Third Brother wanted to divide the family for her. She had thought it didn’t matter much. But after he drank the poison she gave without hesitation and even left an exoneration note as he faced death, she didn’t want him to have any regrets in the future.