CHAPTER 545: CHAPTER 279: THE SECOND MADAM RETURNS TO THE MANSION (PART 2)

Zhou Jingyi’s legs felt weak, and she stumbled, nearly falling over. Su Qing hurriedly supported her: "Second Madam, shall we rest for a bit?"

Zhou Jingyi shook her head, "Let’s keep going!" Although she was feeling nervous and uneasy, seeing her sooner would bring peace to her own heart.

The Biluo Pavilion was just in front of her eyes, and Zhou Jingyi took a deep breath, gently pushing the door and entering.

An odd medicinal scent wafted through the air, and Zhou Jingyi’s heart soured, nearly bursting into tears. He was so close, and yet, was he still the man she had first met?

"Second Madam! You, why have you come!" A maid, lifting the curtain and walking out from the house, was stunned upon seeing her mistress and servant, hurriedly pulled down the gauze scarf covering her face, and came forward to greet them.

Zhou Jingyi recognized this maid; she was Xiaocui from her mother-in-law’s side.

"How is the Second Young Master doing? Is he well?" Zhou Jingyi asked, nodding.

Xiaocui said, "I’ve just given the Second Young Master his medicine, and he’s lying down right now! He looks... quite spirited! Second Madam, would you like to go in? Or would it be better—just to take a look from outside the window?"

"I’ll go in and have a look."

Xiaocui then set down the tray with the medicine bowl on the stone table in the courtyard, and with a flattering smile said, "There are clean gauze scarves and hand-washing potion in the wing room to the side; this slave will lead you there!"

Zhou Jingyi nodded and instructed Su Qing, "You wait outside! I’ll go in by myself!"

Su Qing and Su Bi, both accompanying maids from her natal family, inherently disliked Shi Fengming for not being fond of their young mistress and were relieved that they did not have to go in. So, they quickly said, "Second Madam, just take a quick look and then come out, don’t disturb the Second Master’s rest; this slave will wait for you outside!"

Zhou Jingyi nodded and followed Xiaocui.

After getting ready, she entered to see Shi Fengming lying on the bed. His face was a waxy shade of pale yellow, his expression extremely haggard, he winced as he coughed from time to time, looking very miserable. Together with the faint scent of medicine in the house and its stark cleanliness, a deep sourness tugged at Zhou Jingyi’s heart, and she approached gently, saying, "Husband, how are you holding up?"

Xiaocui glanced over and quietly withdrew.

To act convincingly, Shi Fengming had not expected pretending to have consumption would be so taxing. It wasn’t enough that he was forced to move to a secluded and simple small courtyard, he also had to lie in bed all day smelling that odious medicine, as well as drink it. Even though the potion given by Shi Fengju had been tampered with to be harmless, the taste as it went down his throat was unbearably terrible for Shi Fengming, making life feel worse than death. He was sure his elder brother was taking the opportunity to discipline him deliberately by making such a hard-to-swallow medicine.

Now seeing Zhou Jingyi with tears in her eyes as she entered, Shi Fengming’s heart was on guard, knowing the time for the full act had come. Wasn’t his current state because of her? If she had agreed to divorce and returned to the Zhou family sooner, wouldn’t he have suffered less?

With discontent in his heart, Shi Fengming’s face grew even grimmer, and with a furrowed brow, he took labored breaths and said flatly, "It’s you, what are you doing here? This is not a place for you, leave!"

"Husband!" Zhou Jingyi, hearing him talk to her like this, felt a sudden sorrow and tears cascaded down, choking up as she said, "I’m not going anywhere, I’ll stay here with you. Don’t worry, you’ll get better, I know you will!"

There was resentment for sure, as deep as her affection and fancy were. But he was, after all, her husband. Recalling the moment he had lifted her red wedding veil and the stunning feeling it brought, she looked at the man before her and felt her heart torn asunder, all resentments dissolving. If only he could recover, she would be willing to do anything!

Shi Fengming was taken aback, the hand beneath the thin quilt tightened subconsciously, and a faint irritation flickered in his heart. Did she have to seem so "profoundly loving", did she have to be so tearful? He had never felt an ounce of affection for her, nor had he ever shown her a pleasant face; he didn’t understand how she could fluently call him "husband," which sounded so grating to his ear!

"My illness is contagious; you should leave. Don’t stay here; you could—"

"It won’t happen!" Zhou Jingyi interrupted softly, shaking her head, "I’ll be careful. Besides, I’m not afraid!"

Shi Fengming almost choked on her reply, after a moment, said gruffly, "But I don’t want to burden you, nor delay you. Zhou... Jingyi, I think we should divorce. You go back to your Zhou family, and in the future, find another good family to marry into! Rest assured, the Shi family won’t shortchange you. You can take all your dowry, and besides that, I will have my parents compensate you with an additional sum of money to ensure you can remarriage to a husband whom you truly agree with and live a good life!"

"No, no! I don’t want that! I won’t go!" Zhou Jingyi heard him say this, her heart filled with sorrow, bitterness and a moved happiness. Was he considering her welfare? Even in this state, he was thinking about her future? This meant that she was still in his heart, that he must have turned over a new leaf! Having yearned for him with her whole heart, now that he was showing remorse, how could she be so heartless as to leave him at his time of need!

"Rest assured!" Zhou Jingyi couldn’t help but seize his hand tightly, her voice trembling as she said, "I will not leave you, I won’t! If God really is that merciless, then in this lifetime, I will stand by you! I swear it!"

A softly smooth hand suddenly seized his palm, the faintly cool touch sparking a tingling sensation, and Shi Fengming tensed up, feeling extremely uneasy. He tried to pull away with a little force, but Zhou Jingyi was emotionally charged and held him very tightly, and since he was a "patient," it wouldn’t be appropriate to exert himself, so he had no choice but to let her hold him.