tallest building

Chapter 153 Irreparable

In the afternoon, Madam Wei brought a young maid to Wen Mingqian's place.

"Mingqian, I've come to talk to you. Are you busy?" Madam Wei asked with a smile.

"No rush, no rush, sister-in-law is here, please have a seat." Wen Mingqian smiled and offered her a seat.

"Go out and play with them for a while," Madam Wei instructed the maid. "You don't need to stay here and serve them anymore."

Wen Mingqian then asked Sang Er to brew some tea and bring it up. After bringing the tea up, Sang Er went to the outer room, leaving only the two of them.

"I remember you once wore a pale yellow jacket with a waterweed pattern. I really liked the design and wanted them to make one for me. I wonder if they still have that jacket?"

"Yes, I do, but I don't wear it often anymore. I'll have them rummage through the trunks and find it for you later." Wen Mingqian knew that Madam Wei hadn't come for the jacket, and she didn't want to beat around the bush any longer. "Did you come to see me for anything else, sister-in-law?"

"You call me sister-in-law, so you still consider me family." Madam Wei no longer felt comfortable being coy. "I heard you're going to divorce the Second Master, is that true?"

“I’ve already made up my mind,” Wen Mingqian said directly. “Now that Chang’an has gone to the Sanjing Academy, she has a place to stay. There’s no longer any bond between us as husband and wife, so it’s better to break up.”

"Oh, how could this happen?" Madam Wei said with regret. "I know our Gong family has wronged you, causing you so much suffering. But we really can't bear to see you go..."

“Sister-in-law, ever since I came to this family, you have treated me like a younger sister. You have never been estranged from me when I speak to you,” Wen Mingqian said, still willing to treat Wei Shi with sincerity. “You and my elder brother are a perfect couple, the envy of everyone. It’s a pity I don’t have such good fortune. You have seen how Gong Xu treats me. My heart is not made of wood or stone. Even if he wants to make amends, I no longer want it.”

"Yes, he hurt you so deeply. You were originally a very affectionate person, but he carelessly discarded your sincere heart. Once a person's heart is broken, it's hard to get it back." Madam Wei sighed deeply. As a woman, she certainly understood how deeply Wen Mingqian had hurt her. "But I still want to persuade you to stay. Although you have two older brothers, they are both far away and cannot take care of you."

Besides, once a daughter is married, she's like water spilled from a cup; even if you go back to your parents' home, you won't be able to stay there peacefully. At least you have someone to rely on here.

Besides, there's Chang'an. With him, you'll have someone to rely on for life. At our age, if we can get along with our husbands, we should stay with them; if not, we should look to our sons.

But once you leave this home, you will no longer be a member of the Gong family, and Chang'an, who wants to be filial to you wholeheartedly, will likely be unable to do so.

If Wen Mingqian leaves, Gong Xu will definitely remarry. Who can guarantee the character of his new wife?

Moreover, almost everyone has selfish motives. Since she became Gong Chang'an's legal mother, it's possible that she wouldn't allow him to have much contact with his birth mother.

“Sister-in-law, I know you are genuinely thinking of me.” Wen Mingqian was very grateful to Madam Wei. “I have considered what you said; I have even thought about it for seven whole years.”

I guess everyone has their own ambitions! I'd rather live freely than live a stable life.

"Where are you going after you leave here?" Mrs. Wei asked.

"To be honest, I'll find a nunnery to stay in first, and then I'll make plans slowly," Wen Mingqian said.

"Ah?! You...you're not going to become a nun, are you?" Madam Wei exclaimed in surprise.

“No,” Wen Mingqian shook his head. “The reason I went there is because the Buddhist temple is peaceful and can avoid a lot of trouble.”

"That's good." Madam Wei breathed a sigh of relief. "After some time, if you meet the right person, it would be a good thing to settle down again. You are still young. In this day and age, it's acceptable for men to remarry and women to remarry."

“Sister-in-law, actually I can no longer have children.” Wen Mingqian smiled bitterly. “When I gave birth to Chang’an on the road that year, I was on the verge of death. The person who delivered me at the time already told me that I would never be able to have children again.” Upon hearing this, Madam Wei was so shocked that she couldn’t say a word. It took her a long time before tears slowly streamed down her face.

She grabbed Wen Mingqian's hand and said, "My God! You've suffered so much!"

"Fortunately, I've made it through." Wen Mingqian smiled faintly. "Fortunately, I was spared my life, and I still have Chang'an. Heaven hasn't been too unkind to me."

Actually, besides wanting to gain freedom, Wen Mingqian's divorce from Gong Xu was also my last way of repaying Old Master Gong's kindness.

Currently, Gong Xu only has two sons born out of wedlock, and the mothers of these two children are of very low social status.

The second branch of the Gong family must have a legitimate son. At this time, with the Gong family's reputation at its peak, it should not be difficult to find a second wife of above-average social standing.

At that time, the child will also have his maternal uncle's family to help him, and the second branch of the family will not be too weak compared to the first branch.

The reason why Old Master Gong insisted on welcoming her into the family was simply because his second son was significantly weaker than his eldest son.

The old man thought that inner strength was better than outward appearance, so he wanted to find him a virtuous and good wife so that they could raise good offspring.

"Alas, what a pity that my second brother is not blessed to grow old with you." Madam Wei said with great regret. "Since you have made up your mind, I will not say anything more, lest I cause you trouble."

However, since you're planning to leave, you should also make plans for your future. If your family gives you anything, just take it! Living alone isn't easy.

"No need, sister-in-law. I've already made it clear that I'm only taking what I brought with me." Wen Mingqian had already planned everything out and wouldn't change his mind because of a few words of advice from others. "Only then will I feel at ease."

"Alas!" Madam Wei felt terrible, but there was nothing she could do. "In the end, it was the Gong family that wronged you."

"Sister-in-law, don't say that. It's all fate. I don't blame anyone, and I don't blame myself." Wen Mingqian had already come to terms with it, otherwise he wouldn't be so calm and at peace. "If we had known what would happen in three days, we could have been rich and powerful for a thousand years. None of us can be wise after the event."

"Then I'll head back now. I still need to give an answer to the old lady." Madam Wei slowly stood up. "I was originally thinking of having you go to fetch the bride after Jing'an's wedding, but it seems that won't be possible."

These words also brought a pang of sadness to Wen Mingqian's heart. He took a deep breath and said, "The old lady is not feeling well. When you talk to her, please be gentle and tell her not to be sad."

"I know, don't worry." Madam Wei patted Wen Mingqian on the shoulder. "I will try my best to persuade her."

After leaving the house, Madam Wei went to Old Madam Gong's place. Upon seeing her, the old lady asked, "How did it go? Did you manage to persuade her to come back?"

Madam Wei slowly shook her head: "Mingqian's mind is made up, there's no use in trying to persuade him. But Grandma, you don't need to be too sad, just pretend he passed away seven years ago. The current outcome is much better than this, isn't it?"

"But...sigh!" Old Madam Gong hesitated, unable to finish her sentence.

"Mingqian said that she could no longer have children, and the second master was in his prime. After she left, he could choose a good woman to continue the Gong family line."

"A forced relationship won't be happy. She's done her best for the Gong family. Let her go; otherwise, she and the Second Master will have a hard time."

"Alas, in the end, she repaid our evil with kindness," said the old lady Gong helplessly. "Now we have no right to force her to stay. Even for the sake of Chang'an, we should part amicably."