Remarried to a top-tier playboy, her reborn ex-husband is filled with regret.

Ever since Aunt Feng received this imperial gift, no noblewoman dared to look down on her anymore.

This is her precious hairpin. Without it, how will she ever go out again?

"A reward for you?"

Yun Chongshan tightened his grip on the hairpin, the sharp end of it digging painfully into his palm.

"You dare to challenge me?"

"How could I not deserve it!"

Aunt Feng threw a tantrum and threw herself into his arms.

"I have served you for so many years, bearing you children. Am I not even worthy of a hairpin?"

"You're not good enough for me."

Yun Chongshan's voice was as cold as ice as he shoved Aunt Feng away.

"Only Lady Qin is worthy of wearing this imperial hairpin."

She saved my life and used her dowry to support the Duke's mansion.

And you? All you do is spread rumors and indulge in pleasure.

Aunt Feng was pushed and bumped into the dressing table, her lower back aching painfully.

She looked at Yun Chongshan in disbelief.

"Sir, that's not what you said before..."

"I was blind before."

Yun Chongshan looked at her and felt only disgust.

"You've taken too much that doesn't belong to you; it's time to return it."

After he finished speaking, he turned to leave, but Aunt Feng clung tightly to his leg.

"No! This hairpin is mine! No one can take it from me!"

Yun Chongshan's patience ran out completely, and he kicked her in the stomach.

Aunt Feng screamed and curled up on the ground, trembling with pain.

"Father! Why are you hitting Mother!"

The two children born to Aunt Feng were startled by the crying and ran in. When they saw what was happening, they turned pale with fright.

Yun Chongshan looked at them, his brows furrowing even more deeply.

"Who gave you permission to call her mother?"

The children were intimidated by his imposing manner and dared not speak.

"You only have one mother, Qin Shi."

Yun Chongshan's voice was deep and carried an undeniable authority.

"If you dare to break the rules again, you will be punished according to family rules."

The two children shrank back in fear, lowering their heads tremblingly.

Yun Chongshan didn't look at them again, clutching the hairpin, and strode out.

Aunt Feng lay on the ground, watching his resolute back, tears streaming down her face.

A man's affection is like a painting on the beach; once the tide comes in, it's all gone.

She thought she had won against the Qin family, only to find out in the end that she didn't even have the right to compete.

Yun Chongshan, clutching the hairpin, hurriedly walked out.

As night fell, he immediately ordered a carriage to be prepared and urged the coachman to hurry to the outskirts of the city.

A cold wind rushed into the carriage, and he seemed to lose consciousness, with only one thought in his mind.

Get that letter of divorce back!

I'll apologize to the Qin family again...

He seemed to finally understand that the ostentatious merchant airs he had scorned were actually the Qin family's dignity.

The tenderness he ignored was eroding their relationship.

I just don't know if it's too late for them to realize this now.

Dusk, like a piece of velvet soaked in ink, gradually enveloped the roads on the outskirts of the city.

Yun Chongshan sat in the speeding carriage, his fingertips repeatedly caressing the phoenix hairpin, the gilded patterns making his palms burn.

"Faster! Faster!"

He lifted the carriage curtain and growled at the driver.

The wheels rolled over the gravel road, making a rapid "thump" sound, like his heart beating like a drum.

As the vermilion gate of the hot spring resort drew closer, Yun Chongshan practically fell off the car.

He clutched the hairpin and rushed to the door, pounding on it forcefully.

"Madam! Open the door! I have something to tell you!"

Inside, it was quiet except for the rustling of the wind through the treetops.

"Qin family! I know I was wrong!"

His voice trembled almost imperceptibly.

"That letter of divorce doesn't count, I'm tearing it up right now! You're coming back with me, I promise..."

"Please return, Your Excellency."

An old voice came from inside the door; it was Old Liu, the doorman.

"The lady said that she has nothing more to do with you and there is no need to see you again."

"fart!"

Yun Chongshan got impatient and kicked the door.

"We've been married for thirty years, how can we just end things like that? Make Qin come out and see me!"

"Madam has already gone to sleep."

Old Liu's voice remained calm.

"If you continue to cause trouble, we will have no choice but to alarm Prince Xiao."

Yun Chongshan's movements froze in mid-air.

Alarm Xiao Fang? That's what he fears most right now.

That kid was being unreasonable and difficult; he couldn't handle him at all.

"Shu Yao!"

He turned and shouted into the courtyard.

"Father knows he was wrong! Please help me persuade your mother!"

If that divorce papers are actually filed, how will you face people afterward? People will talk behind your back!

There was still no movement inside the courtyard.

"Qin family! Are you really going to go this far?"

His voice was hoarse.

"Can't you just give me another chance, for the sake of... for the sake of the fact that I married you back then..."

There was finally a sound from inside the door, but it wasn't a response; it was the click of the lock closing.

Yun Chongshan's heart sank.

He pressed his ear against the door and listened for a long time, but heard no more sound.

What Old Liu said was true; Qin Shi didn't even want to talk to him anymore.

The night wind, carrying a chill, crept into his collar, and he realized he was covered in a cold sweat.

He retreated to the stone stool by the door and sat down, staring blankly at the tightly closed door.

The carriage was parked not far away, and the driver was dozing in a corner.

Yun Chongshan glanced at the sky; the city gates had long been closed, and he was destined to spend the night there.

"Perhaps... Xiao Fang hasn't had time to file the report yet."

He muttered to himself, as if trying to convince himself.

"As long as we get the divorce papers back, it's not too late."

Moonlight filtered through the trees, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

Yun Chongshan suddenly remembered that when they had just gotten married, Qin Shi had also sat under the moonlight, sewing robes for him by hand.

At that time, her eyes shone, and she always had a smile on her lips. She would say...

"My husband, when we have a child in the future, we will teach him to read and to do business, so that he can become a person who is both learned and skilled in martial arts."

What was his answer at the time?

He seemed to be frowning as he spoke:

"Don't use your merchant mentality to corrupt the children."

After Aunt Feng entered the household, Madam Qin's smiles became fewer and fewer.

He remembered a family dinner once when Aunt Feng deliberately spilled soup on Qin's skirt, and he simply said, "Change your clothes."

He did see Qin's clenched fist, her knuckles turning white, but he didn't pay it any mind.

On the day the Qin family's property was raided, Qin Shi knelt before him, begging him to save her father-in-law and brother-in-law.

What did he say at the time?

"The Qin family deserves their punishment; you should sever ties with them immediately."

He saw the light in Qin's eyes completely extinguished.

"I'm such an idiot..."

Yun Chongshan raised his hand to cover his face, and suppressed sobs escaped through his fingers.

Those sacrifices he took for granted were Qin's sincere feelings that were gradually crushed.

The night wind grew colder and colder, so he huddled inside the carriage, wrapping his cloak tighter around himself.

There was no charcoal fire in the carriage, and the cold air seeped in from all directions, making his bones ache.

He suddenly remembered that during the years when Madam Qin lived in the mansion, her hands and feet were always cold.

Why didn't he think of sending her a pot of charcoal back then?

As dawn approached, Yun Chongshan drifted off to sleep.

In his dream, he returned to that snowy night, where he fell to the ground and Qin found someone to carry him to the clinic.

Her hands were red from the cold, but she comforted him, saying:

"Don't be afraid, I'm here."

"Fengqin..."

He murmured to himself, reaching out to grab something, but only grasped a handful of cold air.

Hearing a noise outside the carriage, Yun Chongshan was suddenly awakened.

The sky was already turning a pale white when a familiar ebony carriage stopped at the entrance of the manor.

The carriage curtain was lifted, and Xiao Fang stepped out.

Yun Chongshan rushed over as if grasping at a straw:

"Xiao Fang! Where's the letter of divorce? You haven't handed it in yet, have you? Give it back to me now!"

Xiao Fang sidestepped his pull, dusted off the dust on his robe, and spoke in a calm tone.

Good morning, Your Excellency.

Don't give me that!

Yun Chongshan's eyes were red.

"That's a matter between my husband and me, what right do you have to interfere? Give me back the divorce papers!"