Chapter 51: Divorce Letter
I called a few servants and had Feng Gao carried to a couch in the side room of the East Courtyard.
Madam Qin stayed by his side without leaving.
Feng Gao, unconscious, was so still. A trace of blood at the corner of his pale lips. Beautiful and desolate.
The doctor arrived, took his pulse, and said it was due to extreme anger and emotional distress, causing him to vomit blood, but there was no serious harm. He then prescribed a few doses of medicine. I ordered Xiao Yin to prepare it, and Madam Qin took it, carefully feeding it to him.
Seeing her worry did not lessen, I advised, “You don’t need to be overly concerned. He has learned martial arts and is skilled. With his internal energy, he will quickly come to understand, and everything will be fine.”
Madam Qin’s tears rolled down upon hearing this: “How can he understand? How much has he suffered? Every time I think of him being castrated, my heart feels as if it’s being carved with a knife…”
She couldn’t continue, only staring intently at Feng Gao, as if the person on the couch might fly away at any moment and she could no longer hold onto him.
I sat silently beside her.
The news of Minister Zhang’s death from illness quickly spread throughout the Capital City. For the common people, it was no less than a thunderclap.
For so many years, the Prime Minister had been like a stabilizing force for the Great Ming. His busy presence made the people feel secure and at ease. It was as if with him, there was hope for a life of abundance.
Now, the stabilizing force had fallen, and the people looked around in unease, not knowing what the Imperial Court would do next.
Songs of mourning echoed through the Eight Streets and Nine Alleys.
This autumn was destined to be anything but peaceful.
In the evening, I ordered Xiao Yin to go out and gather information about what was happening outside.
She returned in a panic, telling me, “Miss, something terrible has happened! They’ve posted notices outside saying the son-in-law has broken the law. The yamen officials have announced that within these few days, the son-in-law will be executed!”
The soup bowl in my hand dropped to the floor, and I stood up abruptly: “What law has he broken?”
“Corruption!”
A fine case of corruption.
This is likely just the beginning.
Minister Zhang’s death and Cheng Huaishi’s sentencing are happening almost simultaneously. Your Majesty wants a complete reckoning.
At this moment, He Ming walked in and, upon seeing me, bowed and said, “Second Young Mistress, Second Master instructed me to give this to you—”
He handed me a piece of paper.
I didn’t take it, looking at him, and asked sternly, “Since Second Master instructed you to give it to me, why are you only bringing it out now?”
He lowered his head and stammered.
“Tell the truth!”
He knelt on the ground with a thud: “Second Young Mistress, before Second Master was arrested, he told me that if he were sentenced to death, I should give this to you! I… I have been with Second Master since I was young, and I wouldn’t dare disobey Second Master…”
I took the paper and opened it.
The bold characters “Divorce Letter” met my eyes.
“I, Cheng Huaishi, having a wife named Madam Zhu Sang Yu, willingly issue this divorce letter, allowing her to remarry, with no future disputes. Lest there be no proof, I voluntarily issue this document as a record.”
His name was written at the bottom.
His handwriting was still the same as when I first saw it, each stroke, each dot, meticulously careful.
My hand holding the divorce letter seemed to freeze.
Allowing her to remarry, with no future disputes.
After all our years as husband and wife, in his eyes, was I someone who would flee in the face of disaster?
Xiao Yin, wringing her hands nearby, advised, “Miss, son-in-law is doing this for your own good. You are still young, and you’ve lost the child in your belly. If son-in-law truly passes away, what will you do here in the Cheng Family…”
Geese returning south flew in pairs across the sky. Occasionally, a lone goose separated from the flock cried out.
I raised my hand and tore the divorce letter to shreds.
He Ming said urgently, “Second Young Mistress, why are you doing this? Second Master wrote this divorce letter precisely because he feared you wouldn’t agree to a separation.”
I said, “Since I entered the Cheng Family, I have been filial to my mother-in-law, harmonious with my sisters-in-law, and managed the household without any fault. Even if Second Master wishes to divorce me, there should be a reason. I do not recognize this divorce letter.”
A servant boy outside reported, “Second Young Mistress, Young Master Qin is here.”
“Please invite him in quickly.”
A sound of hurried footsteps.
Qin Mingxu had arrived.
He looked as if he had traveled a great distance, his shoes covered in dust.
“Sang Yu, as soon as I reached the ferry terminal, I heard about the events in the Capital City and rushed here. Are you and Mother safe?”
I quickly ordered Xiao Yin to pour tea. He didn’t have time to drink it, only saying to me, “Don’t worry, I will think of a solution with you.”
“Just arrived at the ferry terminal? Where has Young Master Qin been these past few days?” I asked.
He suddenly lowered his head and vaguely replied, “Father ordered me to return to Yangzhou…”
Why would Master Qin, perfectly fine, suddenly order him back to Yangzhou?
I pointed to the west wing and said, “Madam Qin is here with me, and she is well, please rest assured. But… Minister Zhang is gone, and Cheng Huaishi is in prison…”
He said, “Sang Yu, I have ordered all the Tiansheng Tower shops along the river to withdraw their cash from the counters. I have already raised ten thousand taels of gold. People say that money can move mountains. Nowadays, in this Great Ming, which yamen is not corrupt? We will spend a large sum, bribe everyone, and perhaps there will be some hope. It might be possible to save Master Cheng’s life. Losing his official position is not important. As long as he is alive, that’s what matters.”
I remembered that outside the tavern in the alley, he had told me to find him if I had any difficulties. I had playfully asked him if he would give me ten thousand taels of gold.
At that time, we both thought it was a joke.
I never expected that so soon, he would actually raise ten thousand taels of gold to help me through my hardship.
Ten thousand taels of gold is equivalent to one hundred thousand taels of silver. Only Tiansheng Tower could produce such a sum.
For some reason, I felt something was amiss.
Qin Mingxu had always believed Minister Zhang was his biological father and had even stayed at the Zhang Manor for a while. Why, upon hearing of his biological father’s death, did he not mention it proactively?
It was as if he carried a burden, yet couldn’t touch it.
I slowly repeated, “Young Master Qin, Minister Zhang is gone…”
Panic and guilt flickered in his eyes, like a mountain pressing down, leaving him at a loss.
He was always so carefree; he had never shown such an expression.
“I… on my way here, I passed by the Zhang Manor and wanted to pay my respects at the mourning hall, but the Zhang Manor was completely surrounded by government soldiers, and no one was allowed in… I couldn’t get in… I respected Minister Zhang’s character. He was a good official and a good person. I should have paid my respects…”
I got up and went with him to the side room where Feng Gao was sleeping.
He saw Madam Qin and stepped forward, burying his face by her knees, and said, “Mother, Father asked me to ask you if you’ve gotten used to living here in the Capital City these past few days, and if you want to return to Yangzhou?”
His affection for Madam Qin was as before.
Madam Qin looked at the unconscious Feng Gao, then at Qin Mingxu, and remained silent for a long time.
After a long pause, she helped Qin Mingxu up and said, “Child, Mother cannot return right now. Eunuch is all alone and has no one reliable to look after him. It’s better if I’m here.”
This was a seemingly disconnected statement. But Qin Mingxu did not probe further.
He only said, “Then it shall be as Mother wishes. You stay here with Sang Yu. I will find a way to save Master Cheng.”
Madam Qin said, “Good. Spare no effort to save Master Cheng.”
“We must.”
Outside the courtyard, Qin Mingxu said, “Sang Yu, I have a business partner who is an old acquaintance of the steward at the Minister of Dali Temple’s residence. I’ve asked him to deliver two dou of gold to the Minister of Dali Temple’s residence under the pretense of delivering rice. Wait for my news.”
I nodded, watching him stride away.
I brushed away the jumbled thoughts in my mind.
At this point, his sincere and active efforts to rescue Cheng Huaishi and alleviate my urgent need were already a sign of great loyalty.
At the second watch, Qin Mingxu returned.
“Sang Yu, arrangements have been made in the Dali Temple prison. Tonight, at midnight, when the jailers change shifts, you will have fifteen minutes to see Master Cheng.”
I quickly asked, “Is there any room for maneuver regarding the death sentence?”
Qin Mingxu said, “The Minister of Dali Temple’s stance has not softened. Tomorrow, I will try to lobby other officials in the Capital City who have influence in the Imperial Court.”
“Mm.” I still held onto hope in my heart.
I returned to my room, changed into comfortable clothes. Then I went to the small kitchen and made a box of biscuits. I quietly waited for midnight to arrive.
The night wind stirred the autumn rain, which was lingering and melancholic.
Qin Mingxu held an umbrella and took me to Dali Temple. We exchanged a glance with the jailer outside the gate.
He said, “Sang Yu, you go in. I’ll wait for you outside.”
Carrying the food box filled with biscuits, I walked inside.
The jailer led me further in, to a cell sealed on all four sides.
The door opened, and I saw Cheng Huaishi sitting cross-legged on the floor. His white robe was wrinkled. The many words I had prepared at home scattered, and what came to my lips was a difficult sentence: “Second Master, I’ve come.”
He was very surprised, as if he hadn’t expected me to come.
The jailer said, “You must leave in fifteen minutes, Madam,” and then left.
I walked in, took out the biscuits: “Second Master must be hungry in prison. I just made these, and they’re still warm.”
He thought for a moment and shook his head: “I don’t like eating biscuits.”
I continued speaking to myself: “Everything is fine at home. Young Master Qin is having people work on it, and I think there will be a way… Second Master, after this is over, let’s go to Huizhou. Old Madam had me buy a lot of fields and properties in Huizhou. I’ll accompany you to farm and study. The business in Yangzhou can be left to Third Sister and Lu Gui. We’ll go to a quiet place in the countryside, ‘picking chrysanthemums by the eastern hedge, leisurely seeing the southern mountains’…”
The light in the prison was faint and weak.
He said calmly, “He Ming should have given you the divorce letter, right?”
My dreams were shattered.
I looked at him: “I tore it up.”
“I have kept a copy and entrusted someone to deliver it to the clan elders. Tearing it up is useless.”
His words were icy cold.
“Why must Second Master be like this?”
I smiled faintly: “The stream is clear, the sky is vast, the road is endless. Gazing from a height, as the wild geese arrive, boundless thoughts arise. After all our years as husband and wife, does Second Master prefer to believe I am a bird that flies away in the face of disaster, rather than a wild goose unwilling to fly alone?”
His gaze flowed over me like water.
“I’ve thought a lot in prison. In my life, I’ve had too many things to consider, and I’ve never truly lived for myself. This great disaster has made me see through fleeting fame. I don’t want to have regrets.”
It was as if a heavy snowfall had fallen in the prison.
He and I, in this snowfall, instantly grew old.
From meeting at the ferry terminal, to living in harmony, to sharing a bed and finding joy together.
Looking up, everything was vast and desolate.
“What do you mean by that, Second Master?”
He stood up and bowed deeply to me: “I want to be myself for once and give Yi Tang a proper status. I ask Miss Zhu to grant my wish.”
That thorn finally pierced my heart, precisely and sharply.
Miss Zhu.
I said, “Allowing her to remarry, with no future disputes. Are these the words on the divorce letter, and also your true feelings, Second Master?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t believe it.” I hugged the food box tightly.
“Please grant my wish, Miss Zhu.” He bowed again.
The jailer arrived, urging me to leave quickly, saying the next shift was coming and I shouldn’t cause him trouble.
I refused to leave.
The jailer grew anxious and pulled me out. With a “bang,” the door was shut.
In the last moment, I saw Cheng Huaishi’s eyes.
The heavy snow had already buried a desolate tomb.
