Chapter 146: Chapter 146: A Life-and-Death Struggle

If someone actually died, it would be more than just an unmanageable mess—everyone here would likely pay with their lives!

But once a person was set on suicide, the fear was that if they failed once, they would simply try again.

A roomful of people crowded around, not daring to leave.

Word had been sent, but so much time had passed and still no one had come.

’Some get all the warmth, while others are left to freeze!’

But they only dared to think this silently. No one could forget the recent, vivid examples of what could happen.

Cao Luyun’s eyes were wet. She didn’t even have to look to feel their probing gazes.

"All of you, get out."

She was shivering uncontrollably, not even wanting to lift her eyelids. Her voice was hoarse.

Shuangjiang was about to respond when she saw someone step inside.

"My Lord!"

Everyone in the room lowered their heads, retracting their earlier stares.

Cao Luyun looked over with reddened eyes, her heart immediately filling with sorrow, humiliation... and a flicker of anticipation.

She lowered her head again as her tears fell one by one, splattering onto the length of white silk and spreading into dark splotches.

Soon, a large patch was soaked through.

The atmosphere in the room was heavy and oppressive.

The newcomer took a single glance. "All of you, wait outside."

His voice was cold and indifferent.

Cao Luyun’s heart leaped. She couldn’t help but raise her eyes, only to see Lu Xiu standing far behind the others, as if wishing an entire world separated them.

The pain in her heart intensified.

’Is he treating me like some kind of plague? So desperate to avoid me?’

’Things were fine these past few days. Why did he suddenly change this afternoon?’

’Could it be that Liang Wan said she wouldn’t interfere, but then went and said something to him behind my back?’

The people in the room withdrew.

She wiped away her tears, her voice thick with grievance. "My Lord, why are you suddenly acting like this?"

She had spent the entire afternoon carefully preparing pastries for him. She never imagined that when she delivered them, not only would she fail to receive a single kind word, but she would be handed a Divorce Letter instead.

Who could bear such a thing?

An involuntary frown creased Lu Xiu’s brow.

"I made it clear from the beginning that this marriage would not be valid. How can you call this sudden?"

Cao Luyun’s tears stopped. She took a breath. "For the past few days, you and I have been getting along amicably, My Lord. But today, after I went to see Liang Ji, you suddenly changed. I thought it was because she was too arrogant, but she clearly promised me she wouldn’t interfere in this matter. My Lord, why—"

At the mention of this, Lu Xiu’s dark eyes turned so cold they could freeze a person solid.

"You should not have gone to her."

’If I take ten steps toward her, she only watches me. If I take a hundred, she still hesitates.’

’But Cao Luyun’s visit nearly destroyed all my efforts in one fell swoop.’

’All that talk about a maiden not getting infatuated...’

’All that talk about being proper and legitimate...’

He hadn’t intended to say more. "I came only to tell you that I will be sending you back to the Prime Minister’s Mansion tomorrow."

Having said his piece, Lu Xiu turned to leave.

"Liang Wan doesn’t have you in her heart at all, My Lord!"

The sudden, hoarse shout only made the corner of his mouth twitch; it did not stop his feet.

"She doesn’t care about you at all, yet you’re so obsessed with her! My Lord, has she bewitched you? You don’t even care about your own reputation!"

"My Lord, can’t you hear what the people on the street say about her?"

The woman behind him wouldn’t give up, her voice hoarse and utterly shrill.

’This relentlessness... it’s not a good thing...’

Lu Xiu paused briefly and turned back.

"What do the thoughts of others have to do with me?"

He looked at her coldly.

"If it were up to me, I wouldn’t have come at all. I am here to make things clear only out of consideration for my relationship with your father and brother. In all matters, I dislike dragging things out."

Seeing him stop, Cao Luyun dropped the white silk, stood up, and took a few steps forward.

"Our marriage was decided long ago, My Lord. Even if we cannot be a perfectly harmonious couple, it should not have come to a complete separation. But now, the Cao Family is shamed because of me..."

She choked back a sob and continued, "If you truly have consideration for my father and brother, My Lord, I am willing to give up the position of the main wife and be a mere concubine. As long as you do not send me back to the Prime Minister’s Mansion, I would even serve as a slave or a maid in this mansion—"

’She clenched her fists tightly, her heart filled with humiliation and grievance...’

"That won’t be necessary," Lu Xiu said impatiently.

Cao Luyun was bewildered, the corners of her eyes bloodshot. "My Lord, why are you so unreasonable?"

’Unreasonable?’

The corner of Lu Xiu’s mouth twitched slightly. ’Who was it that called me approachable?’

Continuing to argue like this was meaningless.

Seeing no other way, Lu Xiu stated frankly, "In this life, having the heart of one person is enough for me."

Cao Luyun stood frozen, truly not expecting him to say such a thing.

"That day, at the gates of the Duke Wei Mansion, I spoke frankly with the General of Cavalry. If he can be devoted to Princess Shaoyang, then why can I not be devoted to Liang Ji?"

"Do not do to others what you would not have them do to you."

"Lady Cao, why must you debase yourself for the sake of an empty title?"

"Do you not wish to spend the rest of your life with someone who is devoted only to you, Lady Cao? Must you share a husband with another woman?"

"Rather than wasting your days away in the Grandmaster’s Mansion, it would be better for you to return to the Prime Minister’s Mansion and find a good man, a worthy husband, anew."

Cao Luyun opened her mouth. She remembered his words at the gate of the Duke Mansion that day, but at the time, she hadn’t understood why he had asked her brother that question.

She gritted her teeth. "You, My Lord, are the worthy husband chosen for me by His Majesty and my elders. But I don’t have the ability to keep you—"

Lu Xiu frowned. "Matters of marriage are not just about obeying the orders of one’s parents. One can also follow one’s heart."

Cao Luyun shook her head with a bitter smile. "My heart? Then how do you know I am not following my own heart, My Lord? I have known of you for a long time. When I learned of our marriage, I was truly happy."

"I just never imagined that this marriage I so eagerly awaited would end not with a wedding, but with you coming to our door, proposing to defy the imperial decree and break the engagement—"

As she spoke, tears streamed down her cheeks once more.

Lu Xiu’s brows furrowed.

"Lady Cao, why are you so stubborn?"

"It is you who is stubborn, My Lord!"

’Men have had three wives and four concubines since ancient times. Why won’t he even leave a place for me?’

Cao Luyun’s eyes were red with grief. "It is you who refuses to give me a way to live, My Lord. If I die here today, what do you think will happen to Liang Ji?"

Lu Xiu’s gaze became as sharp as an eagle’s.

Cao Luyun was startled, but then she started to laugh. "Only when Liang Wan is mentioned will you deign to look at me properly. I truly cannot understand why you are obsessed with such a woman—one who is condemned by all and has a ruined reputation."

"If you fancied some other high-born noble lady, it would be one thing. But her? What is there to admire about her besides a beautiful face? How am I inferior to her? And what’s more laughable is that she would rather spend all her effort trying to please His Majesty than use any of that energy on you—"

If Lu Xiu’s gaze was cold and unfeeling before, it was now deadly.

’The marital bliss I dreamed of has turned to discord and enmity...’

’But if I step out of the Grandmaster’s Mansion, I’ll be pointed at and gossiped about. I would rather die than face that!’

Lu Xiu’s eyes narrowed for a moment. ’So be it,’ he thought.

He glanced at something hidden in his sleeve, then turned with extreme resolution, unwilling to stay a moment longer.

Cao Luyun watched his retreating back, her heart filled with grief and indignation.

"I am only begging you to let me stay in the mansion, My Lord, yet you are so heartless! If you insist on sending me out of the Grandmaster’s Mansion, then this day next year will be the anniversary of my death!"

Having spoken, Cao Luyun raised her hand, aiming the tip of a blade straight at her neck.

"If I die, do you think any of you will get to live well?"

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