The mistress who remarried has returned.

My heart started to ache subconsciously.

This was Qin Huai's true feeling towards her: he thought she was dirty and unworthy of wearing his clothes, so he would probably rinse his mouth and wash away her scent when he got back.

It was inconvenient to hide Qin Huai's clothes in the Eastern Palace. If the truth came out, Qin Huai would inevitably be implicated in the Crown Prince's affair. The Crown Prince had committed the crime of regicide, which would surely bring unnecessary trouble to Qin Huai.

I hate him and resent him, yet I can't help but think of things for him.

Even though he had used her for years and even slapped her in the face by falsely accusing her of cheating, she could never forget the tenderness he had shown her during those years.

During those years, she was a girl who was loved and cared for, and she felt that life had meaning. There was always someone who appreciated her, transcending social status and identity, simply appreciating her character, not treating her as an oddball who didn't fit in, but as a confidante and lover.

She still didn't want to believe that all that happiness was fake, and therefore didn't want anything bad to happen to him.

She then took the cloak out of the hidden compartment, placed it in the food box, covered it with a cloth, and brought it back to the Su residence.

Li Changchuan said to Su Yunxi in a tacit understanding, "You go ahead. I'll stay here."

Su Yunxi returned to the Su residence around noon. When she arrived at the backyard, she took her cloak out of the food box and saw her mother sitting on a small stool by the door picking vegetables. She seemed lost in thought and didn't even notice her entering the courtyard.

After what happened two days ago when she entered the Su residence wearing that cloak, Lord Su was unsure of Qin Huai's feelings for her, so he would be somewhat wary and probably wouldn't make things particularly difficult for her.

So, what's wrong with Mother?

"Mother," Su Yunxi called softly.

Upon hearing her daughter's voice, Su's mother quickly composed herself, looked at her daughter, and smiled gently, saying, "Xixi, you're back. Your leg looks much better. The miracle doctor's medicine really works!"

Su Yunxi nodded, "I feel much less pain these past two days. A few days ago, I was hit several times by Wang Shi because of the cloth shop being taken away, and my knees were really painful. But they're gradually getting better now."

"This is also because the eldest young master is kind-hearted. If it weren't for his instruction, Doctor Kang wouldn't have dared to prescribe medicine for you without his permission. Xixi, does the eldest young master still...

"Mother, it was the divine physician who gave me the medicine on his own. It wasn't at Qin Huai's behest." Su Yunxi lowered her eyes dejectedly. Qin Huai didn't want to see her limping and constantly remind him of her using him to climb the social ladder. He sighed softly, "The eldest young master doesn't treat me the way you think..."

Seeing that her daughter was unhappy, Su's mother didn't continue the conversation. She put the half-picked vegetables in the basket, washed her hands, and took the food box from Su Yunxi's hands. At the same time, she noticed that her daughter was still holding Young Master Qin's cloak, and asked in a low voice with puzzlement, "Young Master Qin, why did you bring this cloak back again? Didn't you return it?"

Su Yunxi kept her mouth shut and did not answer. The color in her lips gradually faded. Under her mother's questioning gaze, she said softly, "It hasn't been returned yet."

Su's mother noticed that Xixi was feeling even more upset than before, so she didn't ask any more questions. Xixi was a sensitive and delicate child who didn't express her feelings and cause trouble for others. She often endured her sadness alone, and her silent suffering was very endearing.

As a mother, I really didn't want her to feel bad at all, so I treated her with as much gentleness and care as possible, simply taking the food box from her.

"How is the Crown Prince doing today? I made him some white rice porridge with some minced meat, it's easy to swallow and digest. Also, I left you some scrambled eggs and pancakes on the table. Xixi, go eat something, you're getting thinner and thinner, you need to have some meat on your bones to look healthy and pleasing."

"Okay, Mother. I am indeed...too thin." Su Yunxi's eyes stung with tears. She returned to her room, placed Qin Huai's clothes on the couch, and then went out to sit at the dining table to eat. "Where is Yunze?"

When asked this question so suddenly, Su's mother's shoulders stiffened abruptly. After a moment, she said, "Yunze went to school."

"Okay. Got it."

Su Yunxi ate a few bites of food to fill her stomach, but she had no intention of gaining weight. She was who she was, and she would not change her appearance to resemble others, nor would she lose her own identity just because others disliked her.

Because if someone loves her, they will love her regardless of whether she is ugly or beautiful, disabled or healthy, poor or rich, fat or thin. A woman is lucky to receive such love and favor.

She returned to her bedroom, sat on the edge of the couch, and stared blankly at Qin Huai's indigo cloak. She was now a concubine of the Crown Prince, a married woman, and it was not right to secretly keep Qin Huai's clothes. If it were discovered, it would inevitably tarnish Qin Huai's reputation.

But he didn't want it anymore, and he couldn't return it. The only thing he could do was destroy it and find a suitable place to bury it.

Her gaze fell on the cloak again. She lowered her hand and stroked the patterns on the cloak. She picked up the cloak with both hands, held it to her nose, and gently smelled the scent on the clothes. It was her husband's scent.

It feels like a skinny monkey.

Suddenly, a crackling sound appeared in my mind.

Su Yunxi bit her lip, then remembered Xue Wenying's voluptuous figure and the graceful rise and fall of her chest as she walked, which was very rich and feminine.

Presumably, if Xue Wenying were sitting on his lap, he wouldn't be able to resist and would have taken off his undergarment.

After a moment, Su Yunxi took out a pair of scissors from the drawer on the table. Since he thought her clothes were dirty and disgusting enough to throw them away, it was indeed better to cut them clean.

Su Yunxi was both angry and embarrassed. After all, she was a girl, and he threw away his clothes after she had just worn them, which made her feel really awkward and unable to save face.

She...is not dirty.

She walked towards the clothes with the scissors in her hand.

He picked up Qin Huai's cloak and started cutting wildly with scissors, not caring what crucial parts he cut, he was deliberately trying to ruin it, and he stopped after cutting four or five times.

Why does Qin Huai act so high and mighty? Does he think what he does is so aboveboard?

Wasn't it him who took advantage of her and the married woman from Suzhou who had been arguing for seven years?

Isn't it him who's preoccupied with the widow's affairs now?

What a proud and aloof young master from a prominent family.

A hypocritical villain!

Su Yunxi cut the clothes to shreds with her scissors until she was slightly less angry. Finally, she threw the ruined cloak into the trash can and decided to bury it somewhere safe tonight.

I feel a bit better now.

Yet her eyes were filled with tears.

She stood before the bronze mirror and saw the hickeys on her neck left by Qin Huai. After two days, they had faded somewhat. She carefully pulled up her collar to cover the marks, but the thought also crossed her mind: had he left similar marks on Xue Wenying's neck? The thought churned with unbearable pain.

Suddenly glancing at the almanac by the door, I realized that today was the sixth day of the lunar month. It was a day of rest for Yunze, and he didn't have to go to school.

Where did Yunze go?

Wang Guirong's house in the front yard was also quiet and she wasn't home.

Su Yunxi felt a vague unease in her heart.

***

Steward Wang from the Xue family arranged a carriage. After leaving the Xue residence, he instructed the servants, "Go to the Qin family's military camp."

The servant stammered, "Uncle Wang, the barracks is not a place you can go without permission."

"It was Miss Xue who ordered it. Just follow her orders." Steward Wang stroked his beard. "Anyone else can go, but our young lady can."

Only then did the servant set off.

Butler Wang drew back the curtains and instructed his men, "Go tell Master Xue that I will definitely invite the magistrate to handle this matter. Before I return, have that Su family bastard, whatever his name is, kneel and wait. There's no need to say much to his mother, Madam Wang. We'll decide everything once the magistrate arrives."

The servant helped think of a name for that nobody, "Su...Su something, oh, Su Yunze."

Butler Wang snorted, "Why did they have to hit Xue Ping of all people? No matter who he is, he's finished this time."

The servant added, "But the Su family previously had a young lady who was the mistress of the eldest son of the Qin family."

"They're doomed anyway. They'll only be doomed more completely." Butler Wang chuckled. "She was a troublemaker who cheated on her husband. In that master's eyes, she's not even worth a cat or dog."

***