Peach Blossom.

Seeing her son's feet were destroyed, Xiao Rui wanted to cry but had no tears. She covered her chest and shouted at Wang Jing in pain: "Your body and hair are given by your parents! What qualifications do you have to do this?"

Without the copper basin, Wang Jing's feet were hanging in the air. He looked up at Xiao Rui, and his voice was trembling because of the pain. "I am an unfilial child. I beg you to tell the queen mother that I accidentally burned my feet and that I am disabled and cannot be a match for the princess. Please choose another good husband."

Xiao Rui fell to the ground and burst into tears: "My son! Why are you so stupid? How painful must it be to be burned like this? How can you walk in the future?"

Zhou Yunniang and Mantangjiao came together to help Xiao Rui. It took a long time before he slowly stood up. Xiao Rui leaned on Zhou Yunniang's shoulder and continued to cry.

Zhou Yunniang waved to Mantangjiao, indicating that Mantangjiao should go and accompany Wang Jing, and she helped her mother-in-law out.

After walking out of the door, Zhou Yunniang ordered someone to call a doctor and asked the servants who were watching to disperse.

Mantangjiao walked to Wang Jing and squatted down, looking at Wang Jing's feet quietly, tears falling down her face.

"If you really loved me, you wouldn't have jumped into the lake." When Wang Jing spoke, there seemed to be a sound of his teeth knocking against each other, as if he was in great pain. When he closed his mouth, he must have been gritting his teeth.

"I'm sorry, I was wrong..." Mantang Jiao sobbed and raised her head slightly: "But, I'm fine after all, you can't hurt yourself!"

Wang Jing shook his head gently: "I am too perfect in the princess' eyes, that's why she is so persistent. If I want to completely cut off her thoughts, I can only make myself incomplete! And it must be an irreversible and irreparable incompleteness!"

After hearing this, Mantangjiao burst into tears even more. She stood up, put Wang Jing's head against her chest and hugged him tightly: "Second brother... I really can't bear to leave you and Yu'er. When the situation forced me to leave, I was completely desperate..."

"But if you're no longer in my world, I'll be completely hopeless! Promise me, don't leave. Even if we die, our family will die together!" Wang Jing raised his face, with tears in the corners of his eyes.

Mantangjiao nodded vigorously, her tears fell on Wang Jing's face, along with Wang Jing's tears.

Another day, Xiao Rui went to the palace to pay a visit to the empress dowager and was gone for a full half day.

It was almost sunset when Xiao Rui returned from the palace. He entered Situ Mansion and went straight to the central courtyard.

At that time, Mantangjiao was applying medicine on the soles of Wang Jing's feet, and Wang Jing was sweating from the pain.

Xiao Rui appeared at their door with a grim look on his face.

Mantang Jiao looked up and guessed that something was wrong. She placed the medicine bowl and cotton wool on the coffee table, walked over and bowed gently to Xiao Rui: "Mother, what did the Queen Mother say?"

Xiao Rui looked at Wang Jing, then at Mantang Jiao, and couldn't bear to speak.

Mantang Jiao urged again: "Just tell me, you will have to tell me sooner or later."

Before Xiao Rui opened his mouth, Mantang Jiao's heartbeat had already quickened, and even her breathing had become slightly hoarse.

Xiao Rui had no choice but to speak out: "Madame Zheng beside the Queen Mother conveyed the princess' words, saying that she is a member of the Wang family in life and a ghost of the Wang family in death. Don't say that Master Wang is disabled. Even if he dies, she will marry into the family and live as a widow for the rest of her life."

Wang Jing's veins popped up when he heard this, and he yelled, "Why is she so cheap?"

In his excitement, Wang Jing accidentally kicked the coffee table where the medicine bowl was placed. He felt unbearable pain and his whole body was shaking.

Xiao Rui and Mantang Jiao came over together and supported Wang Jing. In the blink of an eye, Wang Jing's face turned blue and he fainted.

Xiao Rui was so frightened that his soul flew out of his body. He hurriedly shouted outside: "Ayun, quickly call someone to get a doctor!"

Zhou Yunniang then hurriedly sent someone to call for a doctor.

Unexpectedly, a moment later, the servant came back and said, "Grandma, it's bad! Madam Zheng, who is beside the Queen Mother, brought people to block our front and back doors. They said that they can only withdraw when they see the second grandma leave. Before the second grandma leaves, no one in the house can go out!"

Zhou Yunniang had no choice but to go to the gate and meet Nanny Zheng.

It’s obvious that Madam Zheng is a difficult person to talk to.

Zhou Yunniang had no choice but to ask politely, and explained, "My second brother is seriously ill and needs medical treatment urgently. I would like to trouble you to be flexible. I'm sure the Queen Mother and the Princess will not blame me."

This is actually nonsense. When Xiao Rui entered the palace, he had already told the Queen Mother that Wang Jing's foot was accidentally burned. How could Nanny Zheng, who was serving by his side, not know about it?

Madam Zheng's attitude was indeed very blunt: "It shouldn't take more than an incense stick of time for Madam Man to walk out of the courtyard. We can call a doctor after she leaves, and it won't delay the treatment."

Zhou Yunniang was in a dilemma and tried to plead: "Madam, please understand. My second brother is ill right now. Man is the only one who knows his physical condition best. We have to stay for a while. Once my second brother gets better, let her leave."

Madam Zheng was still serious: "Didn't Madam Situ say a dozen days ago that Man and the Second Young Master had divorced? If they had divorced, why would she serve him on the bed? Did she lie to the Queen Mother?"

"How dare I, a mother-in-law, lie to the empress dowager? It's just that Man couldn't bear to part with her daughter, so she delayed for a few days!" Zhou Yunniang lied tremblingly.

Madam Zheng obviously didn't believe it, so she deliberately raised a difficult question: "In that case, when Madam Man leaves the Wang family, I will have to trouble Madam to bring the divorce letter so that I can take it back and report back!"

Zhou Yunniang felt that things were getting worse, so she had to go back to the backyard and tell Xiao Rui what Nanny Zheng had said.

Xiao Rui was helpless and just shook his head and sighed: "It's all my fault that I lied to Jing'er in a hurry that day and said that Jing'er had written a divorce letter... Now more than ten days have passed, and I still haven't managed to contact the old man. The Queen Mother is already impatient..."

Zhou Yunniang asked, "How is my second brother?"

"He has a high fever and has been in a coma..." Xiao Rui said, tears streaming down his face again: "I'm really worried that Jing'er won't make it..."

Mantangjiao was standing not far away and heard clearly what Xiao Rui and Zhou Yunniang said.

Xiao Rui cried for a while, then walked to Mantang Jiao's side and said, "Ah Jiao, this is an emergency, can you please leave for a while?"

Mantang Jiao looked at Wang Jing in the room and shook her head: "I promised my second brother that no matter what happens, I will never leave him. Even if we die, we will die together!"

"Can you bear to watch him die?" Xiao Rui stared at Mantang Jiao, his voice beginning to tremble.

Mantangjiao lowered her head and did not answer immediately.

Xiao Rui suddenly knelt down.

Mantang Jiao was startled and immediately knelt down, standing opposite Xiao Rui: "Mother, aren't you embarrassing your daughter-in-law?"

"Ah Jiao... I'm begging you as your mother... You know, the greatest sorrow in the world is to see a loved one die before you! Please have pity on me, an old woman over fifty years old!" Xiao Rui burst into tears and almost knocked his head to the ground.

Mantang Jiao could only knock her head to the ground, tears flowing from the corners of her eyes to her forehead. She squeezed out a few words from between her teeth: "Okay... I'll go..."

Zhou Yunniang hurried over to help Xiao Rui up, and then helped Mantangjiao up, and whispered in Mantangjiao's ear: "Your sister-in-law used to imitate your second brother's handwriting, and her imitation was very similar. Please do your best to write a divorce letter and pretend that it was written by your second brother that day, so that you can get through today's test!"

Mantangjiao nodded, went into the room and took out two pieces of paper. She first quickly wrote two identical copies of the divorce letter in Wang Jingchang's cursive script. Finally, she bit her finger, changed the font, and left her name at the end of the divorce letter.

Time was running out, so the divorce letter consisted of only two lines.

Both of her maids who came with her dowry packed a bag and stood waiting outside the door.

Mantangjiao took the two written divorce letters, walked out of the room, handed one to Zhou Yunniang, and put the other in the bag on Shuangshuang's shoulders.

Zhou Yunniang asked in surprise: "You wrote two copies?"

"A real divorce agreement should have been in two copies." Mantangjiao's answer was very natural. She had stopped crying.

Zhou Yunniang looked at Mantangjiao, and she seemed to realize that in Mantangjiao's eyes, this was a real divorce and not just a show to please anyone.

Yu'er came back from the front yard with Xiuping after school and ran to Mantangjiao. She took a look at the bag on Shuangshuang's shoulders and grabbed Mantangjiao's hand in fear: "Mother, where are you going?"

Mantangjiao squatted down, touched Yu'er's tender face, and forced a smile: "Mom has to go out for a few days for something, you have to listen to grandma and aunt, and take care of dad for mom, understand?"

Yu'er nodded obediently and asked again: "When will mother come back?"

Mantang Jiao looked at the old tree in the yard with fewer and fewer dead leaves, and coaxed her in a very gentle voice: "When all the leaves of this tree have fallen, mother will be back..."

After hearing this, Yu'er suddenly climbed up the tree like a little monkey and plucked up dead leaves one by one. Her words were so innocent: "I will pluck all the leaves today, so that mother won't have to leave!"

Mantangjiao stood under the tree, accepting the baptism of falling leaves, looking at the little monkey on the tree, she didn't know what else to say.

Tears fall drop by drop.

My heart aches every time.

Mantangjiao couldn't bear to look at the tree any longer, so she quickly left the tree, the yard, and these people.

Behind her, an innocent voice was still heard: "Mom, the leaves will fall soon!"

Mantangjiao's figure finally disappeared from Situ Mansion.

Zhou Yunniang hurriedly handed over the divorce letter and sent someone to call a doctor.

Xiao Rui whispered to Zhou Yunniang: "Once Jing'er wakes up, lock him up with chains before he knows that A Jiao has left!"

Zhou Yunniang was stunned: "Lock up my second brother, isn't that a bad idea?"

"If he is not locked up, he will definitely run around the streets looking for Gillian. His feet can't stand the torture. I can't watch my son die in pain outside!" Xiao Rui made the decision very decisively.

Zhou Yunniang asked again: "Then...how long will it be locked?"

"Lock it until the wedding night, when the deal is done."

"How can my second brother welcome the bride in that case?"

Xiao Rui shook her head. She knew her son very well: "Even if you don't lock him up, he won't go to the wedding. Just pretend to be sick and let Ao'er go to the wedding instead!"