Chapter 31
“Since you hate me so much, quit talking nonsense. Take out the IOUs.”
Sun Yixi snorted coldly when he heard that.
He turned around to take them out.
Madam Sun couldn’t even stand properly.
Back then when they had drawn lots as to who would get the family’s resources to continue studying, sure enough, Yiming had been the lucky one.
Was she really so unfair back then?
Sun Yixi took out the IOUs. Sun Yiming counted the money to pay off the debt. He took the IOUs and left.
He didn’t even look back.
Madam Sun was shouting at him from behind, but he pretended not to hear her.
Sun Yixi had a few noxious words to say, but these were nothing but a gust of wind to Yiming.
When he returned home, he looked at the lock on the door.
For a moment, he had mixed feelings. Sorrow rose in his heart.
He sat at the door and thought for a long time.
If he hadn’t had that dream, then now he wouldn’t be as willing to part ways withHan Qiao. But he had that dream. In the dream, his wife was educated, gentle, and virtuous. His future was bright, and he was surrounded by beautiful concubines.
His children were filial and lovely. Compared to these three daughters who saw him as an enemy, his heart was naturally biased.
Of course, he was also afraid of falling down the same path as before.
Han Qiao and her daughter were sold into prostitution…
He sighed. He would never admit that he wanted to continue climbing up the social ladder, nor would he admit that he was tired of living at this moment.
He was certain that he had seen that inexplicable memory. His life could turn out to be even more glorious than in the dream.
Moreover, Han Qiao wanted to divorce him, and she and their daughters had already separated from him. They wouldn’t live a good life with him, so he didn’t want to force them.
He didn’t know what else was in the courtyard, nor did he want to go see.
He only wanted to find Han Qiao and write the letter of divorce. From then on, the two would have nothing to do with each other.
He returned the silver to Shopkeeper Xie and saved up some money for the road. Then, he left Ninghe Town to earn his future.
At that moment, Sun Yiming couldn’t wait any longer. He stood up and knocked on Heng’s door.
“Who is it?”
Elder Brother Heng opened the door.
“Is Heng Yi at home?”Sun Yiming asked.
“Yes.”
Sun Yiming explained the purpose of his visit. He wanted to ask Heng Yi to accompany him on the night journey. He wanted to go to Xishan Village.
When Heng Yi was called out, his expression was very dark.
When he learned that he wanted to go to Xishan Village, he was stunned for a moment. “Alright,” he agreed.
Sun Yiming could not possibly walk to Xishan Village on his own. Furthermore, he had some money, so he went out with Heng Yi to look for a carriage to hire.
When the coachman heard that he was going to visit Han Qiao in Xishan Village, he was very surprised.
He asked carefully, “Mr. Sun, are you going to Xishan Village to pick someone up?”
“No, I’m going to divorce Han Qiao.”
“…”
“…”
Heng Yi and the coachman were stunned.
Heng Yi touched his nose and felt an inexplicable feeling.
It was strange.
“Since things between Han Qiao and me have gotten this nasty, there’s no way for us to get back together. We had better go our separate ways. From now on, it doesn’t matter if she or I marry someone else.”
“…”
Heng Yi did not speak.
Who could even know what he was thinking?
On the way, the coachman chatted with Sun Yiming casually to prevent himself from falling asleep.
It was not easy to travel at night, so the carriage moved very, very slowly.
When they reached Xishan Village, the sky had just begun to dawn.
Someone from the Han family had already gotten up to boil water for breakfast.
Sun Yiming went forward to knock on the door.
Behind him were Heng Yi and the coachman.
Sun Yiming was afraid that if he showed up at the Han house all alone, he would be beaten up until half of his body was paralyzed, so he brought Heng Yi to bolster his courage.
“Someone’s here.”
The door opened.
Han Yuan looked at Sun Yiming. She wanted to curse at him, but in the end, she held it in.
Sun Yiming bowed and said, “Mother-in-law, I’m looking for Qiao to discuss the divorce.”
“You…”
“Come in.”
Han Yuan let Sun Yiming, Heng Yi, and the carriage enter the courtyard while she went to wake them up.
Very quickly, the Han family quickly made themselves up and sat with Sun Yiming in the central room. Then, someone went to invite the clan leader and the village officials. They also invited their uncles over.
Sun Yiming was actually very nervous.
He looked at Han Qiao. “Qiao, I want to talk to you alone first.”
“Okay.”
Han Qiao was not afraid that Sun Yiming would hit her.
They were in the Han house, now. If Sun Yiming hit her, he would more or less be committing suicide, showing that he grown tired of living and was looking for an easy way out.
When the two of them walked out of the courtyard, Han Qiao also saw Heng Yi and the coachman.
“…”
She was extremely surprised.
Why was he here?
Heng Yi glanced at her, then quickly looked away.
Sun Yiming was completely unaware of what was going on between the two of them.
He followed Han Qiao to the stone at the corner of the courtyard.
Han Qiao calmly walked over.
She showed no trace of panic, shock or fear when Sun Yiming told her he wanted to divorce her.
“Did you also have a dream?” Sun Yiming asked.
“Huh?” Han Qiao looked at Sun Yiming without saying a word.
Her enigmatic look made Sun Yiming unable to figure it out.
“Do you really want to do this?” Sun Yiming asked.
“Yes!”
It was a resounding yes.
She had no intention of going back on her words.
“After the divorce, the three children…” Sun Yiming couldn’t say anything about taking the three children away.
“The three children belong to me. Their surname will be Han from now on.”
“I object,” Sun Yiming retorted vehemently.
“What right do you have to object? Have you raised them for a day? Hugged them once? Bought them candy once? Bought them snacks once? Sun Yiming, I’m not trying to criticize you, but you are such a failure as a human being. You let your own mother and brother scheme against you, yet you are still unaware of it. You are still smug and complacent.”
“To be honest, divorce is the best choice for both of us. If you can start a new life with me after divorce, you can also work hard without any worries. Listen to my advice and leave Ninghe Town. Leave your parents and your family. Perhaps then you can become a decent human being.”
“…”
Sun Yiming’s eyes widened.
Now, he was almost certain that Han Qiao had the same dream.
Otherwise, why would she say something like that?
He took three deep breaths. “Then let’s divorce. But the three children cannot change their surnames.”
“I’m sorry for what I’ve done to you. I’m unworthy of being a husband and a father.”
“As long as you promise not to change their surnames or change their names, I’m willing to never come and disturb them from now on. Regardless of whether you marry again or how well they are doing, I swear, and if I go back on my word, then I will not die a good death. I will be homeless from then on, and I will not die a good death.”
“…”
Hearing that, Han Qiao looked at Sun Yiming seriously.
His face was badly bruised, but it betrayed nothing.
His eyes were unusually clear.
“Alright.”
It is what it is.
All she wanted was for the Sun family not to disturb her.
Sun Yiming took out his wallet, opened it, and took out five taels of silver. He handed them to Han Qiao. “This is my last compensation. Let that show that I have a conscience–at least a guilty conscience…”
“Qiao, I’m sorry. I have broken my promise and treated you badly. After today’s divorce, we will never see each other again. With these five taels of silver and the previous ones, your lives will be much better.”
“Thank you, I’ll accept it.” Han Qiao accepted the silver without hesitation.
Sun Yiming owed her. She wasn’t a fool.
The divorce was actually not that difficult. When they got married, they had never registered it with the government. All that had happened was that the head of the Han clan, the head of the Xishan Village, as well as the regional chief had come over. Han Qiao’s Elder and Sun Yiming personally wrote the divorce letter.
“The bond between husband and wife is forged over three past lives. Hence they are matched for this life. If they are not meant to be together, they will be enemies, so they will stand apart from each other. Since you have two different hearts, it is too difficult for you to be united. Soon, you will be together with your relatives, and each of you will return to your original path. I hope that after your wife leaves you, she will comb her temples again, sweep her beautiful eyebrows, and cleverly take on a graceful posture, then she will be chosen to serve the empress. With one parting, two widths apart, each of you will be happy.”
Han Qiao didn’t recognize most of the traditional characters, but when she read what little she could, she almost laughed out loud.
Wasn’t this plagiarism?
It would be more accurate to say that all letters of divorce followed the same model.