Elder Cao looked at the contract, furious beyond asure. This was a reminder of his downfall from the past. Madam Li had actually kept this contract! He had thought that over the years, Madam Li had been thoroughly molded into a gentle and obedient wife, but he never expected her to disgrace him like this in front of others!
If he could move, he would rush forward to tear that contract to shreds. Only by doing so would the sha of his past struggles be erased, allowing him to stand tall again.
"Li!" Elder Cao roared, "You want a divorce? Don’t forget, it’s because of that you hold the rank of a second-rank titled lady. Without , how could you face your own family with pride?"
Besides, he only had one son. How could he let Madam Li take him away?
At this point, Madam Li was no longer afraid of anything. She snorted coldly, "Who cares about being a titled lady? I’ve never desired it. As for my family, you’ve refused every favor they asked from you, so they’ve already distanced themselves from . How could I ever face them with pride? From today on, I’m going to live for myself! And I’ll give my son a fresh start, free from a hollow, rotten leech like you!"
Elder Cao had been insulted over and over, and now, in front of two ruffians and a woman, his sha had reached its peak. He could no longer bear the humiliation.
"You... you... you’re twisting the truth! All these years... I’ve been the one keeping this family afloat!"
"And you still have the nerve to say that? Anyway, today I’m going to the Shuntian Office to file for divorce and split the family assets!" Madam Li declared firmly.
Cao Bin, seeing his mother so resolute for the first ti, felt overwheld with emotion, and tears flowed uncontrollably.
"Mother..."
Madam Li said, "Bin’er, it’s my fault for realizing too late and letting you suffer all these years. Don’t worry, once we break free from this leech, I’ll go speak to the Su family and make sure your marriage plans don’t get delayed."
Cao Bin’s nose stung with emotion. He nodded, "It’s not too late, Mother. As long as you’ve co to your senses, it’s never too late..."
Only today had he finally seen everything clearly, no longer holding any hope for his father.
Encouraged by her son, Madam Li’s resolve grew stronger. After getting up, she declared that they would head to the Shuntian Office imdiately, no matter what, to finalize the divorce.
Elder Cao’s face turned red, his eyes rolling back in panic.
Seeing that sothing was wrong, Cao Bin quickly turned to Nanli for help. "Ninth Princess, please save him!"
Nanli gave a small hum and released the Body-Freezing Talisman from Elder Cao’s body. She laid him flat on the ground and gave him a heart-protecting pill. He slowly regained so strength.
However, Chu Shuo said, "Cao, why are you still worrying about his life and death?"
Once he’s dead, the whole thing will be over.
Cao Bin’s expression turned cold, and he replied, "Even though he hasn’t been responsible to us, he’s still a good official who serves the country and the people. The court needs him, and the people need him. Besides, if he dies, I’d have to mourn him, which would delay my marriage plans. That’s not worth it."
The last part was the key point.
Xie Beihan quickly nodded, "Exactly. Sixth Sister, let him live a little longer."
Elder Cao, who had just recovered, was once again so enraged by their words that his eyes rolled back again, almost fainting.
Nanli glanced helplessly at the group and said, "If you want him to live, then everyone needs to say a little less."
She then took out her acupuncture kit and applied a few needles to Elder Cao.
Elder Cao was planning to play dead, hoping to delay the divorce. He thought that once Madam Li cald down, the divorce matter would be forgotten.
But Nanli saw through his thoughts and said, "It seems Lord Cao is in bad shape. Maybe I should use an Evil Bee to give him a sting, and he might pull through."
"No! No!" Elder Cao waved his hands frantically, sitting up instantly.
His face was pale, and he kept muttering, "No bees, no bees!"
Nanli chuckled, "Then why were you pretending to faint? Since your family has reached this point, it’s better to settle everything clearly so no one has to delay each other anymore."
Elder Cao glared at her. "Ninth Princess, it’s better to teach soone to beat their child than to split their marriage. Don’t you understand that?"
"Lord Cao, don’t forget, it was I who urged the Emperor to enact the divorce law," Nanli said with a smile. "Moreover, Madam Li has your contract. Once she takes it to court, she’s sure to win. If you’re so concerned about your reputation, why not agree to it here? That way, you can at least save so face, and others won’t laugh at you too much."
Elder Cao felt a wave of panic.
He turned, looking pitifully at Madam Li and their son.
"Li, we’ve been married for more than twenty years. We’re an old couple. If we get divorced, people will mock us to death. I can take a step back this ti. I won’t donate the money anymore; I’ll use it all for our son’s wedding."
This was his first ti conceding.
With Madam Li’s temperant, he thought she would be moved to tears.
But instead, her expression remained cold, and there was even a trace of disgust in her eyes.
"Lord Cao, unlike you, I’m not afraid of being mocked at all. I’m determined to divorce today. We can no longer be husband and wife!"
All these years, she had been mocked countless tis. She was a titled lady, yet her life was worse than that of an ordinary woman.
She was full of scars, too broken to be repaired.
In the past, she had been foolish, willing to preserve his dignity at the cost of her own life. She had never even considered divorce.
Cao Bin, seeing his mother’s firm resolve, breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Elder Cao finally began to feel fear. His lips quivered, "Wife..."
Madam Li turned away. "Bin’er, let’s go to the authorities."
Cao Bin nodded.
"Wait! Wait!" Elder Cao suddenly shouted. After a mont of hesitation, he made up his mind, "Fine, divorce it is. The child can even take your surna. But I have one condition: if anyone asks, you must say it was your idea to divorce, not mine."
He didn’t want anyone to think it was his fault, and he definitely didn’t want his past humility to be brought up.
Madam Li curled her lips in a sarcastic smile. "Fine, I’ll agree to that. But in exchange, I’m only leaving you one hundred taels of silver out of the fifteen hundred."
Not a penny more.
Elder Cao was dissatisfied, but afraid that Madam Li would rip the last shred of their relationship apart, leaving him no dignity at all, so he grudgingly accepted.
Most of the property and land belonged to Madam Li’s dowry, so there was no need to divide it.
In front of the three witnesses, Elder Cao and Madam Li wrote their divorce agreent.
From then on, they were free to live their lives as they wished, without any connection to each other.
The mother and son, having been suppressed for so long, were still weak from the poison, but they insisted on packing their things and leaving.
After all, the house was a gift from the Emperor to Elder Cao. They couldn’t stay and didn’t want to.
But they were too weak, and with only one old maid and a young servant girl in the house, there was no way they could pack up everything on their own.
They had to rush off to stay at an inn for now.
Seeing this, Chu Shuo imdiately said, "Beihan, your Marquis Zhenbei estate is close by. Go get so people to help pack up. Later, take them to the house in Wutong Alley in the southern part of the city. I’ll go ahead and arrange for it to be cleaned and prepared."
Xie Beihan readily agreed, "Got it, leave it to ."
The two brothers had long worked seamlessly together.
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