Thirty-Six Stratagems for Divorcing a Wife (GL) - Chapter 33

The journey was bumpy, and Lu Jianzhou was quite bored. She asked her mother, who was in the same carriage: “Mother, I’ve heard that Chuzhou is in the western Xiang region, where transportation is inconvenient, and the surrounding area is full of mountains, ravines, and bandits. What if we run into bad people?”

Although both she and her mother were capable, this was someone else’s territory. Charging in blindly could be dangerous, even if they could theoretically rely on their strength to prevail.

“Bad people?” Lu’s mother, Madam Lu, was unfazed. “There’s no such thing as good or bad people in this world. Some are well-educated in the classics, yet learn only to bribe and harm others. Some wander the world with a sword, yet are more compassionate and charitable than anyone else.”

The carriage stopped in front of Chuzhou’s government office, where the local magistrate’s office stretched along a ten-li-long street.

“I didn’t expect the General’s reputation to have spread so far… even in such a remote place, people know of you,” Lu Jianzhou said, feeling unexpectedly popular.

Madam Lu, however, said, “Don’t flatter yourself. These commoners are just forced to show respect.”

The magistrate timidly came out to greet them. When Madam Lu entered, she asked, “A few days ago, did you detain a group of criminals from Zhiming Mountain?”

“Your ladyship, those rebels were specially instructed by the General to be detained, so I transferred them from the Zhiming County branch to hold them here,” the magistrate replied. “Do you wish to conduct the trial yourself?”

“They’re just rabble. Nothing useful will come of questioning them. Where’s the prison? I want to see it myself,” Madam Lu said, pulling the curious Lu Jianzhou along. “Stop gawking, come with me.”

The so-called “most dangerous place is the safest place.”

Lu Jianzhou never expected that her mother’s way of protecting her son was to let him mingle with a group of bandits. That her brother would get arrested was even more unforeseen.

“Brother!!!” After the onlookers left, Lu Jianzhou looked at Lu Jianyi, sitting among prisoners in tattered homespun clothes and a scraggly beard, and could hardly believe her eyes. “You’ve suffered!!”

Seeing Lu Jianzhou, Lu Jianyi almost cried out all the hardships of the past years…

He had only joined the army, after all!

He was just a scholar!

He had spent three long years passing the time by writing poetry with Lu Jianzhou, finally enduring until victory appeared, only for her to leave him in the camp!

Then the tents caught fire the very night she left!

Luckily, no one died. He should have been safe!

A group of people arrived, claiming they were sent by their parents to protect him!

And so the scholar Lu Jianyi had to live in hiding with these bandits, in a life that was neither human nor beastly.

His calligraphy and paintings were destroyed. The chief said men should carry guns, not spend their days in poetry and romance.

The food was irregular; the second-in-command said the stolen money went to help the poor.

Most importantly, they didn’t appreciate art!

They insisted a man must have muscles to roam the world.

Who the hell wanted to roam the world with you guys?!

“Sister, I miss you! Brother wants to go home!!”

After hearing Lu Jianyi’s tearful rant, Lu Jianzhou felt guilty.

Her brother suffered while she ate well and even stole the heart of the woman he liked…

“Jianzhou, how have you been? Have you been looking for me? Mother, why suddenly do you not recognize your child? I’ve been so confused all these years!” Lu Jianyi asked, still partially in the dark, and Madam Lu began to explain everything.

“What? You married Nian Yanshi for me?” Lu Jianyi skipped the rest, focusing only on this.

Seeing the light in his eyes, Lu Jianzhou realized he hadn’t forgotten Nian Yanshi and felt a pang of guilt. “Yes…”

“You really are my good sister! You did all this for me!” Lu Jianyi rejoiced, almost hugging and kissing her.

Lu Jianzhou stepped aside. “Step back, you’re filthy!”

Madam Lu opened the prison door and, seeing how dirty Lu Jianyi was, displayed a hint of disdain. “I’ve had hot water prepared in the interrogation room. Go take a bath and come back.”

A mother despising her child for being dirty…

Lu Jianzhou thought her brother a failure.

“Mother, I’m done! Can I go back now?” Lu Jianyi asked eagerly after shaving his beard. If Lu Jianzhou was right, he had gained a promotion, a better salary, and married the most beautiful woman in the realm. He had endured hardship and now could return home.

Madam Lu scrutinized him. “You’ve darkened a lot.”

Lu Jianyi’s complexion had lost its childhood fairness, becoming more bronze: “Every day under the sun, training, fighting, running… of course I’m darker. I’ve also got many scratches!”

Lu Jianzhou rolled up her sleeve, showing a few scars.

“It’s no big deal. Your father still has matters in the court. He’ll arrive in about half a month. I said you were just having fun. By the way, has your martial arts improved?” Madam Lu asked.

“Not as skilled as you, sister, but not weak either!” Lu Jianyi said proudly, about to demonstrate. Madam Lu, however, dismissed him.

Lu Jianzhou intended to follow, but Madam Lu called her back: “Jianzhou, you no longer need to pretend to be your brother.”

“Huh?” She had only come to see her brother. What did this mean?

“When your father arrives in half a month, you’ll resume your identity as Lu Jianzhou and meet him. Then, follow my friend to Zhigeng Valley and wait. Once matters in the capital are resolved, we will come for you,” Madam Lu said firmly.

“What about my brother?” Lu Jianzhou seemed to anticipate her answer.

“Of course, he will resume his identity as Lu Jianyi and return to the capital with us,” Madam Lu said slowly.

Lu Jianzhou forced a smile. “Also… I’ve taken so much from him, it’s only fair to return it.”

“That’s not entirely true. All the reputation, status, and position he gained were because you pretended to be him. Strictly speaking, you earned it. Once he returns, I’ll explain everything so he can let go of the past. Then our family can reunite. All the rest is just fleeting vanity,” Madam Lu said, observing Lu Jianzhou’s expression carefully. “You gained all this for your brother, and I thank you. But Nian Yanshi is the woman he loves, yet your heart was taken. Perhaps this is fate. You are siblings; no one owes anyone anything.”

“What will happen to Nian Yanshi…” Lu Jianzhou’s mind rang with confusion. “Will she be with my brother?”

“No… not with you. Don’t you understand?” Madam Lu turned to her, eyes pained. “Do you know why I did this? I saw you falling in love with Nian Yanshi and couldn’t let go, so I had to take this extreme measure!”

“Why is it a crime if I love Yanshi?” Lu Jianzhou smiled bitterly. “We haven’t killed anyone, nor harmed others, yet we are condemned—just because we are girls?”

“You can love whoever you want, just not Nian Yanshi! She’s a disaster. She will kill you!” Madam Lu held Lu Jianzhou tightly, lamenting. “It’s my fault for not protecting you. Only recently did I learn that seven years ago, you almost died because of her. As a parent, I cannot bear to see my child suffer.”

“Almost died?” Lu Jianzhou finally got an answer to a long-hidden secret. “When I fell from the tree at age ten, it wasn’t so simple?”

“After you returned from the palace, I found it strange how quickly Nian Yanshi found that place,” Madam Lu said angrily. “I kept a close watch. The old woman tried to assassinate you that night, didn’t she? I later investigated and found she was the personal maid of Nian Yanshi’s mother, Li Xiuyan.”

“She… said it was to save Yanshi… said I would harm her…” Lu Jianzhou recalled that night, sensing something was wrong.

Madam Lu fumed. “It was their own fault! Back then, my childhood friend and I were close. Nian Yanshi’s mother, Li Xiuyan, was jealous and suspicious. I couldn’t explain, so she forced me to take the Duanxiang Herb to prove my innocence. Luckily, my friend arrived in time, intending to remove the internal bl00d stasis. But Li Xiuyan killed herself as a sacrifice, forcing her method to combine with the medicine. Only through a spell could the poison be removed. That spell transferred the curse to our descendants—you became the conduit for the medicine. It was largely diluted by my skill, so you were mostly unharmed. But the other half went to Nian Yanshi when she was just a month old.”

“The Duanxiang Herb… what’s its secret?” Lu Jianzhou had never believed in such things, but now she had no choice.

“The name says it all; it’s not good. Li Xiuyan, knowing her daughter would inherit her curse, regretted it. Duanxiang Herb is a rare poison from the west. Those who plant it suffer, but if there is love, the other must die in sacrifice to break it. I never expected fate would play out like this. You, mischievous as a child, went searching for Yanshi on the walls of the Yao King’s mansion. That was unforeseen. So that old woman tricked you into a ritual to protect Yanshi. You didn’t die, only lost your memory. I didn’t know the antidote was dangerous. We searched for three days and were finally saved by my adopted daughter, Lu Shiqi. You were near death. Had we been later, the wolves of the mountains would have torn you apart. To spare you trauma, we lied about the fall from the tree.”

Hearing this, Lu Jianzhou’s head ached. The events seemed real: “So what should I do now…”

“There is an assassin who has been with you since childhood, Lu Shiqi. She witnessed everything. When I summon her, you will see how badly Yanshi harmed you, sever all ties, and no longer suffer from the Duanxiang Herb,” Madam Lu said with a sigh. “You two… are destined to be a tragic pair.”

Lu Jianzhou remembered the red robe incident. Yanshi’s curse had been removed when she was ten, yet it recurred after their marriage. Could it be that ‘breaking attachment’ truly meant severing desires to cure the poison?

“She will kill you!”

A hoarse, elderly voice pierced Lu Jianzhou’s wavering mind.