The secret room in the Jinyiwei's imperial prison was built at the very beginning of the prison's construction specifically for the purpose of monitoring and spying on inmates.
Inside this secret room, one could hear conversations from the cells; even the faintest whispers could be heard with absolute clarity.
However, the people in the cells could not hear any sound from the secret room. Even loud noises wouldn't leak out in the slightest. Therefore, Shen Xu spoke with absolute certainty, making no attempt to lower his voice.
Unlike the gloomy, damp, and terrifying cells, the secret room was bright and dry. It was furnished with a desk, tea and pastries, chairs, bookshelves, and a small couch for resting. Except for the lack of windows, it was no different from an ordinary family's study.
Gu Zhao and Shen Xu had arrived a quarter of an hour earlier than Zhu Qingyu. They sat in their respective armchairs like meditating monks, listening to the movements in the cell.
Shen Xu had specially invited Gu Zhao here today to wake his brother up so he could see through Doctor Zhu's true colors. He did not want Gu Zhao to end up like he had back then, foolish, oblivious, and thoroughly deceived.
All these years had passed, but beautiful women still used the same old tricks when deceiving people.
Back when he was imprisoned in the imperial prison, he was exactly like Zhang Jingyan was today.
His fiancée first had someone deliver medicine to him, and then used her connections to visit him in the prison.
Shen Xu and his fiancée's marriage had been arranged by their parents. They had barely met a few times before and did not have any deep feelings for each other.
Therefore, when his family faced disaster, he would not have blamed her even if she had ignored him completely.
But a weak woman like her actually cared about him at that time and even dared to come to the imperial prison. He had been so deeply moved. Thinking that such a good girl should not be held back by him, he had written a letter to break off the engagement before she even arrived.
His fiancée arrived as promised and brought him food. After a few brief pleasantries, however, she burst into tears on the spot, begging him to break off the engagement.
She cried and pleaded:
Please, give me a way out to survive, won't you?
Only then did Shen Xu realize that all her previous kindness had an ulterior motive. She had gone through all that trouble to visit him in prison just for the letter breaking off the engagement.
Even so, Shen Xu did not blame her at the time. Seeking survival and self-preservation was human instinct; there was no need to be harsh.
If that had been the end of it, let it be. If only that had been the end of it.
He had already given her a way to survive, so why did she have to be so ruthless? Not only did she poison the medicine she sent, but she also turned around and married the enemy who had slaughtered the Shen family.
After treating him like this, when she later died at his hands, she remained unrepentant. Right before her death, she even dared to cry and beg him to let her go:
I really had no choice back then. I had my difficulties.
History is always shockingly similar. Over these years in the Jinyiwei, when disaster struck, Shen Xu had seen too many betrayals by loved ones and the sheer ugliness of human nature.
Every time he encountered it, he would once again feel indignant for his foolish and naive past self.
And with every new encounter, Shen Xu grew a little more disappointed in humanity.
He used to be a person who loved a lively atmosphere. He did not want to be a loner; he also wanted a wife and children, and to give himself a bustling, lively home like he once had. But as the days and months accumulated, looking around the capital today with all its noble ladies, he dared not trust a single one, nor dared he marry any. He could only live his life all alone.
With the glaring evidence right in front of them, Gu Zhao sat to the side and sighed:
Chongshu, you do not understand her. I actually hope she came for the divorce papers.
What did that mean? What did Gu Zhao mean by these words?
Although Shen Xu was certain that Zhu Qingyu had come for the divorce papers, Gu Zhao's confident words still made him harbor some unrealistic expectations. Perhaps, this time, it would be different.
The result disappointed Shen Xu. From the prison cell came Doctor Zhu's calm voice:
"Alright."
Shen Xu looked at Gu Zhao, his face full of mockery:
"I don't understand her? Hah, you're the one who was fooled by her."
Before he could finish his sentence, Doctor Zhu's voice suddenly rose an octave, and she began to scold him like a rapid-fire barrage:
"You're quite capable now, Master Zhang! Not only did you dare to write a fake ledger behind my back, but you also want to divorce me! I traveled thousands of miles to get here; do you think I have nothing better to do than to come here just to divorce you?! If you're so capable, then get yourself out of the imperial prison! If you can get out of this prison, I'll divorce you eight hundred times a day, how about that?! Are you, Master Zhang, the reincarnation of a candle spirit? Burning yourself all day long to light up others, thinking you're so amazing? Are you sick in the head?!"
After spending so much effort and finally managing to see him, his first words were actually asking for a divorce.
What? Once the divorce was finalized and he had no more worries, was he just going to go off and die?!
Zhu Qingyu was truly infuriated to death by Zhang Shen. The more she scolded, the more energized she became, and the louder her voice grew, completely unable to stop.
The secret room was essentially designed as an acoustic amplifier; even whispers could be heard crystal clear, let alone Doctor Zhu's furious, escalating shouts.
Such a dense barrage of scolding fell into the ears of the two men in the secret room like a sudden clap of thunder. It crashed into their ears, making their hearts tremble in fear and causing the teacups on the tea table to buzz and rattle.
During this, Zhang Shen weakly tried to defend himself:
"Qingyu, I..."
Zhu Qingyu gave him no chance at all, roaring:
"Shut up! Lie down!"
Whether Zhang Shen lay down or not, Shen Xu didn't know. That furious voice crashed into his ears, nearly knocking him flat, and the teacup in his hand almost flew out.
Shen Xu looked at Gu Zhao in horror. Why was this young woman so fierce?! What was going on!
Gu Zhao, however, remained calm and said again:
"I told you, you don't understand her."
Just like him, he had never had the fortune to see her like this.
In front of him, she had always feigned obedience and fake gentleness. Even when forced by him and compelled to be intimate with him, she was cool, calm, and quiet, as if everything was trivial to her, as if no matter what happened, it didn't matter to her.
She had never been as honest and passionate toward him as she was today toward Zhang Jingyan. Hidden within that intense anger was her fierce protectiveness and deep love for another man.
That other man was her rightful husband.
Gu Zhao had to admit that her true heart and love were things he had never possessed.
Suddenly, he felt a twinge of regret; he really shouldn't have come today.
If he hadn't come, he could still be satisfied with the false affection she offered, fantasizing about spending a long life with her, and drowning in the self-deception that the fake could eventually become real.
But now, having seen with his own eyes the genuine heart she poured out for another man, how could he be content with just possessing her superficial perfunctoriness?
She had said, "If I were of equal social standing with you, how could I not be moved?"
He had been completely dizzy from just one sentence of hers, racking his brains these past few days, just to give her an equal social standing.
He had always thought that striving to match her social standing was for her sake. But now, he had to admit that it was far less for her, and much more for himself. Between the two of them, he was the one who needed a legitimate status much more than she did, just so he could openly and rightfully win her heart.
