A Marriage in Name Only? My Stepbrother Won't Let Me Go

Mei Wanying was dizzy, nauseous, and her whole body ached terribly.

She was still preoccupied with throwing Pei Yan’s things out, wanting them to never appear before her again.

"Throw them out..."

Seeing her strong reaction, Ding Xiang shrieked at the men, driving them away.

"Get your things and leave, now! Don’t come back and offend our young miss’s eyes!"

"If anything happens to our miss, all of your heads won’t be enough to pay for it!"

’These people are so unobservant. The miss already despises them, yet they don’t have the sense to take their things and scram.’

’Just like their master—so detestable!’

Ding Xiang supported Mei Wanying, her expression grim. "Hurry up and leave! If you anger our miss into falling ill, you won’t be able to afford the consequences!"

The purpose of the gifts was to make Mei Wanying happy.

Now that they had nearly made her faint from anger, how could Pei Yan’s men dare to insist?

Miss Mei’s relationship with His Highness was unusual. Based solely on the debt he owed General Mei for saving his life and mentoring him, Prince Chen would never allow any harm to come to her.

If they really caused her to fall ill from anger, they would be in for a miserable fate.

They would definitely be punished severely!

No matter how thick-skinned they were, they didn’t dare to be an eyesore to Mei Wanying at this moment.

They hastily picked up the chests and left.

One even had the good sense to ask, "Should we call a physician for Miss Mei?"

"Get lost! We don’t need your fake kindness!"

The Mei family had plenty of physicians. They had even brought a highly skilled one with them on this trip back to Jiangnan.

’We don’t need these people meddling in our affairs!’

Ding Xiang’s brows knitted in a fierce scowl. If she weren’t busy supporting her miss, she would have grabbed a feather duster to chase them out.

’What kind of people are these?’

’They’re just like that ungrateful wolf.’

’All they do is infuriate people!’

The gift bearers quickly carried the items away, not daring to linger for a single moment.

’This is truly a thankless task. If we don’t deliver the gifts, His Highness will be displeased.’

’But if we force them on her, Miss Mei will be unhappy.’

’Caught in the middle, we’re in a tough spot...’

The chests were filled with treasures. A common person possessing just one of them would have no worries about food or clothing for the rest of their life. Why wouldn’t Miss Mei accept them?

The Mei family didn’t lack such things, but having more was better than having none, wasn’t it?

The group was resting at an inn. Mrs. Mei and Nanny Liu had gone out for a walk and returned to a chaotic scene.

The physician traveling with them was taking Mei Wanying’s pulse.

Seeing this, Mrs. Mei grew anxious.

"What’s happened? Are you unwell?"

Ding Xiang was still fuming. "It was those people from the Prince Chen Mansion! They angered her."

’Whenever that man is involved, our miss never has a peaceful day.’

’Is he some kind of walking disaster?’

Mrs. Mei was puzzled. "We’ve already left the Capital City. How did we get entangled with people from the Prince Chen Mansion again?"

Ding Xiang explained what had happened. "The miss said she didn’t want His Highness’s things, but they insisted on leaving them. Aren’t they just trying to make things difficult for her?"

’His Highness’s coming-of-age gift for our miss, such a meaningful item, was thrown away by her.’

’What’s the use of sending so much gold and jewelry now?’

’Our miss is the sole daughter of the Mei family!’

’The family fortune is enough to keep her in luxury for several lifetimes!’

’She would never be moved by these trifles and force herself to accept gifts from someone she detests.’

’Seeing the gift would make her think of the giver. They must be afraid our miss will forget Prince Chen!’

Mrs. Mei looked perplexed.

’With Ah Yan’s temperament, after a parting like this, he shouldn’t be the one to proactively seek out Ah Yin.’

’If we don’t return to the Capital City, they might never see each other again in this lifetime.’

’Why are things developing so differently from what I expected?’

’First letters, now gifts... What on earth is Ah Yan doing?’

Mrs. Mei couldn’t figure out Pei Yan’s intentions.

’If he cared about Ah Yin, he should have married her back when she had pleaded with him to give Ah Yin shelter.’

’But no matter what she said, he remained unmoved.’

’He even sent over a list of candidates, telling Ah Yin to choose a future husband as soon as possible.’

’The Empress was also applying pressure.’

’She was afraid Ah Yin would cling to Pei Yan and ruin his bright future.’

’She and Ah Yin had played deaf and dumb, dragging things out, and that was the only reason a marriage hadn’t been foolishly arranged.’

’Now, the matters in the Capital City are settled. The dust has cleared, and everyone can start a new life. Why is Ah Yan still holding on?’

A suspicion sprouted in Mrs. Mei’s mind, but she quickly dismissed it as too absurd.

’If the suspicion were true, then what was all that running around in circles for before?’

’Ah Yin was even abducted by the Crown Prince, nearly leading to an irreversible disaster.’

’Now that Ah Yin has given up all hope, hasn’t Pei Yan come to his senses far too late?’

’A heart that has grown cold is very difficult to warm up again.’

Mrs. Mei cursed Pei Yan internally. ’He’s Ah Yin’s nemesis!’

’A true star-crossed enemy!’

"Madam, may I have a word? There is something I wish to discuss with you privately."

The physician’s words interrupted Mrs. Mei’s thoughts.

Seeing his solemn expression, she assumed there was a major problem with her daughter’s health.

Her heart leaped into her throat, hanging there in suspense as anxiety spread through her.

She quickly moved to usher him into the next room.

Mei Wanying frowned. "What is it that I can’t hear?"

’It’s not like I have an incurable disease, is it?’

’Nothing like this happened in my past life.’

’If the enemy hadn’t captured me and used me to force Pei Yan to compromise and cede territory, I wouldn’t have killed myself.’

’If I hadn’t killed myself and had divorced Pei Yan instead, I might have lived to a ripe old age!’

Mei Wanying said, "Say it here."

The physician hesitated, stammering and behaving very differently from his usual self.

He seemed to find it difficult to speak.

Mei Wanying wanted to take her own pulse, but her medical skills were truly poor.

She had only learned a little out of sheer boredom while she was ill.

It couldn’t even be considered scratching the surface.

The prescriptions she knew were just ones she had memorized by rote.

Mrs. Mei saw the physician’s predicament and knew she couldn’t hide this matter from her daughter.

’How could she not know the state of her own body?’

The physician’s reluctance to speak likely meant it was something others shouldn’t know.

She gave Nanny Liu and Ding Xiang a look, and the two immediately exited the room.

They closed the door and stood guard at a distance—not too far, not too close—to prevent any eavesdropping.

Besides the physician, only Mei Wanying and her mother remained in the room.

She asked, "What exactly is wrong with me? You can speak plainly."

The physician said cautiously, "Your pulse is smooth and rolling, like pearls gliding across a plate. This... this is the pulse of an early pregnancy."

BOOM. It was as if a clap of thunder exploded right next to her ear.

Mei Wanying’s body went rigid, too stunned by the news to even react.

She had clearly drunk the abortion soup.

She drank it at the first opportunity!

How could she still be pregnant with that man’s child?

Her body trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes, born from a mix of anxiety, grievance, and an indescribable fear.

She had already taken the medicine.

And she was certain there was nothing wrong with the prescription.

Why did this still happen...?

In her previous life, Mei Wanying had been overjoyed to learn she was pregnant.

She was so happy that she forgot all her unhappiness and even boldly ran off to the Border to find her husband.

But this time, her feelings were the complete opposite. She was not happy.

There was only vexation and fear!

Mei Wanying was disgusted at the thought of carrying Pei Yan’s child.

She was afraid of people pointing fingers, calling her shameless, saying she had lost her virtue and gotten pregnant before marriage.

She wasn’t brave at all; she was afraid of gossip and rumors.

Just thinking about it made it hard for her to breathe.

Tears slid down her cheeks uncontrollably. She just wanted to draw a clear line between herself and Pei Yan. Why was it so difficult?

Wiping the tears from her cheeks forcefully, Mei Wanying’s eyes filled with determination.

"This child, I don’t want it!"