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

Ending a pregnancy was no simple matter.

One wrong move, and her life could be in danger.

Mei Wanying had been through enough recently, and her health was already fragile.

At a time like this, neither ending the pregnancy nor carrying it to term would be easy for her.

The doctor advised, "This is not a good time to end the pregnancy. There’s a risk of severe bleeding. Even if it is successful, it will affect your future fertility. You may never be able to conceive again. You and Madam should reconsider."

By the time she recovered her strength, the fetus would be larger, which would also make it unsuitable for termination.

But if they didn’t end the pregnancy soon and word got out, the young lady’s reputation would be utterly ruined.

Gossip could be deadly!

The doctor was one of the Mei family’s Household Doctors and knew to keep his masters’ secrets.

In the inner courtyards of noble houses, such things were not unheard of.

Still, he couldn’t help but wonder, ’Who exactly is the child’s father?’

For the past few years, the madam and the young miss had lived in seclusion. The only male visitor to the residence had been Prince Chen.

’His Highness probably wouldn’t do something like that. If he wanted her, he would have married her long ago.’

’Could it be the Crown Prince?’

’After all, before leaving the capital, the young miss was taken to the Royal Villa. Ostensibly, it was to attend to the ailing Empress Dowager, but it was easy to guess who she truly met.’

Whether it was the Crown Prince or Prince Chen, whoever the father was, it was not a matter for others to discuss.

The only thing they could do was to take good care of the young miss and ensure no harm came to her.

Mei Wanying clutched her stomach, her gaze hollow and unfocused.

Mrs. Mei asked the doctor to leave them.

She squeezed Mei Wanying’s hand. "Your life... Mother has ruined it..."

She had been foolish, using shameful methods and leading her daughter down a dead-end path.

Now, not only had her daughter failed to marry into the Prince Chen Mansion, but she had lost her purity and was pregnant with Pei Yan’s child.

How was Ah Yin supposed to go on?

’If the General knows of this in the afterlife, he must be furious with me. In a few years, how will I ever face him?’

They could find ways to solve other problems, but this one left Mrs. Mei at a complete loss.

She didn’t know what the best course of action was.

She only knew one thing: if anything happened to her daughter, she wouldn’t be able to go on living either. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

Across two lifetimes, Mei Wanying had shed countless tears for Pei Yan.

She thought she had finally seen a glimmer of hope and would no longer be troubled by him, but now she was carrying his child.

And she couldn’t even blame Pei Yan.

Because for that incident, it was the Mei family who had schemed against him.

He was a victim, too.

Mei Wanying’s breathing was heavy, and she gasped for air.

She couldn’t blame anyone. With no outlet, her emotions rampaged within her.

All sorts of thoughts flooded her mind, all of them steeped in despair.

’It was my fault. I never should have fallen in love with Pei Yan.’

’Worse, knowing he was drunk, I shouldn’t have given in to his demands.’

’Subconsciously, didn’t I just go with the flow, hoping it would force Pei Yan to take responsibility for me?’

Their beginning was a mistake, and that bowl of abortion soup meant to end it was perhaps just compounding the error.

’I was too confident in myself, too eager to smooth things over, wanting to solve it all on my own.’

’I can’t blame anyone else, so I can only blame myself.’

’I was the one who went after Pei Yan in the first place.’

’I was so wrong!’

Mei Wanying sobbed, suddenly striking her own stomach. "Why? Why did it have to come!"

Not being born in her last life was a stroke of luck for it, in a way.

Why did it have to come in this life too?

Can’t it just disappear?

Mei Wanying’s teeth chattered. ’It really is Pei Yan’s flesh and blood. The two of them are just alike—they can’t stand to see me happy!’

The more she thought, the more heartbroken she became, and her sobs wouldn’t stop.

She struck her stomach again.

The doctor had said her constitution was weak, and now that she was pregnant, she needed to be even more careful.

How could she hit her stomach like that?

Someone could die!

Pushing aside her sorrow and self-blame, Mrs. Mei grabbed her daughter’s wrist and held her close. "We’ll find a way to solve this. Don’t hurt yourself."

Mei Wanying’s tears were unstoppable.

"How can we solve it?"

Must I choose between my health and the possibility of ever having children again?

She was just an ordinary person of flesh and blood; she couldn’t be so detached as to not care about these things.

She had no intention of marrying, but that didn’t mean she could calmly accept the consequence of never being able to have children again.

Whether to marry or have children—the choice should be hers.

It shouldn’t be taken from her.

Mei Wanying looked helpless, nestling in her mother’s arms. This was the only person she could rely on now.

Mrs. Mei gently patted her back, staring blankly out the window. After a long while, she said, "The scenery here is beautiful, and the people are simple. We’ll stay for a while. Once you’ve recovered your strength, we can return to our ancestral home."

Mei Wanying closed her eyes in despair.

’In my current state, how can I return to our ancestral home without resolving this matter completely?’

’We have relatives there. A child in my belly can’t be hidden.’

’Even if I get rid of it... I’ll still need time to recover.’

’Otherwise, anyone with experience would know what happened with just one look.’

She had done wrong, lost her purity before marriage, and now she was facing the consequences.

She would bear all the consequences herself; she absolutely could not let the Mei family be shamed because of her.

Otherwise, her father’s lifelong reputation would be ruined at her hands.

Here, in this unfamiliar place, no one knew them or her background. It had, paradoxically, become her temporary sanctuary.

Mei Wanying’s voice was weak. "Don’t let Pei Yan’s men come here again."

The day she chose to leave, it was because she didn’t want to use her lost purity to blackmail Pei Yan into taking responsibility for her.

It was the same now. She wouldn’t maintain a lingering connection with Pei Yan just because of the child.

She wanted to make a clean break from Pei Yan, and she would not easily change her mind.

Mrs. Mei had considered contacting Pei Yan.

’He’s the child’s father. He should be told about something this major.’

’Most importantly, he could summon the most skilled Imperial Physicians to help Ah Yin recover her health.’

But her daughter’s attitude made it clear that even with a child, she wanted no more involvement with Pei Yan.

She was dead set on a clean break.

She wouldn’t compromise for the child’s sake.

Having learned her lesson from the past, how could Mrs. Mei dare to act on her own again?

If she didn’t listen to Ah Yin this time, she would sooner or later drive her daughter to her death.

Mrs. Mei’s eyes were red-rimmed. She soothed her, "Mother will have someone arrange for a new residence and post more guards at the gate. Unless you give the word, no one will dare let them in."

Mei Wanying was pregnant. The matter had to be kept from outsiders, but it couldn’t—and shouldn’t—be hidden from her personal attendants.

Otherwise, if an emergency occurred, they wouldn’t know how to react.

Aside from those she trusted, everyone else was to be assigned to the outer courtyard to prevent them from prying into Mei Wanying’s situation.

When she learned that her young miss was pregnant, Ding Xiang was so shocked her mouth fell open.

The young miss was still an unmarried maiden, not yet betrothed, let alone married. How could she be with child?

Every time they went out, she was always right behind the young miss.

’Could it be... the Crown Prince’s?’

At this thought, Ding Xiang’s face flushed with anger. ’What kind of man is he!’

’The young miss said she didn’t like him and didn’t want to marry him, yet he still plotted to abduct her and take her to the villa.’

’Now the young miss’s purity is gone, and there’s this trouble in her belly.’

’That damn man, on the other hand, is completely unaffected.’

’Even if word gets out, for him, it will just be another romantic affair.’

’But the young miss’s reputation will be ruined.’

Tears streamed down Ding Xiang’s face. She squeezed Mei Wanying’s hand. "Miss, don’t be afraid. We’re all here with you."