Eyes Charming

Chapter 32

She stormed out the door, heartbroken and devastated.

In just one night, he became a stranger. Was that him, her gentle and kind husband? Was that him, her understanding husband? Was that him, the husband who, just two days ago, tenderly reached out to her and said, "Come, Di, let me kiss you"?

She ran towards the Star-Asking Tower, her face streaked with tears.

"Young Madam!" Someone chased after them from behind.

It's still Xuanji.

Pang Di stopped, calmly wiped away her tears, then turned around proudly and asked her, "What else do you want to do?"

Xuanji stood before her, gazing at her for a long time before finally speaking: "Does the young mistress truly not understand, or is she simply unwilling to face the truth?"

"What?" Pang Di asked, frowning.

Xuanji said calmly, "Why should the young mistress be so concerned? You should know that the young master has a hidden illness and is unable to engage in sexual relations."

"Do I truly not understand, or do I simply not want to face it?" Pang Di repeatedly asked himself this question over the next few days.

Perhaps she had vaguely guessed it long ago, but simply didn't want to think about it. How could it be? He was her perfect husband—how could someone so ambitious, talented, dashing, and understanding have such a flaw?

She was relieved that he didn't "intrude" on their wedding night, believing his gentlemanly conduct was far superior to that of a typical brute. She wasn't surprised that they shared a bed but didn't sleep together; as a gentleman, he would remain so to the end. He was surely waiting for the day she would completely fall for him and decide to give him her heart and soul. But on the night before she left the capital for Hangzhou, she began to feel strange. In those circumstances, could he still be so virtuous? However, she convinced herself that it was because she had shown a slight hint of resistance that he had backed down. She accepted this reason, refusing to delve deeper into the fleeting doubt in her heart. Finally, on that last night, she sensed his helplessness. The feeling was so clear that neither of them could escape it.

He roared and ran out the door, leaving her helpless and facing this awkward situation.

She didn't want to face it. Even now, she still refused to believe that her husband had a problem. It must be just a coincidence; he was still ill, and perhaps things would be different once he recovered…

However, she finally heard the verdict: "The young master has a hidden illness and is completely unable to engage in sexual relations."

She took out the erotic pictures her mother had given her when she got married, and slowly looked at them. She no longer felt shy; only endless sorrow remained in her heart. She was now an adult, able to feel the desires budding deep within her body, and vaguely understood the importance of marital relations. From this, it wasn't hard to guess the devastating blow Wang Pang's constitution had inflicted on him. Wang Pang's current pain was definitely greater than hers, but whenever she thought of this, she felt even more tormented, because knowing he was suffering now felt like a knife cutting into her heart.

She stared indifferently at the erotic pictures.

It turned out that the painting was completely unnecessary for her.

It lay before her like a huge irony. An irony of her marriage.

She suddenly felt a hatred for the painting. Or rather, a hatred for the sexual act and the instinctive desires between men and women that the painting represented.

Is it important? More important than our love? Does it mean we can't live without it? Can't we continue to love each other? It cruelly shattered Wang Pang's confidence, destroyed his self-esteem, and brought him to the brink of mental collapse. Will it destroy our love and our marriage next?

She picked up the scissors and slashed the erotic picture several times, then tore it into strips by hand. After tearing it into many thin strands, when she could tear it no further, she lit it on a candle, and finally threw it into the brazier, watching it until it was completely consumed by the flames.

The next day, Wang Anshi had Pang Di invited to his residence. After hesitating for a long time, he finally stammered out his wish for her to remarry.

She had anticipated his approach. She lowered her head and asked, "Which of the 'seven grounds for divorce' have I committed? Disobedience to my parents? Or adultery, jealousy, having a serious illness, being talkative, or stealing?"

She avoided the "childless" clause, knowing that her father-in-law would never use it as a reason.

Wang Anshi was extremely embarrassed and remained silent for a long time. After a while, he sighed and said, "Adi, we have failed you!"

She looked up and said firmly, "I am very grateful to my father-in-law for proposing to my father and allowing me to marry into the Wang family. I am deeply fortunate to be Wang Pang's wife. I am willing to continue living with him, whether he is healthy or sick, I will stay by his side and take care of him. I will always be his wife, please don't mention letting me marry someone else again."

Horror

Pang Di stayed at the Wenxing Tower for a long time.

Wang Pang fell seriously ill, but after careful care and recuperation by his family, he gradually recovered. However, he and his parents seemed to have forgotten that he and Pang Di were separated, and they never mentioned asking Pang Di to move back. Not only that, he avoided his beloved wife at every turn, refusing to set foot in the Wenxing Tower, and ignoring Pang Di when she came to visit him. Dinner was supposed to be a family meal, and at first the two of them sat down as usual, next to each other, but Wang Pang would remain silent throughout, not saying a word to her. Later, he would often find excuses not to come, eating alone in his bedroom or study. Pang Di, feeling disheartened, often stayed upstairs and refused to come down.

Sometimes, she would not see her husband for days on end, feeling deeply saddened but helpless. She could only lean against the window at night, gazing at the light in his bedroom or study, wondering about his current situation and recalling happy times to find some comfort.

She saw him again at a family banquet on Madam Wang's birthday. This was clearly a gathering for the whole family, and even Wang Yu, the eldest daughter who had married into the family of Wu Chong, the Vice Minister of the Privy Council, had brought her husband Wu Anchi to visit her mother's parents to celebrate her birthday. Wang Pang naturally could not avoid it again.

Pang Di saw him as soon as she entered the hall. He was dressed in a new, well-tailored outfit, his hair was neatly combed, his skin was clean, and his complexion had improved considerably. He was still sitting casually, the only thing missing was the warm smile he used to give her when he saw her.

She silently walked over and sat down next to him. He didn't react unusually, but he didn't turn to look at her or speak to her.

Feeling sorrowful, she lowered her head and sat quietly, not seeking anyone to chat with.

Suddenly someone came over and said to her, "Sister-in-law, it's been a long time since I've seen you. You seem to have lost a lot of weight."

She looked up and saw that it was Wang Yu's husband, Wu Anchi. He was bowing to her with a big smile on his face.

Pang Di then stood up and returned the greeting, saying, "Thank you for your concern, son-in-law." Seeing that he was still smiling very attentively, she smiled politely in return.

"Why does your wife look so worried? Is something troubling you?" Wu Anchi asked again.

Pang Di was surprised. He thought to himself, "How rude of this man to ask my sister-in-law about her private affairs in public!" Seeing his slicked-back hair and frivolous attire, resembling a spoiled brat, he felt disgusted. Just as he was about to coldly retort, he heard Wang Pang calmly say from the side, "Brother-in-law, I heard someone say they saw you at the Mi Xiang Courtyard yesterday..."

The name "Mixiangyuan" was obviously that of a brothel. Upon hearing this, the entire family's questioning gaze fell on Wu Anchi, who panicked and waved his hands frantically, protesting, "No, no! You must have mistaken me! Someone must be slandering me, trying to sow discord..."

He continued his incoherent explanation, riddled with obvious flaws, and Wang Yu, standing beside him, turned pale and looked extremely unwell. Wang Pang said nothing more, only silently drinking a cup of wine. Pang Di, seeing that he had dismissed Wu Anchi with a single sentence and stopped bothering her, couldn't help but feel secretly pleased. However, seeing Wang Yu's distressed appearance, she felt a pang of guilt and sighed inwardly for her. Finally, it was Madam Wang who changed the subject, and only then did everyone seemingly enjoy the reunion dinner in a harmonious atmosphere.

That night, Pang Di tossed and turned, unable to sleep for some reason. He got up, put on his robe, and as usual, opened the door and peered through the railing towards Wang Pang's bedroom. Tonight, no light shone from his bedroom; he must have already gone to bed. Pang Di pondered for a long time, finally sighed, and turned to go back to his room.

Just as she was about to close the door, someone suddenly appeared from the side. As he forced his way in, he said, "Why is my sister-in-law sighing? Please tell me..."

It was Wu Anchi! Pang Di was shocked and tried to push him out, but her frail body and limited strength meant that he was eventually forced through the door.

"What do you want?" Pang Di said angrily.

“Sister-in-law, don’t panic. I just want to talk to you. I heard that you have been neglected by Wang Pang and he is now favoring a maidservant…” He walked closer to Pang Di step by step.

Pang Di stepped back and said sternly, "Get out of here! Otherwise I'll scream!" There was only one bedroom on the fourth floor where she lived, next to a large terrace. The two maids who served her were sleeping downstairs and couldn't hear anything for a while.

Wu Anchi laughed and said, "You can shout. When people come, I'll say that you invited me here, and then you won't be able to explain yourself no matter how hard you try."

He pressed forward step by step, while Pang Di retreated step by step.

He continued, "Wang Pang is truly blind. He doesn't dote on a beauty like you but instead loves that plain-looking girl. Do you know? I fell head over heels for you the first time I saw you. If I had known you were so beautiful, I wouldn't have bothered arranging a marriage between my father and the prime minister's family. I would have definitely married you..."

Pang Di's waist slammed into the desk, leaving her with nowhere to retreat. Wu Anchi had already moved in and grabbed her. She struggled desperately, remembering his words but not daring to cry for help. So, she used one hand to defend herself against his attack and the other to grope around on the desk behind her, trying to find something to hit him with.

Seeing her resistance, Wu Anchi became even more agitated, opening his mouth to kiss her neck wildly, babbling incoherently: "It's such a waste for you to marry that sickly Wang Pang. Judging from his condition, he won't last long. If you submit to me, I'll marry you after he dies. If you don't like Wang Yu, I can divorce him. What do you say? Tonight is such a perfect night..."

Before he could even utter the word "景" (jing), he felt a chill in his abdomen, as if he had been stung by something, and then liquid began to trickle down.

Even in the moonlight, you can tell the liquid is dark in color when you reach out and touch it.

Blood. He abruptly released Pang Di. He noticed she was clutching a small knife in her right hand, the tip of which was also covered in blood. His blood.

"You! You!..." he cried out in terror, pointing at Pang Di.

Pang Di glared at him and snapped, "Get out of here! Do you want to die here?"

Wu Anchi groaned, clutching his abdomen, and fled in panic. He disappeared in a short while.

If she hadn't found the paper-cutting knife on the table, the consequences would have been unimaginable. Pang Di threw the knife away, and tears immediately streamed down her face.

How could such a thing happen? If she and Wang Pang were still as close as before, how could this have happened? Now, her husband, who cared for and loved her all the time, has disappeared, leaving her all alone in this desolate high-rise building, to fend for herself against the advances of unwanted suitors.

Tears streamed down her face, but the pain in her heart showed no sign of lessening. Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer and rushed out the door, leaning against the railing and crying out in anguish, "Pang! Pang! Where are you?"

No one answered. She collapsed to the ground, burying her head in her knees and weeping.

Suddenly she heard a faint sigh. She looked up and around, but saw no one.

She ran to the stairs and looked down, only to see someone coming up. But it was just her maid.

They looked at her anxiously and asked, "Young Madam, what's wrong?"

She wiped away her tears, shook her head, and said, "It's nothing. I had a nightmare."

After this incident, I was still unsettled and lay in bed for a long time before finally drifting off to sleep just before dawn.

The next day, she was awakened by a commotion. She heard dogs barking incessantly outside, followed by screams and then a great commotion. She quickly got up and looked downstairs, only to see maids and servants coming and going, but she couldn't discern anything amiss.

So she sent her maid to inquire.

A moment later, the maid, Green Sleeve, ran up, a smile she couldn't help but chuckle, and told her, "Young Master Wu was bitten by Young Master Pang's dogs! It's strange, those two dogs were originally kept in the backyard and never bite people randomly, but today when Young Master Wu passed by Young Master Pang's room, the dogs ran out from inside..."

After returning home last night, Wu Anchi carefully examined his wound and found that the puncture wasn't deep; it had broken the skin but hadn't damaged any internal organs, so the injury wasn't serious. He breathed a sigh of relief and had someone bandage it. Wang Yu was naturally shocked when he saw it and pressed him for an explanation. He lied and said that he had slipped and fallen in the garden and been cut by a shard of broken porcelain.

The next day, after getting up and washing up, he prepared to go home. He first went to say goodbye to his parents-in-law. Unexpectedly, when he passed by Wang Pang's house, two large black dogs rushed out and pounced on him.

In a panic, Wu Anchi covered his head and ran frantically through the courtyard. When he reached a wall with nowhere else to go, the black dog barked and charged at him menacingly. In desperation, Wu Anchi spotted a dog hole in the corner of the wall. He didn't care about the filth or his dignity as the son of the Deputy Privy Councilor. He lowered his head, knelt down, and crawled straight into the hole.

But it was too late. The two dogs had already attacked from both sides. Seeing that his legs were still sticking out, they opened their mouths and each took a bite without hesitation.

Wu Anchi screamed repeatedly, his cries shaking the heavens.

Wang Pang stood by the window with his hands behind his back, looking on indifferently, as if it were none of his business.

The moment Wu Anchi was bitten by the dog, a faint, cold smile flickered across his lips.

His sister, Wang Yu, rushed over upon hearing the commotion. Seeing the situation, she was greatly alarmed and hurriedly called to the servants nearby, ordering them to rescue her son-in-law. The servants agreed, but dared not move, only looking at Wang Pang, seeking his opinion with their eyes.

So Wang Yu rushed into the room, grabbed Wang Pang, and cried, "Brother! Please tell them to save An Chi! Someone's going to die!"

Wang Pang glanced at his sister, then waved his sleeve, signaling to the servants to go and rescue the person. He then slowly sat down and picked up a book to read.

After listening to Green Sleeve's account, Pang Di initially felt delighted, but then thought that this was no accident. Wang Pang would not release his dog to bite people for no reason. Could it be that he knew about what happened last night and was therefore seeking revenge?

He still cared about her after all; knowing she was being bullied, he immediately punished the person. Thinking of this, Pang Di smiled for the first time in many days.

However, upon further reflection, it became clear that Wang Pang's actions were highly inappropriate. Wu Anchi's father, Wu Chong, the Vice Privy Councilor, was a learned man with a good reputation as an official. During the reforms, he neither supported nor opposed Wang Anshi, with whom he had a marriage alliance, maintaining a neutral stance. Emperor Zhao Xu had even considered appointing him as a Vice Chancellor to govern alongside Wang Anshi, but later abandoned the idea due to their familial ties and the potential for factionalism, instead promoting him only to Vice Privy Councilor. Later, Zeng Bu, recognizing the outstanding achievements of Cai Ting, the military officer garrisoning Weizhou, particularly in managing finances and strengthening the army, strongly recommended him to Wang Anshi. Wang Anshi, also admiring Cai Ting's talent, recommended him to the emperor for Vice Privy Councilor. The problem was that, like the Privy Councilor, there was generally only one Vice Privy Councilor. If Cai Ting were promoted to this position, wouldn't it mean that Wang Anshi's relative by marriage, Wu Chong, would have to leave the Privy Council? Wang Anshi seemed not to have thought of this, but Zhao Xu did. In the end, he promoted Cai Ting and did not remove Wu Chong, which was equivalent to creating an additional Deputy Privy Councilor.

As a result, although Wu Chong was not demoted, he harbored great resentment towards Wang Anshi. Wen Yanbo, the Privy Councilor who had always opposed Wang Anshi, was also related to Wu Chong by marriage; his son had married Wu Chong's daughter. Seeing Wu Chong's resentment towards Wang Anshi, Wen Yanbo seized the opportunity to win him over, and Wu Chong's stance gradually began to lean towards the old party.

In this situation, Wang Pang's actions against Wu Anchi were undoubtedly adding fuel to the fire. Such revenge was certainly satisfying, but it would likely increase Wu Chong's resentment towards Wang Anshi and his son, and Wang Anshi would have one more political adversary in the future.

Moreover, Wang Pang's younger sister, Wang Yu, would be living in the Wu family. Pang Di had vaguely heard before that Wu Anchi and Wang Yu's relationship was not very harmonious, and the two often quarreled because of their fathers' differing political views. Now it seems that this son-in-law's character is questionable. Coupled with Wang Pang's matter, Wu Anchi will probably take his anger out on Wang Yu and often give her a hard time.

So Pang Di immediately got up and went downstairs to see how things were going.

Wang Pang was in the hall listening to his parents' scolding. Wu Anchi dared not stay any longer and hurriedly got into a sedan chair with Wang Yu, howling as they went.

Wang Anshi was furious and repeatedly scolded Wang Pang for his willful and unreasonable behavior, demanding to know if he had deliberately let the dog out. Madam Wang, meanwhile, frequently wiped away tears with her sleeve, saying, "Last night, Yu'er cried to me all night, saying that her husband often scolds her. How can Yu'er live in the Wu family like this…"

Wang Pang coldly uttered three words: "He deserves to die."

Wang Anshi was about to scold her again when he saw Pang Di walk in. Remembering her and his son, his heart softened and he stopped talking. He helped his wife up and they left together.

Pang Di had originally intended to tell Wang Pang that what he had done had gone too far, but seeing that he had already been scolded by his parents, she couldn't bear to say anything more. Knowing that he had acted recklessly out of love for her, she was still very touched. So she walked to his side and whispered, "Thank you."

Wang Pang stared at her, his gaze softening for a moment, but it vanished just as quickly. He rebuked her in a cold, hard tone, "What were you smiling at him for at the banquet last night!"

Pang Di was taken aback. He hadn't expected that he would be so bothered by a polite smile.

Not knowing how to answer, she simply lowered her eyelashes and dimmed her eyes.

He ignored her and turned away.