Fang Chuning was utterly shocked. How had his parents’ marital discord escalated to the point of divorce? Naturally, they wouldn’t argue in front of their children. After dropping the word ’divorce,’ Mrs. Fang took Fang Chuning away. Fang Chuning looked back to see his father standing motionless, his tall figure exuding a sense of loneliness.

Are they really going to divorce?

Family clans value reputation above all. Even in the most strained of marital relationships, the wife manages the home while the husband works outside; they do not interfere with each other. As long as the children are united and committed, it usually doesn’t escalate to divorce and public derision. The most notable divorce scandal in the clans involved Zhang Boxin’s parents a few years ago. Although they divorced, they nearly got expelled from the clan. Grandmaster Zhang, being so concerned with reputation, would never have allowed such a thing to occur. Divorce could affect the children’s future prospects, so it is not a step taken lightly.

Since Fang Chuning went to the Ningzhou Battlefield, he only returned to the Capital City during festivals or holidays. His mother and Junjun relied on each other at home. His father, stationed in Jiangnan, actually returned to the Capital City quite frequently, almost every three months. Unless there was unrest at the Sannan Border, the Grand Marshal would return to the Capital City to accompany his wife and daughter. In contrast, Fang Chuning was tied up with the Beiman conflicts for several years during year-end holidays, and could only send New Year’s gifts through others. Fang Chuning knew that his mother had deep feelings for his father. During the Yuwen Dynasty, his mother, the great princess, found it unrealistic to join his father, a regional military general, in Jiangnan. She had to stay in the Capital City, leading to their separation. As the Beining Dynasty arose, his mother shed her princess title and finally gained her freedom.

If during the Yuwen Dynasty she had been allowed to go to Jiangnan, she might not have disagreed. Why has it come to divorce now? 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"Mother, if my issue is the reason you and father want a divorce..."

"Tunan, it has nothing to do with you." Fang Chuning interrupted her words with a bitter smile, "Mother made this decision because my fate with your father is over."

Fang Chuning couldn’t reveal that he had regained his memories and was somewhat anxious. Mrs. Fang seemed to understand him, bringing him inside the courtyard to sit and rest.

A row of peach trees was planted in the main courtyard, laden with peaches in autumn. The peaches were about to ripen, but her hopes were dashed. These peach blossoms were planted the year she got married. Year after year, as the flowers bloomed and withered, she stood under the peach trees, hoping for her husband’s return from Jiangnan. Yet, many times, she only received letters, her hopes unfulfilled. She had been trapped in the Capital City for years because of her princess status and had suffered cold remarks and ridicule for years due to the death of Miss Li, the eldest daughter of the Li Family. She thought that, after so many years, the Li Family wouldn’t dare to mock her. It turned out that it was her husband who had given them the courage.

Mrs. Fang also worried that Fang Chuning might blame himself, so she uncovered old wounds, "Tunan, my marriage with your father has never been perfect. Your father was born into the Fang Family, destined never to have the freedom to choose his wife. All knew that once I came of age, I would be betrothed to him. But he never liked me; he preferred the gentle demeanor of Miss Li from the Li Family. He knew he didn’t have the right to choose, so after refusing the marriage, he apologized to me, hoping I would grant his wish with Miss Li. Although I was upset about not marrying my ideal partner, being the great princess, favored for many years, I could still select a suitable husband. When I suggested choosing another spouse to my father and mother, they agreed. I told your father not to worry about the marriage; I wouldn’t marry him, and my parents agreed as well. But neither of us anticipated the royal family’s determination to fulfill this marriage. At a palace banquet, both your father and I made a faux pas under the influence of alcohol, sealing the marriage deal."

When Mrs. Fang talked about it, she still felt deeply humiliated but was reluctant to be straightforward to Fang Chuning. She merely mentioned making a faux pas while drunk. Even though she had admired the Grand Marshal back then, it became a lifelong shadow for her, and she never could forgive the Empress and her father, who adored her. Being a daughter of the Yuwen Royal Family, loved by the Empress who raised her like her own, and having a close sibling bond with the Crown Prince, she never expected them to deal her such a fatal blow in this matter. Mrs. Fang did not know whom to blame, for even if she were their biological daughter, they might still have done the same; it wasn’t that they didn’t love her, but their love could not withstand the crushing weight of imperial authority.

With the Yuwen Royal Family’s shaky position, after Marquis Zhenbei married the legitimate daughter of the Lin Family, it was impossible for the legitimate heir of the Fang Family to marry a girl from the Li Family. Anyone with eyes could see that the Fang Family could only marry a princess.

"On the day we got married, Miss Li hanged herself at home, and your father abandoned me on our wedding night, making me a laughingstock. As a pampered great princess from childhood, proud and lofty, I had never endured such humiliation, and I harbored resentment over our situation. Of course, it could not have ended well. Three days after Miss Li’s death, the eldest and youngest sons of the Li Family came to pick a fight with me, injuring my maid. I couldn’t bear it, ordered a counterattack, and even lodged a court complaint. The Li brothers, defying ranks, were immediately stripped of their titles and received thirty lashes at the palace gates as an example to others. Your father came to apologize and plead for them, but I wouldn’t accept it. To this end, we completely severed ties, came to blows, and I, the domineering and unruly great princess, contrasted had him pity the deceased Miss Li and favor the Li Family. Aligning against me since Miss Li’s death, I was prepared to be at odds with your father. Afterward, he distanced himself from the Capital City, went to Jiangnan, and didn’t even see your birth until two years later, when my father and mother, empathetic towards me, summoned him back to the Capital City."

Mrs. Fang was strong throughout her life. Despite being a topic of gossip after Miss Li’s death and enduring sneers and cold remarks after the Grand Marshal didn’t return to the Capital City for two years post-marriage, she stood tall, confronting all rumors and hurt. After Fang Chuning’s aunt married into the secondary branch of the Li Family, Mrs. Fang even became distant from the elders of the Fang Family, filled with grievances. How could such a marriage be happy?

Later, after the previous Emperor, who cherished the great princess, died in a palace fire, with the Empress following him in death, and the Crown Prince passed away, though it was still the Yuwen Dynasty, Mrs. Fang’s status plummeted, and the Li Family’s revenge followed swiftly.

Mrs. Fang, alone, stood against an entire clan, and the Yuwen Royal Family wasn’t there to support her. At one point, she was nearly driven to psychological collapse by the Li Family, suffering bitterly. Yet she never uttered a word of complaint to the Grand Marshal far away in Jiangnan. Perhaps in her heart, she had long believed that in her feud with the Li Family, the Grand Marshal would always side with them, especially with his sister married into the Li Family; after all, they were kin by marriage. How ironic it was!

The Marchioness Zhenbei, unable to bear seeing these matters, united with Mrs. Fang’s confidantes to support her, who were all wives of military generals. Gradually, Mrs. Fang’s situation improved as the Li Family dared not offend the then-rising Marquis Zhenbei.

In the protracted enmity with the Li Family spanning two decades, Mrs. Fang had grown to detest them completely and even extended her dislike to the children of Fang Family girls, forbidding Fang Chuning and Fang Lingjun from associating with them, thus leading to indifferent relations between the Fang siblings and their Li cousins.

Mrs. Fang softly said, "Your father and I should have divorced long ago. During the Yuwen Dynasty, we were constrained; my status and his did not permit us to divorce or become enemies. Now, under the new dynasty, mother is under no pressure. You shouldn’t feel guilty; this has nothing to do with you."

How could it have nothing to do with him!

Fang Chuning lowered his eyes, clenching his fists tightly on his knees, his nails almost piercing his palms. He never expected his mother to bring up the matter suddenly. While he felt distressed for his mother, many childhood memories also surfaced.

In fact, by the age of eight, he knew that his birth was a shameful and hard-to-accept matter for his father and why his father disliked him since childhood.