Wei Meilan lowered her gaze slightly, her fingers tightening around the tea cup in her hands.

"It was not that simple," she said quietly.

Fu Sheng remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

Wei Meilan let out a faint breath before speaking again.

"Even after I got pregnant..." she said softly, "no man wanted me anymore."

The room fell quiet.

Her voice remained calm, but there was bitterness hidden beneath it now. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

"After all, I was already deflowered," she continued. "And the entire village knew the child belonged to a man who had gone to war."

Fu Sheng’s expression darkened slightly.

Wei Meilan looked down at the tea in front of her.

"Your parents came to my house," she said. "More than once."

Fu Sheng’s gaze shifted slightly.

"They wanted to pay my bride price," she continued quietly. "They wanted me to marry into the Fu family properly and wait for your return."

For the first time since entering the house, genuine surprise appeared faintly in Fu Sheng’s eyes.

Wei Meilan gave a faint smile.

"But my parents refused."

Her voice softened slightly.

"I was their only child," she said. "They did not want me becoming a widow before even getting married."

The lantern flickered softly between them.

"At that time, everyone believed you were already dead," she added quietly. "Even I..."

She stopped briefly.

Then continued.

"Even I began to lose hope."

Fu Sheng remained completely silent.

Wei Meilan leaned back slightly, her gaze distant now, as though she was looking at memories far away from this room.

"After some time," she said softly, "another man came."

Fu Sheng’s jaw tightened slightly.

"He knew about the pregnancy," she continued. "And he was still willing to marry me."

The room suddenly felt smaller.

Fu Sheng’s gaze remained fixed on her face.

Wei Meilan lowered her eyes again.

"My parents thought it was a blessing," she said quietly. "They said no woman in my position would ever get another chance like that."

A bitter smile appeared briefly on her lips.

"So in the end... I agreed."

The silence that followed felt unbearably heavy.

Then Fu Sheng finally spoke.

"But you still left the children behind."

Wei Meilan froze slightly.

Pain flashed across her expression before disappearing again.

"You think I did not want to take them with me?" she asked softly.

Her voice trembled slightly for the first time that night.

"The man was willing to marry me," she continued quietly, "but he refused to raise another man’s children."

Fu Sheng’s fingers tightened slowly.

Wei Meilan looked away.

"My parents begged me to agree," she said. "They said if I refused again, no one else would ever want me."

The lantern light flickered across her face, revealing exhaustion buried deep beneath her calm expression.

"I was scared," she admitted quietly.

The room became silent again.

Then after a long pause, she looked back at Fu Sheng with tired eyes.

"So yes," she said softly. "I left them behind."

"And I have regretted it every single day since then."

The room fell quiet after her words.

Neither of them spoke for a while.

The lantern burned softly between them, and the faint sound of the wind outside brushed lightly against the windows.

Then suddenly—

A small voice called out sleepily from the inner room.

"Mother..."

Wei Meilan paused immediately and turned her head.

A young boy stood near the doorway leading further into the house. His hair was messy from sleep, and his eyes were still half-closed as he rubbed them tiredly.

He could not have been older than five or six.

The moment he noticed there was someone else in the room, he stopped walking.

His sleepy gaze landed on Fu Sheng curiously.

Wei Meilan’s expression softened slightly when she saw him.

"Why are you awake?" she asked gently.

The boy yawned quietly before answering.

"I could not find you."

Wei Meilan stood up slowly and walked toward him.

"I will come soon," she said softly as she crouched slightly in front of him. "Go back inside first."

The boy nodded slowly.

But before leaving, he looked at Fu Sheng once more.

Curious and confused.

Then without saying anything else, he turned and disappeared back into the inner room.

The moment he was gone, silence returned.

Fu Sheng’s gaze remained fixed on the direction the child had left from.

Then after a moment, he finally spoke.

"Are they your current husband’s children?" he asked quietly.

Wei Meilan stood still for a brief moment.

Then she turned back toward him.

And what she said next completely caught him off guard.

"No," she replied calmly.

Fu Sheng frowned slightly.

Wei Meilan lowered her gaze briefly before continuing.

"They are my late husband’s children."

The room instantly became still.

Fu Sheng looked at her in silence, clearly shocked.

Wei Meilan walked back slowly and sat down once more.

"My husband died three years after we got married," she said quietly.

Her voice carried no dramatics.

Only exhaustion.

Fu Sheng stared at her for several moments.

"You became a widow anyway," he said softly.

Wei Meilan gave a faint laugh at that.

A bitter one.

"Yes," she replied.

Her fingers brushed lightly against the tea cup again.

"It seems my parents’ fears still came true in the end."

Fu Sheng remained silent.

For the first time that night—

He no longer knew what to say.

Wei Meilan lowered her gaze slightly after those words.

For a moment, she remained silent, as though deciding whether or not to continue.

Then she finally spoke again.

"After my husband died..." she said quietly, "I was sent to the barren lands with the children."

Fu Sheng’s expression shifted slightly.

Wei Meilan gave a faint smile, though there was no happiness in it.

"It is ironic, is it not?" she asked softly. "After everything my parents did to stop me from becoming a widow... I still ended up becoming one."

The lantern flickered quietly beside them.

Fu Sheng remained silent and allowed her to continue.

Wei Meilan leaned back slightly in her chair, her eyes distant.