After Meng Jintang left, Chen Wanqing lowered her head, lost in thought for a good while. Then, she picked up the mattock from the ground and threw herself into the great undertaking of digging for huangqi.
However, after just a few swings of the mattock, she heard another sound.
From the sound, she could tell it was a man's footsteps. Chen Wanqing thought Meng Jintang had come back. Without thinking, she spoke, "Why are you back again? We've already said everything that needed to be said. I don't want any apology from you, and you don't need to feel guilty toward me."
"In the end, your insistence on going to the Prefecture for the Provincial Examination back then was partly to save face for me. You met with disaster because of it and nearly lost your life. I couldn't save you, and I've been tormented by guilt ever since."
