Chapter 1
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In the twelfth month of the lunar calendar, amidst the bitter cold of winter, in a private residence in Huai’an County, Huaizhou Prefecture, Shang Kingdom.
Bai Wanqing, dressed in simple, cold white garments, sat on a somewhat mottled fir wood chair, quietly watching the man before her toss a letter of divorce onto the table in front of her. She was somewhat bewildered as she looked with questioning eyes at the man who had been her husband for barely half a year.
Meng Zhan stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze disdainfully sweeping over Bai Wanqing’s face as he said coldly, “Bai Wanqing, you are unfilial to my mother, narrow-minded and jealous. Now just obediently take this letter of divorce and leave. Consider that as leaving some dignity for the both of us.”
Bai Wanqing kept her hands folded in her lap, her posture unchanged, and raised her cold eyes, having much to say about this so-called “dignity”…
“Husband, you have just passed the imperial examination and already want to divorce me? You even have the guts to pin two large accusations on me. Isn’t this unnecessary?”
A flicker of guilt flashed in Meng Zhan’s eyes, but he denied it, “How can they be accusations? You being unfilial is true, and so is your jealousy!”
Bai Wanqing slowly recovered from the shock of receiving the divorce letter. Her expression sharpened, and with a sidelong glance at the letter on the table, she said with disappointment, “In the half-year since our marriage, I have personally and diligently cared for mother-in-law, with utmost consideration, as everyone knows. If I may ask my lord… where does this unfilial behavior come from?”
“Furthermore, me being narrow-minded and jealous is also not true. We have been married for only half a year, and we’re still in the honeymoon phase. Even ordinary families would not allow their husband to take concubines at this time, let alone a scholar like you, my lord. I have only been protecting my lord’s reputation, so how can that be considered jealousy?” Bai Wanqing chuckled softly.
Exposed, Meng Zhan felt anger rising in his heart and he responded in a low voice, “Look at you now, so sharp-tongued and defiant towards your husband! A person like you is not worthy of staying in our Meng family!”
“Not worthy?” Bai Wanqing still didn’t move, a faint smile playing on her lips. “My lord, do you still remember the promises you made to my mother when you asked for my hand in marriage?”
Meng Zhan naturally remembered. His Meng family had been farmers for generations. It was only with him that they finally had the opportunity for someone to study. Fortunately, he was quite promising, passing the elementary scholar examination at the age of thirteen. Having finally produced a scholar, he naturally became the hope of the Meng family.
However, the cost of continuing his studies was extremely high. His mother borrowed money everywhere until she heard that the Bai family in the county was looking for a suitable match. Only then did she try every means to approach Madam Kou, the matriarch of the Bai family, and after discussing with her, they settled on the marriage agreement between him and Bai Wanqing, solving his problem of funding his studies.
On the day of exchanging marriage tokens, he solemnly promised Madam Bai saying, “Madam, I am thrice fortunate to have Miss Bai as my wife. In this life, I will surely do my utmost to protect her in every way.”
Later, Meng Zhan reached his current position with the Bai family’s financial support. Especially in the short half-year since Bai Wanqing married into the Meng family, all the expenses and arrangements for Meng Zhan’s studies came from Bai Wanqing’s dowry. Meng Zhan thought of this and looked at Bai Wanqing with even more impatience, feeling that Bai Wanqing was trampling on his dignity.
“Times have changed! How can words said in the past be applied to the present?!”
Meng Zhan frowned. “Look around and see whether your current status is still worthy of my Meng family!”
Again, he had said she was not worthy! But this time, it was her status that was unworthy! Bai Wanqing slowly raised her eyes, meeting Meng Zhan’s disdainful gaze directly.
A chill ran down Bai Wanqing’s spine. Looking back at everything, she finally realized that Meng Zhan had not only begun to despise her humble origins, but that from the very beginning, he had looked down on her for being the daughter of a merchant. That was why he had feigned illness on their wedding night and refused to enter the bridal chamber, and why he had used the excuse of needing to study diligently to move to the academy and not return to the Meng family.
From the start, he had been waiting for this day, waiting for the day he passed the imperial examination and secured an official position to drive her out of the Meng family.
Bai Wanqing laughed in spite of herself, feeling injustice in her heart. “Did Mother agree to you doing this?”
“She is my mother. How could she disagree with something that is for my own good? But I advise you not to talk to Mother about this. This is purely a matter between the two of us,” Meng Zhan said, staring sharply at Bai Wanqing.
Meng Zhan’s resoluteness extinguished the last trace of affection remaining in Bai Wanqing’s eyes. She took a deep breath. “What if I don’t agree?”
Meng Zhan’s face darkened. “Bai Wanqing, I am not discussing this with you! You have no say in whether you agree or not!”
Meng Zhan had clearly lost his patience. He tapped the divorce letter on the table with his finger and finally threatened, “I can give you a few days to accept this matter. If you come to your senses, I can make the wording on this divorce letter more subtle. But if you still don’t understand, then the reason will remain the same as before. If you want to remarry, there will be absolutely no possibility. You’re a smart woman, you know how to weigh things clearly.”
Having said that, Meng Zhan flung his sleeves and left. Bai Wanqing felt her body weaken, and Ruixin quickly stepped forward to support her.
“Miss!” Ruixin’s eyes were filled with tears as she helped Bai Wanqing back onto the long wooden chair. “How could the young master be so heartless?”
Bai Wanqing glanced at the divorce letter on the table and sighed softly, “Perhaps this is the real him. We never truly understood him before.”
“But if he is now so eager to drive me out of the Meng family, I’m afraid it’s not just a simple matter of disliking my status.”
Bai Wanqing was somewhat puzzled. Ruixin stood by, feeling wronged for her young mistress. “No matter the reason, Miss, you helped him so much! How can he be so ungrateful?!”
“People’s hearts are inherently difficult to fathom. Since things have come to this, there’s no use in saying more.” Bai Wanqing’s eyes reflected a cold light. “Go to the camphor wood chest and bring me my bamboo-patterned redwood box.”
“Miss! What are you going to do with it? We don’t have many shops and fields left to sell, and as for jewelry, everything that could be pawned has already been taken out and pawned to arrange things for the young master. Only the pearl hairpin that Madam left you before her death remains.”
Ruixin grumbled, but her hands didn’t stop. She handed the money box to Bai Wanqing.
Bai Wanqing looked at the pearl hairpin left by her mother lying forlornly in the box, and tears finally welled up in her eyes.
She came from a merchant family. Her mother was a physician from a century-old medical hall in Huai’an County, and her father was a wealthy gentleman, Master Bai, in Huai’an County. Five years ago, her six-year-old younger brother suddenly drowned in the river. Her mother cried every day, her heart became depressed, and she fell ill.
At that time, whenever she went to her bedside to care for her, her mother would always hold her arm and repeat again and again, “Qinger, Dong’er, don’t be afraid, Mother is here!”
Perhaps her mother knew her days were numbered. Her mother, who had been drowsy every day, miraculously regained some energy and, forcing herself, began to arrange a marriage for her.
Although the Bai family was a merchant family, they were considered one of the top wealthy families in Huai’an County. They couldn’t aspire to marry into the high-ranking noble families, but ordinary families eagerly sought such conditions.
Her mother looked at dozens of families and finally chose Meng Zhan’s family because only Meng Zhan and his mother had simple family relationships. Meng Zhan looked gentle and refined. He was a handsome and talented young man who had passed the elementary scholar’s examination at the age of thirteen, and he had a promising future.
Her mother decided to help the Meng family, hoping that with this favor, Bai Wanqing would also be treated kindly after marrying into the Meng family.
On the day the marriage agreement was finalized, her mother was very happy because she had obtained the promise she wanted from Meng Zhan.
Perhaps because one worry was settled, her mother’s health deteriorated day by day.
“Qinger,” her mother said, holding her hand before her death, handing her the dowry box prepared for her, her eyes full of regret, “Mother won’t be able to wait for the day you get married. Don’t blame Mother. Remember, after you go to the Meng family, you will be Meng Zhan’s wife, the Meng family’s daughter-in-law. You must do your utmost to help your husband. You are husband and wife, and husband and wife are originally one, sharing honor and sharing loss.”
Bai Wanqing had always kept her mother’s teachings in mind. She had never had any divided loyalty towards Meng Zhan. She gave him her whole heart and took out most of her dowry to pave the way for him. Who knew that she would receive such a result in return? It was such a waste of her mother’s painstaking efforts.
“Although little is left now, there’s no reason to just leave it all for Meng Zhan.” Bai Wanqing’s eyes darkened. She had Ruixin carefully put away the box again, and then silently tucked the pearl hairpin her mother had given her into her bosom.
Bai Wanqing pondered in her heart. Since Meng Zhan had resolutely given her a letter of divorce, he was probably determined to make her leave the Meng family. But he clearly owed her, yet he didn’t propose a peaceful separation but gave her a letter of divorce instead. What he valued was nothing more than her remaining two shops and several hundred taels of silver. That meant he needed money for something.
If she knew the reason why he needed money, perhaps there would be an opportunity to negotiate. To say she had affection for Meng Zhan was not really the case, but a woman living in this world already faced many hardships. If she were to be divorced by her husband and have her reputation ruined, it would be no different from being given a white silk cord to hang herself.
Ruixin, seeing her young mistress so distressed, felt great heartache. “Miss, why don’t we go back and find Master Bai? With him backing you, perhaps the young master will have some scruples and give up the idea of divorcing you.”
Bai Wanqing slowly shook her head. “Father is old. The matters of Mother and younger brother have already dealt him a great blow. He has only just regained some spirit. Before everything is settled, I don’t want him to worry.”
Ruixin nodded, her face bitter. “Miss, then what should we do now?”
Bai Wanqing’s eyes were firm, and she had made a decision in her heart. “Since he gave me time to consider, then I must consider it clearly.”
“Ruixin, go to the front yard and ask Bao Si to come over. Just say I have something to ask him.”
