Chapter 52 A Love for Male Homosexuality?

The seventh day of the seventh lunar month.

It was already past 9 AM when Yunxi Mountain Villa became lively.

This was the first banquet Ye Mingzhu held after marrying into the Duke of Wei's mansion. Everyone was very curious about her, and almost everyone she invited came.

To her surprise, Lady Wang brought Wang Jing, the good-for-nothing younger brother of Consort Shu.

Don't they harbor any resentment about what happened at the lotus banquet?

Ye Mingzhu smiled and exchanged pleasantries with Madam Wang, then immediately turned and instructed Yu Fu to have someone keep a close eye on the Wang family.

She was composed and had the air of a matriarch.

She didn't realize that her graceful demeanor made the guests value her even more.

...

Since it is a Qiqiao Festival banquet, clever ideas are necessary.

An eight-panel folding screen made of huanghuali wood stands in the central courtyard, separating the left and right sides. Through a light gauze screen, figures and voices become indistinct.

One side is shaded, the other is sunny.

One side is very close, and the other side is very far.

The young gentlemen could not see the ladies on the left side of the screen, only their faint, graceful figures.

However, as they walked back and forth, the young ladies could see their appearance through the gaps in the screen and judge their demeanor in their minds.

The man composed a poem with the theme of "skill".

Before long, a talented writer produced a fine poem, which was then loudly recited by the page and hung under the eaves.

If a young lady appreciates his talent, she may give him a red silk thread and have a maid attach it to the poem with a silver needle.

The time limit is three incense sticks. Whoever has the most silk threads by then wins.

Ye Mingzhu kept the young Ye Baozhu by her side and sat on the second floor with a group of young ladies, enjoying tea and chatting. Occasionally, she would glance at Sheng Wan'er below through the open window.

Sitting by the window, she was stunningly beautiful, every smile and gesture exuding charm, making her a sight to behold.

Because she had to entertain guests, Ye Mingzhu couldn't keep her attention on Sheng Wan'er all the time, so she instructed Ye Baozhu to pay more attention to her.

She was talking to Madam Fan from the Rongguo Duke's Mansion when Ye Baozhu suddenly nudged her and whispered, "Sister, Sister Wan'er has given out the silk thread!"

"Oh?" Ye Mingzhu turned her head curiously. "Given to whom?"

"That young man in the blue robe and holding a folding fan must be Zhang Shuheng, the second son of Minister Zhang." Ye Baozhu covered her mouth and chuckled, her eyes shining like a little hamster. "The second young master Zhang is handsome and refined, and his literary talent is outstanding. No wonder Sister Wan'er likes him."

Zhang Shuheng, the second son of Minister Zhang?!

Ye Mingzhu's gaze fell on Zhang Shuheng, and her hand, which was gently waving a fan, paused. Suddenly, she remembered something very important.

In her previous life, she married into the West Mansion and had little contact with the East Mansion, let alone cared about the marriage of her half-sister from another branch of the family.

Therefore, she had previously recalled who Sheng Wan'er had married in her previous life, but had never been able to find out.

She only remembered Sheng Huai'an joking with her, saying that Princess Ronghua, who had lost her beloved son, had shut herself away to worship Buddha and was indifferent to worldly affairs. She had no interest in arranging her daughter's marriage. The daughter of the East Mansion only had forty-eight loads of dowry when she married into the Zhang family, which was not even as much as her, a merchant's daughter.

It is also said that although Sheng Wan'er's husband is quite talented, there are rumors that he has homosexual tendencies, but it is unknown whether this is true.

She heard about it briefly and didn't pay much attention to it at the time.

Now that I think about it, maybe Sheng Wan'er in her past life married this Zhang Shuheng.

No, not just possibly, it's certain!

Others might only suspect that Zhang Shuheng had homosexual tendencies, but she knew he did!

Because she suddenly remembered that she had read a storybook with Zhang Shuheng as the protagonist in the storybook space!

It was a BL novel called "Deep Spring Night, Gentle Pampering from the Cunning Second Master," which tells the story of a deep and abusive love between the handsome young master of the Ministry of Rites and his personal attendant, Yuanbao.

In the storybook, Zhang Shuheng appears to be knowledgeable and reasonable, but in reality, he is cunning and cold-hearted. He only dotes on his servant Yuanbao and gives him all his tenderness.

Forced by threats from his family and the constraints of societal norms, and also to conceal his relationship with Yuanbao, he had no choice but to marry a well-bred young lady. However, he treated the innocent woman with utter disdain and even verbal abuse until she died in despair.

That innocent woman only appeared a few times in the storybook, and she didn't even have a full name. She was only referred to as "the eldest daughter of the Sheng family" and "Mrs. Sheng".

Ye Mingzhu does not despise homosexuality.

But harming innocent women is an extremely heinous crime!

She remembered that when she was a wandering ghost, she had seen Sheng Wan'er once.

At that time, Sheng Wan'er looked haggard. She mustered up her courage and returned to ask Sheng Huai'an, who was already an important official in the court, to help her get a divorce. However, because the gifts she gave were not valuable enough, Sheng Huai'an coldly refused.

Then, what I heard was Sheng Wan'er's obituary.

Death, but not the end.

After the tragic death of "Sheng Shi" in the storybook, she was frequently mentioned by Zhang Shuheng and appeared in his poems mourning his deceased wife, being used as a fig leaf to cover up the misery of him and his close attendant.

Thinking of this, Ye Mingzhu felt a surge of anger.

She sympathized with "Sheng Shi" when she read the storybook, and now that "Sheng Shi" has become a living person, Sheng Wan'er, she feels even more sorry for her.

After regaining her senses, Ye Mingzhu looked at Zhang Shuheng again and found him repulsive.

Unfortunately, Sheng Wan'er seemed to have a good impression of Zhang Shuheng. When their eyes occasionally met through the screen, she would lower her head and blush.

Zhang Shuheng, besides paying attention to Sheng Wan'er, also occasionally looks at another quiet and gentle girl, seemingly looking for "prey".

As Ye Mingzhu watched, she noticed that someone was paying special attention to Sheng Wan'er.

He was a very tall man with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and an upright posture. He was dressed in a long black robe and sat imposingly on the veranda, his gaze sharp and piercing, looking like someone in the military.

She asked Ye Baozhu, "Do you know who that person is?"

Before Ye Baozhu could answer, Madam Fan from the Rongguo Mansion laughed and said, "That's Third Master Xiang from the Minister of War's family. He has made many military achievements at a young age and is now a commander of a thousand."

A woman chimed in, "This Xiang Tiancheng is a real headache for the Xiang family. They come from a scholarly family, yet he's produced a roughneck who's good with knives and sticks. And his marriage is still not going smoothly. If I were Mrs. Xiang, I'd be anxious and worried too."

Some people said, "Civil officials have their advantages, and military officials have theirs. Xiang Tiancheng is promising at a young age and has a bright future. Perhaps he can even earn an imperial title for his wife in the future."

The person who came from the Xiang family was Xiang Tiancheng's sister-in-law, the eldest mistress of the Xiang family.

Hearing this, she was not angry, but just smiled and said, "Our Tiancheng respects his parents, loves his elder brother, and cares for his nephew. He is a very good person."

"..."

While listening to the chatter of the crowd, Ye Mingzhu sized up Xiang Tiancheng, glancing at him several times.

Xiang Tiancheng?

She also remembered the name.

In the story, Xiang Tiancheng, as an antagonist, caused Zhang Shuheng a lot of embarrassment, which Zhang Shuheng deeply resented, saying that although he was loyal to the emperor and loved his country and was brave and invincible, he did not know how to adapt.

He is a person who, although he is Zhang Shuheng's enemy, makes it difficult for someone like Zhang Shuheng to say too many bad things about him.

Thinking about this, she suddenly remembered something else...

In the storybook, there is a powerful minister who colludes with Zhang Shuheng and is also surnamed "Sheng". It is said that he is related to Zhang Shuheng in a very distant way. They bet on the right horse in the struggle for the throne and he rose to the highest position because of his merit in helping the emperor.

The two admired each other and were close friends.

Could that Grand Secretary Sheng be Sheng Huai'an?