The moonlight, like water, spilled across the ground. Outside the window, the crabapple blossoms were a vibrant red, their branches swaying and swirling on the windowsill, releasing a delicate fragrance.
Xie Rongyue, dressed in a pearl-colored long dress, leaned quietly against the soft couch. The gentle moonlight from the window illuminated her face, making her appear ethereal and otherworldly, as aloof as a fairy.
The maidservant came in, made the bed for her, and respectfully withdrew.
A cool breeze blew by, the candlelight flickered dimly, she glanced at the sky outside, gently rubbed her forehead, and put down the booklet in her hand.
The small stove inside the house was bubbling and steaming, and the herbs being boiled were emitting a strange smell.
She put on her shoes, walked to the small stove where the liquid was being boiled, lifted the lid, and sniffed the strange, fishy smell.
It rains frequently in the southwest, and Yangxia, which is close to the north, has had light rain for several days, making the air humid.
Xie Rongyue had been holed up in the mansion for more than half a month. A couple of days ago, Xie Zhi, who had come back to spend the night, saw her sneaking around making some medicinal juices all day long and asked her a few questions out of curiosity.
She made a hasty decision and threw away all the defective products. These were herbs that she had painstakingly collected from Wugu Mountain. She had tried to make them according to the instructions in the book several times, but all of them failed.
Although the aristocratic families were all upright and honest, there were many brothers in her branch who were into martial arts, and they often got injured in fights. So she learned to bandage wounds, make medicine, and identify the herbs in the mountains, which was a way for her to keep herself busy.
Xie Zhi was on leave this time, so he thought he would take her to Liangzhou for a trip. Recently, Liangzhou was celebrating the Flower Goddess Festival, which was very lively.
Xie Rongyue and her sisters took a boat to Liangzhou City to watch the festivities. The annual Flower Goddess Festival was a joyous occasion, with lanterns and decorations everywhere.
Painted boats line the lake, and the statue of Flora stands tall in the majestic lake square, its golden and dark pink hues mingling with the bustling crowds.
She sat inside the boat eating snacks, while outside, the bustling crowds, the sounds of firecrackers, vendors' cries, and playful laughter drifted on the lake breeze, enticing several restless girls to go out in twos and threes, noisily peering out from the bow of the boat.
"Rongyue, let's go down and take a look too."
Xie Rongyue raised her eyes and said loudly, "You guys go to the square, I'll just stay inside the boat and take a look."
"Then I'll bring you flower goddess candy when I come back."
The cabin fell silent. The distant noise seemed to come from another world. She rested her chin on her hand, gazing at the dazzling night outside the cabin, a thousand thoughts flooding her mind.
She slowly got up and walked to the bow of the boat to enjoy the breeze. On a small boat not far away, several young men were drinking and chatting noisily.
Xie Rongyue didn't want to listen, but in an instant, she heard a familiar name and couldn't help but stop and turn around to look.
The night was pitch black, the lake water rippled, and the bright and large flower lanterns illuminated the surroundings, their lights flickering.
Several young men clinked glasses and exchanged witty banter, their voices rising and falling in a gentle, yet not too loud, manner.
"I heard that his private army in the Northwest was taken over by his family, which caused quite a stir."
"It's all over Jiankang. I heard it when I went to Kyoto with my father a couple of days ago. It's being talked about in all the major markets and teahouses---"
The news of the divorce of the eldest son of the Langya Wang clan had already spread throughout the capital, and rumors were flying everywhere. Even the sons of officials in Liangzhou City had vaguely heard the whispers.
As early as a month ago, Wang Hezhan publicly defied the rules and demanded a divorce in the ancestral hall, angering the elders of the Langya Wang clan. Over the years, his behavior had long been disliked by the clan, and countless people in the clan were waiting for him to be stripped of his power and to retaliate against him.
The head of the Wang family was furious and immediately took out his dragon whip, leaving his back covered in welts. The members of the eldest branch of the family said he was bewitched. How could such a serious matter as divorce be treated so lightly? Even if the Lanling Yan family was willing, wasn't this just slapping the face of the Great Qi Emperor? They all disagreed.
But he was determined to divorce, even at the cost of going against the clan, which led to a falling out and things getting very ugly.
In order to suppress him, the Langya Wang clan banished him from the center of the court and suppressed his military and financial resources in the northwest. Over the years, he has acted ruthlessly, and many people in the clan are wary of him. Taking this opportunity, they want to seize his power and replace the head of the family.
However, Wang Hezhan was ruthless and had almost rivaled his uncle in officialdom over the years, causing everyone in the Jiankang court to feel insecure.
At this moment, Yan Jia Liulang suddenly relinquished his military power in the southwest and publicly announced in the ancestral hall that he wanted to marry Yan Yuan.
The entire clan was in an uproar. The members of the third branch, who were watching the show, were shocked to see the fire spread to their own family. They angrily denounced him for talking nonsense.
But Wang Yizhi wanted to take this opportunity to make a scene and announce it to the public, so as to prevent any complications from arising in his family when he was about to marry Yan Yuan.
The old patriarch of the Wang family nearly fainted from anger. Seeing his two legitimate sons like this, the elders of the Langya Wang clan roared that their family was in trouble and smashed down a spear, telling them to get out.
Yan Yuan was naturally having a hard time these days. Because of Wang Yizhi's actions, all sorts of rumors and gossip were directed at her by those in the household who knew the situation.
She packed her bags and went straight back to the Yan family. The Yan family immediately sent her to the palace in Jiankang to show their attitude.
Now that both of them wanted a divorce, Lady Wang of Langya had no choice but to agree in order to cover up the scandal. To show that they were of goodwill, she even arranged a marriage with the third branch of the Yan family.
However, the clan did not want Wang Yizhi to remarry Yan Yuan. Marrying his divorced sister-in-law was an insult to the Langya Wang clan.
Wang Yizhi was displeased and spread the word that Wang San wanted to marry a concubine's daughter from the Xie family, putting pressure on the elders of the Langya Wang clan.
First, there was the incident of Wang Wan running away from her arranged marriage, and now her two legitimate sons are doing the same thing. It's utterly disgraceful.
Wang Hezhan didn't care; he knew he would find out sooner or later. So when the Wang family head angrily questioned him, he admitted it on the spot, and the entire Langya Wang clan was in turmoil once again.
As the eldest son of a noble family, he disobeyed his elders for the sake of a concubine's daughter and even divorced the daughter of the Lanling Yan family. The head of the Wang family could no longer care about Wang Yizhi and ordered that he be brought back from the southwest. He also spread the word.
"Even if you divorce Yan Yuan, you will only marry the legitimate daughter of a powerful family. Xie Rongyue will never be allowed into the Langya Wang Clan."
It would be incredibly easy for a top-tier aristocratic family to kill a concubine's daughter, but this angered Wang Hezhan, and the father and son almost had a falling out.
Xie Rongyue was naturally unaware of these things. She had only heard a few words about the excitement in Yandu, but she did not take the initiative to inquire about them, and did not want to care about those powerful families anymore.
In her spare time, she would secretly take her maid to Wugu Mountain. She had met an old man in the mountains who ran a clinic in the west alley. Whenever she had free time, she would take an hour to help out at the clinic.
Her family forbade her to learn these things; from a young age, she learned music, chess, calligraphy, painting, and needlework, so she could only do them secretly.
That day, she had just slipped out of the back door and hadn't even left the alley when she was suddenly surrounded by people. She was terrified, but they didn't give her a chance to escape. They took her directly into a carriage and drove her out of the city.
With guards watching her, she felt uneasy. Seeing that they didn't resort to violence, she had a vague idea of what was going on.
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