Chapter 85 Sister Lanjun, you must persevere…
He Rong's face flushed red as she tried her best to rephrase it in the most euphemistic way she could think of.
Actually, what the person outside said was a hundred times worse than this. They even fabricated some fictitious and erotic scenes, such as the three of them sleeping together in the same bed, and Qi Bianxiu and Jiang Tanhua having an affair in private?
Ironically, these vulgar and clichéd plot points are most popular with ordinary people, and many have even gathered around to discuss them with great interest. They've even started to wildly speculate about the actual plot of the book, such as how the female protagonist would be searched by officials before entering the examination hall...
He Rong felt increasingly uneasy as he listened. Although he didn't understand these academic matters, he knew that "Yu Tang Chai" was a proper story. How could it become a forbidden erotic book when it came out of the mouths of those lewd people?
Although the current dynasty does not prohibit the printing of vernacular stories and popular literature is quite prosperous, this does not mean that certain erotic books can be openly displayed and sold. At best, they will be confiscated and burned; at worst, the shops will be closed and the businesses shut down.
Shen Lingyue understood from his vague explanation, slammed her hand on the table, and exclaimed, "What a vicious business war! Which bookstore is trying to sabotage us?"
Looking at Dong Lanyi, her face had turned deathly pale with anger, and her body was trembling. "When did I ever write any of this?!"
They even said she had an affair with Jiang Tanhua and Qi Bianxiu... Good heavens, she's barely even met them a few times!
Yan Yi pulled one of them in each hand and comforted them, saying, "Now is not the time to be angry. We need to go down and control the situation quickly. We can't let the rumors get worse and affect the reputation of 'Jade Hall Hairpin' and even Langhuan Pavilion."
Just as the three were about to follow He Rong downstairs, Pei Yuzhen squeezed in through the door, her face full of excitement.
"Daughter, your marriage is settled!"
Dong Lanyi was stunned. "Mother, what are you saying?"
Pei Yuzhen beamed, "I heard it all downstairs! People are saying you're having an affair with Scholar Jiang and Editor Qi... Ugh, Scholar Jiang is cursed to bring misfortune to his wives, but Editor Qi is young and promising, and still unmarried!" She was smug about her own scheme. "Although I didn't want you to marry another poor scholar, Editor Qi is tenth in the second class, much more promising than your deadbeat father. Maybe he can stay in the capital and not have to suffer hardship in the provinces. I think we should just admit our mistake, make him take responsibility, and find a matchmaker to propose marriage to you another day..."
"mother!"
Dong Lanyi was furious. The tears that had been welling up in her eyes burst forth, and she shouted at her without regard for anything else, "Am I some kind of worthless commodity that you're rushing to sell at a low price? Are you only happy when you've just randomly promised me off?"
Pei Yuzhen was also annoyed by her shout, "You ungrateful little thing, wasn't I doing all this for you? Editor Qi is such a good person, what else do you have to complain about?"
Dong Lanyi's stubbornness kicked in, and she glared at her with red eyes: "I, I'd rather never get married than keep pestering me like this!"
"Hey, what time is it? Stop arguing."
Shen Lingyue was at her wits' end. She stood in the middle, trying to appease both sides, and said to Pei Yuzhen, "Aunt, that's not how things should be done. Lords Jiang and Qi are only willing to help promote my cousin's stories because they like them. We can't repay kindness with enmity."
Pei Yuzhen glared at her: "How is this repaying kindness with enmity? Is your cousin not good enough for Qi Xiuyuan? I haven't even complained about how poor his family is."
“Aunt, this isn’t about whether we’re a good match or not,” Yan Yi gently advised. “Right now, someone is deliberately spreading rumors to slander my cousin and the two gentlemen. If we accept this, what will people think of my cousin? She writes books with integrity and lives an honest life. Why would she want to get herself involved in such a disgraceful affair?”
Shen Lingyue nodded repeatedly, "If in the future someone mentions 'Jade Hall Hairpin' and talks about the author's romantic gossip instead of the plot and writing style, then wouldn't all of my cousin's hard work be wasted?"
These days, you can't rely on negative publicity to gain fame. Dong Lanyi is an unmarried girl, and if she gets involved in this kind of reputation, she'll never be able to clear her name, no matter what.
Thinking of this, Shen Lingyue couldn't help but clench her fists. The mastermind behind spreading such rumors was simply despicable! Wasn't this trying to drive someone to their death?
Pei Yuzhen was unconvinced and wanted to argue back, but Dong Lanyi suddenly pushed her away and rushed downstairs.
She ran downstairs, holding her breath, and happened to run into Jiang Yunlin, who was resting in his room.
"Miss Dong, what's wrong?"
Jiang Yunlin had already met her when she came over in the morning, because she was also curious about what kind of woman could write such a story.
The reason she is working so hard to promote and sell "Yu Tang Chai" today is actually partly due to her own selfish motives.
—If this book sells more and more, and the more people read Miss Xie's story and empathize with her experiences, will the court consider public opinion and reduce her punishment if her identity is revealed one day in the future?
In a sense, Miss Xie is actually Jiang Yunlin's representative and embodiment of the world in the book. She hopes that Miss Xie will rise to the top, climb the golden steps, and become a high-ranking official, as if in doing so she can reach out a hand to her from afar through the pristine white pages of the book.
These past few days, Jiang Yunlin has been dreaming of Miss Xie, wishing he could take her place or stand shoulder to shoulder with her, joining hands to fight against the powerful imperial court.
Because of her affection for Dong Lanyi, she couldn't help but feel more protective and appreciative when she saw her again. Seeing that Dong Lanyi's eyes were red and she looked as if she had suffered a great injustice, she subconsciously softened her voice and asked, "What happened? Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Jiang Tanhua, I..."
Dong Lanyi was already deeply grateful for his help, but now, thinking of Pei Yuzhen's repeated accusations of "wife-killing" against her, and the fact that outsiders were forcibly pairing the two together, she felt both ashamed and guilty. She quickly took two steps back to distance herself from him.
She clenched her fists, took a deep breath, and forced a smile at Jiang Yunlin. "Jiang Tanhua, thank you for your hard work today. Lan Yi has no way to repay you, but I will never let your innocence be tarnished."
After saying that, Dong Lanyi walked quickly toward the entrance of the restaurant. Jiang Yunlin hesitated for a moment, then quickly followed.
By this time, the rumors outside had spread quite widely, and some bold young women even blocked Qi Xiuyuan's path, determined to get to the bottom of things.
"Editor Qi, what is the relationship between the author of this book and you and Jiang Tanhua? Why hasn't he shown up for so long? Is it really as others say, that 'Lan Jun' is a woman?"
"Exactly! Why doesn't the author ever show up, but instead makes you two stay here and shout things out?"
Qi Xiuyuan forced a smile and explained, "Everyone, when you read a book, you're looking for a good story and who the author is... Does that really matter? We eat eggs every day, but we don't bother to find out which hen laid them, do we?"
“How can you lump these together?” someone objected. “The price of one book can buy a basket of eggs. I’ve bought so many books, so it’s not unreasonable for me to want to meet the author, is it?”
The speaker seemed to be an admirer of Jiang Yunlin, and his reaction had been particularly intense ever since the rumors started spreading. "I spent money, I can't just make myself miserable, can I?"
The little girl was fuming, her oval face turning into a round one with anger. She muttered unhappily in a low voice, "Jiang Tanhua belongs to everyone, why should she get all the benefits?"
Just as Qi Xiuyuan was struggling to cope and looked around for help, Dong Lanyi walked out from behind the screen and stepped in front of him.
There were still traces of tears in the corners of her eyes, and her voice was slightly hoarse, but her tone was firm.
"No need to look anymore, I am Lan Jun, the author of 'Jade Hall Hairpin'."
The voice wasn't loud, but the surroundings fell silent instantly as countless eyes scrutinized the scene.
A young lady exclaimed, pointing at her, "You, aren't you Miss Dong, the cousin of the Marquis of Changning?"
Dong Lanyi looked in the direction of the voice and recognized the face; she guessed she had seen him at a banquet some time ago.
She nodded in acknowledgment, "Yes, it's me."
A small commotion arose in the crowd, and people began to whisper among themselves.
"Is it that cousin from the Pei family? I heard she lived in the Marquis's mansion for ten years. She was originally supposed to be betrothed to the eldest son of the Pei family, but the marriage was thwarted by an imperial decree?"
"I remember her. Her mother is no easy person to get along with. I heard she has very high standards and is determined to marry her into a wealthy family."
"My aunt even wanted to marry her off to the illegitimate son in the family, but Madam Pei embarrassed her on the spot, and she was so angry that her stomach ached for several days..."
"Oh dear, why are you all talking about all this nonsense? The important thing right now is her relationship with Scholar Jiang and Editor Qi."
Dong Lanyi could still hold her tongue when people talked about her unfortunate marriage, but she immediately raised her voice to clarify when she heard those words.
"Heaven bears witness that my relationship with you two is completely innocent and there is absolutely no illicit affair between us. If I am lying, may my books never sell for the rest of my life!"
She made a firm vow, which stunned many people.
Jiang Yunlin, having learned the whole story from Qi Xiuyuan, stepped forward and frowned, saying, "Who is spreading rumors and defaming people's reputations? I was entrusted by the second young mistress of the Pei family to write a preface to promote 'Jade Hall Hairpin.' If there is any connection between me and Miss Dong... it is that I sincerely admire Miss Xie in 'Jade Hall Hairpin.' Are you going to say that I have a private affair with the person in the book?"
Jiang Yunlin chuckled, his tone regaining some of its humor: "Thinking about it that way, it doesn't seem so bad? At least Miss Xie definitely won't be cursed by me."
The tense atmosphere instantly eased thanks to the third-ranked scholar's skillful defusal.
The next second, the readers who bought the book all turned to the first page, eager to see what kind of beauty this Miss Xie was that could captivate their top scholar.
Is it really true that "beauty is found in books"?
It's better not to watch it at all, because once you start, you become completely engrossed and can't stop.
Then a girl in a yellow dress stepped out from the crowd, raising her head with a hint of smugness, "I just finished reading it. I told you the story was good, but you didn't believe me. You insisted on lining up to grab the 'Top Scholar' bookmark... Isn't that like buying the box and returning the pearl?"
She pushed through the crowd and squeezed her way to Dong Lanyi, grabbing her hand tightly. "Sister Lanjun, your stories are absolutely wonderful! I will definitely continue to buy the second and third volumes. You must keep writing!"
This was the first time Dong Lanyi had received support and encouragement from someone outside her family. She was a little flustered. She opened her mouth, about to explain that her name wasn't Lan Jun, when a second and a third person stepped forward.
"I'm sorry, we shouldn't have jumped to conclusions and misunderstood you."
"This book is really good. How did you come up with so many wonderful stories?"
"I'd like to know if Miss Xie refused the Emperor's arranged marriage? Won't she offend the princess by doing so?"
“Lan Jun…”
"Miss Xie..."
Soon, Dong Lanyi was surrounded by a group of girls who kept asking her questions.
At this moment, she was no longer a mere cousin living in the Marquis's mansion, ignored at the banquet, and a nobody who could only hide in a corner and feel sorry for herself. Instead, she was a storyteller loved by everyone, anticipated by everyone, and eager to know what would happen next.
Her slightly reddened eyes gradually brightened, and Dong Lanyi's heart was filled with their tolerance and love. She looked more and more confident and determined, and answered their questions one by one.
Someone pulled Dong Lanyi to the spot where Qi Xiuyuan had placed her and slipped a pen into her hand.
"You are the author of 'Jade Hall Hairpin,' so your name and seal should be on the title page."
"Me too! Me too! Cousin, let's line up again!"
Qi Xiuyuan and Jiang Yunlin were unknowingly squeezed to the side of the screen, watching Dong Lanyi become the only focus of the crowd and take over the "signature" work from the two of them.
"Oh, I should have let Miss Dong come by herself."
Qi Xiuyuan shook his aching wrist and complained to Jiang Yunlin with a hint of grievance, "Brother Jiang, I'm taking the blame for you, so you have to treat me to a good meal tonight."
Jiang Yunlin casually agreed, his gaze still fixed on Dong Lanyi, and said softly, "Miss Dong was forced into this situation and had no choice but to step forward and clarify, since... she is a woman."
This was a world where only men could study and take the imperial examinations; composing poetry was merely a pastime for young ladies from wealthy families. Most of the storybooks about talented men and beautiful women on the market were written by men; very few women dared to publish their own works publicly. At most, they would hand-copy poetry collections, circulating within a small circle within their families. Even if they did, they had to use their husbands' names to prevent their writings from falling into the public eye.
Therefore, Dong Lanyi could only publish the book under the pseudonym Lan Jun, and she also asked herself and Qi Xiuyuan to help promote it.
Qi Xiuyuan didn't understand where Jiang Yunlin's sigh of disappointment came from, and spread his hands, saying, "So what if she's a woman? Isn't Miss Dong very popular now?"
Jiang Yunlin's heart stirred, and she tentatively asked him, "Brother Qi, what do you think of Miss Xie's actions? Do you think she is unconventional and violates etiquette?"
"In your heart, am I such a pedantic person?" Qi Xiuyuan shook his head. "I only think that Miss Xie is exceptionally talented and determined, not inferior to men, and truly a virtuous woman."
He smiled and looked at Jiang Yunlin, "Don't even mention you, I also fell in love with Miss Xie at first sight and am obsessed with her. A wife should be like her."
Her heart pounded like a drum. Jiang Yunlin turned her face away in a fluster, trying not to let him see her bright red earlobes, and said hurriedly, "...Don't try to take it from me."
Qi Xiuyuan laughed even more heartily and put his arm around Jiang Yunlin's shoulder without any hesitation.
"Hey, Jiang Tanhua belongs to everyone, and Miss Xie belongs to everyone too, don't be so stingy."
...
The alley behind Fenglelou.
Several idlers, their hands tied behind their backs and sacks over their heads, were piled up in a row in the corner, still struggling and whimpering.
Pei Jinghuai brushed the dust off his hands and said to Shen Lingyue, "Look, those few who were hiding in the crowd talking nonsense have all been brought here by me."
Just now, when He Rong went upstairs to report the news.
The guy on the far right was still cursing, so Pei Jinghuai kicked him and threatened him coldly, "If you say another word, I'll cut your tongues out."
The alley fell silent instantly.
Shen Lingyue patted his back in a praising manner, "You're quick."
They actually managed to debunk the rumors before she could.
With outsiders present, Pei Jinghuai suppressed his smugness and touched his nose. "Of course, I am Lan Yi's second cousin after all. I can't just stand by and watch her be slandered."
Shen Lingyue walked up to the first idler, ripped off the cloth covering his head, and pretended to be fierce: "Tell me the truth, who sent you here to spread rumors? If you don't talk, I'll break your legs!"
The idler stammered, "Madam, spare my life! We're just doing this for money..."
Shen Lingyue sneered: "Your clients are quite bold, daring to slander even a top scholar and a compiler in the Hanlin Academy? Believe me or not, I'll report you to the authorities right now and have you thrown in jail?"
"No, no, no, I'll tell you. It was a young gentleman who contacted us. But he was wearing a mask, so I don't know what he looks like..."
mask?
Shen Lingyue had a flash of inspiration and described it to him: "Is it a silver mask that covers half of the face, revealing small eyes, a flat nose, and thick lips?"
The idler thought for a moment, then nodded hurriedly, "Yes, yes, that's what he looks like. Do you know him?"
That's such an accurate description.
"Nonsense, with that fat-headed fish-like face, you can't find another one like it except for Young Master Xiaoxiang." Shen Lingyue gritted her teeth. "This guy is not only ugly, but his heart is even uglier. He's afraid that Lan Yi will steal his business, and he clearly wants to ruin her!"
Pei Jinghuai rubbed his hands together, eager to get started: "Where does he live? I'll go and break his hand right now, so he'll never be able to write a single word again."
How dare they bully his cousin? Do they think the Pei family has no one left?
"What's the use of just breaking his hand? He can still dictate the plot or have someone else write it down." Shen Lingyue snorted. "No way, I must expose his despicable face and make him die a traitor! His reputation will collapse!"
That's too much! She never even considered using Xiaoxiang Gongzi for marketing, but he came knocking on her door first.
Shen Lingyue muttered to herself, "How could such a despicable person write such a wonderful story as 'The Legend of Qilan'? Does he really understand what kind of person Qilan is?"
She instructed He Rong to have these idlers removed and to have them sign a document admitting that they had been bribed by the Young Master of Xiaoxiang to deliberately ruin the reputations of Dong Lanyi, Jiang, and Qi, as evidence.
Shen Lingyue and Pei Jinghuai had just stepped out of the back alley and were about to go to the front to see how their cousin was handling things on her own when they looked up and saw Lian Shu running towards them from a distance, covered in sweat and carrying a stack of manuscripts.
"Manager Lian, why aren't you busy printing books in your study? What are you doing here?"
Lian Shu finally caught her breath and said anxiously, "Just now, a classmate came to the study to report that someone questioned whether 'Yu Tang Chai' was written by Miss Dong, and also said that she and Jiang Tanhua had an unclear relationship... I specially brought Miss Dong's original manuscript here. The revisions and corrections on it are all in her handwriting. You can see the truth at a glance."
Shen Lingyue suddenly realized and laughed, "You're too late. My cousin has already taken care of it herself."
Lian Shu blinked, and in disbelief, took a few more steps forward, only to see Dong Lanyi surrounded by readers, signing autographs and stamping their names one by one.
She lowered her head slightly, her expression focused. From his angle, he could only see a soft curve of her profile, like a magnolia flower meticulously painted.
Immersed in the career she is committed to, she seems to be shining brightly.
As Lian Shu watched, a smile involuntarily appeared on her face.
"It's good that you're alright. I'll go back and continue binding." Lian Shu breathed a sigh of relief, her whole body reviving. "Judging from this situation, our inventory is almost sold out. I need to hurry."
Thinking of this, Lian Shu was filled with energy again and ran off happily.
Pei Jinghuai watched his retreating figure and suddenly blurted out, "Does he like his cousin?"
Shen Lingyue was surprised: "You noticed that?"
Pei Jinghuai snorted defiantly, "I'm not stupid. His eyes are practically glued to my cousin."
Shen Lingyue almost burst out laughing, shaking her head and sighing, "Indeed, there are three things in the world that cannot be hidden."
"What?"
"Poverty, cough, and...love."
Shen Lingyue shook his hand twice, smiling, and said, "Seeing how enthusiastic you were today, I've decided..."
She tiptoed and whispered a few words in his ear. Pei Jinghuai's eyes lit up instantly. He reached out and scooped Shen Lingyue up on his shoulder. Ignoring her screams, he ran all the way back to the Marquis's residence.
We've been waiting for this day and night, and finally, we can finally enjoy some time alone together!
...
Yan Yi finally managed to persuade Pei Yuzhen, but when she went downstairs, she found that Shen Lingyue was gone.
Just as she was about to ask someone, she looked up and saw Pei Jingyi standing on the opposite side of the crowd. A look of joy appeared on her face, and she subconsciously quickened her pace to walk over.
Yan Yi looked at his official robes. "You're off duty? Did you come directly from the Ministry of War?"
"Well, today is my cousin's new book launch, I guess you won't be home so early."
Pei Jingyi naturally took her hand, looked at the long line of people ahead, and smiled slightly, "Looks like it's selling quite well?"
Yan Yi nodded, her face beaming with pride. "They all praised my cousin's story and are looking forward to the next volume."
Pei Jingyi also had a book in his hand. He flipped through a few pages and stopped at a page with a colorful illustration, saying meaningfully, "It's not just the story that's being praised, but also your drawing skills."
Yan Yi smiled sheepishly: "I only drew a few pages of illustrations... What's really attractive is the color overprinting technique."
It all came down to Shen Lingyue's quick wit. While visiting Lian Shu and her father's woodblock printing workshop, she suddenly had a brilliant idea: "Isn't this just stamping? If we paint different woodblocks with different colors and print them layer by layer, wouldn't that be a color illustration?"
Yan Yi was "entrusted with an important task" and, together with the Lian family father and son, spent several days researching and finally tested a new type of color printing.
Not only that, she also made a small modification to the Lian family's printing tools, which greatly increased efficiency; otherwise, Dong Lanyi's new book could not have been published and sold so quickly.
Pei Jingyi could see the faint blue under her eyes when he looked down. These days, Yan Yi had been drawing and improving her techniques, often staying up late into the night. He had seen how hard she was working.
He reached out and brushed a stray hair from her forehead, his voice carrying a hint of barely perceptible heartache and pity, "Now you can finally get some rest."
Yan Yi, however, was completely oblivious and shook her head. "There are still too few illustrations in the book. My sister-in-law and I have discussed it, and we can publish another set of picture books in the future, using illustrations to tell the story. This way, even people who are not literate can understand the story, which will be another source of income for Langhuan Pavilion."
Pei Jingyi couldn't help but ask, "What kind of rotten stuff has your sister-in-law come up with this time...?"
Yan Yi looked up: "Hmm?"
He immediately changed his tune: "A brilliant idea that I couldn't have come up with even if I racked my brains."
-----------------------
Author's Note: [Moon, carried back to the Marquis's mansion, suddenly sneezed several times: Who's secretly cursing me?]
Here's a brief explanation of the setting: we're in a fictional world, but when Yuezai decided to write a book, the "female-oriented" online literature market was still largely untapped. That's why Xia Tou Gongzi became so popular – was he the first to take the plunge? (Even though he didn't actually write it, oh my god!) However, in the overall environment, female creators are still suppressed. Historically, there were definitely far fewer female authors than male authors, or some stories that appear to be written by women but are attributed to men are usually imposters, or they don't want to reveal their true identities. There are certainly many female authors who publish storybooks, poetry collections, and anthologies, but compared to the general population, they are still a minority. A minority, a minority – that's the premise of our story! (Just like there were women in ancient times who remained unmarried for life, but compared to the general environment, they were still a minority; we can't use individuals to represent the whole.)
So my cousin initially didn't plan to personally promote it and even used a pseudonym. But that scoundrel, "Shrimp Head Prince," was so unethical, insisting on spreading rumors about her. My cousin had no choice but to step in herself, and then she discovered that the outside world wasn't so terrible after all? This can be considered a good start for the other girls. As one comment I saw in the comments section yesterday said, "We should strive to overturn the table!" [cheering emoji]
Xiao Jie's situation also stems from her own difficulties, which I won't spoil yet. I'll try my best to explain later so everyone can understand her. [Let me see][Let me see]
//For those interested in this topic, I can recommend two books [sprinkling emojis]: Joanna Lars's *How to Stop Women's Writing* and Virginia Woolf's very famous *A Room of One's Own*, and also my dream movie *Little Women*, ahhh, it's so good! [crying emojis]
///Just a quick note: no extra chapter today. Tomorrow! For sure tomorrow!
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